Permaculture: The Dynamic Clock

So, I’ve taken on helping to plan next winter’s Permaculture Design Course, which has made me so busy that I haven’t had much time for blogging. But, here I am, hoping that a new post will kick my rear into gear so I can share some of my summer accomplishments with you.

I feel like I talk about permaculture a lot on the blog. The course has kind of taken over my life, which I have mixed feelings about. Frankly, I didn’t anticipate having to do so much advertising, which I hate. But I loved the course last year and I’d really like to see another one happen this year, so you do what you have to.

Over the past year, I kind of realized why I like permaculture so much: it really teaches you to look at your world as a whole, not just individual parts. Our environment is basically a constant feedback loop, and each piece interacts with others in ways we don’t necessarily see. It’s like the workings of a clock, only more dynamic, because the way an element interacts with others may actually change the way it behaves.

From the standpoint of a meteorologist, it’s microclimatology at its best. Each leaf of a tree reflects some light, absorbs some light, absorbs some gases and emits others. Standing under a tree is a cooler, more humid environment than in a sunny spot, and a forest will be cooler than a field. And then there’s the biological aspect – the shady cool forest attracts other plants and animals than you would see in the meadow.

From the standpoint of a project manager, permaculture embodies the idea of the perfect system. All waste is used, output is maximized, and effort is minimized. And we can actually design the system to work that way. It’s not just luck, it’s planning, observation, and thought, with creative design thrown in.

Finally, from the standpoint of a human being, permaculture integrates human interaction into the environment in a positive way. It shows us how to pull the pieces together so that we’re working within the system, not just acting like we’re running a simulation or viewing from a remote planet.  

I’ve read the books and the websites, but last year I felt like I was missing the pieces to put it all together. And that’s what the design certificate provided. I was so proud of the final project my group pulled together. Even more importantly, I’ve met some great friends who I can rely on for advice and support as I try new things. Permaculture is like a well of knowledge that I’ve just taken a sip from, and I can see the rest of the water still shimmering down below. But at least now I have a bucket to go back for more.

2012: Year in Review

January: I posted about my book reading goals for the year and complained about how hot Sydney was. Oh, the irony!

February:  We went to Japan, where we skied, visited many cultural sites, stayed in a Japanese guest house, and pretended we were ninjas. I continued my reading plans.

March: I didn't post anything in March, I think because I was too busy applying for jobs!

April: Ethan and I took our last major trip in Australia to Uluru (Ayer's Rock). We saw a dingo, but no babies were stolen.

May:   I announced that we were returning to the States, but I didn't yet have a job. I pondered the future of the blog. I also posted my spider stories from Australia. I do not miss the giant creepy crawlies one bit!

June:  We returned to the U.S. I was surprised to find that Alaska hadn't changed much. By this time, I'd gotten my new job at the National Weather Service Alaska Regional Headquarters.

July:  We visited our good friends Heidi and Dan and lived "off the grid" for about a week. I missed having running water a lot. I also lost my camera cord.

August:  I visited my family in Florida and Virginia. I saw an armadillo and manatees. We started looking for houses, and I started my new job. Signs of fall started appearing in the end of August. And I got a new phone, so pictures started appearing again. Ethan and I went hiking with our friend Robin.

September: We visited Chicago over Labor Day weekend, where I stuffed myself silly and saw my favorite paintings in the art museum. I read a really terrible book and laughed about it. We got termination dust on the mountains.I started my watercolor class and shared my first paintings with you. I updated you on my reading list. And we finally got our stuff!

October:  We started playing board games with our friend Robin. I saw the Aurora for the first time since I'd been back and managed to actually get a picture of it. I shared my continued artistic attempts. I posted about Hurricane Sandy.

November:  another month with no posts, because we were too busy moving into our new house!

December: We had an earthquake, which merited a post about the '64 Alaska quake.

