Inktrails from Alaska

Chased By A Snowflake

Everyone in Anchorage we met said "We lost winter!" It seemed to be true. There were only spots of dirty snow along the road and you could even see grass. Of course when we went to go hiking on the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail we found it covered in hard pack and ice a good three inches thick and slippery as goose guts on a doorknob. We went for a hike anyway.

On the drive down we were astounded to find that the '89 Camry got 38 mpg. We drove over 350 miles on ONE tank of gas! This was extremely good, since we wanted to do a strictly budgeted trip. We packed a cooler full of sandwiches and fruit and darn near spent NO money yet had a great time.

Staying with relatives in Palmer, we heard the "We lost winter!" refrain more than once. While in Palmer we took it easy. Scott showed me where he used to go to school, we and we did what we always do when in a place that is either new or we haven't seen for a while: we looked for old cars and trucks parked in the bushes, behind buildings, in junkyards, anywhere they might lurk, we try to check them out.

We planned on leaving Sunday so I could be back to work on Monday. We woke up Easter Sunday to find snow! It had snowed all night and was still snowing. You know, it always snows on my way home whenever I go to Anchorage, and I always have to stay an extra day. Well, I've only been to Anchorage two times in the last year, but we got stuck at Paxson Lodge the last time because of the first snowstorm of the year. Hrrrrmmm. This could be the LAST snowstorm of the year. That is, until I go to Anchorage again!

So we stayed an extra day, thinking they wouldn't plow on Easter Sunday.

As it was, the road was do-able on Monday, though it was a frustrating mix of wet pavement and thick layers of slushy snow that threw the car around. We had an adrenaline moment when Scott decided to lean over and adjust the heater and when he did that he turned the wheel slightly and suddenly we were in a huge skid going about 55 mph. I said AAAAHHH loudly, he said SONOFABITCH even louder, and pulled it out of the skid. It was afterwards that the adrenaline rush got both of us. It wasn't long before we pulled over and bought candy bars. Besides, both of us really needed to use the bathrooms.

After that Scott drove much slower. Imagine that!

I took over driving in Cantwell and took us home, but not until having to deal with pavement that was sometimes wet and sometimes frozen, and through one mountainous area was nothing but a thick sheet of ice. Luckily I'm used to ice.

We saw a bald eagle in Palmer and two moose in Denali on the way back.

I have yet to see Denali, the mountain. It was blindingly beautiful both times I drove down recently, but both times the mountain was covered in clouds. If you come to Alaska as a tourist and see Denali, don't tell me about it. I live here, and I've never seen it!

We came out of the clouds and snow south of Nenana and had beautiful pastel skies all the way home. We out ran the storm, and figured most of it would hang up on the mountains that are between us and Anchorage.

As I write this I am looking out the window at several inches of new snow, with lots of snowflakes coming down yet. It snuck up on us in the night!

Congratulate me, yesterday was my two-year anniversary moving to Alaska. I don't mind the snow. I was sad that it was melting! Now we'll have fresh snow for more snow machine rides for a little while longer.

Dervish Cuts Loose

The last stop on their five week tour was Anchorage, Alaska, and Dervish were tired and ready to get on that 2:30 AM plane back to Ireland. Despite having one foot on the runway, they delivered a powerful show that had anyone with a heartbeat clapping, swaying and doing that special wiggling movement that passes for dancing when confined to stadium seats.

The two double-stringed rhythm instruments, Brian McDonagh on the mandola and Michael Homles on the bouzouki, set the bottom line with rhythms and low-end, followed by Liam Kelly's flirtingly beautiful flute notes that evoked blue sky overhead. Tom Morrow and Shane Mitchell would jump into the mix together and take everything a notch higher, playing in lightspeed unison that left the audience gasping. Music played in spirals of excitement: it doesn't get any better than this.

In between tunes, Dervish created the appropriate support for songs sung in Irish, English and Gallic, songs that varied from traditional Irish to Bob Dylan (Boots of Spanish Leather). Cathy Jordan's clear alto cut through even the fullest arrangements, even leading the audience in an Irish language chorus during one song.

