Icewind's Ramblings

I see it everywhere I go now . . . people head down . . . thumbs at the ready . . . and banging out messages to other people.   They are sitting at the bus stop, driving down the street in their cars, in planes as they travel from place to place and even in the bathroom of all places. I walk into my restroom at the office and a guy is standing there using the urinal . . . holding on to take aim with one hand . . . and texting with the other.   What in the hell is that?   Then he goes so far to not wash his hands and leaves not missing a beat sending the next message.   And he puts that phone up to his ear with dirty hands . . . I was shocked. I admit that I am a dinosaur when it comes to texting . . . I don't do it unless I absolutely have too and I don't want to know how to do all of those little short cuts and abbreviations.   I am a person who uses the cell phone as needed but not one who is addicted to it.   My friend Scott has OCD with his phone . ...

Last week I booted my computer when I came home from a trip and started to do my normal things like check emails, a visit to Facebook, and to write something for this blog. I had been on maybe five minutes when I received a message from Microsoft that I needed to back up my data as my hard drive was near intimate failure.   I tried to remember the last time I had done a complete backup and figured it was during the last Christmas holidays.   Back then I had backed up on several discs so now I pulled out my trusty thumb drive and started to sort and back up some things. The word items went fast and smoothly but once I started the many photos from work and my travels it bogged down quickly.   Then things would start to freeze up and a reboot was necessary.   Over the next day or two it became apparent that I was spending more time with the freeze ups and reboots than I did actually backing things up. Then it happened . . . The Crash. It would be several days befo...

It has been a long crazy week full of so many different things it has been hard to catch my breath.   There was a bit of travel . . . a ton of paperwork, a few meetings with a couple of strange things thrown in for good measure. Over the last couple of weeks I have seen some interesting things . . . quite a few Kodiak brown bears in both Larsen Bay and Old Harbor.   In Old Harbor there were two groups in the area where we are building a new water treatment plant.   It is a marshy area and one group was a large mama bear teaching her three cubs to swim in the estuary while close by (about a hundreds yards away) was another teaching her two cubs to catch fish close to shore.   On either side of those two groups was a male bear on the bank sunning itself or rolling around on its back.   Several of us watched them while waiting for the weather to improve so we could fly out.   It was pretty incredible to see. In Old Harbor there was a large bear that w...

This has been a rather long week with travel, the work grind of a busy summer schedule, and the loss of letting family go away in search of her destiny. I totally understand that need as I have gone through it myself but it does not make it any easier from a parent’s perspective in letting go to see the ‘spreading of the wings, flying away’ from home. It is an empty feeling house now and will take some time getting used to the lack of activity. This week also had the sad passing of two people I have admired for many years.   Tony Curtis died at the age of 85, a man who entertained us and showed us over coming ones own demons with an artistic flare can heal oneself in the long run.   We have missed your presence from the ‘silver screen’ and one of my favorites was the funny 1965 sleeper, “Boeing, Boeing.”   Jerry Lewis was also in the movie. One of my favorite writers, Stephen J. Cannell died today in California.   He entertained us in the 80’s with so many show...

This has been a long two days for my family. My youngest daughter and her son have been preparing to move to California and the day for them to leave was last night.   She sorted and packed and did some more to get their things into four items to check on the flight along with a car seat.   We headed to the airport at midnight and get them and their bags checked in for their 1:30 am flight to Seattle then to Sacramento. I returned home around 1 am only to return to the airport for my own flight out to Kodiak for a day trip to two villages I have projects in.   That meant no real sleep as I hit the sack about 1:30 only to have the dog scramble off the bed at 2:15 am chasing the hamster around who somehow had gotten loose. After jumping out of bed . . . ‘au natural’ and the mad dash through two bathrooms and the living room to retrieve “Hammy” and get him back in the cage I headed back to bed.   If there had been cameras in the house it must have been an awfully f...

