Last summer we did not have a car up here. Instead we used Uber and Lyft to get everywhere. To get a feel for that, one has to remember that it rains often here. So the cars get dirty and dusty. Many of the Uber and Lyft vehicles we rode in had heavy plastic on the seats. The floors had either industrial floor mats or a lot of dirt. It isn’t a pleasant experience. It also limited the places we could go.

After doing the math, we decided it was more economical to have a car this year. We planned to have Derek purchase a car in Alaska. We will then drive it back to Denver in the fall. Likely through Canada. Because YOLO!

Today was spent looking at vehicles. We went to three places and narrowed it down quickly. The long part was the paperwork. Mainly the hard sell on the extended warranty. No. And no. Still no. Yikes.

The day progressed well, except my lack of warm clothing. I saw that rain was in the forecast so I wore long sleeves with a vest and my rain coat. I forgot how cold it can be in Anchorage. A 50 degree day is bone-chilling to me whereas in Denver it could be a no coat day. By mid afternoon my nose was ice cold, despite being inside most of the time. I longed for my puffy coat and my scarf.

Afterwards we went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse. Neither of us had eaten since breakfast. Unfortunately they do not have sweet potatoes at this location. I had also forgotten this. I made up for this by taking several packages of peanuts home.

The lack of sweet potatoes reminded me that Alaska can feel like a different country. For one thing, my phone started roaming despite having the same service as Derek. Last summer I got a warning about my excessive roaming and a threat of cancellation. We will have to go through all the settings and troubleshoot this. And though I can’t make Texas Roadhouse carry sweet potatoes, they usually have them at the grocery store.

Another interesting tidbit is I wanted to order my facial cleanser from Philosophy. They do not ship to Alaska. I guess I am going to be switching cleansers. Let that be a warning, should I start looking older. LOL.

There also is not a Chick fil a, In and Out, Dollar Tree or Taco Bell in Alaska. I already miss the frosted lemonade at Chick fil a and candy section at the Dollar Tree.

We were too tired to do the necessary food shopping, so tomorrow we will go to Costco and Walmart.

Costco in Anchorage is an adventure. So make sure to tune in tomorrow for fun facts and pictures!