Last winter hike of the season!

Last weekend, we went to the White Mountains to bounce in the snow for the last time of the season. The snow was rotting, and we were starting to punch our feet through. It's quite exciting to be walking along, and WHOOP! Down you go. So no more hiking until the snow is gone...

View to the North:


DL:


Starbuck being silly and rolling around in the snow!






A WOLF!!!


Our dog approaches it!!!








Starbuck is very alert, even during lunchtime:


"Someone is coming!!"


My goober and me, we cuddle:

'Tis spring

We've put the screen door back on:


Beasties ree-laxing:


I'd say that Starbuck is bonding just fine with the old ladies; what do you think?




Do you think retirement has been stressful on her?

$%^%#$!! Already??

To some people, Fairbanks *is* the Big City

Report from a colleague visiting from Sitka, when I asked how his weekend had gone:

"Yes I had a great weekend- Fairbanks is a nice town!... In addition to both Fred Meyer stores I experienced Safeway, Barnes and Noble, and Carls Jr. hamburgers..."

From now on, whenever I go grocery shopping, I will tell people that I am going to "experience Fred Meyer". :)

Starbuck is an off-leash dog now, thank goodness

I was developing a long arm again!

Last weekend we took Starbuck on her first trip to the White Mountains with us. She was a good girl and stayed close, and ran back to us every time we called her. That's better than Autumn and Linden ever were! The only quirk we discovered is that when we were overtaken by faster-moving groups (skate skiers or snowmachiners), Starbuck would lope off with them. I had to call her back and remind her that she's on the old folks' team now. She reluctantly complied. I think she doesn't want to confront her own mortality by admitting to herself that she's on a team with the old ladies. DL says I am overthinking things; that she's just a dog and doesn't think beyond her next meal. But I know better.

The leaders confer on our route:


The weather was gloomy, but the mountains were still beautiful:


And we could still see to the Dome:


Fuzzies out for a stroll:


I got all three of them to stand for a photo, but not together:







Cuddle break time!!


Little old ladies:


Looking South:


Starbuck begging:


Linden being a goober:


Autumn sitting like the sphinx:


Starbuck smiling while hanging out with Linden:


And with DL:


For a brief moment, the sun came out:


Phew! Are they pooped!

Why next Tuesday is The Most Important Day of my Life

BT told me something over a decade ago that I liked so much I wrote down:

"Our life is a collection of moments. Nothing more. Who we are is also determined by what we do in each of those moments. Decide who you would be and then act in each moment as you would have yourself act... If we commit to each moment and live it hard whether we are laughing, crying, working or playing. One day we will fondly remember a moment and realize it was years ago. We will look back and see years well lived."

After decades of watching people fret over the perfect prom night, the perfect wedding, the perfect anniversary dinner, the perfect vacation, the perfect birthday party, etc, I've concluded that I don't ever want more than 1/365th of my year's allotment of happiness to depend on a single day. At the end of our lives, the largest contributors to the sum of our days will not be the vacation days or the anniversary dinner nights. They will be the ordinary days, when we go to work, come home, and do not much of anything in particular. That's why it's so important to make our ordinary days meaningful. That's why it's completely unacceptable to me to have a job I hate, remain in a bad relationship, or live in a place where I'm unhappy. If the job funds a fantastic vacation, it won't be enough to compensate.

Last Tuesday was one of the best days of my life. I went for a trail run with the dogs, went to work, came home with DL, made dinner, had dinner with good cheap wine, walked the dogs (again!) on the trail, came home, sat in front of the fire, and went to bed smooshed in between Autumn and DL. You can't beat that. This despite having slipped on the ice outside Gold Hill on my way home, smashed two bottles of red wine into my coat, bruised the heck out of my knee, and bitten my lip and made a bloody gash. An incident like that could ruin a birthday, but it doesn't ruin Tuesday. :)

In other news, Miss Starbuck loves her kennel. DL and I had set her up a sled dog setup behind the cabin--complete with a chain on a spinner and a straw-lined box. She's not quite fully housebroken yet, so we thought we'd leave her outside nights and while we are at work. However, the second night she howled half the night, so we bought her a kennel to sleep in. She likes it and often naps in there even when the door is open:

More photos because cuteness and fuzzywuzzy

My four favorite fuzzy things:


Linden sez: "I'd rather snuggle between my sisters than have my own space on a bed!"


Do you think retirement has been stressful on these ladies?


Today we drove to Delta Junction to look at a wood-fired boiler that heats the local school. On the way home, I snapped this photo:


Good day to you, Mt. Hayes! It is lovely to see you! Spring suits you!