End of a month, end of a season
When we came home from our lovely jaunt to Haines, etc. we noticed quite a few trees fully dressed in yellow. They stand out from the other green leafed trees around them, as if a spotlight is shining on them. I know it’s only a matter of weeks until all of the trees are golden. Not long after, they will be bare and the ground will be golden yellow. It feels like autumn is coming early this year, but in looking back at last year’s blog entries in late August, we’re right on schedule it seems.
Today, it’s raining. It’s been raining quite a bit lately. Most days the rain stops and the sun comes out, but today it’s been a wet, dreary day since I woke up this morning. We had a few days of frost just after coming home from vacation. Steve’s zucchini and tomato plants are done. We harvested what we could, but the tomatoes we picked are still green. We’re hoping they’ll ripen in a box. Not as good as vine-ripened, but better than wasting them.
Steve made reservations for us to go to Valdez for a few days. The silver salmon have come in, and he’s hoping there will still be good fishing in a few weeks. Fishing is a bit more complicated, as you have to fish between the dead and dying pink salmon. (The pinks aren’t good eating, according to Steve. Since I don’t eat fish, I don’t think any fish is good eating. *grin*)
We’re hoping that Charlie and Lisa can go with us. They’re leaving AK in a few weeks, and we’d love to spend some time with them camping. I have a coupon for a buy one/get one wildlife cruise with Stan Stephens. If they can go, I’ll take the cruise with Lisa. If they can’t go, Steve will go with me. Let’s hope we have better luck than we did out of Seward, where the whole boat got seasick.
Steve and I finally bought our airline tickets to Las Vegas in December. We’ve been contemplating a December trip to take us away from the cold Alaska winter, and had enough frequent flier miles to get free roundtrip tickets to Las Vegas. We both celebrate our birthdays in December and this year is a *special* one in that I’ll be turning the big 5-0. Steve will be 55.
We’re not gamblers, so that’s not our ultimate destination, but that’s where Alaska Air flies, so it will be a good home base for us. We’ll rent a car, spend a night in Vegas and then take off exploring. Our stops will include Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, and Lake Mead - a huge circle that will take us back to Vegas for our flight home.
We’ve got the tickets, but haven’t booked anything else. The planning is exciting for us, and Steve has enjoyed researching destinations and travel routes using the internet and Google Earth. I am very excited about photographing that beautiful area in winter. We’ve visited Grand Canyon several times in summer, but the other locations will be new for us. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate our birthdays.
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I want to take this opportunity to give a shout-out to my eldest son, Chris. Chris quit smoking a month ago! I am so proud of him! I am a reformed smoker, so I know how hard it is to quit, and quit for good. Like me, he pretty much quit cold turkey. (I quit 17 years ago and don’t miss it at all). I am so happy that he finally made this decision to get healthier. I hope that Brandon will follow suit and do the same.
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I signed up for the upcoming year of Middle Eastern Dance. I took the 9-month course two years ago, but skipped last year. I decided to do it again. It will give me a reason to leave my house this winter, and it will be a lot of fun and good exercise too. I’m looking forward to learning a new routine along with my friend Carmen and others from the Fairbanks/North Pole community. We’ll be performing in the spring. That part, I’m not so excited about. I’m not a fan of public performance, but by then I hope to feel a little more secure in my talents as a dancer (which aren’t the greatest!).
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I walked around the outside of the house taking photos of the color change in my yard. Here is a sampling of what I saw:
Golden Leaves on the Driveway:
Red, Yellow, Green…
I love the way this yellow leaf came to rest on a bush of green foliage:
This cluster of low bush cranberry leaves is making the change:
Our lush green lawn creates a beautiful backdrop for a golden yellow birch leaf:
Dwarf Dogwood leaves are now crimson in color:
Until next time….
Good Morning Susan,
I love the picture of the low bush cranberry I love how the golden yellow is bleeding almost to the very edge then with a pop of crimson color lining the edge..so beautiful!! instead of starting at the edge and working in….anywho….
Fall and Winter are my favorite seasons!! so I’m looking forward to more pictures *grin*
We are flying to Fallon, NV this Labor Day weekend to visit my son who is in the Navy. It might not be any cooler but it will be a dryer heat which is gotta be better than FL heat…lol
I bet you don’t miss the humidity that FL so freely dishes out?
Liz
FL
[Reply]
susanstevenson Reply:
August 31st, 2009 at 6:36 am
Our ground cover and bushes make the change before the trees do, but it’s shocking to see a tree here and there that is full of only yellow leaves. I feel like summer just flew by, but in looking back it hasn’t been much different than summers past.
I don’t mind desert dry heat. I went to AZ in August once. It was 117F in the shade, but it didn’t feel too bad considering the humidity was so low.
