Icewind's Ramblings

A number of years ago before I moved to Alaska, I had the rather unique experience of being backstage at The Omni, in Atlanta, during the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus.  I worked as a paramedic on the medical staff there and saw many great bands, the Atlanta Flames hockey team, and other things that played there.  To say the least, it was a fascinating experience.  I was able to walk around looking at the lions, tigers, giraffes and all the other circus animals.  As I was passing the elephants, I suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge creatures were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg.  No chains, no cages.  It was obvious that the elephants could, at any time, break away from their bonds but for some reason, they did not.  I saw a trainer nearby and asked why these beautiful, magnificent animals just stood there and made no attempt to get away.  "Well," he said, "when they are very young and m...

One can’t predict when or where they will come from; those memories that stay with us a lifetime, and never fail to bring us warm fuzzy feelings.  When I left Alaska I had just finished loading the car; made one lap back through the house to make sure I had not forgotten anything and then into the kitchen.  I thought to myself; “I guess filling my thermos is all I have left to do, and then I’m off.” Down the drain went the hot water that had been warming my thermos.  I’m sure I had a very nostalgic look on my face as this would be the last morning living in Alaska.  When I filled my thermos with water earlier, I thought of how long I had been doing this to keep my coffee warmer longer when I travel.  In fact, anytime I fill my thermos I think about that. The air outside was chilled the sky blue and my breath sprang from my nostrils as I prepared to leave.  As I started my month’s long drive back to Atlanta it was anti-climactic.  A quick stop ...

Hair Spray I saw an ad for hair spray the other day and it reminded me of a time long ago when I first saw the uses of it as a small boy.  This was in the fifties and “big hair” was the rage.  Many girls and women had the bouffant and beehive hair styles including my sister.  There were lots of curls and hairspray was needed to give it that certain look. We lived in a housing project in downtown Atlanta close to Georgia Tech, The Varsity and the area around our neighborhood became the Olympic Park during the 1996 games.  Our apartment was small and my sister had her bedroom and I shared one with my younger brother.  There were tiles on the floor, brown with black accent tiles in each doorway threshold going into each room.  I was not allowed to cross the black tile going into her room.  In my mind it was like the black tile represented a ten foot high wall that I needed to climb over to see what bounty was on the other side so there was always a...

A Technicolor Life Benjamin Franklin said, "Either write something worth reading, or do something worth writing". An old friend recently emailed me that her mom had passed and I could sense the loss in the brief words that were wrote informing me.  I knew that loss from my own dad’s passing when I was young. I wrote a few words and wanted to fill the void I knew was missing but as I wrote I drew from my own loss years ago and more recently with the passing of my brother in law, aunt and uncle.  I filled the rest with my experiences of life when I was younger, time in Alaska and trying to move on when the loss comes.  Not much I thought but the reply seemed to find its mark.  Solace over the miles. I love writing (ironic English was my worst subject in high school) and I was told it’s never too late to write a book or two.  I have one completed from years ago about my journey ending up in Alaska called 10,000 Horizons.  It is gathering dust ...

Icewind’s Ramblings Blogging Post # 1,200 and the internet I noticed yesterday after I posted that I had my 1,200 post on my Icewind’s Ramblings Blog.  I started blogging on November 07, 2005 and during the early time posted almost every day but now with the challenges of life I post when I can or find something to comment on.    The internet it's a source of endless wonder and a powerful educational tool. For instance, I never would have learned that I like to see young ladies in cheerleader outfits bent over the stairs of the Brady Bunch house, but because I have access to the internet, I did learn that about myself.  Luckily it was only a curiosity and I moved beyond those into more fact finding uses in researching some of my blogging subjects. Then came blogging (or Then Came Bronson for those in tv land).  Now here's the thing, you put stuff out there and give people the option to post a reply anonymously; people are going to use that opt...

Life Observation # 192       Rain    The sound of heavy rain on a metal roof needs no translation but I do miss the silent softly falling snow in the morning with a nice fire going. Ice