work is hell some days...

 today was lovely however. I am off. took a vacation day so I could do a bit of winter adventuring.  the Iditarod is a good thing to use as an excuse.

 got some stuff done at home...sleep being one of those things.  then met a friend at the Dimond Mall.  one of my favorite Fur Rondy activity is the Native Crafts Fair at the mall.  the artists tend to come in from the various villages and work on art as they sit at tables selling their wares.  there is some beautiful art pieces there and often you can find a bargain.  above is a kupsuk.  these are commonly worn by Natives and though the basic design is the same, they seem to love to vary up the materials and such. 

 this seems a more Southeast Alaska design but I believe the artist lives North.  so fun to talk to them about their at and hear all the details that go in to each piece.  I am always hoping my friend Carla comes up during this one day as I suspect she would have an amazing time just chatting for hours with all these great folks.

 the car is reaching maximum dirt...so rather than clean it, I am using it for walrus advertising.  nothing beats free and biodegradable walrus messages. 

 only 2 nights of work.  my first night was pretty frustrating. as I drive to work I always say a little prayer...you know be patient and don't kill anyone.  that is the gist of it anyway.  I really needed the be patient part.  patience is not always my best characteristic.  I can become frustrated.

 often as a nurse you end up being on the receiving end of all the emotions of a stranger.  maybe they are frustrated or they are grasping that themselves or a loved one isn't going to survive.  whatever it is...as a nurse or other healthcare worker you may find yourself to be bombarded by an emotional firestorm. 

 sometimes people yell, or get extremely needy.  this night my patient was on the call light nearly constantly.  there was no pleasing this person.  they want you there in their room constantly but they want this and they want that.  do this, do that...they honestly have no idea what it is they actually want so there is not way you are going to please them .

 a few from the Monday walk are scattered in here.  below is a blanket...most definitely Southeast Alaska design.

 anyway, this patient was pushing me to the brink of my ability to deal with her.  I tend to just get quiet...if you can't say anything nice, shut the hell up, right?  she wanted the Dr called, she wanted the Peat nurse called, she wanted the Charge nurse...the call light went off within seconds of any of us leaving the room. the call light went off when we were in the room.  we contacted the Pastoral care in hopes having someone there would help...at one point she screamed out that she was calling 9-1-1...and she did. 

 this is not as rare as you would think.  patients do misuse the 9-1-1 number on a fairly regular basis.  it's always so annoying though.  I know at one point I just told her I was trying my hardest to be kind and patient but she was making it nearly impossible.  it was exhausting...you are rarely so happy as when a night like that ends. 

 this boat is made from Baleen. 

 I'm sure that this person, this patient, is normally a fairly nice person.  we are all imperfect and I believe we are all capable of pretty heinous behavior given different scenario's.  I just try to take it for my 12 hours and then find ways to let it go.  nature and walking, swimming, reading, vegging out...so many tactics.  you really need to have a lot of stress relieving coping skills in life. 

 there are always some imaginative art pieces.  there are the usual pieces and then there are those where people are so creative.  it's cool.  above were these little mushroom pieces.  I didn't really buy anything today...but these above and below were tempting as far as less spendy options.  just loved the use of the variety of items.  some are ivory or teeth and walrus whiskers are the stems of the mushrooms. 

 handed my card to one artist and she asked me if I was against hunting of the walrus.  can't say as I love the idea, but I am not against subsistence hunting.  as long as people use what they take and don't take more than they'll use I'm accepting of hunts.  no doubt much healthier to eat meat from the wild than from some of the feed lots.  the animals have a better life as well. 

 it was impressive to see how the artists today made use of so many of the other parts of the walrus.  we also discussed poaching....of course we were both opposed to this.  she did say the rumors around the villages is that the recent poaching of 25 walrus at Cape Lisbourne was Native.  I'm sure this angers many in those communities as well as it could reflect poorly on them and put their native hunt at risk.  they love walrus meat and hate to see it wasted in this manner. 

 she said she puts walrus meat in the crock pot with garlic and other spices for 12 hours before she eats it.  below are gloves.  I think she was asking $650 for the pair.  the white fur is polar bear and I can't remember for sure but I believe the other dark fur was probably otter. 

 she was speaking about how the polar bear furs they have seen these past few years have been very poor quality because the animals are not healthy.  it seems many blame this on the nuclear disaster in Japan after their quake/tsunami.  she felt the animals are impacted by this. 

 above was sunset as I headed to work the first night. the second night I was in the ER and it really wasn't a bad night.

 lots of kids with respiratory bugs so hopefully I don't end up sick when I'm in Fairbanks next week. 

 above are some well crafted Baleen baskets.  tight, even.  you can see the price on one is $425.  there was another one I was tempted to buy.  he said he was willing to take off $25.  could probably barter more if I went tomorrow.  I'm thinking of driving out to Seward for the day.  could be fun.  feeling like spring.

