Swans, Cranes, Ducks and Geese

They are back! A pair of swans flew over a couple of days ago and yesterday I saw my first flock of ducks. When you live here in Alaska that is a sure sign of the coming summer, one that is never wrong. The wildlife is not fooled by the weather, they know when to arrive. I laugh because every year around this time I see in the paper that spring is holding on and we can expect a late break up. Yet every year the fowl arrive right on time and so does break up. Break up is a time of pot holes, and wellie boots, each day you wonder outside to see what has thawed out of the snow, be it grass or some bit of trash you have to pick up. Day by day and inch by inch the snow withers and soon the grass and flowers are once again growing. Soon the bugs are out and rushing to complete their hurried life cycles. Like myself who will be bustling to get my garden going, with my head net as a crown.

No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

They are so easy and so good everyone will love them. I was first given them in elementary school and they are just as good today.

In a sauce pan,  melt one stick of butter and 1 cup of sugar add 1 bag of white and one bag of semi sweet chocolate chips  and 1 cup peanut butter, heat until melted well. Turn off heat add 3 or 4 cups quick oats and cover with lid and let sit for 3 min, this allows the oats to suck up some moisture. Then quickly using an ice cream scoop make cookies let cool and they will become firm.

The NENANA ICE CLASSIC

IT is that time of year again in the quaint little village of Nenana, Alaska. The Nenana Ice Classic official clock has been connected to the watch tower and now mother nature is the final judge in the last Game of its kind. Started in Alaska's Territory Days back in 1917 when the boys of the Alaska Railroad rolled into town to what was then the end of the highway and the railway. The 5 year project was to build what would then be the longest single span railroad bridge in the United States over the raging Tanana River and finally connect the interior city of Fairbanks to the much needed flow of goods provided by the Alaska Railroad.  With the rail connection the interior of Alaska was officially open for business and started to boom.
The first Ice Classic was held in a rather unofficial way in 1917, when a group of Railroad Engineers met at Mike's, a local drinking establishment. They bet on when the ice of the Tanana River would go out, heralding the arrival of summer in the small town of Nenana. From then until today the prize has grown considerably now winners receive a prize of around 300,000 dollars by guessing the day, hour and minute that the famous black and white Tripod makes its way down river, breaking the official clock cord. Tickets are on sale until April 5th and the river usually makes an exit late April to early May.
Nenana Ice Classic

God's Greatest Gift

Grand kids..they are a gift! We are having a visit from three of our ten grand kids right now and I can tell you these three little ladies are little entertainers. We wake in the morning bright and early for coffee and before you know it out pitter patters one of the little twins. Papa, Meemaw they call down the hall. I know they have been laying in their bed quietly listening for a sound from our room. Knowing that when they do they can come on down the hall for a happy good morning hug and a little song. They cozy up with us in our chairs and sleepily blink at the morning news show and wake up with us.
The cutest little brown eyes look up at us in wonder of everything we do, from making dinner to writing my blog. Little voices ask curiously, what ya doing? We play games like office and restaurant and put on little plays like Little Miss Muffet and The Old Woman in the Shoe. They are our Little Women and we encourage open thought and creativity. This summer we are building Western Town for our  sweeties. It will be complete with a sheriff's office, saloon (which serves root beer) a theatre to put on plays, a general store and a livery stable/ petting zoo. One tepees and Indian encampment one trampoline and a large wooden fort and swing set. This is Alaska so it will all be fenced in for protection of the kids and too keep them away from that old river. There has been much talk about this all winter and the little one's are almost as excited as the big folks who will be building it.
Funny what a grandparent will do for their babies isn't it? I can see them playing there already and I cant wait to join in.

Ernie Evan.wmv

Here is our uncle Ernie Evan.

Fire in Nenana

Here is a picture from a fire in our town tonight. It was pretty exciting, nothing much happens here so there were a lot of looky loo's. Looks like the building is pretty much a loss.

We heard it on the scanner and went to check it out. No one was hurt.

