Reconstruction of Iberomesornis romerali, a toothed enantiornithe, from Wikipedia.

And so like with the Birds of Kaua’i, I give you the Birds of Costa Rica. (Does she see a Quetzal? you ask. Scroll down to find out.)

Alas, I did not see a Quetzel. Thus, it’s imperative I return to the region some day. Birded out? Check out non birding Costa Rica adventures on my Flickr set.

The post Birds of Costa Rica appeared first on Jewels.

He proceeds to ask me for my license and papers and writes me a ticket. When he first shows me his handheld ticket machine, I see what I estimate to be a $550 fine. But he’s not done. “Is this bad for you?” he asks in his limited English. “Si” I responded. “Muy.” In what poquito Español I can slap together, I explain I have no dinero, o muy poquito dinero. He frowns and runs between his car and mine a few times, each time inquiring more about us and our trip: how long are we renting the car? when do we leave? He’s not happy that we’re leaving mañana. “Ohhhh” lingers as he finds the way to explain in better English than before that we must pay the fine to leave the country. El banco is the best because the rental company will charge us an extra 15% tax. The next time he shows me his handheld ticket machine, the fine reads closer to $650 — the fine went up! He finally prints it and lets us go. As soon as I’m back on the road, 2 cars pass me on the double yellow and my passenger waves her fist out the window at the cop who is sadly unaware of the salute being given to him.

At this point, we’re 1/2 hour behind schedule and hit Guapiles after sunset. That’s when the roads start to bend frequently, we begin the real ascent when the fog descends … and I look for the white lines to guide me only to find that the blacktop road blends into a black jungle. Why is white paint a scarcity here? White-knuckled and determined, I fixate on my guide vehicles. When I lose one, I speed up or slow down to get another. Luckily, I’m only without one for an anxious cinco minutos … and they are the longest minutes of my trip and my life, which I’m incredibly aware can end at any moment. And no, I cannot pull over. I see no place to pull off the road where we won’t sink into or be swallowed by jungle or fall off a cliff.

After getting caught misbehaving, I’m more paranoid than ever about making any traffic violations, so I avoid u-turns and speeding and drive straight to our AirBnB, skipping all sodas and pulparias. I’m looking forward to meeting our host and getting his advice on my infraction. I’ve exhausted all options for how I can possibly round up $650 overnight on credit and get it transferred to a debit/credit card I have on my possession to pay the fine should I have to leave Costa Rica. Sadly, I’m not sure if any of what I’ve thought through is possible, so I’m hoping to hear that I can leave and deal with it later. After I’m safely out of paradise.

I’m ready to trust our AirBnB host because he’s from the US and has written a guidebook for Costa Rica, after having lived here for 20 years. Or so that’s what he says on the internet. He chuckles. “He was trying to get a bribe. You’ll be fine.” We decide it’s worth trying to leave without paying the ticket and to follow up on it later — at an indefinite time in the future when I have access to such money and want to return to Costa Rica.

We of course can’t go to bed without doing more research, research I wish I’d done before renting a car.

Lessons learned about driving in Costa Rica

1. Use Waze (more above)
2. Don’t attempt to drive through or over the mountains after night fall (more above)
3. Fines are set by the policemen, vary widely, and make up the policemen’s monthly salaries
4. Costa Rica traffic fines are the highest in the world (We suspect this is one reason so many Ticos ride bikes, walk and go without cars — as there’s little way they’d be able to afford the fines.)
5. It’s cheaper to get a DUI than a speeding ticket
6. Costa Rican police look for and pull over gringos, suspecting big pockets and ability to bribe with big $ bills

I suspect that the reason the policeman asked me when we were leaving Costa Rica was that it would take time for the ticket to be processed in their national system, thus alerting the car rental agency and the airport. He impressed upon me the urgency in having to deal w/the ticket since I couldn’t leave the country without paying. Seeing as how I got the ticket on our last full day in the country, I can neither confirm nor deny his allegations. What I can confirm is that I was able to leave without settling the bill in Costa Rica.

As we were sitting on our plane, taxiing on the runway waiting for takeoff, we spotted an iguana. He was enjoying the heat of the concrete and did several, rapid “perk ups” when he saw us, clearly celebrating our adventures and escape.

an iguana bids us farewell in Costa Rica

Pura vida!

