Team Podolak

Thunderbird Falls (Fall version)

2010-10-05T22:01:00.000-07:00

Mom and I revisited Thunderbird Falls. Andi and I had been here earlier in the summer. This time, most of the leaves were on the ground and I had fun taking some photos of them.

Flying - Bears & Volcanos

2010-10-04T07:46:00.000-07:00

Once the summer rains broke it seemed like the whole state jumped in their planes and took off. I was no exception. A friend from work took his Citabria and I took our Scout out exploring the west side of the Cook Inlet. We stopped and looked around the McArthur River and then down to Tuxedni Bay. This was my first time landing on a beach, but was no problem. When we landed there was a group of 7 Brown bears a few hundred yards away fishing in the surf. We sat and watched them for an hour or so then jumped in the planes and took off. A fun afternoon.

Photos here

Chuck's Trips - Burlington & Tadoussac

2010-10-03T07:29:00.000-07:00

After enjoying a week of actual summer back in Alaska after the Oregon trip, Chuck got back on Delta and headed east for a conference (http://www.geog.umontreal.ca/gbr7/) in northern Quebec.
Flying through Montreal over Labor Day weekend presented a great chance to visit friends (the Tumilowicz's and Graber's) for a long weekend. It was a relaxing weekend involving hiking and eating. Tumor and Jen even took little 3-month-old Luke Tumilowicz along on our all-day journey up Mt. Mansfield (to the chin, for you locals).
After a weekend in Vermont (photos), it was back to Montreal and then 6 hours up the north bank of the St. Lawrence to the small village of Tadoussac (http://www.lonelyplanet.com/canada/quebec/tadoussac). The conference was a great chance to rub elbows with an international crowd of geomorphologists and experience Quebec (which in the countryside isn't really bilingual).

Chuck's Trips - Oregon (for the 'last' time)

2010-10-02T07:10:00.000-07:00

In August, Chuck went back to the Sandy River, Oregon where he has been doing fieldwork for his dissertation over the past four years. It all relates to studying the changes in the Sandy River following the October 2007 removal of the Marmot Dam. The last three summers meant one month camping in the field and running a crew of interns collecting data. The winters have involved last-minute trips to measure the river during large storms. This August was a 'toned down' version of the summer field data collection - i.e. no interns. The end of the data collection was capped off with a visit by Chuck's adviser (Peter Wilcock, Johns Hopkins), and three fellow grad students all studying gravel bars as well (The Barflies - Susannah Erwin, Christian Braudrick, and Andreas Krause). Photos here

Flying - Knick Glacier

2010-10-01T07:37:00.000-07:00

One of the best places to take people on a short flightseeing tour is the Knick Glacier - only a few minutes of flying time outside the Anchorage area, but one gets to see a huge glacier, a large braided river, and a glacial lake. There are plenty of opportunities for off-airport landings, and it is past the range of 4-wheelers - so it remains pretty much just open to pilots.
When dad and his friend Troy were visiting, we (Troy & I) were headed up to the glacier for a quick trip. It turns out another 'quick trip' was turning not so quick up on the top of the glacier. We received word that a plane had crashed up there and headed up to see what we could do. The weather was too poor to see the crash site, but we established communications, passed word back to the rescue controllers, and made the initial coordination with the rescue forces. As we left the area, it seemed like everything was under control - but it was not. The newspaper story recounts the next few days: http://www.adn.com/2010/08/11/1405574/guard-launches-new-attempt-to.html

Troy's photos here

A few weeks later the pilot of the crashed Piper Cherokee held a celebratory BBQ at his house and invited everyone involved. It was pretty cool to sit around and tell hear the stories - especially by the rescue PJs who hiked up the glacier for 20+ hours. And we discovered that there were 4 USAFA grads involved in that '91, '93, '95, and '98.

Flying - Visit to Fairbanks

2010-09-30T07:16:00.000-07:00

With a new plane in hand, the travel time between Anchorage and Fairbanks was cut way down. So with a clear day and a long weekend, Chuck headed north to visit friends at Eielson AFB. There was barely a cloud in the sky so after a quick stop for gas in Talkeetna, there was a quick spin through Denali N.P. Photos
A great friend of ours Mongo Monberg, has a hangar on an airpark (group of houses sharing a private 'runway') in North Pole. There really is something about parking your plane in your yard.
It was a low key weekend with great long visits with Beth Sumner (& boys), the Hoovers, and Mongo. Cristen, Stephanie, and Sprocket Hoover all went for quick flights around the North Pole & Tanana River area. Chuck & Mongo got to take a two-ship of Scouts out as well - their first 2-ship in 7 years.
All in all, a fun weekend or flying, mountains, and friends.

Chuck's Trips - Las Vegas & the Colorado River

2010-09-29T19:04:00.000-07:00

As part of this crazy travel year, Chuck signed up for yet another professional conference. This time for a week in Las Vegas. This was the first post-Air Force trip to Vegas, which was a bit odd.

Prior to the meeting, there was a 4-day field trip along the Colorado river to learn about the geologic history and the current issues regarding the usage of the Colorado River water. The trip (photos) took us to both the Hoover and Glenn Canyon dams, along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, down the Colorado River through Glenn Canyon, and through Zion National Park.

We buy a plane

2010-09-21T06:59:00.000-07:00

The day Andi left (and at her urging) we bought an airplane - a 1974 Bellanca Scout. It is a 2-seater which can carry us and a few hundreds of pounds of gear around 300 miles. You might notice the tires are big (Alaska Bushwheels) which allow landings away from prepared fields - i.e. gravel bars, beaches, tundra.
Its quite a nice machine to get out and around Alaska - way off the road system.
In the first two months of flying its gone to Denali, Fairbanks, the Kenai (Homer, Seward, Kasilof), the Knick Glacier area (shown in the photo - more of a camping trip here), and the west side of the Cook Inlet.

Oh, and it also came with skis for the winter. More to come....

Andi heads east

2010-09-19T06:45:00.000-07:00

At the end of June, Chuck headed to Las Vegas for a conference, and Andi got on a series of planes finally ending up in Iraq. She is working in a hospital on a US airbase there for six months. So her Alaska summer came to a abrupt end, but Chuck's continued.....

Thunderbird Falls

2010-06-24T20:23:00.000-07:00

Everytime we kayak at Eklutna lake we pass Thunderbird Falls. Today we took a little adventure to T-Bird Falls. It was a nice, easy hike and a pretty waterfall. Great trip for visitors.

T-Bird Falls Pics

McCarthy Weekend

2010-06-23T20:13:00.000-07:00

In our attempt to squeeze a summer's worth of travel into 30 days, Chuck and I headed to McCarthy, AK last weekend. If you are looking in McCarthy, it's inside the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and surrounded by gorgeous mountains and glaciers. We drove down Friday night and camped next to the Matanuska Glacier then drove the rest of the way Saturday morning. McCarthy is not accessible by car, so anyone that isn't a local must hike the 1/2 mile once crossing the footbridge. We spent some time on the Root Glacier (glad we didn't pay for a guided tour) and ate some delicious food. Sunday, we rafted a low Kennicott, Nizina, and the Chitna rivers. Then we flew back and had some great views of the Kennicott and Root glaciers. Monday--we drove!

McCarthy Pics

Homer for Lunch

2010-06-22T18:18:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite places in Alaska is Homer...great little town and one of our favorite pizza places. Chuck decided he needed more time in a tail-dragger and I wanted to get to Homer this year, lunch met both options. It was a cloudy day but the view was spectacular, as always.

