Deirdre

I almost forgot to write this post...a happy/sad event for us...our friend & executive director of the Shrine has had some big life changes this summer and has moved to Anchorage this past week.  We are happy for her, new baby on the way & her husband Ben & Quinn, but sad that we won't be working with her any more.  God put a big plan together to get them to Anchorage and that was amazing to see unfold...we pray that He will send a wonderful new director to the Shrine to continue the work & vision of this wonderful place.  

Someone quiet & unassuming, like Deirdre  ; D

So glad to have had this time with you & thanks for believing in us !  All the best to you !!

Day tripping

Can't believe fall is here and already a week into September!  Definitely feeling a change in the weather here, much cooler at night and have the furnace running.  We are going to be low on dry, seasoned wood to burn in the wood stove this winter so resisting the urge to light a fire yet, but it won't be long.  That said, I do like the cool weather, don't miss the muggy humidity at all! 

So one thing you may not realize about Juneau is that even though it is " on the continent" as the locals say, it is really an isolated island so to speak.  The "Road" goes about 5 miles south of the city and 40 miles north, although there is not much at all past us...and that's it.  You can only travel by boat or plane to leave Juneau...no jumping in the car for a road trip.

  So this past week, we travelled to Haines, 60 miles north, on the ferry to look at a utility tractor that might be purchased for the Shrine property.  Sixty miles, 4-1/2 hours on the water and lots of beautiful scenery.  There was a beautiful sunrise to start the day

We didn't take Sully the Nissan, just went as walk ons and Aurora went too !  She had to ride in her crate down on the car deck, but she did great...I talked to the crew guy afterwards and he said she never cried or barked--she is a trooper!  

A couple photos along the way...

This is interesting, something we just learned about the summer.  In 1918, there was a tragic ship sinking in the Lynn Canal--this is just about 7 miles north of the Shrine.  In Oct of that year there was a blizzard & gale force winds, the Princess Sophia was driven up onto Vanderbilt reef.  The reef is in the middle of the canal and is only partially visible according to the tide level.  

The ship was stuck and though several ships made it to help rescue the passengers, it was not possible to due so because of the tides, they couldn't get close enough and the weather was bad.  The captain thought the ship would lift off the reef at  high tide so he sent the rescue boats back.  The ship did lift off the reef, but the wind twisted it around and ripped open the bottom...366 souls were lost.  Although I had never heard of this before, it is said that economically, this wreck was worse than the Titanic, because of the many wealthy Alaskans that were on board, headed south for the winter.  The loss of many business leaders from this area severely hurt the economy for many years.  

Haines is a small town, charming and scenic.

 As we were headed out of town to see the tractor, I kept thinking something is different about this place, but what is it ? Trees! We have a gazillion trees around Juneau, but 90% of them are evergreens...Haines is a different microclimate, out of the rain forest area, so there are deciduous trees, like maples ...with leaves!  Didn't realize I had missed that, will be interesting to see if there is much color change here this fall but don't expect much.  But the rest of the scenery makes up for it..just different.  

A few hours in Haines, then back on the ferry for another 4-1/2 hours...a long day but nice to see some new scenery and enjoy a beautiful day! 

And here she is....

With great pleasure, introducing "Aurora" our new roomie & best pal.  She is a Labradoodle and is settling in just great ! 

We had thought about getting a dog when we moved here...had some plans that didn't work out, then decided to wait awhile, maybe til next spring . But about 3 weeks ago I saw this picture & game over, decided to go for it now, couldn't resist this face! 

Here's how my mind works... I had already picked the name Aurora for the someday puppy... Jeff had joked that we should just get 3, Aurora, Borie & Alice.  This puppy was named Alice (in her litter of 11) & the breeders name is Aurora Doodles.  So that was my sign that she was the one !

She flew in from Palmer, near Anchorage, on Tuesday- a 2 hour flight.  I was nervous that she would be stressed out but she wasn't shaky or frightened at all! We spent a quiet afternoon then a vet check at 4:30--all good!  Then we had to go help load the moving truck for Deirdre. 

She sat in her kennel on the corner of the porch where I could watch her & she could see us & all the activity--she sat quietly observing & then fell asleep. 

I was worried about how the first night would go, I remember long nights with previous puppies!  But she climbed right in the kennel at 10pm and didn't stir, whimper or make a sound all night !!  In fact when I woke up at 5 & decided to get up, she covered her eyes with her paw & wasn't ready to wake up !    I was hoping it wasn't just due to the busy day --last night went exactly the same-- straight to bed without any problems, and that was with a few long naps during the day --Yay!!  

She also is doing great walking with the leash & only one accident inside, but that was my fault for not watching for a minute.   So, documenting this now in case she turns into a holy terror, but at this point we are completely in love & impressed with her ! 

 Speaking of the Aurora Borealis, those awesome Northern Lights, here's a photo from a local photographer from yesterday morning    

  Aaaaggghh, can't believe I missed this!!  But at least there is hope that we will see them, some night-- the clouds here around Juneau hide a lot of the lights, so it is hit or miss.  As much as I want to see them, I can't seem to stay awake!  But hopefully we will get to experience soon !   