The post Driving in Costa Rica and what to do if you get a ticket. appeared first on Jewels.

1. Babies.

What’s not to love about Facebook turning into a feed of cute babies? I was lucky enough to hold tiny Sarah Jean in the hospital before being whisked away to NYC where I got to play with 5 month year old Greyson. Felix made it to one of our Workfrom Wednesdays and Florence mastered the high chair to become one of my favorite lunch dates. Noah even made a trip back to Portland, and boy did I fall in love with his smile. Anthony made it in time for our family reunion and Athena came 10 weeks early to make it out in 2014. I haven’t met Athena yet, so a trip to Minnesota is on the docket for 2015.

Louis Owen, December (photographed in June)

Felix Wylie, January (photographed in August)

Lydia Elise, January (photographed in June)

Florence Imogen, March (photographed in Aug)

Florence Imogen, March (photographed in Dec)

Greyson Oliver, March (photographed in Oct)

Anthony, April (photographed in July)

Sarah Jean, September (photographed in Sept)

2. Weddings.

I love love and am energized and inspired when the people around me share theirs. Alissa and Terry started off the wedding season with a stylish affair at Smith Rock and I found myself in awe of their daring and caring spirits when we celebrated at their bike troup’s bar. Despite photographing Julie & Regan‘s wedding, I found myself with plenty time to enjoy the comedic and inspiring ceremony and rocking dance party that ensued. Professionally, I was stoked at how the photo booth turned out & based on the number of folks who shared their photos online, the guests were, too. And I was honored to watch my business partner Darren marry the love of his life Paige and meet his energetic family–all amazing dancers. Amanda and Pete, who’d moved away from Portland, returned to marry and I enjoyed a brief time traveling to the past and more dancing.

Julie & Regan’s photo booth

Julie & Regan throw bouquet and say I Do.

Wedding party; Lauren and Sharon; Erin;

Amanda & Pete

Guests wrote their wishes onto scraps of fabric that were then woven into a blanket; guests;

My Workfrom.co business partners Zack and Darren; Paige & Darren; me and Faye.

3. Career Jump + Road Trip.

After being laid off in June, I dove into a new business: Workfrom. My business partners and I had been “dating” since February, so we were confident that our business plan had (sexy) legs and that we were compatible. On June 4, 2014 our company was born and I spent the rest of the year learning the difference between starting a company and starting a startup.

Shortly before deciding to go all-in, while I was still employed, I took a road trip to Eastern Oregon and worked from the road to prove that I really could work from anywhere. I rose with the sun around 5:30 each day, with enough time to find cell phone coverage and an internet connection. And each night I camped somewhere new.

After waking up in Hell's Canyon, I drove back to Baker City to work from Lone Pine- where I ran into another nomadic worker. It pays to travel while you work! Where do you #workfrom?

A photo posted by Workfrom.co (@workfromco) on May 28, 2014 at 3:50pm PDT

In September we won an award. Sadly, Darren was presenting at an event in Austin so isn’t pictured here. And I managed to break the trophy before it made its way to Darren’s. Luckily, I took a photo of it before I broke it.

Me with my cofounder Zack and our lawyer Jason; the award.

4. Zelda Died.

Zelda, my warrior princess cat, passed away on Valentine’s Day from kidney failure. Her ashes alternate between the mantle and next to Fish TV, aka the fish tank, and I find myself thinking of her more than I’d ever expect to reflect on a pet. Selfishly, the majority of my initial grief and reflection came from the expectations of being a caretaker. What if I’d taken her to the hospital? What if I’d ignored the vet? What if I’d not been so laissez-faire? Judgements aside, she passed away at home, in my arms and will always be remembered. (I made the mistake of taking a picture of her after she passed away and when I go to look for photos of her, I see it. I still get teary eyed.)

A photo posted by Jewel Mlnarik (@juellez) on Jan 16, 2013 at 7:12pm PST

5. Family Vacation in the Upper Left USA.

Never in the history of me or my family had my father’s children all taken a vacation together. After looking into trips abroad or to the dessert, we settled on my place. It would be far cheaper if only some of us had to travel, so over my baby brother’s spring break, my dad and 3 brothers all met me in Portland. We filled my house and took a road trip to Seattle to visit my Aunt and stayed at a fancy AirBnB in Tacoma.

