Friday, February 17, 2012

February Update

Mendenhall Lake
Glacier chunk on frozen Mendenhall Lake

Shortly after our Haines trip, my dad left Juneau.  I don't think he had too much fun since it rained everyday (literally) and he didn't really have anyone to talk to but me.  I'm glad we got to spend the couple months together though.  It would've been a very long winter without him. 

Soon after he left, my husband came back home after spending some time in England visiting family and volunteering with conservation groups.  He had just missed our last dump of snow, which was about 18".  It was pretty in the woods but messy on the roads for a while.  Now all of the snow has mostly melted, and the sun is out a lot more these days.  At the very least, it's not raining nearly as much as it used to. 

We had couple of windy days though and one happenned to be on a day I was supposed to fly out to Fairbanks.  The plan was to stay at the Chena Hot Springs to see the Aurora.  The flight ended up getting cancelled, which led to the entire trip being cancelled.  It was a bit of a bummer.  We have another trip planned in early March though, to Anchorage for the Iditarod ceremonial start.

The most unfortunate news of the year so far though is Millie's chip fracture, which requires surgery to fix.  She has been limping for sometime, and after seeing two morons, I finally got a conclusive diagnosis and a treatment plan from vet #3.  She is actually scheduled for surgery the weekend of our Anchorage trip, but fortunately we can board her at the animal hospital while we are away.  The surgeon is a visiting specialist, so it could be 3-6 months for another surgery opportunity if we missed this one.  Shortage of medical care for animals (and people), is one of the downsides of being in a remote place like Juneau.  I suppose there are places much more remote than here though.

Not much else to report as of the moment.  This long weekend will be spent relaxing, enjoying walks, perhaps snowboarding, and playing Skyrim.

Oh, btw, saw a Pygmy owl today on a walk.  Got about 5 feet from it!!!  I need to remember to start bringing my camera with me everywhere I go.  You never know what you will see.