Not Again!

  See the picture there.  The one showing several feet of snow on top and surrounded by snow!   That is what most of the places in the area look like this morning.  Even though the blizzard raged all night, its still going strong this morning.

My neighbor was sweet last night when he took time to dig my doorway out so I could get in.  I live in a four-plex that is set up with two apartments, a boiler room and two apartments.  Each apartment has a common door that opens outward.

That means every time,  we get snow, I have to push the door open so that it pushes the snow aside.  You may wonder why the door does not open inward?  If it did, one of us could not get out.  We have a entrance way that is about 3 feet by 4 feet called an arctic entrance and our doors open into that.

So last night around 6:30, I came home to a cleared out door area. Around 10 PM, I opened the iced shut door and moved some snow out of the way.  I woke up at 3 and got up to push the door open because the storm was blowing hard and forcing snow to stick to the windows.  Well it stuck.  It took quite a bit of hip power to get the door open just enough for me to get an arm out.

I grabbed the ice chipper and ran it under the door bashing whatever I could reach.  I jabbed everything behind the door I could reach until it moved.  I admit, I was not going to get dressed to go outside to shovel enough snow to fully clear the door.  I figured I could do that in about 4 hours when I was up and dressed.

Talk about being wrong!  I could barely open the door to get my arm through it.  I once again jabbed the ice chipper under the door, loosening what I could.  I reached behind the door and chopped everything I could reach.  It didn't do much good, so I repeated the whole process enough to move the door.

Once I got the door open enough to slide through while holding my breath to make me as skinny as possible, I got out with shovel in hand so I could shovel enough snow to clear the door.  I was not going to stand in the snow blasting wind to clear the whole porch.  Once the immediate area was clear, I came back in to eat breakfast and write this.

It is 7:15 AM right now and I have no idea if work will be on time, be delayed, or cancelled.  I go in early so if work is cancelled, I'm gone before the call goes out and I find out when I get to work.  There are a few of us who are always there before starting time and we always miss the call.  I'll do an update later on, once I find out the status.

I hope you have a good day today and don't have a full fledged blizzard in your location.

UPDATE - There is work and I'm here

UPDATE - UPDATE They sent us home early due to the blizzard being even worse.  I had to borrow a neighbor's shovel to chip the ice off the doorway and remove another 8 inches of snow to get my door open.   I know I'll shovel a few more times tonight to keep the area clear. 

The 11 Most Dangerous Places on Earth.

 

That volcano is still erupting and causing flights here in Alaska to be canceled. I know it can be dangerous living by a volcano as evidenced by Pompeii but I wondered where are most dangerous places on earth are found.  One list I found listed places filled with murder, theft, and other crimes.

I admit I wasn't thinking about political unrest when I thought about dangerous, I was thinking more about places that were so beautiful that they were dangerous.  After a bit of searching, I found them.

1. Bardarbunga Volcano, Iceland. This volcano is the second largest of the 30 scattered throughout Iceland.  Its been currently active since August of 2014.  Aside from being very unpredictable, a volcano can emit poisonous gas.

2. Mount Everett, Nepal.  Since 1953, 250 people have died trying to climb to the top. Only about 100 to 200 people per year attempt the climb.  Its said that the view form the top is spectacular.

3. Danakil Desert, Ethiopia.  This place is extremely barren and covered with salty soil, not to mention temperatures that constantly hover around 120 degrees. It has a nick name, "The cruelest place on earth".  In addition, there are high crime rates in the areas around this desert.

4. Tatouine, Tunisia or Tatooine from the original Star Wars Films.  The Skywalker farm has attracted science fiction fans for years but there is some political unrest in in Libya, the country next door,  that has sparked rumors about ISIS in the region.

5. Death Road Bolivia.  This 11,000 foot road runs from the Andes down to the rain forest.  It is so treacherous that it has earned the name "Death road.  It is extremely steep with few if any barriers causing approximately 200 to 300 bicyclists and motorists to be killed each year.

6. The Eiger, Switzerland is one of the toughest climbs known to man. The north face is nicknamed "The murder wall" because of the number of lives it has claimed.

7. Honduras is a beautiful country but it has rampant malaria, poor medical care and their sanitation is lousy.  So if you go, ask for bottled water and no ice.

