29 sep 2012 blue dot for bhikkhu

 

Once upon a time there was a little dog who loved to hike.   One day the little dog found a big bone at a Kenai campsite. He spent many happy hours gnawing on this bone.

One day he no longer could hike, and eventually chewing on the big bone was too hard.  Today his people hiked the Blue Dot Trail for him and left his big bone, with a bright red ribbon, under a birch tree for another dog to find and enjoy.

 

 In memory of little bhikkhu

a dog who loved bones

especially when they were bigger than he was.

4 mar 12 snow update

The snows continue to fall every couple of days, and Anchorage is nearing an all-time record.   Here are updates to the photos of our yard that I posted in January plus two new ones.

the vegetable garden.  Paul keeps a path open to the compost bins.  The top of the snow is at my chest.

The top of the pagoda is that bright snowy bump just right of center. 

Bhikkhu in the tunnel that is the path to our back door. His back is about 12" tall.

Bhikkhu in the driveway.  The far snow wall is chest height.  If I raise my hand , I can touch the top of the wall on the left.  The pagoda is to my left.

sep 11 golden Alaska

So quickly the sunlight of long summer days is replaced by the golden glow of leaves ...

17-20 june 11 sunny sound

I couldn't believe I was wearing shorts as we motored into Harriman Fjord. The water is ringed by glaciers whose icebergs are floating everywhere. The first two days of our long weekend were downright hot (by Alaskan standards). Even after the clouds returned, little rain fell and we enjoyed a dry weekend on Blossom. Two downsides to the calm weather -- no sailing and no breeze to knock down the no-see-ums.

Despite the millions of little buggers trying to steer me otherwise, it was an easy time to take Guillame Apollonaire's advice: Now and then it's good to pause in our pursuit of happiness, and just be happy.

Hobo Bay

Packing B up to the ridge

Blossom anchored at the base of Serpentine Glacier

Paul guides us out of Hummer Bay (where the tse-tses were unrelenting)

4 june 11 upwind in port wells

When I emailed our float plan to my family, my brother in Wisconsin replied "I envy you. We have a high in the upper 50's today with strong winds. It feels chilly; not boating weather." Hah! I said. That's a good day in Prince William Sound. I hoped it would reach 50. It didn't for 3 days, but that's beyond today's blog.

Despite the chill and rain, we hoisted the sails and headed up Port Wells to Esther Passage. Paul was at the helm for most of the sail because the wind held during his 1-hour shift. We have resolved to try to sail any breeze that comes up, so despite the weather, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to make some distance under sail and without the motor.

Eventually the wind died down and we furled the sails and started the motor. Minutes later, a pod of dall porpoises started swimming alongside us, and then crossing in front of us. Technically I think it was my shift at the helm, but I grabbed my camera and scooted up to the mast to photograph their antics. They are very hard to photograph, but you can see two in this photo - one on either side of the furled jib.

And while we were out in the rain, Bhikkhu was doing what all good first mates do, especially when the boat has two captains - he was checking the charts and guide and keeping us on course.

11 may 15 2 months in a post

This may be the longest that I haven't updated the blog in the last 5 years that I've been doing it. I keep wanting to simplify my life but saying 'no' can be a problem for me. It's been a busy 2 months with existing responsibilities, new obligations, and some fun. I'll focus on the fun to catch up on the transition from late winter to spring. I start with Bhikkhu because he is fun and the last two weeks have been busy with vet visits to make him healthy, too.

The end of March featured the glorious weather that we come to expect of that month. We took advantage of warm temperatures and soft snow to explore some trails that we normally bike in the winter.

Taking a bone from a scruffy white dog is not like taking candy from a baby... Paul found this for Bhikkhu during a spring ski at the end of March in Talkeetna.

On Aprils Fools Day we skied out to friends' cabin at Dalteli Lake with three other couples. Roger snowmachined our stuff in and left us a message in the snow at one of the intersections. We stayed for two nights, skiing to another lake on the full day, to visit other Talkeetna friends.

Alaska Airlines treated passengers to a fantastic view of Denali in early April. I was on my way back from a small conference at Chena Hot Springs, east of Fairbanks. The springs are nice but the best part may have been the fresh salads, including tomatoes and basil, that they grow in the greenhouse. The Ice Palace is also a trippy (and cold) experience. If you haven't been to Chena in the past decade, it's worth a trip.

