nopin

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Puppies!

Autumn and Linden's former family had puppies!



Congratulations to Arrow, a proud mama of nine new pups!


At just under three weeks, they are only just bigger than my hand.






Writhing mass of cute:


Puppy or polar bear cub?






Look how sweet mama looks. Arrow is a lot like her predecessor, my own Autumn--sweet and gentle and thoughtful and intelligent.


Here is the littlest survivor. I've just had the upsetting news that the only one smaller than she, the runt, passed away. :*

*edited to correct that this is not a photo of the unfortunate runt*

Rest in peace, little dude.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Veggies and Fuzzies

The giant veggies are back. I can't believe these people already have tomatoes! I'm going to have to get a greenhouse!


Fuzzywuzzy warmfuzzies:

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Rain, rain, rain

Somehow our pleasant afternoon thundershowers have progressed into continuous rain. The rain barrel overfloweth, and my squash blossoms won't even open. Not that there would be any bees to fertilize them, of course. Well, the upside is that there are no mosquitoes, and I don't have to water the garden!

But I'm cold. Days like this feel colder than Winter. It's a damp cold that seeps through your clothes and makes you shiver.

Monday, June 22, 2009

Midnight Sun Photos

Midnight Sun Run start. I'm told there were 30,000 3000 registered. However, I'm sure the rain deterred quite a few. I totally want that moose hat.


Midnight Sun Ball game. Best seats ever at the biggest game of the year! Dontcha just love small town life!


At the ballpark. This photo was taken shortly after midnight. Oh, and three-dollar hot dogs and nachos! Yay!


Group shot. That's my best side:


The Gold Panners won!

Happy (belated) Solstice, Everybody!

Well, yesterday was the Solstice, and the days will start getting shorter from here.

Winter's coming! Hahahahahaha.

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Piccies

The outdoor stage at Foodstock:


A storm leaving the valley:


I will have zucchinis soon:


I'm not sure my tomato experiment will be successful. You've got two months, guys. Let's go!


The strawberries are producing:


And the basil is coming along:

Friday, June 19, 2009

Solstice weekend

Well, Sunday is the Solstice, and then the days start getting shorter again, hahaha.

Tonight we are going to Foodstock at the Howling Dog.

Tomorrow at 10 p.m. is the Midnight Sun Run.

And on Sunday, the Solstice itself, is the Midnight Sun game.

From the Goldpanners' website:

In the entire baseball world, there is no team that has more natural a promotion than the Alaska Goldpanners and their celebrated Midnight Sun Game.

Since the Goldpanners are the farthest north baseball club on the face of the earth, where in summer the sun rarely stops shining, the team annually takes advantage of its unique geographic location by staging the patented Midnight Sun Baseball Game.

With Fairbanks a mere 160 miles south of the Arctic Circle, the sun is just beginning to set in the north as the game gets under way and, at its conclusion some three hours later, the sun begins to rise again - also in the north.

...

Never once has artificial lighting been used for this unique event...


Here is last night's supper going into the oven:


It's funny how similarly I cook here and in the San Francisco bay area. I get the best, freshest ingredients I can find, pour olive oil over them, and stick them in the oven. There are so few foods to which those steps do not apply.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Photos

A pork chop, marinated in moosetard and then broiled, served with salad and half a globe artichoke:


I will have zucchini blossoms soon:


And strawberries sooner:


My potatoes are going crazy:


Hot dawgs:


Fireweed:



Some sort of pink flower:

First appearance for the year...

... of fireweed! I'll take some photos when I get home tonight, but for now, you can enjoy last year's.

And that means it's the beginning of the end of Summer, right? Hahaha. That's right. Go away, mosquitoes. Die. kthynxbye.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

The humblest of wildflowers

The Fairbanks area does not have showy displays the way California does. Nevertheless, it has its own subtle beauty.









Friday, June 12, 2009

What do you call a fish with no eyes?

A fsh.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! My favorite joke ever!

A-hem. Okay, please excuse that. On to the post.

On Monday, some friends of mine went to Chitina to go dip-netting in the Copper River. Dan declined to go along because he couldn't take the time off work, and I noticed how carefully and politely they did NOT invite me! Hrrmph. I concluded that it was intended to be a male bonding trip, so I didn't invite myself. I'm sure I don't want to be part of any male bonding rituals!

Anyway, among the four of them, they caught one. fish. Bummer! But said fish was brought to my home yesterday, and I baked it in the oven with lemon, garlic, and olive oil. Delicious! I'm sorry I forgot to take photos until it was nearly all consumed. It was such a lovely fish.

Fish with potatoes:


Dawgs:


Would-be fishermen:


A wild iris I photographed this morning on the banks of the Tanana:


In other news, a classmate of mine apparently had a polar bear encounter while on a research expedition in Svalbard. He shot it as it charged him. I hope if something like that ever happens to me, I have the presence of mind he showed. I do not think there is a more frightening animal on earth than the polar bear. They are pure carnivores, and huge, with paws the size of my head. And they have nasty, big, pointy teeth. I used to want to take one of those polar bear tours in Canada, but ever since seeing that stuffed one at the airport and how hugemongous he is, I think, you know, maybe not.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Cleaning their teef

Not much news to report, but I feel bad neglecting all four of my loyal readers, so here are photos of the girls with their morning rawhide.