Is It Cold in Here or Is It Just Me?

This past week I was talking with my favorite blogging buddy, Susan from Food Blogga (who incidentally, is an amazing cook and a truly wonderful person, her blog is a must-read) and we were discussing with a bit of confusion and "how-did-this-happen?" the ways that blogging has changed.

I know that makes us sound like a couple of old ladies, with our surgical stockings, shawls and pill boxes, sitting on the front porch and croaking about the good ol' days but it really has changed, even in just the past year. I've heard what's happening being discussed in various places with complaints about lower traffic and fewer links and there are a few ideas about why but the only thing that seems to be agreed upon is that the blogging world is different than what it was only a mere 365 days ago.

Has the blog world become diluted?
What I mean by this is that are there now so many blogs out there that no one has time to read them? It seems to me that people are more guarded with adding a new blog to their already-lengthy list of reads and with the number of people who have jumped into blogging even in the past year I've wondered if it hasn't made it more difficult, not only for new blogs to get noticed, but for established blogs to get new readers.

Producers v. consumers
Another aspect of this is that there are two sides to blogging: the consumers and the producers. It's much easier to find time to do one or the other and harder to balance both. Therefore, if more people are crossing over from being consumers of blogs to producers of blogs as they too start up their blogs does it leave fewer readers out there? I've wondered.

Other social media
One thing Susan brought up is the advent of new sites such as Twitter. When Twitter was released it received so much attention as the newest great thing and has everyone jumping on its bandwagon. I read all over the place about how it was supposed to enhance blogs and improve visibility but I'm not sure I've bought into that and it certainly hasn't been my experience.

Susan said she's heard several times from various sources, "I'm too busy to read blogs, I'm always on Twitter." Instead of supplementing the information blogs produce has Twitter undermined them? Don't get me wrong, blogs are here to stay in whatever form they eventually inhabit but nonetheless I think Twitter, rather than strengthening blogs, has taken readers and taken time. Can you hear that sucking sound? That's the sound of each minute you spend on Twitter going down the Twitter black hole, never to return. And the casualty? Your blog.

I've thought similar things about Facebook. I just don't have the time to maintain a Facebook page, a blog and a family (not to mention those stupid tweets) and some in the industry would have you believe that you need to be using Facebook all the time to fully promote your blog but to me this is the age-old issue of splitting your time between two projects. If you try it, neither will be successful so you must choose one or the other. I myself choose blogging over Facebook but I'm quite sure not everyone feels the same as I do. Has Facebook taken readers away from the blogosphere the same as Twitter?

Blogging etiquette has changed
Of course my opinion on this is from a very sheltered niche in the blogosphere. Momblogs are notoriously social and groupish and prone to link to each other to share help and ideas. It's just who we are.

I've noticed, however, that other niches aren't so kind. Food blogs, craft blogs, tech blogs, home and entertaining blogs--I've visited them all and left plenty of comments and thoughts (not just the "me too" kind) but can only think of two--count them two--bloggers from any of these niches that has ever responded. Not that I'm bitter.

If I link to one of their posts it will go unnoticed, if I send traffic their way I won't expect any acknowledgment--just silence. I'm not sure why this is, it must be just the nature of these other special interest blogs, but as these other niches grow I think it's had an overall effect on the blogging world in general, even seeping into this little corner of the blogosphere, and not necessarily in a good way.

It seems more and more blogs link to other blogs less and less. Maybe they think readers are tired of hearing about the same old haunts or that a certain blog is too big to need a link or maybe they're just too lazy to go to the effort of creating a link but for whatever reason it seems the linking has decreased which of course affects us all through the magic of Google and its mysterious ranking system. Of course to be honest I've seen myself falling into this trap too--as my writing career grows and my family responsibilities fluctuate I have less time to devote to blogging kindnesses but often those are the lifelines of the blogging world.

