Last Frontier provides good life

Resslin' Around by Casey Ressler

The other day, an e-mail popped into my inbox from an old college roommate. We hadn't spoke in about 10 years, so it was a bit of a surprise to see his name there.

He filled me in on all his travels during the last decade - jobs in places like Vegas, Dallas, Seattle and Topeka, Kan. It sounded like a whirlwind tour of America, with jobs sprinkled in along the way. He is now back where he started, in a suburb of Detroit, and he's getting married this August.

I, too, am back where I started, you could say. Since college, there has only been one job for me, and it hasn't taken me to Vegas, Dallas, Seattle or Topeka, Kan. It has, however, been just as rewarding, and that's why I haven't gone anyplace else. I replied back to him and filled him in on my past decade - one job, one wife, one kid. Put that way, it didn't sound that fantastic, I thought to myself.

I was thinking about how boring that must have sounded to my roommate as I drove to work, when I noticed Pioneer Peak standing tall in front of me, the contours of the peak standing out more vibrant than usual. As I marveled at the view, I forgot about the e-mail and started thinking about upcoming fishing trips on the Talkeetna and Kenai rivers, and about how I needed to get my camping gear ready for the spring. The sun was shining bright, and I cracked the window to let in some fresh spring air.

After first reading his original e-mail, I wondered to myself if I had missed out on everything by coming back to Alaska almost a decade ago. I didn't travel around the country, or the world for that matter, and I haven't traded job after job moving up the corporate ladder. But after seeing Pioneer Peak and looking forward to days on the river, filled with spectacular views of Mount McKinley and the Alaska Range, I realized quickly that I wasn't missing out on anything - actually, it was he who was missing out on the Great Land. You can have Detroit. I'll take Alaska and all it offers.

Casey Ressler (valleylife@

frontiersman.com) is the Valley Life editor.