There Just Aren't Words

We made it through October without getting washed away. I had written previously that Ketchikan averages 22 inches of rain the month of October. We collected 32 inches. This came in 5th for an all time record. But I have to admit it didn't seemed that bad. Most of the rain came at night so during the day it wasn't too bad. There were a few days where the weather was miserable and we just stayed indoors. Maren, Connor and I went for a picnic the other day to Carlanna Lake. Well it was just above freezing and the dock were we went was wet so we couldn't even sit down. So we ate our sandwiches and headed back. On some maps it is referred to as Reflection Lake and we could see why. I had forgotten my camera so I didn't get a picture to so but it is easy to describe. To steel a line from 'Forest Gump', "It looked like two mountains, one on the top and one on the bottom".



It gets dark early, around 4:30 in the afternoon and by the time I go to work it is pitch black. Last Sunday was a nice evening and I decided to walk to work. This turned out to be a bad decision because as I was crossing Baranoff Rd., in the crosswalk mind you, the pick-up that had stopped at the intersection didn't see me and took off. The bumper impacted my left knee, knocking me off balance. The only reason that I wasn't run over was a bug guard attached to the hood. I grabbed the flimsy piece of plastic and started pounding on the hood as the driver continued to accelerate. The moment that he realized there was someone attached to the front of his truck he slammed on the brakes. I picked myself up off the ground with visions of being dead still running through my head. He was extreamly appollogetic and I was glad to be alive so I sent him on his way. The knee hurt for a few days but I was no worse for the wear.

Snows comin' and school sports

It has been a while since I have written a post so here it is.

I looked out my front window Friday and saw the mountains on Gravina Island just above the airport were capped with snow. (Wish I had pictures but haven't had time to resolve software issues.) The weather has gotten a little cooler but we all seem to be adjusting to it and the change is barely noticeable. We have had a lot of storms lately with high winds and lots of rain. If you look at the previous post I updated the radar picture and this storm brought winds with gusts to 40 - 50 mph. Friday morning Maren and I went for a walk between rain showers. We caught a glimpse of Deer Mountain with the sun shinning on freshly fallen snow.

Courtesy of Ketchikan Daily News
http://www.ketchikandailynews.com/

There is wet snow forecasted for tonight and tomorrow which should add to that. Since I don't have tires yet I may need to walk home in the morning. More on this later.

Walking along Water Street we saw a tree that had fallen across someones truck. A young girl told us that the owner had recently had his tires slashed and had them replaced. Then two days later he comes out to go to work, only to find that a tree had fallen on his pick-up smashing the hood and windshield.

Collin is well into his wresting season. He started the season at 189 pounds and this weekend he was able to wrestle at 161. Thirteen teams were in town this weekend for the Bill Weiss tournament. Mr. Weiss was an editor and type setter for the Ketchikan Daily News for many years and a big supporter of sports in S.E. Alaska. This is one of the few times this season we will be able to see Collin wrestle since most of his matches are off island. Generally leaving either Thursday afternoon or Friday morning and he returns Sunday sometime. Like Cody he has enjoyed getting in shape but seems tired most of the time since, starting his day at 5:30 am for seminary and doesn't get home until after six. With all of that he is still carrying A's in all of his classes.

For those of you that are wondering I have postponed self publishing 'Some Secrets Shouldn't Die'. I have decided to continue attempting publishing via the traditional route. I will be entering the manuscript in a writers competition with the results due March of '08. I appreciated all the wonderful comments I have received from those of you who have read the manuscript and will let you know if I receive a publishing contract. I continue to write, usually on a daily basis and am currently working on a story that is set here locally and in southern California.

Now about the tires. I spent many hours on the Internet for the cheapest way to get studded snow tires. What I ended up doing was buying the tires from Tirerack.com and having them shipped to Alaska Marine Lines and put on the barge. I hope to receive them this week so they will be ready to put on when the time arises. This protracted procedure saved me several hundred dollars over buying them locally. Had we not still been recovering from moving here the saving would not have been that big of a deal.