I think, too, that many blogs focus too much on perfection, whether through perfect photo layouts and editorial staffs, and not enough on creating a conversation. If I want to talk to a wall I'll read a magazine. Who wants to read a blog where the writer is hidden behind the impenetrable silk curtain with perfect lighting and composition? Of course there are always exceptions but it seems to be a growing trend to be more like a full-blown publication, silent and perfect, rather than a human being with thoughts and feelings and mistakes.

So I'd just end by suggesting that maybe in the rush to build and grow your site that there are some things that shouldn't be overlooked: don't get too enamored with the latest social twit thing out there, it may just take too much time away from the real project, and don't forget what makes blogs great. People and ideas--not just words.

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Avocado Salad

I'm slowly converting my family to avocados. They have a natural suspicion of green food and it's taken a while to convince them that avocados are their friends but I think I'm slowly getting the edge on them.

They all liked this Tex-Mex concoction but then what's not to like about cilantro, lime, chicken and avocado? It's the dream team of salads.

2 chicken breasts, boned and skinned
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 package taco seasoning mix
6 cups torn red and green leaf lettuce
4 green onions, sliced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1 avocado, sliced
1 lime, sliced

For dressing:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon minced garlic

Slice chicken into thin strips then saute in olive oil in a cast iron pan on high heat to sear and brown nicely. While cooking, sprinkle the taco seasoning mix over the chicken and let it cook until brown.

Combine the ingredients for the dressing, mixing well, and set aside. Divide the lettuce among four to six plates then divide the green onion, green pepper, cilantro and tomatoes among the plates as well. Once chicken is done divide among the plates and garnish with sliced avocado and lime. Drizzle dressing over the top and serve with a side of chips if desired.

Sponsored by Tiny Prints for the holiday party invitations for children.

Coldwater Creek Giveaway

Getting ready for fall yet? We've had a bit of rain that has me thinking the colder weather is coming. If you happen to have any cash left over from all that back-to-school shopping and are thinking about your own wardrobe then you should give Coldwater Creek a peek.

I've got a $50 gift card for one lucky winner but this weekend everyone wins because if you type in the code GLM2286 at checkout you can get $25 off your order of $100 through September 15th.

I'd like these boots please.

Here's how to win:

Before 12 am Monday morning go to the giveaway entry form on this page and enter your name and email. I will pick one of the names at random, contact the winner via their email and publish the winner's first name and home town in next Tuesday's post. See the bottom of the entry form for more details.

This giveaway is open to all readers.

Fast Track to Success

Our doorbell just rang and when I went to answer it there were two young people, a girl and a boy around 17 or 18 years old, bouncing slightly on the balls of their feet and dresed in rather tight jeans. They made a remark or two about how odd our house was (because apparently I wanted to know their opinion) then launched into a sales pitch loaded with over-the-top pseudo confidence and slick, pre-packaged jokes designed to "loosen me up."

I've had this happen before and I knew exactly what they were doing. They were selling something, and the routines always start with an introduction to some group they're a part of (usually one I've never heard of) followed by how they're supposed to go around and "talk" to people for practice in some communication skill they're trying to develop.

Now I'm a pretty reasonable--some might even go so far as to say nice--person. But I'm not stupid. They were selling something and the only thing that kept me at the door was the entertainment of watching them try to be as smooth and winsome as the people they'd seen on television in hopes that I'd be putty in their hands. Because I'm only a housewife, right? I ought to be an easy sell.

They tried the chit chat ("What does your husband do for a living?" "How many kids do you have?" etc. etc.) they tried to high five me (no joke) but finally they hit the punch line. They were selling magazines, the typical drug of choice, and if I already had my earthly share I was welcome to buy subscriptions for someone who may not be blessed to have Snowboarder World in their life. Such as perhaps a poor homeless Sudanese refugee?

"I'm sorry but I'm not interested."

They tried more pleas and "Come on, we're on our way to a trip to Paris--I bet you've been to Paris already"

"Actually no, I haven't."

"Well we've got more points than anyone else and we're about to win that trip. You don't want to keep us from Paris do you?"

Heaven forbid. Because it's written in the rules somewhere that every kid should see Paris before they complete a semester of college. I'm sure it's there somewhere and my parents just didn't read that part of the instruction manual.

