Icewind's Ramblings

Silly stuff due from too much darkness and the ice fog on a night I am under the weather. I hardly ever feel sick but tonight I feel like a truck hit me earlier today. Tonight we're taking our dog sled around our state, Alaska , for a little fun and some nonsense so let's get started . . . If I remember correctly, Alaska 's state flower is the forget-me-not . . . I'll let you think about that one for a minute . . . Alaska became the 49th state on January 3rd, 1959, although it was 2 more years before our star thawed out enough for it to be sewn onto the flag. Alaskan native Eskimos have over 200 different words for "cold", all of which start with "Damn!" Like that line? I stole it from Right Wing Duck while he was sneaking across the border. The fishing industry is Alaska 's largest private employer. The second largest is importing mail order brides from Russia . All the rivers in Alaska during the winter ar...

Or just some weird Alaskan Winter thoughts . . . Winter has slowly made its way across Alaska ; low sun-angle and the growing snow pack contribute to the quiet beauty of the cold season here in Anchorage . I surprised my wife this year and bought her a remote auto starter as her Christmas present. She has wanted one for many years now but every time I was ready to have one installed it seemed she was ready to trade vehicles. She has not really traded all that often but I wanted to make sure that she would keep a rig long enough to make it worthwhile in the long run. I had sort of played up the fact lately with her that I was sure she had no idea one was forthcoming any time soon. I had even gone so far as giving her a introduction to the Ice Scraper. It is a handy tool that many use here to quickly be on their way after just a small amount of effort. It was, I believe, two weekends before Christmas when she stepped out side around 11 am and realized there wa...

I wanted my first post of the New Year to be bright and positive about all of the possibilities of the coming times. The only problem with that is earlier today I tried to grab a quick drink as my throat has been sore the last few days. I go into the store so I can quickly get in & out back to the many things I had planned today. I’m walking up and down the aisle looking for the 12 pack of Coca-Cola so I would have more for later but there were two women standing in the aisle discussing the virtues of bottled water and the 50 or so variations of flavored water on the shelves. Let me give you a clue . . . There's no such thing as flavored water. There's a whole aisle of this crap at the supermarket, water, but without that watery taste. Sorry, but if you ask me . . . flavored water is called a soft drink. And growing up in Atlanta there was only one . . . Coca-Cola ! You want flavored water? Pour some Crown over ice and let it melt. That...

"Your future depends on your dreams" So go to sleep tonight for tomorrow will be a New Tear! Tonight as this year's end approaches and Christmas just past our consciousness and midnight almost upon us, I have been reflecting upon this past year and the events in it. Most of the really memorable parts of the year are etched within my brain and some of the images I tried to capture on film to review later when I need to boost my spirits a bit. When I reflect upon this time, I think about the 2,000-year-old message of Christmas. That message is renewed each year of peace & love and hope. As our year ends with the worries and frustrations of our world, let us remember that where there is love, there is understanding and where there is understanding there is no fear. Peace and Love to everyone Have a Happy New Year tomorrow and let’s stay positive and make this a great one in 2008. Ice