Honestly, this year was pretty stressful for us, both good and bad stress. I was trying to be positive the whole time, so I didn't post about a lot of things. I'll summarize what all happened:

We moved internationally
I changed jobs -- with much uncertainty, as one job was ending and I didn't have another lined up for quite a while
Ethan's mother remarried rather unexpectedly
We bought a house, but in the meantime we lived in a "temporary" situation for 5 months
We bought a new car
My sister had a healthy baby girl, although she had health concerns as she reached the end of pregnancy
Ethan's sister in law had a kidney removed due to a cancerous tumor, with positive results

Anyway, that's why I've been pretty sporadic posting this year. At one point, I was attempting to post once a week, which went well until we moved into our new house and my priorities changed quite a bit. I'm hoping that now that we're settled in, I can get into more of a routine again. And, I'm also hoping that 2013 is a much calmer year!

I wish you all a happy and healthy 2013!

Signs of Fall

Here in Alaska, we pay a lot of attention to the seasonal transitions. I think this is probably the case in any part of the world where there is a huge difference in the seasons.

The start of fall is technically defined in the U.S. as the autumn equinox, or around the 20th of September. (This differs from Australia, where the seasons change on the first of the month). However, in Alaska, climate-wise, fall really starts about the first of September. The last half of August is filled with signs that fall is not too far around the corner, although this year it seems like it might be a little early.

One of the signs I notice every year is the fireweed.

Fireweed blooms nearing the top of the stalk

Fireweed (named that because it's the first plant to return after a fire, not because of its brilliant color) blooms progressively up the stalk. Folk wisdom has it that when the fireweed bloom reaches the top of the stalk, winter is 6 weeks away.

This year, I've also noticed the geese flocking. When they start gathering in large groups and hanging out in town, they're thinking about heading down south. It will probably be a few weeks before they go, but it's still a signal that summer is ending.

Canadian geese on the way back home

This week, school starts back up, and the State Fair starts as well, another two events that herald the end of summer. But the real sign that summer is over is the first snowfall on the mountains, or "Termination Dust". Fortunately, that hasn't hit just yet, although we had some snows on the very peaks this summer that people termed "Termination Dust".

I don't know if I'm ready for summer to be over, but I do love fall. It's beautiful in Alaska, and I haven't had a real fall in two years. So I guess I'll just try to enjoy what's left of summer, and make that transition when I see the Termination Dust.

Unbidden Memory

I was over at You Grow Girl (thanks for the rec, Craftosaurus!) and I followed a link to a post she wrote about daffodils.  She seems to have a lot more hang ups about daffodils than I do -- I never considered them boring or ordinary.  I always liked daffodils as one of the first harbingers of spring.  They were a sign of better days to come.

As I was thinking about these flowers, I remembered that they used to grow wild in the woods near the house I grew up in.  I remember walking through there with my parents as a little girl and seeing little spots of color at the bases of the still lifeless trees.

There's not much point to this story. It was just a nice memory and I thought I would share it, in particular for those of you who are still in the dark throes of winter.

Octopus's Garden

One Saturday in the beginning of July I went down to the Royal Botanical Gardens to check them out. They are free, and it was a nice day, so I thought it would be good to go. They were huge and I quite tired myself out walking around them!One of the things I really wanted to see was the bats. There are thousands of them living in the Botanical Gardens. Unfortunately, they are destroying the trees, so the management is trying to scare them off by blasting noise at them.

Here’s one flying. They are large fruit bats, also known as flying foxes.

When I saw this sign, I got kind of irritated. I don’t know why Fievel has to spend so long in quarantine if Australia already has a rabies-like disease.

Bats are not the only thing in the gardens. Australia has wild cockatoos and there were a whole bunch of them hanging around.

They were pretty used to humans and let me get up close.

These people were letting the birds land on them. I was not brave enough to try it.

I also saw this guy. He is a Tawny Frogmouth. At first I thought he might be fake because he was so still. But one of the garden personnel told me that they are nocturnal, so I guess he was sleeping.

