Wilderness Blues- Ramblings from the Great Land

     I was going to do this post back in May, but it got put aside when we had the car accident. Then, because I often have to do things when I'm thinking about them, I did a post about giving blood and receiving a box of delicious thin mint cookies. Not just any old thin mints, these were Girl Scout Thin Mints. I think they should sell them year round, but I guess they would loose their novelty if they did. In any event, I'm now getting around to writing about our oldest daughter, Jen's visit at the end of May. It was such a pleasant trip, and to add to our pleasure she brought us some halibut from Hoonah, part of which she bought, and part was given to her by some friends in Hoonah, Julie Jackson and Denise Grey. A huge shout out of thanks to the two of them for their extreme generosity. We've enjoyed several meals so far, and to say the least, it has been delightful, a real blessing to have. Jen likes to be on the go, so I went with Autumn and her to the Eklutna Tail...

 2014 is drawing to a close, and so I thought it would be a good time to reflect on some of my many blessings. This is by no means a comprehensive look at them all, but rather a small fraction of God's goodness to me. I recently heard a Christmas song that I haven't heard in years. The lyrics in part go like this- when I'm worried and I can't sleep, I count my blessings instead of sheep,and I'll fall asleep, counting my blessings. I hope that as this year ends and a new one begins, you'll join me in looking back and reflecting on the multitudes of blessings we enjoy. Thank you for your interest in this blog. God bless and keep you, and God bless America. May we return to our roots and once again be a beacon of light for the world.

Finally....my pictures downloaded for this blog. I've been trying since last night.Perhaps we could have a little rendition of the Hallelujah chorus from Handle's Messiah play in the backround . I was mistakenly thinking that having a satellite Internet provider would solve all my computer problems. How naive! The holidays are over again for another year and everyone has left the nest and gone back to their own lives. The boys caught the ferry last Friday- Brian went back to Juneau and Ben returned to North Carolina for some more intense training. Autumn left today. Things will go back to normal now I guess, whatever that is. No doubt it will be much quieter around here. For whatever reason the kids seem to think that visiting here requires staying up into the wee hours of the morning and sleeping in until the afternoon. I can't really complain too much since they spend so much time at Jen's house talking and laughing and carrying on. Our place is mainly for grabbing ...

I guess this is the last post I'll be making this year. Like the title says this will just be a conglomeration of whatever comes to mind- I suppose it's not much different than most of my other posts. I've enjoyed doing this blog. I wasn't real sure where it was going or what it was going to be about when I first started. I don't know if I'm doing it right or if there is even a correct way to write a blog. Perhaps I should stay with one theme like the book or Alaska or the farm, but then, those are only parts of my life that have helped to shape me. Consequently, I end up writing about baking custard pie and friendships one time, and commercial fishing or walking with my daughter another time. It's all part of who I am and writing this gives me a chance to share some of my life with those who, for whatever reason, might be interested in what goes on in this part of the world. I was out walking with Jen again the other day and happened to have my camera with...