Josh, Jake, Jewel, Susan, James, Jerry

6. Family Reunion in Nebraska.

I discovered that a dog could ride a motorcycle and got some much needed down time with aunts, uncles and cousins that I grew up with. And I got to beef up on some family history and snag a couple of old photos of grandma and grandpa. In addition to the large, Wolff family reunion, dad and I went to Lincoln to meet up with my sister Jenni, Dave and their kids for a mini reunion.

8 of the 10 kids, my dad’s in the middle

August, Jenni, Marley

7. Getting Yelled at in the River.

On the same trip as #6, I spent a day adventuring with dad. We went to the first house I turned 1 and 2 in, foraging along the way (see #12) and made a pit stop at the river. We’d recently read that while the land along rivers may be privately owned, the rivers themselves are free to be used by the public. So we took that as an opportunity to walk in the flat Platte. During our walk, a crotchety old man came out to yell at us — accusing us of trespassing. “Oh, you mean to tell me you own the river?” “Yes!!”

To be fair, we had trespassed to get to the water, though he wouldn’t have known that. So we took extra caution to get out under the bridge — land we’d also read was public.

Dad in the Platte, shortly before we got yelled away.

8. Faye’s Birthday on the Oregon Coast.

The aquarium! And more road tripping. And camping. And exploring tide pools.

9. Waterfalls.

Inspired by last year’s hiking adventures with my friend Rebecca, I deliberately set out on waterfall hikes. These included Ramona Falls on my birthday, a secluded waterfall near Eugene over Joe & Amy’s house warming weekend and several along I-84, including one that I discovered thanks to a friend posting on Instagram that includes a short swim.

Somewhere in the gorge with my brother Josh during his short stint living in Portland.

Ramona Falls on my birthday.

I brought my phone in a water proof case for this one. A new friend from Argentina and I explored the gorge before Amanda & Peet’s wedding.

Near Eugene, over Joe and Amy’s house warming weekend.

We took a break during Timberfest to hike near the bottom of Snoqualmie Falls, famous for being in the intro of Twin Peaks.

 10. Timberfest.

For the past couple of years, I join a group of people glued together by a fabulous music lover, curator & singer from Colorado by way of California. Every year I look forward to it as a time to see my cousin Tricia & her husband Joe, live like I’m 20, reconnect with old festival friends and enjoy new (to me) music. My only regret was not joining the crew heading onto Alaska afterwards. Had I not just been laid off, you can bet that I would have gone and in writing this, I wish I’d done it anyway. #firstworldproblems

Faye sporting REI sunglasses she assembled herself.

Megan, Vajra & Heather

 11. Workfrom America Tour.

Always a rebellion, I refuse to accept that work can’t be fun. As such, we set out on a month of back-to-back traveling to spread the Workfrom word. After unofficially touring Omaha while I was in the state for my family reunion, I decided it was time to kick off an official tour.

Got to see these cuties in Omaha, when I was in town for the family reunion and getting Workfrom Omaha off the ground. With their mom, they even helped me add several coffee shops (and one ice cream parlor) to the website.

Darren and I started in NYC where I got to see old friends (and that cute baby, Greyson). When I rented a car to drive to Washington D.C. they gave me an SUV so I had a fun time trying to escape Manhattan in a beast. Luckily I enjoyed playing frogger in the first person and we made it, after taking a pitstop in Philidelphia’s oldest bar to catch some football along the way. It was my first time to DC since college and I walked by all the monuments and the white house, admiring the architecture and tourists. We also flew to Austin and nearly melted in the September heat. And a month later, I traveled by train and bus to SF for a conference, down to San Carlos to visit my grandma, up to up to Oroville to visit my mom, step dad & brother James and then all the way to LA for another conference.

Family photo hanging on my mom’s wall (that’s James & I as little kids); James on the top of Bald Rock after our hike; Grandma and grandpa Gomes wedding photo at their home.

After the conference, I stayed with my cousin Liz and her family for a couple of days, whom I hadn’t seen since I helped them move to LA 4 years ago. We went to one of Jay Leno’s comedy clubs where Arsenio Hall was one of the standups. The kids were all grown up with one already in college, one a senior and the baby standing taller than me. And my friend Amanda (the same one who got married earlier that year) even came down from Santa Barbara to visit for the day. After all the buses, trains and Uber accident I was happy to fly home in time for Thanksgiving.

