A Chocolate...Waterfall?????

Sorry I didn't get this up last night, but I have actually been busy working on some Peripetee stuff.  We had two exciting things last night...one, I cooked us up some fresh Salmon.  It was Copper River Salmon and it was great!  We had a fruit salad, garlic bread and fish for dinner...and then we went to a local concert spot called Taproot to buy tickets for a show Saturday featuring a local Alaskan folk band called Midway Revival...and we are excited about that evening.  Saturday evening we are also going to a Byzantine Catholic Church (not sure just exactly what that entails, but am excited to find out!).

The final fun thing from last night was that we went to the anchor store for Alaskan Wild Berry Products, where they have a 20 foot chocolate waterfall!  No kidding!  I wanted to get something to dip into it, but it is only for show...either way, one of the coolest things I have ever seen.

Natalie and I are both working hard today, so we will see what we can get into tonight...hope you have had a GREAT day...

Two-For-Tuesday

When I was in high school, my dad bought me a Minolta Maxxim SLR camera, and the photography bug hit me.  I have been an avid photographer now for 25+ years, and the light here in Alaska is exquisite, because even after sundown you still get this really nice, soft, diffused light.  Natalie has also caught the photography bug, and has become QUITE the photographer in the last couple of years.  Several of the photos on the blog have been taken by her and they are very good!  We watched a podcast together last night on photography techniques, and I was able to put one of them into use tonight in the park.  The sun was low enough on the horizon that I could use it behind these trees!  Enjoy...

What happens when life slows down...

So, whether in the metroplex, or even Searcy, Natalie and I are on the move most of the time.  However, with these really long, sunlit days, combined with no homework or work to bring home after work, life is very different here.  I made homemade split pea soup and combined it with bratwurst, salad and garlic bread for dinner.  Natalie had a nap after work and then we had dinner and went out to a beautiful park on the bay and played baseball!  And let me tell you, my wife can WALLOP the baseball!  WOW! I couldn't get over it.

After we stretched our muscles, we headed to the local Tastee Freeze (the northernmost one in the entire U.S.) and enjoyed some tastee treats!  Then Natalie gave me an extra piece of good news, because she doesn't have to be at work until 9:15am tomorrow, instead of 7:45am.  It is hard to go to sleep when it is still so light outside, even at midnight.  As I write this, it is 10:30pm, but you might think it was, oh, say, 7:30pm at home.  It only really gets dark between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m., and even that will end here soon.  So, this little bit of extra time in the morning will allow us to sleep better and give me time to cook breakfast for Natalie (maybe even brought to her in bed, as befits a proper princess!) Tomorrow is our third day in a row when it should reach the low 80's here, and then  Thursday it will drop about 15 degrees.  Our apartment is very near to the minor league baseball stadium here in Anchorage, and they should start playing here in about 10 days...I am going to take Natalie for sure!  Hope you all are well and getting set for Summer...it will certainly be a jolt to return to the heat in the South!

Would you believe it is 80 degrees here?

So, would you believe it snowed here one week ago, and yet today it was over 80 degrees?  Well, tis true, tis true...we both got hot and sweaty walking around town this afternoon.

So, we have come back to our apartment and Natalie is napping.  It is funny, but our lifestyle has slowed down so dramatically, and it is sunlight nearly 24 hours a day here, so our internal clocks are all off!

We made our second visit to the Anchorage Museum today, and focused on learning about the history of this great state.  It is rather amazing to think that this great city, which now numbers 300,000 people had only about about 5,000 in the late 1950's.

We went to the mall food court today for lunch, and had food from a little shop that advertised itself as offering Hawaiian food...you just never know what you are going to find here! Hope it has been a wonderful Memorial Day , and thanks to all our soldiers and their families!

Alaska

If you actually want to see some more of our photos, click HERE...and should you just get lonesome for us and want to send us some mail, our address is:

3705 Arctic #1329
Anchorage, AK 99593-5774

Love to all of our friends and family!

It has been a GREAT day!

Well, today has turned out magnificently!  The weather has been perfect today, allowing us to spend a wonderful afternoon at the Anchorage Weekend Market...a conglomeration of crafters, artisans and food vendors that gather each Saturday and Sunday in downtown Anchorage and display their wares to a variety of citizens from far and near.  The weather can be dicey at this time of year, as evidenced last weekend when it snowed, and many of the vendors didn't come out because of the weather.  But this weekend there was no such problem, and we had an Alaskan Gyro (made from elk meat) and a Sausage made from Reindeer meat.  Later we had fried Halibut and a variety of fun sodas and coffee.  Here is Natalie sipping away on a frozen strawberry lemonade.