8. Gouffer Berger Cave, France is a set of ancient lime stone caves that are absolutely beautiful but dangerous.  Nicknamed "The Killer Cave", it is especially dangerous during heavy rains because the tunnels flood and can trap people.

9. Devil's Swimming Pool. Victoria Falls.  When the dry season hits the area, the levels of the water in falls deceases to the point that the rock lip at the edge fills with water and forms a swimming area just inches from a 100 meter drop.

10. Jacobs Well, Wimberly, TX.  This is a spring that forms a swimming hole and extends down for 10 feet or so.  Often cave divers enjoy going down and exploring the area but open water divers have problems and can end up dead. Local authorities discourage anyone from diving there.

11. Mount Huashan hiking trail, China.  This hiking trail is one of the most perilous in the world.  The trail has extremely narrow rock ledges or wooden boards attached together act as foot holds while there are metal chains attacked to the rock  for hand holds. There is a history of fatal falls but the view is absolutely breathtaking. 

I tried to find places of beauty that were deadly rather than going for places classified as dangerous due to crime or war.  The pictures that accompanied each location were so  breathtaking that I bet the same views in real life leave viewers speechless. 

Bárðarbunga Volcano, Iceland Read more at: https://tr.im/Ocse2

Bárðarbunga Volcano, Iceland Read more at: https://tr.im/Ocse2

They Shut Down!

  If you read this blog on a regular basis, you'll know I live in the huge state of Alaska.  It is bigger than Texas and California.  It is a state that has fewer roads than any other state.  The airplane is the workhorse that carries people, mail, and groceries to villages that dot the state.

Well this past Sunday, a volcano erupted down in the Aleutian chain, south of a tiny place called Cold Bay.  The volcano, Pavlof, spewed ash 20,000 feet into the air.  This cloud continued upward and outward blanketing the atmosphere.

I realize some of you are wondering what the big deal is about a volcanic eruption.  Unfortunately, due to the way the prevailing winds blew the ask, most of the routes in the state were effected and air travel closed down.  The biggest airline, Alaska Air, ended up canceling flights to the major cities of Barrow/Deadhourse, Bethel, Kotzebue, Nome, Fairbanks, and other hubs.

Many of the regional airlines also  shut down because of the ash, so not much flew in the state for 24 to 30 hours.  It can be dangerous to fly when there is volcanic ash floating in the air because the ash itself is used as an industrial abrasive.  If the ash gets into the engine, it can cause the engine to shut down.  Its like flying into a sand blaster.

According to my neighbor who was trying to fly out of town yesterday, nothing flew because of the ash.  I thought the flights were cancelled due to the nasty wind outside that blew enough snow across the landscape that one of my coworkers had to dig herself out.  Apparently, she opened the door to a wall of snow and needed to move some of it before she could escape her house.

Airlines are careful around volcanic eruptions due to the possibility of crashes.  Back in 1989, when Mt Redoubt blew, a KLM flight ended up with enough ash in the engine that it quit and the plane lost altitude before the pilots were able to start the engines again.

After living up here for many years, I don't mind when airlines err on the side of caution.  I'd rather get to my destination in one piece than not make it at all.  Yes, I do grouse about delays but I still am relieved they are cautious.  Have a great day.

My Inner Child

  There are times when I get tired of being an adult.  You know, of being the responsible one making sure certain things get done.  Worrying about paying the bills, cleaning up everything and trying to find time for me.

Sometimes, I just want to let my inner child lose.  That part that loves to go outside in shorts and t-shirt to play on the swings and swoop down the slide headfirst, doing a belly flop at the bottom.

There are times, I want to run through the sprinklers, letting the droplets fall on me and around me.  I want to walk through mud, letting the stuff just slide through my toes leaving me with that gooey shivery feel.

I'll let you in on a secret.  Sometimes I do let my inner child out.  Once in a while at work when no one is around, I'll skip down the halls just because I feel like it.  Sometimes, I'll take my shoes off and walk along the edge of the lake barefoot, just because I can.

I think being an adult can be overwhelming and causes way too much stress in our lives.  I know all the usual ways of beating stress but just once in a while I let my inner child out to play so I can be carefree and young.  I just love feeling as if I do not have anything to worry about.

Occasionally, in the mornings before work, I'll step out on the snow covered porch in my bare feet.  Yes, its cold. No, I can't be out there for very long.  I even hear my mother's voice telling me to come inside before my feet turn to blocks of ice and fall off.