A photo posted by Workfrom.co (@workfromco) on Nov 14, 2014 at 6:44am PST

12. Wild Crafting, Dinner Parties and Domestication.

Before the hustle and bustle of starting my own business, I spent a few months enjoying a leisurely pace. I kicked it off by rearranging the house and swapping the living room with the dining room, so I could throw more dinner parties.

Roughly every month I’d pick a new focus, starting with fermentation. I made sauerkraut and pickled cabbage and moved onto kombucha until I accidentally melted my bottle caps and never replaced them, leaving my mother to wither away in the fridge, waiting to be bottled. Still hooked on foraging, wild edibles and tinctures, I tried my hand at making a usnea lemoncello and less interesting tinctures.

preserved lemons, usnea limoncello, hand lettering

The day we went to look at the house I spent my first couple of years, dad and I read about some Nebraska edibles and foraged for our dinner pictured here.

Then I moved onto crafting lights and journals … anything I could make with my hands, without a computer and using supplies already lying around the house.

kindle case and wedding journal

In the spring I called on the Audubon Society & Columbia Land Trust to begin the process of certifying my yard to become a Backyard Habitat for birds and help protect the spread of invasive species. I didn’t get far before being wholly consumed by Workfrom so it was more an excuse for an unkempt yard and killer deals on natural plant sales.

13. New Housemates

I’ve owned my home for 9 years and this year saw several new housemates. In February, Daniel moved out to make way for my brother Josh moving out from Missouri. Josh left in July to return to Missouri and with my new (un)employment status, I knew I’d need to find new, paying renters quickly. Faye saved the day, befriending a bartender, Jess, she knew from work. Jess and her boyfriend Sam have been awesome housemates, consistently filling it with aromas of their latest cooking adventures & taking care of the pets when Faye & I are away.

A photo posted by Jewel Mlnarik (@juellez) on Sep 6, 2014 at 6:57pm PDT

Jess on the Columbia, handmade boat race, Jess & Sam on the Sandy.

14. Franklin High Remodel

As my dad discovered, living next to a high school can mean that at some point the school gets remodeled and you lose or gain a street. In our case, we’ll be losing our dead end street in favor of a new, thoroughfare for teachers and event attendees … and the garbage trucks. Luckily, we have an amazing neighbor who’s worked with community organizations and the city before, so there’s a chance our livability won’t be tremendously impacted. The biggest disappointment has been the lack of ethics and professional courtesy on behalf of the project director. The project team had worked on the project for over a year before engaging with the neighbors and even then it was only after we tracked them down. This will be the year we either win or lose our street.

…

It’s impossible to start a post such as this and not get swept away in the countless other moments that pop up. Faye’s uncle passing away, my aunt Susan coming out to visit & take me to Bob Dylan, parties, birthdays, random gatherings and of course, my end of year trip to Costa Rica which will be shared separately. Oh and I also started the year with a “photo a day” challenge that petered out after a few weeks. Still, its Instagram account lives on.

Surprise halloween dance party at the Robinsons.

Penelope dresses the part.

Faye’s uncle passed away. This is her grandma, 2 aunts and mom.

4th of July party at Elisabeth’s.

Bobby reflects on his year taking photos and love of beer.

Chris loves birthday BBQs.

Dayville!

Jenni visited Portland while Josh was living here, to learn a new kind of massage where she hangs from bars and uses her feet.

Martin. A house guest got me out playing in nature.

Bridge Pedal … we rode all of them.

Joe & Amy’s housewarming weekend on a hike.

Joe & Amy’s housewarming weekend at the lake.

The post Fourteen Highlights from Twenty Fourteen (mostly in photos) appeared first on Jewels.

We decide to celebrate Faye’s birthday at the stroke of midnight with some dancing at the glamorous One-5 lounge on the (you guessed it) 15th floor. I even get Faye to dance her famous discos and I’m happy racking up my steps count on the fitbit.

Despite docking in Victoria, BC early on Friday, I start the day with laundry. Being Faye’s birthday and all, I decide to let her sleep in and only wake her when laundry is nearly dry so we can squeeze in a quick walk on land. Like Juneau, we’re only docked in Victoria for a few hours. Opting out of any planned excursions (and costs) we follow the walkway to downtown though only get as far as the wharf. The floating village is adorable and we watch kids feed a fat seal and snag another real coffee. (Have I mentioned how bad the cruise coffee is yet?)

We even spot a chowder cart off the beaten path and fill up on some chowder with halibut confit (read: delicious heaven) and fish sans chips and a coke. Soda on the ship is astronomically expensive, yet happens to be one of Faye’s favorite delights – so instead of sneaking on more bottles of wine, we decide to bring back a coke.

Without knowing it’ll be my last, I make it for another day of Duplicate Bridge. I’m with Jean again, the well dressed, laid back risk taker from my first day of Party Bridge and I like her style. We hit a stride in a few hands and she patiently puts up with my learning in others. We’re East/West again, which I like since that means we get to walk in between rounds. That first day we were North/South and I felt far too much like a programmer again, being glued to my chair and punching numbers into the scoring computer for hours. If I knew I wasn’t going to make the final game tomorrow, I’d do a better job of saying goodbye to everyone, but I leave as if I’ll see them all tomorrow.

The evening blows by with the great buffet birthday dinner, family portraits, napkin crown and evening at the One-5. Being the last Formal Night of the cruise, the dance club is filled with the crew’s entertainment staff and what reminds me of what I remember of freshman year fraternity party sorority girls. Only I’m not having to snatch passed out girls out of the arms of untrustworthy boys. (Growing older has its perks!)

I’m not sure why I’m not in the mood for drinking, so I play with the discomfort of dancing – of being visible – in front of people, fully inhibited. When a country song comes on, it’s like I just took 5 shots of whisky. While I never liked country growing up, I loved dancing to it as those town dances were the prime opportunity to meet boys from other towns! The gentleman I find free to dance isn’t very coordinated, so The Pretzel is out of the question. Still, we manage to make it through without any major injuries and I no longer feel awkward dancing alone, sober and to a variety of music I will not remember tomorrow. My realization is that country is my gateway dancing music*. I wonder if I can use that next time I’m in a situation, room or mood where I’m too anxious to move. I might need to add another Power Song to my iPod…

* I’ve used the gateway practice most commonly with food. For example, I never used to like tomatoes. One day I discovered a pasta pomodoro dish that I absolutely loved. I used that to like tomatoes. Raw onions? It took a Russian raw onion, tomato, basil and sunflower oil salad. Blue Cheese? Cranberry Stetson on steak. Gin? Still working on it via Hendricks and a mix of bitters, Saint Germaine, soda water and grapefruit juice though not all at once. The list goes on.

Extra: Today* is Day 34, Post 28 of my 30 day blog challenge. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom of the page to receive weekly updates in your inbox or follow me on Tumblr if that’s your scene.

* Living on a boat for 10 days, I had limited access to the internet so post-dating my entries for the date written (vs the date actually uploaded).

The post Days 8+9: Asea, a Birthday, Canada + a Gateway Dance appeared first on Jewels.

My only other sky tram experiences include riding with the cavemen dummies at Santa Cruz and Portland’s arial tram to OHSU, neither of which prepared me for the Mount Roberts Tramway. When the doors open at the top, I can peer down through the large crack and see that we’re suspended above the trees with no solid ground in sight. While I appreciate the fact that the windows open for prime picture taking, I can’t shake the visions of people falling through and I keep my picture taking to a minimum.

We’ve got time to hike the short trail, though I’d like to revisit and take the steep trail down through gold valley to the city. After getting a few panoramas in, we’re just in time for the American Bald Eagle viewing and measure our armspams against wingspans.

With an hour to spare, we make it back to the boat just in time for me to make it to my first game of Duplicate Bridge which deserves a post all on its own. For now I’ll simply say how pleased I was to play with such a gracious and patient group, high ranked ACBL players and all. I’d also like to thank my father and brother for always beating me at games growing up, as they taught me how to lose graciously and still love the games.

Extra: Today* is Day 31, Post 27 of my 30 day blog challenge. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom of the page to receive weekly updates in your inbox or follow me on Tumblr if that’s your scene.

* Living on a boat for 10 days, I had limited access to the internet so post-dating my entries for the date written (vs the date actually uploaded).

The post Day 7: Juneau, Alaska appeared first on Jewels.