The young man tried one more line of "Pretty pleases" but I wasn't budging on this one. If I've cut out my children's piano lessons (see yesterday's post) then I'm not buying Animé Unleashed from someone on my doorstep who brags about having once met a Playboy bunny (oh, did you miss that part of the conversation? Too bad, because it was precious).

"Look, I'm not interested," I said, then added what I had hoped was a kind let-down, "My husband just started up a business and everything we have is going into that. I'm sure you'll understand, maybe you'll have the chance to do something like that for yourself someday."

To which he replied (and I quote): "I doubt it. I don't really like to work very hard."

And they turned and walked away while I picked my jaw up off the front step.

Hey, at least he's honest. I figure for the amount of time he's spent panhandling from my neighbors he probably could have got a real job and earned enough for several trips to Europe. With or without a Playboy bunny.

Good luck, Sonny, you're going to need it.

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How to Tighten One's Belt

Nice picture, huh? What a beauty!

To follow up on the news around here, I've been telling you how Andrew has started his own company, Vellum, after losing his job a month ago and things actually are going fairly well. After a couple weeks of heavy sweating he got the new business set up then most recently he has had a potential client come his way. I know it's just one and nothing is final but given the circumstances it has been a time of great rejoicing around here and it gives us hope that we can survive this.

But . . . (and this is a big but) as the many of you who attested in the comments, starting up a business is lots of work and even if this particular job goes through that's just one hurdle of many. You're never really sure where things will go from day to day as you try to establish yourself.

We figure this could be scary for the next six months, maybe a year and even if everything goes as well as we could hope we're still looking at several years--maybe five--before things have started to pay off and go where he wants them to go. Which means, of course, that the prudent thing to do is to tighten up that budget as much as possible right now.

Even though we're not particularly lavish with our habits, we could wait to reign in any extra spending until we're really feeling the pinch, hoping that things go our way and that we can switch tracks seamlessly, but that doesn't sound very wise to me. Seems like a better plan would be to be as careful as possible so that if the transition doesn't go perfectly that we're not in jeopardy of losing our home.

So this week's list is kind of funny for me. A few months ago it would have made me twinge to think of giving up so many lovely little conveniences and extravagances but actually it's been kind of a fun adventure--in a weird, masochistic kind of way--but to be able to give up something you took for granted and say "Ha! I don't actually need this to be happy" is a highly satisfying feeling. Here is our list of things we've cut back on or modified to save a buck or two.

1. Piano lessons. You've seen me posting clips of Spencer playing and in fact all of the children play the piano, three of them have been taking lessons up until now. But no more. At least for the time being. While I think that being able to play an instrument is a wonderful and fulfilling thing, and their teacher was wonderful, it's just not at the top of the priority list and to keep three kids in lessons, even as reasonably priced as ours were, doesn't make sense right now.

Spencer is looking at playing basketball this year anyway (it's free), David likes cross country running and Grace is swimming so they have something to keep them busy outside of school and the younger ones can use the older kids' past piano books and music to inch along with my meager help. I think it'll be good for them to have to come up with activities and sports that don't require expensive equipment and heavy fees for participation. Seems like that's how it used to be back in those old days.

But as I see it, better to lose the lessons than the piano itself if you know what I mean.

2. My clothes dryer. Well I actually didn't give up the dryer all together, just drying clothes in it. Our summer weather has been so wonderful I've been hanging up the clothes on the line outside all summer and it's saved us a bundle of money on our gas bill. So much so that I've started hanging up clothes in the garage on rainy days and hope to be able to do it most of the winter.

Boy does that dyer suck up the money! I figure I do at least 6-8 loads of wash each week (give or take) which translates into approximately 6-8 hours of gas usage. I think that's the equivalent of the GNP of many Third World countries by current gas prices.

