stories2

Astro

Back in 1999 I had just gotten back from my trip to Disney World in Florida.
I had flown to Washington State to visit family and go car shopping with help from my sister.
I had purchased a 96 Ford Taurus with 10k miles on it for 10 thousand dollars cash.
I drove the Alaska Canada Highway back to my home.
There was a small paper that was free out in the valley and on the front page was a picture of "Bertie" as he was on death row at the animal shelter.
I went and met him,they put him on a leash and i got to take him outside and sit in the grass to spend about 30 minutes with him to see if i wanted to take him home even though i already wanted to anyway.
So I ended up adopting him and renamed him Astro.
I was warned that he was a car chaser and thats how he came to be at the shelter plus whoever had him never came to look for him or responded to his picture in the paper.
And he was all sorts of hyper,he would see another dog in a vehicle on the road and just go bananas then he figured every car has a dog....his place in the car was the back seat and barks at everything.
Then he learned what squirrels were and whenever we would go for a drive he would bark at the trees where squirrels live,I mean every tree...lol
Plus Astro was a runner,I would open the door of my house to let him piddle on the bushes and he would just dart off.
I got a call from my neighbor Gerry and he says my dog is in his house,Help he wont stop licking me,as that would happen frequently.
I bought a laser pointer and even though he knew its in my hand just the click would make him look for the red dot like a madman.
He loved to run and Whenever I would fire up my ATV he would just start off in a full run before it had time to warm up then i would spend some time looking for him and found him a good mile away in a full out run.
He was a Border Collie mix with a "stupid Switch" in his head and it would flip rather frequently.
One time iwe were at the stop sign and wayyy down the road near 4 mile road he saw a bicyclist and zoom there he goes running about 2 miles to greet him then i would have to wait til the cyclist got to me then i put him on the leash after that until he figured out how to pull it out of my hand in a rush run.
This dog even liked to run alongside the Arctic Cat snowmachine i had.
I would run him up and down my street til he was completely exhausted then put him in the house and go out for a ride.
Astro was not a mean dog by any means,he was quite friendly with everyone.
He quickly learned about bears too as i had saved him from being a bruins lunch multiple times.
Astro was not perfect by any means but he was with me for 7 years until his car chasing fetish finally got him run over.
It was a 4x4 truck and the driver apologized profusely,i told him not to fret too much,it was bound to happen sooner or later.
This was 2006,after cancer,and after i became financially strapped from paying those bills,there just wasnt any fonds to rush him to the vet,he was pretty messed up.
I had to put him down myself,it really tore me up inside and i still feel really bad about it to this day.
Rest In Peace Old Friend
1999 - 2006

BigT

The Wildest Manic Spree

About 30 years ago i started on a certain class of medications that deals with Bipolar Manic type.
These so called medicines come with a myriad of side effects like parkinson like hand tremors which go away with discontinuation of the med.
The other thing you can get from prolonged use is Tardive Dyskonesia which is permanent, irreversible and life long.
So last year my special doctor tells me I have T.D.
I disagreed because ive known people with it and thats something i dont have.
Even my Primary Care doctor told me that,two old friends and my mother who is a retired registered nurse.
So I set out to prove to myself and the others that i dont have T.D.
I had two goals in mind,first to prove them all wrong and second to make the hand tremors go away.
I was for a few months taking Inderal which is a blood pressure med that deals with tremors.
Within a week of taking it the tremors vanished,I was so excited but then i was having fainting spells getting out of my chair even slowly and then i was feeling faint just sitting.
I knew my blood pressure at this point was low so I stopped taking it and a couple days later It had passed and I was fine.
But then the hand tremors came back with a ruthless vengeance and my hands were shaking so bad people would notice. At this point I was embarking on redesigning my gazette from scratch which should have only taken 2 days for both Mobile and Desktop but instead took 2 weeks.
Because of the tremors my website editor was nightmarishly difficult and drop down menus were damn near impossible because my fingers were twitching so bad i was always ckicking the wrong thing.
So then there was one thing left to do,gradually reduce my dose of special medicine which by the way is a dumb idea.
I went from 30mg to 20 then 10 then 5.
Within a few days of hitting 5 mg the tremors virtually dissapeared by 98%.
Mission accomplished right?
Not so fast,this is where it gets interesting in a very bad way.
I became so very manic that my thoughts were spinning around in my head faster than the speed of light.
I became obsessed with creating a new energy source to generate my own electricity for free.
I was going to harness the earths gravitational field to generate my own power thereby freeing up 400 dollars a month in winter.
Well things got worse than that.
I figured if "THEY" for profit figures out what I am doing and find it operational they will kill us all and even the girl at the espresso stand that makes my latte,just to make sure they get everyone.
I was going to save the planet and all mankind.
My close friend Scott,being concerned pays me a visit.
He brought all the fixins for the meal.
We were having chicken bacon with cream sauce,the recipe is under Keto Dishes.
So he decided to do the cooking.
As he was preparing everything I began to tell him of my groundbreaking discovery.
He said it sounds like perpetual motion but because of my mechanics its kinda sorta but not.
Scott being an extremely intelligent and well read person knew where i was going.
He didnt just say it wouldnt work he explained known physics and the laws of the universe to tell me how exactly it wouldnt work and why.
He even used an example which i already knew because I did it in science class in school.
Then he went on to say that if the device was actually created and operational that the Global Energy Industry would completely tank,World Governments would collapse and the entire planet would go to shit in a handbasket.
Then when the dust finally settles there would be no one left to remember who I was and what I created.
Now I was the one chuckeling and shaking my head.
We both had a good laugh and I came to realize i had just wasted the last ten days not realizing how little i slept and the fact I was awake for 200 hours,you do the math.
We sat down and enjoyed a fantastic meal,had a great conversation and had a good visit.
Now that the hand tremors are gone,my website editor is a breeze,my video editing is easy as pie and i now can play Doom Eternal and eviscerate demonic hordes all the while being a content tourist looking at all the pretty graphics.
Now i think i will finish my coffee and handroll another smoke.

