Well it's official.

The end of an era is here. After what seemed like six months...because it has been six months....sorry, that joke really needs work. I will put that in the 'IMPROVE' file...I have finally settled down for the next stage of my life.

And actually, despite all my hesitations and thick-headed stubbornness, its actually not as bad as I first feared it to be. But that's mainly because I'm the type of Wolf who gets comfortable in his life and rebukes any attempt to change that organized and structured life. And things were going along fine...the kind of life where if you get lost in the woods, you just stop where you are and build a house. That way you can say "Well I was lost, but now I live here. I have greatly improved my predicament."

That was me ten years ago. Oh what a supple young Wolf I was. Beautiful head of hair that was lively with shine and bounce. Eyes that at the time were blue and were the star of many a Visine Eyedrop commercial. I was just twenty years old, fresh out of my teen years that I could never live again, ready to relive them again in my twenties. I was a simple young man, juggling oranges eight at a time and honing my skills as a folk whittler.

My dream had always been to become a famous juggler and spend my off time hanging around with the strongmen and acrobats of whatever circus happened into town, but since it was wintertime and there were no places I could juggle without fear of being made fun of, I decided it was time to take the next step of my life.

But first I had to consult the Sacred Bones of Phil Collins.

So I set upon the harrowing three-quarter of a mile drive to the magical Sussudio Lake near my home to set up my praying pagoda. With 'Take Me Home' (the extended 12" version mind you) coming out of the 1988 Range Rover I then owned, I built a powerful fire with the sleeping bags and clothes I had stolen from some homeless orphan children living under a bridge. (Phil Collins always said it took the tear-stained cloth of an underprivileged child to have the strongest visions)

So, once the fire was raging I went into the pagoda and bowed before the enlarged album cover of 'Hello I Must Be Going!' and took out the ancient rawhide bag containing the Sacred Bones. "Oh Sacred Bones of Phil Collins," I chanted. "I seek wisdom! What should I do for the next not quite ten years of my life? I only ask that because I will probably be doing something different a few months before January 2015 and it won't quite constitute as ten complete years, but I want to round it up because it will be easier to say." I then threw the bones into the air.

There was silence for a few moments, and then the fire died out and the cold January 2005 winds blew into the pagoda, bringing along a 'Balto' videocassette that I thought was weird because nobody was using videocassettes anymore and I wasn't sure if Phil wanted me to become a fleamarket vendor or go work for Netflix. Then the bones returned to the snow and spelled out one word. 'Alaska'.

I was meant to be a sleddog racer! I think. That or I was just supposed to go to Alaska and find myself. Either way I had two Siberian Huskies and a 'Balto' videocassette in above average condition. I was on my way to the next chapter of my life!

And so as most of you already know, I ended up leaving Montana where I had been living at the time and made the several day journey north to Alaska where I slept in my Range Rover in the coldest of winter nights until I got settled in Barrow, where I got a place and started my career in the Aero industry. I got snowblindness. I got two of the greatest wolf-dogs ever to grace this earth! I got to live in the most beautiful place on the planet. I got to eat polar bear! I became a furry! I fell in love and then had two beautiful children and became a family man before I reached age 30. Also, I never once lost my sense of weirdness.

But do not fret my friends. This is not a journal saying my goodbyes. I had another ritual with the Sacred Bones of Phil Collins last night and he assured me that like it or not, most likely I am going to be torturing you all until we all mature and give up being furries or animals start to talk and become bipedal and doing everything we write in our stories or draw in our pictures.

No, I guess this journal is me saying goodbye to the life I'd grown accustomed to the last (almost) ten years. For that time I was on my own, making a name for myself and quite happy being the lone wolf that I was. I was young, free, able to do what I wanted, when I wanted, and how I wanted. Now, that's all changed. Hard to believe it, but now I actually have a purpose in life. I have not one, but three other (non-furry) people who look up to me everyday now to be there for them. Its a world of responsibility and I get to be the lucky Wolf at the helm.

But its not as bad as I feared. And trust me, I have been scared beyond belief. For the last year and a half...maybe even longer, I have been asking myself every night before bed what I have been doing and if I am ready for this. Especially since last December, when the whole bombshell about moving was dropped on me. I let everyone here know what was going on back in February. And six months have passed since then. What a time it has been.