During the bathroom remodel as I bored of working on it in what seemed like all of my free time I decided to build an outdoor kitchen area.   My brother-in-law Mike and I had talked about it since last summer when we were always cleaning and processing our fish on coolers in the driveway. At the time he was working out at the end of the world on Shemya Island which is on the far western end of the Aleutian Islands.   His work schedule had him working for three months at a time on the island with two or three weeks time off.   He has worked out the schedule so he could be home for the beginning and end of the fishing season. I needed a break from the bathroom work and headed to Lowe’s to grab some lumber.   Mike had bought a new stainless steel electric smoker over the winter and I wanted to make a place where we could smoke our fish out of the weather as many times it was always raining while we would tend the smoker for 6 to 8 hours. Things I wanted to include...

I finally had some time to upload the photos from my projects this spring and summer.  Travel has been taking up a lot of time this summer with several projects ongoing at any given time but I was able to finish several things going on. The bathroom project took much more time than originally thought.  It started during the winter after the first bathroom remodel went quickly over a couple weeks.  It was minor compared to the master bath. A quick make over with a new moose light fixture, paint, and remove and replace the vinyl flooring with tile.  I also relocated the sink and base cabinet to give additional room by the toilet.  I took bi-fold doors from the bedroom and installed them in the small closet.  Two weekends and the project was done and looked great. I can’t remember if I came home from a trip or just home from work a couple weekends later to find my wife had taken hammer and chisel to the tile in the master shower.  This was between Than...

Why do we say something is out of whack? What is a whack? That’s how I would feel lately if I knew exactly what it was.  Sorry for not writing much lately but it has been one busy summer with work keeping me on the road . . . well not really “on the road” since where I travel is not on the road system.  Traveling to ‘bush Alaska ’ this summer has been trying with all of the rain and marginal weather.  Multiple projects in various parts of the state has me going in so many directions about 4 or 5 days a week it has been hard to keep up with things. During the brief down time I have managed to get in a couple rounds of golf (though not enough but with the weather, it is not a bad thing), three fishing outings (not as many as normal years), and I have finished my projects around the house.  The master bathroom turned out nice and it is a joy to be able to shower in there again as 4 people trying to use one bathroom for many months was a pain in the butt.  I ...

Alaska and the nation lost a great fighter for the American way of life especially in “The Last Frontier” yesterday when a floatplane he was in crashed in the mountains of western Alaska near Dillingham.                                      (origin of photo unknown) Of the nine people on board the aircraft, four people survived the crash. “Uncle Ted” as most Alaskans called him fought hard to bring Alaska from a Territory to statehood.  His legacy will be the 49 th star on the American flag as well as his tireless work to bring a better way of life for rural Alaskans, mostly natives who continue the subsistence lifestyle of many generations. As word spread last night and into this morning of his being on the downed aircraft the wave of concern and remembrances flowed from all sections of the...

This summer has been going in what feels a hundred miles an hour.  So many trips to different places for work with little time for doing the things that make this such a great place to live. The last month or so has been a series of trips to inspect and visits the many projects going on around the state.  I have several on Kodiak island and several more scattered around the state so it has been one plane ride after another going from project to project. Last week was to several jobsite visits on Kodiak and the weather was trying not to cooperate.  There were times of fog and rain showers in between times with millions of mosquitoes buzzing around my head.  It was something else wearing head nets while wondering if I should be in a full body “bug suit”. I need to upload some of the pictures about the villages and trips but my internet service while out of town is totally lacking.  The brief time at home has me playing catch up to laundry, finishing house pr...

Friends of mine have “Fun Friday’s” on their blogs . . . does this one count? I returned home tonight from a long road trip in the Alaskan bush to find out there had been another bear incident, which is not all that uncommon in the summer months. This incident happened just a couple blocks from my house and with this tale it is oh so sad but funny as hell.  I have to look at this with that slightly off kilter approach since it is another one out of the bizarre pages from the long list of Anchorage happenings over the years. Officers say they responded to the 200 block of Yellow Leaf Circle just after 10 a.m. when neighbors called to report a woman was chasing a bear down an alley. This is where the story starts the unusual twist.  Almost every other story about “bear attacks” involves bears having contact with humans and sometimes there is a mauling or even death.  It is not common to hear of someone ‘chasing’ a bear.  But in all honesty, this was the middl...

