Monday Melange

Letter to the American Church from Eric Metaxas and Dutch Sheets. 

Idita-mess

The Iditarod Sled Dog Race is inexplicably committing seppuku. Who needs PETA when you have unsubstantiated #MeToo? First, the race cancelled Eddie Burke Jr. over an allegation, then reinstated him after the State dropped the charge, all within a matter of days. Then the race cancelled Brett Sass over never-filed allegations, ones that Sass vehemently denies.

Craig Medred reports on the Iditarod train wreck at his blog. Recommended reading.

Weather Alerts in Effect for Alaska Today

It's 5° F. this morning, and will be 21 and cloudy today. But big snowstorms are surrounding us.

Weather Update

Since I received a couple of inquiries about this summer's wildfires, and the weather, perhaps it's time for an update.

Many of the smaller fires have been all but extinguished due to the recent rains and cooler weather.
The larger ones have transitioned to smaller management teams, and hot spots are being mopped up. Due to the peat which lies under our topsoil and grasses, that can take quite awhile. Some have been known to smolder underground for years, and then pop up a mile or two away. But Alaska is using drones with infrared cameras now, and the job is resultingly easier.

Weather: about three or four weeks ago, our weather returned to normal or near-normal temps, and we began receiving rain. In the last week or so, we've had normal or below-normal temps, with nearly three inches of rain falling locally.

Right now it's 44°, and had been raining for the last three days until just an hour ago. There's fresh snow on the nearby peaks, and will be even more tomorrow as the rain redevelops overnight.

Expected overnight low will be 34°.  And now let's go to Bob on the Sports Desk!


Okay, enough of that. But now you know. :)

Rainy Day, Building Woes, and Self-Protection

We picked up an inch of rain yesterday, along with some fresh snow on the mountaintops. Yes, it was a bit cool. 43 yesterday morning, and 42 today.

It's not unusual to have to run the heat for a cycle or two on a cool summer's morning. But after all the dire predictions of how hot and dry this summer was to be, we didn't expect it. We're okay with the forecast being wrong.

Which is a nice, healthy frame of mind for those who live here. Anything more than four hours in advance is a guess, anyhow.

For my part, I'm just now starting to feel reasonably healthy again. I've had some sort of croup, bronchitis, or whatever for the last two and a half weeks. That will explain, at least in part, why I've not posted as much ... or as often ... as before.

* * * * *

This morning's activities have focused around trying to re-establish normal temps in the building I manage. Something went wonky (a technical term) and it's too warm in most places. And some places are way too warm.

How warm, you ask? How about 82° in the locker rooms where it's supposed to be 68?

Makes it a bit difficult for the surgical teams as they enter the sterile core, where the operating rooms are maintained at 66.

* * * * *

There was also a presentation by an FBI agent on how to respond to active shooter situations. That was a pretty informative 90 minutes.

The people who survive such scenarios are those who have a plan. Whether it's to run, hide in a secure, barricaded location, or fight back, they have a plan, and a mindset determined to survive. Act on your plan, and see it through.

His most cogent point? "Hope is not a plan. Gunshots sound like gunshots. If you hear them, don't debate it; don't ask a co-worker if someone dropped a stack of metal trays. If you can get out, then RUN ... away from the gunshots. You're not the cops, and you're not the Marines. GET AWAY."

* * * * *

Now that may be a bit of a downer, but it's not my intent to depress. My intent is to share useful information that I have learned.

Day 2: The Search Narrows

Today I'll be scheduling a visit to the "we want it!" house we saw on Saturday. The exterior is even better than the website photos make it look, and the pics from inside look great. However, the lower level floor plan is unclear.

But there's sufficient off-street parking for our fleet o' 4x4s, and it has a deck which wraps around two sides of the house.

If this all comes together, I promise a picture or two, but let's not get the cart before the horse. :)

* * * * *

The "big" snowstorm forecast for Saturday and Sunday came - and went - with more bluster than snow. We got less than two inches, at least in our part of town, and temps rose into the mid-30s before it was all over.

So most of the snow is already gone, and the weatherman (why does he think we'll believe him, again?) opines that we'll get lots of rain or a rain/snow mix today, without accumulation.

Feh.