The biggest surprise was the encore. You could have knocked me over with a raindrop when Cathy Jordan came out and sang "Gypsies, Tramp and Thieves," and made it work as an Irish number. Now that's talent!

All Wet

It's taken me about a week to get over the stress of St. Patrick's week! Two days before I was to play at the Westmark my guitar player called me up and said, "I have bad news." Before he even went any further I knew what it was. He couldn't do the gig. Shit.

So.....there I was, piper out of town, guitar player being sent out of town by his boss, and a hotel gig to do in two days. So I racked my brains (they rattled) and I finally asked Lindy Raines, of the Mighty Untouchables blues band, who just happens to give lessons at the same place I do, if he would sit in with me. And he said YES, thank God.

That night and during every spare minute thereafter we were either rehearsing or I was making charts for him. Charts with BIG letters for us forty-something's eyeballs.

We did fine, there were the usual glitches but they loved us and I hope they'll have us back. Whoever "us" is the next time around! It was the first time Lindy had ever played Celtic music and he left humming "Merrily Kissed the Quaker" and swearing he was going to get me for getting all these tunes stuck in his head. Ah, another addict. The first one's free.....

I would have liked nothing better at the end of that day than to get into a nice, hot shower. But nooOOOOOooo. When I got home my cabin was losing heat. The furnace had gone out. The furnace also heats our hot water. No house heat, no hot water. So I called the landlord and he told me how to push the red button to get the furnace going again.

But that didn't fix my hot water situation.

So far I haven't had a shower yet. It's been a week. Every time I try, either whatever hot water there was has been used by the other tenant, or it does what it did this morning.

I pushed the button before going to sleep last night. As usual, the furnace had quit while I was in town. It's just a good thing it's not forty below right now! Anyway, after a couple of tries the furnace started up and I went upstairs and eventually went to bed, just hoping that it would stay on all night so I could take a shower in the morning. After a week a person feels skanky, you know?

This morning I checked the thermostat. The cabin was still at 70 degrees. So far so good. That meant that there should be hot water!

I turned on the shower and experimentally checked the temperature. Cold. But wait, you usually have to run it a while to get the hot water, so I undressed (being an optimist) and tested it again in a couple of minutes. Success! Really hot water, with pretty good pressure, to boot! I hopped into the shower, got my very long hair all soaked, my body all wet, turned around to stick my face in the stream and that was when the hot water ran out.

Yep. All wet and unwashed in cold water. God fracking fruckle dithering ruthermuckers! Arrrrggghhh!

Yes folks, I pay for a place with water and heat and I get NEITHER right now. What a pisser!

When was the last time you had to dry off and then actually clean the important places with wet wipes? Grrrrrr.

I left the landlord a message. I was even polite. But firm. And wet.

St. Patrick's Day!

Despite my guitar player buddy being sent to Anchorage by his boss just when I needed him most... I am still playing music at a couple or three places here in town.

I'll be serenading the seniors at the Pioneer Home and then having lunch with them. I'm sure I'll get to hear all kinds of interesting stories!

From 6-8pm I'll be performing at the Red Lantern in the Westmark Hotel at 10th and Nobel in Fairbanks. Luckily a friend of mine was able to take a crash course in Irish guitar playing so I didn't have to cancel the show! Thanks, Lindy!

After that I'll probably head over to Two Street Station, in the Co-op Building on 2nd Street downtown, for our regularly scheduled Celtic jam.

In between times I'll be here and there and you just never know, if you hear a fiddle coming your way it just might be me!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Librarypalooza!

Okay, so it's actually called the John Trigg Ester Library Lallapalooza and Book Bash fundraiser. But I call it Librarypalooza. It's to raise money for the locally-run library in Ester, and looks to be great fun. I'll be playing from 4 to 5, just one among many others.

Starts at 3, ends at 8. I believe there is food, too. For sure a silent auction of neat stuff people have donated. I donated one music lesson and a Celtic necklace from Cornwall. I'm interested to see what else will be on the auction block! With all the artists in Ester, there could be some really neat stuff.

It's in the Annex, a big, gray building on the Parks Highway on the way to Ester. Just a little bit before you get to the Gold Hill gas station and little store.

See you there!

More Information: Librarypalooza