I'm not sure I'll ever go down the side of a hill in a mud filled gully but I can stop to enjoy the blooming flowers.  I can pick those small wild flowers to take home and put on the dining room table, just like my mother did with flowers we brought home to her growing up.

Last night, I put on some music (ABBA) and just dances as if I didn't have a care in the world.  It was wonderful just dancing around and having fun. Did you know, its great exercise?

So take a moment to rediscover your inner child.  Take a minute to dunk your graham crackers in milk, blow the biggest bubbles you can so you scrape the gum off your nose, play boat with your celery, or just spread bubbles across the landscape as you have fun.

Happy Easter

Little Known Uses of Duct Tape.

I was reading the latest issue of Make Magazine and I found a cool list of little known uses of duct tape.  I was like wow because there are things on the list I didn't know about.  Not at all.

I have used it in the past for a fixing rips in baby mattresses (A cat clawed it) and for shortening dance pants so they'd stay up during a recital.  I also know its used on ducts so when I saw this list, I really was surprised.

Apparently, duct tape was created back in World War II when the military needed a waterproof, cloth based tape.  It was developed by a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson. and used on ammo cases to keep them safer.  

It actually was suggested by a woman who worked with ammo boxes in a munitions factory and had two sons fighting in the war.  At that time, a paper tape was used to seal the boxes but it didn't always open right and that  created other problems.  She suggested using a cloth based waterproof tape but her bosses wouldn't implement the idea so she wrote the president.  He liked the idea and the rest is history. 

So its time to share the information, so we can all learn something new.

1.  It can be used to open a tightly sealed jar.

2. It can be twisted into a cord.

3. It can be used to make a splint, a butterfly bandage, or hold a gauze pad over a blister.

4. A length can be hung down from the ceiling to catch flies.

5. Tape around the bottom of pants so water doesn't seep up during wet time.

6. It can help prevent glass windows from shattering during a storm. (I wish I'd known about this one during the last cyclone I was in.)

7. It can be used to hide a small key on the underside of the car.

8.  Models can be created out of it.  Models such as X-wing fighters, etc.

9. It can be used to create a wallet.  Instructions on the internet. You can also make phone cases, bags, etc from this material

10. Create flowers out of duct tape.

There are lots of other uses and with just a search, you can find a multitude of uses.  Enjoy.

Celebrating Death

Recently a young man passed away.  He was found in the snow after having gone missing for two days.  Out here when someone dies unexpectedly, their body is sent into Anchorage for the corner and then it goes to the funeral parlor before being shipped out here in the casket.  The only time, the body does not go in is if the person died of old age or cancer.

Traditionally, there is a three day period of mourning where the body is laid out in the living room.  People sit by the body 24 hours a day, visiting and at night they sing hymns all night long.  There are pictures and mementos of the person who passed. After three days, the funeral is held and the body buried.

This time it is being done differently.  She said that usually people set up a sanctuary of death and focus on the death, mourning the passing.  She didn't want that.  Instead, she decided to celebrate her son's life, not his death.  She put all his awards and certificates on the wall in his bedroom to show everything he accomplished in his 25 years.  She talked about him with joy and love. She said she wanted to be smile rather than be sad. At 10 PM, they send everyone home so they have more time with their son before he is given to the earth.

Tomorrow is the funeral.  It won't happen in either of the local churches because she belongs to a small group that meets at peoples houses.  She is going to have it at the tribal building which has room and when its over, they will have a potluck and a dance. I don't know if the potluck will be at the school or in the tribal building. 

It doesn't matter people will come together for the meal with all sorts of wonderful food and at the end, everyone will share in the dance to celebrate the young man's time on earth.  Then each year on the anniversary of his death for the first three years, his parents will have another dinner to remember him and celebrate his life.

Until I moved here, I'd not seen it done this way.  I grew up with the whole body goes to the funeral parlor, you pay your respects, attend a 20 min service and your done.  Or it might happen at the grave site with a short service.  Here the service is usually in the 1 to 3 hour range depending on whether its held at the Catholic church or the number of people who want to say a few words in remembrance.

In a sense, people out here still carry on funerals and mourning much like they did in the 19th century.  I don't think it will change because this is the way they work through their grief.