It's Really Spring!!!

We have finally welcomed spring in Anchorage. On my other blog in WordPress, I was a bit discouraged over the delay of the arrival of spring, but on the front page of today's paper -- above the fold -- I see the snow geese have arrived, too.

The cruise ships are coming soon, and the tourist season promises to be bigger than ever. I'm not involved personally with this, altho' I am a relocation consultant for those planning their move to Anchorage. I understand that apartment rentals are saturated, which tempts me to rent my two bedroom condo. But that won't happen, as there's no place more beautiful in the summer than right here. The golf courses are even showing green again, and the bike trails are upgraded, fishing looks to be the best year, and the price of gas has even dropped at least a dime! Don't forget we do have a six-week baseball season, and the Anchorage Bucs look forward to winning the Alaska Baseball Title. The Bucs are now sharing the office building with the other local team, The Glacier Pilots. To explain that, both teams are leasing for Muni owned Building on the park strip, but of course, there is a partition between the offices.

The performing arts and visual arts are thriving, as the Concert Association welcomes Mary Poppins and Tony Bennett, among others. The Opera season was wonderful, as was the Symphony, but now we look forward to outdoor activies. I would also remind you potential visitors that we have NO sales tax in Anchorage, nor does the State of Alaska have an income tax. Yep . . . life is good here . . .

Freezin' in Anchorage!

This is the coldest January on record. Perhaps you think I've dropped this blog - well, I haven't. I just have a problem posting it, so I have several blogs sitting my my draft box. Well, it's okay because I have nothing to say except, "Br-r-r".

I will admit, it's beautiful looking out from my warm condo, but I've been running to and from my car, and wherever. Unlike most 'real Alaskans' I don't have a remote start, so it takes a mile or so to get warm. The other beautiful part of Alaska is watching the Aurora Borealis, which I'm including on my post for you to enjoy. There are some websites that actually show the movement of the beautiful colors, and there is even a hum - m - m that goes along with the view.

Activities do not stop altogether, as indoor sports mostly in the schools and 'the Dome' continue. The Dome is a big bubble next to, but separate from, the Crosspoint Church/Fellowship. It's really big, like 2 football fields, and the schools rent it a lot for the outdoor sports programs.

Like I said, it's just too cold to do anything, but then I'm a senior citizen. There were days when I actually liked it cold. But think of all the jobs that require being outdoors.

May Day - May Play

It didn't take long to welcome in spring, and change our lifestyle. Yes, it's time to put away the snow boots, mittens, and skull caps, and bring out the flip-flops. And none too soon. I don't know how long our beautiful weather will last, but it's outdoor play for me. Our Hostel Council has set up for a bike ride on May 21st, and the Mayor has given up a proclamation staing just that. I hope the sun tunes in, and give us a beautiful day for the ride and ice-cream social following it.

There are bike races, footraces, and biatholons every weekend, it seems. And as for indoor sport, the ice hockey team, the Alaska Aces, is on it's way to winning the Kelly Cup again! The summer baseball season is also looking good, with it's first game coming in just a month!

As for indoor events, I would say that the graduation ceremonies of the 5 high schools in Anchorage takes the limelight. However, Blue Man Group is coming for a week. They send their own cleaning crew, both for the stage and the first few rows, which gets it's share of the flying 'stuff'.

If you've seen the show before, you'll understand. They even bring their own wash machines, I hear. So let's hope our beautiful Performing Arts Center looks the same after, as before.

As you may know, I'm a travel consultant, and I might just add that the cruisetours in Alaska, and partially Canada, are well worth the extra expense after you get off your cruise. Oh, yes, I book cruises too, but I want you to know that the interior of Alaska has a lot to offer, as does Dawson City, Canada,m so I am just mentioning that because I just set up a page for this blog - whynottravelalaska.blogspot.com -- read it when I get something up on it.

Winter Weather Winds Into Anchorage

Our English language precludes pronouncing 'winds' with a long "i" or a short "i" but either way is appropriate for what we've had in Anchorage recently. Just because the temperature hits zero, or below zero, is no reason to stay home. Especially with all the Christmas parties and associated activities.

This year we had some added excitement with the winter solstice and solar eclipse happening the same night, and I was thrilled to watch the whole thing from indoors, of course. This image does not show the true sighting, but it's all I find.

Some diversions include producting pilot videos, and this image shows a friend's work on Living Wild~Alaska ... followed by this great meet-and-greet party. The venu is a new Mediterranean cage called The Grape Leaf. Midtown Anchorage has opened at least a dozen new restaurants in the recent years, which makes it hard to stay home for dinner.

Another 'fun' party was the annual Pioneers of Alaska Christma party, which was special because of the skit the gals performed doing Whoopi Goldberg's nuns chorus number. It's gonna be put on youtube, so check back because I'll surely post the address.

So, it's still a good time to visit Alaska, and our weather should not be a deterrent, as we are prepared, unlike so many cities in the lower states who are really having a challenging winter.

