three cheers for Pope Francis

 and i'm not even Catholic...but i do like this Pope.  seems so sensible.. he almost makes me want to become Catholic!  came out today asking for action to be taken on climate changes.

 that bald eagle above was looking down at Blossom.  first me, then Blossom.

 this is my favorite tree in Kincaid. can't say as i've seen every tree but so far this one is the winner!!  i take photos of it every time i walk past it.  this is from earlier this month and i returned there today.

 no moose sightings.

 this is the new access trail down to the beach.  much easier. not sure how it will be with ice on it this winter but so far much better.  thank you to the coastal refuge folks....i'm sure they had a hand in this.  Rio has wanted to walk so today i took both dogs for a slow Rio walk down to the beach.

 after we'd walked a bit on the beach i started to head back.  Rio couldn't walk away from that warm soft sand by the trail up and she lay down.  Blossom enjoyed the extra tennis ball time as i just sat down by Rio and let her enjoy the sunshine.  it won't be warm like that for much longer

 the rest of my day was spent in the yard. i know finally...i accomplished a few things.  not the weed whacker yet.  haven't figured out how to start the new machine and haven't found a handy neighbor home to help me.   these are the times when you do wish you had that guy friend around.

 i'm really not all that handy with the power tools.

 i also was able to get the lawn furniture stored for the season and do more yard work.  i also got the full spare off the roof of the car and loaded the winter tires in the car so i'm ready to make an appointment and get those changed over along with whatever else the car should get...there is some sort of recall on the airbag that i can let them fix.  i would love for them to make the front door stay open...and the car is nearly at the 100,000 mile mark!!  that poor element.

 lots of bald eagle activity last time i was out there.  not much today.

 i think another person got mauled by a bear on the kenai.  bit of a rough patch.  they think they got a few shots off on the bear according to the article.  there were two moose hunters out and one got attacked.  of course, i had to comment on the comments about the article. some guy wrote something like, hope he makes a 100% recovery and does well...some idiot commented some nonsense about, who cares if the bear recovers...blah, blah, blah.  so i wrote...i think he is speaking of the poor guy who got attacked and hoping the human makes a recovery.  some other person was blasting fish and game like they were out to kill the bear when the article stated they went looking for the bear to see if it was injured and if it was they would euthanize it.  a half dead animal out there is cruel...the kind thing would be to finish the job.

 if they don't think the bear will likely attack again, they don't go hunt to kill them.  often after investigation it was just that someone surprised the bear or got between a bear and her cubs or a bear and it's cache.

 bears being bears is no reason to kill them.

 didn't take hardly any pictures out there today.  did take a few of Rio laying on the beach.  she really did seem quite happy.

 that dog is quite the trooper!!

 the calendars came in for WARIS.  turned out pretty good.  quality wise. i'd never gone with them for calendars.  we already have a few interested and i'll take one to work this stretch and see if anyone wants to order them.  if i need to buy more i'll get to it.  our new stickers should also be arriving soon.

 haha, just saw a republican congresswomen condemning the Pope for his comments on global warming.  when asked what science she needs to prove global warming she said nothing would convince her...to be so set on your opinion that there is no research that could sway your opinion seems pretty short sighted, but it does show the idiocy of some folks.  holding onto opinions for emotional reasons rather than facts.

 Volkswagen is in a bit of hot water.  what a mess that looks to be.  the CEO resigned,no doubt with a huge pay out. he will probably live well for years.  we really should protect these huge corporations and those fat cats at the top who get crazy salaries and bonuses while screwing the little guy...i mean that whole trickle down economics, right?  makes me nuts...people wonder why we must have regulations and monitor these conglomerates...they lie, they cheat and they are so greedy! how much money do people need to live on.  the salaries of some of these people are insane.

 never tire of bald eagles. they are just beautiful birds, even if they eat dead stuff.

 there was a dead salmon on the beach today.  thankfully my dogs didn't find it..did see a few other dogs biting and rolling on it.  disgusting.

 the colors of fall..

 we walked much further this day than we did today.  walked the other direction i guess.  you can go pretty far, i always enjoy a beach walk and we don't have many beach options in Anchorage.  i'd debating making the drive out to Seward but sleeping and yard work seemed like a good idea.

 haven't really gotten too much done this stretch off, but i have enjoyed some beautiful walks.

 i'd always rather be outside enjoying nature over being inside doing chores.

 it's back to work tomorrow night for me.  doubt the census has dropped all that much.

 love when the grasses turn for the fall.

 Blossom always enjoys the walks.  still some stuff that gets left undone each year...hate saying next year, next year every end of summer.  just saw someone posted they'd done the harding ice field..i'm quite jealous.  :-)  really gotta get over there.  that is the problem with facebook.  before you'd never know how much others are doing and what you are missing out on.  i try to use it as a push to set goals...but it can still be a bummer.  hate to miss out on cool stuff.

 my step count is going up and so i'm back on track...just get the gym added back in again.

 Blossom was coated in mud last trip..not as bad today. though i kept finding sand in my hair.

 wow, i just noticed an aurora forecast in the ADN that didn't say quiet...it always says quiet, but on August 30 it said Active...i even wrote them one day as they had posted an article about how amazing the aurora forecast was for that night and then their little forecast by the weather had again said, quiet.  that happened again the other day.

 temps up in Barrow are down to the 20's with snow and wind coming on regularly. the road we drove on so many times looks to be taking a hit already for the season and just saw a photo of the football field covered in snow.

 i still say that field is pretty small compared to any kind of regulation size field.

 more eagle activity.  one eagle stayed out on the water.  i suspect he had a salmon but was waiting for the tide to clear out more so he could work on it.

 pretty rocks

 feeling the need to turn in for the night . didn't want to go to bed too early since i'm back to the night shift tomorrow night.

 this little pond was totally dry most of the summer.  with our latest rains it has finally filled in a bit.

 i shall head to bed...love me some sleep time

grateful for: A.  the fact that Rio still wants to walk and can.  B.  getting some stuff done...always more but it's good to get a few things checked off the list C.  M&M's.  eating the reds out of the autumn bag.