The century is a decade old. The year eleven makes the head math a little more difficult, so I've decided to only look forward and treat this as year one.
But we have to look back just a little, no math involved. Last night we were colder than both NY and Skagway. Yep. We went below 30. Around here that is called a hard freeze. The bridges were treated with chemicals to prevent icing. Snow fell all the way down to the valley. We have desert plants that had to be covered, and the water pipes had to be insulated. The wind was the worst. It makes things go bump in the night and blows the blankets off the covered plants.
After a few days of hunkering down in our wonderfully restored house, we are getting ready to venture out today. We have the long underwear on, the parkas are out of mothballs, and we have found the wolf-fur mittens. NOT!
We do have to run some errands, pick up a few cases of booze for the annual brawl tonight, restock the larder for the next few cold days, and NOT prepare our classrooms for the next semester. That is the best part. We do have a lot of fun, but the things we DON'T DO still bring joy, also. We only have a few boxes remaining to be emptied. We will take down Christmas stuff, then we can decide where to hang art. Drive those nails, baby.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Happy Birthday, Peggie
The big 60.
Peggie slept in today. It is only fitting to do so on one's birthday.
At 11:00 a masseuse showed up to deliver one of Peggie's Christmas presents. So it was nice to get a double gift. Casey and I made ourselves scarce so it would be peaceful and quiet for the massage.
The fat quarter campaign is and has been amazingly successful. She has fabric from NY, Sitka, Skagway, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, as well as local finds. Thank you heartily for all the thought and love that went into your choices. We look forward to those which, for whatever reason, will arrive later. Keep 'em coming!
Sunday, December 26, 2010
What time is it?
It is the 21st century.
So we had Christmas with our children and granddaughter. We had a great time taking turns opening presents. It is fun watching Ariana (almost three) sit calmly to open her gifts, then show it to everyone, then wait while others open gifts. Not the hurry-up we were used to with multiple children. We sipped coffee, ate scones and had a good time. When all the gifts were open, except for a few for Ariana, she was tired and ready for a nap. So we said goodbye, turned off the computer and straightened up. Yes, it is 2010. Casey was at our house in person. Greg, Tomoko and Ariana were virtually present via Skype. We are truly blessed to have this technology just when we have loved ones living 2500 miles away. We have skyped before, but usually it is like a video phone call. This was a virtual visit. We loved it. It was a new experience. More personal than I thought, and it felt much more real. Well, it was real, but maybe if you are near my age you know what I mean. If not.....
Today is the day after Christmas. Peggie is still suffering from her cold. Casey and I went to Nikki's(niece) to meet her new baby, Adam. Fearing we might carry germs, we did not touch him, but agreed he is a cutie. We were able to visit with relatives and had a good time. Peggie will have to arrange another visit when she feels better.
Yesterday, to make it easier on me fixing dinner (Peggie is sick, ya know) we changed our menu to Bill's chili and tamales instead of ham with all the usual fixin's. Smythes came over as per usual and we had a great time as per usual including breaking open Casey's new Apples to Apples game. Peggie was able to concoct a marvelous pitcher of marguaritas. Holiday cheer.
Peggie's birthday is the day after tomorrow. The fat quarters are pouring in. Pretty soon she may have several yards of fabric. If she can figure out a way to put it all together, that is. Perhaps a quilt or two. They are often constructed from several small pieces, aren't they?
So we had Christmas with our children and granddaughter. We had a great time taking turns opening presents. It is fun watching Ariana (almost three) sit calmly to open her gifts, then show it to everyone, then wait while others open gifts. Not the hurry-up we were used to with multiple children. We sipped coffee, ate scones and had a good time. When all the gifts were open, except for a few for Ariana, she was tired and ready for a nap. So we said goodbye, turned off the computer and straightened up. Yes, it is 2010. Casey was at our house in person. Greg, Tomoko and Ariana were virtually present via Skype. We are truly blessed to have this technology just when we have loved ones living 2500 miles away. We have skyped before, but usually it is like a video phone call. This was a virtual visit. We loved it. It was a new experience. More personal than I thought, and it felt much more real. Well, it was real, but maybe if you are near my age you know what I mean. If not.....
Today is the day after Christmas. Peggie is still suffering from her cold. Casey and I went to Nikki's(niece) to meet her new baby, Adam. Fearing we might carry germs, we did not touch him, but agreed he is a cutie. We were able to visit with relatives and had a good time. Peggie will have to arrange another visit when she feels better.
Yesterday, to make it easier on me fixing dinner (Peggie is sick, ya know) we changed our menu to Bill's chili and tamales instead of ham with all the usual fixin's. Smythes came over as per usual and we had a great time as per usual including breaking open Casey's new Apples to Apples game. Peggie was able to concoct a marvelous pitcher of marguaritas. Holiday cheer.
Peggie's birthday is the day after tomorrow. The fat quarters are pouring in. Pretty soon she may have several yards of fabric. If she can figure out a way to put it all together, that is. Perhaps a quilt or two. They are often constructed from several small pieces, aren't they?
Thursday, December 23, 2010
In other news, tonight;
Casey has gently chastised us for ignoring the rest of our lives.
So here is other news.
On the 19th, thanks to our children, we attended the final concert on "The Final Encore" tour of the Judds. In 1991 we attended the final show of their "Farewell Tour." At that show, Vince Gill was one of the opening acts. In the current show, there was no opening act. Just two and a half hours of Judds. It was very enjoyable as they sang some old favorites, Wynona did a solo session, and they closed with Christmas songs, including a breathtaking acappella version of Ave Maria by Wynona.
We went to Mesa early in the day to deliver the old hoosier to Casey's new apartment in Dobson Ranch. We helped her empty some boxes and Peggie put together her kitchen. Then we went to a Park and Ride garage, parked, and rode the light rail "Metro" over to Phoenix for the concert. It was held at US Airways Arena, where the Suns play, not at Wells Fargo Arena, where the Sun Devils play, and where Casey's commencement was held. We ate a nice dinner at Majerlie's and walked the two blocks. When the concert was over we joined others on the full train back to Mesa. We were happy not to be in the after event traffic. Except for the whole middle-of-the-night thing, midnight is a very good time to travel I-10, since fewer people are on the road with you. And it is a good excuse to stop for middle-of-the-night breakfast at an Eloy truck stop.
Thank you to all who have sent Peggie a fat quarter or two. This is making her birthday really special. It is fun to get the mail everyday. Some people have delivered in person, and anyone else who wants to do that is more than welcome to. I am starting to think she may actually receive 60 by the time this is over. For me, this is the most fun since I got her all 31 Baskin Robbins flavors 29 years ago. Or the time she threw me a surprise 40th the year I was (honestly) 39.
We also managed to stay awake after midnight to sit in the spa and watch the lunar eclipse. We didn't sit in the spa for the entire 3 1/2 hours. We only watched the beginning until the moon was almost covered. Then we went to bed. We've seen other lunar eclipses. They always happen when sane people are asleep. Whoever schedules these things should have made it on the 19th when we were on the road at that time of night anyway.
This week Peggie has been down with a terrible cold. We hope she will be much better by Christmas. I am sure I will catch the cold and have my turn with it next week. But I hope not.
So here is other news.
On the 19th, thanks to our children, we attended the final concert on "The Final Encore" tour of the Judds. In 1991 we attended the final show of their "Farewell Tour." At that show, Vince Gill was one of the opening acts. In the current show, there was no opening act. Just two and a half hours of Judds. It was very enjoyable as they sang some old favorites, Wynona did a solo session, and they closed with Christmas songs, including a breathtaking acappella version of Ave Maria by Wynona.
We went to Mesa early in the day to deliver the old hoosier to Casey's new apartment in Dobson Ranch. We helped her empty some boxes and Peggie put together her kitchen. Then we went to a Park and Ride garage, parked, and rode the light rail "Metro" over to Phoenix for the concert. It was held at US Airways Arena, where the Suns play, not at Wells Fargo Arena, where the Sun Devils play, and where Casey's commencement was held. We ate a nice dinner at Majerlie's and walked the two blocks. When the concert was over we joined others on the full train back to Mesa. We were happy not to be in the after event traffic. Except for the whole middle-of-the-night thing, midnight is a very good time to travel I-10, since fewer people are on the road with you. And it is a good excuse to stop for middle-of-the-night breakfast at an Eloy truck stop.
Thank you to all who have sent Peggie a fat quarter or two. This is making her birthday really special. It is fun to get the mail everyday. Some people have delivered in person, and anyone else who wants to do that is more than welcome to. I am starting to think she may actually receive 60 by the time this is over. For me, this is the most fun since I got her all 31 Baskin Robbins flavors 29 years ago. Or the time she threw me a surprise 40th the year I was (honestly) 39.
We also managed to stay awake after midnight to sit in the spa and watch the lunar eclipse. We didn't sit in the spa for the entire 3 1/2 hours. We only watched the beginning until the moon was almost covered. Then we went to bed. We've seen other lunar eclipses. They always happen when sane people are asleep. Whoever schedules these things should have made it on the 19th when we were on the road at that time of night anyway.
This week Peggie has been down with a terrible cold. We hope she will be much better by Christmas. I am sure I will catch the cold and have my turn with it next week. But I hope not.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Are we there yet?
Just twenty more minutes.
That phrase is older than our marriage. It has become our standard joke answer since a trip we took during college and I underestimated the time for the trip by a considerable amount.
Anyway, we are all finished except for putting everything back. The work is done. The ceilings are textured plaster, not sprayed popcorn. The walls are freshly painted in southwest tones. The floors are in and looking beautiful. The venetian blinds are installed. (And they are PERFECT)
As I type this, the floor crew has dropped by to patch some chips made by the furniture movers, the murphy bed company is trying to schedule a crew to straighten out the poor job movers did on the re-install, the carpet cleaners are coming tomorrow to clean the stairs, and about half the boxes are empty and our shelves and cabinets are filling back up. Since we have a lot of very old wood furniture, we are re-oiling each piece, one at a time before we refill it. The famous dry heat is hard on wood.
Very soon, I will drive the first nail to rehang some art. Scary prospect. As you all know, getting it right the first time is not my forte.
So, in sewing terms, "it is all done but the hem"....and the buttons and button holes, and then it has to be washed and ironed before you can wear it.
It will be about twenty more minutes (days).
That phrase is older than our marriage. It has become our standard joke answer since a trip we took during college and I underestimated the time for the trip by a considerable amount.
Anyway, we are all finished except for putting everything back. The work is done. The ceilings are textured plaster, not sprayed popcorn. The walls are freshly painted in southwest tones. The floors are in and looking beautiful. The venetian blinds are installed. (And they are PERFECT)
As I type this, the floor crew has dropped by to patch some chips made by the furniture movers, the murphy bed company is trying to schedule a crew to straighten out the poor job movers did on the re-install, the carpet cleaners are coming tomorrow to clean the stairs, and about half the boxes are empty and our shelves and cabinets are filling back up. Since we have a lot of very old wood furniture, we are re-oiling each piece, one at a time before we refill it. The famous dry heat is hard on wood.
Very soon, I will drive the first nail to rehang some art. Scary prospect. As you all know, getting it right the first time is not my forte.
So, in sewing terms, "it is all done but the hem"....and the buttons and button holes, and then it has to be washed and ironed before you can wear it.
It will be about twenty more minutes (days).
Friday, December 17, 2010
Casey S. Thomas, B.A., M.Ed.
Casey was hooded and conferred and recognized at two ceremonies at America West Arena over the last two days. Her proud parents attended both.
We stayed overnight at a Best Western so we could spend the day with her on Thursday prior to the evening event. We planned to do some shopping, both for our newly redecorated house and for Christmas, then spend the afternoon hanging out at her "old" apartment while she readied herself for the commencement. However, this blog is titled "Peggie & Bill--Adventures!" so the plan had to be altered. It was the first day of rain in many weeks, we had a timeline to meet, so it was the perfect time for car trouble. Leaving the last store on our route, the Jeep decided not to start. It didn't seem like a dead battery, but getting a jump still seemed like a good idea. That didn't work, because the problem wasn't a dead battery. Luckily, we had taken out a road service policy with Good Sam prior to heading for Alaska. So a phone call and 45 minutes later, a tow truck shows up. The policy will pay to tow us to the nearest repair facility, which happens to be a Jeep dealer. The truck's cab will not accomodate all of us, so Peggie and Casey ride in the Jeep as it is loaded and driven to the shop. We wait through two episodes of "King of the Hill" while Casey is getting nervous. She thought her days of sharing our adventures were a thing of the past. HA!
The problem was a loose connector on the wires between the battery and the starter, nothing major, and when I went to check on a free shuttle ride for Casey, so she could get ready, they said the Jeep was ready to go. The mechanic thought the problem was caused during original assembly and was just waiting for the right time to fail. It only cost the price of labor and tax. This is just the kind of thing that could have happened in the boonies somewhere, sometime, or when we were actually on our way to something with no time to waste. Serendipity.
In the interest of leaving no loose threads, Casey got some things for her new apartment, we got some things for our "new" house, and some of you will be receiving packages for Christmas.
We stayed overnight at a Best Western so we could spend the day with her on Thursday prior to the evening event. We planned to do some shopping, both for our newly redecorated house and for Christmas, then spend the afternoon hanging out at her "old" apartment while she readied herself for the commencement. However, this blog is titled "Peggie & Bill--Adventures!" so the plan had to be altered. It was the first day of rain in many weeks, we had a timeline to meet, so it was the perfect time for car trouble. Leaving the last store on our route, the Jeep decided not to start. It didn't seem like a dead battery, but getting a jump still seemed like a good idea. That didn't work, because the problem wasn't a dead battery. Luckily, we had taken out a road service policy with Good Sam prior to heading for Alaska. So a phone call and 45 minutes later, a tow truck shows up. The policy will pay to tow us to the nearest repair facility, which happens to be a Jeep dealer. The truck's cab will not accomodate all of us, so Peggie and Casey ride in the Jeep as it is loaded and driven to the shop. We wait through two episodes of "King of the Hill" while Casey is getting nervous. She thought her days of sharing our adventures were a thing of the past. HA!
The problem was a loose connector on the wires between the battery and the starter, nothing major, and when I went to check on a free shuttle ride for Casey, so she could get ready, they said the Jeep was ready to go. The mechanic thought the problem was caused during original assembly and was just waiting for the right time to fail. It only cost the price of labor and tax. This is just the kind of thing that could have happened in the boonies somewhere, sometime, or when we were actually on our way to something with no time to waste. Serendipity.