Peace, BigT

Barbara...1988

Juneau Alaska,Spring 1988 I was inbetween places again and found myself at the shelter once again.
One day a young woman walked thru the door,it was 10 am and we were all getting coffee and week old donuts that came in a bag all mixed together.
She said her name was Barbara and needed shelter.
She talked to one of the staff and found with a chore stay each night no max until she moved on.
IBarbara was a plump woman about average height and had small feet.
We quickly became friends.
I invited her out to McDonalds for some fast food and better coffee.
One day I took her to South Douglas via my carriage,the city bus and we explored the old mine ruins and buildings.
We took many walks on the beach,Clearly I was smitten.
We would go to Marine Park and sought shelter from the rain.
The dock where the cruise ships tied up became a favorite haunt.
What money i did make i would treat her to some local fare like the Le Petite Paris a small french bakery up N.Franklin.
We alaways went for walks and lots of stairs are in juneau.I showed her the library at the State office building.
We seemed to fit like a glove.
One day at Job Service we both got hired to work in Pelican at the only cold storage and source of employment
.Population 150 during the fishing season and 1500 on the 4th of july.
During Winter there are 30 permanant residents.
The 4th of july has many festivities and public drunkenness.
One such event includes a trolling pole greased with a bell at the end.
You take a running start,jump on the ploe and slide on your crushed nuts to the end and ring the bell and you win....Sounds easy right?
Then theres the tub of ice on which you sit with your ass exposed and sit for 5 minutes then the local bartender gets a measure tape out.
The one with the smallest dick wins.
I personally wouldnt do either....Public embarrassment isnt my thing.
Barb and i would drink at Rosies and play darts and a Defender video game at the Brown Bar,Rosies gets really out of hand.
At this point the two of us kids were having quite the love affair.
Since Pelican was so small the bunkhouse was not an option for sex but at medium tide behind the schoolhouse on the beach was our favorite spot.
A skiff full of fishermen would scoot by and they were all hootin us on.
One day as the season neared an end Barb told me she was going back to Seattle in a few days.
I didnt have a ring but knelt on my knee and proposed to her.
She told me if thats my wish then I would have to return to Seattle with her and become a jew like her and that she cant marry outside her faith.
I tried in vain to convince her to stay and she boarded the float plane without me and I never saw her again.
I was completely heart broken and sank into a depressionShe did write a couple times but i did not reply.
All said the time we spent together was the best summer of my life....