By late April, the daffodils on the south side of the house were beginning to bloom. The snow was slower to leave the rest of the yard. In fact, there's still a small patch on the north side under a birch tree.

May has been beautiful, too. Here is sunset around 10:00 on May 2nd. It barely gets dark at night now.

Last weekend we went to Talkeetna for our annual episode of voyeurism of mating birds. We didn't set any personal records at Birdathon, but we had fun hiking and biking.

I can't promise anything, but I do hope to get better about updating the blog. We've got a new computer which has made photo uploading and editing a little faster.

13 feb 11 winter walkies

When the somewhat weekly starts to slip to almost monthly, there's nothing like a dog photo to fill in the gap. This is what B and I did the afternoon that I returned from Hawaii.

feb 11 another tour of paradise

Re-entry after 10 days on the Big Island was tough last week. The return to winter weather didn't bother me; the cold actually felt lessened by being hot for a week. The difficulty was the return to work and life responsibilities beyond the basics. I had easily become satisfied with no greater stress than deciding where to hike, bike or snorkel, doing laundry, and making meals. One of the highlights of the trip was a concert by Grammy-winning slack key guitarist Jeff Peterson. I played two of his CDs over and over again last week to keep my aloha grooving.

Like last year, this trip incorporated biking, hiking, and snorkeling with our gracious hosts Pam and Roger. We rented mountain bikes the first weekend. On Saturday we biked to the end of the road in Puna where the lava flow has taken out more houses and one of the beaches that we hiked to last year. Paul and I split a mahi-mahi burger at the Kalapana cafe. Then we pedaled back to the car, which was conveniently parked at the Ahalanui hot ponds for post-ride soaking.

The four of us drove to the Kona side for a couple of days of snorkeling. Like last year, the surf was high and our options for the water were limited on the first day. After Pam and Roger went to visit some other friends, Paul and I hiked to the Captain Cook Monument in Kealekekua Bay for a fun afternoon of exploring the lava point and snorkeling. We were grateful for the clouds when we hiked back out.

We hiked to these idyllic beaches the next day. The far beach had decent snorkeling and a great lunch spot in the shade of an ironwood tree.

Back on the Puna side, we completed the trip with two long dips in our favorite snorkeling spot - Kapoho tide pools. I bought a waterproof, pocket-size camera for the trip and had too much fun photographing and filming the fish and coral (and Paul). On our next trip, I'd like to hang out at Kapoho for several days - snorkeling when the tide is high and watching the ocean (or napping or reading) when the tide is low.

I came home a few days before Paul did so that Pam and Roger could put him to work on the house. I hear that he did a wonderful job trimming their front door with ohia logs. I can't wait to see photos. He arrived with a plumaria lei for Bhikkhu.

highlights 2010

Over dinner on New Year's Eve, we remembered some of the fun and travels of 2010. Again, we are grateful for the good fortune that continues in our lives: good friends, great family, stable jobs, good health, and being with each other.

Here are some of the highlights of each month of 2010:

January: Good skiing when the snow was fresh and great mountain biking on packed trails in the local parks. Never a dull moment in Anchor-town.

February: An active trip of hiking, biking, and snorkeling with good friends in Hawaii.

March: We skied out to Dalteli, a small lake in the Alaska Range foothills with a group of friends.

April: A warm sun made spring skiing solar powered and brought a smile to everyone's face. Even the ptarmigan got friendly.

May: With the return of the green came more biking and hiking, and gardening. This little footpath became a regular route on evening walks in Bicentennial Park.

June: When we weren't on the boat in Prince William Sound, we rode the singletrack trails in Bicentennial Park.

July: We spent most weekends and an entire week on the sailboat in Prince William Sound. One of the highlights of our time in the Sound were hikes through bogs with abundant shooting stars.

August: A silver-lining of the wet summer were the mushrooms. We spent many evenings harvesting boletes in the parks. This red bolete dramatically and quickly exhibited a change in coloration to blue when cut, which signifies a poisonous bolete.

September: The annual backcountry bike trip with the Alaska Dirt Divas to the Serenity Cabin near Eklutna Lake in Chugach State Park. Blue skies, stunning fall colors, and fun friends.

