C-19 . . .

I call it C-19 as it is just easier and it calls less attention to it as well.  Not that we should ignore it by any means!  I know I am not alone in how I feel about this thing that is wreaking havoc around the world, causing pain and suffering and is just a pain in the ass to us all.  I feel horrible for the families who are suffering from losing family members.  Health care works and a health care system pushed to its limits.  It is all horrible, painful, and frustrating! C-19 is pushing us and countries to ALL TO OUR LIMITS!   There is then the talk of the good that can and will come out of all of this pandemic.

Hmmmmm . . . I am sure there are many who are having an extremely hard time right now trying to see any good at all!  My heart goes out to those suffering at this time.

 

Colors

I often think of the colors I see up here in the north.  Why?  This sunrise this morning has gone from pink to orangy pink-----how the heck has that color combo come together! This time of the year we get some dramatic sunrises and sunsets.  It is not a fast set or rising at all but very long and drawn out.  

Colors outside as I look out the window are mud brown!  Dirty snow---who likes dirty snow---gross!  Not me! Icey puddles.  Brown dusty grasses.  The beach is sandy brown with dirty snow and ice. It is littered with carcasses: caribou, moose, starfish/sea stars, belugas, seals, soon birds . . . around all of these obstacles are grey sun-bleached driftwood logs and stumps.

Soon there will be pink flowers popping up on the tundra they are the first to arrive.  After they start to arrive is when we usually depart for the south.  This year this will be rather epic due to the shutdown and the school district trying its best to get teachers out of villages . . . this will be a post for another time once we do make it out!

Our days are under a hugely rich deep blue northern latitude sky.  I have been skiing a bit and I did get to day 100 which was rather epic.  I posted photos of that on IG.  Since that fiasco, I skied two more days on the beach which was far easier skis.  Contrasts of white snow and blue sky make you think you might be in the tropics HA LOL!  

PS---I have no idea why the blog can not have the same font . . . it has been doing this since I started writing again!  Yes, I know it is happening and NO, I  don't know how to fix it so let us enjoy the weirdness.  I want it to be that more relaxed font in the 2nd half but oh well!

Dragging my Feet

Good Morning!  

I am dragging my feet here a bit this morning.  I usually or used to get up at 5:00 and now am getting up at 6:00.  Coffee is on a timer so it is ready when I get up which is always such a nice treat.  I know I use a percolator pot and hard to believe anyone still uses one but I like my coffee to stay hot.  Plus, I was fed up with all the plastics in other options.  It works and the caffeine is in my blood with no hassle at all.

Yesterday we got out for a ski on the BC (backcountry gear).  It was ICY, rutted, with some overflow on the two sloughs we have to across to get out across the tundra.  It was a bit windy and cold too but nothing more than normal just not typical April spring skiing.  Out at the Hide Away trails there is a good amount of drifting.  This is great as it will groom out really nice today and make for some more great skiing.  I love this little section of ski trail as it is through the trees, protected from most of the winds, and you feel like you are at a ski touring center.  

We use pallets as snow fences that help to collect the blowing snows when we have winds which are more often than not out here on the edge of Norton Sound.  Little tricks of the trade for ski grooming in rural Alaska.  Photo on the left is us practice ski social distancing! You have to joke and make the best of things out here for sure!

My other favorite thing is conifers with snow on them against a rich blue sky.  I remember when I discovered this great combo in my college accounting class at Paul Smith’s College.  I remember sitting there in class trying to pay attention but always drifting off to gaze out the window at the combo of blue sky and fresh snow on the branches of green needles.  I would be dying to get out of class to head out for a ski.   

Here is why I am dragging my feet a bit this a.m. 0ºF and a wind chill of -9ºF.  UGH!  I just need to walk over to what I call “The Refugio” the skiroom/waxroom.  I work out over there 5 days a week using ERG and the extra-room space for my knee PT, sit-ups, push-ups, and yoga space as our housing has limited floor space.  I am so grateful to have The Refugio and to consistently be able to use that space it is just a great thing for me!

SIDE NOTE! I really wish that blogger would allow me to use all the functions on my ipad but it doesn’t dang it all!  Anyone have any suggestions?  It seems to work far better on Firefox than Chrome interesting.  

Enough time to get out the door!  Like the Norwegian saying says “The longest mile is to the door!”