In the interest of leaving no loose threads, Casey got some things for her new apartment, we got some things for our "new" house, and some of you will be receiving packages for Christmas.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
The fat lady sang...
...but we still have a curtain call to sit through.
THE FLOORS ARE BEAUTIFUL !!!!!
Yesterday, on purpose, Peggie arranged a day out. I arranged for the movers to return and replace all of our furniture from the storage pod. I had drawn a schematic so I would know where everything went. The following things were put where they had been before: the phone booth, the dining room table, the four dining chairs, the dining room chest, the murphy bed. Everything else has been rearranged. When Peggie got home, she actually agreed with my placements.
We will post pictures after we decide where to hang our artworks.
We have not moved all of our boxed items back onto shelves and cabinets yet either. There will be a slight delay while we go to Tempe for Casey's commencement activities. (She has her Masters of Education)
The curtain call has to do with some final touch-ups to the paint and a couple of chips in the floor.
So now we have Christmas to get ready for and a bedroom to empty so Casey has a place to sleep when she comes. Oh, and the new window blinds we discovered we needed. And the new cable outlet because we moved the TV and computer.
And....I believe I mentioned once before that there would be things we didn't anticipate. So whatever those are. THEN this episode will be over.
THE FLOORS ARE BEAUTIFUL !!!!!
Yesterday, on purpose, Peggie arranged a day out. I arranged for the movers to return and replace all of our furniture from the storage pod. I had drawn a schematic so I would know where everything went. The following things were put where they had been before: the phone booth, the dining room table, the four dining chairs, the dining room chest, the murphy bed. Everything else has been rearranged. When Peggie got home, she actually agreed with my placements.
We will post pictures after we decide where to hang our artworks.
We have not moved all of our boxed items back onto shelves and cabinets yet either. There will be a slight delay while we go to Tempe for Casey's commencement activities. (She has her Masters of Education)
The curtain call has to do with some final touch-ups to the paint and a couple of chips in the floor.
So now we have Christmas to get ready for and a bedroom to empty so Casey has a place to sleep when she comes. Oh, and the new window blinds we discovered we needed. And the new cable outlet because we moved the TV and computer.
And....I believe I mentioned once before that there would be things we didn't anticipate. So whatever those are. THEN this episode will be over.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Happy Birthday, Tomoko!
The girls have dibbs on December Birthdays in this family! We hope you're having a great day--a little rest, a little relaxing and a whole lot of celebrating.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Mother Nature's Mischievous Niece
Mother nature has cooperated most generously with our redecorating schedule. Sunshine, 70's, no wind. Windows and doors have had to be wide open so paint and floor stain can dry. Nighttime temps have been just low enough to require a quilt. And we just happen to have a few.
But, Mother Nature's mischievous niece, Disease, has shown up. The floor crew, two guys, have been sick with some virus. One of them has missed three days, and the other is working short days while he sneezes, coughs, and blows his nose. So, we are now a day behind schedule.
But today they are applying the final sealer. Tomorrow, the painters will do touch up. Just in case, I postponed the movers to Tuesday. Then it will be done.
HA!!
Then we can start putting things back on shelves and in cabinets. Perhaps we will have the guest room livable by the time Casey comes for Chistmas. We might even have time to set up the tree.
Peggie has really been living in her studio. She has turned the old so-far-unused cabinet into a talavera (sp?) type. It will go in the main hall for shoes.
I have been supervising the workers from an old recliner on the patio. I have caught up on all my magazines and three novels. I only have to move the recliner three or four times a day to find shade or sunshine as required. I have come to know several local birds who frequent our yard, and developed a real sympathy for the poor dog next door, who gets ignored a lot.
Does anybody know why a cactus wren would want to spend his days chasing a phainopepla around from tree to tree all the time? This is quite an obsession on the part of the wren. The phainopepla seems to be a tease. He whistles his whereabouts until the wren chases him again. They do occasionally pause to eat seeds from the rhus lancia, almost civilly, then the chase is back on.
Okay, I have to go back to the recliner now. That book won't read itself, and I hate to leave Lt. Dallas with an unsolved case. You know how she loses sleep.
But, Mother Nature's mischievous niece, Disease, has shown up. The floor crew, two guys, have been sick with some virus. One of them has missed three days, and the other is working short days while he sneezes, coughs, and blows his nose. So, we are now a day behind schedule.
But today they are applying the final sealer. Tomorrow, the painters will do touch up. Just in case, I postponed the movers to Tuesday. Then it will be done.
HA!!
Then we can start putting things back on shelves and in cabinets. Perhaps we will have the guest room livable by the time Casey comes for Chistmas. We might even have time to set up the tree.
Peggie has really been living in her studio. She has turned the old so-far-unused cabinet into a talavera (sp?) type. It will go in the main hall for shoes.
I have been supervising the workers from an old recliner on the patio. I have caught up on all my magazines and three novels. I only have to move the recliner three or four times a day to find shade or sunshine as required. I have come to know several local birds who frequent our yard, and developed a real sympathy for the poor dog next door, who gets ignored a lot.
Does anybody know why a cactus wren would want to spend his days chasing a phainopepla around from tree to tree all the time? This is quite an obsession on the part of the wren. The phainopepla seems to be a tease. He whistles his whereabouts until the wren chases him again. They do occasionally pause to eat seeds from the rhus lancia, almost civilly, then the chase is back on.
Okay, I have to go back to the recliner now. That book won't read itself, and I hate to leave Lt. Dallas with an unsolved case. You know how she loses sleep.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Happy Birthday, Casey
We went out to breakfast, continuing the tradition which began 25 years ago when Laurie, Greg, and I went out while Peggie and Casey recovered in TMC.
The final coat will go on the floor today. But first, we have to decide how large to make the segments. They will use chalk lines to give us visuals so we can decide.
Yesterday I bought one new door knob set and one switchplate to see how we liked them. We did. So how few can we get away with so as not to completely blow the bank?
The final coat will go on the floor today. But first, we have to decide how large to make the segments. They will use chalk lines to give us visuals so we can decide.
Yesterday I bought one new door knob set and one switchplate to see how we liked them. We did. So how few can we get away with so as not to completely blow the bank?
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Einstein was right,
Time is relative.
If you look at a calendar, it was one week ago that our remodel began inauspiciously with a warped storage pod. Now, it is two months later, by our internal clocks, and we are halfway there. We are managing to live upstairs, in the studio, and on the patio. Thank God for the good weather.
Now the floor people have started. The carpet is out and the echo in the empty house is amazing. We had Truly Nolen come in to spray for termites on the advice of someone (we can't remember who) who discovered large cracks in their floor when carpet was removed. The problem, according to the termite guy, is when the crack is large and extends to the outside edge of the house. So he drilled 38 holes and poured 12 gallons of chemicals into them. The holes were "shoelaced" along the crack. That is alternating from side to side.
The colors on the walls are perfect. Peggie's color sense, no surprise, was accurate. We love the new textured ceiling.
This week, which will last another two months, we are living like true rednecks. The appliances are on the porch (patio), and the yard is littered with tools and equipment that look like "yard art" in Appalachia.
But the workmen continue to be reliable. They always arrive within an hour of when they say they will. The workmanship is adequate, once we point out where it needs to be redone. Our fingers are cramping from being continously crossed, hoping the final product will be worth the time and money.
Money. Did you know that those innocuous plastic outlet and light switch covers look dingy after you repaint? Did you know that doorknobs aren't invisible? Once you put new paint on doors and walls, these things suddenly look old. Nickels and dimes add up to dollars very quickly.
We already mentioned the new window coverings and the stair carpet.
Oh, and of course, the wood railings on the stairs, which have always been fine, are now all scratched and need to be sanded and refinished. Remember when Percy (the cat) was young, and liked to walk on them? Cat claws are hard on wood.
Painters don't seem to notice that when they wash out brushes and rollers on the rocks, that the rocks change color.
Peggie missed yoga this morning. But our mantra remains....
Life is good.
Life is good.
Life is good.
If you look at a calendar, it was one week ago that our remodel began inauspiciously with a warped storage pod. Now, it is two months later, by our internal clocks, and we are halfway there. We are managing to live upstairs, in the studio, and on the patio. Thank God for the good weather.
Now the floor people have started. The carpet is out and the echo in the empty house is amazing. We had Truly Nolen come in to spray for termites on the advice of someone (we can't remember who) who discovered large cracks in their floor when carpet was removed. The problem, according to the termite guy, is when the crack is large and extends to the outside edge of the house. So he drilled 38 holes and poured 12 gallons of chemicals into them. The holes were "shoelaced" along the crack. That is alternating from side to side.
The colors on the walls are perfect. Peggie's color sense, no surprise, was accurate. We love the new textured ceiling.
This week, which will last another two months, we are living like true rednecks. The appliances are on the porch (patio), and the yard is littered with tools and equipment that look like "yard art" in Appalachia.
But the workmen continue to be reliable. They always arrive within an hour of when they say they will. The workmanship is adequate, once we point out where it needs to be redone. Our fingers are cramping from being continously crossed, hoping the final product will be worth the time and money.
Money. Did you know that those innocuous plastic outlet and light switch covers look dingy after you repaint? Did you know that doorknobs aren't invisible? Once you put new paint on doors and walls, these things suddenly look old. Nickels and dimes add up to dollars very quickly.
We already mentioned the new window coverings and the stair carpet.
Oh, and of course, the wood railings on the stairs, which have always been fine, are now all scratched and need to be sanded and refinished. Remember when Percy (the cat) was young, and liked to walk on them? Cat claws are hard on wood.
Painters don't seem to notice that when they wash out brushes and rollers on the rocks, that the rocks change color.
Peggie missed yoga this morning. But our mantra remains....
Life is good.
Life is good.
Life is good.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
The colors are bold and it's like a new house.
New pictures added to the remodel folder.
Color Color Everywhere and we love it! We're really having a good time watching the changes occur. At one point today we really wondered if two walls that were to be the same color were two different colors. Later, with the changing light and artificial lighting it was clear they were the same. The wall by the front door and the hallway are lighter than the rest but they looked the same...for a while. Tomorrow the last of the colors will go on the walls and then everything will be draped and the ceilings will be primed and painted--swiss coffee which really looks like white. Then fine tuning will occur as they touch up spots that don't look so great.
Monday morning the floor guys will start by taking out the carpet and the vinyl flooring. The termite guy will come by in the afternoon in case there are cracks in the concrete that need treatment.
Bill has been busy supervising and drawing floorplans rearranging furniture and artwork. I've been painting the cabinet we got in Jerome a few years ago that will house our shoes. The cabinet will have a base color of a periwinkle purple but it gets crazier from there. I'm adding decoupaged fabric to the doors and then painting folk art designs everywhere else. I'll post pictures when finished. Trust me, it's going to be great but it's not for the faint of heart. Good thing I'm married to a strong of heart although he did have some reservations at first.
Estimates for new window coverings came in and we took the plunge. We'll have faux wood blinds in most of the windows and a track system of stacking panels on the patio door. Bill chose the fabric and it really ties the red and the ginger together.
A little bit of gin and tonic and we'll be ready for another day!
Color Color Everywhere and we love it! We're really having a good time watching the changes occur. At one point today we really wondered if two walls that were to be the same color were two different colors. Later, with the changing light and artificial lighting it was clear they were the same. The wall by the front door and the hallway are lighter than the rest but they looked the same...for a while. Tomorrow the last of the colors will go on the walls and then everything will be draped and the ceilings will be primed and painted--swiss coffee which really looks like white. Then fine tuning will occur as they touch up spots that don't look so great.
Monday morning the floor guys will start by taking out the carpet and the vinyl flooring. The termite guy will come by in the afternoon in case there are cracks in the concrete that need treatment.
Bill has been busy supervising and drawing floorplans rearranging furniture and artwork. I've been painting the cabinet we got in Jerome a few years ago that will house our shoes. The cabinet will have a base color of a periwinkle purple but it gets crazier from there. I'm adding decoupaged fabric to the doors and then painting folk art designs everywhere else. I'll post pictures when finished. Trust me, it's going to be great but it's not for the faint of heart. Good thing I'm married to a strong of heart although he did have some reservations at first.
Estimates for new window coverings came in and we took the plunge. We'll have faux wood blinds in most of the windows and a track system of stacking panels on the patio door. Bill chose the fabric and it really ties the red and the ginger together.
A little bit of gin and tonic and we'll be ready for another day!
Thursday, December 2, 2010
I Know Why We Didn't Do This Before!
Because--mess, mess, mess, mess. Yikes, what a mess!!
Check out the Remodel Album on Peggie's Photo Gallery.
As Bill posted, on Day 1, Monday, we got the pod loaded with furniture and went to a movie. What a relaxing afternoon.
On Day 2, Tuesday, while the guys were removing the popcorn ceiling (plastic, water, and ceiling goop everywhere) another guy began painting the laundry room and bathroom. Bill supervised by sitting on the patio reading and I went to yoga and coffee and then spent the afternoon in my studio. All good. Daytime temps were great while record lows were forecast for Wednesday morning. We had to re-cover the plants so they wouldn't freeze. Of course we didn't think about that until 10 p.m. while we were soaking in the hot tub!!
Our two main colors are Ginger Palm and Prennial Gold (What is prennial? Is it a misspelling of perennial or something entirely different?) The idea is that the lighter color will go in the darker hallway and laundry room and the darker color will go on the other walls and with all of our light and angles they will appear to be the same color at times and different colors at other times. Boy, the bathroom (the darker) is semi-gloss and sure looks like butterscotch! Did I choose the right color?????? I think so....I hope so....it sure is going to be on a lot of walls (in eggshell, not semi-gloss) so I think it will be okay. I hope it will be okay because walls that go up 24 feet are not in my re-painting ability.
On Day 3, the ceilings were re-textured with hock and trowel finish and the second coat of paint was applied to the bathroom. I like the color but I'm not crazy about the semi-gloss but I guess it's necessary for a bathroom. Painter boss comes over and we decide to do baseboards, doorframes and doors in eggshell instead of semi-gloss. By the end of the day I really wasn't happy with the clean-up job in the bathroom and the paint that was left splattered on the vanity, fixtures and mirror. A few other things made Bill and I decide we needed to be supervising more closely.
