Foggy Weekend, Part 2.

Sunday Doug and Alison joined Joan, Maddy and me for a walk on the good ol' airport dike trail. It was very foggy and kinda eerie...particularly at the beginning of the trail which is being rebuilt as part of the runway safety area expansion project. The trail will be closed every day except Sunday for the next month or so as construction continues.

Not a whole lot of action on the trail. Although we did come upon a juvenile eagle, mallards and what we tentatively identified as common mergansers. And lots of fellow walkers with doggies.

A juvenile bald eagle. Perspective sure is different in the fog...

A thin coating of ice on the remains of a cow parsnip

Everyone enjoyed the fresh air and a little exercise...

Maddy seemed a little leery of this walking thing on Saturday...but seemed to be hitting her stride by Sunday...

Eric Swanson waited until later in the day to take his hounds for a walk on the new trail around the east end of Auke Lake. The fog had finally lifted...

Auke Lake - thanks for the picture, Eric!

Foggy Weekend, Part 1

Lots of fresh air this weekend...most of it enjoyed while walking in the fog. Saturday, Joan Kasson, her Shih Tzu, Mattie, and I took a drive looking for some sunshine to walk in. We never really found it...but had a good time nonetheless.

Joan and Mattie at the Shrine of St. Theresa

After peering into the fog at the shrine we stopped at the Auke Bay picnic area and walked the beach. There were a bizzilion other folks with kiddos and doggies doing the same thing. Everyone in good spirits - just thankful to be out of the house in February!

Fog and sun in the woods at Auke rec

The only sun we found was on the point at Auke Rec

After our walk - on to the Island Pub for pizza!

A Little Fresh Air

Wow! One fabulous day. Thought I'd see if I could walk out to the Boy Scout Camp - but the trail was too icy without cleats and I neglected to bring them with me. On the way back I stopped at the overlook by the Shrine and saw a couple of humpbacks and a large number of sea lions in the vicinity. So I parked at the Shrine and scrambled down the rocks to watch the action.

Sitting on the rocks it was hard to believe that it was the middle of February. The sun was warm and there was not a breath of wind. The only sounds were the snorting of the pinnipeds, occasional blowing of the cetaceans, and background cawing, cackling, and squawking by a flock of crow commentators. Sat there for almost an hour...

Eagle Beach and the Chilkat Mountains from the Shrine of St. Theresa

Our pinniped pals - sea lions on patrol

A tail of a whale

Just after I scrambled off the beach I spotted a pod of a half-dozen or so killer whales in the direction of Eagle Beach. Excellent!

I took a bunch of pics; but unfortunately the subjects did not approach closely enough for anything really dramatic. But still a wonderful afternoon. The only downside being a bruised knee resulting from a stumble on the rocks on the way back to the car.

In other news, I finished reading a biography of Woodrow Wilson. An interesting man in an interesting time. Although I have read a fair amount of World War I military history, I was not particularly familiar with Wilson otherwise.

His domestic agenda in his first term was progressive and impressive including the establishment of the federal reserve system and the Federal Trade Commission. Not that his domestic record was without blemish - his record on race relations was, at best, indifferent and he was a late comer to the national women suffrage movement.

Sadly, by the end of his first term the domestic agenda was forgotten as the Great War inexorably came to dominate Wilson's presidency. And like another U.S. President, Lyndon Johnson, his domestic accomplishments were eclipsed by failures on the international stage - in Wilson's case the failure of the United States to join the League of Nations. His stroke in October1919 in the midst of the ratification battle left him a cripple both literally and politically - there is almost universal agreement among historians that he was unfit to hold office the last 18 months of his second term.

Finally, one quote that amused me and illustrates the point that the time of Wilson was not yet the era of the Imperial Presidency as we now know it. Woodrow Wilson was devastated by the death of his first wife in August 1914. Within a year, however, he was dating the woman who became his second wife. In 1915 the President of the United States would on many evenings walk from the White House to pay his respects to his girlfriend.