Fog and Humidity

It was foggy and very humid with low clouds at 06:00. The fog has thinned to a light haze now, and the low clouds blew away, revealing a higher layer. 

The morning temperature was 70 but AccuHunch guesses it will be the standard 82 and sunny today. The weather guessers have a somewhat easier job here, for the most part: if you predict 82 in the day, and 72 overnight, you'll be correct at least 98% of the time. 

The March of Dimes is conducting a "March for Babies" this morning, so the main drags along Waikiki will be blocked for several hours. Not a good day to try to drive around this part of the city, so I suspect we'll stay put today. 

12/26: Post-Christmas Report

It's a slow start to the day here, which is perfectly okay for a day off.  Christmas was a very good day: quiet, happy and peaceful. Our daughters spent the day with us, and went home after the evening meal.

Yesterday, the predicted snowfall began ... and for two hours, we watched with glee as big, fat flakes came down.

Then the south wind picked up, the temperature rose 10 degrees, and the flakes turned to rain. Temps have been in the mid- to upper-30s ever since.

Bleah.

And oh, yes: it just started sleeting.

* * * * *

This morning, I'm midst-kerfluffle with the Postal Service. My long-awaited gift is reported to have arrived in Anchorage on the morning of the 24th.

Today, I received an e-mail stating they had attempted and failed to deliver the package. I'm not sure when this was supposed to have happened.

• No e-mail or text message stating that the package is "on a carrier vehicle and out for delivery". Those always precede a parcel delivery. Always.
• No such message on the post office website, using the tracking number.
• No sticky note from a carrier was left on the door, on either of the last two days.

But they did offer me the opportunity to re-schedule.

I bottled up my skepticism regarding their "we tried" message (since I've been here in the house since 10:45 am on Christmas Eve) and requested delivery today.

We'll see.

In the meantime, we'll avoid the reavers by staying home again today. Tomorrow morning, we'll head out bright and early to see if any of the stores are still standing. Heh.

All y'all have a wonderful, blessed day out there, and thank you again for stopping by, friends.

Sunday Morning Mehs

It's 27 degrees with light freezing rain. The weatherman says we'll get a tenth of an inch of the stuff by noon, today.

I'm thinking about another cup of coffee, and staying put.

Friday Round-Up

End of the week (woohoo!); time to gather any loose threads and tie 'em up. I can only think of one ongoing story I've mentioned recently, though.

In a preliminary report released Thursday, the National Transportation Safety Board said the fatal April 8 plane crash near Bethel was preceded by several altitude changes before a "rapid, steep descent" to the ground.

Investigators say data transmitted by the Cessna 208 Caravan, operated by Hageland Aviation, shows the plane was flying at 3,400 feet when its altitude changed.
 
"There were a couple of altitude deviations, followed by a rapid, steep descent," said NTSB spokesman Clint Johnson.

The two pilots on board were killed in the crash -- Derrick Cedars, 42, and Greggory McGee, 46. Officials said that Cedars and McGee were Hageland Aviation employees on a training flight. 

 They also said the flight went down 30 minutes after takeoff, in clear, calm weather. Curiouser and curiouser.

* * * * *
In happier news, we've been having quite a bit of sunshine, along with temps mostly in the upper 40s to around 50, and the remaining snow banks are melting quickly. Buds on the trees have trebled in size, and I think I heard geese honking last night.

Who knows? The grass will turn green one of these days, and then we'll get some leaves on the trees.

* * * * *
And finally, there's this:

 

Friday in the A.M.

It's dry this morning, but AccuHunch says we have a roughly 12-hour break from rainfall before the next storm reaches us. For a place that normally gets little rain, we've sure had our share.

from adn.com

Flood watches, advisories and warnings continue through the region.

from ktuu.com

* * * * *

A 59 year old man fell 30+ feet from an escalator in the Anchorage Convention Center last night; apparently he was "riding the rail", with fatal results. Witnesses claim he'd been drinking.

* * * * *

My tentative weekend plans include a trip to the range, but that depends on how hard it's raining.

Have a great day, friends, and thanks for stopping by.

I'm Back, Sort Of

The primary cable cable company in Anchorage also supplies internet for many, as well as telephone service.