We also cruised down a few valleys by the house...Eagle River and Ship Creek, amazing views and less than 5 minutes from the house.

Pics...

Memorial Day Weekend

2010-06-21T18:10:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day Weekend was great and we did a little bit of everything (not that you are surprised). We spent Friday with the Rabe's at Byers Lake. It was the best deal...$30 for a cabin and a view of Denali. Chuck and I look forward to skiing there this winter. After several kayak trips around the lake we (Chuck and I) headed south to Talkeetna and the Rabe's headed north. In Talkeetna we visited the Denali brewery, spent the night at the Alaskan Lodge, and we enjoyed a wine pairing dinner with Hogue wines. We both look forward to the next one.

Pictures

Seward with the Rabes

2010-06-20T18:05:00.000-07:00

We've had a few friends in town over the past few weeks, including our friends the Rabes from Germany. We spent quite a bit of time exploring with them during their visit. Our first adventure included an overnight trip to Seward with the Rabes and Little's (Colorado). We enjoyed a great dinner at the Double Musky in Girdwood then drove to Seward and spent the next day Halibut fishing. We caught several halibut, rock fish, and sea bass.

Seward Photos

Boulder - Quickly

2010-05-10T09:01:00.000-07:00

Chuck got to go back to Boulder this past weekend for his little sister Mary's graduation. It was a typical unpredictable May Colorado day - started off with snow, and finished up with sun and warm weather. The weekend included two graduation ceremonies, a celebration dinner out for delicious Mexican food in Lafayette (Efrain's), a feast by dad, and a Mother's Day picnic at Annie and Daniel's on a wonderful sunny day.

Sitka, Alaska

2010-04-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

Chuck and I went to Sitka for a little birthday celebration...we had one gorgeous spring day and one typical day of Alaska clouds. We easily met all of Chuck's requirements for a good weekend--walking, delicious food, relaxing, reading, walking, and no work. We look forward to going back and exploring the islands by kayak.

Pictures

Flume - Done

2010-03-18T21:15:00.000-07:00

I finished up my flume experiment a few weeks ago. I tried to make up a video, but I couldn't get it to upload. Fortunately, this was put together by the folks at the lab. Enjoy.

Chuck

Chuck in the Flume

2010-02-20T16:16:00.000-08:00

In the middle of February, I decided to bolt out of (semi-cold) Anchorage for the warmth of the lower 48. It turns out that the weather in Minneapolis is just about the same at this time of year. Oh well.

I came to Minneapolis to do a few geomorphology experiments at the St. Anthony Falls Laboratory. This is a good place to do experiments since they have a huge flume here.

What is a flume, you ask? Well, this one is a big concrete ditch (6 feet deep x 9 feet wide x 250 feet long) which kind of reminds me of the big concrete waterways in LA (that you always see in any action movie with a car chase in southern CA - like the Terminator). No car chases in this one, just gravel and water.

My goal out here is to see what happens to a gravel river when you add a bunch of sand and gravel. This is kind of like what I am looking at in my project on the Sandy River, OR.

The idea is that we will take measurements over a few years in the field of what happens to the river when you let a bunch of sediment go down it, and also take measurements over a few weeks watching what happens when we shovel tons (literally) of sediment into this indoor river. For a sense of scale, this indoor river can get up to about 300 cubic feet per second but we are running it at about 30. This is about like Boulder Creek. But unlike an outdoor river, we have a 'magic cart' which takes laser scans of the river and makes millimeter-scale maps of it. With the data we get from these experiments, hopefully we will know more about how real rivers work.

Australia - Hunter Valley

2010-01-29T21:09:00.000-08:00

Finally, after sailing and Sydney we headed about two hours north for relaxation in the Hunter Valley. This is a small wine making region tucked between the coast and the 'mountains'. We stayed three nights at Chez Vous Villas with some gracious hosts. From there you are stumbling distance to delicious dining at Roberts.
Well fed and well rested we arranged for a small charter bus to take us around to several wineries the next day. Ian, from the Cheers Bus was a perfect tour guide - knowledgeable, but not too organized or formal. Most all of the wineries in the Hunter are boutique sized, but Ian took us to the smallest of the small. We especially enjoyed Ivanhoe, Peacock Hill, and Oakvale. Also enjoyable was the Peterson Champagne House.

The second day we rented bikes from two guys in a barn. They ran a small bike rental business and the Pokolbin Brothers Wines. Riding around in the sun (you can't do that for about 6-7 months each year up here), sipping wines, and snacking made this an enjoyable and relaxing today.

Recommendations: Cheers Bus for transport, Chez Vous to sleep, Roberts to eat, Ivanhoe, Peacock Hill, Oakvale, and Pokolbin Brothers to drink, the Smelly Cheese Shop for snacks, rent a bike.

Things we learned: 1) Semillion is a delicious not-too-sweet white wine which the Hunter Valley is known for. 2) Sparkling Shiraz is a tasty drink.

A few photos are posted here.

Australia - Sydney

2010-01-27T21:08:00.000-08:00

From the Whitsundays we headed back south to Sydney. We rented a room on top of a pub (the Mercantile) in the Rocks - right at the base of the Harbor Bridge. Ashlee was only in Sydney for one day so we quickly hit all the highlights - Opera House, ferry through the Harbor, market in the Rocks, and the fish market.

We were there for a bit longer so we enjoyed strolls through the city and the botanical gardens. We walked across (though not up) the Harbor Bridge. We splurged on incredible seats to Tosca in the opera house. The fish market was too tasty to just hit once, so we lunched there twice. We found that Barramundi is a delicious fish. We didn't really love Kings Cross, but found Potts Point to be pretty attractive. We left just before Australia Day, but did get to see the frenzy associated with Prince William's trip to Sydney and boat trip around the Harbor.

Reccomendations: the Mercantile Hotel, staying centrally in the Rocks, Potts Point, meat pies, oysters at the Sydney Cove Oyster Bar on Circular Quay, the Watson's Bay ferry, the botanical garden, lunch at the Fish Market, and dark beer (which proved difficult to find in Australia) at a German-style beer hall.

A few photos are posted here.

Next, rent a car and head north .......

Australia - Sailing

2010-01-26T21:07:00.000-08:00

Just after the new year, we hopped a plane out of frigid Anchorage for the southern hemisphere. After a brief (12 hour) stop in LA to visit family and cruise Venice beach, we were off for Sydney. Several days of travel and five flights later, we were in the Whitsunday Islands, Australia - met there by Andi's sister Ashlee. These are a group of islands off of the northwest coast of Australia, inside of the Great Barrier Reef.
Using our sailing experience from last winter we chartered a nice 39 foot sailboat - The Dehler Magic. We spent seven days sailing it around the Whitsundays.
The weather was a little stormy - gusty winds and rail squalls. This made it just a bit challenging, but fun nonetheless.

Check out the map of the route using the Google Earth Plug-In on the previous post.

The days were spent on the water, the afternoons enjoying snorkling, reading, sunning ourselves, etc... anchored up in small coves. We cooked on board most nights and docked twice at Hamilton Island. The whole island is served by electric golf carts and no regular cars. An hour of buggy rental lets you see the whole island.
There was one long night - we just couldn't get the anchor to set and had to sit lookout all night. Other than that it was pretty smooth sailing.
Recommendations: Cumberland Charter Yachts for bareboat charters, order fewer days of provisioning than you plan to spend on the boat, bring lots of sunscreen, don't go during the rainy season, visit Hamilton island for the beach / resort, Manta Ray Cafe has good pizza, boats with the traveler in the cockpit are kind of awkward. Skip the smaller resorts - South Molle, Daydream Island, Happy Bay. Don't pull you dingy too far up on the beach during a falling tide. Bring plenty of books.

