catch up...then i'm headed to Homer for the night!!

 the other day out on in Kincaid i was hiding behind a tree as this moose passed closely by...this was a picture i took from behind the tree...i can now see the second moose that hadn't been there previously in the background.  haha.  sneaky guy.

 talk about town is how many and how large this years first run of mosquito's are...brutal!!  could be a long summer if these guys continue to flourish.

 this pair was spotted on the way into Kincaid cruising by the side of the road.  moose are like that around these parts

 worked my three nights,all in ACC.  very busy, loads of folks on ventilators.

 ran into a friend from Round Island who was there with her dad...i'll send her an email to check on her dad here before i take off to Homer.

 yes, it's continued to be a warmer than usual spring.  the leaves all started to change yesterday...it generally takes about 24 hours for every tree to go from being bare to fully green...it's nuts really, but always magical to me.  so wondrous to have such a dramatic change...but Alaska never bores, it is often a land of drama...i love that about it here!

 had planned a little get together yesterday morning with a friend who never seems to get out of her home for socializing.  we'd had our hospital wide competency fair and so one old ACC friend was teaching so i worked it out during that class...neglected to note that i was working the night before and had now scheduled myself for a gathering at 10:30 am...silly me.

 i did manage to get myself up and out.  ended up setting alarm and sleeping for 2 hours.  we met, ate, laughed, talked and then she and i took dogs for a little walk on the coastal trail.

 you can see a moose above...trying to remember what trail this was on. hmm... i'm always out walking. it may have been on  this loop around little campbell lake with just blossom.

 another pretty day.

 after my walk yesterday i went ahead and did a sloppy job of staining the back deck.  it seems to get trashed the fastest.  the front deck doesn't look bad.  could be that Rio takes to peeing on the deck itself in the winters...that can't be good for it.

 big hills on that trail around little campbell lake..just a little mud, not bad, especially this time of year.

 a few mini lakes..but could get around those.

 of course, i'm speculating that this lovely spring could mean a wet, wet summer.  we shall see. i'm going to enjoy every day of sunshine i can though.

 i know a few friends are headed out for a day paddle..get out there...that is what most Alaskan's do though.  if it's great weather outside you are out in it.  i got serrano's last night (local food)  and was chatting with the guy who seems to always wait on me.  i directed him to hike out turnigan.  he apparently loves to hike with his friends. should be a great day for it.

 i'm thinking i'll stop and see how things are for that little hike to the glacier on the way to Homer.

 thought i'd toss in a few pictures from this past week to catch up and then shower, load car and i'm off to Homer.  it's the shorebird festival and just always fun to cruise down to Homer.  liked this of my little car...such a great car the Element..still sad they discontinued it.  that just means i now own a classic...at least that is how i'm looking at it....never let her go!!

 that car has been the perfect dog car.  also cruised to University lake one day.  haven't been there for a bit but it looks to be getting safe again...well safer, those beavers are brutal there now.  they've got a reputation for sneaking up on the dogs from under the water, grabbing them by the abdomen and pulling them under.  i would absolutely freak out if a beaver did that to my girl.  no simple walks in the park in Alaska.  there is always a risk involved.

 the beavers are always hard at work on the trees there.

 just this one from my little walk with Val yesterday

 after i stained the deck i took another short nap and then fed the dogs...they couldn't go out on the freshly stained deck so i instead leashed them up for a second walk.

 we walked north on patterson, crossed northern lights and then cruised the hoods to Cheney Lake.  it is melting as well.

 it was a nice day for a second walk.  i was hoping to get a blog in last night, but as i loaded pictures i began to fall asleep at the computer...it was crash time

 not sure what these guys are but they are cool looking.  saw them as we headed back from Cheney and were entering Baxter Bog.  it's a great loop.  sometimes i extend it and do the Baxter Bog loop as well.

 more of my moose encounter in Kincaid.  first moose

 she just opted to cruise right towards me.  they have no fear sometimes, these city moose.

 heart beats a wee bit faster...you can see her ear turned towards me.

 second moose was not as keen on me.  he ended up circling around me and i did the same after he'd circled past me.

 no bear sightings. perhaps she snuck out on me.  i'd much rather see her in her tree than on ground level.

 work was steady.  they've hired a few assistant managers which are causing some drama's.  seems a battle.  it is funny that the one girl's personality was so perfect for her last job here and yet those same personality traits in this new job are a hinderence of sorts.  hopefully it all sorts itself out.  i think we'd all like to think that we can do any job stellar but there are always going to be things we do better than others.  we all have our strengths and our weaknesses...those can totally flip flop depending on the job.  her strengths in her last job are turning out to be weaknesses in this one.  life is strange.

 not a usual sighting below at U-lake.  above is a bald eagle in a well established nest near Kincaid.

 hopefully i get a few closer sightings of sandhill cranes down in Homer today.  these are out at Potters Marsh. have stopped by there a few times as well to check.  this day there were about 6 of them, yesterday none.

 saw just a few of these arctic terns the other day but yesterday the numbers had greatly increased.

 amazing birds in that they travel north from Antarctica every year and then return again in the fall.  i think it's the longest known migration.  that is a long way to fly...they are pretty small birds...love to listen to them and am amazed by their ability to fly such crazy distance twice a year...oh the things they must see.

 above was in Baxter Bog, a few canadian geese.

 more terns and geese.  no snow geese sighted yet....i guess i should toss in my bird book.  it's the shorebird festival in Homer and so i'm hoping that means a few cool migrating birds that aren't usual for the area.

 i'm staying in a dog room near Bishops beach.  Blossom will be so excited to go swimming.  she loves the beach.

 more tern action.

 changed assignments on my third night.  neuro.  i'm cool with neuro.  a lot of nurses here seem to not be comfortable with it.  busy but really easy night. one road trip to the cat scan.  it takes so long to pack up a patient in the icu for a road trip and to unpack after..the actual ct scan takes less than 5 minutes.  seems there should be a better way, but this is what we do.

 he's got a little fish in his mouth...must be hungry after flying so far.  they are establishing their nests.  those babies got to get born and grow up enough to fly to the south pole...human babies really are wimps!!

 that marsh must be rich in food.  it was actually man made marsh when they created the road i think.  it at least increased the water level.

 another shot from cheney lake

 and then a few remnants from my drive to Denali last week.

 the girls at the viewpoint.

 sorry for the rushed entry...gotta get ready for the drive today...i accomplish nothing but i do enjoy my messy, non-productive life.

 somebody's gotta do it, right?

 life just went a different way for me.  i could wallow in self pity because i never got married or had kids, but that would be pointless. instead i chose to enjoy the freedom i have been blessed with.

i better get cracking..enjoy your day!! thankful for 1.  the greening of the trees...always a favorite day in the year.  2.  the return of the migratory birds..their calls fill the air with their beautiful sounds 3.  the Element, my faithful roadtrip car.