Living in Alaska - Life in the Last Frontier

I want to start this journal entry acknowledging a very amazing and historical event - the Inauguration of President Barack Obama! Like many of you, I was glued to the television, watching the events unfold. On Alaska Time, this meant I had to be up at 6am - and I had no trouble waking. I recorded the events for Steve, so they he could watch them when he woke up (he was sleeping off night shift).

There is always something amazing about Inauguration Day. Regardless of who the new president is, the fact that we have leaders - often of opposite or adversarial parties - who can hand off power in a peaceful way, with a lot of celebration, makes me proud to be an American.

As I watched the festivities, I found myself tearing up with emotion, that our country had elected an African American to the position of President of the United States. For that alone, it was a very memorable day. Seeing millions of Americans, in the streets of our capital (my friend Michele and her daughter Maddie were there!), celebrating a new hope for the future made me feel joyful. Inauguration Day is a new day for all of us in America and the world.

Today I give thanks for a new chance, a new day, and a brand new president to guide us over unpredictable waters with a steady and gracious hand.

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I love when the snow falls. It’s so pretty! Some of you might think I’m nuts for loving snow, especially living in a place where we get so much snow. But the reality is that, when it’s really cold, it doesn’t snow. We haven’t had a pretty snow in a while, and I’ve been hoping for it after the warm up we had over the past week.

The warm weather melted a lot of the snow, revealing the uglier, less fresh stuff beneath. We needed something pretty and pure to cover it up, and on Monday night it happened. I stood out there with Sedona for several minutes, feeling the snowflakes on my face. Beautiful.

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I haven’t really gone anywhere, except to run some errands here and there. Because of this, I don’t have any outdoor photos to share with you all.  However, being indoors incited me to look at my surroundings and think outside the box. Besides, I was a little bored, and playing with my camera always helps the time to pass much more quickly and more pleasantly.

The first day I played, I set a coffee cup in my sink and turned on the water until it was a steady drip. My goal was to capture the moment the water droplet hit the water in the mug.  All I can say is thank goodness for digital media, because if I would have used film for this experiment, it would have cost me a fortune!  I shot about 70 frames just to get a handful of what I consider good shots. None of these photos can be enlarged much bigger than 8×10 (if that) due to graininess, but I think they turned out pretty neat.

Then, yesterday, I decided I’d play around using some white foam core, and my full spectrum lamp, to photograph items from around the house.

It just so happened that Steve brought home a dozen donuts that morning (not something we need in the house!). I got the idea to photograph the donuts, much like ad people photograph products. Unfortunately, this idea came into my head after I ate a beautiful donut with rainbow colored sprinkles. Thankfully, Steve had the foresight to pick out a pretty pink iced donut, which I thought would look pretty in a photograph.

This is “Spoon Moose”, a most fun gift from my friend Kerry (the friend I visited when in WI). He has a home on our kitchen counter, and is a frequent conversation starter.

Barbara Lavallee is a whimsical Alaskan painter and illustrator. I’ve linked her website so you can check out the rest of her paintings. Her images always make me feel good. This is a trivet in my kitchen.

Newspaper and my reading glasses. Notice the article beneath the lens?

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Here are some photos from my film conversion project that were taken in 1983-84. I haven’t worked anymore on that project, and will probably put it off for a couple of weeks. Steve went through his photo box and found a bunch of pictures that he wants me to convert for him too, so this is going to be a huge project for both of us.

On with the ‘old days’:

Hard to believe I had an 8.9lb baby in there.

This is my Dad’s Dad (my Pop Pop). He passed away in 2003 - just before we left FL to come to AK.

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In less than a week, we’ll be enjoying warmth and greenery! I definitely can’t wait! We’ve got a few last minute things to take care of, but other than that - we’re both very ready for this getaway. I hope to write here at least once more before we leave.

Until next time..