BigT

My Friend Gerry

Way back in 1994 when i first moved out here Gerry came over to introduce himself in the spring of 1995 and we became good neighbors and friends.
He was a retired deisel mechanic and had his land by the creek for some years before i moved here.
Gerry was kind of an odd duck but as we both found out thats the only kind of people that lives out here anyway.
If you want normal then go to Anchorage...lol
There was a kind gentleman named Tony that I had met at the community lunch and he was well liked as i found out and i would talk to him about computers.
Well Tony was moving to Florida and had all this computer equipment in his basement which he offered to me for free,the catch?
If i wanted his high end dual core AMD computer w/2.5 ghz cpu,I would have to take it all,I mean ALL OF IT...
So i agreed and he loaded his truck and brought it over.
I put the computer in my workshop and the other lower end computers and printers etc were in the cabin so I found a buyer for it and we settled on a price I believe was $200
Then I put windows 7 home 32 bit on it and gave it to Gerry.
Gerry used the heck out of it as it was free from me to him.
He had this at his place by the creek and even when he moved to the city for a year he kept on using it but then he bought a cottage here and used it til he got a laptop with windows 8 then he called me and said,hey ive got these three computers over here i dont want so need to go to the dump but im broke,well i said im going to the dump that day and he asked if i would do him a favor so I agreed.
I got over there and there was the Dell i had given him along with two others.
I told him yanno I can take these 3 computers and turn one,the Dell into a gaming computer....Just needs a video card.
Gerry told me i didnt know what I was talking about and that I was full of BS.
So i put the computers in my car and off I went.
I did go to the dump but those computers came home with me.
Dell Specs: AMD dual core 2.5 ghz
#1...2 gb DDR2 800
#2 320gb HDD
400 watt Power supply
Onboard graphics
---------------------------
So I got a 1 gb stick out of each the other two and a hard drive each the other two.
They were butt slow 1.8ghz cpu's not worth messing with but with 4 gb memory and the 2.75 gb limitation on a 32 bit O.S. and the four drives.
In a RAID 0 array,the fastest drive runs as slow as the slowest drive and the biggest drive has as much capacity as the smallest drive.
#4 drives striped in raid zero means they act as one drive.
I also installed a 1 gb Nvidia 8400 GS...I still have it...lol
It worked a charm and my high end was IL2 Sturmovik 1946,a WW2 combat flight sim which Was king in Windows XP era....I still play that game today.
Well I got this all going and called Gerry and invited him over for coffee and donuts and even went to Carrs the day before and bought a dozen fresh.
Gerry comes over and the first thing he sees on my desk was the Dell he had given me to discard.
Hes like "You Stole My Computer"!!!!!
I said nope you gave it to me and I told you that you could use the three to make one gaming computer,now didnt I?
I told him all I did to it and even let him fly a P38 Lightning twin engine...
He was shocked as HELL
We had coffee and donuts and I showed him what it all does and even did a benchmark program,he had a sort of grin on his face,well I'll be damned he said...we both chuckled a bit.
Gerry is gone now,He went to be with the Gods in my book but he said he will just go back to being dirt,he was an atheist.
Wherever he ended up I just want you all to know,he was my friend a very long time and I miss his company.
Rest In Peace.

BigT

Grocery Haul Sept.2nd

Maybe its just me but going grocery shopping is getting nuts these days.
Have you noticed Mayonnaise?
Best Foods cut their jars down by 50% and charge an extra $o.79 cents more.
I would have to pay just shy of $18 to get the same mayo as i did 4 months ago for $8.00
Thats just one example.
So as I normally do I make out my budget,first theres the draft.
I fold the paper in half so im just using one side,on the left is my budget,the other is my sh opping list.
I put non food items at the top.
then scribble down what i want.
I add the grocery total to the expenses and then add it all up.
This way i will know what the extra is to give me some wiggle room if I g to far on the food.
I didnt exactly go by my figurings for food.
I did visit every isle at least twice and scored the biggest bag of powdered milk i have ever seen,only$37,I think its a years supply.
The handicap cart basket apparently has a weight limit cuz it was hard to steer.
3Bears has been my go to store even though some of their prices can be beat by Walmart.
So now its Store Hopping time.
Oh i knew i was going over budget which was $338 and $52 in wiggle room.
The total was $396
I was willing to spend a little extra for food cheaper elsewhere because of the size of the stores,Just too big.
I wanted to get pizza fixins for my Classic Signature Homestyle Supreme Pizza from scratch.
Ive got pepperoni,burger,breakfast sausage,olives,mushrooms,
green pepper and onion with Italian seanoning.
The olive prices are wierd.
$2.39 for essentials
or $2.19 for name brand extra large.
I did get 2 large cans of Folgers and hazelnut syrup to make a hazelnut french press.
The Mayo ingredients were interesting.
Olive oil is really spendy and even on sale.
64oz was 17.00 on sale but the same in Canola oil was $11.
I got a bottle of red wine vinegar and lemon juice.
Yep,never will I buy commercial made mayo again.
(featured recipe)
I graabed things like gravy and yeast for breads,got a box of tapioca for a sweet treat.
Jello isnt something ive had in a while,classic lemon and lime
Chicken is on the rise.
2 weeks ago i bought 2 sixpacks in a bundle,5 drumsticks in a pouch, $12, Friday $17 each.
Bread is so expensive i just make my own and with that extra tank of L.P. im a baking fool.
a bag of semi sweet chocolate chips is $4.55 but the gigantic bag was $12.56 about 6 bags worth.
Im making cookies for sure.
I dont use vailla anymore,its just too expensive.
I did get a tub of vanilla frosting but it didnt survive the first day home.
It was quite the day for sure then next month Im back to $200
The car is broke down til mid october so i have to allocate gas money.
This was truly a treasure trove so now im planning my baking.
biscuits,cookies n bread.