We would highly reccomend this to anyone contemplating this kind of trip.

A few photos posted here.

Next..... Sydney

Map of the sailing trip

2010-01-26T20:37:00.001-08:00

Australia Trip

2010-01-26T20:36:00.000-08:00

We just got back from a nice vacation to Australia. We were there for two weeks: one week on a boat in the Whitsundays, and one in the Sydney area. Check out the map and watch for updates and photos in the next few days.

Chuck

View Australia Vacation in a larger map

Snow (really this time)

2009-11-11T11:38:00.000-08:00

The September snow got us all excited about winter - and then it left. Finally this week we got several inches and it seems that winter is really here. The paths at the Eagle River Nature Center that we walked all fall are now ready for skiing. Here are a few photos for comparison. The non-snow photos are from a walk there on September 22nd and with snow are the same spots on November 10th. This trail will be a fun one to watch as the seasons change.

First Snow--26 September

2009-09-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

The first snow of the year was 26 September--although it didn't stick in Eagle River it did in Arctic Valley. We drove up to the snow line and were excited to see a snowball fight in the parking lot.

Brewing Beer

2009-09-27T20:27:00.001-07:00

One nice thing about our giant house is room to spread out...including the garage. We use the garage as our brew house. This picture is from our second batch of beer--an amber.

More beautiful colors

2009-09-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorites--the colors across the street. Standing on the upper deck watching the sun set with a nice glass of wine and Chuck. You can't beat this!

Change in Seasons

2009-09-22T00:00:00.000-07:00

Check out how fast the colors are changing in Alaska. The top picture was taken Friday after work and the bottom picture is from Labor Day weekend. There isn't much red in the Alaskan fall color wheel, but the shades of gold look like a fire rushing up the mountain. it's absolutely gorgeous.

Eklutna Lake

2009-09-20T19:12:00.000-07:00

Due to my recent knee surgery, things have slowed down a bit for us. Both of us are frustrated. Chuck suggested we go somewhere flat where I could walk, we could both enjoy the outdoors, and maybe get a few pics. Eklutna Lake was our destination--as you can see there's a bit of fresh snow and it's further down than it was two weeks ago during our flight (see below). We didn't walk far or fast, but it was great to get out of the house for a while.

Friends from Fairbanks

2009-09-20T19:03:00.000-07:00

Labor Day Weekend was a blur--the best part our good friends the Sumner's came to visit for a few days. We didn't do a lot but managed to have a great time catching up, entertaining three kids under the age of 2, shopping, fishing, and playing games. Chuck and I also played a part in helping one of the little ones start crawling.

Fly Day

2009-08-29T18:12:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, I've wanted to learn to fly for a while. I signed up for ground school that was a bust due to the craziness of my schedule. The plan now is for Chuck to teach me. We went up today and I ended up taking several pics. I should have opened the window, lesson learned for next time. These still turned out pretty good...we saw fresh snow and found a great place to kayak tomorrow if the weather holds.

Crow Pass Hike - 26 miles - one day

2009-08-23T15:50:00.000-07:00

So there is a nature center at the end of the road up the Eagle River valley. This is about 12 miles from our house and is the trailhead for a one-way hike to Girdwood (down the Turnagain Arm). This hike is 24 miles long, and we just had to go do it.
Of course the hiking descriptions mention that most people make the crossing in 2-3 days but a one day trek is possible. Of course, we have to try it in one day.
We hiked it from Girdwood back to Eagle river. There is a few thousand feet of climbing in the first several miles to crest Crow Pass, and then (pretty much) all downhill. On the way up Crow Pass it is very dry and scree filled. The sun was coming up during this part and quite serene. The top is pretty flat and filled with small ponds. As you crest the pass, you get full frontal of Raven Glacier and then follow Raven Creek down to the confluence with the Eagle River. We were both amazed at the changing terrain - from bone dry scree fields, to open evergreen forests, young glacial moraines, head high brush (in bear country nonetheless), and very 'boggy' wetlands.

As you reach the Eagle River (just past the halfway point), you come into a huge view of the Eagle Glacier. At this point you have to ford the Eagle River. Several hundred feet wide and COLD. It is glacial melt about a mile below the glacier. We were lucky to have the water relatively low (not too much above my knee - remember I'm 6'4"). A quick dry out and bite to eat, then down the valley.

No wildlife sightings, but we were shooting for that. This is bear country so we were constantly making noise so as not to surprise them. Did see a lot of bear shit though, some pretty fresh.

On the drive up here dad remarked that one gets numb to scenery on the Alcan because its just this endless parade of amazing vistas - but a long drive nonetheless. I felt like this hike was the same. You just kept coming around corners and seeing more amazing river views, giant mountains, glaciers, etc... but Andi and I both reached our fill about the 20 mile point, so by the time we got to the car, we were ready to be done. Sore knees and beat up feet, but quite a nice day. Reccomended, maybe two days though.

Just to make sure we were not feeling too big for our britches after our big hike, we read about the guys who run this as a marathon. Here is one account of guys running it. We felt good about 12 hours. Good people run this in three.

Also, some photos on Shutterfly.

Halibut Fishing in Homer

2009-08-16T22:02:00.001-07:00

Last weekend I visited Homer (one of my favorite places). While there I had the chance to do a little Halibut fishing with the rest of the permanent AK Podolak's. The weather was great, we caught our limit, and had fun with some pictures.

This little guy didn't know what was coming his way...a sharp knife and some sea gulls to eat what couldn't be filleted. The sea gulls chased our boat most of the way home.

Backpacking in the Trinity Alps

2009-08-04T13:36:00.000-07:00

After camping in Oregon for a month, I felt like I really needed to get into the backcountry. Instead of the big group camp with 7 people, I took off for the Trinity Alps with just me and my backpack. The trail was relatively uncrowded and the 7 mile hike to Grizzly Lake was short and steep.

As you get to these meadows (about 6 miles into the hike) you see this high waterfall (about 800') above you. There is no real trail, but there is a scramble up the wall to the left.

And at the top, here is the view. The waterfall at the top is nothing more than a small creek about 8 feet wide. To cross it you have to jump from one stone to another, which is not normally a big deal, but thinking about slipping and going over the side....

I tried to go light on this trip - no tent. Fortunately it did not rain and my little shelter was more for the sun. Two nights out under the stars.

More photos up at shutterfly.

Chuck's Summer in Oregon

2009-08-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

Done with this summer's Sandy River research. The group this year included 5 interns from the National Center for Earth surface Dynamics' summer research program - a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU), and one of last year's interns who came back as my graduate assistant. All in all a good group who worked their tails off.
We did a lot of surveying of several stretches of the river (see below)

And counted a lot of rocks. For the research we need to know how much of a certain bar is made up of rocks of different sizes. To figure this out we walk around the bars measuring the rocks on the top, and then dig big holes to measure the rocks inside the bars. Each of our holes ended up holding just over one ton of rocks. These were days when we were happy to have a cool river nearby to dive in and cool off.

That is it for the Sandy River this summer. Next its back to Oregon in October for a professional meeting (Geological Society of America) where I will help in leading a field trip to the Sandy River. After that, its back for more winter work during the big storms. Stay posted.....

Ty and Melissa's Wedding

2009-07-26T08:44:00.000-07:00

Chuck and I met up in Colorado for Ty and Melissa's wedding. It was a whirl wind trip for both of us. We caught up with the Mills' (Chris is in the pictures with us) and several others. The wedding was at the Cadet Chapel and reception in Doolittle Hall so there were year books and contrails being passed around.

