God Be Praised...

Apparently, people want me to update my blog. I was blessed to have another very Alaskan weekend. Today, there were orcas (killer whales) breeching and blowing in the bay. It was pretty amazing. But nothing like what I saw Friday night, when the Northern Lights were out again. This time, however, they were not faint like before. Every direction I turned, the lights were all around me, dancing in the sky with greens, purples, and reds. Keep in mind that my digital camera, as I've recently discovered, is somewhat of a virtual dinosaur...it is the equivalent of playing music on a cassette tape player instead of an iPod. But even my humble camera was able to take the below pictures, and trust me, these pictures from an outdated camera do it no justice. I truly saw the greatest wonder of God that I've ever seen Friday night (as far as the physical world goes, that is). And as icing on the cake, as I was driving out of the city to get away from the city lights and see them better, I saw a shooting star go right thru the Borealis. It was like a dream. As corrupt and sinful as this world is, and yet still with such wonders, imagine what the eternal kingdom will be like...

Aurora Borealis

Yesterday turned out to be a very Alaskan day. I got my Alaska plates during lunch , then after work I attended a lecture on volcanology and the volcanoes of Alaska. (In case there's any confusion, attending science lectures in your free time IS cool.) On my way home from that, I noticed the Northern Lights were active, so I got back in the car and started driving out of the city to get higher and to escape the city lights. And while doing that, I almost plowed over a moose that was walking down the road. The Lights were pretty amazing. Nothing as spectacular as pictures you've probably seen, but it was pretty impressive to see them at all considering they weren't even forecast to be active, it was much earlier than when they are normally active, and there was a full moon (lots of glare). It was all green and a little faint. Thus, sadly, my humble camera couldn't capture it. Luckily, I found the above photo online that looks pretty similar and used it...tee hee.

Update

It is time for me to update my blog...according to Beth. Not much news, although today is Ash Wednesday and thus the beginning of the Lenten season, which I have come to appreciate more and more, even though it's usually not a part of protestant communities. I am busy in a SCUBA class tonight so I used my lunch break to attend an afternoon mass and receive my ashes. Most of the time, Christians rightly focus on the salvation granted us by Christ, but there is also great benefit in remembering and showing remorse and sorrow for our sins (Godly sorrow of course, which produces fruit). The observance of Ash Wednesday and the Lenten season provide a great opportunity to to do that, and to mourn our fallen state as we advance to the celebration of the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ at Easter. I appreciate using this time to show remorse and special attention to my sins in the presence of God; not like the remorse I feel after an individual sin, but the sorrow I feel for being a fallen creature born into sin and banished from Eden. I've found this focus also very fruitful for me in the celebration of Easter...it means so much more to celebrate Christ's saving work when you have spent a proper amount of time beforehand reflecting on your NEED for such propitiation. I also enjoy the tradition of giving up a normal part of our lives during the Lenton season. As humans, and especially wealthy ones in a wealthy country, we often get wrapped up in materialism and "me." By giving up something we are used to having for the 40 days leading up to Easter, it helps us stay focused that life not about our own earthly wellbeing, enjoyment, and to-do lists; we don't even deserve to stand in the presence of God, and I love being frequently reminded of this reality during Lent. I am always reminded that I can make it 40 days without anything on this earth...it is Christ's forgiveness that I can't make it one second without. This is a reality I should live every day, but as a human, my stubborn heart has to be often reminded. And thus, I am excited to observe Lent and look forward to the upcoming celebration of Easter.

Playing at Work

I've come a long way (in the right direction) since leaving my job as a Disability Benefits Specialist. All my thanks is to God. Today I "job shadowed" with the Marine Mammal department and got to hang out with them for the first half of the day and help them with everything they do and learn all about their jobs. This means I got to be out for the feedings of the seals and sea lions and even got to feed and do some tricks with the Center's biggest attraction, a Stellar Sea Lion named Woody. Other duties I did included leading the animals into cages and around medical equipment (a process done frequently even when no tests are going to be done to try to teach the animals that such things are not always to be dreaded) and thawing and sorting dead fish for meals. The latter might not sound too appealling, but to someone who was suffocating in disability claim forms for over 2 years, it was breath of fresh, wonderful, fish-smelly air.

Beating the Dead...Horse

Beth said it was time for me to update. Ask and you shall receive. Since I have been given a complex about my moose sightings by skeptics, I decided to post one more picture. Two moose were in our parking lot this morning, at the SeaLife Center. It was pretty neat to see them right in the middle of town. When I last saw them, they were walking up 4th street (the Seward strip) holding up a line of traffic. The younger one was eating (you should see the tree after he was done) and the mother was kinda watching to make sure know one pestered him. Pretty neat. Employee productivity was shut down for a good 15 minutes.

Doin' It Right

For all the naysayers, here's a new and improved picture of a moose. If that's not sufficient for you, you'll just have to come up here and see them yourselves. Being moose, they're not exactly eager to pose for pictures or let you get too close, so this is about as good as it gets from my camera. I thought it would be fun to go up to Anchorage for the day on Saturday. Partly fun and also partly to take my truck back to the place that put on the new tires and get them to fix the squeak/grind noise I've been hearing. Luckily, that business aspect of my trip was successful, because my goal of having fun was not. Even while going under the speed limit and being passed by other cars, I still lost control of my truck going about 60 as I was coming into the city on a busy divided highway and fishtailed around, finally, by the grace of God, coming to a stop without hitting anything or anyone. I stopped facing the opposite way of trafic. The day just went more downhill from there. The ride home was a nightmare because my headlights weren't working properly. Suffice to say, I'm content to stay in Seward a while and don't really care to visit Anchorage again any time soon. I did see an ECHL hockey game, though, between the Alaska Aces and the Phoenix Roadrunners. Minor league hockey, I learned, is actually pretty fun. Until later...

Moose Sighting

I have at last seen meese (that's the hip plural word for moose) in Alaska. It was beginning to get comical that everyone around here was seeing moose in their yards, on the streets of town, and everywhere else, but I had managed to not see a single one at all. Finally, yesterday I went with my manager to Anchorage for a job fair. She picked me up at my place then drove back to her place to show me the one chillin' in her back yard. Then we saw 10 or so in the fields as we were nearing Anchorage. So my only sightings have been ones far away in the fields (see picture) or the one from the early morning when it was dark and I only saw his silhouette. But still, I've seen meese. I can sleep easier tonight. Yesterday was productive for wildlife spotting...we also saw buffalo and sheep. Next on my agenda...bears. They need to hurry and wake up.