3. Extra running around town. It used to be that if I wanted to get out of the house a bit I'd jump in the car and go run an errand. It wasn't critical usually, just stuff that I could do to take a break and get out for a bit. Now if I have an errand I save it up to do in one run, usually to or from picking up the kids at school. I figure save that gas as much as possible. When they say "going green" I'm thinking about green backs. Besides saving me some money in gas, it's amazing how much time it's saved me. Apparently I've been wasting a lot of time running back and forth to the bank, the library, the supermarket, etc.

4. Date nights. I should be honest here, I haven't exactly given up going on dates with my husband, in fact I think right now our dates together are more important than ever, we've just changed what we do. Forget the movies or the dinners out, instead of going out and spending money we've been looking for things that don't cost anything--like taking a walk.

Actually, with both of us running we've been going out several times a week to the track and not only is it a good way to get in some time together without any money but it's been great in burning the stress that builds up. Now if it could also burn off a few pounds that would be absolutely perfect.

Once the snow hits we'll be switching from running to cross country skiing, it's been fun to try something that is physically challenging and good for you where we're both learning and improving together--it just feels good.

5. Coloring my hair. This one is harder because it hits the vanity but if I had to live without my hair cuts and colorings I could do it. Right? Lots of people make it through life as brunettes just fine . . . . like, uh . . . uh . . . quick, give me a brunette that you'd trade places with.

I'm kidding. But hey, I'm so tall that it's going to be at least a year before people can even see my roots going dark anyway. Only those who are at least seven feet tall can see the top of my head so I'm safe for a while, right?

And luckily I know how to cut the kids' hair though Andrew might be a bit harder to convince into the chair. He's become very protective of his hair style lately.

6. Personal cash. Gadgets, iTunes, clothes, an afternoon at the movies, all that personal cash is going to have to be put on hold. Though it has had a good effect--less money for leisure time activities has me working more often and after the huge slacking-off I did all summer that should be a good thing.

But you know what? For all those years at the beginning of our marriage we made it very happily without having play money so I don't doubt that we will still be able to be content. I've heard that money only buys happiness up to about $50,000 a year in salary, make less than that and you're struggling to make ends meet but once you make more money than that all your basic needs are met and the extras you have don't do anything for your mental well-being. Interesting. Wonder if that's true.

7. Food. Okay this one I'm really proud of. I would often read around on the internet how much people spent a week on food and I was always amazed. I mean I know I'm living in Alaska and that food is a bit more expensive up here but even taking that into consideration I wondered how other people could get by on so little, it seemed I was spending so much more but I didn't think I was being frivolous.

Well this past month I wondered how much I could cut off my food budget--could I slice it in half? We do have a stash of emergency supplies, the staples, that are there to get us by in an emergency (powdered milk, flour, beans, pasta, that kind of thing) and it seemed like it might be a good idea to start using some of that and see how little I could buy.

I've actually cut the budget by 60% now for three weeks running. It's amazing how much you can save by simply not buying cold cereal and Twinkies. We were spending $40 a week on milk and cold cereal alone and I've got it down to where the kids drink regular milk with their meals but all the cooking milk is from our powdered milk supplies and I've started fixing breakfasts items that are much less expensive than the cold cereal.

Of course it takes a bit more work but boy it saves some money. Fancy prepared treats are gone and instead of throwing junk food into the kids' lunches I've been making zucchini muffins, homemade fruit leather, carrot sticks, etc. I so proud of myself for not only saving some money but fixing healthier meals. And so far the kids aren't complaining.

It's got to the point where if I start to put something on the shopping list I ask "Do I really need this or can I make something else in its place?" Usually the answer is that it can be left out entirely or made at home for less.

8. Cell phones. My cell phone plan ran out and we decided not to renew it, Andrew's ran out as well and between giving up the two phones we've saved quite a bit. And don't get me started on those iPhones! As cool and nifty as they are the plans alone are $70/month here. Wow. And I hear they lock you in so that you can't escape, even if you get an upgraded phone (which they will undoubtedly produce over the course of your two-year contract). Only Apple could come up with something so wild, so beyond-belief, so "Soviet" and still have it selling like hotcakes. Let's face it, the iPhones are cool. End of story.

