Let there be light, and there was light…. except in the far reaches of life on the Agulowak. I have had one visible sunset in what would seem a six week accumulation of sunsets. The other night as our daily storm blew off into the horizon with the setting sun, I saw something just shy of a miracle. It was color. Suddenly the depth of darkness only known to myself and living organisms at the bottom of Marianas Trench was shattered by rays of ultra violet, vitamin d saturated, cancer causing glorious sunlight. Is that an exaggeration? Not much. A run on sentence perhaps.
Life in Alaska this winter is no more frigid than tropical. Variance's in weather are drastic and damaging to my fragile state of mind and to the summer watershed for the upcoming salmon runs of the prized Bristol Bay. But for myself, I can't quite make plans a day in advance due to the uncertainty of the elements. Horrendous winds have beaten my little cabin without mercy or avail for days. Shaking walls and flexing windows have my nerves on edge for the imminent crashing of a tall spruce tree that is perched on the hill towering over my rooftop. Computers rattling on the table, my cup of water vibrates true to the example given from a the great film Jurassic Park. The scare comes from a two thousand pound tree crushing my roof, not the man eating jaws of a breach in bioethics of cloning gone awry. So sleep has been peaceful when it happens, but the volume on my iPod can't even drown out the worst of the wind gusts. I'm alive.
Cooking hasn't been spectacular by any means, for the good or bad. Arguments with solid evidence could be made for the negative. I've made some nice soups and a few desserts with the added twist of a massive breakfast here and there. Despite weather's best intentions to keep me down, my appetite is thriving like never before. I've adopted the act of having two breakfasts daily, a more carb rich lunch and my usual protein enriched dinner with a very persistent sweet tooth to follow. Portion control is something I know nothing of and I don't care to learn. We all have goals. We all have pleasures. Mine is gluttony in food and given the deprivation of almost everything else in the world right now, my embracing actions with food intake are safely one hundred percent justifiable. No one is here to speak against me.
The two foxes are here some days and gone the next. They visit the neighbors down the on the lower lake and my only thought is that they are trying to work off all the good feeding they receive. Salmon, steak, turkey, salami, sausage… who would say no? I've even satisfied their sweet tooth with a graham cracker now and then. Maybe a piece of chocolate too.
There are several moose still in the area and they wreak havoc on my trails with the post hole sized foot print they leave times four for every moose. It is real hazard for walking around and twisting an ankle. It happens to be two sided that when you twist your ankle, its already in ice so there's no need to move.
More wood on the fire is needed for light, tea to follow for warmth-