Peace BigT

The Day In History 9-11

I remember that day,I was in my big house watching tv while enjoying some coffee when the report came on,a plane just flew into the World Trade Center and then another.
Nobody knew what was going on,then the Pentagon and the fourth plane crashing into a field.
The President I believe put a no fly order out,I hopped onto my Polaris ATV and went down the road towards the Parks Hwy.
About a hundred feet before there were F-15 planes flying really low.
One pilot looked right at me so I gave him a salute and he returned in kind.
Our Nation is under attack.
I saw all the news coverage then the towers fell,I couldnt believe what I was watching.
Those were very trying times,we soon figured out who did it and why,after all we, the U.S. is the great Satan.
The 4th plane was headed to the White House apparently but passengers on that plane tried to regain control so the hijackers put it nose down and no 72 virgins either.
Those were very trying times here and then we went into Afghanistan and were there 20 years.
Yes we still have those kind of enemies but we are more prepared now and ready for anything or so they say.
9-11 was the worst attack on U.S. soil since World War 2.
Take a moment to reflect

Peace,BigT

How I Toasted My Engine

Way back in 1994 I had a rebuilt motor in my 76 Ford van.
I was from SE Alaska where its Seattle weather so i didnt even know about engine block heaters.
i had a plug hanging off my bumper and never questioned why.
I put a 1000 cca battery in my rig to deadstart my van at 50 below and did so repeatedly.
I would keep my battery inside the cabin so i would have it warm and get the full 1000 namps.
What i didnt know was i was putting a lot of wear on my engine and in 3 years the motor was ruined and i parked it.
My spark plugs began fouling with oil and i was issuing black smoke from the tail pipe.
That was a $2500 mistake and it was all my fault as i hasd gotten a Ford F250 4x4 and was told it had a block heater so i inquired as to what it does and why i needed it.
After that i always plug in at zero degrees.
Even at 50 below it would fire right up.
That truck lasted and I was a happy camper.
Now i have a Ford Escort and without the block heater i wouldnt be able to start my car without it.
So you can can say i learned the hard way.

Peace.....BigT

Winter is Amiss

Yanno after all the years ive lived here,youd think at least i would be ready for a bristing cold winter.
The biggest size for insulated bibs is 54,im a 60.
So ive grown too fat for most cold weather gear.
I can get insulated pants tho and will in December.
Being all geared up means you wont freeze to death if stranded.
If it be Carharts then Black lined for better warmth.
Their coats used to come with a parka hood last time i had one.
And sure boots are bulky but youll thank yourself for it.
When driving in sub zero weather its ill advice to wear summer clothes even just a trip to the store,it can mean the difference between life and death.
And yes,ive made that mistake myself.
Mittens to keep your fingers warm,you catch on.
My Mom sent me a fur hat which i don at around zero.
Due to climate change i havent gotten fully decked out driving to the Post Office at 50 below zero in so many years now but you should be prepared regardless.
Then theres face coverings.
Masks and scarves are a must for crispy cold nights.
Youll be all sorts of warm and you dont want frostbite on your face.
So your looking like a Sasquatch but hey its Winter.....Enjoy

