the Bus...well not really "The" bus...a bus.

 finishing up the last of my Valdez trip and starting on the flowers.  lots of flowers and then i can catch up with all the day to day fun of my life...hikes and day trips.  always fun.  gotta enjoy every bit of summer this place has to offer...soon it will be mushrooms and then the dark and cold will settle in again...

 but lets not think of that yet.  Barrow is all set up except the dog care...that is generally the most stressful part of planning any trips.  will see if shell will take Rio and then look for someone for the rest of the crew.  fingers crossed.

 at least i took these flowers in color and not black and white.  hehe.  below is lupine

 and i now know this is Eskimo Potato.  it wasn't to be capitalized.  not that am always good at doing that.  today, after a late start, i did make my way to Seward eventually.  it's more about the drive then the actual destination though the dogs both do love the beach there.

 the weather here was clearing but it was raining off and on in Seward, more on than off.  i actually enjoy the rain once i'm in it.  we stopped in Girdwood to walk on the way out this time.  just a change.  we did the Cross Pass side of Winner Creek.  it's more of a raging river than a creek, but it's all relative up here.

 some kids were "terrified of dogs" or so their parents said.  my dogs were on leash anyway and very well behaved.  i pulled to the side so they could pass and the one kid started freaking out.  a bit silly reaction.  i mentioned that the dog was blind and couldn't even see her so there really wasn't anything to be concerned of.  she finally passed uneventfully.

 a glimpse of the pipeline a few up and then mostly just pretty clouds on the drive back.  i love clouds.

 after the walk, we cruised to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.  i think i got that wrong. anyway.  saw the baby moose which was mostly my goal.  the baby deer and musk ox seemed to be off and away so didn't get a good look at them.  it was feeding time for the bears though so i was there anyway.

 in Seward i went to the Sealife center.  asked if the person who runs it was still there but i think i was too late.  one of these days perhaps we'll meet.  anyway...i enjoyed a stroll through and then headed off to walk with the dogs at Lowell Point.  tide was going out.  there was an otter out feeding and a cormorant...so plenty to entertain us.  then we drove out to Exit Glacier.  the rangers were just packing up to leave...no dogs allowed...probably could walk them there after the rangers left though.  that is after 8 if i remember right

 then back home.  stopped at the pipe for water fills on the way home...also and more importantly. they have replaced the pipe recently so i added a WARIS sticker to it.  got to represent!!

 my brother posted an interesting piece on marriage..for those who believe it's this institution that has remained steadfast for generations.  a few fb friends seem to be just posting all sorts of religious stuff to express their disdain over the Supreme Court ruling.

 anyway it was interesting to read all the major changes that have occurred or partially occurred.  marriage still means different things to different cultures. polygamy still occurs, marriages were apparently initially civil only and then religions got into it.  marriages were and still are in some cases arranged (imposed vs consensual).  marriage been dissoluble has varied. can one divorce or not. in many times/cultures the "wife" was simply property.  most recently womens role has commonly changed from being a dependent and subservient to being that of an equal partner.  not sure i remembered all the variables but just another take on everything being discussed this week.

 on to the flowers....this is a book by Verna Pratt, below signing autographs.

 these are flowers...this may be a close up of an Eskimo Potato...pressure is on now!!

 not going to  be an expert after a weekend. pretty flowers though. :-)  i know more than i did before.  it's at least something to build on.

 getting taught by the master!!  Verna is a self taught botanist.  this actually was nice for me.  she seemed to accept that not everyone has the patience or interest in memorizing all the scientific names.  i think she was just happy to be able to get more people interesting in looking at the flowers around them and not just the big animals and tall mountains.

 in the end i created a word....pratteling.  the act of going for a walk to look for wildflowers.  it's a work in progress, spelling not set in stone, but i think it's catchy!!

 yellow spotted saxifrage. these are just cute!!

 watched a few ted talks this morning as i tried to rouse myself.  one was by President Jimmy Carter.  he was speaking on women,  abuse and lack of equality.  ultimately he encouraged women, like us, who live in better circumstances than a great deal of the other women across the globe, to be the ones who stand up for the other women.  he said ultimately the men don't care, they are enjoying their status as men.

 he also spoke briefly about all the wars the US gets involved with.  drones, bombs, arms...he mentioned there were only 4 years where we weren't involved in a war...a chuckle arose from the audience.

 we are here at Polychrome exploring the flowers.

 we also saw several types of willows....when in doubt, it's a willow..there are apparently over 50 of those.

 the other ted talks was about building with bamboo, a sustainable product. fairly tough..except that the bugs can get it, sounds like.  some pretty amazing buildings being built in Indonesia. they wouldn't hold up to an Alaska winter.  great for free flow of air.

 on the drive today on NPR before i lost radio contact.  they were talking about how our jails are filling with those who are mentally ill.  it's a travesty really. jails are just meant to be holding places until people are convicted or released and yet they are more often becoming psych units. there just aren't the options for the mentally ill in our nation.

 this one guy who runs jails in Chicago i think he said was saying he trains his people now to deal with the mentally ill so that they are getting more of the treatment they need in the way it is needed.  it's just different than dealing with a standard criminal. it is pretty sad.  a very small percentage of our jails in this nation do this sort of training and yet they are all dealing with this population.

 flower, flower, view!!

 i think this is a moss gentian.

 the purple one above is siberian aster.

 of course the blue one is forget me nots...which are so cute who could forget them!!

 the yellow flowers, mustard? and below asters

 there are lots of tiny white flowers.  alaska starwort??  not sure at all.  where are you Verna?  haha.

 see more tiny white flowers.  spring beauty?  another guess.

 i enjoy photographing them...just like the mushrooms even if i'm not entirely sure of their names. i have a hard time remember my co-workers names and i see them all the time.  how can i be expected to remember flowers names too!!

 Rio did great today.  we walked slow.  she was excited about the ocean and i had to keep her from going in and drinking the water.  was happy though that she was back to jumping into the car on her own with just encouragement from me.  4 weeks post op and that dog is kicking it!!

 rocks and tiny white flowers.

 polychrome pass with the amazing views in the distance.

 a type of spring beauty?  oh dear...i think you can claim hybrid if you aren't sure too...that should work.

 these look like harebells starting to bloom.

 and on that note...i shall begin the process of crashing for the night.  i'm tired.

 these are blue bells.

thankful for: A.  safe driving with pups  B, more cute baby sightings C.  rain, we do need it