The white stuff falleth - briefly.
I stayed up until nearly 2am this morning. Steve was on day shift, so he went up to bed early. I wasn’t ready to retire for the evening, and found myself channel surfing from a prone position on the sofa, until finally I dozed off. Steve woke me when he left for work and sent me up to bed. I dozed on and off, until dragging myself out of bed (and to the coffeepot) at 9am.
I pulled back the vertical blinds to let Sedona out, and was shocked to see tiny “marbles” of ice falling from the sky and bouncing on the deck. I immediately called Steve at work to report the hail, and was told that it had been flurrying up at the mine site all morning. Later on this afternoon, it flurried some more - big fat flakes, that fell intermittently and melted upon contact with the ground. The skies have been gray, and it’s feeling much chillier (as in damp cold) even though the temperature reading isn’t much lower.
I picked up my friend Lisa today, and we went to the theater to see “Nights in Rodanthe“. It’s definitely a “chick flick” or maybe even a “date night” movie (if you’re a man who doesn’t mind watching love stories on the big screen). We both enjoyed the movie, but left the theater wiping tears from our eyes. It ends on a sad note - much like most of Nicholas Sparks’ novels - so take some tissues if tear-jerkers always make your eyes leak.
We grabbed a late lunch at Brewsters (the original location near University Blvd) and were less than impressed. The food was lackluster, and the waitstaff seemed to disappear soon after delivering our order. We really need some better choices for dining out in Fairbanks! Something with a varied menu, that doesn’t price burgers at $11 would be nice.
I arrived home shortly before Steve - perfect timing!
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Yesterday turned out to be a sunny day. I stood outside watching the birds on the feeders for a little while. I even saw several butterflies flitting around the yard. I followed them with my camera, and one finally landed on a birch tree. It spread its wings wide and seemed to be sunbathing. I was able to get a photograph before it took off like the others.
I also found a clump of red leaves still remaining in my ‘dead’ yard. They really stand out against the flat colors of dry leaves and bare trees. I believe these are from the high-bush cranberry.
It’s hard to believe that September is almost over. This month really flew by for me! And the year has gone by quickly too. Steve celebrated his 1 year anniversary at the mine on August 20th. It’s hard to believe he’s been retired from the army for more than a year already.
Steve’s off for the next couple of days. Maybe this weekend, we can tackle building the shelves/storage in the under-the-stairs closet. It’s being used to house my photo equipment and print supplies (mats/frames), and it needs some massive organization.
Enjoy your weekend!
HI Susan,
The sight of the first snow always gets me a little excited! LOL! Sounds like a great time on your ‘girls day out’! Fun!
That butterfly is so pretty, you can just see the softness to it.
Its truly fall here now as I can smell it when I walk outside. I love that smell! The damp foliage smell, the brisk air, the beautiful colors, oh I love it! We had a goreous Saturday, the temps were perfect with beautiful sunshine and no wind or breeze! Just wonderful! Of course today is grey and gloomy!
I can’t believe in a matter of 3 days it will be October 1st!!! Wow, time is really flying by! This year has just disappeared! Have a wonderful week!
[Reply]
Comment by LynnMN — September 28, 2008 @ 5:53 am
The artic cam shows some snow on the ground. I remember my first year in Alaska. It snowed on Sept. 27 for the first time. I called my mother almost everyday after that saying it’s snowing. We got I think 80 inches that year. It was crazy for me but I really enjoyed it. Great pictures.
[Reply]
Comment by Tammy Kauffman — September 28, 2008 @ 6:23 am
Hello Susan,
Maine has just escaped Hurricane Kyle. “He” passed to our east after leaving very heavy rains. About 6″.
Our fall foliage is almost at its peak and we didn’t want to loose the leaves this soon. Glad we didn’t. The red maples are particularily brilliant this year. My husband and I like to drive through the western Maine mountains and up toward Rangley and Jackman on the Canadian border to see the fall colors. It’s about a 100 mile circuit and it’s also moose hunting season here so we keep busy watching hoping to see one. (We don’t hunt but enjoy looking)
Do you have Bluebirds in Alaska during the summer? We have them in Maine but a friend has better luck enticing them over to his house to nest. I’m lucky if I see them once a year but 2 days ago, during their migration south, I got to see several. It was a real treat. The Monarch Butterflies hatched early this year and not as many as usual. Wonder if that is a sign of the type of winter to come.
I enjoy your writing and photos so much, thanks for the website.
Gail
[Reply]
Comment by Gail Drake — September 28, 2008 @ 5:08 pm