 L and Speedy from Monday.  so cute.

 the rest are from my walk with Blossom today and the sunset after.

 the Bird-Gird bike/walk trail has appeared to be totally dry and ice free so I figured I'd head out there. I guess there is a section that is blocked off due to avalanche or rockslide.  I didn't get that far so not sure.  but otherwise clear.

 pretty day as you can see. 

 they brought snow in from Fairbanks by train for the Iditarod ceremonial start on Saturday.  they are only going to run the teams like 3 miles, they usually go 12 in town.  these low snow years are wrecking havoc with this race. 

 I enjoy the Iditarod and follow it.  I do understand there are negatives and at times I do have some internal battles over it all.  I try to just focus on the immediate race and fun of the event and forget some of the issues.  what issues...dog deaths is always a concern.  not just during the race, but many folks ditch dogs after racing season, not just Iditarod but mushing in general. often folks end up with more dogs than they should or could take care of.  also there is breeding of dogs that later get ditched. 

 I try not to condemn an entire sport because of the irresponsible and uncaring people who crop up everywhere. there are also many excellent kennels that are responsible and caring.  I'd rather take on the individuals in life rather than keep making more rules that everyone must follow despite only a few who really are the issue.   I am often annoyed by these blanket changes at work or in society because of a few idiots.

 great little story out of a small village Kwethluk last week.  the kids marched in the streets with signs of protest against drugs and alcohol.  some of the kids had attended a "lead on" conference and this inspired them to take action in their village.  you can make a difference!! great kids...good luck to them!!

 guess we have decent snow pack in the mountains, it's just down low that is not great. though looking at our Chucagh range by my house..the snow looks pretty sparse.

 super Tuesday happened.  was happy that Alaska didn't put a certain Drumpf candidate on top.  so many lousy choices...I try not to focus on it all to much. it's just too frightening, depressing and frustrating.  I will vote my conscience and leave it in Gods hands...and the electorate.  the ground is shaking and our constitution and government will just have to weather on.  we shall see how it all holds up in the end. will parties fall and be rebuilt? 

 there was a little forest service cabin tucked away on this trail it looks like. I've heard of one being there but haven't seen it.  seems like this may be a good year to check into It for an overnight.  close to home, could be fun.  anyone know about it?

 there was a few parts next to trail that had some ice.  thought the ice looked pretty cool.  of course, Blossom went right at it, jumping on it to break it through and have a soak in these puddles/tiny creeks.  she was thrilled

 the broken ice was pretty.

 NPR tends to be on when I'm driving.  for a bit I was listening to a story about pregnant women in Japan.  they tend to lose their jobs as soon as they get pregnant.  didn't sound like maternity leave happens much.  they are trying to get more dialogue going and improve these work related womens issues.  you tend to assume this sort of stuff has been worked out in most industrial nations but I guess it's still an ongoing battle for many women. 

 Scott Kelly has safely returned from being in space for 1 year.  I'd for sure go stir crazy being in that small space.  there does seem to be some renewing interest in all things space.  hopefully, the next generation will have increased opportunities for exploration and adventure.  I've never liked how the space programs have been cut.  spendy, I realize, but I think we should always dare to be dreamers and exploring space is the ultimate dream, right?

 it appears a moose was poached in Anchorage recently.  gun fire was heard and then a dead moose was found.  hope they catch these perpetrators.  so annoying.  thankfully, the meat was able to be salvaged. 

 a few spots on the trail with some frost.  always looks pretty on the veins of the leaves I think.

 bigger creek that I crossed over.  my lens is a bit dirty.

 lots of views through the trees. 

 sun is staying out later.  this is a sweet time of year as far as that goes.

 looking at Fairbanks weather for next week . looks like it's cooling. that means also it looks like clear skies.  not sure about the aurora forecast.  not great at this point I don't think, but at least the temps forecasted are 0-25 degrees so that is reasonable. may try to get the oil changed in the morning before I head to Seward just so that is done.  more caution is required when doing road trips in the winter.

 some nice black and whites today. 

 hmm...Seward looks like it has snow in the forecast.  that may alter my plans.  we shall see.  it could be totally different by morning. 

 no clouds out there as I drove back home.  enjoyed the sunset though.

 train tracks

 the light faded rapidly on the mountains

 beautiful color though. 

 I stayed for the meeting after work. I don't think I clocked back out again.  they are making us make corrections.  it's all very complicated. I have little faith in corporations and I tend to find myself believing they make these things purposely confusing so they can save themselves money when people just give up trying to figure it all out. 

 Mt Redoubt appeared to be smoking a wee bit. it's an active volcano. you do see smoke coming from it on occasion.  it's erupted once since I've lived up in Anchorage. 

Thankful for: 1. barely having enough patience, but having enough to not throttle my patient 2. that the next night at work was much better 3. having many stress relieving coping skills...blogging being one of those.  night.