Anchorage Summer Ends

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The Alaska State Fair is a sure sign that summer has come to an end. This summer has been memorable in some ways, namely, with the amount of rain that has fallen. That is most unusual for Anchorage, but the sun showed it's face a few times, and we were able to squeeze in outdoor activies, namely, the baseball season was a success, and the many golf tournaments, foot races, bike relays, hiking, and berry picking. The fishing season was spotty, and some lodges notified their regulars not to come this year. So the tourists are waning. Of course, the hunting season is just starting, and no way to predict how that will go.

In Anchorage, the public schools starts in the middle of August, which hasn't helped the mid-week attendence at the state fair, but the fair did start on time, with their usual big veggies, and minimal number of livestock. It's always fun, nevertheless, and opening day drew truant students, and lovers of all ages.

Another developing activity is an increasing number of Saturday Farmer's Markets. The original one downtown has become more of a flea market, with the farmer's produce for sale at four or more locations around town.

As autumn approaches, the calendar is out for the winter offerings. This always starts with the Champagne Pops concert, which the Symphony sells out regularly. Then comes the Concert Association programs, the Anchorage Community Theatre, and other groups. The Petroleum Club is starting their Football Sunday Brunches, with the Peanut Farm, Arctic Roadrunner, Moose's Tooth not far behind.

As the days get shorter, we also look forward to watching the Northern Lights play. I think they're out in the summer, but it's too light to see them. This is a good time to visit Anchorage, as it's not too cold yet, but there's still plenty to do . . . or not do.

Anchorage Sets Record

Anchorage has set the dubious record of the most consecutive days of (measurable) rainfall in its history. This does not mean that we haven't seen the sunshine, and somedays, it appears that it will be a nice, sunny day. Wrong! Perhaps the skies are crying for all the sadness this month in the wake of several plane crashes. The most noted crash is one near Dillingham, where our long-time Senator - Ted Stevens - was killed, together with some fishing buddies and an experience pilot.

I'm sure you've all heard about this already, so I won't go into details. This is supposed to be a travel blog, of sorts, and encourage visits to Alaska. I will say that we've been able to do so many things thru this bad weather. The baseball teams did not have to cancel any games, as our new drain and dry ball field has enabled the games to continue.

Also golfing is going great, and we have a most successful cancer tournament in the rain, and just last week a Wacky Women tournament that I was lucky enough to draw a great team to play with. Other activities include a wonderful fish fry on a most sunny day, and a miracle that I had friends from Massachusetts visiting at the time that may have thought that it was sunny all the time here. I lied.

So closing out this blog a little early, as it's time for another funeral service. Please come back and check my blog for a happier one next time, I promise.

Br-r-r - Chilly in Anchorage

You'd think that after 43 winters here, one would get used to the winter chills. Wrong ... it doesn't happen. There is a plus side to this, tho'.. . . hmmm, let me think. Well, when the snow falls, everything looks so clean and bright and white! It's wise to park your car in a covered area, as 6" of snow on the roof is really heavy to shovel off, and I empathize with my neighbors with driveways to clear. It's just the advantage of living in a condo.

As darkness falls before 4 p.m. now, activities increase and you'll find a wealth of bazaars, plays, concerts, symphony, x-c skiing, ice hockey, figure skating, indoor tennis, Sunday football and other events. With Christmas around the corner, we have several parties for the young ones, and of course, office parties for the not-young ones, who think they are.

The Pioneers of Alaska - Women's Igloo #4 - has a big one with 85 kids coming. I know the number because we wrapped that many present for them. The Petroleum Club, likewise, has a heap of children for their party, too, and the committee does a super job of picking presents to match the guests.

You really would enjoy seeing our winter, as well as the tourist-crowded summer, as we have a lot to do, or do NOTHING AT ALL!

Early Autumn in Anchorage

I had planned on writing about our State Fair, but somehow just never got around to it. .. it was unique in that the long daylight hours and more sunshine than ever produced some record breaking vegetables. I think both cabbage and pumpkins broke the world record in their size. I attended a "Fungus Fair" in Girdwood last week, also, and some of the mountain men brought in wild mushrooms, which were about 15" in circumference, and about a foot high, too. I didn't eat any of these, as I guess they passed the tasty size, but did enjoy other treats and the live band playing in a large tent set up outside the courtyard of the beautiful Alyeska Prince Hotel.

Among the many friends who visited at our table was the doctor, who inserted my new knees. The funny part of this is that I called, "Hey, Tim" to him when he was passing, and I would never even dream of calling "MY" doctor by his first name, especially since he's half my age, too! But the funny coincidence is that the girl we were visiting is his accountant, and she's a looker, so he was happy to visit with us. We did stayed overnight at her lovely home, and returned to Anchorage Sunday morning in time for church.

Now if you view the mountain range east of Anchorage, you will see 'termination dust' each morning, and it won't be long until "it" reaches town. Yes, this means snow. The colors of fall are just beautiful, and summer activities have been replaced by club meetings, concert series, opera, etc. My freezer is full of silver salmon, summer fruit and berries, and we will survive the long winter with pot lucks at the American Legion, Pioneers of Alaska, etc. The Petroleum Club has started their Sunday football breakfasts and Monday night football, so here we go!!!