We did a lot of window shopping today...Natalie has her eye on some fur wraps and fur mittens, but we are having to pinch our pennies, so we will see how much shopping we can really get done.  This is an expensive place to live...an extra value meal at McDonald's will cost you about $10...and at one place along the way we paid almost that just for a grilled cheese sandwich. We also priced the tour Natalie wants to go on today, which takes you whale watching and puffin seeking (about $100 / person) so we are just trying to be careful.  However, once I saw Natalie in one of these fur wraps, it would be hard not to get one for her!

It is certainly interesting to see the variety of people here in Alaska.  We passed a husband and wife who were both wearing San Antonio Spurs jerseys, and stopped to talk with them.  They were from Texas, but he was stationed up here with the military...they love the summers, but can't stand the winters!  Then there are the native people...first nation is the term used here...they are very interesting, and we spoke to one of the vendors who is a Native America storyteller.  She has some unique insights about life in Alaska, and it was well worth my time to listen. Natalie and I have really enjoyed getting to interact with the locals, there is just no end of colorful characters here in Alaska.

In addition, everywhere you look there is something beautiful to see...just like these yellow roses (Natalie's favorite) which were planted right there in the heart of the downtown area...every day you wake you up you see the mountains sitting right next to you, and it is impossible to deny the beauty of God that is everywhere around you.

Downtown Anchorage on Friday Night...

We went and explored downtown Anchorage on Friday evening...what a great town!  There are tons of amazing eateries and photo ops, lots of great shops and all with the the amazing scenery of these beautiful mountains serving as a backdrop.  We had a great time, and are headed back this morning to check out their weekly Saturday market. Have a great Saturday wherever it finds you!

I feel groggy...

Because I knew Natalie had to begin an internship today, and because I also knew it was going to be some very difficult driving through the mountains she might find intimidating, I decided to try and drive the entire Alaska Highway.  Thus, I drove about 43 hours in three days...which I promise you I thought I was too old for!  It was actually easier than I expected, but, the last couple of hours you drop STRAIGHT down out of the mountains, and it was a harrowing descent, especially after driving that many hours.  The tradeoff is that this drive brings you right next to this glacier...

But we got Natalie to her first day ON TIME this morning, and I set about getting our apartment put together.  My job is to cook, clean and drive while we are here, and I got a fast start today...cleaned our new apartment and got our pantry stocked with stuff, then unpacked all the stuff we brought here.  Everything is set up now, we found a pretty good taco place for dinner, and have enjoyed a very quiet evening here at 'home'.  Our apartment is even nicer than we expected, and the high was 57 today...62 tomorrow and 67 on Saturday. The tradeoff is that there are a lot of grey skies here...it was heavily overcast all day long.  Natalie had a good first day, but was very tired, and a little sorrowed by the sad condition of one of her patients.

That last day of driving was so eventful I will insert parts of that day as I continue to write in the blog.  Natalie will work some on Saturday, and then will have Monday off for Memorial Day...and I am surprising her with some fun stuff I found out about today at the Anchorage Visitors Center...should be an awesome weekend!  Let me throw in this picture of Natalie, taken from somewhere in far, FAR western Canada.  It is strange how it can be so cold (notice the frozen lake in the background) and yet, because of the altitude (I guess) we can be outside in just short sleeves...truly an awesome feeling!

It was a short night, but...

Well, it was a short night, but we are here safely in Anchorage.  Was a crazy 'ol day, but we got 'er done!  More to come later!

Well we got sun, but first got...a blizzard!

Man, we got up yesterday morning looking for sunny skies, and instead awoke to 34 degrees and sleet.  And as we moved up the mountains, sleet became snow.  You can see from this photo how bad it was at times.  Everything is white, because the snow was coming down in blankets!




But we soldiered on, and had the best grilled cheese sandwich and chocolate chip cookies of our lives somewhere up in the Canadian Rocky Mountains.

The snow was heavy for a while, and we drove 12+ hours in or near the Rocky Mountains.  We encountered only eight or so places where the wilderness was inhabited by human beings!  If you are wondering where there is still open, available land in this big bright world of ours, well, we can tell you!

After several hours of driving the sun did indeed come out to play and it made the trip MUCH more enjoyable.

I am interested now in watching a PBS special entitled 'Making the Alaska Highway', because this must have been quite a feat...there are very few other roads anywhere around in this part of Canada...which makes the Alaska Highway stand out all the more!




We continued our animal watching all day long, which we will describe in more detail later (Natalie has kept a running count for each type of animal!)...but for now, enjoy this picture of a bison!

We are ready for the final leg into Anchorage today, and we cannot wait!  Weather looks mild...it is about 50 degrees and a little overcast...but NO SNOW!  We will update you from Anchorage...Lord willing, we will arrive safely sometime late tonight, and Natalie will begin her internship at 7:30am tomorrow.  FYI, we will be three hours ahead of Texas / Oklahoma / Arkansas time when we get there...Alaska is an hour earlier even than California.  Have a great day!

