dead moose, poop on a tennis ball....

 these are more from the run down to Homer.  debating an overnight to Seward. we shall see if the lady calls me back. too cold to be in tents. snow forecasts are starting to be very common around AK.  not in Seward this week though.

 on my hike the other day i got bit by one of those nasty biting flys/no see ums..never saw it.  felt it bite, reached under my shirt as it nailed me by the belly button.  that thing was swelling up all night at work. i had my co-workers mark it at some point to see if it expanded...what was i bitten by?  i wasn't sure and i did not want to get cellulitis of the naval!!  it seems to be improving and looks more like the usual nasty no see um bites.

 these are from the fire area on the way down.  i stopped and snapped some pictures on the way back as well.

 i can feel soreness and swelling on my upper arm now.  got my first vax for shingles.  got to return in 2 months for the second...that will be that. the theory is that it will help me avoid shingles or make it so that if i do get it my case will be less painful and less severe.  i hear horror stories so I'm keen to not go there.

 in other local news...as i drove home from work the other night there was a dead bull moose laid out in the middle of Tudor.  not sure what hit that poor guy or how the car/truck fared in the encounter.  never good to hit those big moose...careful out there.

 today i managed Conners Bog.  it was blustery and wet out.  but it was pretty decent over there i must say.  found a few old cars that i had never noticed out there so cool for a few photo ops. maybe this week I'll try to load pics to my shutterfly account and then i can start work on my 2020 calendar!

 while we were out there...Miss Ivy Rose took a dump on the tennis ball.  so back to the little lake...which signs state may contain leeches...none sighted.  thankfully, her poop only landed on part of the tennis ball.  silly dogs.  that was decent exercise for them. Ivy occasionally limps a bit...and I'm starting to fear she may have some hip issues.  :-( 

 work was ER-ICU-ER.  really holds everywhere.  moving patients out and getting patients in .

 yesterday was beautiful..i ended up staying home and just tossing the tennis ball for the dogs in the yard as i prepped for  the winter a bit.  patio stuff into shed, the cat run put up.  dog poop pick up...poop is just a part of life....between the dogs, work and my own...haha.  i tell my patients who are embarrassed that i am a poop expert so they needed be concerned. i have handled poop from all kinds of species over my years. dogs, cats, snakes, rhino's, zebra's, birds....you pretty much name it...i have scooped it or done other exciting things with it.  you become somewhat immune. 

 lovely dinner out with a friend tonight...thanks GT!!

 i think there is a fun craft sale this weekend...so i guess if i don't end up going to Seward i can always stop by there and shop.  PFD's came out yesterday.  it was direct deposit. the real checks come out in the next week or so...PFD's in AK come to everyone...sadly, many are utilized to purchase alcohol and heroin...among other things, so often we have a spike in OD's this time of year.  so fun!!

 not much point having discussions with the trumpy folks.  they have given themselves over to the belief of conspiracy theories..those have just a smidgen of truth and lend themselves to be made grander and grander.  my patients were all watching fox news in their rooms...so lucky me.  always funny how all those shows just pander to these theories and brush aside any and all facts that prove these theories to be bogus. 

 if you attempt to have rational conversations with the trump crew you will be taken on a Mr Toads wild ride of fantasy and theories.  these theories will always swing around to But Obama's and But Hillary with the more recent addition of but Biden.

 trumps conspiracy theory buddies in positions and not in positions have been sucked into these theories as well and no longer trust our own FBI/CIA....because of course, they all have been taken over by the deep state...as has anyone from the GOP who dares attempt to speak out against these theories and insanity. 

 if you are not with trump then you are the enemy.  trump is now dabbling in civil war talk..riling up his base in preparation for the possibility he gets impeached or loses the election.  i have already had one co-worker tell me he is well armed and ready for civil war...not sure he realizes that in this civil war he kills me as the liberal enemy...my family would i guess then be  duty bound to take down liberals as well. 

 not sure they all realize what it means to start a civil war...killing your own fellow citizens because you have determined they and their opinions are not worthy of being a part of the conversation. you have determined that your way is the only way and illegal or not you will not be deterred in your goal of succeeding at all costs.  many looked the other way as Rus helped Trump to victory in  2016 because, in their minds, it was better to work with Rus to win  than risk having Hillary win.  now they seem to accept that having the electoral college and the vote of the various factions of white supremacy will not be enough to win...they will need dirt on Biden and other Dem candidates and help from other nations to get it.

 he stood in front of the cameras and like he did with Rus before and Ukraine on his call, asked now China to help.  many phone calls have been squirreled away in super secret computer servers...but hopefully those will come to light soon.  it seems he's been making deals to benefit himself all over the globe and sending his most loyal stooges to do his dirty work.  they can go to jail even if he can't.

 pompeo is trying to prevent witness testimony but some are testifying and there is another potential whistle blower.

 some interesting text messages...also trump was stating there is a word for word transcript of his call...and no doubt many others.  the blurb they handed over was damaging enough, can't wait to read what was in the real conversation. 

 never a big fan of the Clintons but at least they had the guts to testify.  i mean they grilled her about Benghazi for like 12 hours and got nothing damming out of it. they know they can't put trump up there, he'd love going after all his perceived enemies and would no doubt confess to all he's done and more because he seems to feel invincible.  of course, those crazy GOP fools would just look the other way at it all.  make excuses, pretend there is nothing to see, go back into the what aboutisms. 

 i don't see many if any, backing off of all these conspiracy theories.  they believe this shit. 