That network has been offline since the 60 to 130 mph winds blew through Anchorage, beginning Tuesday evening & throughout the night, into yesterday morning. There are still thousands without power. There's no TV or internet in very large portions of town, including my house & where I work. There are also thousands of trees down, as the entire city reverberates to the sound of chainsaws.

I've brought my laptop to work, because - for whatever reason - that same provider's wi-fi signal works just fine, thankyouverymuch.

So forgive me if I haven't responded to your recent comments, as I've been offline for the last 24 hours. I'll try to get to them later this morning ... but for now, work beckons.

Have a great day, folks, and thanks for stopping by.

Clouds Again

We've had so many sunny, warm days that we were getting spoiled. Since mid-week, however, the weather has returned to normal temps (45 at night, 60 in daytime) and we've had several cloudy, windy days.

It was 48 when I awoke, and it's up to 52 now at nearly 11 a.m. The warmest part of the day, here, is usually after 5 pm. We'll probably see 60 degrees - eventually - but AccuHunch is guessing we'll also have rain showers. JOATed's remark* about rolling a die with various types of weather on its sides is probably superior to reading the local forecast.

Wife & younger daughter are headed out to the stores, for their traditional Saturday shopping. I'm rattling around loose, working at odds & ends. Weekdays are typically busy enough that it's hard to be motivated on Saturday ... and I sorta like it that way.

One of the biggest local stories in this morning's news is that Alaska's first IMAX theater will be opening in Anchorage next weekend. That's probably not a big deal to readers in areas with much shorter supply lines (you know, like most of the Lower 48).

I hope it's sunny & pleasantly warm, wherever you are; thanks for stopping by.


* To my previous post

The End of Another Week

Greetings!

Another workweek has come and gone, and we're five days closer to winter. It has rained for a good part of the day today, and it appears that nearly half of the yellow leaves have fallen. No, actually it's just from one kind of tree, and I'll try to find out what kind it is. The birch leaves still seem firmly attached.

The spruces are laughing at all the wimpy leaves, though. "Ha ha, ha ha. I'm a mighty evergreen, and my needles NEVER fall!"

(Pssst - don't tell them about spruce bark beetles; it would ruin their weekend.)

* * * * *

George Sullivan has passed away. He was mayor of Anchorage from the late '60s until the early '80s, overseeing the transition from frontier town to modern city during the boom years of the oil pipeline. His wife passed away a couple of years ago, as well.

I had the honor of meeting and/or speaking with him several times. He was a good friend of a guy I used to work for, and they spoke frequently. I often relayed messages for the boss. He seemed like a nice guy, and in the genuine "old school" style, I only saw him without a tie on one occasion.

His son Dan is our current mayor, keeping it in the family, as it were.

There's a great op-ed piece about him in today's paper here.

* * * * *

Our tourist season officially ended on the 15th, and Anchorage now goes back into its more traditional, sleepy role of "northern city" (read snow) until next May. Due to the economy, there weren't as many tourists this year, and the numbers of buses and RVs seemed greatly decreased; at least until August, when we started seeing larger numbers.

In June, the month when we have all that sunlight, we're typically inundated with those wanting to experience it, and buses are everywhere. Not so, this year.

* * * * *

There's not much of interest going on, so I'll let you get back to your weekend. Thanks for stopping by.

A Better Day

... at least, from a weather perspective. It's not particularly foggy, and it has warmed up to 16 degrees. That's a few degrees above our normal low of 10 or so, so it's kind of nice. Not too warm, not too cold. (There's a Goldilocks joke in there, but I'll let it go.)

My friends in Missouri are complaining about ice & snow, with temps about where ours are. Ice storms are never any fun, and there's wide-spread misery from those at the moment. I grateful that we rarely get large amounts of ice, although sleet is fairly common here. Ours changes to snow fairly quickly, though, and in large enough quantities that the ice gets well-covered and is less of a problem.

Due to the ice, my dad is stuck at home, about 60 miles from the hospital where my mother is recuperating from her stroke. She is showing signs of significant improvement, regaining some use of her left hand on Sunday. He said the muscular control on the left side of her face is much better, as well, and she looks like herself again.

Dad said the roads will be too icy for him to drive, until tomorrow. I'll give Mom a call tonight, since the number of visitors will be diminished by the storm.