Another "almost" Wordless Wednesday

Forgot to post these great sunset photos...and getting excited that the long  daylight days are winding down so we will have more chance to see the Northen  Lights...

Summer Wrap up !

Hello again... Can't believe it's been forever since my last blog entry--not sure how/why I got out of the habit but decided I would try and catch up with what we've been doing all summer... for my own memory & the 3 of you who are following along...wink ; )     Big news coming next week so stay tuned for that--here's the summer 2015 wrap up !

We had a summer volunteer with us for 2 months, Kislia, from New York and a student at Catholic University in DC.  A new part of the Shrine's mission is to offer a place & time of discernment for volunteers who also help in the care of the property.  Kislia was a joy to have as our first volunteer!  

The highlight of the summer was a special family time, Patrick & Bonnie's wedding !  We were so excited to add to our family and participate in their special day... How they managed to pull off the most amazingly beautiful day for an outdoor wedding in the midst of a crazy summer of IL weather is a blessing... It was a wonderful day of family, friends, softball & bbq....perfection ❤️

And then there's these guys... Our hearts were full to see & hug them again...Michael & Sean did an awesome job as the ring bearers! 

Mid July my Mom & Dad came for a visit. We had a great time showing them around & I think they understand why we love it here. Dad got to golf in Alaska and the highlight of the week--caught a salmon off the rocks right out the front door 

Eating the catch of the day !

We had some other visitors from "home" - Gloria Fellers & friends had a stop in Juneau on their cruise and came out to the Shrine, also Bryan & Cyndee Kirwan stopped by on their motorcycle adventure/ vacation.  A group of 22 from Central IL will be here in September... We love having visitors & sharing the beauty & peace of the Shrine.  I love to look at the guest book in the chapel every night & see that we have visitors here from around the world ! 

Wildlife report -- the one thing we've decided we don't care for here in Alaska is salmon spawning season !  We have a spawning creek here on the property and the "circle of life" has been interesting to see & horrible to smell !  The salmon work their way up the shallow creek to lay their eggs and then they die...we have not had a lot of rain this summer so the low water is not strong enough to wash the dead bodies back out to the ocean-- the stench has been bad !!  Along with the huge gaggle of sea gulls that have taken up residence screeching "Mine, Mine, MINE!!"  day & night - hopefully this is almost over ! 

Here's just a portion of the creek...at least a 1/4 mile is full of dead salmon...no words....  There are a few bears on the property, Jeff & Kislia have seen them at various times but I haven't yet.  Here's one close encounter

So, that's about it... A great summer here in Alaska, only about 3 days where it reached 80 degrees, lots of sunny days- locals have warned us it's not always like this but we will certainly take it ! Looking forward to what winter will be like, last year was very light snow in Juneau but who knows what this year will bring. 

Next week we get a new roommate, can't wait to introduce her to you!  Stay tuned ... 

An Awesome Day!

Haven't blogged for a few days...the weather has been very nice, no rain for the last 10 days, which is quite unusual for Juneau...but we'll take it : )  So we have been doing several projects outdoors...the dandelions have exploded so trying to keep them out of the flower beds at least....it will be a battle I'm sure !   We are getting about 17 hours of sunlight now so things are growing like crazy.

Having my coffee this morning, I heard the sound of whales blowing....was able to get a short clip of them " talking"

( turn up your audio) 

There must be some good feeding right here today, they were hanging out for several hours right in front of the house.   Still hoping to see and capture a picture of a full breach !

We treated ourselves to some new binoculars, they are awesome!

  

I can see clear across to Shelter Island, 3 miles across the canal.  We can see the whale watching tours out in the area and when I notice the boats stop moving that means there are whales, so I can focus in on that area.

Speaking of wildlife, I hung out the hummingbird feeders Jeanne left and we've been entertained by up to 6 hummers at a time at the feeder.

   They are drinking a quart of nectar per day!

The Shrine has a beautiful rock garden along the water that is a Rosary Trail. It is a beautiful & peaceful place to pray & meditate.   The rock walls are planted with beautiful succulents, many that I've never seen before... It is starting to fill in  nicely!

Can't believe we get to live here ...

Happy Mother's Day! (and a hat tip to Fathers)

A beautiful day here and an orca playing in the bay but can't get its picture, they are a bit camera shy ( or I'm just not quick enough) But a lot of excited Japanese tourists got to see it. 

We had a busy week as the Priest's Retreat was here at the Shrine all week.  Nine priests serve the Diocese of Juneau & they were all here along with Bishop Burns & Bishop Zelinski from Fairbanks.   A great group of men & we were happy to get to know them all.  We spoiled them with Jeff's BBQ Ribs & DG's 24kt Carrot Cake so I think they will be back! 

The 2nd photo is at the "Libby"  Fr Hubbards boat-- he served the diocese in the 1950s - he was also an explorer & lecturer all over Southeast Alaska.   I would say he certainly must have been a man of faith to travel in Libby!   But even more so, Fr Thomas was out in his sea kayak every day & regularly "commutes" in it.... I'll just enjoy the view from the shore, thank you! 

Happy Morher's Day to our moms & all the women who have touched our lives as "moms" and friends- miss you and sending our love today !