Day 4, today-Thursday, painter guys are painting the hallway and closet (lighter color) and the office--formerly known as Greg's room (darker color). Bill and I removed all the mini-blinds and set up cleaning and drying stations outside with frequent breaks to check on things and ask questions. We agreed we couldn't have asked for better weather--very little breeze and temps hit 80 degrees. While I'm getting estimates on new blinds the reality is that we'll probably re-hang our VERY VERY CLEAN blinds even though they are the wrong color. The texture guys finished the hock and trowel work and patched all holes and cracks throughout. Bill asked one of the guys to come put some of the darker color on the wall by the stairs so he could be reassured that it was the color we wanted. Whew! It is. Bill turned to me and said, "You're so good with colors!" Whew! Maybe I'll sleep better tonight and not dream of big butterscotch blobs. It definitely has less butterscotch and more tan appearance in the eggshell finish and in the light.
The Plan tomorrow is to move the Ginger Palm color into the family room and begin painting the accent wall in the office and the accent walls in the family room the deep rust terra cotta color. They may begin the green in the kitchen. More pictures to follow.
Ah...hot tub is on the agenda tonight.
Check out the Remodel Album on Peggie's Photo Gallery.
As Bill posted, on Day 1, Monday, we got the pod loaded with furniture and went to a movie. What a relaxing afternoon.
On Day 2, Tuesday, while the guys were removing the popcorn ceiling (plastic, water, and ceiling goop everywhere) another guy began painting the laundry room and bathroom. Bill supervised by sitting on the patio reading and I went to yoga and coffee and then spent the afternoon in my studio. All good. Daytime temps were great while record lows were forecast for Wednesday morning. We had to re-cover the plants so they wouldn't freeze. Of course we didn't think about that until 10 p.m. while we were soaking in the hot tub!!
Our two main colors are Ginger Palm and Prennial Gold (What is prennial? Is it a misspelling of perennial or something entirely different?) The idea is that the lighter color will go in the darker hallway and laundry room and the darker color will go on the other walls and with all of our light and angles they will appear to be the same color at times and different colors at other times. Boy, the bathroom (the darker) is semi-gloss and sure looks like butterscotch! Did I choose the right color?????? I think so....I hope so....it sure is going to be on a lot of walls (in eggshell, not semi-gloss) so I think it will be okay. I hope it will be okay because walls that go up 24 feet are not in my re-painting ability.
On Day 3, the ceilings were re-textured with hock and trowel finish and the second coat of paint was applied to the bathroom. I like the color but I'm not crazy about the semi-gloss but I guess it's necessary for a bathroom. Painter boss comes over and we decide to do baseboards, doorframes and doors in eggshell instead of semi-gloss. By the end of the day I really wasn't happy with the clean-up job in the bathroom and the paint that was left splattered on the vanity, fixtures and mirror. A few other things made Bill and I decide we needed to be supervising more closely.
Day 4, today-Thursday, painter guys are painting the hallway and closet (lighter color) and the office--formerly known as Greg's room (darker color). Bill and I removed all the mini-blinds and set up cleaning and drying stations outside with frequent breaks to check on things and ask questions. We agreed we couldn't have asked for better weather--very little breeze and temps hit 80 degrees. While I'm getting estimates on new blinds the reality is that we'll probably re-hang our VERY VERY CLEAN blinds even though they are the wrong color. The texture guys finished the hock and trowel work and patched all holes and cracks throughout. Bill asked one of the guys to come put some of the darker color on the wall by the stairs so he could be reassured that it was the color we wanted. Whew! It is. Bill turned to me and said, "You're so good with colors!" Whew! Maybe I'll sleep better tonight and not dream of big butterscotch blobs. It definitely has less butterscotch and more tan appearance in the eggshell finish and in the light.
The Plan tomorrow is to move the Ginger Palm color into the family room and begin painting the accent wall in the office and the accent walls in the family room the deep rust terra cotta color. They may begin the green in the kitchen. More pictures to follow.
Ah...hot tub is on the agenda tonight.
Monday, November 29, 2010
And so it starts...
Our remodel is actually underway!
Weeks of sorting. Weeks of cleaning. Weeks of selecting. Weeks of packing. Weeks of anticipation.
The pod was due today at 7:00 so I set the alarm clock for 6:30. It got here at about 7:20. The driver was very conscientious. He pointed out that there was a chance of damaging our big tree if we put it where I wanted it. So we moved it over a few feet. We got it on the ground, and I was worried the door wouldn't open all the way because of the curb. So he opened the door.....almost. One of the hinges seemed to be bound up. Several minutes of working it, back and forth, and it will neither open nor close! So we tried the other door. Nope. It is bound up, too. We can see no obvious cause, but the box must have been torqued or something. Two phone calls later, and we are getting a new one delivered.
However, ( I sense the "adventure" beginning) it is by now almost 8:00 and the moving crew is due at 8:00. It will take about an hour and a half to exchange the pod. But that is not a problem, the movers only cost $104 per hour. (DEEP SIGH)
We decide that the movers can begin by disassembling the Off The Wall Bed, and otherwise staging the furniture to be moved. They wrap everything in large rolls of Saran Wrap. Take stuff apart and move things to the driveway. Just when that is done, the new pod arrives. This one has (working) doors at both ends to facilitate the loading. And the company, Mobile Mini, has decided to comp us with really good locks for both doors. So, in spite of an inauspicious start, the move is complete, on time. The house is empty for the first time in 23 years.years.ears.rs.
That last bit is the echo.cho.co.
So we head off to do some errands, and see a movie. Burlesque, starring Cher and Christina Aguilera is a very entertaining show. A little bit of story and lots of burlesque singing and dancing. And we qualify for senior discount pricing.....without even asking. Do we look old?
Now we are in the bedroom, where we had the TV moved, and wishing we had kept some comfortable chairs.
Tomorrow, the ceiling crew starts removing the old popcorn, and the paint crew starts in the laundry and bathroom, where the ceiling doesn't need to be removed.
More coming soon.
Weeks of sorting. Weeks of cleaning. Weeks of selecting. Weeks of packing. Weeks of anticipation.
The pod was due today at 7:00 so I set the alarm clock for 6:30. It got here at about 7:20. The driver was very conscientious. He pointed out that there was a chance of damaging our big tree if we put it where I wanted it. So we moved it over a few feet. We got it on the ground, and I was worried the door wouldn't open all the way because of the curb. So he opened the door.....almost. One of the hinges seemed to be bound up. Several minutes of working it, back and forth, and it will neither open nor close! So we tried the other door. Nope. It is bound up, too. We can see no obvious cause, but the box must have been torqued or something. Two phone calls later, and we are getting a new one delivered.
However, ( I sense the "adventure" beginning) it is by now almost 8:00 and the moving crew is due at 8:00. It will take about an hour and a half to exchange the pod. But that is not a problem, the movers only cost $104 per hour. (DEEP SIGH)
We decide that the movers can begin by disassembling the Off The Wall Bed, and otherwise staging the furniture to be moved. They wrap everything in large rolls of Saran Wrap. Take stuff apart and move things to the driveway. Just when that is done, the new pod arrives. This one has (working) doors at both ends to facilitate the loading. And the company, Mobile Mini, has decided to comp us with really good locks for both doors. So, in spite of an inauspicious start, the move is complete, on time. The house is empty for the first time in 23 years.years.ears.rs.
That last bit is the echo.cho.co.
So we head off to do some errands, and see a movie. Burlesque, starring Cher and Christina Aguilera is a very entertaining show. A little bit of story and lots of burlesque singing and dancing. And we qualify for senior discount pricing.....without even asking. Do we look old?
Now we are in the bedroom, where we had the TV moved, and wishing we had kept some comfortable chairs.
Tomorrow, the ceiling crew starts removing the old popcorn, and the paint crew starts in the laundry and bathroom, where the ceiling doesn't need to be removed.
More coming soon.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Keepin' Up
It is Saturday......but who cares? The days are all the same. Sunshine, 78, same as yesterday, same as tomorrow....but wait. Ten percent chance of rain (whatever that is) tomorrow.
We went to Glendale for the SYTYCD show. That's what the T-shirts say - SYTYCD.
Those kids don't just think; they really can dance. It was the last show on the tour, and two of the participants are from Phoenix, so that made it special. Lots of tearful bows and such.
Our current "adventure" concerns the jeep. The locking differential doesn't lock. So I took it to the dealer. Sat around half the day. The bad news first. The required part is in L.A. It is a $95 solenoid switch in the differential. Which requires 5.4 hours of repair time. Then the bad, bad news. Electrical parts aren't covered by the "lifetime powertrain limited warranty." Of course they aren't. You know whose life this is, right?
So they gave me a ride home because the part won't be in until tomorrow. Tomorrow comes, I sit around waiting for them to call me to come get my repaired vehicle. I could say that I wasted two days on this now, but, really, what would I have been doing otherwise? Then midafternoon the phone rings. This time, good news and bad news. Uh-huh
The bad news, the accuator is also damaged, so now the price of repairs more than doubles. The good news? The accuator is a "mechanical" part. It is covered by warranty. And since the labor to replace it is the same as for the switch, all I have to pay for is the switch. Yay!
They can have it by next week. Tuesday at the latest. Oh man, I was planning to drive the trail to the bottom of the Grand Canyon this weekend. I was going to disguise the jeep as a mule.
Oh, and the dealership was having a promo. Bring in the mailer and get a free turkey. The free turkey turned out to be a $10 prepaid Visa card. I only had to see a salesman to get it. Of course the salesman had to show me how much they have improved the 2011 Wranglers, just in case I am ready to trade in. No. The changes are superficial and cosmetic. I will keep my lifetime warranty, thank you very much just the same.
We went to Glendale for the SYTYCD show. That's what the T-shirts say - SYTYCD.
Those kids don't just think; they really can dance. It was the last show on the tour, and two of the participants are from Phoenix, so that made it special. Lots of tearful bows and such.
Our current "adventure" concerns the jeep. The locking differential doesn't lock. So I took it to the dealer. Sat around half the day. The bad news first. The required part is in L.A. It is a $95 solenoid switch in the differential. Which requires 5.4 hours of repair time. Then the bad, bad news. Electrical parts aren't covered by the "lifetime powertrain limited warranty." Of course they aren't. You know whose life this is, right?
So they gave me a ride home because the part won't be in until tomorrow. Tomorrow comes, I sit around waiting for them to call me to come get my repaired vehicle. I could say that I wasted two days on this now, but, really, what would I have been doing otherwise? Then midafternoon the phone rings. This time, good news and bad news. Uh-huh
The bad news, the accuator is also damaged, so now the price of repairs more than doubles. The good news? The accuator is a "mechanical" part. It is covered by warranty. And since the labor to replace it is the same as for the switch, all I have to pay for is the switch. Yay!
They can have it by next week. Tuesday at the latest. Oh man, I was planning to drive the trail to the bottom of the Grand Canyon this weekend. I was going to disguise the jeep as a mule.
Oh, and the dealership was having a promo. Bring in the mailer and get a free turkey. The free turkey turned out to be a $10 prepaid Visa card. I only had to see a salesman to get it. Of course the salesman had to show me how much they have improved the 2011 Wranglers, just in case I am ready to trade in. No. The changes are superficial and cosmetic. I will keep my lifetime warranty, thank you very much just the same.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Missing couple found safe after weekend search
Apparently we failed to inform our NY family of our weekend plans. When we didn't answer our phone, they began a nationwide search. That is, they called Casey in Tempe. Casey called us last night just to be sure we were okay.
We spent the weekend in Cottonwood. It was Cottonwood's 50th birthday. Margie was, naturally, involved in several events related to the celebration. So we came to help take care of Mom while Margie and Dave partied. I got to attend an appearance by Marshall Trimble, who is a humorist/songster and Official Arizona State Historian. He sang songs and told stories about Arizona and Cottonwood history. Margie gave a short introductory talk sprinkled with tidbits of our youth and happenings in Cottonwood. On Saturday, Mom, Peggie and I ate BBQ roasted in a pit at the old Clemenceau school. This is the school we all attended between 1959 and 1965. I have to credit the designer and builder of the school. The building is only half as big as it was fifty years ago, yet still contains the same number of rooms and total square footage on the inside. I think there is magic involved. Margie mentioned the names of several of our school friends she saw at the events. I probably wouldn't have recognized them, since they are all old now.
We stopped in Chandler on our way home, to see the art quilt exhibit at the Center for the Arts. These are not "traditional" quilts. They are hangable art.
Tomorrow, we will be in Glendale for an appearance by last year's cast of So You Think You Can Dance. We bought our seats on-line while in Skagway and we are looking forward to a great show. Also, the Leonid meteor shower is tomorrow night, and we will be up and awake late enough to sit in the hot tub and watch it. It won't be good until the moon sets around midnight.
As an educator, I must pass on lessons from the weekend:
--Let your family know where you are going to be, the FBI has better things to do
--You can go home again, but home will be smaller and older than you remember
--BBQ is goo-ood eatin'
--Family is important, take care of them
--Quilts aren't just for keeping you warm anymore
--Keep up your insurance payments, some A****** might fling a rock at your windshield on
the way home.
We spent the weekend in Cottonwood. It was Cottonwood's 50th birthday. Margie was, naturally, involved in several events related to the celebration. So we came to help take care of Mom while Margie and Dave partied. I got to attend an appearance by Marshall Trimble, who is a humorist/songster and Official Arizona State Historian. He sang songs and told stories about Arizona and Cottonwood history. Margie gave a short introductory talk sprinkled with tidbits of our youth and happenings in Cottonwood. On Saturday, Mom, Peggie and I ate BBQ roasted in a pit at the old Clemenceau school. This is the school we all attended between 1959 and 1965. I have to credit the designer and builder of the school. The building is only half as big as it was fifty years ago, yet still contains the same number of rooms and total square footage on the inside. I think there is magic involved. Margie mentioned the names of several of our school friends she saw at the events. I probably wouldn't have recognized them, since they are all old now.
We stopped in Chandler on our way home, to see the art quilt exhibit at the Center for the Arts. These are not "traditional" quilts. They are hangable art.
Tomorrow, we will be in Glendale for an appearance by last year's cast of So You Think You Can Dance. We bought our seats on-line while in Skagway and we are looking forward to a great show. Also, the Leonid meteor shower is tomorrow night, and we will be up and awake late enough to sit in the hot tub and watch it. It won't be good until the moon sets around midnight.
