Take it to the House

For lack of a coherent thought train these days, offering up some incoherent random thoughts about life and other matters.

What a treat to wake up and go through my morning Internet routine and not end up depressed and angry. Yesterday's elections (Nov. 7, 2017) seem to indicate the American electorate is regaining its intelligence. However in politics victories can be short-lived and major battles to rid the country of the Trump/GOP scourge remain. With that in mind, I am offering the following as a rallying cry for the coming year leading to the mid-term elections next November:

"TAKE IT TO THE HOUSE." Go!

I swear nuthatches must be the pickiest eaters in the bird world. I watched one today land on a hexagonal bird feeder then hop around to each of the six perches, picking and tossing away two or three seeds at each stop then flying off. I'm not sure she took a seed with her. At least she was feeding the grosbeaks who seem to prefer the ground.

From Introverts are Awesome facebook page

I have ended up once again, sitting here in November waiting for enough snow to move to the East Pole for the winter. I've seen posts saying moving is one of the five most stressful situations people face. No doubt but I had never applied that to the annual trek to the cabin. But sitting here waiting with everything but perishables purchased and packed, I go up and down, anxious to go, but dreading the actual first moving day. Then this meme came up on facebook today. A gentle comment on the favorite Alaska pastime, always getting ready. Amen brother.

A couple of days ago a fellow came by to check the well water (and sell me a $2,000 filtration system). Very friendly social sort, who never stopped talking.  My favorite kind of person, right? :=D. He asked several questions that to me seemed a little too personal and made me a little uncomfortable. I finally told him I had to get back to work just to get him out of here. Perhaps it was the question he asked that made me do that. He asked where I was from originally. I told him and then he asked what did I miss most about the place where I grew up. That question stopped me. I finally answered "nothing." He looked surprised. There's nothing you miss about where you're from?" I thought for a moment and said, "nope, I belong here." He gave up then. But later my response bothered me a little. Why wouldn't I miss something from the place where I lived for the first 25 years of my life? I thought through it and there was a submarine sandwich shop I liked and then when you think of my home country and sandwiches, roast beef on Kimmelweck rolls might count. But nothing else really comes to mind. It's not that there aren't memories of good times and bad, and people recalled with fondness, but I came to the conclusion that I'd rather be here than there and I can't think of anything I miss enough to want to go back. Have to wonder if this might be personality flaw.
We all have signs that winter is upon us. I became aware of a new one this year, something I just realized though it has happened almost every year of my life. You know winter is coming when you have to fight your way through at least three layers of clothing to whiz. It's a man thing. And that's all I have to say about it.

Now, speaking of waiting for winter this list crossed my mind. Kind of a reverse bucket list

Alaska things I've  done:

Drove the Alaska highway and on entering Alaska asked them to close the gate.

Built a cabin in the bush and lived in it

Lived on a boat

Faced down an approaching grizzly bear.

Fished commercially for king crab

Drove a dog team.

Drove a boat through the Inside Passage (several times)

Crossed the Gulf of Alaska in a huge storm in a 40-foot sailboat.

Sailed Alaska to Hawaii

Split cords of firewood.

Wrote books about Alaska. (5)

Twice made it through a whiteout in a small airplane

Operated a fishing charter boat

Experienced several 7+ earthquakes

Caught all five species of Alaska salmon. Aware there are a sixth and seventh species (not counting farmed) but not in Alaska.

Hit a moose with a car (twice, though the second one hit me)

Traveled  hundreds of miles on snowmachines.

Was in Nome twice for the finish of the Iditarod

Survived life in Anchorage

Fell through the ice on a snowmachine into the Talkeetna River

Served as editor of the Nome Nugget newspaper

Hit icebergs with a boat (well, burgey bits anyway)

Built three houses mostly by myself,  all three of them in winter.

But keep this in mind. No matter what you have done in Alaska, somebody has done it better, gone farther or higher or deeper, faster and under tougher conditions than you have.

OK now I thought this was titled Take it to the House, but it's not. The song with that title is a rap with lots of objectionable language. This is from the old Tim Allen Show Home Improvement, the band from K&B Construction. Burning down the house. Same message lol.