Ladies throwing axes. Awwww yeah!
Gold Rush Days is basically a Republican/Union/Pro-Industry extravaganza. Pro-mining rhetoric and death-to-environmentalists literature galore! It kinda sucks that every.single.sign was so political because I don't think it always comes down to blue v. red - but what the hell do I know? 
They are loggers, not lumberjacks, FYI. And it is pretty impressive what you can do with a chainsaw. 
Called in sick and took the ferry to Pelican. After they confiscated our liquor on the ferry, we had to visit the World Famous bar in Pelican. Apparently, if you get on the bar you have to take off your pants...
Got to see my old roomie, which was awesome. Even if it was only for one hour.
Geez. Tell us how you really feel!! And why can't it be 'I'd rather have a daughter in a whore house than on a charter boat'? Why's it gotta be the son on the boat? Lame.
In the relatively short amount of time I have worked within the environmental field, I’ve seen a substantial shift in mainstream America’s perceptions on what it means to be 'eco-conscience'. Environmental concerns have been gaining traction as fears about climate change and deforestation and energy grow. The number of Priuses (or would it be Prii?) now on the road and the number of reusable bags I see in the grocery store gives me hope that Americans can and will curb our carbon emissions. But when I think about true environmentalists, I think about Ding Darling and Rachel Carson. I think about leaders who are truly passionate about the environment and the natural world around them and who strive to educate others about the great outdoors. I think about people that lead by example and have spent their life focusing on the natural world. One of the biggest environmentalists I know of is Craig Tufts.
In my few years with the National Wildlife Federation, I had the privilege of sitting three cubicles down from Craig, NWF’s chief naturalist. Craig has been with NWF for over 30 years and he’s been instrumental to the organization, bringing the FrogWatch, Wildlife Watch, and Certified Backyard Habitats programs to life.
But to be completely honest, I didn’t work with Craig much on those projects. The Craig that I know led lunchtime nature walks and had endless amounts of patience teaching me the difference between a weed and a flower. The Craig I know ran the Boston marathon more than once, and ran several ultra-marathons (FIFTY MILES!!) while I was at NWF. He measured his success not in his mile pace, but by the number of birds, animal tracks, and plant species he could identify during his races. ‘My’ Craig brought in yummy produce from his garden and would let me know when a fat groundhog was sunning itself right outside our windows, because God knows without him, I wouldn’t have been able to spot a rhino in our parking lot. I never – not once – saw Craig lose his temper or give any indication that he was having a bad day. Even though we worked on different projects, he always volunteered to help my team out.
I can’t think of anyone who has lived life more fully than Craig. No one deserves to get cancer. But I can think of very few people that have lived a healthier lifestyle than Craig, and today his fight with brain cancer has finally come to an end and it still doesn't seem fair. But he is finally at peace now and I am trying to focus on that. The environmental community owes this man quite a bit of gratitude and I hope that everyone, whether you know Craig or not, will take a minute to pray, or meditate, or contemplate the world around them today and enjoy the wonders of nature. And if there is someone that has inspired your love for the great outdoors, let them know how much they mean to you, because today is a wonderful day to say thank you.
Thank you, Craig! You have meant more to me than you will ever know and you will be truly missed.
Yesterday, my friend and I were sitting under a tree in a park with our dogs. Well, we were sitting there and our dogs were making sure they peed on every.single.blade of grass. Anyway, all of a sudden two juevanile eagles dived witinin 20 feet of us and I thought they were going for Pint so I started freaking out and yelling:"Eagles! Where is Pint? Grab her. Grab her!! Eagles!!"
Luckily, Pint was right near my friend who grabbed her and handed her to me. Whew. But they were actually fighting over a fish and ended up dropping half a carcass within 5 feet of where we were sitting! I shit you not, my friend almost got hit by a dead fish!
Then four adult eagles swooped in and we got front row seats for a pretty exciting scuffle! I have never been so close to eagles before - not even when I went to Eaglefest in Haines. Seeing eagles up here is about as common as seeing rats in NYC, but being within a few feet of them as they fight over food and almost being hit by a dead, half eaten fish was CRAZY!
I've seen eagles at raptor centers before, but you don't see their wingspan when they are just sitting in a cage or on some post. Being a stone's throw away from six birds of prey while they are flapping around was one of the coolest things I've seen in awhile and definitely one of those 'only in Alaska' stories!
The other day, someone at work said something about Josh Groban and I realized that I haven’t listened to him in a really long time. And his voice gives me chills every.single.time. So I went online to find out if he’d recorded anything lately. Holy hell, did I have good taste! Josh has grown up and not only is he hot as hell now, he’s also funny! I remember seeing him in the ‘I’m F**$ing Ben Affleck’ video, but I guess it didn’t really register or something. But he’s all over YouTube being cute and funny. What the hell else have I been missing out on?!
The world is exploding with weddings and babies and first homes and the closest thing I’ve got going on is my recent and very unfortunate walk of shame. I don’t understand why I’m still more likely to be stumbling home in ripped pants and a broken shoe than getting serious and finding more than some random dude in a bar.* But the thing is, I don’t really know if I want anything more than that. I mean, it would be great to meet an awesome guy, but marriage and kids and all of that… I’m just not sure I’m ready for that.
Flyfishing, even when you don't catch anything, pretty much rocks.
Have I mentioned that I am thinking about buying a boat? Probably not until next summer, but the research is proving to be quite fun.
Oh, you know. Not too much. Just kinda hung out.
Yeah, there were a few whales out. No biggie. 
Here is the result of Pint v. A Muddy Puddle:
