Latest Update: June 19, 2002 by Ben Marcus

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19. 2:20 AM. THE KINKOS ON NORTHERN LIGHTS IN ANCHORAGE

The Kinkos on Northern Lights Boulevard in Anchorage.

Shit.

I'm back at the Kinkos on Northern Lights in Anchorage.

I was just here, last summer, with Gusher Gus and Ike, and the van. I was here a lot, communicating, wasting time, looking ragged and suspicious in my Army jacket, trying to get the Russia trip going, then the tidal bore thing when the Russia trip fell through. None of it worked, and I drove all the way home, empty-handed. Cursing. No more Alaska.

And now I'm back, but I did it the easy way this time, I flew. It took six hours to do what took me five months last summer: Get to Anchorage.

No Gusher Gus this time, no Ike and no van. The van is in the parking lot at SFO for $12 a day. The only sign of Ike is the cat urine smell on my fishing gear. And I have no idea where Gusher Gus is, or if he is even still in Alaska.

Anchorage is still pretty much the same: San Jose of the north, with mountains that look like the mountains around Honolulu inthe next Ice Age.

It's 2:15 and it's still light outside. I've been here about two hours, after a pretty long, eventful, typically fouled-up day.

Broke my last good fishing pole this morning, before the trip even started. Got to the airport well ahead of time and still almost missed my flight. Got a "Can't find Operating System" warning message when I tried to boot up the laptop in Seattle. Must have fried it in the x-ray machine at SFO. Merde.

But I made it, and now I am stuck in Anchorage, again, waiting for Colin to show up because I chose not to waste $65 on the shuttle to the Alyeska Prince and another $140 for one night at the hotel. I'm going to wait for Colin to show up, 18 hours from now, and go to Girdwood in his rental car.

It sucks being poor. Wish I had the van.

This morning I was in Santa Cruz after driving there from Benicia last night, and dropping off Ike with Joanne Joanne Ottone, bless her heart (if she gives him back). Had the cheap breakfast at Russel's on Portola. Saw Wingnut and thanked him again for connecting me with Steve Rabineau. Ran around Santa Cruz all morning, doing laundry, going to the bank, organizing gear for the trip. I slammed the top of my old, trusty Fenwick rod in the door van and broke off the tip. That was my last good rod except for the trout rod and I felt as if I had just run over Ike. All sick like. I needed someone who knew fly rods and fiberglass and just by chance, earlier that morning I had talked to the glasser for Freeline, who knew Robert Garret in Wyoming and was a fly fisherman who also knew how to fiberglass. He fixed the rod tip good as new, so now I can go flog fruitlessly for steelhead again. Bad news/good news. No I need a guy how knows how o fix Gateway laptops, and who will give me a ride to Girdwood. Hello? God?

I asked John Mel to pick up my mail and bring it on Friday, because his shaping room is right near my mailbox. Maybe he'll bring me some checks up to Alaska, so I don't have to beg in the streets.

Gave Boots McGhee a copy of Water on the Brain and he said he'd read it. Got a couple of compliments on the Santa Cruz article around town, so that was nice.

Applied for a job with KSBW TV and sent them a copy of the SURFER Video Awards, because they wanted someone with "exceptional writing skills" who also knew the AVID editing system. That's me.

Finally got out of Santa Cruz around 14:00 and made it to the airport by 16:00. got organized, left the green security jacket behind and checked in smooth with time to spare for a 17:10 flight. I had to pass the laptop through the x-ray machine, and in Seattle I found out it was fried. "Can't find operating system." Great. Shit. I left my system start-up discs in Benicia. If that computer is down the whole trip I am going to be quite put out, because there will be a lot of hours to kill, and I have books to write.

I passed a Gateway Country Store on the taxi ride in to Kinkos (with the Pakistani manfrom Sweden), so maybe I can kill some time there getting the laptop fixed. Crap. Alaskaed again.

In San Francisco I was so early I was almost late. I was sitting in the bar watching some dumb ESPN thing on Jesse Ventura and lost track of time and when I walked over to see if the flight was boarding, people started yelling at me. It was 5:00 and the flight left at 5:10 and they were about to take my bags off. But I got on okay and got a seat in the back and it was uneventful.

Waited around Seattle for two hours, stressing about the computer. Called Gateway and they did the best they could, but I need those damned system start-up discs. Oh well.

Mike McDaniel? I might need a Fed Ex favor. They're in a black vinyl case, somewhere in that horror show of an office of mine. Sorry. Thanks.

The Seattle to Anchorage flight was three hours.. I had a nice chat with Miss Vicki the Flight Attendant and watched High Crimes. I also read Water on the Brain and I can't help but wonder why anyone wouldn't want to be in that movie. It would be a blast to make. We shall see.

Got into Anchorage at midnight and it was still light out. The air felt nice and cool and wet. I decided not to spend $65 for the shuttle to the Alyeska Prince and $140 for half a night in the hotel. So I'm going to waste money on taxis and Kinkos and waste 19 hours waiting for Colin to show up at 19:30 this evening.

Bad planning on my part, but just the latest in my Alaska debacles.

Now it's 2:30 in the morning and I guess I will hang around here until 8:00 or so. I have time to kill.

Hope this all works out. I'm dragging a bunch of people up to Alaska to ride this thing, and I'm a little unsure that it is worth doing. Colin gets in tonight. Amy will be here Thursday and Peter and John and Adam will be here Friday night. Hopefully there will bea good article for National Geo Adventure or some mainstream magazine, and hopefullythis trip will convince Red Bull or someone else to sponsor an event on this thing.

Other impressions: Pay phone calls are a quarter. I left my bags at the airport, where they charge $12 to store antlers and also have freezer storage for salmon and moose and whatever. Only in Alaska. It cost me $15 to take a taxi here, and it'll cost me $15 to get back. Shoots. Got an insurance quote on the Sports Awards from Scott Bedell: $120,000. No problem. Sell stock. My Kinkos bill is up to $11.00. I have about $350 on me. That has to last a while. that's all for now. Traveling can suck sometimes. Hope my computer isn't ruined. Left my Super 8 camera in Benicia. I sure hope someone is bringing a video camera. My little five-second MPEGS aren't going to cut it.

If anyone wants to read half of a great screenplay, go to:

www.selloquence.com/fin.html

4:30 AM, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 2002 THE KINKOS ON NORTHERN LIGHTS BOULEVARD IN ANCHORAGE.

The good news is, I just fixed the laptop. The hard disc slid over somehow and it was a simple fix. The bad news is, I wasted $15 at Kinkos writing that first scattered e-mail. I could have fixed the computer on the plane.

Oh well. I prefer the good news.

I just went outside to look at a car accident that somehow happened at 4:29 in the morning in Anchorage, in front of the Kinkos on Northern Lights Boulevard.

It's already getting brighter out. The air is cool and nice and smells goooooood.

All I have to do now is figure out how to kill the next 15 hours.

That is all.

Ben