Mountains near Seward, Alaska

The mountains you'll see on the drive to Seward, Alaska are truly spectacular. This is just one of hundreds of mountain photos I've taken.

Iditarod mural in Seward, Alaska

This Iditarod mural in Seward, Alaska was famous for several years. I took this photo in 2007, and I don't know if it's there any more. I'll be back in Seward later this year, and I'll know for sure then.

Downtown Deli in Anchorage, Alaska

Mmm, the sourdough pancakes at the Downtown Deli in Anchorage, Alaska are pretty good.The Downtown Deli is indeed in downtown Anchorage, on 4th Street, I believe.

Anchorage, Alaska visitor's information center (grass roof)

The Visitor's Information center in Anchorage, Alaska is a great place to help you find your bearings, and the grass roof is pretty cool, too.

Alaska road sign - Delay of five vehicles must use turnout

One of my favorite road signs in Alaska tells slow-moving vehicles they must pull over when they are delaying five cars. This may not sound like a big deal, but some of those RVs move pretty slow.

Alaska State Fair, now under way

Just a quick note that the Alaska State Fair is now under way. It's running from August 26th to September 6th. You might even see me there, as (a) I want to go there and check it out, and (b) I'm driving into Palmer, Alaska on a daily basis, trying to find a new place to live, and the Alaska State Fair is right there in Palmer.

Alaska funny photo - A bear sliding on the ice

I don't know where this funny picture of a bear sliding on the ice in Alaska came from, as a friend of mine who knows I like bears and signs sent it to me in the mail, but it is funny.

Midnight sun in Anchorage, Alaska

This is a view of the "midnight sun" in Anchorage, Alaska. I took this on May 23, 2007, about a month before the summer solstice.

Winter driving in British Columbia, Canada

Despire what people tell you, they don't plow the roads in British Columbia, Canada, well, at least not in northern British Columbia. This was an easy stretch of road, but in many other places I would have never made it through this winter drive in Canada without my brand-new winter snow tires.

Road construction in Alaska

In many of my travels in Alaska I've run into road construction, and when you do, you'll often have to follow a "Pilot Car", as the roads are at best two lanes, and they shut down stretches of road like this while working on them.

Zeus

Once upon a time there was a dog named Zeus. Before we met him, Zeus had a very difficult life, having been abused by two different owners. When my wife saw Zeus on a local tv station, and they said the Animal Care Society was going to be extremely careful about who adopted him next, she seemed to know that she had to take care of him.

As you can see from the following pictures, when we first adopted Zeus, he was very sick, with a horrible case of mange.

Windows open since April

One of the great things about living in Alaska that isn't immediately obvious from my previous blog posts is that the windows in my apartment have been since I moved back here in April. In Kentucky, Illinois, and many other places I've lived in my life, the windows are normally closed in the summer once it gets too warm, but here in Alaska they're opened in April, and will stay open until some time in September.

A business analyst and computer programmer in Anchorage, Alaska

While I'm posting information about Alaska businesses, I might as well include a link to my "Anchorage, Alaska Business Analyst and Computer Programmer resume" on my devdaily.com website. While I have plenty of work for the time being, it never hurts to have information like this out there, especially when a particularly interesting new project comes along that I just can't resist. :)

A neighbor's business

Just a quick note about one of my very nice neighbors ... if you happen to live in the Mat-Su Valley in Alaska, and are in need of a "dog pooper scooper" service, my neighbor owns her own company, and I can personally vouch that she is a very nice person. Here's a link to her Mat Su Valley dog poop cleanup service.

Catching up

Sorry I haven't taken the time to post anything lately. I have a work project with a deadline that is keeping me very, very busy, and also a problem with my car. Here are a few notes I've been meaning to put out here lately, but never took the time to do so:

Weather

It still keeps raining like crazy. I've never been in a place that has rained this consistently for so long. Just glad there's no lightning, and this morning is just mostly cloudy.

Former Senator Ted Stevens killed in airplane crash in Alaska

Former Alaska Senator Ted Stevens was killed in an airplane crash in Alaska last night, according to the Anchorage Daily News and other media outlets. Even closer to my heart as an ex-aerospace engineer, former NASA chief Sean O'Keefe was also aboard the plane that crashed in southwest Alaska. At this time there are believed to be three survivors of the plane crash.

A new hostel on Kodiak Island

Very cool ... I just read in the UAA newspaper that Kodiak Island now has a hostel. A woman named Rhonda Maker has opened the Kodiak Island Hostel, which opened in late July, 2010. The hostel is large enough to hold 26 people, and offers hot showers, with plans to have washers and dryers in the future. Sorry, I don't have information on the hostel prices at this time.

Alaska State Fair, coming soon

Also coming very soon is the Alaska State Fair. It starts August 26, 2010, and runs until September 6th. The State Fair is located in Palmer, Alaska, a quaint little town where I'm currently trying to find a place to live. If you're at the fair and you see a little red RAV4 driving around town, it might just be me.

I hope to see you at the fair. This will be my visit, and I'm told some of the veggies that are grown are enormous. I don't think of Alaska as a place to grow veggies, as the summer is so short, but with 20 hours of sunlight a day, plants sure can grow fast.

Alaska Renewable Energy Fair

The Alaska Renewable Energy Fair is coming up very soon, August 7th, 2010, to be specific. The fair includes demonstrations, workshops, fun stuff for kids, and plenty of music as well.

The fair is put together by the Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP). For more information, please check out the Alaska Renewable Energy Fair web page.

A race between the clouds and the northern lights

It's 10:40 p.m. on Wednesday, August 4, 2010, and I'm anxiously waiting to see who is going to win this race. The skies were mostly clear just an hour ago, and I was holding out hope that I'd be able to see the northern lights tonight, assuming they actually happen. But now some heavy storm clouds are moving in, and it looks like the whole sky may be blanketed by them soon.