9. Heat and lights. Now of course we can't cut these out all together but we have cut back quite a bit. Put on a sweater, turn off the lights behind you, do what it takes to conserve. Sad that it's taken a personal crisis to make us into an eco-friendly home, huh? Hey, however you get there.

10. Vacations. This one is the hardest to think about. Andrew and I have tickets to go visit my parents in India in January. We had frequent flyer miles so it's not as if the tickets were really an extravagance or anything and then being that my parents live there we'd be staying with them so the trip itself isn't really the issue but we only had tickets for the two of us. We were leaving the kids home and babysitters don't exactly have frequent flyer awards. Or should I say "frequent crier" awards? Ha!

Anyway, besides the whole issue of affording a babysitter the biggest part is that with Andrew trying to build up this new business he won't be able to take the time off as he'd planned--one of the downsides to being your own boss is that if you're not there you don't get paid.

It's not 100% scrapped at this point but it's not looking good. At least there's a bright side in that we can get the miles put back into our account and they'll even refund the taxes on the tickets that the mileage plan awards don't cover. At least that's good news, right? Right? Tell me it's alright.

Oh well, easy come, easy go.

I know, I know! I'll have to use one of the tickets myself and since Andrew can't go I'll put the other one up as a giveaway item on a Saturday giveaway! I bet I could find one of you out there who would be willing to accompany me to India, right? Now THAT would be a giveaway.

You bring the curry?

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Story Dice

Have you seen this idea before? It's so cute I thought it was a must-share.

They're called Story Dice and the idea is that you roll them out and use the objects to tell a story.

Now the ones I did here are organized a bit--there are a few dice that have animals only on them, one with methods of transportation, one with household objects, one with clothing, one with landscape features, that kind of thing. I figured it would be helpful toward plot that way.

One twist I saw was where, instead of painting little pictures on the dice, the person used stickers instead. Very clever. You could probably even cut pictures from magazines and do the same thing. Kids would have a great time making their own.

Once you sit down to play with them you can roll the dice all at once and start from there or take turns picking a die and rolling it to see what happens next--if you've got a storyteller in the family it makes for a fun activity.

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Making Homemade Pickles: The Cheater Pants Method

Or: How Making Pickles Can Be Easier Than Fixing a Bowl of Cold Cereal.

I think you're aware that this is the time of year when people are being so domestic and canning fruit, making jam or pickling cucumbers but I'm going to share with you a secret that will probably change your view on making homemade pickles. Forever.

You see here to the right a picture of the very best pickles on the planet. Boar's Head Sweet Pickle Chips with Horseradish. Now normally I'm not one to sing the joys of horseradish, I've always thought it a bit of a nasty except when accompanied by a big fat slab of prime rib. However, I have made an exception because these pickles are really tasty, as in "I'm going to finish off the jar now thank you very much."

But what you don't realize that this jar is unsatisfactorily small and it only took me about three sittings to eat all my tasty pickles, leaving me sad and confused. And it didn't help that Spencer discovered how good they are and now likes them too. Not enough to go around.

Solution? Save that precious brine and throw in more cucumbers and you'll have more pickles in no time at all! It's so easy I'm surprised it took me this long to figure it out but the brine is just vinegar, spices and horseradish so it's pretty much indestructible. When the world has ended there will still be brine so why not reuse it and get your money's worth?

You'll want to use pickling cucumbers if you can because they're small and dense and suited for pickling but you can still use other kinds if necessary (I would think English cucumbers would be better than the regular variety). Slice 'em up and stick them in a jar with your reserved brine (any brand will do), wait about 10 days and you're ready to go.

Isn't that jar so pretty? You'd think I'd actually done something time consuming. To me they even taste fresher and better than the originals.

***

Congratulations to Sarah at Tales from Oakbriar Farm who won the Trendex Home Giveaway from this past weekend.

And to those who didn't win, good news! Trendex is offering 20% off of your order through September 15th. Or if that's not enough savings for you you can receive 30% off by visiting their blog and leaving a comment about which pattern is your favorite. That's like buy-two-get-one-free.