The garden also has a beautiful view. This picture is for Sue, who appreciates urban canyons more than wild ones.

I liked the view of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.

The gardens were really neat, but a little dull since it is winter here. I hope to come back frequently to see the plants in all their glory in spring, summer and fall.

Riding the Coastal Trail

I thought I would do a little photo essay on one of my favorite runs/bike rides, the Anchorage Coastal Trail.


This is the scene from Lyn Ary Park, one place I like to access the coastal trail. That's Mt. Susitna in the background, a.k.a. The Sleeping Lady.


The Coastal Trail also goes through some forests. This is one particularly pretty area where there's a lot of birch trees and horsetails. There's also a lot of mosquitos, so I don't stop here if I can help it.

My favorite spot on the Coastal Trail, Pt Woronzof. The cliffs are about 50 ft, I think. They recently tried to rope them off (see the orange safety fence) but I have no regard for authority. I guess if we had an earthquake, the cliff would crumble and I would die, but that is a risk I take.

Part of the reason I like Pt. Woronzof is the little cliff swallows. They spend all day flying around, eating bugs and bringing them home to their babies. Here's one flying to his home (he's in front of the orange fence. I cropped the picture, but he's still hard to see).

This is the bridge over Fish Creek. It is a tidal inlet, and when the tide is in, the water is flat and there is no waterfall.

This is the view from the bridge. The mud flats might be considered ugly by some, but I actually find them very natural and attractive in their own way.



Finally, Westchester Lagoon. This is actually a man made lake, but it's really pretty and harbors a lot of wildlife (beavers, birds of all sorts, fish).

One last photo for you: Anchorage, taken from Earthquake Park. Isn't my city beautiful?

Almost 30

Well, in spite of recent bad news, I had a great birthday yesterday. I think it helped me get in a better mood when Ethan sent me an e-mail that said he was having a hard time with this extension too. Not that I want him to be depressed, but it made me feel less alone. And I know that we can get through this together.

On to birthday business: first of all, thanks to Henna and Puppie and Vanessa who sent me various forms of cards. I really do appreciate that, especially since I am well-meaning and always say I'll send out cards for others, but never do. In other words, I know it takes time and effort and I appreciate that you guys care.

So yesterday, I woke up and talked to my family and Ethan. Then I went out for a nice lunch with a work friend, and then I headed down to Girdwood to practice my photography. It was a beautiful sunny day and wandering around in the fall environment was really nice. Then I came back to town, got my free ice cream from Cold Stone, and went to class. After class I went to the Moose's Tooth for great pizza and beer with a bunch of my friends. Nothing super exciting, but let's face it, I'm getting a little old for super exciting. After all, I'm 29 now. I wouldn't want to give myself a heart attack or anything.

Here are some pictures from yesterday:

Now, a couple of questions for you photographer types: 1) how do you upload full size pictures? If I try to do that, blogger freezes. That Up in Alaska girl uploads photos that you can click on to see the big version. Does it just take her a really long time? 2) What online photo album is most popular? e.g. Shutterfly, Kodak, etc. I would like to upload some more pictures for you all to see, but I don't want to cram them all into my blog (although, as promised, you're still going to get some State Fair pics!)

Because Everybody's Doing It

Stole this from a bunch of people...

You Are 20% Girly

Um... you're a guy, right? If not, you're the most boyish girl in the world. And for you, that's probably the ultimate compliment.

How Girly Are You?

I have to say, I am slightly disappointed that apparently, I am a dude. What the hell?!? They just didn't ask the right questions -- I love flowers, and going to the opera, and I like to wear perfume. I like girly movies and I cry at them without fail. And hey, I at least own some makeup. My husband thinks I'm girly enough, so I guess that's what counts.

