Ice Fog

Ok, so I haven't posted for a few days. Nothing much is going on. Well nothing funny anyway. Just life. I forgot why I'm doing this. Not doing it necessarily to provide entertainment but to chronicle what's going on.

Went to two hockey games this weekend. I love going to watch it in person. It's a good excuse to get out. I'm still getting used to the fact that there are only 3,o00 people there and not 60,000 people like there are Mariners games. You don't have to fight traffic and spend 45 minutes getting out of the parking lot! I love being in a smaller town.

Anyway, I did a really STUPID thing Friday night. I have some medication that I take on occasion so I took some before the game. After the first period, we got up to go to the beer garden and I knew something was wrong. My mind was working but my feet weren't. I wanted to walk up the stairs but my feet felt like they weighed 1,000 lbs each. I made it to the beer garden and made it through the rest of the game. I was just in a catatonic state the whole time. Sad because Gin and one of the other Sunrise barristas were at the game with us. They were worried about me and asked Kirk if I was ok. He had no idea. Anyway, when I got back to the Compound I realized I had taken a sleeping pill, not the medication I thought!!! STUPID!!! And not only did I take a sleeping pill, I took TWO because that's how many of the other stuff I take! That's a mistake I'll only make once. Apparently I had a conversation with Gin that I have no recollection of. That has never happened before....so I wanted to go to the game Saturday night so I could at least remember one hockey game this weekend! lol

I've been seeing the same momma and baby moose in the neighborhood. They are freaking HUGE! I knew they were big but seeing them next to a house, amazing!! Unfortunately it's been too dark to take pics. One was in the condo parking lot the other day but it was after I left.

So we've been really cold lately. It's -47 today. There is a phenomenon here that happens when it's that cold. It's called ice fog. It is all the moisture in the air crystalizing and becoming fog. I heard last night there are some 2,000 outside dogs in Fairbanks. They aren't the cause of this fog but they contribute, as well as all the people here. All of our breath that we exhale turns into the fog. Of course these aren' t the only things that contribute to it, just the more interesting things that do. Anyway, the fog is very thick. It has burned off by mid day lately but it is supposed to be around through tomorrow this time. When it does burn off it's sunny, clear and beautiful, just cold.

Ok another phenomenon is flat tires on your car. The tires get flat spots. I know this isn't unique to AK. It happens elsewhere when it gets cold. But at -40, it is rough! It is downright bone jarring when you are driving!! Luckily it doesn't last too long. Not a dang thing you can do about it either. Just make sure you don't have a full bladder I guess.

I went to a lecture series last night sponsored by UAF. The guy who spoke was Ned Rozell, he has written several books, writes for the paper and for several magazines. He wrote a book called "Walking my Dog, Jane". About 1o years ago he walked the length of the pipeline with his dog. The book is kind of like a diary of his trip. He talks a lot about the history of the places along the way and about the people he met. I really enjoyed the book. I read it right before moving up here. Anway, it was great to hear him talk. I did talk to him after. It was pretty cool.

Ok, to wrap up, the pic is of the sunset last night. The sunsets here last a long time. I took that on my way to the gym. It was still setting when I got back from the gym. It's daylight at 8:30am and staying light until almost 6:30pm now. Won't be long until we have more daylight than Seattle does.