Odds and Ends

Our lettuce pot provides us with fresh salads all summer long!

Mike and I have been busy with work and school, but we have managed to plan some fun trips and excursions this summer. However, we have also been busy with gardening. Mike also built a fire pit in the back yard. While we are having a fire, we watch our backyard squirrel, Rusty, climb trees and eat bird seed. Below are some pictures of the summer fun we have at home.

If the weather doesn't warm up, our tomatoes may not produce.

Since the weather has been cool, the broccoli and arugula are growing!

Rusty, our backyard squirrel, loves to eat the
seed we put out for the birds.

Mike waters the flowers out in front of the house.

The violas are blooming and are looking beautiful!

I'm not sure what this flower is (I can't remember), but it's pretty!

I love the colors!

Mike built a fire pit a few weeks ago.

We gathered river rocks on one of our camping trips to put around it.

On cools nights, Mike will build a fire.

We will sit outside, stay warm and fight off the mosquitoes!

Midnight Sun Festival

Mike and I went to the Midnight Sun Festival in downtown Fairbanks today. The festival celebrates the summer solstice and the 24 hours of daylight we are now receiving. The festival will go to until midnight tonight. However, we left by 6:00 p.m. After walking the Sun Run last night, Mike and I did not have the energy to stay more than a couple of hours. However, we did see a lot of fun stuff and had some great popcorn!

Mike takes his kettle corn VERY seriously!

The Chena River runs through downtown.

The river offers all sorts of fun,

such as this floating whatever it is.

It took me almost all day to complete this.

You cannot imagine how many colors of chalk it takes to pull this off.
Just kidding! The artist did a great job.

Some cities have mechanical bulls,

we in Fairbanks have mechanical salmon!

It was so hot today that Mike and I

went to Starbucks for an icy drink.

See! I told you it was hot!

Midnight Sun Run 2011

Well, the 2011 Midnight Sun Run has come and gone. It doesn't seem like it was a year ago that the entire Fairbanks area was walking the 10k (6.2 miles) from UAF to Pioneer Park. Mike and I walked it tonight in 1 hour, 31 minutes and 35 seconds. That is 2 minutes longer than our time from two years ago and 16 minutes faster than last year.

One of my students, her little sister and her mom met us up there. Kyra and Chloe ran the race and finished just under 1 hour and 17 minutes. Yes, we were beat by a 12 and a 9 year old!

Tomorrow is the Midnight Sun Festival in downtown Fairbanks and Tuesday is the Midnight Baseball game on the actual summer solstice. The sun will set at 12:48 a.m. and rise at 2:58 a.m. That is a total of over 22 hours of daylight. However, it never gets dark. The down side is that on June 22nd we will start loosing daylight. It will spiral until December 21st. Okay, let's not dwell on that.

Enjoy the pictures and wish you were here to walk with us!

It may be blurry, but it's our time!

Prior to the race, Mike and I had lots of energy.

Kyra and Chloe finished faster than Mike and me!

This soldier is running with a full pack.

He finished ahead of Mike and me, as well!

The fireman is running/walking in full gear!

Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head make an appearance.

They finished the race right after us!

I'm not sure if Pac Man made it to the finish line.

Maybe he was eaten by the goblin!

Moose Creek Walk

Mike and I went on a nice, long walk down at Moose Creek this afternoon. We found lots of flowers and even more mosquitos!

Mike picked this Arctic Lupine for me and

I wore it the entire walk. At the end, I threw it away.

The path was well marked with mosquitoes.

If I had a dollar for every mosquito bite.....

If you are allergic to cottonwood,

you're probably miserable at this very moment.

Wild irises are everywhere!

Mike and I found this fuzzy insect flying around.

It looks like a cross between a hummingbird and a honey bee. Mike thinks it's a humming-bee

Turns out that it is a Moth! a Clearwing Moth,

sometimes call a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth.

More Chicken or Bust Pictures

Please see the post below for the rest of the story and pictures. These were ones I had forgotten to post. Mike really wanted his moose antlers posted ;-)

Moosey Mike

Moosey Kristie

Chicken or Bust!!!!

Facts about Chicken that will help you sleep.

The Chicken Depot is open and ready for business.

Chicken or Bust!

Mike and I had a beautiful weekend in Chicken, Alaska (270 miles from NP) with Bob and Carla. We drove to Tok on Friday and had dinner at Fast Eddy's. We stayed at a lovely bed and breakfast called The Cleft of the Rock.

On Saturday, we drove to Chicken for their annual Chickenstock Bluegrass Festival. The population of Chicken is 15. On Saturday for the festival there were probably 200 people. So the size of the town increased by 13 times! There is no telephone service or electricity in Chicken. In fact, one store (there are only 3) boasted of having the first flushing toilets in the community. The cost of gas in Chicken is $4.57.

Chickenstock 2011 featured a host of Bluegrass bands, some bad and some good. The four of us had such a good time and were exposed to a lot of local color and culture. It was well worth the six hour drive

Fast Eddy's is the best place to eat in Tok,

not to mention just about the only place.

This Canadian Swallowtail was within the US borders
with absolutely no proof of citizenship or a passport.


The forget-me-not is Alaska's state flower.

The Tanana River is still frozen

even after weeks of 70 + degrees.

Chicken Community welcomes us

to this thriving metropolis.

Mike and I could not resist having our picture taken.

Bob wants in on some of the picture taking action.

Upon arriving in Chicken, the "Chicken" patrol

helped us find a place to park.

His (roosters) and Hers (hens) outhouses.

Need Scott say more?

Of the Saloon and the Cafe, which would you say is busier?

If you want a Chicken t-shirts, hats, socks,

or bumper stickers, this is the place to go!

Would you pay this much for gas?

You may, since it's the only place in Chicken!

Hmmmm......

As I was shopping, I looked up and saw this wolf.

I also saw this evil bear!

When nature calls, the Chicken Poop is the place to go.

Mike should have waited to use the flush toilets.

And, they're free!!!!

Mike and I mush with some local chickens.

Bob and Carla enjoy some mushing of their own.

Halibut Tacos in Chicken

Bob and Carla enjoy some Halibut Tacos.

Bob and Carla relax in the sun.

Mike and Bob are ready for a banjo good time!

Mike, Bob and Carla are listening to some

local Bluegrass and soaking in some local culture.

Now this chicken can dance!

The stage is filled with all sorts of messy chickens!

Interesting people dance to the Super Saturated Sugar Strings.