For a total non-sequitur (how do you spell that anyway?): recently my uncle wrote a blog entry on perception vs. reality. Today I hopped aboard the clue train as I had a nice little perception vs. reality experience. The other day I commented on the Up In Alaska blog about how I thought hiking without an iPod was a better experience. Today, another reader made a comment that I was "micromanaging" that girl's life. Whoops. I certainly didn't mean to. So here's my perception: my comment was useful, friendly, and might provide some different perspective. Reality: my comment was unsolicited, a little bossy, and seen as intrusive by that community. I guess it's just a reminder that just because I read a blog all the time does not mean that I am a part of that community and I should butt out.

For the record (because this is my blog and I can say whatever I want here), I really do think that an iPod takes away some of the hiking experience. I really love getting to the top of a mountain and hearing the marmots sing, and the wind whistle in my ears. It gives me a sense of peace and freedom that I wouldn't get if I were listening to music, no matter how much I liked the music.

But that's just my $0.02.

Going Solo

So, I got brave and went camping all by myself! Well, sort of. My friends Heidi and Dan hiked out with me, but left me there with their dogs so they could go back and wait for carpet installers (who never came). I think spending the night by myself still counts.

Heidi and Dan in front of my campsite.

It was actually pretty fun, even though I forgot my book and ended up going to bed early. Our campsite was next to an alpine lake and a stream. After I set up camp, the dogs and I walked around to the back of the lake, up onto a moraine, and then to a lookout above the lake. There were a bunch of little animals living in the rocks on the moraine, and I saw a couple of pikas! I saw one on my very first hike in AK 7 years ago and haven't seen one since. They're pretty shy.

The pika! He's pretty camouflaged. I had to crop it a lot, so the resolution isn't that great.

Then we came back to the tent, and I went skinny dipping while waiting for dinner to cook. I spent about 30 seconds in the water because it was freezing! It was really warm out and I dried out really quickly, though.

The next morning, I woke up early and went for another short hike to the back of the main valley. I saw some sheep back there, but they were really far away and I didn't get a good picture. Oh well. We returned to my friend's house that afternoon, just as everyone else was getting out on the trailhead. I was happy that I had been camping the night before, when no one was out there.

So, no bears! Yay! And it was fun, although I definitely would prefer to go with other people. But I am not against doing it again.

Me and the dogs at the campsite.

The Rainbow Connection

I should stop bothering with my camera and stick to the webcams, because it seems like they always have cool pics. Here's a series of rainbows out by Whittier (motto: It's always shittier in Whittier).
If you look closely, this is actually a double rainbow:

I Like Big Butts and I Cannot Lie

Eagle hiney! Tee hee!

A pound of flesh

So, not much news on the home front. On Tuesday, I biked the Bird to Gird trail, which as you may recall, was one of my goals this summer. In the past, I've been a little intimidated by it because 1) it's 13 miles one way and 2) there is always one bitch of a wind blowing down the Turnagain Arm. I picked Tuesday to ride because it was a gorgeous day, I had plenty of time, and I didn't think the wind would be that bad. Well, the wind definitely could have been worse, but it wasn't exactly calm. My ride down was about 1 hr, and the ride back was 1 hr 15 minutes due to the headwind. But did I mention it was gorgeous? Holy cow, the scenery was great! And 25 miles was not too difficult at all, although I was slightly sore afterward and decided not to ride my bike in to work yesterday. So I really enjoyed it -- enough that I want to do it again and am considering dragging Ethan out there while he's home.

I did take some pictures, but I don't have them available, because I have to develop the film. Which brings me to the second thing I've wanted to write about: I am considering getting a digital camera. But I have been major issues with this possible purchase. I really want to get a nice, entry-level SLR, with interchangeble lenses; basically to replace my film camera. Unfortunately, that's going to run me about $400 or higher. So I think I'm going to have to go for the kind where you can't change the lenses, which will probably run me about $250. I'll go to Costco one of these days and check out the prices. Hopefully I can get a camera that will allow me some manual control but doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

