Haul Road Storm Aftermath

I've had these pictures e-mailed to me by several people.  So I don't know who took them.  But they're pretty spectacular.  We had a several day storm and the haul road (or Dalton Highway) between Fairbanks & Deadhorse was closed because parts of the road were 'blown in'.  I heard that at one point there were 90 trucks waiting to come north.  Anyway, someone flew from Prudhoe Bay down the road to see how bad it was.   Here are some the pictures that have been circulating.  Thanks to whoever took them!

Ice Cut View North 1

Ice Cut View North 2



Ice Cut View South



DOT Snowblower Nside Atigun

Galbraith Airport View North

Galbraith Airport View South

Pump Station 3

Travel Planning

Look what arrived in today's mail from Amazon.com :-).  Our trip planning is well underway.  10 days in Italy then 10 in France the first 3 weeks of Sept.  I can't wait to go!

Fused Glass

Last week when I was still at home, I spent a day out at Morning Star Studio learning about fusing glass.  Linda is a great teacher.  I got to play around with 2 tiles and try out different types of glass, just to see how they melt together.


The first tile was done on white opaque glass with scraps of different blues layered on top of it.  We got to talking and let if fuse just a bit too long.  This caused the edges to draw in a bit.  And there is a little less texture to the layered pieces than I'd wanted.  But it was a good first effort.  I can use it for snacks or something, it looks great on my kitchen table.

The second tile was on clear glass with an iridescent back.  The flash from the camera makes it look gold, but it really isn't.  This one we fused just right, so it still has some texture.  I used frit (small pieces of glass) to make the flower petals, which was interesting.  I actually like how they turned out a lot more than I thought I would.  I was afraid they'd melt into the back ground more, but they didn't.

So, some more experimentation is due.  But the long term plan is to create a couple of large pieces that I mount on the wall behind my cooktop and use as a back splash.  I really like glass, and this is going to be a fun project.

Summer Schedule

I'm hoping for some company this summer.  So here is my schedule for your planning purposes :-)

New Office Window

I haven't blogged a sunrise or sunset for a while. I've moved offices, just a little less than 1/2 mile from my old office. The view quite a bit different, and the window is frozen shut. So I had to take these today through the glass. Boy it's nice to see the sun up after a couple of dark.
Sunrise at 11:54 AM

Sunset about 4:15 PM

Another Closet Completed

I decided I had to quit goofing off and get my closet shelves finished.  I'd started messing around with this project over the weekend.  But then decided I need a jig saw to notch the shelves.  So I went into town today and rented one for the afternoon. 

These shelves are a little crooked, but they're not wobbly, so they're going to work out just fine :-)

New Toys

I got the coolest toy a few days ago.  I'm really having fun playing with it.  It's a little speaker that I can hook up to my MP3 Player.  It's surprizing loud and sound pretty good.  Much better than any of the computer speakers I've used.  And it's really cute :-)  I added my chapstick just to show the size.  It's pretty tiny.

Ice Luminaries Part 2

Homer 'finally' got some cold weather. Close to zero at night, which is plenty cold for me. So I got a couple of ice luminaries made in time for my Christmas party. In fact, one got ignored a bit too long and froze solid, but it still looked nice in-between the other two :-)

Storage Shelves, Part 1

I got my first set of storage shelves built and painted. I had the lumber cut at SBS, so all I had to do was screw it all together and then to the wall.

I almost painted the wood frames bright green, but then decided to use up some of the trip paint left over from building.

They're pretty sturdy and should work out just fine. I still have one more closet to do, I'll try to get it done the next time I'm at home.

Ice Luminaries

Last week when I got home I decided to try to create a couple of ice luminaries. It's fairly simple. Fill a balloon full of water and put it in a bowl. Set the bowl outside and check it after 24 hours.

The first time the ice wasn't quite thick enough so I set it out again for another 12 hours.

Then I brought it in, peeled off the balloon and chipped/melted holes in the top & bottom so the candle could be inserted and have a chimney.

Unfortunately, the warm weather the past couple of days has melted most of it. Maybe it will be colder the next time I'm home and I can try again.

First snow of winter pics

Here are a couple of winter pics. I took the first one in Homer on the 26th. It was the first real measurable snowfall that I saw. Though it warmed up later that afternoon and most of it melted away.

And then this one I just took out my office window. It's been snowing up here for 5 or 6 weeks, but with the wind blowing today, and the sun trying to break through the clouds, it really looks like winter now.

Guest Room Table

I've been messing around with this project for a couple of weeks, but now it's finally finished. Patty found this little table at a garage sale earlier this summer. So last time I was home I took it apart and sanded it. Boy was that a mess, and it took me most of the day. But the painting went a pretty well. I like how it looks in the guest bedroom. Let me know what you think...

Roof Overhang

One of the design & engineering issues was the overhang of my shed style roof. As I recall there were several calls to the engineer about it, and we needed special roof trusses. I get a lot of wind up here and no one wanted my roof to peel away.

However, it needed to extend out over the windows enough to block the sun in the summer time so that my house doesn't overheat. And this summer it worked great. On the few sunny days we had, the window seat area would be in full sun, but most of the living room was in the shade.

Now that we're deep into fall, the angle of the sun has dropped below the overhang. I'm getting full sunlight all the way into the back of the kitchen. Even a little sunshine will heat the house up 6 or 8 degrees. And the dark floor absorbs the heat and then radiates it out once it gets dark. Which helps keep my heating bill down.

BUT, it also illuminates every tiny bit of dust :-)

Winter Lights

Last year this time I put up strings of white icicle lights along the front of the house. I really like to have them on in the evenings when it's so dark. So this year I decided to try some of the new LED lights.

The LED's give off much less light, and the white is a blue white, instead of a yellow white (and the moon is up over the house, but it's not showing through the fog very well).

And then I decided to add this string of Christmas stars. I'm not sure I like them as well as the old style white icicle lights. But I'll try them this winter and see how it goes. At least I got them up before it was too cold. It wasn't bad out side this afternoon hanging them.

Fuel Stop

We had a lunch time visitor, just long enough to refuel. I wonder why he was flying around up here, especially in today yucky weather. He came in and parked next to the regularly scheduled ERA flight from FAI.

Step 1, Sanding

I decided I'd go a head and start the work on the table for the lamp in the guest room. It's been sitting in the closet for a couple of months. So I went a head and started sanding off the old finish so I can paint it.

What a total pain. Those legs too hours to sand down.

And wow was it a mess. Sawdust all over the living room and kitchen. But it's done, and the saw dust is cleaned up. Enough for today.

Fall Pics

Fall is definitely here. All the colors have turned and it's COLD. Sunny though which has been nice since it was cloudy and rainy all summer.

Saturday I went with Darlene when she took Izzy for a walk. We went up the hill behind our houses to the next road. What a view from up on top. The 2 empty lots we walked up are still for sale :-).

And then yesterday we had BBQ over at Darlene's. Sat outside on the deck for a while, but it finally got too cold so we moved inside to eat.

Fairbanks Trip, Part Three

OK, so Fairbanks was a month ago and I should have posted these pics a while back. But, at least I'm getting caught up :-)

When I left Fairbanks I stopped at one of the first scenic overlooks and took a few pictures of the Willow Creek Fire. It's been burning all summer.