On Sunday we had time for a quick trip to Boulder. We had lunch with Joan, Meri, Annie, and Atticus. Then it was time to drive back to airport and fly our separate ways.

Things You Don't See Everyday...Well Maybe in Alaska

2009-07-14T00:00:00.000-07:00

I was reading last night and noticed a few people standing in the road -- there was a moose and baby strutting down the road like they owned it. It was about 100 yards from house by the time I got the camera. The baby disappeared down the hill but the mom hung out by the roadside for a few minutes.

Hiking along Eagle River

2009-07-13T00:00:00.000-07:00

I went hiking with one of my flights today--easy hike along the river. The goal was to end up at a waterfall 4 miles from the starting point. Along the way I got a great shot of an eagle and a funny sign (can you find the misspelled word?). We did not see any bears...it was a nice easy hike with lots of mosquitos.

Come Visit....

2009-07-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

As you can see, our new place is a little bigger than the piece of air we bought in DC. Plus we have some amazing views out our back doors.

The offer is on the table...please come visit us anytime. We expect this to be a two-year assignment with most of you wanting to visit between May and September. My sister has already bought tickets for Dec 26-Jan 2...anyone else brave enough to join her?

Hike to Harding Ice Field

2009-07-11T00:00:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad went on a whale watching adventure. Chuck and I decided to hike to the top of Exit Glacier and see the Harding Ice Field. It was absolutely spectacular. Unfortunately, I didn't adjust my camera enough so these pictures don't do it justice. Those of you that have hiked with Chuck you will be excited to know that while the posted time for the hike was 6-8 hours, we did it in 4:30.

Portage Glacier

2009-07-10T00:00:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad came to visit the day after we arrived...a little vacation, a little help unpacking, and to attend my Assumption of Command. Their first outing was to Portage Glacier on our way to Seward for the weekend.

Mexican Mickey, Chuck, Lars, and I made it

2009-07-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

After 6 days of driving, 6 days on the ferry...we have finally arrived!

Arriving in Whittier

2009-07-08T00:00:00.000-07:00

Our final day on the ferry as we are approaching Whittier. I love the picture with the tug and the glacier. At this point, we have about 1 hour until we depart and drive a bit to our new home.

More great views...

2009-07-07T00:00:00.000-07:00

Fun photos taken as our ferry maneuvered through a very narrow passage.

More Catch Up...

2009-07-05T19:34:00.001-07:00

We departed Juneau around 1130 p.m. and had a chance to see our first gorgeous sunset and whales. Absolutely spectacular! The whale was fun, mainly it hovered near the surface and blew--my one shot to get the baby breaching was blurry.

Odd Photos from Oregon

2009-07-05T17:14:00.000-07:00

Someone forgot to spell check this parking lot project.

Joe has figured out how to make money in a recession.

Oregon - Again

2009-07-03T17:12:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Sandy Oregon on Thursday to get ready for a month of field research on the Sandy River. Back in the same camp site as the last two years - kind of feeling like home.
It is in the 90s here, which is really hot compared to the Anchorage weather I left behind.
For the 4th, I'll be with good friends in Estacada Oregon, for the 3rd year in a row. My interns arrive on Monday and we hit the river.
I'll try and post some photos as they come along.

Chuck

Juneau--The Afternoon

2009-06-30T00:01:00.000-07:00

After our great hike around the glacier, we officially became citizens of Alaska. Yea! Our experience with the Juneau DMV was one of the most positive and customer friendly places I have ever visited. Wow--it's amazing what good customer service can do for a DMV visit.

Following this we took a few recommendations from friend and Juneau native, Erin Shine. Lunch at the Hanger, snacks at the Silverbow Bakery, and exploring around the town. Our first trip was to drive the major highway (7) in Juneau from end to end--beautiful drive and you can truly do it in less than an hour. Plus it was raining and the city was quickly being surrounded by clouds so another hike was out of the question. Then we went to the Alaskan Brewery--highly recommended by several--to enjoy a few brews. After our beers we took a drive around the Govenor's Mansion--nice views, modest house (unlike in Idaho).

Throughout some of our photos you will see a sombrero with Mickey ears...this is a present from Ashlee to Chuck. We thought it would be funny to treat it like "Flat Stanley".

Juneau--Mendenhall Glacier

2009-06-29T00:01:00.000-07:00

We departed our first ferry on Monday, 22 June and had almost 40 hours in Juneau before catching the ferry to Whittier. At 6:45 we drove to the Mendenhall Glacier for a little hiking and picture taking. Luckily Chuck did his "Hey Bear, Ho Bear" dance and we were able to hike 2 hours without a single bear sighting. Mendenhall Glacier sits a few miles north of downtown Juneau and is a beautiful sight around the city.

What Happens to Your Stuff?

2009-06-28T00:01:00.000-07:00

Military folks are there when their stuff is packed and loaded onto a truck and are there when it's off-loaded at their new house...what happens in between? We found out! During our Ketchikan stop we were next to a barge loading dock--containers, boats, RVs, tractors, etc., were brought to Ketchikan from some unknown location and moved around. Presumably this is what your stuff looks like if it's going overseas before it gets delivered...very interesting!

Ketchikan

2009-06-27T00:01:00.000-07:00

Our first stop on the ferry was in Ketchikan, AK. We had four hours to explore...so we walked (big surprise) almost 8 miles (another big surprise). We covered the city famous for totem poles. There were a couple of big cruise ships in town so saw what we needed and enjoyed a big salad for lunch on the deck of our own "cruise ship".

Nice Ride

2009-06-26T00:01:00.000-07:00

The ferry provided us with some amazing views of the inner passage...all of this and it's public transportation.

Ferry Ride

2009-06-25T00:01:00.000-07:00

In addition to driving across the country our trip includes two ferry rides. Our first ferry departed Bellingham, WA, with a final destination four days later in Juneau, AK. It has been very relaxing...nothing to do except read, nap, eat, and watch for wildlife. We were lucky enough to have a cabin with bathroom/shower...others opted to camp. Even though it's June, cruising at 17+knots makes it a chilly ride. We were happy we remembered out camping chairs to enjoy the sunshine--when available.

Chuck in the River

2009-06-24T00:01:00.000-07:00

Along the way we stopped for a few minutes of rest...Chuck found the river.

Road Trip Favorites...Visiting Friends

2009-06-23T11:18:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite things about road tripping, and I'm sure one of yours...is catching up with friends along the way. We chose the northern route so we could visit with the DeWolf's in Spokane, WA, (Cunningham's were out of town) and the Bernave's in Seattle, WA. While both were only a quick and delicious meal--we were both very excited about the visits. This was Chuck's first time to meet Brooke--she was convinced he was imaginary, even though Chuck and Greg have shared a few beers. I couldn't believe how the DeWolf kiddos had grown--this is what happens over the course of five years. Heidi realized it had been four years since we last saw them. Hopefully our next visits with both of these clans will not take another four years.

Road Kill

2009-06-22T19:44:00.000-07:00

It was bound to happen along the journey...we killed a bird or rather a bird flew into Lars' grill. As Chuck was pulling over in the middle of ND, I asked if he was crazy...he said "no, I saw a big bird take off but it didn't fly by". We pulled the little guy off the grill and tossed him into the ditch--he hit hard.

