another week passes by...

 my days off go so quickly...and i look back and wonder what i have accomplished. briefly heard of this author while listening to the radio today.  i think in his 30's or 40's he was diagnosed with a brain tumor and told he would have very little time to live.  that guy whipped out 3 novels in a years time and after  a year he hadn't died...it has spurred him into writing.  amazing how much we can accomplish when we have a deadline.  ultimately he lived years and years and then finally passed away from lung cancer.  it's not your time til it's your time.

 yesterday we cruised up the airstrip and then around and back through Rovers run.  it was a fairly long walk and i really thought Rio would be too wiped out today to have any desire to join us, but join she did.  we just walked a bit in  Kincaid.  the trails were mostly ice so i would turn back and take another way for a bit until it got too icy again.  can't let Rio slip and fall.  i'm guessing she is enjoying the warmer weather.

 still in PT.  went to  pool tonight and i feel like i'm going to get more out of just hitting the gym soon.  i have another appointment with them, but it's gonna be out of pocket til i hit my deductible and i'm not keen on that. i don't feel like i've been any sort of slacker with all this PT stuff so it's a bit disappointing that they feel like i need more for this one muscle that is weak.  they even used the muscle twitcher machine...the best i felt today was in the pool though.

 did 3 5-lap runs with kickboard exercises and 2-5 lap runs with regular front crawl?  never can remember what they are called...regular stroke though. my plan is just to become a near daily gym attendee and get all my body healthy.  that muscle will just catch up.  did figure the other day while walking that i wasn't using my full range on motion with my stride on that leg.

 i've begun to just mentally correct my stride.  i remember i had to do that for a while after i got my winging scapula.  i noticed that after i got it my right arm wouldn't swing while i was walking...so strange.  so i had to just begin to tell my arm to swing all the time.  eventually it just retrained.

 did get a few errands done.  for months i've been wanting to stop by and get a new upgraded iphone so i did that today.  takes awhile to sort it all out at the store. the guy was as nice as the one was when i originally bought my first iphone.  i feel sad that i won't be using my old phone...it's been good to me.  haha. this new era where you don't wait until things totally fall apart to replace them is strange to me.  it was for sure showing it's age though so i knew it was time.

 have loved my cool mickey case, it was an old drawing of Mickey. can't find the same but i did find a cool Mickey in fantasia one on Amazon so i ordered that tonight. bought one to tide me over and keep this light little phone safe until my other one arrives.

 a bunch of crows flying around out there yesterday.

 was listening to this other guy on NPR talking about  his theory of the missing Malyasia jet. he says there is an easy way from the front of the planes cockpit to get under into the inner workings and if you could get down there you could make the plane disappear as far as the electronics were concerned. he thinks that plane actually turned north and surmises it may have landed in Kasakastan?  i always forget how to say that one.  gotta love a conspiracy theory.  he really had no explanation for why anyone would want to take a passenger plane or if they would have kept the passengers alive or not.

 i had heard similar theories soon after the plane disappeared.  there are some places where one could secretly land a commercial sized jet in the world.  well, maybe not totally secretly but such that not a lot of others would know of it.  some things in this world just lend themselves to conspiracy theories and there is no way to ever shut those down once they've begun.  the believers will always exist. i've always found this one odd but plausible.  time will tell...or not.

 i loaded up the dogs and as i was about to pull out i noticed this cat chilling in the truck parked next to me.  it's not often that you see cats chilling in cars...they do on occasion but it's not the usual.  Blossom didn't notice the cat...or i suspect there would have been a lot of barking.

 these are the indoor cats that live with me, Pogi...the cat with lots of extra toes..

 and Miss Breezy Chatterbug. yes that is her name.  the vet figured i'd shorten it, but it seemed to work for the cat.

 Blossom keeps happily finding these puddles under ice....she smashes her way into them and lays down.  one needs to cool your belly in a puddle some days i guess.

 pot is apparently legal as of today.  guess i missed the rush...

 the name battle continues for the big mountain north of here.  for Alaskans it's called Denali but those in Ohio call it Mt McKinley.  they put through a bill every two years and that is enough to prevent the name change desired by the state of Alaska.  a change in policy is the new focus so that these ohio bills will be finally ceased and the name changed.  not holding my breath on that one either...but i see the mountain and i am here and i will call it what i want..Denali.

 talk of re-routing the already re-routed Iditarod.  the river in Fairbanks is not as frozen as usual so they may bypass it and do the restart in another area of Fairbanks.

 after Kincaid today i went to the campell creek estuary for a short walk and look around. hadn't been there for a bit so it seemed like a good idea.

 it's a little loop but always pretty and relaxing.

 Rio has been a bit nuts all day.  under foot and just bouncing all over.  she is finally out cold next to me snoring away.  that poor dog just wears herself out.  wish she had just chilled on couch.  of course if i had a rio cam i may find she's just as anxious at home...think i'll skip that.  only so much i can do to help her relax.

 it was a black and white sort of day.  the new phones camera looks like fun.  i took a slo mo video of rio after she'd had water...it was cracking me up.  that is a large tongue..works great in slo mo. also has some other new to me stuff.

 didn't see any obvious bald eagles in the nest down the beach.  there is a large one quite a ways down there in those trees.

 not too long til the migratory birds come back through here.

 i shall crash soon.  trying to get some money back from insurance...mine and Rio's.  worth a try, right.

 picked up ab's for Rio.  vet figured we would treat her for a uti just on the off chance.  she says occasionally that will make them drink more.  her thyroid is a smidgee low as well.  she turns 11 this year.  was reading one of those help write in letters.  girl dating great guy but jealous of the dog.  the dog will always win if you pull an ultimatum.  nobody is perfect.  eventually, if you are lucky, you find someone who finds your strange quirks endearing.

 little side trail down to a look out. not too much to look at today. the sandhill cranes  like to chill out here in the spring.

 so behind on my newspaper reading.  always trying to play catch up.  lots to read in the to be read pile.  need to get back in a reading mode.  i have times where i go off reading for a bit and then some great book will suck me back in.

grateful for:  A.  a good swim...love a good swim  B. my new pretty phone.  i'm more excited than i expected.  C.  that Rio is finally relaxed and peaceful.