As an educator, I must pass on lessons from the weekend:
--Let your family know where you are going to be, the FBI has better things to do
--You can go home again, but home will be smaller and older than you remember
--BBQ is goo-ood eatin'
--Family is important, take care of them
--Quilts aren't just for keeping you warm anymore
--Keep up your insurance payments, some A****** might fling a rock at your windshield on
the way home.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Retired Educators Club: Amphitheater Chapter
The Amphitheater Chapter of the Retired Educators Club meets the first Friday of each month at AJ's Fine Foods at Sunrise and Campbell. Meetings are, of course, optional. Meetings begin when a second person shows up, and end when the last two leave. We chose to attend this morning. We have missed meetings all summer, so we had to catch up. What we have in common, obviously, is our past association with Amphitheater Public Schools. But since all members are retired, we don't talk about school!! Instead, we discuss travel, art, family, home decorating, hobbies, etc. Today eight members were in attendance. The meeting lasted about two and a half hours before people started drifting away for other appointments and errands. Peggie and I went to an art exhibition at JCC, a craft fair at Palomino Plaza, lunch at Chad's Steakhouse, and another exhibit of fiber arts downtown, then stopped at Costco, Safeway, and the library on our way home. Whew! That was a full day.
We are making considerable headway on our task of packing things away in anticipation of our redecorating. We have found an amazing supply of trash on shelves, in cabinets, and lurking in drawers. We will have a sidewalk sale sometime, and perhaps put some things on Craig's List. And then we will keep waaay toooo much stuff, anyway.
We also found time for other pursuits. On Wednesday, Peggie went to quilt meetings and I went jeeping. Good times.
We are making considerable headway on our task of packing things away in anticipation of our redecorating. We have found an amazing supply of trash on shelves, in cabinets, and lurking in drawers. We will have a sidewalk sale sometime, and perhaps put some things on Craig's List. And then we will keep waaay toooo much stuff, anyway.
We also found time for other pursuits. On Wednesday, Peggie went to quilt meetings and I went jeeping. Good times.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
By popular request
I agree with Margie. (See comments)
I especially agree when the poster has one or more grandchildren and lives in someplace like NY.
To equivocate a little bit, this post is titled "--Adventures!" so when nothing adventurous is happening......well, what does one post about?
We have settled nicely into retirement. And when we pulled our faithful old truck out of mothballs and had it serviced and made ready for daily use once again, we also had to re-tire it.
It is a good thing we came home with some unspent money.
But not for long.
Our house was built in 1987. The floors have sheet vinyl and carpet--23 year-old products that are showing the wear and tear commensurate with their age. So our unspent money has been earmarked. We have considered all options for a few years now, and settled on stained concrete. We have to move everything out of the house, since you can't do one area, move the furniture and do another area, because that doesn't work with concrete. So, while the furniture is out (stay tuned for details) we will have the 80's style popcorn ceiling removed and textured, and repaint all the walls, which are not only original and showing it, but marred by patches from the repiping we had to do several years ago. The furniture will be placed in one of those drop-off containers for a couple of weeks while all the work is done. We will live in the fifth-wheel during that time.
So now we have to 1)choose colors, not an easy task with literally thousands to choose from; 2)select workmen; 3) schedule each task to follow the required sequence on a very tight time line; 4) pack away that with which we can do without temporarily; 5) select that with which we can live without forever; 6)decide what to do with 4&5 in the meantime; 7) find some strong backs to load up the storage pod; 8) pick a date to be out of the house that allows us to complete 1 thru 7 and still be back in the house well before Christmas.
I bet my list is incomplete.
Otherwise, where's the "--Adventure!"
I especially agree when the poster has one or more grandchildren and lives in someplace like NY.
To equivocate a little bit, this post is titled "--Adventures!" so when nothing adventurous is happening......well, what does one post about?
We have settled nicely into retirement. And when we pulled our faithful old truck out of mothballs and had it serviced and made ready for daily use once again, we also had to re-tire it.
It is a good thing we came home with some unspent money.
But not for long.
Our house was built in 1987. The floors have sheet vinyl and carpet--23 year-old products that are showing the wear and tear commensurate with their age. So our unspent money has been earmarked. We have considered all options for a few years now, and settled on stained concrete. We have to move everything out of the house, since you can't do one area, move the furniture and do another area, because that doesn't work with concrete. So, while the furniture is out (stay tuned for details) we will have the 80's style popcorn ceiling removed and textured, and repaint all the walls, which are not only original and showing it, but marred by patches from the repiping we had to do several years ago. The furniture will be placed in one of those drop-off containers for a couple of weeks while all the work is done. We will live in the fifth-wheel during that time.
So now we have to 1)choose colors, not an easy task with literally thousands to choose from; 2)select workmen; 3) schedule each task to follow the required sequence on a very tight time line; 4) pack away that with which we can do without temporarily; 5) select that with which we can live without forever; 6)decide what to do with 4&5 in the meantime; 7) find some strong backs to load up the storage pod; 8) pick a date to be out of the house that allows us to complete 1 thru 7 and still be back in the house well before Christmas.
I bet my list is incomplete.
Otherwise, where's the "--Adventure!"
Friday, October 22, 2010
Reflections, rationalizations, or something.
The plan is that this will be the final 2010 posting concerning Alaska.
The prompting came from a strange sighting I just had. I was enjoying my second cup of coffee, which Peggie and I feel is one of the greatest benefits of retirement, sitting in a chair from which I could watch hummingbirds humming around the flowering ground covers in the front yard. When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a grey fox trotting along the sidewalk across the street. This is maybe the third or fourth fox I've seen in Arizona. In my whole life. I jumped up, grabbed my camera, and tried to get outside in time to get a picture, but it got away. But, of course, it brings to mind all the wildlife we see routinely in Alaska. So that makes me wax philosophical. What makes Alaska so special?
One of the most asked questions from tourists is "What do people do here?"
It is a good question. It comes from the fundamental difference between the people who choose to live in rural Alaska (and I include NW Canada, but exclude Anchorage) and people who not only live elsewhere, but who vacation on a cruise ship. And it goes back to a discussion I had with a couple of Yukoners one day about the kind of people who live there. It is a 'chicken and egg' question. Does the bush (a general term for the area under discussion) create "strong personalities" or are "strong personalities" attracted to the bush? In this case the term "strong personalities" means the independant, flexible, resourceful, adaptable, opinionated individuals who make up the population. In the past they might have been explorers, prospectors, mountain men, warriors, revolutionaries, itinerants, or anybody else on the fringe. They are often artists, writers, musicians and craftsmen. They embrace nature and live with it, rather than trying to tame or conquer it.
At any rate, they aren't interested in any of the following: shopping, clubbing, theater going, dressing up, social climbing, getting rich, retiring, keeping up with the Joneses, or going on cruises.
They read, watch television (maybe), cut wood, hunt, fish, drink, play cards, help each other out, attend school functions and town meetings, argue and feud with each other, fix things before they think about replacing them, and raise dogs. I'm pretty sure both law and custom require each person to have at least one dog. Everybody has more than one skill set. Carpenters are also truck drivers, or cooks, or teachers, or musicians, or all of the above. Many have to have one thing to do in the summer, and something else to do in the winter.
Peggie and I find them all to be wonderful, fascinating people. They are as much a draw for us as the scenery and wildlife.
All of you Alaskans and Yukoners who read this, please feel free to add your comments.
The prompting came from a strange sighting I just had. I was enjoying my second cup of coffee, which Peggie and I feel is one of the greatest benefits of retirement, sitting in a chair from which I could watch hummingbirds humming around the flowering ground covers in the front yard. When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a grey fox trotting along the sidewalk across the street. This is maybe the third or fourth fox I've seen in Arizona. In my whole life. I jumped up, grabbed my camera, and tried to get outside in time to get a picture, but it got away. But, of course, it brings to mind all the wildlife we see routinely in Alaska. So that makes me wax philosophical. What makes Alaska so special?
One of the most asked questions from tourists is "What do people do here?"
It is a good question. It comes from the fundamental difference between the people who choose to live in rural Alaska (and I include NW Canada, but exclude Anchorage) and people who not only live elsewhere, but who vacation on a cruise ship. And it goes back to a discussion I had with a couple of Yukoners one day about the kind of people who live there. It is a 'chicken and egg' question. Does the bush (a general term for the area under discussion) create "strong personalities" or are "strong personalities" attracted to the bush? In this case the term "strong personalities" means the independant, flexible, resourceful, adaptable, opinionated individuals who make up the population. In the past they might have been explorers, prospectors, mountain men, warriors, revolutionaries, itinerants, or anybody else on the fringe. They are often artists, writers, musicians and craftsmen. They embrace nature and live with it, rather than trying to tame or conquer it.
At any rate, they aren't interested in any of the following: shopping, clubbing, theater going, dressing up, social climbing, getting rich, retiring, keeping up with the Joneses, or going on cruises.
They read, watch television (maybe), cut wood, hunt, fish, drink, play cards, help each other out, attend school functions and town meetings, argue and feud with each other, fix things before they think about replacing them, and raise dogs. I'm pretty sure both law and custom require each person to have at least one dog. Everybody has more than one skill set. Carpenters are also truck drivers, or cooks, or teachers, or musicians, or all of the above. Many have to have one thing to do in the summer, and something else to do in the winter.
Peggie and I find them all to be wonderful, fascinating people. They are as much a draw for us as the scenery and wildlife.
All of you Alaskans and Yukoners who read this, please feel free to add your comments.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
...the other shoe.
Remember, this is "adventures," so Margie,....yes and no. The heat pump repairman came out earlier than scheduled. The freon had leaked out. How did that happen? Don't know. So he recharged it and put in a leak-detecting dye. He will come again in a couple of weeks to see what shows up. Last time this happened it took three subsequent trips to find the leak. Meanwhile, we are cool again.
Greg's snide comment aside, the desktop computer started up yesterday. Still, we will probably have to replace it and the laptop sometime this year. They just don't make computers to last like they did in my day. We also have to replace our cell phones, which we didn't even have in my day. (mine literally came apart in August) I don't mean to suggest that "my day" is over, but it is past noon.
Peggie is serious about getting unpacked and put away so she can get into the studio. I think she will disappear in there sometime tomorrow. However, we are going to Tempe on Wed. to play trivia with Casey and Hickmans, and to see Casey's poster symposium on Thursday. This is the final step in her master's program. While in Tempe, we will also get to see Margot Crabtree live and in person.
Once we get back to Tucson, I will drag Peggie from the studio for some meals and other important events, but for all practical purposes she intends to live out there. I will be checking out the back country to see what has changed and where some of those unfamiliar roads go. After all, I have brand new tires that will get me there and back, right?
We only lost $40 in Vegas. 'Course, that's what we bet.
The new bridge was officially dedicated Friday. It will be carrying traffic in a couple of weeks. It is SPECTACULAR when seen from below.
So congratulations to Casey, and to Greg and Margie, we wish you all the best with those new jobs.
Greg's snide comment aside, the desktop computer started up yesterday. Still, we will probably have to replace it and the laptop sometime this year. They just don't make computers to last like they did in my day. We also have to replace our cell phones, which we didn't even have in my day. (mine literally came apart in August) I don't mean to suggest that "my day" is over, but it is past noon.
Peggie is serious about getting unpacked and put away so she can get into the studio. I think she will disappear in there sometime tomorrow. However, we are going to Tempe on Wed. to play trivia with Casey and Hickmans, and to see Casey's poster symposium on Thursday. This is the final step in her master's program. While in Tempe, we will also get to see Margot Crabtree live and in person.
Once we get back to Tucson, I will drag Peggie from the studio for some meals and other important events, but for all practical purposes she intends to live out there. I will be checking out the back country to see what has changed and where some of those unfamiliar roads go. After all, I have brand new tires that will get me there and back, right?
We only lost $40 in Vegas. 'Course, that's what we bet.
The new bridge was officially dedicated Friday. It will be carrying traffic in a couple of weeks. It is SPECTACULAR when seen from below.
So congratulations to Casey, and to Greg and Margie, we wish you all the best with those new jobs.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Trip Recap
As you read, we are home, but the "adventures" continue. (see previous entry)
We were away from Tucson for 176 days, just one week short of half the year. We traveled 11,771 miles by automobile, about 940 by ferry, 15 minutes by helicopter, and uncounted blocks on foot.
During the season, but not always on a tour, I counted 101 black bears, 13 grizzlies, and 5 moose. In transit, we added 3 more moose, two more bears, 6 caribou, LOTS of deer, bison, and a bighorn. We also observed bald eagles, harbor seals, sea otters, sea lions, and whales. For the second year in a row, and the first two in my life, we avoided even one day of 100+ temperatures. It was a good season. ( "Season" is the term used by Skagwayans, or Skags, to refer to the time of cruise ship arrivals.)
We got to know more people who are either full-timers ("locals"), or seasonals, like us. Every one is a story unto themselves.
We traveled, not by RV, but by jeep. We stayed in mostly very nice motels while on the road. We ate in local restaurants, avoiding all chain-type establishments. The weather was nice most of the time, and was never a serious concern. (Okay, there was that one tour I had to modify due to snow, but you know I enjoyed that.) The landscape we traversed was all beautiful and varied, though the stretch of I-10 from Phoenix to Tucson leaves something to be desired. Anybody who hasn't been to British Columbia should plan a visit, and not to a city only, but into the wilderness.
Sometime in the coming days or weeks we will put together one or more albums of photos, so stay tuned.
We were away from Tucson for 176 days, just one week short of half the year. We traveled 11,771 miles by automobile, about 940 by ferry, 15 minutes by helicopter, and uncounted blocks on foot.
During the season, but not always on a tour, I counted 101 black bears, 13 grizzlies, and 5 moose. In transit, we added 3 more moose, two more bears, 6 caribou, LOTS of deer, bison, and a bighorn. We also observed bald eagles, harbor seals, sea otters, sea lions, and whales. For the second year in a row, and the first two in my life, we avoided even one day of 100+ temperatures. It was a good season. ( "Season" is the term used by Skagwayans, or Skags, to refer to the time of cruise ship arrivals.)
We got to know more people who are either full-timers ("locals"), or seasonals, like us. Every one is a story unto themselves.
