Howl

Solitary

Being at this house has been really peaceful. Everyday I walk the dog down to the frozen river and soak in the silence and solitude. Tonight there were four moose grazing across the river and I watched them for a bit before they spooked and lumbered back into the trees. I take pictures, trying to capture the way the light changes the color of the snow from white to pink to blue. None of them convey what I'd like to - the silence, the stillness, the contentment.
The sun is returning at about 5 minutes per day. It's still dark in the mornings but I can go walking in visible light until 6:30PM. That time when the light is just hanging on and the snow and sky turn almost purple is my favorite. Don't get me wrong, I'm still counting down the days to summer but it's nice in the quiet and the cold too.
On a side note, I did also realize that only two people in this country know where I am right now. Peace and solitude for sure.

Weekend Warrior

My productivity this weekend astounds me. Saturday I took things to storage, cleaned out my car, went to the dump and snow blew (that doesn't sound right) a path around the house. I felt pretty damn accomplished and proud of myself for man handling that snow thrower so I headed off to Nikiski to hang out with friends. We went on a beach walk in snow that was at times up to our knees, got a growler of Chocolate Cherry Stout and a pig of Dolly Varden Nut Brown at Kassik's Brewery and then went back to their cabin to make pizzas. The dough took a litle longer than expected but that just meant another glass of beer and more time to hold their cute kid. Here's my handy work on the snow thrower. My Montanan manfriend says I'm becoming less of a Sally Cali everyday. Yay me!

Back yard.

Front yard.

Today has been a more domestic kind of day, grocery shopping, laundry and a pot of sweet potato chili. At some point I'll get to work but for now i think I can find more housework to justify my procrastination. And eat some bomb ass chili. That doesn't quite sound right either.

Adventures in Babysitting

Last year at this time I was in Anchorage for the Beer and Barley Wine Festival. This year I have a house and a dog to look after and we're sticking close to home.

Dogs don't care that it's -20 degrees, they still want to go out. Here's the walk we take down to the river:

The path downThe river view. I'm hoping to fish here this summer.

Look out for fresh piles of this...You might find yourself in the company of this.The path back up with Jetty in the lead, as always.

Back To The Grind

I'm not going to complain. I'm not going to be Deborah Downer. I'm not going to cry about how hard it was to come back or how much I miss things. I'm not. But I will tell you about the exciting winter life I've returned to.
Been watching Deadwood. It does nothing towards civilizing my vocabulary but it's good entertainment. Tried to read some Herman Melville and gave up after two chapters. Much rather watch Deadwood than wade through that crap. Listening to Citizen Cope. Also listening to one cute but spoiled dog snore in my ear all night. Told you... exciting, right?
I actually am happy to come back to my quiet, boring life. Just wish there was a way it could overlap with my busy, exciting one. Had a friend over for dinner last night, might go snowshoeing tomorrow. Party, party all the time.

If I only had a dollar