Peace,BigT

Autumn Nearing End

Back when we got 2 and a half months of sunshine I did some projects one of which was and outhouse.
I have a bad lower back so it took about 14 hours to do a 2 hour job.
It got done then started raining and never let up.
Today its a bit sunny and am considering painting it but because of the lower temps Im not sure it will dry before it rains yet again.
Technically I can wait til next year.
I also upgraded my heat source here at the cabin thru a grant and got a 5kw HD Garage heater 240v with a line volt thermostat on the wall and to make sure its wired right i had an electrician come out to do the job.
I gotta tell ya the heater and the thermostat are already proving itself.
I also have a 30k BTU propane wall mount heater for when the power is out longer than 4 hours.
After that it starts getting chilly at minus 20.
Because of climate change and global warming I havent seen 40 below or colder in 25 years.
I guess when I moved out here it started warming up,I kept track of snow accumulation and temperatures for a decade and one winter we only got 7 inches of snow and anyone with running water had their pipes freeze.
I believe we are in for a snowy winter and probably some colder temps than we are used to by now.
Its up to the Gods for sure.
Peace, BigT

Trudging thru the forest

As a young man fresh out on my own i began exploring the forest around me.
That was the forest of S.E. Alaska.
I would begin my adventure by having coffee at city cafe,fries and coffee,2 cream one sugar.
The mine ruins were an attraction and lots to explore.
if you walk the trai about 2 miles in you come to the creek,past that point is a small remote community.
Never went past the creek.
there was an old water pipe that was suspend and in some spots 25 ft in the air.
i was feerless not realizing the danger i put myself in.
And theres goldpanning.
i did a fair amount,i would go further up the creek in the woods in a salmon spawning creek with bears.
Yup i did stupid things as a young man.
there was a set of stairs that takes an hour each way and what a view from the top.
the miners did it with ease.

Peace BigT

Dang Boots

Back in 1985,I was so fresh on my own everyone could tell i was really green.
I came to Alaska with 13DD cowboy boots,and they didnt last long.
Then my mother sent me a pair of Nike Baltro hiking boots which turns out isnt for SE AK because of all the moisture so the one piece sole began peeling off so i went to the shoe repair shop and fixed them for a whole 3 days then i was back again.
I went to Fred Meyer and got some sandals then off i go.
Come Winter I bought a pair of Sorel Packs with felt liner.
They werent meant to be worn all day.
The felt liner was really cheap in quality so i bought some extras.
Its not a fashion Capitol for sure.
For really wet days there was the old standbye Ball in Ball Rubber boots.
13 regular and boy those would make your feet hurt.
Then theres insulated boots for Prospecting which I would do In my spare time.
The water is very frigid and can turn your Feet icy cold in a hurry.
When i hit 14E i had to fly to Anchorage and there was a nice shoestore selling a brand i no longer remember but i bought a pair of high top hiking boots and got them in the correct width too.
Man,That was a game changer.
I now have access to Arctic Gear like at the Army/Navy Store.
What a grand selection.
My boots in 92' Sorel 100 below boots.Anchorage has it all until Wasilla grew so big theres an Outdoor Store behind Burger King.
Over the years of travel and excitement ive found New Balance to be the better shoe and did actually step into a store in Florida and bought 14EEEE and took home a couple extra pairs.
Im now a 15 EEEE and am regularly shoed...LOL

Peace,BigT

The "IT"

Back When I first moved to S.E.Alaska I heard about Commercial fishing so I went to the harbor and talked with Captains and fishermen alike but because I was green and didnt know anything I was told no by everyone except the IT.
It was a 72 hour halibut opener but he said to come on board.
I got my own bunk which i thought was nice.
So I began to work and that opener I learned that staying awake for 3 days wasnt my thing plus i did a terrible job processing the fish.
I then decided that staying on dry land was better but the captain convinced me to go hand trolling on the ocean for Salmon.
Going from inside waters to the open ocean there are big waves involved and i got to steer.
The bow would go to the bottom of the wave and dissapear into the water then come up and throw water all the way to the stern.
Im telling you I was rather nervous but then when i was relieved i went to my bunk.
The hand troller was built in 1940 out of wood and I quickly noticed the planks moving back and forth so i told the skipper and he came down and got freaked out.
We turned back and made it to Inside Passage waters.
We then made it to another harbors Grid and repairs were made then set out again.
There was this little inlet where someone had a nice home accessible by boat or plane,it was really nice and thats where the starter went bad.
I was tasked with taking some parts,coils i believe that had broken,the guy had a shop and fixed us up but it was just enough to start the deisel engine and we made it to a small community.
The starter got fixed good but we stayed a few days then meandered back to our harbor.
The boat wasnt the greatest and besides the halibut opener i didnt make any more money so I moved on to better things.
I love being on the water but not as a sleep deprived person,things get tricky went you havent slept. but hey thats just my experience.
Yours may differ.
Peace, BigT