Wild About Anchorage

This is a summer to remember for sure. The weather has been perfect. Activities abound, and my personal recovery from double knee replacement is almost complete. However, I read in local news that the tourist business is down, and those that are here are spending less. Downtown appears to be pretty crowded with these tourists, and all the restaurants have waiting only during the dinner hour, so who's to really know the stats.

The baseball season is half over, and the Anchorage Bucs, my team, is near the to of the Alaska Baseball League. Today is Bastille Day, and the traditional show at Jens Restaurant is sure to draw a crowd as always.

The big Petroleum Club golf tournament finishes the week . . . the field draws over 400 golfers, and their charity remains the First Tee Program. . . there's always plenty of partying as the club hosts the players, volunteers and guests to a steak dinner under a triple tent on the grounds behind the club, and dancing indoors.

Anchorage knows how to throw a party, and this could be called party week by me, anyhow, as I'm going to test my new knees and try to get to all of the above.

Those who chose to leave the big city often head to Spencer Glacier, which is accessible by train only. It's a beautiful place, and rafting and kayaking are popular there. This is midway between Anchorage and Seward, and the route is much more beautiful than the drive, altho' I will say the road has been improved and you can reach Seward (from Anchorage) in two hours now.

Plan your trip to visit us soon!

The Sun Shines on Alaska

Just when you think you can't take any more winter, spring arrives. Seems like overnight, we're planting our flowers, going outside without coats . ... well, you know, it happens every spring. One of the first signs of spring is the culmination of the raffle for the Nenana Ice Classic. It's a silly old tradition that you guess the time of the right day that the stake in the ice at Nenana will fall over. The pot is around $300,000, and I was counting on it to go out this week, as I bought several tickets for myself and friends, but it fooled me, and fell on Friday night.

So, the next sign is the arrival of birds in my bird feeder. Maybe they've been hibernating with the bears.

Next, comes clean-up. City-wide, groups, clubs, and singles have been filling large orange plastic bags with trash. Our church had the big clean-up on Saturday, and 'they' did a great job. I mean, without me. Guilt was written all over my face when I went to services on Sunday, but I had a good excuse, which we won't go into.

Alaska puts little feelers out around the world, and this week, we witnessed an Alaska son become an overnight hero at the Kentucky Derby. Local business man (and therein lies a long story), Bill Allen, has a son in New Mexico, who drove his horse to the races, and was a 50 to 1 bet. It wasn't long until everyone knew Mine That Bird and his rags to riches story. Hurray for him. Let's have another Mint Julep on that one.

Speaking of Mint Juleps, do you realize that Cinque de Mayo is on the cusp, and there are enough celebrations going on without this, but let's just add this to our list. The Petroleum Club is recognizing this independence day, and the Pioneers of Alaska have an unusual party, as the men are supplying the food and drink after the regular business meeting. So that's where we're at, right now, with a long, social list set for May.

However, there is a down side to all of this. One is the announcement of the discontinuance of Norwegian Cruise Lines coming this year, and the cutting back, sizeably, of Carnival, Holland-America, Celebrity, etc. cruises. . . this could be the downturn of the economy, but more likely our State Legislature imposing a $50/head tax on all cruisers. This is going to hurt the businesses in Southeastern especially.
One last word . .. following up my travel insurance pitch, I want to report that my friend was reimbursed for the expense of hotel and other for the delayed flight last month en route from Anchorage to Portland. It's worth the extra buck to be covered when you travel because more things are happening than in the simple days of the past.

Springtime in Alaska

Moose are all over the place this time of year. They come into Anchorage to feast off of the trees, growth, and anything else happens to be within reach. However, you can enjoy seeing them from a distance, but not so great when they come out on your route home. I just avoided a cow moose with her newborn recently driving home in the evening. Now, I only live 2 miles from downtown, and you would not expect to see them on a main road . . . but I would. I've had friends who have hit a moose with their cars, and it's totalled in most cases.



Aren't you glad I'm not talking about the volcano anymore. I've had enough of it, too, but I am thankful in a way that it had helped promote my travel insurance business. I won't go into the horror stories any more, but you know there are many more reasons to take out insurance for your forthcoming trips. See why!

Anchorage is bustling with trade shows, promotions at the new Dena'ina Center and the Performing Arts Center with it's three theatres filled most evenings. Right now, Spamalot is playing with John Hurley in person, and a good review in the local skinny newspaper helped promote this already popular attraction. On a personal note, the Godmothers of Magic are performing a magic show, today, in fact!

Add to this the attendance at funerals and wakes keeps the locals pretty busy. We did lose a giant in the news writing line this week, and Bill Tobin's popularity with all will be sorely missed. He was also a 'closet magician' . . . my term for those who dabble in illusions.

Breakup is not the prettiest time of year in Alaska, but soon we'll have beautiful gardens again. I promise to post some of the best ones. So check back.