Blogs from Homer, Alaska, United States, North America - page 6

June 15--Homer Spit--weather mostly thick fog and rainy 52 degrees 9891 mileage.---really foggy and rained in the night. Went to local library that was really nice with all kinds of art work both inside and out. Bought an $8 bunch of books for 50 cents each. Had lunch at a bakery that we thought would have some great goodies. No such luck---muffins and cookies no pies, cakes etc. We both had a large bowl of soup for $7.00 a bowl. Stopped at a Marine Wildlife museum and looked around—they also had neat art inside. For example, they had a pottery relief sort of work of sea animals and plants about a foot or more in width that were brightly glazed around all the doors. The volunteer there suggested a drive we should take up higher on ... read more

HOMER After work on Thursday, Jhene and I packed up the car with our camping gear and bikes and headed down to Homer. Anchorage was beautiful and sunny and would be all weekend. The forecast for Homer: Rain. We headed towards the dark clouds to the south. A 4-hour drive down and the Paper Towel Incident A few miles after Beluga point we had to swerve into the other lane to dodge a large object in our lane. A Costco size package of paper towels? I looked over to the passenger seat. “Let’s get ‘em!” I said. Jhene’s eyes widened with excitement as we pulled into the nearest pull out an made a Uy. We grabbed the suckers and shoved on the bikes in the back. As we closed the doors an Aerostar van with ... read more

By Melisse. In other times and places, when I tell people my interests are art and science, I am often met with a perplexed look. "That's an unusual combination," some reply. Not so in Homer. People like me are a dime-a-dozen. It is fun to be around so many people who focus on nature with a keen curiosity of how it works as well as how magnificently beautiful and amazing it is. That being said, I have little knowledge about the sciences other than biology. The rich patterns the frost makes when it forms upon ice is breathtaking. There must be physics and chemistry causing it to happen but I currently know nothing about that. Instead I just focus on the exquisite beauty of design of these brocade tapestries and capture in photographs something that is ... read more

By Melisse Similar to an archeologist or paleontologist peeling off the layers of earth to unveil buried treasures, the melting snow seeps into the ground, exposing layer upon layer of sign of what occurred in the passing months. The snow "remembers" who walked upon its surface and what transpired there. At the turn of the new year this year, warm temperatures filled Homer's clean air, causing the snow to melt, revealing and then erasing the record stored in the deep accumulation of white compacted crystals. I recalled the moose that, weeks before, had walked through the yard, depositing a pile of well formed oval scat, the splash of red paint-water I tossed out the door, the "calling cards" of loving dogs who had come to visit us (one dear dogfriend who had since passed away), a ... read more

By Melisse Nearly 6 months has passed since our last travelblog entry. It hasn't been for lack of travel or anything to report. Perhaps it's been just the opposite; We've had so much going on that our energy has been into doing rather than reflecting and reporting. As you probably know, we've left nomadic life and settled down, at least for a while. We're now living at the end of the road in Homer, Alaska… a place so fine it well makes up for my aversion to cold weather and my love of warm tropical environs. We do miss our Missouri community immensely, and our California connections as well. But our new life here is amazing and compelling in a huge wealth of ways, both socially and physically! The people here are overwhelmingly warm, welcoming and ... read more