"...he began going to her house almost every evening and often stayed until midnight. The Secret Services agents noticed a new bounciness about the president when he walked back to the White House. As he waited for traffic to pass, he would dance a few steps and whistle or sing a vaudeville tune. One tune that an agent remembered him singing as his feet tapped out the rhythm was 'Oh you beautiful doll! You great big beautiful doll! Let me put my arms around you, I can hardly live without you'."

I am now inspired to read more about the Progressive Era...

Well, gonna call Joan Kasson and see if she's up for a walk... It's another beautiful day!

Like a Sparrow’s Belch in the Midst of a Typhoon

A few interesting news items from the past couple of weeks.

First, President Obama signed an Executive Order creating a bipartisan commission to examine our long-term federal budget woes. This idea was formerly supported by Congressional Republicans; but Senate Republicans torpedoed legislation creating the commission a couple of weeks ago - once the President said he supported the plan.

President Obama has appointed retired Republican Senator Alan Simpson to co-chair the commission. Simpson is a curmudgeon from Wyoming who was interviewed for a New York Times blog of several days ago:

Asked if he would serve on the commission if asked, Mr. Simpson, reached in Cody, Wyo., said, “I’ll just say I’m very frustrated and I can’t believe what’s happening to our country.”

“There isn’t a single sitting member of Congress, not one, that doesn’t know exactly where we’re headed,” Mr. Simpson continued. “And to use the politics of fear and division and hate on each other — we are at a point right now where it doesn’t make a damn whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican if you’ve forgotten you’re an American.”

Democratic officials said Mr. Simpson would be critical to helping give the presidential commission credibility and to undercut Congressional Republicans’ complaints that it would be a partisan Democratic panel, designed to force tax increases. Mr. Simpson, who served in the Senate from 1979 to 1997 and rose to be the second-ranking Republican leader, was widely known as an outspoken senator who could be cantankerous or funny, and did not shirk from partisanship.

With characteristic folksiness, Mr. Simpson in the interview dismissed claims from Republicans that reining in deficits would be easy or accomplished with spending cuts alone. “But they don’t cut spending,” he said, citing the administration of President George W. Bush when Republicans also controlled Congress. “Don’t forget the Republicans never vetoed a single bill in six and a half years. How is that for cutting spending?”

“To say that all we have to do is take care of waste, fraud and abuse, and foreign aid is a like a sparrow’s belch in the midst of typhoon,” he said. “That is nothing, less than 1 percent of the budget.”

Time will tell whether or not the commission will be worthwhile - but don't get your hopes up - Mr. Simpson's candor notwithstanding...

On a more optimistic note, I was very impressed with the testimony of Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chief's of Staff, when several weeks ago he spoke before a Senate committee looking into the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law which prohibits openly gay persons from serving in the armed forces.

From the Washington Post:

"Speaking for myself and myself only, it is my personal belief that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly would be the right thing to do," the nation's top military officer told the members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "No matter how I look at this issue, I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens. For me personally, it comes down to integrity -- theirs as individuals and ours as an institution."

The Republicans on the committee looked mighty unhappy with the Admiral. That little shitweasel, Jeff Sessions of Alabama, got pretty nasty with the Admiral - something you don't see very often. Sessions impugned Mullen's integrity by accusing him of using "undue command influence" on the issue.

The Admiral's response was classic - vaguely reminiscent of army attorney Joseph Welch's confrontation with good ol' Senator McCarthy way back when...

As the challenges to his integrity continued, Mullen pursed his lips, then put his forearms on the table, displaying the admiral stripes on his sleeves. After Sessions's provocation, the Joint Chiefs chairman glared at the diminutive Alabamian. "This is not about command influence," Mullen said. "This is about leadership, and I take that very seriously."

Yesterday, an interesting follow-up article appeared in McClatchey News online. The Admiral has been doing a number of the military's version of "town hall" meetings with the troops. Questions about the possible repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" have been noticeable by their absence at these meetings.

Navy Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was nearing the end of a 25-minute question and answer session with troops serving here when he raised a topic of his own: "No one's asked me about 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" he said.

As it turned out, none of the two dozen or so men or women who met with Mullen at Marine House in the Jordanian capital Tuesday had any questions on the 17-year-old policy that bars gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military — or Mullen's public advocacy of its repeal.

Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Darryl E. Robinson, who's the operations coordinator for defense attache's office at the U.S. Embassy here, explained why after the session. "The U.S. military was always at the forefront of social change," he said. "We didn't wait for laws to change."

...

At Tuesday's session, which included not only Marines, but members of the Army and the Air Force, both male and female service members explained their indifference to the issue: They'd already served with gays and lesbians, they accepted that some kind of change was imminent, and, they said, the nation was too engulfed in two wars for a prolonged debate about it.

These comments from our troops are interesting to me in several respects. First, they are another illustration of how the people of this country have, on MANY issues, left the pols in the dust. And perhaps more significantly they demonstrate how little interest my daughters' generation has in taking the bait on the right-wing's culture wars agenda.

Sometimes indifference is good...it closely resembles tolerance.

Finally, I have received several comments regarding my interest in ravens - or "rats with wings" as one commentator called them. In response, I direct you to the following old blog which includes a very interesting video on ravens making and using tools. They are also fair mathematicians. Here's the link...scroll down a bit 'til you get to my buddies: http://www.perlgurl.org/archives/2007/02/

Well, time to go to the elders. Then a workout and maybe a walk on the beach if the sun breaks through the fog.

Rinse and Spit

Just got back from the dentist. A clean bill of oral health - just one tiny little filling I'll get taken care of next week. Didn't even get lectured about flossing. Although the dentist was a tad miffed when I refused to let him do a set of x-rays - my personal contribution to medical care cost containment. I figure at my age every three years is plenty often for an x-ray - particularly when there is no indication of any problem.

It's been blustery and rainy off-and-on the past few days. But it's supposed to clear-off on Thursday and be nice for a few days. Clear usually means cold in February; but not this year - the lows are only supposed to be in the upper 20's with highs in the upper 30's. Hell, it could be zero (and blowing Taku 75 mph)!

I've now attempted to take pictures of the morning raven feeding free-for-all at the folks' on a couple of occasions. No joy. The smart little bastards don't like cameras - whenever I raise it up to take a pic when they're feeding - they skedaddle. I suspect they suspect the camera is a gun or something else unpleasant. It pays to be cautious when you're a raven on the mooch.

No pictures please...

Not much going on otherwise. Been watching some of the Olympics. Almost done with a biography of Woodrow Wilson. Alison gave me a new cookbook for Christmas. Think I'll make smothered pork chops for supper tonight. Exciting, eh?

Finally, another pic from my walk at Auke Bay last Friday. The raven's cousins - the Northwestern Crow. They seemed to be enjoying the sun...

Sunbathing Crows - they seemed to be enjoying themselves

Quackfest

Friday was a knockout day. Temperature in the mid-40's with tons of sun. I went for a walk at the Auke Bay Recreation Area. Lots of folks with kids and dogs. A pod of porpoise were frolicking in the bay. A couple of sealions were lurking off the point. Lots of quackers including a big flock of Barrow's Goldeneye who got close enough for a couple of good pics. Hard to believe it's February!

Barrow's Goldeneye

A beautiful spring-like day at Auke Bay

Last night I attended a supper party at Laura Beasons along with the Mangusos, Doug, and Alison. An excellent prime rib, mashed taters, sauteed asparagus, green salad and buns. Chocolate mousse for dessert. I made sea scallops with bacon and maple cream sauce for the appetizer course. Everything was very yummy.

We played a game after supper. Champagne and a variety of tasty reds.

Laura is getting all excited about the spring golf tournament in Casa Grande. She'll spend a few days at her condo in Palm Desert on both ends of the tourney.

I'm feeling a serious need to get out of this burg...

Where Are They Now?

Joan Kasson forwarded the pic below to me last night. Her former roomie, Jasper the Wonderdog, has completed his training of Joan's dad.

On the command of "woof," Joan's dad assumes the position of doggie bed

Joan's dad, of course, operates under the illusion that he has been training Jasper. He told Joan that Jasper can now open and close doors on command. But those of us who are familiar with Jasper's life-long tendency to question authority are skeptical. Regardless of who may be boss, this is a match made in heaven.