North Dakota

2009-06-17T21:26:00.001-07:00

If you keep up with us on Facebook, you know that we were not impressed with North Dakota. A few of our NoDak friends weren't happy so we gave their suggestion a try...Teddy Roosevelt National Park. Nice change to the flat lands but not enough to win us over...we knew enough about Montana to know we would enjoy--Rocky Mountains, nice rivers along the interstate (or interstates along the nice rivers), and a few cute towns.

Road Tripping

2009-06-17T21:23:00.001-07:00

The new car has a name...Lars. This is mainly due to the Volvo symbol being "male". Lars is packed and carrying about 1000 lbs, including a kayak. Mileage was doing better and better until we hit the northern tier with speed limits of 75 mph and driving 83+.

New car is great and very comfortable.

Minneapolis

2009-06-17T21:18:00.000-07:00

After 18 hours of driving and a quick stop in Cleveland to sleep, Andi and Chuck arrived in Minneapolis. Of course there was a walk around downtown, Chuck met with his 5 new summer interns, and lunch with cousin Doug Hardy before heading toward North Dakota.

This picture is of St. Anthony Falls, Chuck will spend a few weeks here working in the flume this year.

Sister's Weekend together

2009-06-17T21:11:00.000-07:00

Ashlee and Andi spent the weekend together just before we headed west. Friday was a day of pampering at the spa, Saturday hiking around Great Falls, VA, and Sunday loading Lars and goofing off at the Eastern Market.

Photos

2009-06-15T03:41:00.000-07:00

Home at last (sort of). Andi met me at the airport and we promptly jumped in the car and drove 6 hours to Cleveland. Today its a 12 hour drive to Minneapolis.

Anyway, here is the link to my Germany photos on Shutterfly. I didn't really caption them, but I think there are sufficient descriptions of the trip on this blog. Enjoy.

Headed Home

2009-06-14T07:30:00.000-07:00

Today is the trip home!
We arrived back in Berlin on Friday and took a tour of the Deutsche Welle - a media company that is state funded and broadcasts German news around the world. But they are not propoganda and are "very different" from VOA. Whatever.

My good friend of 21 years, Matthias Rabe, came up from Frankfurt for a quick visit. Friday night he came out with the group of us for a nice night out in Berlin. On Saturday Matthias and I took the train out to Potsdam. This is an odd little town to the east of Berlin. It is the site of a huge summer castle for some old king (don't remember which), and formerly in the DDR. It is heavily visited by tourists and is an odd mix of run-down communist town and touristy castle town. Nonetheless, we strolled, ate Donner kepabs, and did a little gift shopping (hi babe!).

A final group dinner on Saturday night and then home on Sunday.

Andi and I leave directly from the airport to head west. 3000 miles, 5 days, one car. Talk about all or nothing - two weeks with barely any contact, and then lots of car time together.

Poland

2009-06-12T19:00:00.000-07:00

Today was the German-Polish day. We traveled from Leipzig to Frankfurt (the small one on the Polish border, not the big one in the middle).

We visited a universities here and on the Polish side to hear talks about what the universities do and more specifically German and Polish versions of the German-Polish relations.
A quick summary - they have a 'strained' history, the Germans killed lots of Poles, both the Germans and Poles resettled many people into this region, the border has been closed for a long time, and is now completely open. They get along (sort of) now, but they are not on the best of terms.

Tomorrow - Berlin, again.

Leipzig - full report

2009-06-11T13:48:00.001-07:00

Many point to the 1989 Monday demonstrations in Leipzig as a key turning point in the collapse of East Germany and the reunification of the two German states. So in creating the itinerary for this trip on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the wall, Leipzig was a natural selection.

We had two visits to the Nikolai Church in the middle of Leipzig. The East German Communist party had given the Evangelical Church in general, and this Nikolai Church (photo), specifically, great leeway in sheltering an opposition movement. In November, 1989 only months after the Tiananmen massacre, a large crowd gathered in the church and planned to take to the streets in protest of the East German regime. It was odd to sit in that church and contemplate the courage required to walk out into the streets, uncertain of what the regime would do to quell the protest. In the end, non-violence prevailed and it was only a matter of days until the border was opened and the regime began to unwind.

Also on the agenda in Leipzig was the Cabaret. This was another outlet for political opposition in the DDR. We had tea with a long-time member of the Pfeffermuelle (pepper mill) Cabaret. He told us his stories and trials of performing political satire in a police state. That same evening we went to a show of theirs. It consisted of a 3-person troupe doing skits and songs with political themes. Some were very difficult to understand – a combination of the local accent, political vocabulary, references to domestic politics, etc… One skit that was easy to understand was a skit with moderator interviewing a Chinese guy – who was actually one of the German actors with a long beard glued to his chin, squinting his eyes, making big buck teeth, and talking in a overblown accent. They managed to make a total racist stereotype of the Chinese. I am not thin skinned, but I we have spent the last week and half realizing how deeply the history of the past 70 years plays into the psyche here. It infuses EVERYTHING. In a country where they are so aware the consequences of racism and demonizing 'the other', it was pretty uncomfortable to sit in a room of 60-something's laughing at the stupid Chinaman.

On a happier note, I did get to see Carmen played at the Leipzig Opera. It was set in mid-50s urban West Europe. There were more German spoken parts that I really care for, and for the most part the music was extra-average. But Carmen killed. Slim, busty, dark-haired, and dressed in hot pants, a low cut tight shirt, and high-healed boots. Don Jose was also incredible – a conflicted simple boy who definitely developed his character to this town and crazy man at the end. Definitely a highlight.

Today we train to Frankfurt – the little one on the Polish border, not the big one in the middle. Just a few more days left and then back to Andi and the cross-country drive.

Leipzig

2009-06-08T23:07:00.000-07:00

Just over an hour south from Berlin on the train and we are now in Leipzig. The list of famous thinkers and musicians associated with this town is quite long. We had dinner last night in the Auerbach Keller, which was made famous by Goethe in Faust.
One of the reasons for adding Leipzig to the itinerary was the role it played in the end of East Germany in 1989. Most of today centers around that, so I'll save my comments for then. We are scheduled to finish today with a visit to the cabaret. I have no idea what that entails.

Weekend

2009-06-07T22:58:00.001-07:00

Sorry, no photos. Saturday was a nice break from directed group activities - a wander around the town with a friend. No tours, no politicians, no Nazi history, just relaxing.
Sunday we met with a couple in the Eastern part of town for coffee and cake at their house. They grew up in the former East Germany and he was imprisoned for possession of banned music and books. The Stasi Archives were interesting and a bit scary, but hearing these people's stories and seeing their actual Stasi files, really personalized life in the former East.
Then it was off to the opera. It was the opening night for 'The Abduction from the Seraglio". The music was great - its Mozart and the orchestra played it excellent. The leading characters - Belemonte and Konstanze were fine, but nothing special. The supporting roles - Osmin and Blonde were excellent. What was most offputting was the staging. There was not really a set to speak of. The only thing was a platform dividing the stage into an upper and lower part. The costumes were crap. Several were bought directly from the department store and there was no identifiable theme or reason for them. It was not recast in a different time period, they might have been going for some abstract thing, that really didn't work. I felt assured that it was not just me because at the end when the production crew came out during the applause, they were booed.
Today ... Leipzig.

Police State

2009-06-06T02:21:00.000-07:00

The Stasi were the east German secret police. When the East German state fell there was a move to protect all the records and archives of the Stasi. Today we visited these archives, which are housed in the former Stasi HQ complex. Its pretty creepy to actually thumb through people's files and see the reports of people spying on one another.
Nothing more to tell about today. We finally get a break from organized group activities for the weekend. Next up, tea with former East German dissedants followed by opening night of "The Abduction from the Seraglio" at the German State Opera House.