For the beauty of the earth

Today we traveled twelve hours through Alberta and British Columbia, mostly through a grey day.  We definitely enjoyed being together...I did the driving and Natalie read her book (plus made a lot of cute noises as she read...with her, reading is a WHOLE BODY experience!).  But, as we looked out the window of the car, we realized quickly that we had moved into territory where there just weren't many people around...

As we got ready to close the day here in Fort Nelson, British Columbia, we passed right next to the snow-capped mountaintops of the Canadian Rocky Mountains.

I think one of the clearest ways we see the handiwork of God is in the beauty of nature.  As the sun set on the Rocky Mountains, we saw five bears, several owls and hawks, and the snowcapped mountaintops.  It reminded me of a hymn we sang in Church as a boy...which spoke of seeing God's beauty all around us...

For the beauty of the earth, 
for the glory of the skies, 
for the love which from our birth 
over and around us lies; 
Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.

We truly had some glorious glimpses into God's beautiful creation.  We are calling it an 'early' night here at 10pm, because we have another long day of driving tomorrow.  Our goal is to reach the Yukon territory, where we have a reservation in its capital, Whitehorse.  And we are very thankful that the weatherman is calling for sunny skies tomorrow...it has been overcast and rainy for a few days now...

What a great day!

To our friends and family:

We have made it to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and have had a great day!  However, our cell phones don't work here...so we will have to communicate chiefly through this blog!

We toured a wonderful place today called the Heritage Park Historical Village (Subtitled: How the West Was Once).  It was filled with authentic period buildings, workers in costume, appropriate to their various trades, great food and wonderful shopping!  And it was like 62 degrees and overcast -- we had to wear long sleeves!   Yeah!

One solemn note:
I talked trash to my wife.  There, I said it.  I am sorry, but it happened.  I am even more sorry that I couldn't back it up. We were playing midway carnival games, and I told Natalie she had NO chance to knock these milk bottles down. She promptly stood up to the mark, took only one of the three baseballs from the young man, cast them at the milk bottles, and won on the first try.

I stood up, took all three tries and...failed. Womp-Wah.  I had to play a second time to win.  She has already brought it up several times today and I feel confident in saying that I will hear this story replayed over and over again in the next few years. ;-)

My favorite part of the day probably was the show which taught us how to be a Voyageur (the fellows who had the hazardous job of transporting the furs down river to the major outlets).  Our guide was a very eloquent man who taught us about paddling and the songs that they sang, the dangers they encountered and the things they would take along with them on the journey.  But my favorite part was that he chose Natalie as a volunteer!  She would serve as the doctor when the guide was hit with multiple arrows when they were hit by a surprise attack!  I love that Natalie gets into EVERYTHING she does, and you can see from this picture that she pursued her part with GUSTO!

I think my wife never looks more beautiful than when she is rested and has something that deeply interests her...last night we had a long rest and today was a day of learning and discovery!  Here she is in the middle of that day, and I cannot imagine any woman could possibly be more beautiful, can you?

We don't know exactly what the communication conditions will be over the next two days...but we should be in Anchorage sometime late Wednesday evening...much love to all, and I hope you aren't sweating to death!

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Dear Friends and Family:

We are in Canada, eh!  Made it safely to Calgary, Alberta last night and were able to settle into the Marriott right in the heart of the city.  What a city it is!  What an arts scene...we had to have passed 6 or 7 different theatres and that was just for plays...they have art displayed on every street corner...this city is awesome!

Plus, this morning my wife got a treat...we ordered the hotel breakfast be brought to our room!  So, she was able to enjoy her breakfast in bed!  Hah!  She was like a princess on her throne!  Now she is laying bed, reading book #2 for the trip, which I would bet will be concluded before we get to Anchorage!

We are going to a historical village here in Calgary today, and then we will head about 3.5 hours up the road to Edmonton.  This will be the last real outpost of 'civilization' (cities) until we reach Anchorage.  We are currently at the halfway mark, with much driving ahead.  I forget that Canada's highways are more like our 2 or 4 lane roads...no exits...so as you come to each new town, you slow down to 50 km / hr. (about 30 mph).  So the travel is significantly slower than in the states, so we will take an easy day, rest up and do laundry tonight.

From Edmonton, we will have three days of driving about equal to the first three...10+ hours each day...it is a long way to Alaska, but we sure are enjoying ourselves!

Antique cars...

So, we got behind this fellow today...I am not sure exactly what year this dodge pickup was, but the guy behind it was vintage!  And he drove about 50 miles an hour in a 70mph zone!

Hello Montana, Canada here we come!