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Should Children Have Allowances?

Dear Michelle,

Something I've been curious about, ever since you wrote that post about your boys and the helicopter toy, is their allowance (or lack there of, from the sounds of it). If you don't mind sharing, would you tell me what the rules are between you and your kids when it comes to money?

I grew up in a family that gave allowances, and since we didn't get grounded, allowances were the first thing to go when we got in trouble. But I also think we were spoiled to get money without having to do anything for it, so I'm looking for different perspectives on allowances to see what I'd like to teach my own kids.

Thanks for taking the time to read this,
April

Ah. Allowances.

This can be touchy because we're talking about two sensitive subjects: parenting and money so there's room to offend quite a few if I mouth off too much but I'm going to try and make this short, concise and painless.

Why give allowances?
First, April's guess is right, I do not now--nor have I ever--given my children allowances and my own parents followed the same line of thought. As I see it, there are two possible reasons parents give allowances to their children: to be able to supply them with "stuff" and to teach them how money works.

Fine, let's talk about those two reasons . . . giving your children "stuff." I believe with all my heart that a parent's job is to provide food, clothing, shelter, medical care, education and morality to a child. I do not, however, feel it is necessary for parents to provide children with fancy jeans, the latest brands in footwear, movie tickets, fast food raids, sports team memorabilia, ice skating lessons, electronics or any of the other excesses that drown our culture. Do I give our kids gifts at Christmas? Sure. Do I like to be able to treat them once in a while with something special? Sure. Do I give them a steady stream of money so they can go out with their friends on weekends? Heh. Nope.

Not only does this make it hard to develop good characters in your children it's also quite expensive. I simply cannot afford to pay my children's pocket money each week even if I thought it was good for them.

So if you're worried that by not giving your child an allowance you're somehow failing as a parent, get over it, because there are so many other things to obsess over that this issue is pretty low on the list. Chances are I'm messing up in so many other ways that this just isn't an issue I'm prepared to worry about.

Second, people give their children allowances to teach them how to properly use money. This one on the surface seems more logical but I'm still having a hard time with it because for me the number one rule that any human being should learn about money is that NO ONE JUST GIVES IT TO YOU.

It's not free, you have to earn it, and having a way to provide for yourself is a privilege and blessing. If you hand money to a child you're completely negating anything they could learn about how the world of money works and instead they will discover pretty quickly--because they're smarter than lab rats--that if they want cheese all they have to do is come and get it from you. In fact with an allowance it's even worse, they don't even have to put in the energy to ask for it, they just expect it to come to them as their payment for remaining alive and continuing to metabolize and if you don't live up to your end of the bargain you've somehow cheated them from their due.

So giving an allowance to teach monetary responsibility breaks down at the most basic level.

Neither my husband nor I ever had allowances and my husband still says that he learned early on that if he wanted something he'd have to go work for it because mom and dad weren't going to give it to him. From about the age of 12 on he learned how to find odd jobs to get the money to buy what he wanted. What greater lesson about fiscal responsibility could you teach a child? I wish our federal government could figure it out so well.

If you require a child to earn his or her own spending money then lessons about budgeting and wisely using one's resources are 500% easier to teach because the resources are that much more precious. The child will be more eager to learn how to be wise with money because it's not someone else's sweat they're playing with, it's theirs.

As far as I can tell, by giving a child an allowance you run the risk of spoiling them, of teaching them ingratitude, gluttony, selfishness, even pride (because how many kids have I seen bragging to their friends about how much money their mom and dad or grandma and grandpa give them?) but by not giving them an allowance the only thing you risk is them not having the same things that their friends have--a thing which simply does not keep me awake at nights. So if you're feeling indecision on the matter why run the risk? Just go with the safe route, err to the side of caution and tell them no allowance.

So what do you do instead?
Now, the latter part of April's original question deals with another aspect of allowances--chores. I won't go into this too much except to say that I won't pay my children for doing things that are expected of them as members of our family. No one pays me to do the laundry or make dinner but I do it because it's my job and I do it out of love--the best kind of motivation.