October: Mountain biking with the Alaska Dirt Divas on the White Rim Trail, in Canyonlands National Park, Utah - an adventure with good friends

November: Spending Thanksgiving with my mom, step-dad, brother, and sister-in-law in central New York. My brother and I wandered the farm's woodlands, just the two of us, and appreciated the big trees.
December: Santa found us in Talkeetna, bringing us more than we deserved and helping to remind us how blessed we are with friends, family, and a happy pack.

A post about the highlights of the year begs a mention of the sadnesses of our year as we lost family, friends, and acquaintances who have touched our lives and hearts. In August a plane carrying three young maintenance workers from Katmai National Park disappeared in bad weather on the coast. Paul knew one of the young men and they worked with some of our friends at Katmai. In September Sandy Kogl, a good friend of good friends in Talkeetna, died after a gracious struggle with ALS. In October Paul's aunt Norine succumbed to a rare form of lung cancer caused by her exposure to asbestos as an infant. We saw Norine each Christmas that we spent with Paul's parents and we traveled to Italy twice with Norine. Norine and Sandy were both just 68.

christmas 10

We spent a quiet Christmas in Talkeetna. Many of our friends were out of town, which meant we were able to stay at a house with running water (including hot!), electricity, and a thermostat. The comforts were much appreciated for the long cold weekend. We did miss our cozy cabin, but we were a short walk away and brought a few of its comforts over. We dined with friends on Christmas Eve and night.

With the cold and short daylight hours, our outdoor activities were subdued, too. Paul and I snowshoed on Saturday and decided that the route was solid enough from previous snowshoers, cold temperatures, and recent wind for the bhikkhu to join us on Sunday. The three of us toured the dismal swamp and numbered lakes 1 through 3. We met up with a friend and his dog for the latter half of the loop. I had hoped to photograph George's frosty beard, but my camera battery died in the cold.

I hope that your Christmas was filled with friends, comforts, and time outside with those you love in a place you love.

26 aug 10 rainy days, mondays, bad haircuts

Zen lesson for the day: Don't let 'em get you down

and a fashion tip: if a bandana makes you feel better, wear it

13 jun 10 dog days of summer

Another gratuitous photo of my pooch, just before I got brave and cut his hair myself. It's been almost two weeks (the difference between a good vs bad hair cut) and he's almost ready to let me post another photo.

31 may 10 and it's summer

You know it's summer in Alaska when ...

I'm never quite sure when to say that summer begins here. If you're Paul, you stick strictly to the idea that equinoxes and solstices bookend each season. I tend to think of those dates as the halfway marks. But when spring is really only a couple of weeks long, how can you call that a season? Or is Memorial Day the true kickoff, with a long weekend, holiday events, and the start of outdoor gardening?

I don't know when it truly starts, but this past weekend, I knew it was summer in Anchortown. I wore shorts all weekend and it was 60 degrees on Sunday morning at 7:00! I swapped out the flannel sheets with the 'cool-feel' summer sheets. All the leaves are full-fledged and green now and the elderberries are starting to bloom. And the surest sign -- the mosquitoes are so thick in the lower elevations of Bicentennial Park that I couldn't let the dog stop to do much of anything that wasn't vital.

Paul is reunioning back East with the Buttons so I devoted the weekend primarily to gardening. On Saturday, I rebuilt two raised beds for vegetables and planted all my seeds and seedlings (except the last few that I bought that morning at the farmer's market). On Sunday I pedaled around town on the Veggie Roll, a tour of vegetable gardens organized by Bicycle Commuters of Anchorage. We saw some creative and productive gardens where people are trying really hard to grow most of their produce right here in the big city. On Monday I turned to the flower beds. I weeded, watered, and mulched with leaves and wood shavings from Paul's 2009 winter project. I still need to weed and mulch the raspberry patch, but by Monday evening, I had accomplished all the big tasks on the garden to-do list.

Yes, it's summer in Alaska ... go-go-go while the sun shines.

B taking a little break on Sunday evening in Bicentennial Park

27 may 10 spring cleaning

clean, shiny sailboat (attached to the very dirty truck) ready to motor from our street to Whittier


little dog fresh (soggy?) from a bath