Icewind's Ramblings

I saw this story which I found interesting.   The world is in a huge “going green” movement right now making efforts to use recycled materials or designing new building and structures with energy efficient fixtures or systems.  Many seek a LEED certification giving the owners a tax break or other incentives to invest in our future.   One of the changes in an everyday product is finding unexpected results.  Was it a lack of testing in appropriate conditions or possibly a rush to get the product in the marketplace. What I’m talking about is the traffic signal light that you see everyday.  The electrical versions have been around since the 1920’s with the first gas type lights being used in Britain in 1868. With the changing times and everyone talking about energy there have been changes with traffic lights going to a more energy efficient LED light bulb.  It may use less energy which is a good thing but with the new type bulb it also produ...

And so did the ditch divers who cannot drive worth a crap. The front came through and with it a nice steady snowfall covering the frost on everything the last two weeks and as those who make their way to work in the darkness forgot some of the tenants of safe driving.  The main on is slow down lest you end up in the ditch or overturned with that unique view upside down sliding to a scary stop hoping someone else doesn’t hit you.  Another is turn of cruise control on icy roads as they can make you veer off the highway when the tires hit uneven ice on the road making the false sense of slowing down when it just spins those tires until you hit the brake spinning you out of control. After the front stalled over Anchorage it produced some nice fluffy large snowflakes which was pretty to watch once the light of day came but caused major traffic tie ups along the Glenn Highway which was closed for several hours due to out of control vehicles.  It was a long commute ...

Nope, not again this week. Anchorage has been basking in ice fog for the last week which means we have not seen the sun during the brief daylight hours we have this time of year. Traveling around town has been interesting looking at the many objects covered in the hoar frost   makes everything look like the white ice world Hoth in the Star Wars movie, Empire Strikes Back.    Trees, power lines, or anything outside in the elements is covered with about ¾ inch rime ice.  It looks cold and with the temperatures around ten degrees it feels it at times too.  At least the wind has not been blowing making it even colder but at the same time it would have blown out all of this fog with even a gentle breeze. The contrasts between things is interesting as the vehicle colors against the white is nice but the real beauty is seeing the dark colors of moose and different colors of birds against the ice or frost.  As they come and go around the bird feed...

You can't trust dogs or grandkids to watch your food while you go to the bathroom. Ice

Elin Picked a Wedgie I find it interesting as more information comes forward in the continuing saga of Tiger Woods.  He is a very private person who for years now has developed his ‘brand’ presence while little is reported about his life off the greens. As most of us had finished the turkey, cleaned the dishes, and settled down to enjoy the time away from work news broke about the crash of the Cadillac Escalade and the injuries to Tiger Woods. At first things just didn’t seem right as the story broke on the east coast while many slept but here in Alaska it was still evening and the pop-ups on the internet flashed the early news of what happened . . . or did it? ‘Backing up’ out of the driveway . . . hitting the fire hydrant and then the tree . . . but why was there damage on the front of the vehicle?  Perhaps a quick getaway? Tiger unconscious in the car, a window broken with a golf club after a heated discussion and a neighbor’s call to 911, a quick trip to the h...

I have a friend whose brother has MS (Muscular Dystrophy) and he recently turned 32 which seems pretty incredible since many people die in their teens and twenties from this disease.   There was a small get together of friends and family who celebrated with him so everyone was happy to spend quality time among friends.  While my friend and I were there we wheeled his brother into the room as he has been wheelchair bound for about 15 years now.  We ordered pizza from one of the local delivery places and everyone had a great afternoon.  As the party wound down to just a couple of people left we headed over to the side of the room to talk a bit before we left to meet up with some other friends. While we were talking there was a request by his brother which kinda flipped us both out for a minute.  The request was he wanted to have sex before he was unable to and his disease progressed to a state where he would be incapacitated.  We did not know what...

Early this morning my wife and daughter boarded an Alaska Airlines flight to Seattle so my daughter who has been sick the last two years will be able to get tests done that the hospitals in Alaska do not have the equipment or specialty doctors to perform.  We can only hope that there will be a positive outcome and finally will have a clearer diagnosis of the problem that keeps her vomiting 10 to 15 times a day.  It has not been easy for her as last night was the first time she was outside the house in over a month and it had its own difficulties. She made the flight to Seattle ok without totally alarming the passengers onboard as they requested seats in the last row next to the lavatory so when she had problems it was a quick move to the restroom without having to pass by row after row of the hordes onboard. She starts her first test at 7:30 am so we are remaining positive this will be a life altering trip for her gaining some of her weight as well as the ability to...

Alaska is a sometimes strange and wonderful place to live. And while coming into winter with five fresh inches of snow for Thanksgiving the down time gives one time to reflect on the summer and have a chance to write a few things down from earlier in the year.  I think with the longer nights there “seems” to be more time as you stop doing some of the outdoor things in the afternoon and early evening as darkness sets in now around four in the afternoon.  Put away now are the fishing gear, boats and personal watercraft as well as most of the hunting gear as much of the subsistence game has been acquired and in the freezers with only some winter trapping still going on in the rural areas. I have many friends who do live a subsistence lifestyle which hunt and fish each year to provide food for their families.  It is a time honored tradition here that both Native and non-native families participate in which makes one appreciate where and sometimes when you get food to ...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone, as I hope it is a great day for you! Times have been a little depressing lately for many people in the country so I thought it would be great to give you a couple of laughs today.  It will only take a few minutes of your time . . . about the time it takes to have a cup of coffee so take a break and give yourself a little smile and for me every time I hear or see this it gives me a good belly laugh. There aren't as many classic Thanksgiving episodes of TV shows as there are classic Christmas episodes.  But there are several we remember fondly, including this one. It's the "Turkeys Away" episode of WKRP in Cincinnati that originally aired on October 30, 1978.  Station Manager Carlson tries to come up with a special promotion for the station and, well, you'll see what happens. WKRP in Cincinnati was a sitcom by Hugh Wilson who was a disc jockey for WQXI radio in Atlanta , Georgia in the late 60’s and early 70’s.  I think a l...