And I am happy to say, we have made the move with little disruption into our lives. Beautiful Lafayette, Louisiana is the new home for the Wolf family. I did end up buying the house I had shown you, but because of all the updating it needed I was able to get it for $205,000. Sadly I have yet to encounter any ghosts.

I have also settled in with a new job, with Delta, and am on a more relaxed schedule than that of my old 3 in the morning until 7 at night Glennallen to the rest of Alaska route. I'm now going from Lafayette to Atlanta to Houston to Dallas and back to Lafayette and still making it home by evening to have time with the twins. So, the reason for my absence has been due to shuttling between Alaska and Louisiana, remodeling our new home, and me studying and testing for my new licenses and new job. Which I will admit, we have gotten a lot done in the last few months. And I am exhausted. 7 days a week, 15 to 18 hours a day doing stuff leaves very little time for much else.

Nicole and the twins and the dogs came down shortly after we closed on the house at the end of April. I stayed up in Alaska to keep working and packing and bringing things down on the weekends. That was absolute hell for me. Two months all alone up there. It made me realize how much I missed everyone. And this is coming from a Wolf who spent the majority of his time by himself. What a turnaround. But I survived. And in case anyone is asking why I wasn't on here while I had all that alone time, the answer again is time. I'm the kind of fur who hates being in debt, so I busted my tail working and making investments to make sure that the new house and all the remodeling is getting paid for. I plan on having the new home paid for in ten years, because I am half-Jewish and hate the idea of paying all that interest. So It's work, work, work for me.

And just a word of advice, from a Wolf who's been around the energy business for most of his life, invest in energy futures. Now that I'm down here in Louisiana, I've got my paws into double the oil, propane, natural gas and nuclear energy fields. My investments are doing mighty fine in Targa, Oneok Hydrocarbons, Shell, Enterprise Products, and BP. Another big one to look into. Water. That is becoming a hot commodity. I've got my paws in a few water-holding companies. Very nice investment. Not to brag or anything, but I am looking at hitting a seven-figure investment income within twenty years or so. My parents always told me to invest in products that people always need. And coming from cold climates, its always been oil, propane and gas. Just a little advice in case you want to look out for your futures :-}

So anyways, back to my life. Everything came together about mid-June. Which was nice, because it wasn't excruciatingly hot yet. But it didn't take long. I'd say after a week of being down here, they decided that I need 80 to 100 degree temperatures to welcome me to the south. Plus throw in some humidity and thunderstorms and more humidity just to add excitement to the pot. Ick.

So, as you may have guessed, I installed central air into the house, which was a HUGE lifesaver for me. Its so much better now, being able to set the temperature in each room. That way everyone can be at their own comfort level.

The remodeling is coming along fine as well. All the drywalling and rewiring has been done, and we've gotten the three bedrooms as well as the new attic guest rooms carpeted and trimmed. Nicole is still debating over the paint colours while I've moved ahead with redoing the downstairs. We did the main rooms downstairs except for the kitchen and I stole the study off the dining room to have as my own private get away point. And mainly to set up all my records and books. Maybe one day I'll get to start up that online radio station I've always wanted to.

Oh! And another little tidbit. I've sorta claimed the sunroom for me as well. Well, just one section of it. Nicole has the rest as her greenhouse and furniture restoration hobby. And the twins have a field day playing with their toys there. But, I have taken a small corner and set up an easel and paints. I've actually been trying to paint. The landscape down here is soo...intriguing...the swamps and shorelines and green forests....so I'm attempting some landscape/nature paintings. Nothing too interesting yet, but then again I am a beginner. And Savannah Maria loves watching me paint. She'll sit there and reach for the paintbrush and laugh at how horrible I am as a painter. I don't know, maybe it wont go anywhere.

What else. Well, it has been quite the culture change moving back to civilisation as well. So much to see and do! It's insane. This past weekend we drove over to Houston for a dog show. Nicole's been going to gardening classes and just loves being outdoors planting and pruning. The twins have gotten to go to the parks nearby and out to state parks and down to the shore and next weekend we will return to Houston so they can see the zoo. Its really a lot brighter and colourful and livelier than Alaska and I must say, I really enjoy it. Its not at all like I feared it would be. You almost forget about the heat.