I do not miss the humidity of FL, nor do I miss the frizzy, thick mess of hair I always had down there! Haha! However, Florida did have some of the most spectacular sunsets and sunrises I have ever seen in my life. I do miss them sometimes.
Have a great week, Liz!
[Reply]
Comment by Liz McCollough — August 31, 2009 @ 4:37 am
Those green tomatoes are absolutely lushous if fried. Especially if slightly pink in the middle. Steve can keep ALL the fish! YUCK! Love the dwarf dogwood!
[Reply]
susanstevenson Reply:
September 1st, 2009 at 10:01 pm
I need to tell him to fry them up! I’m not a tomato fan, so I’ll leave the tomatoes up to him too. I don’t really eat too many different things, but the things I do eat are not good for me, that’s for sure!
Thanks for commenting, Gloria! Take care.
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Comment by Gloria — August 31, 2009 @ 9:13 am
Viva Lost Wages!!
What fun it will be! We are headed there in March but won’t have time to venture outside the city limits very much. Steve would have enjoyed the Hoover Dam tour several yrs ago (they actually let you take an elevator to the bottom control room below the dam) AMAZING! I think they stopped allowing tours like that after 9/11. They still have a little “tour” but it seemed so surface (no pun intended 
compared to the fascinating details once available to see.
Valley of Fire is also an easy drive from Vegas if you have a little extra time. I know you will love the weather in Dec there!!
[Reply]
susanstevenson Reply:
September 1st, 2009 at 10:03 pm
What a bummer that they don’t do the tour to the bottom anymore! I did that when I was 16 and thought it was so cool! Oh well… we are going to stop by and see the dam, so I guess I need to prepare him for the shorter tour.
I’ve read about the Valley of Fire, and I’d love to be able to include that on our circuit. I wish we had more time to spend down there, but we have to cram our vacations into Steve’s schedule, so we’ll be putting some serious miles on the rental car.
I love that part of the country, but have never visited in winter. I’m sure even winter in that area is totally mild considering we’ll be leaving -40F behind!
[Reply]
Comment by Another Susan — September 1, 2009 @ 9:51 pm
Hi Susan and Steve
You have mentioned about going to be in Vegas sometime in December for your 50th Well one of our Daughters is also going to be in Vegas for her 50th
A few of her friends and are going out with her the first part of December Her Birthday is the 22nd
Please take care Love John and Shirley
[Reply]
susanstevenson Reply:
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:15 pm
We’re both looking forward to getting away for a week in the winter. We’re not really gamblers, but I’m excited about seeing the bright lights of Vegas. We’ll be staying there for two nights: once at the beginning when we fly in, and once at the end before we fly out. I’m sure we’ll find some fun stuff to do, and maybe we’ll even put a few bucks in the slot machines. *grin*
[Reply]
susanstevenson Reply:
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:16 pm
I hope you’re feeling a little better, John. Take care of those hands. {{{hugs}}}
Love, Susan
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Comment by John & Shirley Strauser — September 2, 2009 @ 4:20 pm
Great photos as usual! I recently completed digital photography 1 and start photography 2 in a week. I’m starting to see the world in a new way.
I appreciate your images even more now that I understand the skill that it takes to capture them.
Thanks for planting the seed.
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susanstevenson Reply:
September 3rd, 2009 at 3:59 pm
Thank you Mark! How neat that you’re taking photography classes. I took a photojournalism course several years ago, just to see what it was like to work in the fast-paced photography world. While it assured me that photojournalism isn’t for me (you have to be ready to jump up and go to a news story at the drop of a hat), it really opened my eyes and gave me a new respect for the people who work in that field.
With photography, it’s as much about your ‘eye’ as it is your knowledge of the camera and settings. If photography is as much a passion for you as it is for me, you’ve been ‘taking photos’ with your eyes for a long time already. It’s tough to look at the world around us without seeing photos. I’m sure you understand.
Have fun with those classes! Do you have a website or online portfolio for your work? If so, I’d love to check it out.
Take care,
Susan
[Reply]
Comment by Mark — September 3, 2009 @ 9:42 am
When are you going to drive through Denali? Can’t wait til you post those pictures.
[Reply]
susanstevenson Reply:
September 3rd, 2009 at 5:33 pm
We’re doing that on September 20th (weather permitting). I’m so excited! There’s already termination dust on the mountains, and the foliage in Denali has already started really changing! I hope the weather cooperates and we’re able to drive all the way in and out without any problems.
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Tammy Kauffman Reply:
September 4th, 2009 at 3:33 am
I do too. Can’t wait to see the pictures. This is something I want to do when I get back.
[Reply]
Comment by Tammy Kauffman — September 3, 2009 @ 5:20 pm