Old and new Divisions

2009-06-04T23:02:00.000-07:00

We started the day today with the Belin Wall. There was an article in the Washington Post about said wall not too long ago. The idea was that Germans, being quite efficient, had nearly totally removed the wall so effectively that there is nearly no wall left in Berlin. There is one section very well preserved and we visited both it and the foundation responsible for preserving not only the wall but the stories and history of a divided Berlin.
After that, we had some well needed non-group time. I walked around (surprise) found a nice little stand for a beer and a currywurst.
The afternoon and evening was dedicated to the Islamic Federation down in the Turkish part of town. It was very interesting to get an Islamic perspective on the world, German foreign policy, and the US from a German with Turkish heritage. He made the point, which is not a new point, that it is not clear what it means to 'be German' since there is both a German people (die Deutsche Volk) and the German nation. Immigrants can become German citizens, but they never really become part of the German people. I think this is different at home. There are wackos in the US, naturally, but I don't think people really beleive that there is an 'American bloodline'. So whatever problems we have with the logistics of immigration and immigration policy, relative to Germany we seem to be very good at integrating people and having them truly become American.
So, Friday is more on the divided Germany including a visit to the Stasi (East German Secret Police) archives.

Plays not to see

2009-06-03T23:01:00.000-07:00

Today was our visit to the Bundeskanzleramt (that is their equivalent of the White House). The tour guide had a bit of a dramatic flair, but otherwise an interesting tour. What struck me the most is the design of both this place and the Reichstag (like the Capitol). They are really modern and plain. It has the feel of a large corporate headquarters or a mega-church. I am obviously biased in what I think a government building should look like. This is a country with so much history and they make their government buildings look like they have no grounding in history (yes, yes, I understand why - and they keep shoving WWII into their own face), where we have a relatively short history as a nation, but try and make our buildings look like they have been there for centuries.
The visit to the Bundeskanzleramt was not for the tour, but rather for a meeting with an official. I don't know exactly what his position would translate to in the US, but it would be something like an undersecretary in the State Department. He gave us one hour for discussion and questions, which considering his position was quite a bit of time. He is from the conservative CDU/CSU and gave quite a nice presentation of his party's views. They are for a stronger Germany (in terms of foreign policy). What I found refreshing is that he did this without US bashing. Through these past several days of meetings about trans-Atlantic relations I have grown tired of this bashing of the US. It is easy to be a pacifist when you live under someone else's security umbrella.
So, the evening was an open air (raining and in the 40s) performance of "Die Geschäfte des Herrn Julius Caesar" or "The buisness of Julius Ceaser". They handed out ponchos before the performance. There was no set, the stage was made of sand, and there were four 'actors'. The first hour was a monolouge - most of it yelled by a women in a toga and galoshes. Now, on this trip I have been averaging about 75-80% comprehension on all the readings, presentations, etc... In this "play" I was able to follow about 2%. Part of this was a language barrier and part of it was a riduculus experimental theater barrier. Finally I just checked out and started to work fluvial geomorphology problems in my head. At a point I looked out at what was going on and it looked like some Saturday Night Life satire of German experimental theater - stomping, yelling gibberish, while dressed all wierd. Wow. At least it wasn't my 20 euro.
Next up - the Wall museum and a discussion with a Turkish leader on immegrants in Germany - followed by dinner in the Turkish part of town.

Berlin

2009-06-02T14:05:00.000-07:00

So my favorite stop on the bus tour was the so Memorial to the Murdered Jews. You see this sea of concrete slabs arranged in rows. They are a dark gray and spaced just far enough apart to walk through them. They are slightly askew and you walk on cobblestones. Both have the effect of putting you slightly off balance. As you walk further into the memorial you ever so slightly descend until you are at a point where they are taller than you. There are lots of people walking through on other paths. I found the effect to be like in a horror or thriller movie. There are these flashes of people and sounds but not quite enough to process them into people that you know. You also have no idea what will come from where. The whole thing is this gradual descent into a very confusing situation.

So then the next day we go to the Reichstag (equivalent of the Capitol) - see the photo at left - to meet with a member of their Bundestag (equivalent of Congress) . We finished the day with a panel discussion by a group of people that REALLY were not very impressed with the US, but made their criticisms in a classic underhanded German manner - "you (Americans) are way to cockey and competetive with us, but will never be quite as good as Europe, so just try and be very multilateral and let us catch up with you." But at least they fed us a bunch of beer after beating up on us for a while.

Tomorrow its off to their Bundeskanzleramt (equivalent of the White House).

Berlin - finally

2009-05-31T23:32:00.000-07:00

The trip over was a bit delayed - T-storms in DC, missed flights in Newark, but we finally arrived about 5 hours late and without bags after a rerouting through Paris.
Our first day in Berlin was quite slow and I had time to catch up with my cousin Dawn Martin and her son Aaron (in the photo). I can't even remember the last time I saw Dawn so it was good to reconnect. By the way, we connected through Facebook, for all you scoffers.
There was also a group lunch and a bus tour through all the highlights of Berlin. More on that in the next post.

Moving Nightmare Part III--Final Day

2009-05-28T20:12:00.001-07:00

This is always a fun day...moving the phone booth. Everyone has their way and in the end it usually works. My advice and past do's/don't's usually falls on deaf ears--especially the part about the weight. It actually weighs 1 ton (2,000 lbs)--I saw the print out during the Boise. Unlike Oprah it does not yo-yo--it is truly a constant, literal ton. So the dumb woman got to laugh a lot today as the movers showed up with a hand jack and two luggage carts (think old school Academy style).

I have several pictures of this old fashioned move and I got a lot of laughs. In the end, it worked and our telephone booth is safely in storage until we leave Alaska.

Good news...moving is over until we start the drive across our great nation.

Moving Nightmare Parts I and II

2009-05-27T20:39:00.000-07:00

Well, after two days of packers and loaders we are now free of the majority of our stuff. Yesterday (Tuesday) was a great deal since the packers were here from 10:00a.m. until 4:30pm. Today was a different story--the movers showed up around 9:30am and had to pack everything the folks didn't touch yesterday and put everything into containers. What was supposed to be a quick job turned into a 13-hour nightmare with them leaving the property at 10:30pm.

Our little apartment and storage unit filled an entire semi...luckily we will have a huge house (by DC comparison) in Alaska. Chuck stayed in the apartment and I was downstairs with the loaders the entire day. We had multiple hours without any comm between the two of us and as the day lengthened my patience grew quite short. We even missed our massages due to the loaders lack of ambition, not to mention that people in our building called the managed to complain.

At the end of the night I walked into our empty apartment to find an open bottle of champagne (complete with plastic glasses), "Ethopian Chinese" (no utensils b/c they had all been packed) and a camping chair with my husband and Gato.

Wait for tomorrow's update...they are putting the phone booth into storage. This is always fun! Moving Hell Part III

Chuck's new Marmot Dam website

2009-05-27T14:04:00.000-07:00

OK, its a little cheesy because my HTML skills are not so hot, but here is place where I am posting more than just pictures, rather actual science. Mostly its some of our preliminary reports, presentations and posters as well as my interns' work.

The URL is pretty unwieldly:

https://jshare.johnshopkins.edu/cpodola1/public_html/Website/Marmot/JHU_Marmot_files/Podolak_Marmot_Dam_Project.html

New Wheels and a Whole Lot More...

