Open Thread – Frosty Cones
Just a shot I clicked from a walk today. Each of these little cones is about thumbnail sized.
Open Thread – Moose Gives Bronx Cheer
I suppose I could just make this one a caption contest, but I’ll give you a little back story. I was sitting at the computer, minding my business as I usually do, when a dark shape caught my eye out the sliding glass door. No sooner had I looked over my shoulder than it became evident what the shape had been – a very lovely cow moose. I’m not sure if this was one of the twins that Mudflats readers may remember, but she seemed to be about the same age. I grabbed my camera, which for once was right…
Open Thread – Happy Valentine’s Day!
Happy Valentine’s Day, Mudflatters! May your day be full of love in many ways. Here’s one of my favorite love songs, suitable for slow dancing on a rooftop, I always thought.
Voices from the Flats – Things You Shouldn’t Have to Tell Business Leaders
By Jim Wright of Stonekettle Station I’m a retired US Navy Chief Warrant Officer. Nowadays I live in Alaska where I spend most of my time working in my woodshop or fishing. I occasionally consult for the Military. I have delusions of becoming a full time writer – or conquering the universe, whichever is easier… ****************************************** Business. Like you, these days I hear a lot of things about business. Particularly I hear a lot of things about American business and what we can do to make more of it, more product, more jobs, more money, more opportunity, more business. You…
Open Thread – Hidden Alaska
A stunning visual story of a place of wonder and mystique for every American, this book features what is legendary and beloved about Alaska, a land of magnificent wilderness and beauty, virtually untouched by human ambition. It also focuses on the key point of interest in the state today: endangered Bristol Bay, which faces potential mining of the world’s greatest deposits of copper and gold. Its pristine waters are the worlds’ biggest salmon spawning grounds. If the gold is mined, the ecosystem is destroyed —but the impoverished locals have work for the next half-century. After that, the salmon and the…
Open Thread – Windswept
This beautiful icy windswept scene was captured from a pull-out right on the Seward Highway, heading south from Anchorage. This particular spot is called Beluga Point, named for the formerly plentiful beluga whales that could often be spotted from the shore. Now, the animals are rare and the subject of a lawsuit by the State of Alaska to keep them off the endangered species list. They can still occasionally be seen, looking at first like whitecaps out in the frigid waters of Cook Inlet. The views from the Seward Highway are absolutely spectacular, contributing to its official designation as a…
Open Thread – Setting Sun
Thought I’d share our beautiful sunset tonight with you. The peak on the horizon to the left is Mt. Redoubt, the volcano that made a hubbub not so long ago. I still occasionally see a puff of steam come off the right flank, but all was quiet tonight. The site of the proposed Chuitna coal project is to the right.
Open Thread – Super Bowl
I asked Mudflatters, when the matchup became clear, who they’d be rooting for to win the Super Bowl. It looks like The Mudflats is a Green Bay crowd. The results were: 1) Green Bay Packers (55%) 2) Whatever (23%) 3) Pittsburgh Steelers (22%) It’s a tough day to be a Steelers fan. Being beaten by “whatever” is pretty harsh. I really don’t have a dog in this fight, but I confess to a little soft spot for Pittsburgh, for two reasons. One, the very first Mudstock I attended was in Pittsburgh during Netroots Nation 2009, and the amazing local contingency of Mudflatters welcomed…
Open Thread – Krispy Kreme!
If you’re in Anchorage today, you’re in luck! The Carrs on Abbott will be the spot to be as the Unitarian Universalist Youth hold a giant fundraiser to send the whole class to a youth leadership conference in Portland, Oregon this spring. Yes, the ever popular Krispy Kreme donuts will be available for sale just in time for Super Bowl weekend. Grab a couple boxes for the game, or just for a treat. They’ll start at 8am, and go until there’s none left. There are a thousand dozen donuts, so share this info with your friends and family in Anchorage…
Open Thread – Troll of the Week
Those of you who have been regular readers of The Mudflats are familiar with our occasional posting “Troll of the Week,” which admittedly is a little deceiving but sounds a lot better than “Troll of the Unspecified Amount of Time.” In these posts, we observe the occasional troll that comes wandering across the mudflats and ends up in our little arctic entry, usually thrashing around and making a nuisance of itself. My habit had been to simply fling the little creatures back into the mudflats, where they’d make a satisfying >splat< noise, and I’d be done with it. But then I…