 the texts, the whistle blowers concerns, the call transcript, even as incomplete as it is, the iitoo own words...these are all the semen on the blue dress.

 i mean it was the GOP who set the bar so low on what is to be determined to be high crimes and misdemeanors.  they impeached a man for sex and a lie.  historically, that already looks petty and foolish.  but now they act like nothing this iitoo does rises to the level of impeachment...after they impeached a man for sex in the oval office which he lied about...amazing!!  really?!?  you can't imagine that this man has done anything wrong?  step away from the rabid conspiracy theories for a few minutes.  stop thinking about how much you loathe Hillary and Obama and Liberals...look at the facts...not the stuff in any of the media.  read the report, read the texts, read the blurb about the phone calls...it's all there.  you do not need a quid pro quo directly in order to find him to have abused his power in office. 

 not going to happen though.  they are so immersed in these fantasy tales that they will probably never be able to separate fact from fantasy.

 30 JBER paratroopers were injured while training in Mississippi.  they went off course i think into trees.  took some time to extricate them from the trees i guess.  no life threatening injuries which is good though. 

 Pence is now starting to get muddied into this mess.  trump will turn on everyone he sees as a threat to save himself.  i doubt even his kids are safe from him. 

 wouldn't it be hilarious if trump and pence got bumped and Pelosi ended up sitting in the oval office.  that would serve those GOP thugs well.  haha.

 there have been lots of jelly fish sighted over Seward way which is why i kind of want to go there and check it out.  don't pick them up folks..they can't kill you but they can irritate you.

 pups enjoyed playing in those bigger waves on the Kenai

 i feel like i have a bit of a fever..it's the reaction to the vaccine I'm sure. no fever, i just checked.  i still have to get my flu shot.  will give this a week to settle in...always think of all those shots those poor babies get. my sisters grand baby is home at last...keep them in your thoughts as I'm sure being new parents to a child with some extra needs is very exhausting and stressful.  i know they are thrilled to have her home though. 

 the last of the Nikiski beach and a few views from the viewpoint heading into Homer

 Augustine

 Redoubt or Illiamna?  not sure.

 there are three volcano's that can be seen from the beaches.

 the light was hitting the spit the the wind was blowing the spray off the waves so i thought those pictures were cool looking.

 Alaskan GOP has opted to not have a presidential primary...from some of the letters to the editors there are a few out there who are not very happy with this decision.  i don't believe this is a huge breach in usual behavior but with an impeachment looming it may be good to give the voters the option to select another...even as a write in candidate. 

 China leadership was happy to bow out from the request by trump to assist with the election...in hopes that he will bow out in their dealings with Hong Kong....our weak, narcissist potus had never spoken out for Beijing. 

 so the US is no longer interested in being supportive of Democracy around the globe.  the right only wants to help the right...not really comprehending that when the world becomes more unstable we will be swept into it. 

 the strange case of the Texas officer who entered the wrong apartment while off duty and killed a man sitting on his couch eating ice cream is over.  she was charged.  the whole thing just seems strange. i mean i have worked night shift for decades and i have never entered the wrong house. i once drove down a wrong road but i figured it out pretty quickly. 

 things just didn't seem to add up.  highly doubt that once inside it wouldn't become crystal clear that the furnishings did not match her own.  wouldn't you assess the situation before just shooting.  back out, get back up....anything.  did the ice cream look like a loaded weapon?  it's all just so odd.  his brother was kind enough to give her a hug and forgiveness. she clearly did not have the steely temperament to be a cop or carry a gun really.  it's a sad story on all sides, but still, when you have a gun you have the duty to know how and when to use it. 

 sunset from Bishops beach.

 voting in other parts of the state..in Bethel you can only get alcohol at eating establishments...but you can smoke pot.  that is Alaska.  though in my many years of nursing i have seen far worse things happen around alcohol than pot.  Utqiagvik (Barrow) voted down a tax on soda.  kids up there are often raised drinking more soda than other stuff.  cheaper and clean i think but really does a number on the teeth of all the kids. they refused a ban on plastic bags as did Sitka but Homer and Houston will go plastic bag free like Anchorage just did. 

 everyone is still adapting to the bag thing. i know it's annoyed some but we will survive, we can adapt...though in truth one of the reasons we are having such division in our nation is that some people truly do have a difficult time adapting to change i think. 

 through all this many speak of wanting to go back to the old days...of course, if you really look at the old days they weren't so great for a large segment of the population.  many women, people of color, gays....

 for an administration that screams over and over that all these investigations are a witch hunt and nothing burger and hoax and fake news...they are the most cagey and obstructive about handing over documents or being willing to testify or allow anyone else to testify.  seems you would only be this obsequious if you were actually concerned about the truth.

 saw planes taking off again over the water as i left Conners Bog....so excited!!  it will be so much quieter.

 trumps "i would like you to do us a favor though" is often misquoted to skip the vital though.  the blurb of the transcript, while just a synopsis, is an easy read..it should be read.  don't let others do your thinking for you folks!!

 NK continues to test new missiles and improve their programs...for all the pomp and circumstances of the trump visit, he gave the guy what he wanted and got us nothing. 

 Bernie had a heart attack the other day.  he was released today i think.  that is never good for a campaign though.  Cheney is still kicking though so you never know, right? well i have rambled and i am tired so i shall crash for the night. 

thankful A.  that there was  a break in the rain and wind enough for our walk today.  B.  dinner out with a friend  C.  that i missed feeling the 5.0 quake this morning as i left work early...suspect i may have been in my car?  not sure.