No, I didn’t know that Moose were so freakishly big! Or that “halibut” came from a Middle English word for “flat fish we eat on holy days” and that they can grow bigger than a … than an otter! Or that a Bald Eagle doesn’t get its white plumage until it’s 4 and can live upwards of 30 years in the wild (though the average expectancy is 15-20). While I certainly don’t cram everything in, I enjoy the large room filled with fabulous taxidermy tableaus including plenty of animals (including birds) I’ve never heard of, let alone seen in the wild, before. The bird handlers are all very friendly, especially a younger girl who can’t be over the age of 12 who I’ll later relate to the little girl in “We Bought a Zoo.”

At this point, I don’t have time for a full hike to the top of any mountain anymore, so I walk beyond the edge of town a ways on a gravel road that’s no stranger to tourists, checked out a hiker and cyclist only campground boasting bear-safe rope ties for food supplies and squeeze in some local art skimming before joining up with my fellow travelers.

Highlights from our evening tour include the tour guide herself for her stories and verve after a long day entertaining folks from the largest boat Haines gets all year. While taking us out to the mud flats (where folks have to time their walks to and from home with the low tide) and a hippy community of artists and tradespeople, she squeezes in history and personal anecdotes that have me dreaming of a life living in Alaska during the summer and Mexico during the winter. We even get to see another glacier.

After spending a music fest or two with an Alaskan who belts her state song better than I’ve ever heard it, I snap a quick shot of the fort building where the song was born. And then comes the Hammer Museum with an impressive nail display and chatty guide. Her story starts with a man who wanted more hammers and a wife who put a limit in the house at 100. As one would expect, he starts a museum and a few short years later, he’s amassed over 5,000 including donations and contributions from the Smithsonian. They have a hammer dating to the making of the Pyramids, hammer patents and countless varieties including “drink hammers” from the golden era of talkies when folks needed a way to let the waiters know they needed another drink. I imagine all bars sounding like weddings. And I want to bring the drink hammer back. (Not to be confused with bringing MC Hammer back, though I’d love to see a picture of MC Hammer at the Hammer Museum.)

More photos from Haines, Alaska.

Extra: Today* is Day 30, Post 26 of my 30 day blog challenge. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom of the page to receive weekly updates in your inbox or follow me on Tumblr if that’s your scene.

* Living on a boat for 10 days, I had limited access to the internet so post-dating my entries for the date written (vs the date actually uploaded).

The post Day 6: Haines, Alaska + Cabin Fever appeared first on Jewels.

Now it’s just me against the fog and it burns off quickly. Everyone who’d been to Alaska before warned me of the rain and lack of sunshine, so I’m not quite prepared for what the day delivers. Bright sun, warm breezes and a ship full of photographers make for my longest day yet of walking. Faye and I stake out prime spots on the promenade where a Princess paparazzi bombard us with pleas for poses against this glacier and that glacier and the magnanimous backdrops. After the umpteen decline, they finally recognize us and stop asking.

While the glaciers seem like little more than snowy crevasses from afar, as the cruise ship gets close we can see the colors pick up and splashes of icebergs breaking off into the ocean. They suddenly tower and hint at an ice age that was as recent as 20,000 years ago. (I have some history to learn!) Needless to say, I take several photos and enjoy an evening at sea, watching the glaciers fade into the sunset and trying to avoid picturing them fading away forever.

All Glacier Bay, Alaska set on Flickr … I hope to share the panoramas soon.

Extra: Today* is Day 29, Post 25 of my 30 day blog challenge. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom of the page to receive weekly updates in your inbox or follow me on Tumblr if that’s your scene.

* Living on a boat for 10 days, I had limited access to the internet so post-dating my entries for the date written (vs the date actually uploaded).

The post Day 5: Glacier Bay appeared first on Jewels.

I decided to let Faye sleep in and found a comfortable spot at my mother’s namesake’s O’Brien’s cafe for an off ship Irish Coffee and blogging time. The New York Hotel is next door and I’m drawn to an official looking historical plaque which summarizes the hotel’s history. Started by a Japanese family who was sent away to an interment camp after Pearl Harbor, the hotel stayed open and was returned to the family after they were able to return home, along with the profits. What a beautiful town, I decided at the moment.

Less sincere is Creek Street, which boasts itself as the place where “Salmon -and- Men go upstream to spawn.” A curvy woman in red greets the droves of tourists in front of a former brothel and we weave through families watching salmon climb rapids and trying our best to ignore the odor of dead fish. Here at the top of the streams, is where the salmon spawn and die. And while I know this to be true, I’ve never seen so many dead fish and can understand one kid’s confusion and laugh at his mother’s response. “That, my dear, is global warming.”