Part of the thing is, we have some friends who are always buying shit. And not just stuff (although they certainly do that; I went over to their house after Christmas and the wife had a 5 foot tall stack of Christmas stuff she had gotten on sale. Who needs that much Christmas stuff? It's not like they didn't already have too many decorations.) but expensive, top-of-the-line stuff that they don't need or use. For instance, she has a mountain bike that was like $1000 or some crap and she never rides it! I mean seriously, that bike has like 10 miles on it. I know $1000 isn't top of the line for a bike, but for a bike you never use, that's a little much. I felt guilty when I spent $250 on my bike 4 years ago, and I've probably put 200 miles on it this season alone! Back to the camera thing -- anyway, they have a Canon Rebel XT, which is super nice, but her husband didn't even know what an aperture was when he bought it! And you know what they take pictures of? Their dogs. The jeep. Argh! So if I spend a bunch of money, I kind of feel like maybe they (and our consumerist society) are convincing me to do something I shouldn't. It's like I'm being drawn to the dark side. I don't really need a $600 camera, after all.

But I sure do want one.

Sunrise, Sunset

Today is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. In honor of that, I'm posting a picture of the midnight sun for you all to enjoy. This is a picture of Mt. Susitna, aka The Sleeping Lady, taken at 12:30 a.m. It is from one of my favorite webcams. Enjoy your solstice, everyone!

Summertime and the living is easy

This weekend has been pretty dang good, which I'm glad for, because I spent quite a bit complaining to Ethan about how busy it was going to be. Here are the highlights:
Friday: a going away party (meh) and a regular party (fun but nothing special).

Saturday: a full day of classes on Becoming an Outdoor Woman. My friend J, who ironically, does not really like being outside, convinced me to sign up with her for this. For $20, I got to choose 2 classes to do on Saturday. They had all kinds of stuff, like Map & Compass reading, Intro to Fly Fishing, Intro to Spin Fishing, Dutch Oven Cooking, Archery, Intro to Shotgun...and some others too. I chose Pond to Pan in the morning. We learned how to clean a fish, vacuum pack and freeze it, and made some delicious meals. Plus, we got to take home our cleaned and frozen salmon (yay for you, Ethan)! Then in the afternoon, I had chosen Dutch Oven Cooking, but through a fluke, I got signed up for Fly Fishing. Learning how to fly fish was actually really fun and made me want to do it more often. Of course, that would require me buying a fly rod. Regardless, it made me interested in doing more fishing and I am going to make an effort to get out and do it this summer. One really cool thing about Anchorage (amongst many) is that we have plenty of lakes and streams that are full of fish. So I can go salmon or trout fishing without leaving the city. Really.

Okay, on to Sunday. That was the Tour de Cure. Which was a total blast, just like it was last year. I had invited a friend from church to do it with me and my normal group of friends. I was a little nervous, because I didn't know her that well, so I didn't know if she would be offended by my friends who swear, or beer at the afterparty. Well I forgot, I go to Methodist church now. Catholics drink wine, Methodists drink beer, and Baptists drink water. So not only was she not offended, she had a beer herself. Yay! The ride itself went really well too. I was in better shape this year, so it wasn't quite so tiring. I even managed to ride all the way up the final (steep) hill, whereas last year I had to walk. So I was proud of myself for that. And hey, 50k (31 miles) is a long way!

Anyway, today I've been rather lazy. I got up late since I had to get up before 7 both Saturday and Sunday, and I've been kind of lying around reading magazines and pretending like I'm going to clean up the house. I did call S. to go hiking tomorrow, so that's one thing I accomplished. But the rest of the stuff, well I'm just not very motivated. Plus, the sun is kind of peeking out, so I think I might go fishing.

Summer is the best.

Point of view

It's funny how the way you perceive things can totally change based on your frame of reference. Tonight, it has been raining pretty hard. We had a band of showers move over us and it's just been reforming all night long. When I lived in the Lower 48, rain used to make me think of spring. But here, rain makes me think of fall. Anchorage weather is usually sunny and dry in the spring, with a few showers. Then, usually about the August timeframe, it gets rainy. By the end of August we are experiencing some pretty good shower type events. And believe it or not, by the end of August, we are heading into fall.

