Alaska Marine Highway to Alaska!

I'm heading to Alaska for another summer working in Denali National Park.  I drove to Bellingham, WA and caught the Alaska Marine Highway ferry to Haines.  The ferry M/V Matanuska was built in 1963, is 408' long and 74' wide with a capacity of 745 passengers and 1,760 linear feet of vehicle capacity.  I got a cabin this time as I'm getting too old and weary to be sleeping on the steel deck as I did many times as a younger man.

We had beautiful weather; clear blue skies and smooth water for an easy voyage.  Saw lots of whales and arrived on time in Haines.  Drove to Fairbanks and then down to Denali, Wasilla and onto Anchorage to house sit for friends on vacation.   I'm heading back up to Denali next week to start work with HAP (Holland America - Princess), an awesome place for a seasonal summer job!

 

 

Superbowl Champions, Seattle Seahawks

Superbowl XLVIII Champions - Seattle Seahawks.
Wow, what a season to be a Seahawks fan!  I was at the parade in Seattle on Wednesday, February 5th, after the Seahawks won the Superbowl and what a party and parade it was.  It was a cold and blustery day with a weak winter sun failing to provide any warmth.  The wait was long and cold but the parade more than made up for it!  The crowd was intense, people everywhere.  So much blue and green, even some of the tree trunks were blue. Local companies, including Boeing, really got into the 12th man spirit. They painted a new 747-800 in Seahawks colors!  What a great team in a great city!

Selling my Sanctuary

Selling my home was a challenging experience.  Sadly, no more permanent address, no place to come home to.  For a world traveler I sure got attached to my little place in the country, an old farmhouse that I fixed up and made my own special place.  A safe haven, my sanctuary in a world that sometimes confuses me.  But the good part, no more ball and chain (mortgage payments) and the freedom to be more flexible in job opportunities and travel options.  I'm still adjusting, but I think I'll be fine, eventually...

I got a full price offer on the second day it was listed, and had a full price back up offer two days later.  It sold much faster than I anticipated, but that's good.  A part of me regrets the necessity of moving on because I know how special this place is and how much sweat equity I've put into this house to make it a perfect home for me.  On the other hand, if you're rarely there, what's the point?

Unfortunately, my roommates did not keep up with the yard and landscaping duties, so I spent a lot of time and money getting the place looking good again.  So after the painting, cleaning, packing, sorting and purging, I put it on the market.  Once all the paperwork was done I became homeless. Now I'm off on amazing adventures to interesting places - I'm heading to Alaska for the summer.  Here's a couple of photos of the place that was once mine.

Like a Time Machine. 

Today, Thursday, March 13th, 2014 is just like February 4th, 2000. That February day we moved into our new home in Washington (the same one I just sold). We celebrated in an empty house and slept on the floor because our furniture was not scheduled to arrive until early the next day. Tonight I'm laying on the floor again because my furniture has been packed or sold. The house is empty and echoes once again. I just finished cleaning and am exhausted. As I lay here in this wonderful old home, I hear footsteps of past parties, sense the floor sticky with something spilled, see lost Cheerios under the refrigerator and recall wonderful memories of family and friends. Earlier, as I was wandering from room to room I was reminded of happy times and funny stories. It's clean now and ready for the next family to create their own memories in this cozy, comfy rural sanctuary. I wish them well.

Christchurch, NZ

Springtime in Christchurch, a fantastic time to visit.  I was there for a week waiting for my flight to McMurdo, Antarctica (that never came) and enjoyed the spring like weather, the green, green grass and the friendly fun people who inhabit this beautiful city that's suffered so much.

Tulips everywhere.

Punting on the Avon.

Sign in store window, well said.

Kiwi Hagglunds at the Antarctic Center.

USAP hanger in Christchurch.

The Cardboard Cathedral.

Beautiful place and amazing architecture.

The former Cathedral, damaged in the earthquakes.

Rebuilding.

Fancy Fence.

Re-Start district. Businesses use shipping containers.

More re-building, cranes are everywhere.

Apparently stone masonry reacts badly in earthquakes.

So many churches have been damaged.

The war memorial is being repaired.

Kiwi humor, awesome.