OK, so let us back up...to where I left off  back in Western Kansas.  It was smooth sailing, and quickly we made our way into Eastern Colorado, which is not the mountainous region that you think of when you mention the state of Colorado.  However, I took Natalie to one of my favorite stops...Colorado Gifts in Limon, Colorado...home to some of the kitschiest gifts on the planet!  They even have a gigantic stuffed bear whose lap you can sit in...and Natalie did!

Natalie also did some shopping...and out we came with some dangly earrings, giardettos, soda, a few postcards (I bought those) and a few other things...

Then we went on through Denver, Colorado...where we got really bogged down in Friday evening rush hour traffic.  That was a real bummer since we had such a long way to go, but eventually we fought through it and made our way into Wyoming, and stopped in Cheyenne for dinner.  But you know how some cities just aren't built around the interstate?  Well, Cheyenne isn't!  So we wandered around the city a bit and finally found an exit with a Mr. Jim's Pizza and a Silver Mine Sandwich Company.

Now, my wife LOVES good food, and neither of these was what she had in mind (nor was it what I was planning, either!)...but we soldiered on, and found that the sandwich place had outdoor seating and the temperature was just perfect and there were NO bugs!  So we enjoyed our dinner as the sun began to set, and here is Natalie enjoying that setting!

It worked out very well, and as we pushed on along interstate 25 heading North through Wyoming, Natalie and I were treated to one of the most magnificent sunsets of my entire life.  It reminded me of one of my favorite Psalms, Psalm 121, which says...I lift up my eyes to the hills, and where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord, maker of Heaven and Earth.

Natalie was deep into book 2 of the Hunger Games series, and would look up occasionally to be wowed by the sunset, take a few pictures, and then she would dive back into her book.  Here is one of the photographs Natalie took of that memorable Sunset.

But, that unfortunately still left us with a good bit of driving to do.  So I just put the foot on the gas pedal and drove on until we finally reached Billings, Montana, sometime after midnight.

We got about seven hours of sleep and then I went down and brought us up some breakfast, and we hit the road again, headed across the prairie with the Bitterroot Mountains on either side of us.  Fortunately, I had stopped in Billings at Subway and grabbed a couple of Subway sandwiches for the road before we left because we were truly in the middle of NOWHERE!  I was also thankful that we had taken the time to have some really good coffee with caramel, pecan and white chocolate flavoring -- yum!

Then we headed out across the middle of Wyoming (listening to the Lumineers on our Ipod) until we reached Great Falls, Montana.  We stopped for lunch at Noodle Express, and had a delightful late lunch / early supper and Natalie is now driving as we head for the Canadian border.  We are about an hour away from the border crossing right now and headed to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where we will be staying in the heart of the city tonight.  Hope all is well for our friends and family wherever you are this day.

BYE BYE KANSAS!

We started off this morning having breakfast at a lovely restaurant in Salina, Kansas called Spangles. It is an old-fashioned looking diner that actually pulls the look off...complete with a huge statue of Elvis, photos of Marilyn Monroe and other film stars on the wall, and...simply awesome food.  Their orange juice is kind of like a slushy...and it was amazing! We had a breakfast bowl with bacon, potatoes, eggs, gravy and cheese (but Natalie had to put ketchup on it -- GROSS!).

Then we hit the road and my littles eyes spied a billboard for a 'Kansas Originals' Store...only products made in Kansas so small one and I stopped...found jellies and cookies and candles and...well, you get the idea!  We had a heck of a time and found a lot of interesting and creative things are made here in Kansas...who knew?  I think Kansas gets a bad rap for being boring...flat perhaps, but it definitely has a rugged beauty all its own!

We drove on across the plains and stopped in Colby, Kansas for lunch.  We had seen a billboard for a Q-Doba, and were excited about the possibility of having one more meal of Mexican food before we got too far North, but couldn't find it once we exited...so we settled for Arby's (Natalie's dad's favorite) and of course, Natalie OWNED the horsey sauce (my wife sure does like her sauces! Is that what makes her so saucy? ;-)

Now we are in Eastern Colorado and making for our next stop of Limon...where I will start driving again.  Natalie is on her second short turn of driving since we left home. But of course, when she drives, it is then my opportunity to return to princess service...and this time I was napping...big mistake!  She accidentally bumped my leg and woke me up.  And though she told me to go back to sleep, there was a request every couple of moments...for water, chapstick, music, etc.  So I got up to show her attention and write in the blog and she is MUCH happier now!  And everybody knows when your wife is happy, everybody is happy!

We are very thankful today for sunshine, rather than rain, and we are awed at the Windmills....what an epic sight!  Hope this finds you well wherever you are...next big stop is Denver...where we will turn north again on Interstate 25...last stop tonight is Billings, Montana...may be pretty late by the time we can get there!