Icewind's Ramblings

Life Observation # 169 - Patience  "Your only obligation in any lifetime is to be true to yourself. Being true to anyone else or anything else is not only impossible, but the mark of a false messiah."           - Illusions by Richard Bach - Sometimes in our life we go through something and while in the middle of it may not understand why things are the way they are.  What I have learned is that you must trust yourself and stay true to your values even when the outcome and costs to yourself are on the line. I think it is about the value of a man or woman holding onto what they believe and having the understanding that it is not always in our hands or timetable to change the outcome. Patience was a hard thing for me to learn but after 7 months I think I have a pretty good grasp of it. Great things are on the horizon and I am spreading my wings to soar up to new heights to see it come to fruition! H...

You have the power to change someone’s life tonight . . . a call . . . an encouraging email . . . an idea . . . a contact . . . a positive post . . . or even a smile. And the funny thing is . . . when you do . . . your own life changes too! Ice

Thank you by Dido Ice

Happy 4 th of July, a time to pause for reflection This past week has been a busy one filled with plenty of activities both at work and personal. The work time spent preparing several new projects added to this construction season which means taking of material lists so I can order all the parts and pieces to be shipped to the remote work sites.   The logistics of these endeavors are daunting trying to coordinate barge or air freight schedules with the crews and getting everything organized for a successful project. On the personal front there was “The Moving Wall” a half size replica of the Washington, DC Vietnam Veterans Memorial.   It is making its way through Alaska and was in Anchorage last week. I wanted to make my way to ‘The Wall’ at first with friends and then I knew it was a solo personal time for me to visit my fallen brothers.   I made my way to the Park Strip across the street from our Anchorage Vietnam Veterans Memorial and there it was the black mon...

I had posted this in 2007 and thought it appropriate to re-post again this year and with FaceBook now in the forefront it can go around once again. In our troubling times that we live today and the uncertainties that face many peoples and nations, I am reminded of an earlier time in a place called “No Man’s Land” during World War I.   During that time an act of humanity happened that went beyond rank and reason . . . and so . . . Christmas Truce . . . * The truce began on Christmas Eve , December 24 , 1914 , when German troops began decorating the area around their trenches in the region of Ypres , Belgium , for Christmas . They began by placing candles on trees, then continued the celebration by singing Christmas carols , most notably Stille Nacht ( Silent Night ). The British troops in the trenches across from them responded by singing English carols. The two sides continued by shouting Christmas greetings to each other. Soon thereafter, there were calls for visits ac...

Or . . . 72 Virgins and the Suicide Bombers . . . Do the math. I was reading an article about all of the suicide bombings in the Middle East and in Pakistan and how the tactic strikes fear into those regions where it is used.   We have had some experience with its use in the U.S. with the upcoming reminder of the tenth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks on American soil. What started out as a semi-comical look into a form of world wide terrorism used to inflict trauma to those close by slowly evolved into another remembrance of a day when America was attacked and many lives were lost.   In vain . . . I hope not but there are still people out there ready to continue their battle just as we continue to defend against it.   Once again, thanks to our military and their families whose sacrifices are given from a grateful nation! In the 1970’s film M*A*S*H the theme song for the movie and the following television series was “Suicide is Painless” a catchy tune ...

I just wanted to say Happy Birthday to my daughter who is far from home serving in Iraq .  She was recently promoted so congratulations and hope you’re home soon! We love and miss you!   I hope you have a great day! Daddy Ice

Palm Sunday is today and with it the start of Holy Week for many of us and the beginning of the Easter season. Most popular historical records agree: Jesus was a real man, who actually walked the earth 2 millennia ago.  Whether He is/was the Son of God remains up for debate in the secular community, but it's irrelevant.  Look at it this way . . . a guy cared so much about humanity that he taught millions of people a new, more respectful way to live and he died instead of betraying his faith.  No matter what religion you follow, that sort of character deserves the utmost respect. We need those type people more than ever right now. Happy Easter everyone. Ice

Happy New Year everyone! 2010 is here so out with the old and somewhat bad times during the last ten years and in with the new decade!  I want to wish all of my blog readers a very Happy New Year.  I hope that 2010 is a great year for everybody!! One dilemma I have been having as this day approached is how to say it or talk about the year.  Writing it seemed easy but in conversation it brings up somewhat of a debate between us. I remember when the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey" came out, the title rolled off the tongue so easily.  TWO THOUSAND and ONE.  It sounded right and it never occurred to me that perhaps that naming was not consistent with other year naming practices, if not downright incorrect. So, as the millennium approached, and we all began to get caught up in the excitement . . . or dread . . . of not only the year changing, but also the decade, and also the century, we all named the year TWO THOUSAND. When the next year rolled around, I wa...

