My aaa experience

 

Last week I was in Anchorage for the 'aaa's' or, as they are known in full, the Alaska Anthropological Association annual meeting.  I have been going to these meetings almost every year for 30 years. As I've written before it is sort of like a high school reunion - I see the same people year after year, and often it is the only place I see these people.  'These people' are also fellow archaeologists and are among the few people in the world who truly 'get' what I do.  I tell them what I've been up to and I get to see what everybody else has been up to.

This year I presented on the Alutiiq Museum's recent work in Kiliuda Bay.  I was also second author on a paper about the museum's recent survey on Shuyak Island.  Our talks were not until the very last day of the conference.

I also had a birthday this year at the conference, and thanks to my co-worker Molly everybody knew about it.  Usually I manage to keep my birthdays incognito, but not this year.  I turned 60 and had 2 parties.  One in the hotel bar where they embarrassed my with a card that had a photo of me and the Baffin Island polar bear from 30 years ago.  And the other was a dinner party with Anchorage friends.  It seemed every time I ran into anyone they were wishing me a happy birthday.

Patrick