Likewise no one is going to hand them a paycheck for making their bed or taking out the trash because that's what people who live here are expected to do and because they love the rest of the family. When the kids ask about getting paid for something like cleaning their room I quickly agree to compensate them and then let them know that they can expect the bill for their years of room and board within the week. That usually shuts them up.

Allowances might be used as a form of leverage, as April suggests, but I just can't see that teaching children to do what is right from a fear of losing money is the right approach. It just doesn't sit well with me. Yes, life is full of consequences for poor choices but I can make their lives miserable in so many other ways (to hear them talk you'd think I'd elevated my skills to an art form) that I just don't need money as an additional thumb screw.

So when my kids get old enough to want to earn some money (around five or six) I usually start them out by giving them the rules designed to train them to be productive:

1. Regular chores must be done first. You can't just do work for hire and ignore the other pro bono responsibilities.

2. You only get paid for real service. None of this Cash-for-Clunkers mentality. If you want to earn money then weed my garden, wash my car, clean the garage--something that actually has value to me. Do you really want them thinking that they can earn cash by squeegeeing car windshields at stop lights? Real money means real work.

3. The going rate for odd jobs is really, really low. An hour of weeding might earn you a dollar (assuming it's done right), certainly not enough to retire on so you'll want to learn the ropes and move up very quickly.

By the time they get to be old enough to be really useful they've usually realized that Mom doesn't pay nearly as well as others do and that they can earn decent money by either babysitting or mowing lawns. In fact, right about now I can assure you that the oldest two are more solvent than I.

Of course I could always take out a loan from Spencer. Teach him about interest and all that good stuff . . .

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Wonton Soup

A couple of years ago I made the mistake of introducing David to Chinese food. Let's just say it was a big hit and the beginning of a Chinese food craze around here.

We have bamboo place mats and Asian dishes with those cute little flat porcelain spoons that you can't get in your mouth (and aren't supposed to but that doesn't stop my kids from trying).

Periodically we pull it all out for a fun night of Chinese-a-Go-Go complete with this easy won ton soup recipe. You can mix it up in about five minutes, stuff the wontons in ten and have soup on the table in under 30 minutes.

I make this particular recipe with scallops but you can substitute pretty much any fish. I daresay you might even be able to used flaked canned tuna in a pinch. I like flaked, canned tuna. Don't try to talk me out of it.

For broth:
8 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons miso paste
1/2 tablespoon chili garlic paste
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 cup green onions, sliced on bias
sesame seeds (for garnish)

For wontons:
6 ounces small scallops, thawed
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon finely minced ginger
1/2 tablespoon finely sliced green onions
1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tablespoon peanut oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/2 beaten egg white
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
20 wonton skins

Bring the first five ingredients to a boil. Take off heat and work on the wontons.

For wontons, combine all the ingredients except the wonton skins in a bowl and mix well. Spoon a bit of the mix with two or three scallops onto each wonton skin and fold over on the diagonal then seal the corners together.

Return soup mix to a boil, add the wontons and green onions then boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, ladel into four or five bowls then garnish by sprinkling sesame seeds on top.

Sponsored by Pak Naks--decorate your stuff!

Trendex Home Giveaway

I know you're probably still thinking about barbecues and picnics and outdoor entertaining but the weather isn't going to be hot forever--fall is approaching and holidays will be here before you know it.

Trendex Home has the most beautifully linens and place settings for your table--quite the perfect touch for that holiday setting and indoor entertaining.

Soothing neutrals and pastels, bold patterns and color schemes--they have place mats, table runners, napkin rings, chair pads. All you're missing is the plates and pizza to make things perfect.

This weekend's winner will be receiving an amazing prize--$100 toward any Trendex Home products of their choosing! And I would specifically encourage you to check out their sale page where there are some great deals on half-priced linens and accessories (I'm always one to shop sales and that Contessa pattern is quite elegant).

