Yellow Tags

 

                                      

                                    

There are only Alaskan's here in Alaska. 

I have come to that conclusion after looking at all the license plates in the parking lots, on the highways, and curbside for the past week. The bright yellow Alaska license plate is everywhere but there is nary a Florida, Nebraska, or Vermont tag to be found. Granted, Vermont tags are rarely seen anywhere anyway either because it's that small of a state or it's residents don't venture far from home. But that's beside the point. My point is that really, truly the only tags you see here in Alaska are Alaska tags.

I've spent many a highway road trip where passing the time meant seeing who could identify, call out, and take credit for a state's license plate we had not yet come across. Hey! There's a Florida tag! Do we have that one yet? No? Tally one for me then. 

Of course, that was back when a state only had ONE tag. You could spot that peach on a Georgia tag from two miles back, or the brightly colored New Mexico tag, or the green Colorado tag that had, of course, mountains on it. Then states started issuing multiple tags. What the heck? Now we have to tally the five different California tags out there? The Hawaiian tag with the rainbow on it was a real find and oddly enough Alaska tags were very hard to come by. Now I know why.

Everyone who lives in Alaska stays in Alaska. Their tags are all here. I kid you not. I talked to a group of tourists at a glacier the other day who said they were from Houston. They SOUNDED like they were from Houston, they even looked like they were from Houston - tall, friendly, big smiles. But when I went to the parking lot was there a Texas license plate on any of the vehicles? There was not. Only Alaska tags.

Okay, so now I know the rental car companies are making a killing. Who in their right mind DRIVES to Alaska? Apparently not even people from Washington or Oregon because I have yet to find one of their tags around these parts either. So they are flying in or cruising in and their first stop is to rent a car with an Alaskan tag. Or possibly visitors are lucky enough to have gracious hosts who loan you cars with Alaska plates on them like we are. 

And maybe that's what I like about all those yellow plates. While we're in Alaska we're not from North Dakota, Mississippi, or Kansas, or New York.

While we are in Alaska we are Alaskan. My yellow tag says so.