This one will go under the Useless Trivia category . . . The Statue of Liberty 's fingernails weigh (on average) 100 pounds each. I hope everyone has a nice holiday and you took time to remember what this day means besides the cookouts, hot dogs, and fireworks. Give thanks to those who serve for giving us those Freedoms we enjoy each day.  Ice

There was a program on National Geographic about a ten-member team that is about to climb Turkey 's tallest mountain in search of what they believe to be Noah's Ark.  It was in interesting program giving the pros and cons about whether or not this may actually may be the remains of Noah’s boat. It got me thinking for a minute and reminded me of the movie Evan Almighty with Steve Carell about a reluctant boat maker.  This might be somewhat of a rant but it is not meant to be . . . just the crazy thoughts of times long ago. Is this the way the creator of the universe works? God makes everything.   But He can't make a boat? That's proof He/She/It is very powerful indeed.  God is the culmination of all knowledge, forgiveness and love.  I think that's a nice definition we can all agree on.  So You then decide to make some poor, lowly human build a ship out of wood to save two of every animal from a flood You are creating to punish a wicked world? ...

Well weeks actually . . . as I was out of town last week on Monday to Kipnuk for a long “day” trip.  It is one of those where you leave the house at 4 AM to get to the airport for an early morning flight.  It just so happened that this was June 21 st which is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year.  When I walked out the door at four the sun was already above the mountaintops to the northeast of town.  With our high latitude we do not have the typical sun rises in the east and sets in the west like most places further south.  During the long summers our sun rises in the northeast about 50 degrees from north not the “normal” 90 degrees “east” heading and sets briefly around 310 degrees not the usual 270 degrees “west”.  So much for the brief explanation as all I wanted to say was the sun was already heading up into the summer sky. I went with the engineers for a progress inspection since I took over these three projects just over three weeks ...

I just received word that my daughter is back in the states after her tour of duty in Iraq . Welcome Home to your entire unit who will be looking forward to reunions shortly back home with family and friends, everyone is proud of you! So much to be thankful for, I have always told my children when they left home to “return with honor” as a way for them to not get into trouble. I am now grateful to say to all of you that you have returned with Honor and a job well done. Thanks from a grateful nation. Welcome back. Ice

Sometimes we get busy and caught up in work or possibly play . . . here in Alaska with the abundance of both things always going on.  For many of us it usually does not take long for something to trigger that memory of what brought you here in the first place.  Springtime is one of those times as the renewal of life comes to the neighborhoods all around Anchorage .  We have over 1,100 moose roaming within the City of Anchorage during the winter months with the females calving in springtime.  One such occurred here on May 25 th in a lower hillside neighborhood backyard belonging to Mark McDermott.  These photos cover only about 1.5 hours, from 10:30 AM to just after 12:00 noon.  His pictures show the renewal of hope and the first hours of “Life in the City”.  Will this moose remain in the city or head for the hills? Enjoy these incredible pictures of new life. Mom (Cow) lying down just below the deck at the start of her labor. Note: the fron...

Summer is a great time for grillin’ keeping the heat buildup out of the house and fishing season is upon us so I thought I would put this one out there for everyone. 1/4 c pineapple juice 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice 4 (6 oz) salmon fillets 2 tbsp brown sugar 4 tsp chili powder 2 tsp grated lemon rind 3/4 tsp cumin 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp cinnamon Cooking spray Lemon wedges (optional) Combine first 3 ingredients in a Ziploc plastic bag, seal and marinate in refrigerator 1 hour, turning occasionally. Before we start grillin’ let me give you a few tips on barbecuing salmon recipes. Make sure that the rungs on the grill are clean.  There’s nothing worse than old bits of food burnt on the grill bars, not only does it leave a horrible taste but it will make the Salmon stick. Get that barbeque really hot.  Depending on charcoal or a gas grill use plenty of charcoal to build a really good fire that will retain plenty of heat. Let the flames die down until you can see...