Home For The Holidays

It all starts in 1985 while i was still figuring out life on apparently my own terms.
The 4th of July was unusual cuz i was camping just on the edge of the beach a ways down from the end of the road where the mine ruins are and about 10pm the fireworks are going off in the channel on a barge and i had a great time watching them.
Halloween was met with some Trick or Treating which netted me candy ,Beer and Buds.
I wasnt wearing a costume but told the person that I was a serial killer i just look like everyone else.
And nobody called the cops.
Thanksgiving was at a shelter and not bad at all.
The Glory Hole was named after a hole in the ground on Douglas Island,it followed a gold vein straight down i dont know how deep but it then turns and goes under the channel to the A.J. Mine.
They got greedy and took out the wrong support column and it caved in.
As my understanding a lot of chinese drowned and mules for the carts.
So named because all who died went to Glory.
The Glory Hole had their own kitchen so it was always home cooked.
Thanksgiving was as youd expect,turkey,stuffing,cranberry sauce and veggies and bread n butter.
Pumpkin Pie was all home baked there in the kitchen.
Yeah we all feasted and the Staff did an excellent job as always.
Christmas at the shelter just wasnt the same as being home,but we all got a couple pairs of warm socks and hand knitted mittens.
I got my present from my mom,a dual cassette with radio that i had until 2010.
So i did have a good Christmas just far different than what i was used to.
And Yes the shelter did Christmas dinner,ham i believe.
Those were my first four major holidays in Alaska.
Holidays nowadays are spent with friends and good food.

Peace,BigT

2nd Flood of 2022

It had been raining really hard for a week so I went out Monday morning at 9:30am to check the culvert that runs under the road and the water was barely at the halfway point so i breathed a sigh of relief then ambled on home,no biggie.
I had an important call to make and was on hold for 3 1/2 hours, and about 30 minutes before my call was taken by a nice lady,I noticed neighbors parking on the road and in my driveway, a lot of commotion for a rainy afternoon but I knew that only meant one thing and i started getting nervous.
After the call I went out to look for myself and low and behold the flood waters were at the edge of my property. The road is downhill basically my property sits 6 feet higher than the subdivision so it runs downhill.
Technically the flood waters were across the road from my driveway and i was told 2 more days of rain was in store for us all.
The Talkeetna Mtns got 7 inches of rain in two days and now we were getting slammed.
I was told everyone is evacuating making this my 4th flood in 28 years.
I ran back to the cabin and hurriedly stashed my electronics in the loft and since Orion was still outside i put a bowl of food and water and litter box in the loft.
My rats nest of cables on the backside of my computer table is a nightmare and I unplugged everything and tossed it all upstairs.
I then packed some things,4 changes of clothes,meds,insulin and the like.
Then i pulled out of my driveway and made it only a few miles then had to turn around and go back and i parked the car on high ground on the road.
Why? My wheel bearing is out and was making a growling sound and the wheel shaking.
I had a couch to sleep on at a friends place in Los Anchorage but the car said no so I decided no matter what that I would ride it out and kitty would be by my side.
As luck would have it my property was high and dry and it had stopped raining during the night while I slept and tuesday the water started receeding and by that evening it stopped crossing the road.
Wednesday the road crew came out very early and spent all day repairing the roads and the roller also vibrated and felt like a 5.0 earthquake all day.
It was 71 wed and then started raining thursday and i though here we go again!
All of us are hoping thats the last flood we will see in a long while.
I am thankfull for having good neighbors,an awesome fire dept and a new road to drive on.