The dogs hate it though. They stay inside in the air conditioning. Very smart. Cheyenne will be 12 years old this coming December. Budrow (or Buddy or CowFats, whatever name you want to call him) is turning ten in a couple of weeks. The Humane Society made a mistake on his age. He was older than they wrote down. But that's Nicole's black English Retriever. He acts like its 100 degrees everyday inside the house. Typical old Lab. lol

And Nicole adopted another dog while she was down here. A goofy little Chihuahua that was at the shelter and named her Peanut. I'll post some pictures of them when I get the chance. She's becoming more of an animal lover and more of a plant lover every day. But she's 100% happier and I can see it in her face so that's good. It's also good because after we went to that dog show last weekend, I picked out the dog I'm going to get next.

A Borzoi. oh what a beautiful, graceful dog. I'm thinking because the heavier furred dogs I've always loved wouldn't do so well in the Louisiana heat, I'm going to foster one and eventually adopt one. We have to go out to Midland, Texas, where a group we met at the dog show has dozens of them available. So its all about picking out the one that suits us best.

What else has been going on?

There's this one fast food restaurant down here that is driving me nuts. Its called Raising Cane's and its a chicken strip place with the best dipping sauce you have ever tried! Oh my god. Nicole (I know!) brought home a meal of it one night just because she was running late and like me, wanted to try it. Well, the chicken fingers are really good. Nothing to win any awards or anything....but the dipping sauce. I thought I went to heaven. It was sooo frickin' good. It took all my willpower to only eat two chicken strips and a little container of sauce. But I want more! But I can't. Cause I don't want to lose self control. Once in a while is fine...but no more than once a month or longer. Besides, there are so many more great seafood and Cajun restaurants to try. It'll be into next year before we get to them all.

The twins have started to learn how to walk!

They are getting to the point where they will almost let go of the furniture and can make it a few steps before falling. So that will be a fun challenge, keeping an eye on them with all the construction going on. And Philip Connor has gotten his love of transportation just like me. He has one of those things, a walker maybe?, that he sits in and uses his feet to move it around. Its in the shape of a car and has buttons that make sounds and a steering wheel and gearshift. His sister has one that is pink and does all the same things and every once in a while they can get them moving enough to bump into each other and start laughing like crazy. Other times they just sit there, yelling at each other and bouncing up and down. They'll probably be in Power Wheels vehicles by next summer.

And now they are each finding their voices. No real words yet. Just laughing and gurgling and baby talk that they seem to understand and no one else. And they have to sleep in the same room even though they have their own separate bedrooms. Otherwise they cry and fuss. And they have been stick-tights since I got down here.

I don't know. I'm sitting here in the living room as I write this on my laptop, looking at those two. They fell asleep on a blanket under one of those toys that you set up and they lie under it, batting at the squeaky and furry toys that hang down. Its like a mobile but on a frame and it has a zoo theme, with lions and tigers and elephants and such. It keeps them entertained.

I'm sitting here surrounded by boxes that need unpacked and painting that needs to be done and a list ten kilometres long that needs tackled. But I wanted to come on here. I have the day off of work and it was long overdue that I had time to collect my thoughts and sit down and remember how great it is to come on here and see all my friends from all over. Some I've known since I first came here in 2007. Some I've only met this year. But that doesn't matter to me at all. All I think about is how interesting each and every one of you are and how you all have your own stories to tell. That's why I keep coming back here. Despite real life getting crazy and overwhelming, I will find time to get back here and let everyone know I am alright and still with you. I know a few of you have send me messages asking where I've been. I appreciate that, it truly touches my heart, and now you have your answer. I can't say that I can be here as much as I'd like, but I can be here.

Which brings me back to the title of this journal. It's true. AlaskanWolf is dead. That (almost) ten year chapter of my life is over. Gone is the Wolf who lived his twenties with only his self to worry about. Everything I did was for my own benefit. I could be as crazy as I wanted, be as uncontrolled as I wanted, and be as stupid as I wanted. But no longer. Its no longer about me, my friends. Now its about everybody around me. Both family and friends. And you know what, sometimes it's not too bad sacrificing all you've known for others. Sometimes it's pretty damn rewarding.

And just so you don't all think I've completely matured...just remember: If you like my sexy stubble, just be warned that it will irritate your thighs when I go down on you.

See, I may no longer be an AlaskanWolf, but I'm still the same old Adrik Wolf.

Now I just have to figure out how to change my username....

Until next time,
~Adrik