Radiation Realities

The front page of the Fairbanks Paper, (the Frontiersman you can read it at http://www.frontiersman.com/) had a rather scary headline yesterday. It was all about the terrible earthquake in Japan and the resulting nuclear plant damage. I know all the people of the world are watching close as the truth about the dangers of nuclear power are revealed. But when the paper runs a story about the possibilities of the people of Alaska may need to take Iodine pills in the event the radioactive cloud comes our way is a bit unsettling. I wonder if anyone in the lower 48 that is living near a Nuclear power plant realizes that once things go this wrong that people are pretty much helpless. Japan in all their glory were the worlds leader in Nuclear technologies and although they are sitting on the ring of fire and certainly no strangers to earthquakes they still thought that nuclear power was a good option. I have heard from time to time on the news that they expect the east coast of the United States to have a really big earthquake this century, and I have to ask myself if they are ready? Was BP ready for their disaster---No. Are the Nuclear plants--NO. They make it clear on the news that the levels of radiation are to dangerous for people to go near....so in the event of a major earthquake WHO is going to be able to fix these problems? Whoever they are they are going to die soon there after if not in the event itself. The 50 employees of the Japanese Power plant are being viewed as hero's and maybe they are in some respects. Maybe they are victims too. Victims of greed, money and big business. Just like the folks who suffer because of the BP spill. They knew it  was dangerous and they KNOW the oil is still out there in the ocean floating around the east coast of the US but as long as there is a dollar to be made from it ..nobody cares. How do you get around this stuff, in your head and heart? Don't invest in BP for one and don't buy their products. Do all you can to stop the creation of more Nuclear power plants whether its just signing a petition or starting one. Do what you can. If you can only PRAY then do that. We must work together to save our Earth from destruction, keep our children safe and our food safe. I'm not an activist in any way, but I do love our Earth Mother.

Welcome Spring

Well you can see it in the faces of the nice folks here in Nenana. (Neenana) Spring is on her way at last. There are smiles worn now where frowns once lived and there is a certain twinkle in the eye and sudden bursts of laughter the folks you run into on the street or at the local grocery store"Coghill's". Yes the sleeping bears are stirring in there dens and the spruce hens are practicing up on their courtship tunes. The odd rabbit is now wearing a coat of brown and white instead of the snowy white and the snow has begun to melt. See how chipper we get here with only a few days so far that have been a little above 30. Its hard to keep us down here in Nenana we will get excited about almost anything just give us the excuse. I love the folks here in our little burg, they are survivors. They somehow get through the most dreadful winters and still can manage a smile when spring finally decides to visit us again... This is the time to take a deep breath and get ready for the summer full of hard work that is coming. I have ordered my seeds, bulbs and have made some calls to ensure that I will get my baby goats this spring. All is in order and we are champing at the bit to start. HOORAY for Spring!

Lose It

Seems it is the time of year when all my friends and I are on a diet. All the long winter we have steadily packed on a little pudge and now in the time of recently forgotten New Years resolutions we are faced with the truth. Our clothes are too tight, we have low energy and maybe even a bit of a grumpy attitude. Who can blame us, all we accomplished this cold winter was to catch up on all the movies we couldn't afford to go to at the theatre and a caffeine addiction that I might need to get treatment for. I'm not saying that I didn't enjoy all those tasty pots of bean coffee or the romantic movies like Eat, Pray, Love but now it is time to awake again and the first step is going to be losing a bit of weight. It always makes you feel better and maybe if you re lucky you will look better too.
I want to tell you about this really wonderful website that I found and just can not say enough about. http://www.loseit.com  this website will help you get on a caloric regimen and stick to it. I will also help you track your exercise and the calories you are burning along the way. It is totally free to use and you can get some friends to help you and in turn you can encourage each other along the way. The site will award you for good dieting behavior and it just makes dieting more hands on by providing you with the information you really need to make good nutritional choices. No matter the food, no matter the exercise they will have you covered. So don't wait go check them out today and get yourself ready for spring.

The Devine Secrets of Moose Tips and Rice

Moose is a wonderful tasting meat. If you're lucky enough to get to hunt one or have a friend who did you are in for a special treat. One must approach moose with an open mind, the idea is to come out with a tender and delicious meal. We start with a moose roast or large moose steak, place it in a large pot and cover with water at least 2 inches above the meat. Boil this with 1 large tbsp of beef base for about 1 hour. Just a gentle boil. You can add spices here to the broth like pepper, bay leaf, cumin or whatever your favorite spices are, resist adding salt until the end . While the meat is boiling you need to start mincing green or red peppers and red or white onions and mushrooms. You will need about 1 cup of each minced.
When the meat has cooked for an hour about 1/2 of the water will have evaporated. The rest you will use for the gravy. So dont throw it out.
Next remove the meat from the water and let cool a bit then cut it up to small pieces about 1/2 inch thick square. Set aside.
Now bring the water to a boil. In a bowl mix 1 cup of flour and 2 cups of milk until smooth. Add mixture to boiling water  stirring this will thicken the water into a gravy. You can add 1 tsp of base more if you desire a browner gravy. Keep stirring this for a few minutes add meat and vegetables to the boiling hot gravy and reduce to low heat stirring often until served.

RICE
2 cups of rice in a fry pan with 2 tbs of butter melted. On medium high. Brown up the rice a little till it looks all glossy. Add 4 cups of water. Bring to boil then reduce heat to med and cover for 10 min, remove lid cook til done(water gone and small holes appear) DO NOT STIR RICE while cooking. For best results wash rice with cold water prior to frying.
Serve rice with moose tips and gravy on top.