Icewind's Ramblings

There is many times that something triggers our imagination back to something and recently it was one of those times for me.  I saw something that triggered a memory of story telling and great music with friends.  It was a time where I spent many nights listening to music and stories with my friends that played in Atlanta at the time in a band called Cullowhee. One of the stories told was the difference between Heaven and Hell, told by my friend, Terry Edwards.  With his customary southern drawl and laid back style he painted the picture to all of us in the audience listening. Terry would tell the story about the man who died, and when he arrived at the "Pearly Gates" Saint Peter told him he was going to take him on a tour of heaven and of hell.   First, they took a tour of heaven. St. Peter and the man arrived just in time for dinner . . . it was in a huge banquet hall and the tables were sagging with the weight of the sumptuous entrees.  Eve...

As we prepare our meals and ready for the gatherings tonight and tomorrow be remember our loved ones away from home around the world serving to protect our country and the freedoms we enjoy. Take a couple of minutes to watch this video of “American Trilogy” Many may remember Elvis performed this in Vegas so many years ago but the best I have ever seen it done is by my friends who used to play in Atlanta in the 70’s & 80’s in their band called Cullowhee.   In the middle of this rendition is the speech of General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox done so beautifully by Terry Edwards. Enjoy your Thanksgiving, Give Thanks, Be Safe, and may God Bless. Cullowhee American Trilogy Happy Holidays! Ice

This has been another busy week flying by with many things happening and it seems too little time. I have been surprised this summer with better weather in a few weeks than several past summers combined. It has been great . . . what have we done to deserve this? Yesterday it jumped up to 76 degrees and for a short while reminded me of past lives when I lived in Atlanta . The humidity was much less here but for a few fleeting moments it was awesome. I was making my way home driving the round about for the entrance ramp for the Seward Highway and as I made the circle I noticed two geese had taken refuge in the quiet space between the hustle and bustle of city around them. As I continued the turn I saw that they also had several goslings swimming in the small retention pond. They will stay there until the small ones learn to fly and can move on. Geese mate for life and it still amazes me to find different pairs here and there in places you...

After many days leading up to our departure date filled with excess activities it was finally time to make that trip to the airport. It was another dead of night departure leaving at 2:30am so I was off to the airport around midnight so I did not have to keep everyone up at my house. This trip was bigger than years past with about 30 people going to Cancun as a customer appreciation for Pacific Plumbing Supply. It is a group of plumbing and mechanical contractors, wives or girlfriends, and a couple of children who were also brought along. It has become somewhat a tradition as this is the fifth trip over the last six years. It has been a cruise in years past but this year it was decided on something a little different so a land based get away was planned this time around at the all inclusive Riu Cancun Resort. The Alaska contingent part of the group started gathering at the Airport Chili’s for the couple of hours wait before we boarded the airplane to head into the n...

A friend of mine had sent me a couple of CD’s of music and video’s from a concert reunion of some old friends I used to hang out with almost every night when I lived in Atlanta Georgia . They played in many clubs all over the south east and I flew them up to Louisville Kentucky during Derby week for concerts there. The group was called ‘Cullowhee’ named from a small town in the mountains of western North Carolina where most of the members went to college. The guys played together for over 10 years and sadly for many of their friends and fans finally decided to give it up as a full time endeavor in 1985. Friendship lasts forever and from time to time since the group went their different ways the guys have gotten together for several reunion concerts in Atlanta and in North Carolina . The last concert was during the fall at Western Carolina University on September 27, 2008. They have posted some of the songs on YouTube which is great since they ...

Continuing my post from last night it has been hard to get the song Fishin’ out of my mind all day today. There were a few flurries but warmer temperatures in the twenties so not a bad day unlike a few weeks ago. Friday the 13 th had no bad incidents only the normal hustle and bustle that goes with a Friday. Too much to do, not enough time to get it done, and other things pulling me in many directions keeping me from the items I wanted to accomplish by weeks end. I apologize for the size of the pictures as for some reason the scale is not bringing them down to the size I expected. I hope it is not a pain to look at them. Last summer there were several trips doing all kinds of fishing which is pretty normal for me? My brother in law and me for the last several years embarks on a crazy 72 hour fishin’ marathon where we load up some food and first head out to a local river (Eklutna Tailrace) here in Anchorage after I get off of...

These last few weeks have gone by quickly in some ways as it has been busy with work and my daughter’s hospital stay (she’s out now and doing better) but in those few quiet moments my mind wanders to times past and the return of summer. Last weekend I was able to play a DVD concert of friends of mine from the South called Cullowhee. Most of the guys attended Western Carolina University in the North Carolina town called Cullowhee so their music is mountain rock with a mixture of all kinds of various sounds. Listening to the songs brought me thinking about one of my favorite summer activities, Fishin’ and I started browsing my photo’s to bring back the memories of past fishin’ trips all over Alaska. I thought I would share some of them with you and the lyrics of a song aptly named Fishin’ by Terry Edwards of Cullowhee. If I can figure out how to post the song so you can hear it I will shortly. I hope you enjoy part one of Fishin’ Fishin’ by Terry Edward...

My wife and her friend are in the living room this Saturday evening watching Mamma Mia and the competing sounds of music are battling each other as I sit in my office with a DVD of my friends, Cullowhee ’s music on my computer. The sounds of Appalachia and the Mediterranean are mixing into a not so interesting sound. I walked out to grab a snack and the sight of Pierce Brosnan attempting to sing was more than I wanted to see. He was not that great as James Bond but now I think he is reduced in my mind to his role in Dante’s Peak. I’ll stick to my mixture of bluegrass and the varied sounds of my friends. With all that has been going on these last few months it is nice to settle in for a day of music with old friends. From the days of Back Porch Picker , Fishin’, Natural Mountain Woman, to the wonderful sounds of Flute Salad and Bring Back the Magic I am immersed in the river of times past and all of the hope and wonder we all had about the world around us and ...

We have had our share of cold temperatures this season but sometimes it just does not make much sense to me. About a month ago we spent almost three weeks well below zero in the mornings some days over minus twenty five. We have been over that now and the last several weeks it has jumped around from the twenties to back down around zero. A few days ago my icemaker quit working and as I watched the ice container slowly dwindle to nothing I figured it might be time to give it a look. I went into my handyman mode after doing plumbing work for many years so I decided to go through the logical steps to figure out why it was not making ice cubes. I looked underneath the kick plate by the floor to see if there was any buildup of dust that might make things work efficiently as far as it maintaining the proper temperature. It wasn’t too dirty so I next pulled the refrigerator so I could get to things on the back. I checked out the tubing going from the water valve up t...