We traveled, not by RV, but by jeep. We stayed in mostly very nice motels while on the road. We ate in local restaurants, avoiding all chain-type establishments. The weather was nice most of the time, and was never a serious concern. (Okay, there was that one tour I had to modify due to snow, but you know I enjoyed that.) The landscape we traversed was all beautiful and varied, though the stretch of I-10 from Phoenix to Tucson leaves something to be desired. Anybody who hasn't been to British Columbia should plan a visit, and not to a city only, but into the wilderness.
Sometime in the coming days or weeks we will put together one or more albums of photos, so stay tuned.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
No air conditioning...WHAT???
We arrived home today at about noon. The house looked fine, we turned on the air conditioning, removed sheets covering bookshelves, etc. and began unloading the jeep. My goal is to be all moved back in by Sunday night so I can begin spending time in my studio first thing Monday morning. Hmmm.....the house began getting hotter and hotter. It started at 84 degrees and by the time it was up to 90 inside Bill had put in a service call and we shut the system down. I have a small air conditioner in the bedroom (it's on, working and the door is closed) so it will be cool tonight for sleeping. I also have an air conditioner in the studio. It's cooler than the house but doesn't seem to be up to par which is a new development. We went through this last year (with the main air conditioner) when we came home and a bajillion other times. If any of you readers are in the market for a heat pump I can make a recommendation. Based on our experience, don't buy an Amana!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The only other thing is I can't get the desktop computer to power up. It's a good thing I have a laptop and a son in "the business" so maybe I can get some advice over the weekend (on how to fix it and not just dump it). The box load of mail has been opened (We could sit in front of the fan for that).
On the positive side...we're home, the house is pretty much fine, the temperature is going from the 90's tomorrow downward for the next week AND...drumroll...we don't have to clean an RV since we didn't live in it for the last six months!!!
The only other thing is I can't get the desktop computer to power up. It's a good thing I have a laptop and a son in "the business" so maybe I can get some advice over the weekend (on how to fix it and not just dump it). The box load of mail has been opened (We could sit in front of the fan for that).
On the positive side...we're home, the house is pretty much fine, the temperature is going from the 90's tomorrow downward for the next week AND...drumroll...we don't have to clean an RV since we didn't live in it for the last six months!!!
Monday, October 11, 2010
Monday:early in the AM
While Peggie checked us in last night, I saw a couple walking across the motel parking lot. They looked like they might have walked to dinner, so I asked them if they had found a good place to eat. The responded that the "only" place was a mexican restaurant about five blocks away, and that it was good. When Peggie came back out, she said the clerk told her the "only" place to eat was a mexican restaurant about five blocks away. Well, when 100% of those questioned give the same suggestion, we just had to try it. It was good.
Now I hope someplace in town serves a decent breakfast.
We will go to Las Vegas today. We will stop at a casino for about $20 of video poker. Wish us LUCK!
Then we will stop at Hoover Dam for a look at the new Black Canyon bridge. I have seen it on TV and want to see it in person. Then we will be back in Arizona! I hope somebody has turned the temperature down.
Now I hope someplace in town serves a decent breakfast.
We will go to Las Vegas today. We will stop at a casino for about $20 of video poker. Wish us LUCK!
Then we will stop at Hoover Dam for a look at the new Black Canyon bridge. I have seen it on TV and want to see it in person. Then we will be back in Arizona! I hope somebody has turned the temperature down.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Tonopah tonight
Where have Bill and Peggie been? No posts in three days!
Last Friday, the 8th, we took the ferry to Victoria from Port Angeles. There was fog all the way across, so we sat inside and visited with a couple from Oregon/San Francisco. When we arrived, there was a Gray Line former London double-decker bus to take us to Butchart Garden. It was fun for me to be a passenger as someone else gave the tour. I am not good at it, though, I couldn't think of a single stupid question to ask. The gardens were amazing. I especially liked the before/after photos of the former quarry and the present-day garden. After we were dropped back in town, we walked around for a bit, had a fresh seafood lunch and reboarded for the trip to Port Angeles. It had rained lightly while we were in the garden, but stopped before we got back to town. We rode atop the ferry on the return trip and enjoyed the views.
Saturday I left Peggie in bed and went to Les Schwab to get the fifth tire mounted. She was ready when I got back and we headed south on 101. The tire situation cost us the day we intended to use going to the Pacific side of the penninsula, so that was the first adjustment we made to save some time. It rained on us all the way from Sequim, down I-5 to Salem, and through the mountains on SR 22/126 to Sisters. There, the rain stopped. Outside of Sisters we passed a rolled-over truck that had apparently been transporting enough golf balls to make the roadsides look like the aftermath of a really bad hailstorm. We stayed in Bend that night.
This route was our second adjustment. We had planned to go down the coast and spend an afternoon in Ashland.
This morning we left Bend on 2o to Burns. Unfortunately, this meant we were going to backtrack on road we traveled northbound last spring. But, road looks different when you are going the other way, so it's all good. We left Burns on 78 to 95, heading for Nevada. There were two areas of inexplicable fog along the way. The sky was basically clear and the temps were in the 50s.
Observation: In Oregon, the speed limit is posted at 55 on these roads. I drove 65 and was passed more than 20 times, while I passed none. Across the line in Nevada, the posted limit is 70, which I drove. I passed an amazing number of people doing 55-60 and was passed by one guy going about 90. I think everybody was on the wrong side of the border.
We really enjoy the scenery of rolling sage covered hills and volcanic bluffs in Eastern Oregon and central Nevada. It is very stark, colorful, and peaceful. Unlike BC and Yukon which look inviting, but have few residents, these areas look forbidding, yet have residents all over. The higher peaks in Nevada have snow again, just as they did last spring. Really pretty, especially at sunset.
One has to carefully plan fuel, meal and rest stops. There are miles and miles between places. Today we purchased a sandwich and salad at a deli in Burns so we could stop for a Thomas picnic somewhere in the middle of nowhere. (can there be somewhere in nowhere?) Weather was perfect all day. Traffic was light enough not to be a problem. And nothing broke.
Well, okay, one thing went wrong. Peggie discovered she had left her wear-everyday wind breaker in Sequim. We decided not to return for it. But she called the hotel, and they agreed to send it to her.
Last time we were in Tonopah, we were burning the last two drops of gas in the tank, and the town looked really run-down and dirty. Today it was dark when we got here, so it looks better. And we still have a quarter tank of gas.
Last Friday, the 8th, we took the ferry to Victoria from Port Angeles. There was fog all the way across, so we sat inside and visited with a couple from Oregon/San Francisco. When we arrived, there was a Gray Line former London double-decker bus to take us to Butchart Garden. It was fun for me to be a passenger as someone else gave the tour. I am not good at it, though, I couldn't think of a single stupid question to ask. The gardens were amazing. I especially liked the before/after photos of the former quarry and the present-day garden. After we were dropped back in town, we walked around for a bit, had a fresh seafood lunch and reboarded for the trip to Port Angeles. It had rained lightly while we were in the garden, but stopped before we got back to town. We rode atop the ferry on the return trip and enjoyed the views.
Saturday I left Peggie in bed and went to Les Schwab to get the fifth tire mounted. She was ready when I got back and we headed south on 101. The tire situation cost us the day we intended to use going to the Pacific side of the penninsula, so that was the first adjustment we made to save some time. It rained on us all the way from Sequim, down I-5 to Salem, and through the mountains on SR 22/126 to Sisters. There, the rain stopped. Outside of Sisters we passed a rolled-over truck that had apparently been transporting enough golf balls to make the roadsides look like the aftermath of a really bad hailstorm. We stayed in Bend that night.
This route was our second adjustment. We had planned to go down the coast and spend an afternoon in Ashland.
This morning we left Bend on 2o to Burns. Unfortunately, this meant we were going to backtrack on road we traveled northbound last spring. But, road looks different when you are going the other way, so it's all good. We left Burns on 78 to 95, heading for Nevada. There were two areas of inexplicable fog along the way. The sky was basically clear and the temps were in the 50s.
Observation: In Oregon, the speed limit is posted at 55 on these roads. I drove 65 and was passed more than 20 times, while I passed none. Across the line in Nevada, the posted limit is 70, which I drove. I passed an amazing number of people doing 55-60 and was passed by one guy going about 90. I think everybody was on the wrong side of the border.
We really enjoy the scenery of rolling sage covered hills and volcanic bluffs in Eastern Oregon and central Nevada. It is very stark, colorful, and peaceful. Unlike BC and Yukon which look inviting, but have few residents, these areas look forbidding, yet have residents all over. The higher peaks in Nevada have snow again, just as they did last spring. Really pretty, especially at sunset.
One has to carefully plan fuel, meal and rest stops. There are miles and miles between places. Today we purchased a sandwich and salad at a deli in Burns so we could stop for a Thomas picnic somewhere in the middle of nowhere. (can there be somewhere in nowhere?) Weather was perfect all day. Traffic was light enough not to be a problem. And nothing broke.
Well, okay, one thing went wrong. Peggie discovered she had left her wear-everyday wind breaker in Sequim. We decided not to return for it. But she called the hotel, and they agreed to send it to her.
Last time we were in Tonopah, we were burning the last two drops of gas in the tank, and the town looked really run-down and dirty. Today it was dark when we got here, so it looks better. And we still have a quarter tank of gas.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Let me rephrase....
Did I say "no huge repair bill?"
I made a second trip to Les Shwab here in Sequim (pronounced Squim) because even after rotating the tires, I could still hear that 'thrump-thrump-thrump' and it bothered me because I don't like to ignore warning signs just because I think I know what they are. It is like getting the check engine light fixed even though I knew it was a false indication. Anyway, I was going to have them switch the spare and the thrumper. Soooo, when I looked again at the thrumper, I noticed a split at the tread edge. I looked at the other three tires and two of them also had tiny splits near the tread edge. But, these tires are warranted at home. Surely I can wait. So I asked them to switch the spare and the thrumper. Then I met Ron. When he handed me back my key after making the switch, he commented on the splits, suggesting that he wouldn't try to drive to Arizona on those tires. Yeah, but it's my money. And I can make it. Right?
Back to the hotel. Thinking. Thinking.
By bed time, having discussed it with Peggie, we decide to call the home town dealer, find out if the warranty is transferable, and if so, get new tires here. That's what I did this morning. The warranty can be honored here if I get info on the tread depth and splits and return to Tucson for a credit/refund.
The thing is, I thought I had five identical tires. But the spare is still the original equipment that I replaced two years ago because I had six flats in a year from cactus thorns. So I decided to get five new tires and have a spare equal to the tires on the ground. So let me rephrase: The thrumping tire problem has been fixed for only $1200. Plus another few hours of not-vacation-time. Including postponing the Victoria trip for a day, and returning to Les Shwab again on Saturday to get tire #5 mounted. (they only had 4 in stock, of course)
Oh, and it wasn't that easy. I keep a padlock on the spare so nobody will steal it. Fine, the key is in the glove box. Well, it was in the glove box before somebody broke into the jeep at Casey's apartment last year and stole the owner's manual....and, apparently, the key. So a quick (quick? this is me) trip to the locksmith. On TV any cop or PI can pick a lock in seconds. In real life, a professional takes five minutes, gives up, then goes and gets the cutter and cuts it off. So add a new $14 padlock and another detour on the way to solving a problem. The silver lining? I never needed that spare in a place where no cutter was available.
But now we had some time to spend here. We decided to follow a suggestion I got from a passenger earlier, and go up to Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park. On the way up I redeemed part of my 62nd birthday gift from Casey, and purchased my Senior Pass. It will get me into National Parks free from now on. Thanks, Casey. And Hurricane Ridge is SPECTACULAR scenery. It is atop one of the higher peaks in the Olympic Mountains. You can see a lot of other mountains from up there. And we avoided hitting another road-crossing deer.
Tomorrow we will go to Victoria and see Butchart Garden.
Sorry, I just can't let it go.......now our Jeep is also retired.
I can already hear Margie groaning, and I haven't hit "publish" yet.
I made a second trip to Les Shwab here in Sequim (pronounced Squim) because even after rotating the tires, I could still hear that 'thrump-thrump-thrump' and it bothered me because I don't like to ignore warning signs just because I think I know what they are. It is like getting the check engine light fixed even though I knew it was a false indication. Anyway, I was going to have them switch the spare and the thrumper. Soooo, when I looked again at the thrumper, I noticed a split at the tread edge. I looked at the other three tires and two of them also had tiny splits near the tread edge. But, these tires are warranted at home. Surely I can wait. So I asked them to switch the spare and the thrumper. Then I met Ron. When he handed me back my key after making the switch, he commented on the splits, suggesting that he wouldn't try to drive to Arizona on those tires. Yeah, but it's my money. And I can make it. Right?
Back to the hotel. Thinking. Thinking.
By bed time, having discussed it with Peggie, we decide to call the home town dealer, find out if the warranty is transferable, and if so, get new tires here. That's what I did this morning. The warranty can be honored here if I get info on the tread depth and splits and return to Tucson for a credit/refund.
The thing is, I thought I had five identical tires. But the spare is still the original equipment that I replaced two years ago because I had six flats in a year from cactus thorns. So I decided to get five new tires and have a spare equal to the tires on the ground. So let me rephrase: The thrumping tire problem has been fixed for only $1200. Plus another few hours of not-vacation-time. Including postponing the Victoria trip for a day, and returning to Les Shwab again on Saturday to get tire #5 mounted. (they only had 4 in stock, of course)
Oh, and it wasn't that easy. I keep a padlock on the spare so nobody will steal it. Fine, the key is in the glove box. Well, it was in the glove box before somebody broke into the jeep at Casey's apartment last year and stole the owner's manual....and, apparently, the key. So a quick (quick? this is me) trip to the locksmith. On TV any cop or PI can pick a lock in seconds. In real life, a professional takes five minutes, gives up, then goes and gets the cutter and cuts it off. So add a new $14 padlock and another detour on the way to solving a problem. The silver lining? I never needed that spare in a place where no cutter was available.
But now we had some time to spend here. We decided to follow a suggestion I got from a passenger earlier, and go up to Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park. On the way up I redeemed part of my 62nd birthday gift from Casey, and purchased my Senior Pass. It will get me into National Parks free from now on. Thanks, Casey. And Hurricane Ridge is SPECTACULAR scenery. It is atop one of the higher peaks in the Olympic Mountains. You can see a lot of other mountains from up there. And we avoided hitting another road-crossing deer.
Tomorrow we will go to Victoria and see Butchart Garden.
Sorry, I just can't let it go.......now our Jeep is also retired.
I can already hear Margie groaning, and I haven't hit "publish" yet.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Adventure means interesting, not catastrophe.