Monday walking and Roaming on my own...

 the meltdown has begun...several months early but there it is.  went moose spotting but only saw planes so i watched planes.  something so relaxing about watching the planes land and take off, which is odd because i am so stressed being in planes landing and taking off.  one of life's oddities i guess.  big planes, little planes. medium sized planes.

 Blossom and i did some loops and twists around the park.  the ponds are water on top but still frozen beneath.  had my cleats on so no falls,  can't say my feet didn't feel a bit damp from time to time.  of course, Blossom was thrilled with the romp through the top water.  a few other dogs we see out there often were out and so them all romped together while i chatted with the owner.

 weather is strange.  this is our second season with very little snow or cold temperatures.  the year before these two we had record snow fall.  seems like no two winters are the same here, that i can tell you for sure.  some more cold, some more ice, some more snow, or fog...best to be ready for anything and plan to participate in whatever activities mother nature graces you with.  this year lots of ice skating, kicksledding for me..  bikers and hikers were out and able to enjoy.  nice to be able to take some drives this winter as well.  roads fairly clear.

 right now there are the ponds of spring all over.  March can get cold too though so don't count winter out.  i've seen it snow in  July here.

 spoke to the vet.  doesn't sound like we know what is up with Rio and her dilute urine and extra drinking.  could just be mental...with rio you never know.  she is Rio and she seems her happy self.

 Miss Breezy Chatterbug is snuggled up with her.  i've seen this again more of late.  she's a fickle cat. i suspect Rio gets more attention until she steps on the cat accidently, then it's all Blossom.  Breezy does snuggle with my other cat, but she's more of a dog cat than a cat's cat.

 have actually bored with watching the actual Oscars of late.  seems too fluffy and ridiculous.  i do enjoy seeing the fashions so for a bit tonight i was watching the fashion police.  i know i should  be mourning the loss of Joan Rivers but i actually enjoyed it more without her.  would be fun to have people attend to you once in your life and get you all prettied up.  it's not a skill i ever acquired. of course, walking around in high heels was not a skill i ever acquired either.

 it's highly doubtful that i will be walking the red carpet anytime soon...never say never.  life can take some strange directions.  one should always take the road less traveled.  i remember that poem being required reading in jr high or high school...i related to it.  liked that i got the smoke from the tires on that landing above.

 of course, Anchorage is a big hub for cargo. the cargo planes tend to be way bigger than the passenger planes (especially this time of year).  even those passenger planes often are actually half cargo.

 on the news they once again mentioned a woman who was kidnapped by ISIS and killed...an American volunteer.  volunteering in these places is a risky business. i'm sure that the many people that were helped by her were grateful to her for taking that personal risk to help them.

 it's on the list of things i would love to do if i were more brave and less of a homebody. maybe not in that region but i'm always impressed by those who dedicate their lives to adventure and the pursuit of helping others.  mostly they do return home and no doubt return home better people for their service.  occasionally, they don't survive.  my heart goes out to her and her family.  i suspect those last days of her life in captivity were less than pleasant.

 on the news they mentioned she may have been sold into marriage or something like this.  i'm always a bit annoyed that these kidnapped women around the world who are forced into "marriage" are referred to as this...married.  marriage is nothing like what is forced upon these women and to call it marriage almost makes it acceptable.  these women are not married, they are sold into slavery.  they become slaves to these men who "marry" them.

 liked this one above as i got the background blurry and the plane clear.  need to practice this for bird shots...spring is coming and with it migratory birds.

 Pt Worzonoff with sleeping lady in the distance.

 i must have stayed out there watching planes for some time.  who knew

 the dark clouds were closer to my place, while the blue skies were emerging over the water.

 turned out to have a beautiful sunset...which i just watched from my room.  then a wee bit of a nap.

 i quite enjoy nap time.

 nobody joined me for the walk today or for coffee.  i was doing some texting at Kaladi's and then my sister called so we chatted.  always fun.

 sunset in the melt in the street...anything can be beautiful.

 getting to the mail was a bit of a swim today.  what a mess the place is.

 as you can see Blossom is oblivious to the less than optimal winter weather.  lots of tennis ball throwing time.

 i'd put her on a leash but soon after this was taken she was off again and romping with her dog chums.

 ice is thin but nobody went through.

 such a sad winter for snow up here...there is always next winter for the snow to fall again.

 stumphenge was also a mess.  water over the ice.

 no moose sighted here either.  moose poop, tracks...but no moose today. where are they hiding?

 my to do list is growing.  tomorrow i'll have to make a greater attempt to get it done.

 i did make a costco run today.  zipped in/out of that place. i think i beat the just getting off of work crowd.

 sun is setting later and later.  tonights was so pretty. wish i'd driven to a more pretty place to watch it...the nap was calling my name though.

 pretty enough from the window though.

 liked the pink light reflecting off the wet streets. i think one neighbor was blasting his frozen driveway with hot water?  not really sure what he was doing.  he had his motorcycles out of the garage so perhaps he's planning on some early riding this year.

 that's my hood.

 better try and get to a few things before i crash for the night.

thankful for:  A.  long chats with friends/family.  phone calls are still enjoyed with the right folks B.  a relaxing afternoon of planes C.  ritz crackers and cheese.  simple and tasty!