Peace,BigT

The Domestic Scientist

When i was about 9 years old I started helping my mother in the kitchen.
My mother in her own rite was and still is the best chef I know.
I had an unusual interest as a young boy in cooking.
My biggest blunder to date was using salt in place of sugar in a cake which was inedible.
I was crying and rightfully so.
Mother tasted it and we threw it away.
Ive never mastered the art of crepes although i know the recipe well.
Mother knows how to make them so thin in a regular fry pan that isnt non stick.
LOL,i know right?
My favorite recipe is Pork chops with mushroom gravy and tho i screwed it up once i never made that mistake again.
See, its all trial and error but youll get the hang of it,just keep trying.
The best pancakes are made from scratch but due to the shortage of eggs because of trhe Avian Bird Flu im stuck with the old stand by,Krusteaz.
Beans are not my greatest subject.
How do you screw up beans you ask? Well give me a bag and i will show you.
Fried potatoes with milk gravy,now theres a meal for any part of the day.
Microwave pork rinds are a thing these days.
Goulash is pretty easy as you have to be a complete idiot to screw that up.
These days my close friend Scott is on a keto diet that hes doing well on.
Keto is pretty easy and i have no problem with it.
We make all things Keto during his visits and sugar free something for desert.
Yep,it hardly touches your blood sugar.
Since he has been on the diet hes using 1/4 the insulin and his doctors are surprised with the results.
Hes doing very scientific things in his kitchen,perhaps Mad Scientist is his badge of honor.
Certainly all who embark on such an adventurous and perilous journey come out clean like a knife in the middle of a cake.

Peace, BigT

Fools Gold aka Iron Pyrite

Back in 1985 I was 18 years old and fresh out on on my own.
I was exploring the ruins of the old Alaska Juneau Mine.
I for some reason found myself in the mine tailings and it was immense.
I came across GOLD!!! i was so excited that i filled my T-shirt with all that gold and made my way to B.M Behrends Bank,the only one in town with a working gold scale.
The mine was out of town a mile but so excited was i that i was seen running thru town with the gold in my shirt which i was still wearing and i was soo glee i exclaimed im rich im rich im rich all the way thru downtown.
When i reached the bank the teller got the manager and he came to look at my find.
A smile came across his face as i requested he weigh my gold.
He did point out that its all fools gold and that Im not the first person to make that mistake.
The only gold i had in my shirt was a piece of quartz with a small veign of gold.
He warned me that wherever my mining was to never tell anyone because you can get yourself murdered for your stash.
I was so embarrassed,i apologized but he told me not to worry.
The manager then told me to go to the museum and tour it.
Then i will know the difference between the two,also he told me to get a gold pan and start my new adventure that way.
I went down the street to Ace Hardware and bought my first and last plastic pan with ridges,the man showed me how to use it and off i was to Cope Park with Gold Creek running thru it,i was told to be mindful of bears.
I panned during the summer inbetween labor jobs.
I will never forget the kindness of the Manager at the bank.
Over the course of the summer I made myself quite a poke and i did get to see the scale in use.
I outfitted myself with raingear and clothes and bought music cassttes for my new boom box.
Juneau has been mined out but I had lots of fun i.e. freezing hands to remember and sent my mom a bottle with water and a little gold in it.
She still has it to this day.
Yeah I was pretty young,Let the fun begin.

Peace, BigT

A short history of Marshmallow

As early as 2000 B.C. as in Before Christianaity
Ancient Egyptpians found an herb,Athaea Officinalis
Growing in marshes and wetlands and used
widely as a medicine to soothe throat and chest and
to heal wounds.

Its also know that a sweet sap came from it and when
combined with a honey candy produced a gooey
substance reserved for royalty and the Egyptian
Gods.

They boiled pieces of root pulp to get the sap.
And apparently they smoked it too to soothe the chest.

In 1800s France concocted the first modern marshmallow
by combining mallow sap with egg white and sugar.
A hard meringue was created to be sold as medicinal
candy.

In 1927 The Girl Scout Handbook created the first smore.

Today we know marshmallows for campfire treats
started in 1917....

I personally buy a couple bags for
roasting over the flame on my stove....

Thanks Eqyptians for a 4000 year old treat.

BigT

Being An Addict

Cigarettes came into being back in
the 1600's when beggars would pick
up cigar butts,shred the tobacco and
use scraps of paper to roll and smoke.

Thus was borne what we call today
a smoke.

Cigarettes are designed as an
instantaneous nicotine delivery system
that hits your brain in seconds thus
causing you to crave it all the more.

People who smoke act compulsive
because nicotine is a drug.
I personally know how addictive
smoking is and Ive been trying to quit.

James Bonsack invented the first
cigarette machine in 1881 and could
produce 120,000 cigs per day.

Filtered or unfiltered really doesnt
matter because of the negative health
risks associated with smoking.

Most smokers continue to smoke
even in the face of cancer and
emphysema,some just smoke to the end.

My dear friend Miss Bobbie was diagnosed
with emphysema and smoked to the
very end which was 7 years.
She did vigorously attempt to quit
but finally threw in the towel because
it was too late in the game for her.

Lights are no safer and natural tobaccos
are no better either.
There is no such thing as a safe cigarette.