While we were at Heike's, we explained to her about our blog title. "Adventure" means a catastrophe averted.
Today wasn't even close.
Two days ago I noticed an uneven wear pattern on the left front tire. We were still in Canada, so I didn't want to get into something like new tires or shocks or anything. So, perhaps risking a blowout (not really) we continued until we got back into the U.S.
We had to get a check engine light checked out and lost half a day of travel last spring when we were in Omak. So while we were in Omak again, it was natural to get the tire situation fixed, (rotation) change the oil, wash the car (and our clothes) and lose half a day of travel.
But we were traveling again by 11:00. No long delay, no huge repair bill, no adventure. We headed down river on 97 then switched to 97A just because we had to choose one or the other. The U.S. side of the Okanogan (new spelling) Valley is also fruit growing country. The big difference is the lack of fruit stands. They seem to be more comercial type. Large packing warehouses, Treetop plant, trucks of apples going somewhere else. But we did find a stand. Lots of good, fresh apples, pears, nectarines, etc. We settled on some plucots. Sooooo gooooood!
We went down to Wenatchee, then headed across the south cascades loop (route 2). I don't know if it is because we just left BEAUTIFUL British Columbia or not, but I think the north cascades loop is more spectacular.
Anyway, we got to Seatle and headed for the Port Townsend ferry, since we want to spend some time on the Olympic penninsula. When we finally got close enough to figure an ETA, we called and made a reservation on the 7:30 ferry. But we arrived at 5:58 and made the six o'clock, barely. Cool. We got to cross in daylight. Tomorrow we will explore Port Townsend, then ferry over to Victoria on Thursday.
Today wasn't even close.
Two days ago I noticed an uneven wear pattern on the left front tire. We were still in Canada, so I didn't want to get into something like new tires or shocks or anything. So, perhaps risking a blowout (not really) we continued until we got back into the U.S.
We had to get a check engine light checked out and lost half a day of travel last spring when we were in Omak. So while we were in Omak again, it was natural to get the tire situation fixed, (rotation) change the oil, wash the car (and our clothes) and lose half a day of travel.
But we were traveling again by 11:00. No long delay, no huge repair bill, no adventure. We headed down river on 97 then switched to 97A just because we had to choose one or the other. The U.S. side of the Okanogan (new spelling) Valley is also fruit growing country. The big difference is the lack of fruit stands. They seem to be more comercial type. Large packing warehouses, Treetop plant, trucks of apples going somewhere else. But we did find a stand. Lots of good, fresh apples, pears, nectarines, etc. We settled on some plucots. Sooooo gooooood!
We went down to Wenatchee, then headed across the south cascades loop (route 2). I don't know if it is because we just left BEAUTIFUL British Columbia or not, but I think the north cascades loop is more spectacular.
Anyway, we got to Seatle and headed for the Port Townsend ferry, since we want to spend some time on the Olympic penninsula. When we finally got close enough to figure an ETA, we called and made a reservation on the 7:30 ferry. But we arrived at 5:58 and made the six o'clock, barely. Cool. We got to cross in daylight. Tomorrow we will explore Port Townsend, then ferry over to Victoria on Thursday.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Culture shock; too much, too many
We knew that driving south allows us to acclimate to a warmer climate slowly. You know, unlike flying, where you enter a plane in winter (Skagway) and arrive a few hours later in late summer (Tucson).
But the other thing is getting used to seeing lots of people. Today, as we drove through Kelowna, impatiently weaving in and out of veerrrry heavy traffic, I realized that within a five mile radius, were more people than live in the entire Yukon Territory. Really. If I had seen ALL the people within 500 miles of Skagway at the same time, it would have been fewer people than were in that 5 mile radius.
We started the day in Williams Lake. Proceeded on hwy 97 through Kamloops and on to Vernon, before heading down the Okanagan valley. The valley is the fruit and wine basket for Canada. Every 100 yards is a fruit stand or a winery. (Except in Kelowna. It has 3 miles of every retail business in the world. And all those people are on their way to or from at least one of them.) We looked hard for a Thomas place name, but no luck. We crossed into Washington at about six o'clock. As we headed to Omak, we saw a sign warning us that the next 13 mile stretch was a "high kill" zone for deer. Since it was dusk, we slowed down a bit. Sure enough, a doe walked onto the road. I saw her in time to stop and let her pass. A few miles later we saw three cars pulled over, with people out and talking. As we passed them, I think we ran over parts of a deer one of them had killed. But we were undamaged. We are staying in Omak. We went through here in April on our way north. Tomorrow we will head over to the Olympic Penninsula.
But the other thing is getting used to seeing lots of people. Today, as we drove through Kelowna, impatiently weaving in and out of veerrrry heavy traffic, I realized that within a five mile radius, were more people than live in the entire Yukon Territory. Really. If I had seen ALL the people within 500 miles of Skagway at the same time, it would have been fewer people than were in that 5 mile radius.
We started the day in Williams Lake. Proceeded on hwy 97 through Kamloops and on to Vernon, before heading down the Okanagan valley. The valley is the fruit and wine basket for Canada. Every 100 yards is a fruit stand or a winery. (Except in Kelowna. It has 3 miles of every retail business in the world. And all those people are on their way to or from at least one of them.) We looked hard for a Thomas place name, but no luck. We crossed into Washington at about six o'clock. As we headed to Omak, we saw a sign warning us that the next 13 mile stretch was a "high kill" zone for deer. Since it was dusk, we slowed down a bit. Sure enough, a doe walked onto the road. I saw her in time to stop and let her pass. A few miles later we saw three cars pulled over, with people out and talking. As we passed them, I think we ran over parts of a deer one of them had killed. But we were undamaged. We are staying in Omak. We went through here in April on our way north. Tomorrow we will head over to the Olympic Penninsula.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Williams Lake
We thought we had construction delays yesterday....
today, we had construction delays. Someday, British Columbia will have really good roads, and new, improved bridges; then they will start all over again. Construction never ends, it just takes a break for the winter.
We would like to post pictures of the two bears we saw, or the beautiful mountains and gorgeous rivers, but we are tired and pictures take forever to upload at these hotel web connections.
We are in Williams Lake, BC. We alternately drove through breathtaking landscape and sat in line behind the flagger at one or another road improvement project. We also managed to see deer in peoples yards and fields and beside the road. Two plump looking bears were eating the greens at roadside. We did not turn on our blinkers while we took pictures.
If you are looking at our progress on maps, we took hwy 29 from Ft. St. John to Chetwynd, where we rejoined hwy 97 to Prince George and on to Williams Lake.
I really don't know how many construction projects we encountered or how many deer we spotted. Too many to count.
today, we had construction delays. Someday, British Columbia will have really good roads, and new, improved bridges; then they will start all over again. Construction never ends, it just takes a break for the winter.
We would like to post pictures of the two bears we saw, or the beautiful mountains and gorgeous rivers, but we are tired and pictures take forever to upload at these hotel web connections.
We are in Williams Lake, BC. We alternately drove through breathtaking landscape and sat in line behind the flagger at one or another road improvement project. We also managed to see deer in peoples yards and fields and beside the road. Two plump looking bears were eating the greens at roadside. We did not turn on our blinkers while we took pictures.
If you are looking at our progress on maps, we took hwy 29 from Ft. St. John to Chetwynd, where we rejoined hwy 97 to Prince George and on to Williams Lake.
I really don't know how many construction projects we encountered or how many deer we spotted. Too many to count.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
On the road again, day two, Muncho Lake to Ft. St. John
We awoke to stormy skies at the Northern Rockies Lodge on Muncho Lake. As we hit the road we got the leftovers of a good rain storm. This section of road hugs the lake shore at the base of a range of mountains, so it is still the 1943 alignment of curves, though it is slightly wider and paved now.
Yesterday, we saw many bison along the road east of Watson Lake. Today we spotted too many deer to keep track of, and we got good photos of these two black tail bucks.
Continuing on, looking hard for moose because signs kept warning us to, we encountered several parties of caribou. This was the largest gathering of young females and some calves.
We also noticed that some of the 'pine' trees were turning yellow along with the aspen. It is a strange sight. They are larch trees, a deciduous conifer.
Finally, we saw this cow and calf enjoying the soothing properties of this roadside pool.
I learned that one shouldn't put on the emergency flashers when viewing wildlife. People stop to help you and scare away the animals. On the Skagway tour route, flashers are how we inform each other that we have a sighting. So from now on, we just pull over and try not to look like we are having trouble.
Yesterday, we saw many bison along the road east of Watson Lake. Today we spotted too many deer to keep track of, and we got good photos of these two black tail bucks.
Continuing on, looking hard for moose because signs kept warning us to, we encountered several parties of caribou. This was the largest gathering of young females and some calves.
We also noticed that some of the 'pine' trees were turning yellow along with the aspen. It is a strange sight. They are larch trees, a deciduous conifer.
Finally, we saw this cow and calf enjoying the soothing properties of this roadside pool.
I learned that one shouldn't put on the emergency flashers when viewing wildlife. People stop to help you and scare away the animals. On the Skagway tour route, flashers are how we inform each other that we have a sighting. So from now on, we just pull over and try not to look like we are having trouble.
We also ran into two long construction delays, so we are spending the night in Ft. St. John.
Many wayside stops are closed for the winter, or just closed for good. So it is still a good practice to get fuel whenever you can. We also find that more frequent stops keep our joints from getting locked in one position.
On The Road Again
We left Skagway on Thursday afternoon and headed to Heike and Stefan's B & B in Tagish. The sunlight on the snow-covered mountains was so pretty we, of course, had to make several stops for pictures so it took us three hours to make an hour and a half drive. We also forgot about the hour time change so when we finally arrived at Tagish cabins it was 7:00 p.m. and Heike said she was beginning to worry if we were going to make it. We had a beautiful cabin, and a great moose liver dinner (above and beyond the typical Bed & Breakfast, eh?). After a leisurely breakfast, we got on the road and drove and drove and drove. We did start to see wildlife--BISON--first in singles and then in herds. We stopped at Muncho Lake at Northern Rockies Lodge--another beautiful place. We're getting ready to head out to Fort St. Johns and maybe beyond. We'll check in again when there is internet service.
We need the temps in Arizona to start moving downward in a big way.
We need the temps in Arizona to start moving downward in a big way.
Monday, September 27, 2010
I knew this year seemed longer.
Just out of curiosity, I looked at last year's entry for Sept. 27. We left that day and got snow the first two days out. This year we leave on the 30th, but only to Tagish, then out on the 1st. I hope the snows don't come. We can drive in snow, but it will be slower. And I don't really want to put chains on.
We went out for dessert last night (no dessert, too near the end-of-season). So we had a burger and onion rings. Looking around, we noticed, not for the first time, that young people here (both male and female) wear knit watch caps, and other European caps I don't know the names of. Are they doing that in AZ and NY? Is that just an Alaskan thing due to climate? Or is it a fashion statement like low pants? (Low pants are not in here.) The reason I ask is that it is the seasonal workers that dress that way, so I wonder if they bring the custom with them or pick it up once they get here. Curiously, there don't seem to be many locals in that twenty-something age group.
Speaking of dessert, I counted 21 restaurants operating seasonally in town. We have eaten at 16 of them, and only two are on the "don't go back" list. Eight are on the "really good" list. The rest are "okay." Four of them will be open for at least part of the winter. Never more than two at the same time, though. About half a dozen are already closed, along with about the same number of other shops. Some tour operators have also shuttered. Never book the last tour of the season, or, probably, the first.
Still speaking of dessert, I must go to the Lemon Rose bakery. She moved to a larger building this year and has a sit-down area, and does more sandwiches. She also still runs out of bread too soon. She intends to be one of the places open all year. I have only had two cinnamon rolls all summer, and no turnovers. Today is a hot chocolate (or coffee) and cinnamon roll kind of day. To make it truly rewarding, I will walk the tttwo bbblocks in the ccooold rraain. The cinnamon rolls better be fresh and warm!
We went out for dessert last night (no dessert, too near the end-of-season). So we had a burger and onion rings. Looking around, we noticed, not for the first time, that young people here (both male and female) wear knit watch caps, and other European caps I don't know the names of. Are they doing that in AZ and NY? Is that just an Alaskan thing due to climate? Or is it a fashion statement like low pants? (Low pants are not in here.) The reason I ask is that it is the seasonal workers that dress that way, so I wonder if they bring the custom with them or pick it up once they get here. Curiously, there don't seem to be many locals in that twenty-something age group.
Speaking of dessert, I counted 21 restaurants operating seasonally in town. We have eaten at 16 of them, and only two are on the "don't go back" list. Eight are on the "really good" list. The rest are "okay." Four of them will be open for at least part of the winter. Never more than two at the same time, though. About half a dozen are already closed, along with about the same number of other shops. Some tour operators have also shuttered. Never book the last tour of the season, or, probably, the first.
Still speaking of dessert, I must go to the Lemon Rose bakery. She moved to a larger building this year and has a sit-down area, and does more sandwiches. She also still runs out of bread too soon. She intends to be one of the places open all year. I have only had two cinnamon rolls all summer, and no turnovers. Today is a hot chocolate (or coffee) and cinnamon roll kind of day. To make it truly rewarding, I will walk the tttwo bbblocks in the ccooold rraain. The cinnamon rolls better be fresh and warm!
Sunday, September 26, 2010
And the rains came....
Okay, you've seen and heard about the snow storm on Friday. It has been raining ever since. Today it is coming with a vengeance. The wind is intermittently harsh. The temperature is in the thirties.
With four days between tours, there is a lot of time to fill. Luckily, packing is a time filling activity. I can't believe we brought so much stuff.
I took Peggie to work (they are doing inventory) and decided to drive up to the summit to see what had become of the snow. It is mostly melted.
On the way back, black bear number 101 came out of the canyon right in front of me. I hit the brakes and he ran off the road. It was close. Would have been ironic for 101 to be road kill.
Our card playing crew decided to go to the Stowaway for the final Sunday brunch of the season. Allyson is in the lower 48, but everybody else was there
l to r: Peggie, Trish, Keith, Jane, Robert, Lynn, Bill
With four days between tours, there is a lot of time to fill. Luckily, packing is a time filling activity. I can't believe we brought so much stuff.
I took Peggie to work (they are doing inventory) and decided to drive up to the summit to see what had become of the snow. It is mostly melted.