Standing outside in the entry way tonight, watching the rain fall, I felt like summer was over. I could see my breath forming clouds from the glow of the parking lot lights, and I shivered a little in the cool breeze, thinking of darkness and winter and feeling the quiet sadness that fall always brings for me. I wished I had been at home instead, snuggling under the covers with my kitty and listening to the rain tapping on the roof. But I reminded myself that this isn't the fall, this is spring. The sun will rise in an hour or so, and this rain will green things up nicely. And maybe if we're lucky, the clouds will clear enough for a sunrise rainbow and a beautiful start to the morning.

Summertime thoughts

So, I've personalized my google so that it shows a little Japanese fox in the background doing different things depending on the time of day. Today I got to see his nighttime activities, since I've been working at night. He fed the ducks, sailed some little boats with candles in them, looked at the stars through his telescope, and now is sleeping on his little front porch. He's so cute! I love looking at his little activities, even though they're the same every day.

Anyway, his nighttime activities made me think about the one thing I miss about Lower 48 summers: the warm nights. Not just warmth, but warmth at night. Here it is warm in the evenings, even up until 11 p.m. We were so hot at the wedding last year because the sun was just beating down upon us. It was great! But the point is, it is also light during this timeframe. I miss sitting out on a patio under some lanterns, enjoying the night. I miss lying in fields and looking up at the stars. I miss listening to the crickets chirp as we would walk home late at night from the bars.

However, I do not miss burning myself on various things in my car after it's been sitting outside all day, sweating in the car on the way to work, feeling tired from a walk around the block because it's 95 degrees and 85% humidity, or freezing my ass off indoors because you have to wear shorts outside or die, but building managers all turn their thermostats down to nuclear winter. Our beautiful, cool, green summers are the best thing about Alaska, and I would not trade them even if I do miss seeing the stars in summer.

Bird Woes

Well, spring has pretty much sprung around here. The snow is mostly gone (although not off the mountains yet), and I've been riding my bike this week. I love to ride my bike! It is so much more fun than driving, to me. Too bad that sometimes I am lazy, pressed for time, or need to carry stuff or else I would just sell my car and ride my bike all the time (well, uh, except for winter because I'm a big baby about riding in the snow).

My sunflower seeds are growing great guns. The plants are already about 6 inches tall. I hope they don't get too much taller before I can plant them outside, because I don't know what else to stake them with! Also, if they get too tall they'll be really unstable and might fall over on their own. I think in 2 more weeks I should be able to plant them outside, if the weather continues.

I also need to get out and rake. Ugh. That is one yard chore I really hate, even more than mowing. Thank goodness it only needs to be done a couple times a year. I don't have a lot of dead leaves in the yard, but there is quite a bit of dead grass that needs to be raked up. Fortunately, that stuff is pretty light, so I don't have a lot of trouble lugging it around.

Maybe I should start that compost heap this year.

We have a sparrowhawk (an American Kestrel, officially) that has moved into our neighborhood. It actually moved in last year, but I had forgotten about it until it showed up this spring. I am not really enamored of the sparrowhawk. For one thing, it chases off all the little birds that I like. Actually, it eats them. I didn't know that and I was wondering why no more little birds were coming to the bird feeder last spring -- turns out I was offering up a smorgasbord to the sparrowhawk by feeding them. Doh!

The other thing I don't like about the sparrowhawk is that its call is very annoying. It sounds like "chee chee chee chee chee chee chee chee", which is annoying in it's own right, but made even more annoying by the fact that this bird makes that noise ALL DAMN DAY. It will start its call, which goes for about 30 seconds or a minute, take a 5 second break, and start up again. I am not a big fun of hunting, but believe me, I really want to shoot this bird. Especially when I'm trying to sleep during the day and it won't shut the hell up!

I keep trying to think of ways to chase it into someone else's neighborhood.