2009-05-26T18:19:00.000-07:00

As many of you know Andi had her car, which she affectionately refers to as Jaws, since 1994. Last week she received a phone call from Bob (our trusty/local/dad-like mechanic) with the news she had been dreading for years...it was time to spend our money where new cars are sold.

Saturday we spent the morning test driving Volvo and Subaru wagons. It didn't take long to realize the Volvo was the way to go with two people over 6' tall. Tonight after a day of packers, we picked up our new 2009 Volvo XC70. Andi drove Jaws to the dealer and had a few moments with the car before jumping into the new and very quiet wagon.

The Honda set some high expectations....we are hoping the Volvo will last nearly 15 years and at least 255K miles. Name is TBD, stay tuned.

You ain't gonna believe this S#%t!

2009-05-26T14:00:00.000-07:00

So the story begins with Andi and I cleaning out our car yesterday afternoon - prepping it for a trade in. We find a cell phone in the seat-back pocket that neither of us recognize. We rack our respective brains to think of who we have recently lent the car to. I plug the phone into a charger and go through the contact list, recent calls, texts, etc... to find some connection to us. Not only are we not in any of those lists, but no one we know is either.
At this point its no longer about getting someone back their phone, its about figuring out who the hell has been in my car. We start to piece this person together - recent visits (saved photos), recent childbirth (received texts), wife's name (sent texts), etc... It looks like it was lost around March 8th (last dialed call, and a series of unanswered received calls). Went to the innauguration and likes Navy aircraft at the Air and Space museum. Works down the street at the Navy yard, etc...
So Andi eventually goes to sleep and I can't - I stay up searching the internet for the owner, digging back through the call patterns, searching texts for clues, etc... Who the fuck has been in my car!
This morning Andi makes another call to this person's phone number - the phone has been lost for 2+ months, surely they have a replacement by now. Well she finally gets through and mystery solved ------
The answer goes back to early March when Andi takes the car into a local full-serve car wash. Our car is just about done when several 'secret service' type people shut the car wash down. Apparently they had a vehicle in there and while it was getting washed one of their cell phone's went missing. This inconvenienced Andi a bit and she had to wait until they scrubbed the car wash (pun intended). She comes home and tells me what happened. What we surmise happened is that someone did in fact lift this guy's phone and then when the big black suburbans rolled back in and shut down the place, the sticky fingered car washer dumped the phone in the first place he saw - our car. Kind of Will Smith shit, eh?
So I can sleep better now - no fishy stuff going on in our parking garage, just car wash excitment.

Chuck

Moving...

2009-05-26T12:08:00.000-07:00

Reality finally set in that we will be moving from our little piece of air in DC when the movers showed up this morning. One of the best parts of an Air Force move is the requirement for us to sit and do nothing--literally. Chuck is running errands and I'm catching up on Facebook (lots of comments by me today), reading blogs, and in general wasting time.

Tonight we are going to get our new car...pics to come tomorrow, along with a name. We'll have a little celebration for Jaws and the 15 years she was with me. I do love that car! Our new car is great and has some comforts that weren't around in a car I could afford in college...don't be surprised us driving this one 15 years.

Oregon!

2009-05-25T18:38:00.000-07:00

So I finished the long road trip in Portland. I was out here both to stage a vehicle for my summer research program and to recon the river and plan what we will do this summer.

I stayed with my good friends Rose and Kurt out in Estacada and enjoyed a few good days out on the river.

Then hopped a plane back east. On my connecting flight (New York - DC) I sat next to an investment banker formerly of Bear Stearns now JP Morgan. I wanted to hear as much as I could about his point of view and he was very willing to talk and share his insights into this current mess. If you get the chance to discuss macroeconomics with a asset-backed-security manager - take it.

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-05-24T18:20:00.001-07:00

Finally, we have a few days at home together before moving to Alaska. Saturday we spent the morning car shopping, then improved on our day by hanging out with friends and eating delicious seafood with loads of Old Bay.

Sunday was considerably better as Chuck spent the morning canoeing and fishing with friends, then we spent a nice afternoon at the Nats game. The Nats won which is highly unusual, Chuck received a belated birthday present (see scoreboard), and 3-yr old phenom Kaitlyn Maher sang "God Bless America" during the 7th inning stretch. The rest of the day was spent prepping the house for Tuesday's packers.

Monday will be more of the same...prepping for movers. Luckily we get to finish up with a BBQ.

Hawaii

2009-05-24T18:15:00.000-07:00

The Air Force sent Andi to Hawaii for a week and I tagged along to study. We had a little free time to roam Oahu in our rented Jeep Wrangler. It was our first time in Hawaii together so went to all of our favorite places...North Shore, Matsumoto's, multiple ramen joints...and found a few new places thanks to friends living in the area. We also went to our first polo match.

Idaho!

2009-05-22T05:37:00.000-07:00

I took a break from my drive to stop for a day in Boise. It was my favorite time of year - that month in the spring when the foothills are actually green. Dinner with good friends - time with Theresa and Erin - Goldy's twice - and actually had a productive work meeting. Then off to Portland.....

Finally - mountains

2009-05-16T22:15:00.002-07:00

I made it to Colorado this afternoon. Had a quick visit with Annie, Atticus, and Meri, then up to CU to see Mahler's 8th with Mom and Dad. Back in the car for 12 hours tomorrow.
The scenery is definitely improving as the days go by.

Andi is still in Florida. But lest you think its a boondoogle - she barely leaves the hotel, much to Ashlee's dismay.

Chuck

(I just figured out how to use my phone to post, so I'll snap some photos tomorrow)

Heartland

2009-05-15T10:30:00.000-07:00

So the travels continue. Andi is off sunning herself in Orlando - visiting Disney with her sister. Andi I am slogging across the middle of America. The roads are straight and horizons flat - and I have not even hit Kansas yet.

I'll post pictures as they come. Tonight its a visit with our good friends the Retkas.

Chuck

Lots of Stuff...No Pictures

2009-04-22T20:19:00.000-07:00

Chuck and I check out the blogs to the left quite often just to see what everyone has going on. Most of our friends and family have little ones so it's really fun to check out pictures and watch them grow from a distance. As I noticed a lack of updates last week, Chuck asked me when ours had last been updated...so I'm in Dallas, it's 11:30pm and I'm tired of doing work, so I'm going to update our blog.

We have a new camera...well it's mine, and the pictures are great most of the time. It's due to the camera and not necessarily my skills--I'm exploring lots of the manual functions and sometimes I get really lucky and sometimes I don't. I playing around and having fun, but the learning curve for a really intelligent camera may take a while. Additionally the pictures are huge and now require an extra step to shrink the size to post and we are having a little trouble transferring from the Mac to Shutterfly.

Immediately following our trip to Denver, Chuck had his first round of proposal defense within his department. He did good! Now on to the second round...11 May, then he gets to spend the next two years writing his dissertation and continuing his field research in Oregon.

We made a quick trip to Wisonsin and I was able to meet Chuck's family on his mother's side and see where he gets many of his Scandanavian traits and some of his funny quirks.

Now I am in Dallas for a few days...gave a briefing this afternoon and saw several old friends. I also got to meet a few people from my new base in Alaska and put faces to people I frequently talk to on the phone. Chuck's birthday is tomorrow...I'm excited that I will be home to help him celebrate turning 36!

Colorado Visit

2009-04-07T20:32:00.000-07:00

Both of us had meetings in Colorado on either side of the weekend. We spent a day in Boulder visiting with the Podolak's. We did our usual walks, found a new spice store, enjoyed Beau Jo's pizza, and entertained Atticus (he actually entertained us and probably thinks we are really weird).