On the way back, black bear number 101 came out of the canyon right in front of me. I hit the brakes and he ran off the road. It was close. Would have been ironic for 101 to be road kill.
Our card playing crew decided to go to the Stowaway for the final Sunday brunch of the season. Allyson is in the lower 48, but everybody else was there
l to r: Peggie, Trish, Keith, Jane, Robert, Lynn, Bill
Friday, September 24, 2010
Did Peggie say "winter?"
My tour today was supposed to go to the Yukon border, 52 miles north of Skagway. By the time we got to the Alaska border, 14 miles north of Skagway, this is what it looked like. The background of this sign is dark brown. The two intrepid photographers are my San Diego based passengers who were thrilled to see snow.
Do I look calm and confident? The passengers were so excited to see snow they didn't mind turning back early.
We were glad we had stopped at the Alaska sign on the way out, because by the time we got back to it the snow was several inches deeper, and it is uphill from the sign. By the time we got back to town it was clear that the word had spread, no tour busses were north bound.
I called to cancel tomorrow's oil change in Whitehorse and was told that was wise, since the road was closed anyway.
So we have until next Wednesday for the weather to improve. And I am off work until then.
We pressed confidently on because I naively thought the snow would let up when we dropped in altitude. By the time we reached Fraser, six more miles, I remembered that up here it is latitude not altitude that matters. We turned back at that point, along with two other tour busses who got wise at the same time.
Do I look calm and confident? The passengers were so excited to see snow they didn't mind turning back early.We were glad we had stopped at the Alaska sign on the way out, because by the time we got back to it the snow was several inches deeper, and it is uphill from the sign. By the time we got back to town it was clear that the word had spread, no tour busses were north bound.
I called to cancel tomorrow's oil change in Whitehorse and was told that was wise, since the road was closed anyway.
So we have until next Wednesday for the weather to improve. And I am off work until then.
We'd better leave cause winter is on its way!
This is the view out our front door this morning. That's new snow and new clouds. We'll see what develops through the weekend.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Historic Skagway Inn Garden
I came home for lunch at noon today. The sky was blue, the sun was shining, there was no wind and THE TEMPERATURE WAS 35 DEGREES!!! Even the people who live here year round agreed that it was a bit nippy. We're supposed to have a storm coming in tomorrow so I hurried out after work to get some pictures of the garden across the street.
Emily, the gardener at the Skagway Inn, has worked hard all summer to create a wonderful garden. She's out there early in the morning each day wearing a coat, hat and gloves. She was especially excited about ten days ago because the sunflowers started blooming. Yesterday was the first day we had frost on the cars so the end to the sunflowers is probably near. They didn't all open yet but I loved getting pictures of them at the various stages.
I've posted an album (I think). I don't do it often enough to be sure it will load. Greg gave me a set of close-up filters for my camera to enhance macro shots so I had a good time experimenting.
Hope you enjoy the pictures. I love the flowers up here.
Monday, September 20, 2010
A Trip With The Professional Driver
Peggie's pictures, Bill's narrative:
It is the end of the season, and we had three no-ship days surrounding a single-ship day, so we talked our employers into a four day weekend. The plan was to go to Dawson City, YT, where gold was discovered in 1896, setting off the gold rush that was responsible for the establishment of Skagway, the creation of The Yukon Territory, and the opening up of Alaska and NW Canada.
Since then, over $13,000,000,000 in gold has been mined. We needed to see this place!
So we woke up early, filled our travel mugs with coffee, and hit the road. We decided we could stop for breakfast in Whitehorse and pick up some other items while we were there. We left Skagway at 7:30.
Five Finger Rapids is the only rapids remaining on the river now that Schwatka Lake covers the Whitehorse Rapids. During the first stampede 7123 homemade boats attempted the 550 mile float from Lake Bennett to Dawson. Some of the boats capsized in the swift water coursing between the islands making up the five channels.
We arrived at Dawson City B&B in the early evening and met our hosts, Jon and Inday. We got settled and found an open restaurant (many are closed for the season) called the Sluice Box Lounge. If that name won't get you in the door, what's wrong with you. The food was remarkably good. So we returned the second night.
Meanwhile, Inday was very helpful in telling us about places to go. One of the places was Midnight Dome. It is a mountain behind the town where early residents held a solstice party to see the midnight sun. They were dissappointed to find that the sun actually sets at 11:30 in Dawson. Oh, well. Here is what we saw on Saturday morning.
The fog was only on the river. The river coming in just below the fog is the Klondike. The town is on the delta created at the junction of the two rivers. The big river is the Yukon. If you zoom in, you can see a small houseboat floating in the Yukon.
Turning to the east we followed the course of the Klondike and got a picture of the earthworms left behind by the large dredges brought in by the large companies that bought up most of the claims.
These mounds are made as floating dredges dump the waste rock aside as they move along the stream bed. You can see the relative size of the mounds, called earthworms, due to the obvious similarity. Dredges are now illegal, as a means of extracting minerals. The Klondike and feeder creeks were dredged for miles. Look at Googleearth to get a good idea. As you can see, the mounds are flattened and reclaimed for use in various ways. There is even the attractively named Dredge Pond Subdivision up river a ways. We could hardly resist purchasing one of the seen-ick lots.
It is the end of the season, and we had three no-ship days surrounding a single-ship day, so we talked our employers into a four day weekend. The plan was to go to Dawson City, YT, where gold was discovered in 1896, setting off the gold rush that was responsible for the establishment of Skagway, the creation of The Yukon Territory, and the opening up of Alaska and NW Canada.
Since then, over $13,000,000,000 in gold has been mined. We needed to see this place!
So we woke up early, filled our travel mugs with coffee, and hit the road. We decided we could stop for breakfast in Whitehorse and pick up some other items while we were there. We left Skagway at 7:30.
This was our view at Fraser. (Canadian Customs) Fraser Lake was warmer than the air, so a nice fog was laid in, just over the water.
We had a nice breakfast at the Edgewater Hotel in Whitehorse, then continued up the North Klondike Highway to Dawson City. We crossed the Yukon River on the third of four bridges that cross the river. One is on the Alaska Highway, so we crossed it in '95. Two is in Whitehorse and we crossed it last summer going to get Peggie's haircut. Four is on the Dalton Highway along side the pipeline, and we crossed it in '95 also. So now we have driven across all the bridges that cross the Yukon.
Not far north of the bridge we came to this.
Five Finger Rapids is the only rapids remaining on the river now that Schwatka Lake covers the Whitehorse Rapids. During the first stampede 7123 homemade boats attempted the 550 mile float from Lake Bennett to Dawson. Some of the boats capsized in the swift water coursing between the islands making up the five channels.We arrived at Dawson City B&B in the early evening and met our hosts, Jon and Inday. We got settled and found an open restaurant (many are closed for the season) called the Sluice Box Lounge. If that name won't get you in the door, what's wrong with you. The food was remarkably good. So we returned the second night.
Meanwhile, Inday was very helpful in telling us about places to go. One of the places was Midnight Dome. It is a mountain behind the town where early residents held a solstice party to see the midnight sun. They were dissappointed to find that the sun actually sets at 11:30 in Dawson. Oh, well. Here is what we saw on Saturday morning.
The fog was only on the river. The river coming in just below the fog is the Klondike. The town is on the delta created at the junction of the two rivers. The big river is the Yukon. If you zoom in, you can see a small houseboat floating in the Yukon.Turning to the east we followed the course of the Klondike and got a picture of the earthworms left behind by the large dredges brought in by the large companies that bought up most of the claims.
These mounds are made as floating dredges dump the waste rock aside as they move along the stream bed. You can see the relative size of the mounds, called earthworms, due to the obvious similarity. Dredges are now illegal, as a means of extracting minerals. The Klondike and feeder creeks were dredged for miles. Look at Googleearth to get a good idea. As you can see, the mounds are flattened and reclaimed for use in various ways. There is even the attractively named Dredge Pond Subdivision up river a ways. We could hardly resist purchasing one of the seen-ick lots.I really wanted to see Bonanza Creek, where the first, or Discovery Claim was made.
Here I am confirming that all the gold has been found. Actually, you can't take anything from this claim. But I didn't give up. Bring on the heavy equipment.
Big toys for big boys. This bad boy probably last pushed rock before I was born.
Here I am confirming that all the gold has been found. Actually, you can't take anything from this claim. But I didn't give up. Bring on the heavy equipment.
Big toys for big boys. This bad boy probably last pushed rock before I was born.So we went on to Claim 6, which is public, and you can legally pan for gold. If you bring your own pan. Oh, well.
On Sunday we checked out and headed to the Top of the World Highway to go to Chicken, AK and on to Tok. But first you have to cross the Yukon River, without a bridge. So, to the George Black.
George Black is a ferry. Don't snicker. Check the spelling of ferry!
On Sunday we checked out and headed to the Top of the World Highway to go to Chicken, AK and on to Tok. But first you have to cross the Yukon River, without a bridge. So, to the George Black.
George Black is a ferry. Don't snicker. Check the spelling of ferry!Yes, we actually trusted our lives to this little craft. So now we have crossed the Yukon at all five highway crossings and lived to tell about it.
The Top of the World Highway is appropriately named. It stays at or near the tops of the mountains, instead of going up and down along the sides as usual. At the Alaska border the name of the road changes to the Taylor Highway, and the surface goes from paved to dirt, and the road narrows considerably, and drops off the top down into the creek bottom. And earlier in the summer the creek did what creeks do and washed out the road. They are getting it back into shape, but we had to wait about an hour for a pilot car to take us through the construction.
But eventually we came back on top and got this view. You really have to zoom in and see the white capped peaks between the last blue mountains and the sky.
That is the Alaska Range. At least 300 miles away!!!!
The Top of the World Highway is appropriately named. It stays at or near the tops of the mountains, instead of going up and down along the sides as usual. At the Alaska border the name of the road changes to the Taylor Highway, and the surface goes from paved to dirt, and the road narrows considerably, and drops off the top down into the creek bottom. And earlier in the summer the creek did what creeks do and washed out the road. They are getting it back into shape, but we had to wait about an hour for a pilot car to take us through the construction.
But eventually we came back on top and got this view. You really have to zoom in and see the white capped peaks between the last blue mountains and the sky.
That is the Alaska Range. At least 300 miles away!!!!We were blessed with clear skies for the entire trip. This picture looks like all of Alaska had clear skies.
We spent the night in Tok then drove home today.
We made four border crossings without any hassles. Changed time zones four times without getting confused. We drove over 1100 miles with no "adventures." The only four-legged animal we saw was a coyote. If we had four more days off, we would turn around and do the whole thing in reverse. Indescribable.
Friday, September 17, 2010
A short hiatus
Today we leave for Dawson City, Yukon. We will come back Monday.
Dawson City is the town that sprang up at the junction of the Klondike and Yukon Rivers during the gold rush. We will visit the actual creeks where the gold was discovered. Mostly we are going to see what the country looks like up there.
We will cross No. 3 of the four Yukon River bridges. Then, if conditions permit, we will ferry across before driving to Chicken, AK and on to Tetlin Junction for our return via Alaska Highway.
We are still enjoying clear skies and mild temperatures, though it drops below freezing every night in Dawson now. I see that AZ is still in the throws of full-on summer. You need to get past that so we can come home.
Dawson City is the town that sprang up at the junction of the Klondike and Yukon Rivers during the gold rush. We will visit the actual creeks where the gold was discovered. Mostly we are going to see what the country looks like up there.
We will cross No. 3 of the four Yukon River bridges. Then, if conditions permit, we will ferry across before driving to Chicken, AK and on to Tetlin Junction for our return via Alaska Highway.
We are still enjoying clear skies and mild temperatures, though it drops below freezing every night in Dawson now. I see that AZ is still in the throws of full-on summer. You need to get past that so we can come home.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
A milestone reached!
I have been keeping track out of curiosity, marking in my calendar on each occasion.
Monday, I had my 100th black bear sighting.
It averages out to about one per trip.
I purposely separated grizzlies into a different category because we seldom (once, this year) see them on tour. Thirteen, bty.
I saw THE BEAR six times, but only counted it once, because I knew for sure it was the same one every time.
Monday, I had my 100th black bear sighting.
It averages out to about one per trip.
I purposely separated grizzlies into a different category because we seldom (once, this year) see them on tour. Thirteen, bty.
I saw THE BEAR six times, but only counted it once, because I knew for sure it was the same one every time.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
No Snotty Weather!
Someone came into the quilt shop today and asked Trish, the owner, about September weather. She replied that Skagway is known for SNOTTY weather in September. It may be cloudy, raining, sleeting, snowing. It's just SNOTTY! The wind howls and you try to walk down the street and you're not sure you're moving forward. It's just SNOTTY! I think that's a great description because last year we found September to be like that--SNOTTY!
Well, not this week. We are having BEAUTIFUL, DROP-DEAD GORGEOUS WEATHER. No wind,no clouds, no rain, no snow, no sleet. Just plenty of sunshine. BEAUTIFUL and NOT SNOTTY weather. Combine that with the end of the season nearing and seasonal people beginning to leave and it's barbeque and party-time.
Definitely NOT SNOTTY! But a wee bit tiring--the partying, not the weather.
Well, not this week. We are having BEAUTIFUL, DROP-DEAD GORGEOUS WEATHER. No wind,no clouds, no rain, no snow, no sleet. Just plenty of sunshine. BEAUTIFUL and NOT SNOTTY weather. Combine that with the end of the season nearing and seasonal people beginning to leave and it's barbeque and party-time.
Definitely NOT SNOTTY! But a wee bit tiring--the partying, not the weather.
Northern Lights
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
hmmm, whatsat?
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
jussaminit
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK BILL, NORTHERN LIGHTS ALERT
That's how our neighbor, Chris, woke us up at midnight last night to let us know the lights were on. So we went out to our back yard and watched the green curtains of lights drift down from the north, then dissipate as they got overhead. Sometimes intense, sometimes looking like the glow over Phoenix from up in the mountains. You can see them moving, like a big curtain blowing in a slow wind.
So forgive me if I sound a little tired. I lost an hour's worth of sleep. But it really is a beautiful show. We both tried to get pictures, but they didn't come out.
And now we add one more new experience to our otherwise mundane existence.
Priceless.
hmmm, whatsat?