In other news, our fantastic spring-like weather continues. Yesterday it was partly sunny, temperature in the low 40's, and very little wind. There's no snow on the ground. The roads were dry! No winter weather is forecast for the foreseeable future...

Picked-up my elder duties yesterday after avoiding their company for a few days while I recovered from a cold. I'm still sniffling a bit; but trust I am no longer contagious. Bet I washed my hands forty times yesterday. Wednesday is bath day which takes a couple of hours from start to finish.

Dad requested chili so I spent most of the afternoon making a big batch. And a couple loaves of zucchini bread. Will do my meals on wheels gig today.

My birdfeeder is visited sporadically by a flock of Chestnut Backed Chickadees. I don't think they're wild about the seed mix...but they peck away at it half-heartedly. I can watch them from inside the house; but they are clearly less than thrilled when I go out on the deck and try to take pictures. Although I do not speak Chickadee their chirping and icy stares are easily understood: "Buzz-off, asshole."

Chickadee gives Elmo the Stink-eye

Lost Weekend

Woke-up Friday morning feeling a mite off my game. Went grocery shopping for mom, took Auntie to to the doctor and then to Fred Meyers. By early afternoon I knew the jig was up...definitely getting a cold. The second one in three months. Damn!

I immediately severed relations with the elders, went to the grocery store for provisions and to Hearthside Books for reading materials. By now it's late afternoon and I've got a fever and the first signs of congestion. Early to bed.

Saturday was one of those classic feverish semi-demented days. When I've got a fever all I want to do is sleep. Lots of dozing featuring weird dreams and occasional periods of semi-consciousness punctuated by spells of sneezing and nose blowing. Ugh!

By Sunday morning the fever had broken and while I still felt like shit, it was clear I was on the mend. A day devoted to reading a biography of Woodrow Wilson and watching the Ace of Cakes marathon on the Food Channel. The highlight of the day being the new Iron Chef episode featuring Chef Duff (the Ace of Cakes) as the challenger.

This morning I feel much improved although my schnoz is still running like a river. And a very moist cough. Nevertheless, I feel the urge to break quarantine. Trying to decide whether or not it would be a Crime against Humanity to go to the club for a light workout (walking on the treadmill for an hour or so) so long as I wipe down the equipment and forsake the virus incubation chambers (sauna and steam bath). We'll see.

In any event...I'm alive and kickin'.

Night on the Town with the Boys

Just got home from supper - went to the Island Pub with some former colleagues from the ol' department. It was quite fun. Jerry Fuller was in town from Anchorage. He's a hell of a good egg...the department's lead dog on state/federal Medicaid stuff.

The point of the get-together was to congratulate Kevin Henderson and Kurt West on the filing of 800 or so pages of regulations updating and rationalizing the hodge-podge of the department's Medicaid book of business. It was a monumental task. And they pulled it off. It was done professionally in all repsects - it was open and transparent. They did a damn fine job.

Jon Sherwood, another old Medicaid hand also joined us. Four of my favourite folks from the office. The pizza was excellent. I had a great time. Hope they did too.

There are some damn fine folks who work for the State of Alaska. Sadly, (for the State) retirement is on the horizon for many of the best minds and most conscientious employees. And the bench ain't that strong. There's a missing generation of public servants - public service is not that attractive for younger people. It's not financially rewarding and all too often it is actually stigmatized. That suits many pols just fine, no doubt, but they may not be too happy with the consequences. But...as the Good Book says..."They have sown the wind..."

The reality, of course, is that the pols who have made state service unattractive will not, for the most part, be held accountable. Rather, the burden of poor public services will be be borne by the citizenry...and then the bureaucrats will be taken to task by the pols. Such it is...as Grandma Newman used to say...

On a more positive note...preparations proceed apace for Elmer the Elder's 95th birthday bacchanalia to be held this Friday. The festivities will commence at 4:30 PM when he and I enjoy a VO and 7-Up cocktail. This will be followed by a steak dinner. And for dessert - chocolate sundae pie and a rousing game of Rummy Cube. Living large at 95!