We also had the opportunity to visit good friends on Saturday and Monday nights in Denver. As always, it was great to see most of the Podolak clan (Joan was in Wisconsin visiting with her mom) and the Denver crew. A couple of additional pics.

Big Week

2009-04-03T19:07:00.001-07:00

The past week was full of friends, family, and fun. Andi's favorite time in DC is the spring...cherry blossoms are in full bloom, baseball starts, and it's just a great time to explore. This year it coincided with her promotion to Lieutenant Colonel. To help us celebrate Jenny Caballero, Andi's dad, and Aunt Velma came into town (her mom did not make it due to a broken ankle the week prior and is now the proud owner of a metal plate and 10 screws). Andi's ceremony was on the mall in front of the Washington Monument. Luckily the weather was kind, except for the gusty winds. After the ceremony, we took part in a free event at the Washington National's Stadium -- we showed up so the new management team could try something out -- we got as much free food as we wanted. We actually went home in wheel barrows.

Here are some pics from the weekend.

Alaska--We Found A House!!!

2009-03-22T19:12:00.000-07:00

It feels much more official now that we have found a house. For those of you not keeping up, we are moving to Alaska in June for two years. We took 10 days to find a house, figure out the new city, and see what we could accomplish before we arrive. We also made time for fun...Alaska Aces game, purchased and used x-country skis, tried several new places to eat (mostly recommendations--THANK YOU), and explored.

One very cool thing we were able to see was an eagle feeding (pics attached). Every Sunday there is a lady who comes to the VFW parking lot with frozen salmon--the eagles start arriving about an hour before she does and several follow her into the parking lot. At the end of the day about 40 Bald and Golden Eagles cruise through this parking lot to eat--we took lots of pictures. If you come visit and stay through mid-Sunday we'll take you too.

Pictures from Germany

2009-03-02T09:54:00.000-08:00

Reference Chuck's post about our trip to Germany. Here's a link with lots of pictures from Frankfurt, Garmisch, and the Zugspitz--it was a great trip with lots of winter weather that followed us back to DC. I spent a day on the Zugspitz and it was amazing--my pictures don't it justice. There were so many mountain peaks and so much snow...I think I stayed up there for 2 hours.

Snow Day

2009-03-02T09:47:00.000-08:00

Chuck and I spent last week in Germany and I was actually supposed to fly to SC today--even though my luggage is still somewhere between Atlanta and DC. Last night I thought it would be great if we woke up to LOTS of snow and a delayed flight. It worked!!! I woke up to a two hour work delay, lots of snow, still no bags...so I'm telecommuting and have a very early flight scheduled for tomorrow.

Germany

2009-03-01T19:19:00.000-08:00

So we just got back from a week+ in Germany. Andi had a work trip, and Chuck tagged along. We visited an old friend of Chuck's in the Frankfurt area, visited our friends the Bosone's in Stuttgart, and spent almost a week in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (a little south of Munich, on the Austrian border). It is a nice little mountain town tucked up in the Alps. Our good friends the Pannabeckers joined us for a few days of skiing, drinking, hot tubbing, and eating. A long and hectic trip back (it snowed in Atlanta) but safely home again. Andi will post the link to some of the best pictures a little later. --- Chuck

Hawaii

2009-02-12T16:35:00.000-08:00

I went to Hawaii this week for work. It was a quick trip but the view from my room was great. It was great to enjoy the warm weather and sunshine. As usual, we have friends stationed there so I was able to catch up with the Waite's over dinner.

Exploring new parts of DC

2009-02-07T19:28:00.000-08:00

Today was a beautiful spring day in DC (yes, it is still early February), so we took a stroll around DC. We started on U Street where one of our favorite places to eat, Ben's Chili Bowl, is now a tourist favorite with lines around the block. After a few pics we walked around--found a few parks, a market, and ended up in Adams Morgan before meeting up with cousins Beach and Sarah. After catching up with them we headed to Chinatown for a really late lunch or really early dinner at Jaleo before going to see the Caps beat the Florida Panthers, 3-1.

We are famous (sort of...)

2009-02-02T14:00:00.001-08:00

So Andi, Ashlee and I made the Carlisle Weekly for attending the inauguration. Check out the bottom of page 4. I feel just a little slighted that the photo credit for the upper right photo was given to Ashlee's camera, when I in fact took that one. Oh well, I'm still a proud honorary Carlisle Countian.

Things I'll Miss

2009-01-24T13:20:00.001-08:00

The end of our current DC adventure is a few months off. I am really looking forward to moving back to the western part of the country where there are real mountains again. There are not a lot of things that I will miss about DC, but there are a few. Today Andi and I hopped on the Metro and got off at a stop we had not been to before. We walked around and took in the sights for a few hours, found a nice little pizza place for lunch, and enjoyed good food. Last night there was an Air Force party for people who were just selected for promotion to Lt. Col, and we both ran into people we had not seen for years. Tonight we will have dinner with good friends are in town for a year, and tomorrow dinner with my cousin who just moved here. This (unlike Boise) is a place where people come. Finally, as I sit in our place and glance out the window, this is our view. You can actually get immune to seeing the iconic sights of our nation's capital, but every now and again, you just realize what is around you. And it is nice.

Inauguration Photos

2009-01-20T14:07:00.000-08:00

Pics from today's events...0530, the start of our day through Marine One whisking away the former president.

56th Presidental Inaugration

2009-01-20T10:37:00.000-08:00

We are thawing out from 8 hours in 20 degree weather. This morning Chuck, Ashlee, and I left the house to stand in line for the inaugration. It was worth the wait...President Obama's speech was GREAT, our spots on the Capitol lawn were perfect, and there were millions of people on the national mall. More pics to come...

Georgetown Cupcake...worth the wait!

2009-01-18T17:58:00.000-08:00

Ashlee, Katie Vaughn, and I braved the Inauguration crowds and the cold on Saturday. We hoped to avoid the crowds by heading to Georgetown for lunch at Tacklebox and cupcakes. Both proved to be delicious! Georgetown Cupcake is the much hyped and tiny store that is home to DC's best cupcake. (Unlike Magnolia Bakery in NYC--this place is delicious, with crazy moist cakes, delicious flavors, and great icing!) There was even a nice guy handing out hot chocolate while we waited.

My favorite flavors in order...Toasted Marshmallow, Lemon Berry, Mocha, Red Velvet, and Chocolate Ganache (no suprise as I am no chocolate lover).

New Posts

2009-01-13T14:55:00.000-08:00

We'll get some new posts up over the weekend. Andi has been taking lots of pictures with her new camera but she can't download them yet. Stay tuned for pics and updates...hopefully we'll get a great spot during the inauguration for quality pics.

Sunset

2008-12-29T14:04:00.000-08:00

I finally purchased my new camera and with amazing restraint have just gotten around to putting it together. Don't ask...every now and then I surprise myself! I laugh b/c as I was putting the camera together a great picture from the sunset developed and I had to grab the point and shoot. The sun illuminated the crane for two minutes then faded all together. I thought it was great...hope you enjoy it too.

Washington Capitals -- Rock the Red!!

2008-12-29T13:57:00.000-08:00

We have partial season tickets to the Washington Nationals (worst team in baseball) and the Caps (SE division leaders). The Caps games are awesome...loud, packed every night of the week, the occasional swing, and wins. Chuck and I also laugh b/c DC is the one of the few cities (and maybe only city) where the roaming cameras put politicians on the big screen--there's usually a balance of booing and cheering. Hockey has become of the things we really enjoy and hopefully we'll get to enjoy it even more in Alaska.