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
jussaminit
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK BILL, NORTHERN LIGHTS ALERT
That's how our neighbor, Chris, woke us up at midnight last night to let us know the lights were on. So we went out to our back yard and watched the green curtains of lights drift down from the north, then dissipate as they got overhead. Sometimes intense, sometimes looking like the glow over Phoenix from up in the mountains. You can see them moving, like a big curtain blowing in a slow wind.
So forgive me if I sound a little tired. I lost an hour's worth of sleep. But it really is a beautiful show. We both tried to get pictures, but they didn't come out.
And now we add one more new experience to our otherwise mundane existence.
Priceless.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Odds and Endings
Even when you get to be as old as I am, you can have new experiences. Honest.
Today, for instance, was the first time in my whole life that I got rained on while having my haircut. My barber this summer, Peggie, has a very primitive shop. It is in our back yard. It was going fine, the beard trimmer working hard to get through all that hair on my head (stop snickering, parts of my head have hair) when it began to rain. Peggie continued bravely on and finished the job without either of us getting soaked.
In other news, Jane is back. Yay!
Also, yesterday (Friday) was the annual Klondike Road Relay. About 1500 (really) runners come to Skagway from all over southeast Alaska and Yukon to run a relay from here to Whitehorse.
Why? Nobody knows. Least of all the participants. They take off in groups every half hour from 6pm to 11pm. Team members are transported to various transfer points where fires and toilets and food and water are available. The legs are of varying lengths depending on the relative difficulty. ie more uphill=shorter leg
There are running teams and walking teams. A winner is declared sometime this afternoon in Whitehorse. By this afternoon, the toilets, fire barrels and litter are all removed and you could never guess the road had been full of people all night.
Another sign the season is ending. Ships are making their last port call. Neither of today's two ships will return this year.
Today, for instance, was the first time in my whole life that I got rained on while having my haircut. My barber this summer, Peggie, has a very primitive shop. It is in our back yard. It was going fine, the beard trimmer working hard to get through all that hair on my head (stop snickering, parts of my head have hair) when it began to rain. Peggie continued bravely on and finished the job without either of us getting soaked.
In other news, Jane is back. Yay!
Also, yesterday (Friday) was the annual Klondike Road Relay. About 1500 (really) runners come to Skagway from all over southeast Alaska and Yukon to run a relay from here to Whitehorse.
Why? Nobody knows. Least of all the participants. They take off in groups every half hour from 6pm to 11pm. Team members are transported to various transfer points where fires and toilets and food and water are available. The legs are of varying lengths depending on the relative difficulty. ie more uphill=shorter leg
There are running teams and walking teams. A winner is declared sometime this afternoon in Whitehorse. By this afternoon, the toilets, fire barrels and litter are all removed and you could never guess the road had been full of people all night.
Another sign the season is ending. Ships are making their last port call. Neither of today's two ships will return this year.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Let's go for a drive and see all the Fall colors, he said.
.
Oh yeah...
Hmm...
Yep, he knew what he was talking about...
I gave him a tip. I told him which restaurant to take me to for dinner.
I must admit I was a doubting Thomas at the beginning of this little scenic drive but heck, he's a professional tour driver so...
I'm beginning to see some Fall colors...
Oh yeah...
Hmm...
Yep, he knew what he was talking about...
I gave him a tip. I told him which restaurant to take me to for dinner.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
African Childrens' Choir
Tonight we went to the school to see the African Childrens' Choir perform.
The children are from war-torn and poverty stricken countries in Africa. They are given an education and other training and helped to establish meaningful careers. But first, they sing.
And they dance. Boy, do they dance!
If they come to perform near you, go see them.
Then we came out. And it was raining. And it was dark. And it was a cold rain.
It is September 5th, all you Arizonans, and it is cold and raining. The thermometer in the Jeep said 51. Just before we went, we were sitting outside with a friend, enjoying the break in the day-long rain, and we thought it was nice because we only had to wear light jackets.
We are both expecting very busy weeks. Peggie has several quilt clubs coming on cruises, and I have several double-run days. After Sunday it will start to taper off, with some no-ship days beginning on the 17th. We are still hoping the weather will allow us to go to Dawson City. We will not be able to make the loop drive around to Tok and back because a rock slide took out the road between Dawson City and Chicken and it won't be repaired any time soon.
The children are from war-torn and poverty stricken countries in Africa. They are given an education and other training and helped to establish meaningful careers. But first, they sing.
And they dance. Boy, do they dance!
If they come to perform near you, go see them.
Then we came out. And it was raining. And it was dark. And it was a cold rain.
It is September 5th, all you Arizonans, and it is cold and raining. The thermometer in the Jeep said 51. Just before we went, we were sitting outside with a friend, enjoying the break in the day-long rain, and we thought it was nice because we only had to wear light jackets.
We are both expecting very busy weeks. Peggie has several quilt clubs coming on cruises, and I have several double-run days. After Sunday it will start to taper off, with some no-ship days beginning on the 17th. We are still hoping the weather will allow us to go to Dawson City. We will not be able to make the loop drive around to Tok and back because a rock slide took out the road between Dawson City and Chicken and it won't be repaired any time soon.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Substitute photos
I know we are derelict in our duty to publish photos. But look at the ones Greg put on his blog. His whale photos are cool and the bear photos are amazing. And, of course, Ariana is cute.
We miss GaT already. It sure was great to have them here.
But now it is September. We await the return of Jane. Soon.
We waited too long to book the ferry, it is full. So we have no choice but to drive home. We didn't want to do it. But since we have to, we will spend a few days in British Columbia while trying to keep our jaws from dropping clear off at every turn and hill. The only real worry is winter weather. But, hey, we have a Jeep, we have chains. We are young and fearless.
We miss GaT already. It sure was great to have them here.
But now it is September. We await the return of Jane. Soon.
We waited too long to book the ferry, it is full. So we have no choice but to drive home. We didn't want to do it. But since we have to, we will spend a few days in British Columbia while trying to keep our jaws from dropping clear off at every turn and hill. The only real worry is winter weather. But, hey, we have a Jeep, we have chains. We are young and fearless.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
We now have "THE BEAR"
August 24, 2010
Awe and wonderment have returned to Skagway. . . . .
Awe and wonderment have returned to Skagway. . . . .
Not just for us, but for all the jaded seasonal workers who are READY for the season to end. Median day was six weeks ago. We have had termination dust (the first snow). The salmon run is over. The fireweed is turning to cotton. The topic of conversation is about plans for leaving, plans for the off season, plans for next year.
But now we have. . .THE BEAR.
THE BEAR EATING THE GOAT BY THE SNOWPLOW SHEDS
Tuesday morning he was spotted in the depression across the highway from the snowplow sheds. I first saw him that afternoon as I returned from Carcross. A medium sized cinnamon bear (that's a black species, that is brown in color) busily chomping on a full grown goat 30-40 feet off the road in some boulders. Since I was driving, I asked a 9 year old passenger to snap some pictures with my camera. Later, she asked me to email them to her so she could use them in a 4H vacation project. She should win a prize of some kind.
After work I loaded GaT into the jeep (it was Peggie's sick day) to go look. Other gawkers were there. By Wed morning "Have you seen the bear eating the goat?" was on everyone's lips. By now, it is simply, THE BEAR. "Have you seen the bear?" "Is the bear still there?"
Nobody can remember ever even hearing of such an event before. For four days, so far, this is a sure-fire excitement builder on a tour. Earlier we had the photos of the bear snatching the baby goat, but that event was actually seen by just one tour and the photos excited the drivers, but we didn't show them to people.
This will be a good story for years to come.
Greg joined my club
Peggie put GaT on the ferry this morning. They will spend the day in Juneau, then catch a flight tomorrow. We loved having them here. Ariana is changing so fast now. The only down side was that Peggie and I both spent several (different) days sick in bed. We are both still coughing a bit.
On his last day, Greg decided to go horseback riding. And, he fell off. So now he is an official member of the "He who falls from horses" club.
On his last day, Greg decided to go horseback riding. And, he fell off. So now he is an official member of the "He who falls from horses" club.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Look Grandma, I have a flower!
We took the ferry to Haines yesterday. On one of our stops, Ariana picked some flowers and Grandma experimented with her camera.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
You gotta (get to?) live with your choices.
I spend a lot of time in the office this year helping Dave with a variety of stuff. That means I know more about what is going on and what is coming up. When choices have to be made about who will do what tour, I usually get my choice. That's why most days I take the Carcross tour. But when Dave overrules me (RHIP) and he takes the Carcross tour, I still choose which group I want to take.
Today I chose a family group of 21 over a varied group of 24. Good choice. As they got on the bus, I pinched my thumb in the door opener handle. As I was doing my intro speech, one woman, a mom of course, handed me a kleenix for the bleeding, which I hadn't noticed yet. At the same time, a second woman, another mom of course, held up her neosporine and squeezed some on my thumb. It was, still is, a cloudy rainy day so when we got to the summit and couldn't see beyond the billions of water droplets, I suggested we drive a few extra miles for some scenery, and they agreed. Good choice, because we saw a bear.
Not only that, but I saw the other bus at one of the stops. He had had a screaming four year old that he had to return to town before continuing his tour. Yuck!
Many years ago, we chose to have children. So now we are babysitting our granddaughter.
So I made the right choices.
Today I chose a family group of 21 over a varied group of 24. Good choice. As they got on the bus, I pinched my thumb in the door opener handle. As I was doing my intro speech, one woman, a mom of course, handed me a kleenix for the bleeding, which I hadn't noticed yet. At the same time, a second woman, another mom of course, held up her neosporine and squeezed some on my thumb. It was, still is, a cloudy rainy day so when we got to the summit and couldn't see beyond the billions of water droplets, I suggested we drive a few extra miles for some scenery, and they agreed. Good choice, because we saw a bear.
Not only that, but I saw the other bus at one of the stops. He had had a screaming four year old that he had to return to town before continuing his tour. Yuck!
Many years ago, we chose to have children. So now we are babysitting our granddaughter.
So I made the right choices.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Happy Birthday, Bill!
Yes, today is the day Bill has a very special birthday. I know he's going to have cheesecake and presents. Let's see, something else is happening too. What is it?
Oh yeah, his wonderful granddaughter is bringing her parents and staying for a visit!!! We all get to enjoy this present.
He doesn't seem much older than the 20-year-old I met but since he now has a granddaughter he must be older. Oh my, how the time does fly!
Oh yeah, his wonderful granddaughter is bringing her parents and staying for a visit!!! We all get to enjoy this present.
He doesn't seem much older than the 20-year-old I met but since he now has a granddaughter he must be older. Oh my, how the time does fly!
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Take That Road to the Top of the World!
With such spectacular weather we were happy to have the day off. Saturday was the day to take the jeep and go on "That Road". You know, the one Bill, Don and I went on last year when it was wet and foggy and we said we'd like to see it when you could really see. Well, let me tell you, we could really see and it was as beautiful as we hoped. We opened the windows and removed the top and the first thing I noticed was the smell of pine trees, the smell of pine you get when it's hot and dry outside. We just kept climbing and climbing. No bears or caribou but we did see a Dall sheep--she was below us so that tells you how high we were. Bill had heard that if you follow "That Road" you can see Bennett Lake so we did and we did. Distances are so deceiving. What looks like a short hike to the edge is really farther than it seems. The same is true when looking down at the lake. It all looks so close until you realize that those little specks down there are full-sized pine trees and a whole bunch of them at that. Coming back, yes, we did have to return on the same road (unusual for us), we saw five more Dall sheep and three pheasants. And a bunch of arctic squirrels.
Check out the photo album on the side.
Next, granddaughter Ariana is bringing her parents to Skagway for a visit. They're enjoying great weather in Juneau today and take the ferry up here tomorrow.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Grizzly nature at work
This is the same little grizzly from the previous video last week. He has distinctive two-tone coloring that makes him easy to recognize. I was speaking to one of the park rangers who agreed with me that this is most likely one of the pair we watched last summer acting so comicallly trying to catch salmon. So he would be in his third summer and be two and a half years old. Maybe he will be a good playmate for Ariana when she comes next week. Not.
When I took this video, he had just come down stream and crossed over the bridge like he did last week. He is in the crossing about 30 feet downstream from the bridge. I was standing in the open door of my jeep, ready to jump in, but, of course, he was too busy with fish to worry about me.
If you don't like blood, or think fish are just for decorating a stream, you may not want to watch this grizzly going about the grizzly business of surviving.
But, for me, this is really cool.
The crackling sound is the wind on the camera mike.
When I took this video, he had just come down stream and crossed over the bridge like he did last week. He is in the crossing about 30 feet downstream from the bridge. I was standing in the open door of my jeep, ready to jump in, but, of course, he was too busy with fish to worry about me.
If you don't like blood, or think fish are just for decorating a stream, you may not want to watch this grizzly going about the grizzly business of surviving.
But, for me, this is really cool.
The crackling sound is the wind on the camera mike.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Good citizen vs complete idiots
Half a day trying to drum up a tour to no avail.
So what to do?
Bear hunting!
When I got home, Peggie was quilting, so bear hunting definitely was my best option. When she quilts she uses up the whole tiny apartment.
On my way to Dyea I encountered some really quick little weasel-type animals. So quick and secretive, I could not get pictures as they ducked in and out of rocks and weeds. I don't know what they are, but there were four of them. After I gave up on them, I came around a curve and there was a burning campfire beside the road, and nobody around! The river was right across the road, but I didn't have a bucket. So I called 911. They sent the fire department. But first another vehicle came along. He had seen it also and went to get a bucket. We put water on it and stirred it with my shovel, then two firemen came and we let them take over. The first guy said he had seen people camped there earlier. What kind of idiot just leaves a campfire burning in a forest? A complete idiot.
No bears. But the eagles are still entertaining.
So what to do?
Bear hunting!
When I got home, Peggie was quilting, so bear hunting definitely was my best option. When she quilts she uses up the whole tiny apartment.
On my way to Dyea I encountered some really quick little weasel-type animals. So quick and secretive, I could not get pictures as they ducked in and out of rocks and weeds. I don't know what they are, but there were four of them. After I gave up on them, I came around a curve and there was a burning campfire beside the road, and nobody around! The river was right across the road, but I didn't have a bucket. So I called 911. They sent the fire department. But first another vehicle came along. He had seen it also and went to get a bucket. We put water on it and stirred it with my shovel, then two firemen came and we let them take over. The first guy said he had seen people camped there earlier. What kind of idiot just leaves a campfire burning in a forest? A complete idiot.
No bears. But the eagles are still entertaining.
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