With some cell phone coverage, I’m able to share one of the many pictures I will take in Alaska. Ever since visiting the Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver, BC, I’ve been in love with First Nation art and this place is crawling with totem poles, sketches and regional art of the flavor.

Luckily, Faye and I had booked an excursion for the afternoon that would take us away from the crowds and into kayaks and a fjord. We spot bald eagles, a seal and race fellow kayakers, taking advantage of an upper body workout opportunity we won’t get for the rest of the trip.

Overall, my first day in Alaska has been a wild success and I’m excited for the next few days of (Nebr)Alaskan Adventure.

Extra: Today* is Day 28, Post 24 of my 30 day blog challenge. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom of the page to receive weekly updates in your inbox or follow me on Tumblr if that’s your scene.

* Living on a boat for 10 days, I had limited access to the internet so post-dating my entries for the date written (vs the date actually uploaded).

The post Day 4: Ketchikan, Alaska appeared first on Jewels.

Bam! I forgot how fun reading fiction is. After watching The Hunger Games on Cruise TV yesterday, I decided that I’d look for the second book in the library and much to my luck, I found it.

As expected, the book, Catching Fire, was a quick read and a perfect way to spend a day at sea. As unexpected, the stories will tint how I interact with my world for the coming week, from the food sculptures at the buffet and mentions of the natives use of the moss found on forests of Sitka Spruces.

Extra: Today* is Day 27, Post 23 of my 30 day blog challenge. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom of the page to receive weekly updates in your inbox or follow me on Tumblr if that’s your scene.

* Living on a boat for 10 days, I had limited access to the internet so post-dating my entries for the date written (vs the date actually uploaded).

The post Day 3: At Sea – There is no District 12 appeared first on Jewels.

When I was in high school, I wanted to be a teacher. My guidance counselor told me I was too young. (For many years, I thought he meant in age since I was the youngest in my class, graduating at 17.) By the time I’d be teaching high school, somewhere during my 4 year pursuit of a college degree, I’d be the same age as my older students. This, he posited, would be a challenge for establishing trust and respect. Live life first and teach from experience led me away from teaching as I had a lot of life to experience first.

On a hunt for bridge – my final Facebook post before embarking on the cruise.

Of the many activities circled on our Princess Patter, I was most excited about ScholarShip@Sea: Bridge Play. ¹ Having come alone with no Duplicate Bridge experience, I was easily coaxed into playing Party Bridge with an opinionated, head strong woman from Quincy, California, a meek risk taker from the Bay Area and a newbie from Sacramento. I was indeed the youngest, by 25 or more years, though age only mattered when my references to my childhood “Book It” program fell on deaf ears. There were no cries of “Pizza Hut!” when making books. ²

We played the first hand with our cards face up on the table and played 2 hours without scoring, focusing instead on teaching the newbie, coaching myself and swapping stories. At one point, the woman to my left proclaimed: isn’t it amazing what we learn through teaching others? I had nodded in agreement, trying to figure out what I was learning at the moment beyond the importance of finesse. I needed my concentration for the game, however, so shook off the pondering for a later moment.

During those later moments, I flashed on my recent and very brief mentorship with some female students at Portland Code School, supporting my girlfriend through her learning of my profession, the role of teacher in project management and passing on the passion of photography. Surely there will be time in the next 8 days to give all of this more thought.

Notes, just like we used to pass in class:

1. The Princess Patter was our daily ‘paper’ listing the activities on the ship for the day, including the day’s date, day of the week, temperature and location information. Little did I anticipate that this would become my only insight into how much time had passed since we departed. (back)
2. A book is equal to 6 tricks. When bidding, you declare how many tricks you will win beyond the book. As such, my fellow Bridge City Bridge Club players enjoy yelling Pizza Hut! upon the completion of booking our first 6 tricks.  (back)

Extra: Today* is Day 26, Post 22 of my 30 day blog challenge. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom of the page to receive weekly updates in your inbox or follow me on Tumblr if that’s your scene.

* Living on a boat for 10 days, I had limited access to the internet so post-dating my entries for the date written (vs the date actually uploaded).

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