Isolation, Food, Snow, & Life goes on!

Here I am writing from my dining room table as no table would ever fit in the kitchen in teacher housing EVER!   The wind is still blowing in the mid-20mph range, it is +10ºF out there with a bit of a wind chill. Yeap, it is April 6th and I have shoveled, worked out in the Refugio (as I call it—the ski room), ran a few errands on foot NOT the fat tire bike, make some food up and had lunch.  The biggest news in the damn this is exciting stuff here is 3 yes THREE of the piles of Nancy’s crap have been organized, crap tossed out or put in their correct location.  Nothing is earth-shattering here life just goes on . . . I will admit I am feeling isolated here now more than I ever have felt.  I am not coaching right now, nor am I subbing. I am skiing when there isn’t a storm or overflow on the slough.  Right now we are at the tail end of a storm or at least it had better be the tail end, there is water on the slough.  I already checked out the slough and I would say I can get around it no problem.  Skiing will happen later today.

 I fried up some mushrooms and red onion.  Then I added red peppers and broccoli to this mix cooked until tender.

The above veggies were added to sweet potato and white potatoes that had been boiled and mashed.   I will warm these up in a bowl for lunch or breakfast, make into potato cakes and fried up——you get the idea!  Add whatever seasons you like or even cheese.  I am not eating much dairy these days so that is off my plate.  I used coconut milk when I mashed the potatoes up before adding the cook veggies.

For those of you really smart readers which I know each of you are as I would only have the smartest and brightest ever followers——yes the photos should have been rotated but they aren’t so be a bit forgiving. Plus if they were in the correct order wouldn’t have that been a nice touch!

Honestly some blogs are so polished and perfect in every way.  Those who know me in real life would never ever used the words polished and perfect to describe me!  I am not trying to make $$$ on the ol’Blog, nor am I trying to capture a zillion readers . . . I just blog and sometimes it is better than others  . . . Since I haven’t been blogging in months I need to stumble around a bit to get my S**** together again.  

Thanks for stopping by and leave a comment if you are up for it!

A test Post! Bear with me!

This is a test to see if blogger now works from my ipad!  Just playing around a bit.

Now let’s see if this will post . . . things seem to be working.  I guess I am back on blogging detail.

Hi Blog, Not sure if you remember me at all!

Good Morning Blog,

How the heck are you?  I haven't written in so long and really thought about just tossing you to the wind and saying good-bye forever.  Paper and pen have been my method of journaling of late.  I really do like that tried and true method of journalling the best! Paper and some kind of writing instrument---works great as I think about WHY DO I FEEL THE NEED TO SHARE MY LIFE WITH THE WORLD! Then there is IG, Facebook, Ravelry, how much of a digital footprint do I actually need. Who is really stopping by to read this blog anyway besides the strange trolling sites from dubious countries, or just plain ol'strange people trying to lure you into thinking they are in fact real when they are a porn site.  Then I have to think why am I writing anyway . . . I originally set out to blog as a way to just write more.  

The other issue I am always trying to figure out if I should keep using blogger which is free, never really updated, a basic tool and why pay $$$$ to blog . . . Wordpress is more sophisticated and has been around a long period of time and one can pay to have more whiz-bang.  I am as basic and non-whiz-bang as one can be. 

Yes, it is saying winds of 65 mph!  Winds are blowing in the 40-45mph and gusting right now 55-59mph how freaking charming is that! UGH right! How ever, I just love Mother Nature and all her strange brutal and nice conditions.

Back in mid-March when Sadie could ski with me before leg/knee #2 went out.

I will post this letter to you Blog and then see what happens maybe with C-19 (as I am calling this freaking mess), our current huge storm, Miss Sadie who blew out her other rear leg, living in a shutdown village, and feeling rather isolated. I will write more and use you again Blog. 

No matter what I am very grateful for all that I do have, for family, dear friends, my great life, my wonderful husband, great health, and technology to connect with the rest of the world!  Get outside, make the best of what you have and I will do the same!

Writing-on, Create-on, & Knit-on,

Wool-n-Ski

{thank you EZ for the Knit-on which makes me use it for other ons' in life.}


“Knit on with confidence and hope through all crises.”
― Elizabeth Zimmermann, Knitting Without Tears