Time
I probably owe some of you an apology. I went back through my blog, and I made public much of my old poetry. Some of it is good, some is not, but although all of ...
Spring
Sometimes I wonder if the astrologers have a point. It’s hard to conceive of a planet 50 million miles away having an effect on the goings on in life, but something seems to bundle events. ...
No answer.
I will get back to writing down my original thoughts soon. For now, I will redirect you to another blog, and ask that you go read in tribute to a friend who died last week. ...
A backlight modern shrine.
As we approached the Summer Solstice, I noted that my house was Negrange in reverse, with the morning solstice shining through a passage made my kitchen window and refrigerator, and lighting my television. Now, as ...
Small Wonders
There are times when creation absolutely shouts its wonder. Standing on the Llogara Pass, listening to the storm surge crash against the shore a thousand feet below; drifting through a pod of whales as they ...
First Candle
The inn was full, but the Innkeeper was not happy. This was not the usual crowd, these were dangerous, angry men. The Emperor, for reasons he kept to himself, had decreed that every male in ...
In color…
One of the benefits of my job is that I work on the 9th floor, overlooking Cook Inlet and the mountains beyond. This morning, I came to work to see them in pre-dawn shadows. Just ...
The day after…
I’ve decided how I am going to celebrate the end of the campaign season. While I have commented that this year’s fliers do not burn, with the right tinder anything will catch light. The night ...
Enough!
So, this is what a $50 Million election looks like. With the control of the Senate at stake, everyone is throwing in to the point where this race could well cost $200 per vote. There ...
Aurora
I have determined, and I am certain that science will someday confirm this, that the aurora have a direct impact on the meteorological conditions of the Anchorage bowl. If the ADN tells us a Massive ...
Seasonal work…
I started reading the following, and had several moments of “this is great, I need to quote it….” Well… it’s just better to send you over to read it. Some “bad job” stories are therapeutic, ...
A better Constitution, again.
In 1998, the State of Alaska made a horrible mistake. We adapted into our State Constitution an amendment that restricted the rights of others. Nothing else in the document singles out a group of people ...
The art of memorial.
My father is home from a recent trip Back East. He’s posted pictures of the New York area, and his posts are worth looking at. There is one series in particular that I keep going ...
More darkness, more light.
The stars were out as I went to work this morning. The moon was bright and low on the horizon, throwing enough light to read by. The moon itself provides no light. It has about ...
Darkness and Light
We are coming into the dark part of the year. The equinox behind us, there is more hours of darkness than hours of light, but light still reigns. There is no measure for darkness. We ...
Perspective
Yesterday’s earthquake was perhaps the strongest I have ever felt. Being on the 9th floor certainly enhanced the experience. The 1964 earthquake was 32,000 times as powerful.
A carbon tax is coming.
From a cynical point of view, political change comes about when a new group of people find a way to change the rules in such a way that they gain an advantage over previous champions. ...
Words.
So, we’re going to war again. Congress is full of people who claim concern over which countries will have “boots on the ground.” It’s an interesting linguistic trick. I suppose it’s safer to talk about the ...
One Warm Line!
NPR had an excellent interview about finding one of the Franklin ships, and not just excellent because Stan Rogers sang the coda. This find really makes me redicioulously happy. The search for the Northwest Passage ...
First world problems with Cell Phone reviews.
What can you expect from a $35 smart phone (gross, not net)? How do you even review such a thing? With 2/3rds of the world not having access to the internet, a $35 smart-phone might ...
7 years.
Today is 7 years that my beloved and I have been married. They have been quite simply the best years of my life… to date. I am a very lucky man. Among other things, she ...
A new artist to watch.
My mother shared with me an amazing video on translating the wooden art of the Tlingit to glass. This has lead me to add a new artist to my watch-list. When you have the time, ...
On carbon
I underwent surgery yesterday. All went well, but the anesthesia knocked me on my ass. Today was a day of recovering, with a mind that was ready to work, and a body that was completely unwilling. ...
A new season.
Nature generally acts on its own schedule. Season follows season, each in its own time. That’s why it is so completely startling when the timing so closely follows what “should” happen. Yesterday was Labor Day, the ...
The return of the Debtors’ Prison
Sociologists have long talked about the cost of being poor. It’s counter-intuitive on the surface, but it’s as easy to see as the cost of doing laundry in your own machine vs. the cost of ...
A new beginning.
Thank you for stopping by. I know it is an indulgence to drop off of Facebook and expect hope that some of you will follow me, but it is an indulgence I need to take. ...
Things a camera can’t see.
There are magic things my camera cannot get. This morning, the sun was behind the mountains, lighting the higher clouds. Wisps of fire were floating over a slate blue/grey morning. Then, one of the clouds ...
Fixating on fixing the debt
We are told that Government should be more like business. The average total debt to equity ratio for the S&P 500 is around 0.88. Our national debt to equity ratio is around 0.075. By rational ...
Summertime
We are clever people, we Alaskans. We manage to inject fatalism into even the most glorious of summer days. I was walking the dogs past a quintessential Alaskan lake. You know the one, shared by ...
Alaska…
Last fall, I made a comment about Anchorage being defined by hip-hop in the snow. Walking my dog through Eagle River, the defining soundtrack is seaplanes and bagpipes. I love Alaska.
Light on a modern shrine
My house is like Newgrange in inverse. As we approach summer solstice, the light breaking over the mountains in the farthest north extent of the Alaskan summer sunrise floods through the thin passage made by ...
More on privilege.
As a response to George Will’s column, the hashtag #survivorprivilege was born. It is sobering reading. A trigger warning for sexual abuse survivors, a chance for understanding for the rest of us. You don’t need ...
Privilege
I know a thing or two about privilege. I was born white, male and comfortably middle class with a United States passport. All of these things together puts me well within the 1% by any ...
Colors
The morning and evening daylight is so weird, with all of the forest fires. Old habits die hard. I got out my gel color swatch book to try and determine what color it would take ...
I think, before I move from this house, I need to add a dummy 50 amp breaker to the panel and label it “Flux Capacitor.” That should give the next homeowner something to think about.
To the least of them…
Nobody went into that Sunday expecting miracles. The apostles stayed home while Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and perhaps others went to the tomb with spices. They had intended to provide one last ...
Watching
On this day, I would have been in the crowd, watching the procession. Had I the wisdom to know what was going on, I would not have had the courage to stand in the way. ...
I’ve been gone from the house for 3 hours. My cats, who spend the entire night downloading Youtube videos of wild animal calls and playing Jenga with anvils and wind chimes, have not moved. I’m ...