Vaping is not safer either.....just dont start.

Cigarette butts have a cocktail of toxins
that when discarded it becomes bad for
the environment...

I started when I was 11 years old and
ive quit numerous times for varying
leangths only to get sucked into it again.

I wish I never started.

Peace,BigT

Buffalo Then and Now

The Indians used buffalo for food,furs for
clothing and making tepees and with the
introduction of white men came the fur trade.

The indians were excellent hunters and would
trade furs and robes for a myriad of goods
including guns and ammunition.

The white man would kill buffalo for
food for sustenance and clothing to
fend off harsh winters and tallow for
cooking and candles for light at night.

In 1870 the buffalo genocide was in
full swing and over 5 million buffalo were
killed as a result bringing the wooly beast
to near extinction.

There are only 20,500 buffalo left in the
wild with a touch over 400,000
in private herds.

The indians were fierce warriors on
the battlefield and the U.S. military
could not defeat them so the Government
in DC sent out soldiers to just kill every
beast in sight to deprive the Indians of
their source of food clothing and hides.

We also went after all the other critters
the indians used and ate like the birds,wild
chickens and such.

The Indians were valiant and resisted
the takeover of their lands to the
bitter end.

Reservations are all around these
United States where the last remaining
indians reside.

We took this land by force and dirty deeds
then raped,pillaged and plundered the
land for its gold and riches and resources
to the point weve polluted the land so bad
its unsafe to drink the rain water.

That right there is pure greed.

God Bless America Right?

Peace,BigT

Plastic Apocalypse

It all started in 1907 with
Leo Baekeland inventing the
first synthetic plastic and beating
his rival James Swinburne to
the Patent office by one day.

The united States is the top
producer of plastic in the world
and used to export its plastics to
China until a 2018 Green Sword
policy banning US imports because of
Contaminated plastics with food still
in them turning it into landfill waste
filling chinese landfills.

The US now ships its plastics to Mexico
and Canada.

England a decade ago created
blacktop with plastic and paved
a stretch of road to test its resillience.
Semi trucks loaded with goods have
run over this stretch of road without
even the slightest wear.

Americas roads should be paved
in this way and all the blacktop
we have put down needs to be
replaced with plastic roads made
from recycled plastic.

There are now 2 patches of plastic
in the ocean right now and it
seems to be our favorite place
to put our single use plastic
out of sight and mind.

Plastic then turns into micro
plastics and pollutes our planets
oceans and brings harm to our
marine life.

China recycles about 45% of
the worlds plastics at 170 million
tons from 2011 to 2022.

Rwanda is the only country
that is Plastic Free.

The Solution for Alaska is to
recycle all its plastics and
pave our roads making
them darn near indestructible.

Policy makers and the Government
never listen anyway and one
day we will be up to our
eyeballs in plastic.

Peace, BigT

How Much Oil Is Left? Really?

In current known reserves there
is 1,650,585,140,000 barrels left.
With 97,103,871 barrels per day
and 47 years of known oil left.

While there is 2.1 trillion barrels
of untapped oil,its actual proof
there is a limited amount of oil
on the planet.

As reserves get depleted the
price of oil will sharply increase
making it more economical
to go deeper after the last of it.

All said,there is 125 years of oil
left on the planet bringing the
end of humanity at 2149.

Known reserves and stores
come to an end in 2068 and
by then we will be using renewable
energy such as wind,solar,tidal
and geothermal to name a few.

We as humanity need to get
off the fossil fuel bandwagon and
go back to the way it used to be
before the automobile.

Sure going fast is fun and airplanes
are a blast but the fuel to take
us by those means is not limitless.

We are going to Mars one day but
until that time we are dealing
ourselves a hand we cant play.

People in the cities will all die
and those of us in rural settings
will have to kill off the hordes of
zombies in the coming
Apocalypse,people fighting for
the last resources as the planet
runs dry.

Switching to firewood is a good
example but theres only
so many trees on the planet.

Tok has green gold,spruce trees
that when dried can be chipped
and used as fuel like in the Tok
School,it will outlast oil for sure.
Tok's spruce is 75-125 tons
of fuel per acre so at least they
will survive the zombie hordes.

Billions of people when the
lights go dark will all
starve as the transportation
industry comes to a grinding
halt and food shelves go bare...

This is why we are beginning
to go net zero by 2050.
But greed and profits will
rule the day and only the rich
or well armed will survive.

Peace,BigT