always enjoy the beach...i know there are more access spots i need to find

 thankfully, the ice changes every day.  you just never know what you will find out there.  low tide was at noon so it was a good time for me to head there.

 figured I'd hit the conservation center after but i need to check their hours.  always odd in the winter.  did do a little drive down the arm again.  no sheep today.  nice sunset though.

 lots of melting ice and bridges to shoot through which always makes me happy.

 the dogs, of course, are always happy as long as the tennis ball is in play.  they were sufficiently run out...though i never really totally wipe them out.

 they are entertaining to hang out with.

 more sunset at a later date...this is a preview.  quite brilliant as far as the colors go.

 snapped a few in black and white as well.

 got a few things accomplished when i got home.  have wanted to clear the ash from the fireplace and clean out the dryer vent with the vacuum.  still want to figure out how the front comes off so i can clean out below the drum. 

 i never run any of this stuff when I'm not going to be home but dryers cause a lot of fires.  my mom taught us great fire safety as she was always a bit paranoid about fire.  her nose was always sniffing something out.  it may be she got that from her father.  the story she had told me was that when her Dad was a kid they had lost their sister to a fire.  sounded like it was pretty horrific. 

 the vacuum got a decent work out.  trash and recycling got put out.  not much trash but a full recycling bin so that is how it should be i guess.  my newer neighbor adds some in as i told her to...like to encourage everyone to recycle. 

 one shift change i had a used can on the desk and the girl i was giving report to grabbed it to toss in the garbage...so i just said, "oh, I'm going to take that to the recycle bin after report" she replied, "i don't believe in recycling".  i was a bit astonished....i just responded that "recycling is not a religion, it's not something you believe in or not it's something you do or don't do". 

 so strange...it's like many on the religious right feel global warming is a religious cause that they don't believe in...it's not a religion.  it's based on research, facts, oral history, measurements...you can ignore it or not.  the only thing there that is really up for question is the level that humans negatively impact the warming/heating process and what can or should be done about it.

 maybe this woman felt that if she recycled she was somehow supporting the libtards and snowflakes, therefore she wanted nothing to do with it. who knows.  seemed pretty silly to me.

 Ivy climbed on the ice berg...Tusker was just waiting for the tennis ball to get thrown.

 after the walk they were ready for the drive.  they are pretty chill overall..though Ivy can make you not believe that.  my jumper continues to make the random leap. 

 the judiciary is still working it seems...despite iitoo trashing this branch of our government every chance he gets.  suspect he had minimal knowledge as he took office of how our nation functions and how the power is not all in his hands.  sadly the legislative branch has proven less than effective in the division of power idea.  so many there are suck ups to this iitoo or Rus has something on them or they are just weak.  Rus hacked into the DNC and the GOP...who knows what they have on the other guys that has yet to be released.

 anyway, the dreamers/DACA are safe for the moment.  a federal judge stopped iitoo from ending their protections. 

 the ice is fun to meander around. always full of little surprises.

 the sky was pretty as well.  nice to wake to more clear skies

 clouds always give it some depth.  much better than the rain yesterday.

Ivy is on ice as well.  there are just chunks of ice around her.

 it looks like a puddle but it's still frozen.

 though there was dripping heard at times.  not enough that i could get those fun icicle shots i sometimes get. i do need to wander down Kincaid to the beach one of these days.

 Woronzof was a bust last time as there were so many bergs shoved high up on the beach and it made walking tough.

 Tusker, ever the handsome boy.

 they are getting to be good posers...required for all dogs in this household.

 such cute pups.  both are sleeping right now.

 Puerto Rico is still having troubles.  amazingly this is impacting hospitals across our nation, mine included. fluid bags are one of many things that are manufactured in Puerto Rico, a shortage exists at this time. they are offline and many products are just not available.  our nations response has been a failure to our citizens in Puerto Rico.

 was watching a program that was interviewing Bush about the time right after 9-1-1. i can't say that i was always a huge fan of his but he gave a great speech right after this happened to the nation, he said the right things when he visited ground zero.  he was able to unite this nation after this event...I'm not sure out current iitoo has any ability at all. he can't seem to handle day to day life in the oval office let alone the events that come along unexpectedly.  he is negative, he is mean, he is a bully...

 Bush was able to transcend the politics in those days.  he was able to say the right words to comfort all.  this iitoo does everything for his base and nothing for anyone else.  he is petty and seems to favor those states whom gave him the electoral votes and got him in office and resents entire states that didn't.  it's petty and undignified.  it's also counter productive.

 every so often you find a fairly clear ice berg...most are so mixed with mud that they are pretty dark appearing.

 the pardoned Arpaio will run for senate...what a joke.  he was on a news broadcast, professing his 100% support for the iitoo.  not sure it would be wise for someone who was pardoned and thus owes this potus to be placed in such a position. hopefully the folks in Arizona do not move him through.

 gotta fill out my PFD online...it's that time.  don't want to miss out on that cash. 

 you can see that ivy got into my shot...that happens a lot, haha.  below is the clean shot.

 35 homicides in Anchorage in 2017..we had our first of 2018  by 0015 on Jan 1st.  nice, right?  mostly it seems to be drug/alcohol related or love...love seems to turn to hate pretty fast sadly...lots of domestic violence as well.

 the baby beluga remains at the SeaLife center. so far it seems the little guy is doing well.  i think they still hope to release him back into the wild at some point.  Beluga's are endangered, especially in the Cook Inlet group. they aren't sure if this will be possible though. 

 Sears stores are closing, Sams Clubs are closing...is this all the winning the iitoo was talking about.  will be interesting to see how he and the GOP spin these things.  the coal jobs aren't returning and the company that he said he would save the jobs of just announced lay offs. 

 international flights are occasionally diverted to Anchorage for medical issues....most recently a guy must have gone nuts and he smeared his crap all over the bathrooms on the plane.

 after the tennis ball has been chased many times, Ivy often lays in wait.  as soon as poor Tusker starts to make a run for it, she attacks.  it looks pretty vicious.  poor Tusker, he just wants to get the ball, but there she is. haha.  he puts up with a lot from his sister.  he seems to like her all the same.  dogs are forgiving .

 all smiles after the row.

 getting siblings was pretty exhausting that first year, even for this dog lover.  now though, I'm pretty happy with having them both.  may be tough years down the road when their time on earth comes to a close.  for now, they are great buddies and work out much of the energy on each other.

 Ivy with the ball.

 loved this shot with her ears flying high.

thankful for A.  Sunday drives  B.  cool ice on beach  C.  warm slippers