As we approach the holiday season and prepare for the small gathering tomorrow of family and maybe a few friends it is nice to think back on summers end.  It started snowing this afternoon giving us a fresh blanket of the white stuff.  Anchorage is known as the “City of Lights ” during the winter months so I, like many people put up lights for the winter which remain on until the last musher of the Iditarod arrives in Nome completing the race in mid March. With a little extra time on my hands I can think back on summers past where I close my eyes as the memories come back like a wild river, colorful like Northern Lights in the clear cold night, which I saw for the first time this season a few nights ago.  THE reason I came to Alaska , THE thing I wanted to see since I was a little boy in Atlanta .  There they were, dancing above the hillside, misty green, slick and wavy.  Nothing could screw this day anymore as I watched in amazement at the night sky. ...

I enjoy listening to the rants that Lewis Black (comedian) gives us about politics and the American way of life.  His insight is thought provoking, and extremely funny.  He can be seen on cable channels and does concerts around the country.  There is even one on the History Channel about the Thanksgiving holiday which has many other comedians giving their thoughts from varying backgrounds and religions. Anyway this one rings true and is funny! “Republicans have nothing but bad ideas and Democrats have no ideas.” “A republican stands up in Congress and says 'I GOT A REALLY BAD IDEA!!' and the democrat stands up after him and says 'AND I CAN MAKE IT SHITTIER!!'” Lewis Black There is a lot of truth in those statements! Ice

Last week there was the big news that Oprah is retiring from her talk show after 20 + years giving everyone information, book reviews and an occasional prize or two for her loyal fans who were in the studio to see her. Over the years she has tried to stimulate the economy as in the big car giveaway to her audience in 2004 where everyone in her studio opened a gift box with the key to a new automobile inside.  She was helping the auto industry long before they needed their bailout.  Probably better than that forty five hundred bucks the Government gave out. Has anyone ever heard of writing off charity on your taxes?  Hmmmm . . . pretty sure you can or put it as a “business expense.”  In 2008 she made 385 million dollars . . . that could potentially buy 1,428 people a new Cadillac Escalade while still having 285 million left over . . . so essentially she could afford to have all of us drive a new car with enough left over to buy plenty of Black Angus burgers and...

Experience is crucial to life. Those who have their businesses determine the peak they want to reach. Ice

Or Getting the Bathroom to a point it can start being rebuilt. Today (Thursday 19 th ) started out frigid as we were again below zero this morning now several days in a row.  For some reason I was aware that this day had many small tremors and a couple of medium ones that gave loud “boom” noises.  At first I thought it might be the F-22’s coming back into Elmendorf for landing and dropping their speed below mach 1 creating a sonic boom as they decelerated.  But after several times I checked out the Alaska Earthquake Information Center for updates on today’s activity.   There was quite a bit of small tremors over 30 so far today and counting with activity in Cook Inlet between Homer and Anchorage and in the interior between Fairbanks and Anchorage .  It appears several fault lines are shifting plates far below the surface bringing with it the loud noise and jolt from the shifting surfaces. I am still amazed that there is quite a bit of activity on...

There are things that most of the HGTV type shows about remodeling never really touch on in their 40 to 60 minute shows.  Most of these shows (my wife watches, I don’t) seem to nicely wrap things up in the quick one episode.  What they forget to tell everyone is the little things that creep into daily life that slows down the process of getting things done. I have been involved in remodeling projects for many years now and things hardly progress in a nice linear flow on most projects, large or small.  There are the little disagreements between the parties on things like color, maybe how something should be torn out or what additional damage was discovered once the area was opened up.  In some residential projects between husband and wife it is that understanding, sometimes unspoken . . . for that plea to call in a professional to come in and complete the job.  These shows seem to wrap up everything in one quick segment.  Lost on the cutting room floo...

Here is just a little fun quick post that happened yesterday. Winter has finally set in with frigid temperatures arriving early this year with below zero readings coming before the normal January or February time frame of normal years. It does not seem there is Global Warming happening here in Alaska at least not right now as the whole state seems to be getting blasted by Father Winter.  It was minus 20 yesterday at a friend’s house and we were around minus 14 here this morning.  With the snow falling now it drives the moose down from the mountains and into the neighborhoods for the winter where traveling and walking is easier on the plowed roads and walkways.  This big bull moose was in my neighborhood yesterday morning and walked into an apartment complex a couple blocks away.  When found it seemed like he might be trying to rent a warm spot for the winter as he was standing in front of the resident manager’s apartment on the small entry deck. I th...

If only so briefly . . . Got Gas . . . Obama did as he stopped in Alaska to refuel Air Force One on his overseas trip to Asia this afternoon. Air Force One, about to land at Elmendorf Air Force Base on Thursday. (Casey Grove/KTUU-DT) President Barack Obama stopped by Alaska ’s Elmendorf Air Force Base this afternoon on his way to a nine-day Asian tour. Obama declared a new, personal milestone: he has visited all 50 states. Oh yes . . . and he held a rally for the troops and met briefly with several families who have lost loved ones overseas in combat.  The base was closed to the public but military personnel were allowed to Hanger 1 for his speech and a time for hand shaking before re-boarding the plane to continue his trip to Tokyo .  Air Force One parked in front of Hanger 1 at Elmendorf AFB in Anchorage , Alaska while he meets with military families and gives a speech to rally the troops. Photo by Michael Dinneen/AP You can probably see I am mor...