A wonderful Blue Moon on the rise. When I left for work this morning in the predawn hours before first light there was a waxing almost full moon smiling at me, a midst the two December moons.  Once in a Blue Moon . . . is a common way of saying not very often, but what exactly is a Blue Moon? According to the popular definition, it is the second Full Moon to occur in a single calendar month. It is a lunar event that happens ‘once in a blue moon’. This phenomenon has nothing to do with color, everything to do with time. The average interval between Full Moons is about 29.5 days, whilst the length of an average month is roughly 30.5 days.  This makes it very unlikely that any given month will contain two Full Moons, though it does sometimes happen. On average, there will be 41 months that have two Full Moons in every century, so you could say that once in a Blue Moon actually means once every two-and-a-half years. While a blue moon consistently gives poets fo...

November 11 has always had special meaning to me over the years for the un-selfless sacrifice given by our men and women in the military. This year is no exception but with added meaning this year as my daughter Kelly is serving in Iraq right now with her fellow troops and friends. This is Kelly in the cockpit of the C-130 that took her into Iraq.  She rode in a jump seat behind the pilots with one of her other troop.   She has always liked the beach and lives in Fort Walton Beach, Florida with her husband and young son when not on tour.  She has plenty of sand now but not exactly what she is used too. A group of friends I know had another reunion concert recently in North Carolina and from that came one of their songs that has always been one of my favorites. It is a variation on the American Trilogy that Elvis did so many years ago from which the guys with Cullowhee added to give it more impact especially to those of us from the South.  Mike ...

The future you have control over is the one you create. There are some things we have no control over. It is wiser to accept what you have not been given the power to change. I hope everyone had a safe and wonderful holiday weekend. I spent mine with friends (Scott & Kim’s family) out at their cabin on Big Lake . It was a combination of families which included: dogs (3, with one having OCD), kids (5), grandkids (1), grand dads (2), Nana’s (1), Mom’s (1), and Dad’s (2). This is just sort of a mix match of all kinds of things. It was an interesting weekend with many things going on between relaxing, riding wave runners, 2 pontoon boats, a speed boat, and a paddleboat. The kids were all over the place having fun and one surprise Saturday evening was 6 kids ranging in ages from 5 to 15 years old all on a trampoline jumping, having a great time without anyone mad, whining, hurt, or not wanting to be there. It was strange but nice. The wea...

Today we take time out of our daily routine to Honor and remember the fallen, both past and present that have served and given that sacrifice for our society to be free. Alaska has a big military presence and Anchorage has two military bases within town and there are more retired servicemen who have returned to live here after their service. I read this in the Anchorage Daily News this morning and wanted to share it with everyone for a little perspective that you may not have known. Our view: Memorial Day We honor the fallen today with silence and taps and life Chances are that when you opened this page you saw the photograph first, in the same second that you saw the headline. When you look at it and read the caption, isn't it easy to imagine the grandfather buried beneath that headstone, wherever he is, taking great joy in the grandchildren who visit his grave? Today we honor the dead who served, from those killed in battle to those wh...

It’s been a long couple of weeks with the hospital and work. It snowed here today with about 6” to 8” falling during the day but it has slowed some tonight with just a light dusting since about eight pm. I’m not into writing tonight so I thought I would just post something that soothes the soul . . . enjoy. Good night and God Bless. Ice

2008 has been one of those years that you just wish was over and can look forward to the coming New Year. Last nights post ended with a kind of somber note that I felt there would be no saving grace at the end of this year. After I posted I sat there and felt bad that over the course of the whole year I was left with a ‘downer mood’ which goes against all of my positive being. I went to sleep late after watching my granddaughter fall asleep on the couch waiting to see Santa come down the chimney. She made sure that the fire that had been raging earlier was out and the chimney had cooled so Santa would make his appearance. I wandered off to sleep just as a light snowfall was coming down outside and the light played off the crystallized snowflakes as it passed by the street light out front. I finally fell asleep around four in the morning and ‘slept’ in as that is my usual time for waking up and getting ready for work. I was in a deep sleep when around...

It’s been 40 years tonight that an estimated one billion people either watched or listened to the live broadcast from lunar orbit by the crew of Apollo 8. In retrospect of that flight it fascinates me that all of the engineers and astronauts thought about almost everything on how to blast off from Cape Kennedy Florida , travel across the vastness of space to the far side of the moon but the one thing man had not considered or planned for was something that almost didn’t happen . . . an attempt for the crew to glimpse and record the most moving of sights, as their jewel of a home planet, suspended in the blackness of space, rose from behind the barren lunar horizon. No one had thought about what our world would look like from behind the moon that first time so no scheduled ‘picture taking’ was in the mission plan but by some luck and quick thinking by the astronauts . . . one picture changed how we view ourselves in the world. What I’m talking about is the ‘Earthrise...