So check Trendex out and get your name in for the drawing, the winner to be chosen Monday. If you'd like to get an additional treat Trendex is offering 20% off your entire order by entering SCRIBBIT as a coupon code at checkout.

The coupon will be good through September 30th. Thanks Trendex!

Here's how to win:

Before 12 am Monday morning go to the giveaway entry form on this page and enter your name and email. I will pick one of the names at random, contact the winner via their email and publish the winner's first name and home town in next Tuesday's post. See the bottom of the entry form for more details.

This giveaway is open to all readers.

Hummingbirds and All Sorts of Good Things

This is the point at which I would wow you with a picture of the beautiful little hummingbirds that visited my garden this summer.

Except they didn't come. I'd heard a piece on NPR about hummingbirds in Alaska and did a bit of research and discovered that yes indeed, rufous hummingbirds do migrate as far north as Alaska. Usually southeastern Alaska but often venturing up into the southcentral area where they've been spotted in south Anchorage gardens from time to time.

So Lillian and I got a little hummingbird feeder, stocked it well with nectar and hung it by the window because as we all know . . . if you build it they will come.

However, the hummingbirds didn't seem to get the memo and we never saw even one bird though the bees did seem to enjoy the snack shack. At first we were hopeful, then we were worried, then disappointed, then Lillian got rather disgusted. I hope you're happy hummingbirds because you've pretty much disillusioned my child, probably scarring her for life.

So while I'd planned on being able to share pictures of our aviary success instead I'm sharing a picture that's made me nearly as happy as having hummingbirds in my garden--my jasmine. I got it months ago and it sits in my kitchen window where it fills the air with the most amazing fragrance. It's particularly strong when I come down to fix breakfast in the morning, you can smell those little white flowers through the whole kitchen. I'm really hoping that it survives our dark winters because it's what's got me past that whole hummingbird-fiasco-betrayal thing.

And I've collected a few other interesting items for your enjoyment. So enjoy!

***

Unless your name happens to be Tom Marvolo Riddle you may have never seen an anagram of your name but this little anagram generator spits out the funniest anagram for any words (or names) you insert. I saw it at The Short Years. I may not be Lord Voldemort but apparently "I'm the Inclement Role." And that's with my REAL name so feel free to sleuth it out.

Amy swears by this easy pot roast recipe and I have to say that since I am a complete pot roast moron it is right up my alley. Plus, the picture is darn effective as a sales pitch.

Plum Pudding has a way to make a green cleaning kit with your own homemade household cleaners. Cost effective and simple.

This "all natural" swimming pool is soooo cool! I have this phobia of swimming in lakes and oceans where I can't see my feet and things bump into me but with this you get the fun of swimming in a pond without the creepy crawlies.

Baking Bites has a recipe for those evil little Girl Scout cookies. Not evil little Girl Scouts, just their cookies. Specifically, the Samoas.

Simply Recipes has a post up about Tomato Pie. And before you turn up your nose just think: cheese bread married to pizza. Yea. So what do you think now?

And get a load of this futuristic bicycle posted at Hypebeast. They say it's the future of cycling with a built-in anti-theft, finger-print identifying alarm system and puncture-resistant tires. I'm thinking they've found Captain Kirk's bike.

Sponsored by Wedding Paper Divas for wedding invitations.

Books Guaranteed to Make You Think Your Life Isn't So Bad After All

While I was feeling so "woe is me" over here I decided it was time for a pick-me-up. Time to put together a list of things that showed that in fact things are not so bad after all. I like book lists anyway and usually I'm okay with a sad ending but the guys on this list go way beyond mere sadness and slip right on down into to absolute, abject despair with a side of creamed Zoloft.

Forget merely shedding a tear or two at the end, when you read these books you're safe from thinking that someone's grass is a little greener and instead are quite sure that your own little patch of sod with a few wayward dandelions will do quite nicely, thank you very much, because the stuff on the other side is trampled dead and is probably seeping with underground toxic waste.

Cheery, huh?

1. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
You may be down on your luck but at least you aren't an impoverish Chinese peasant plagued by malicious family members and starvation, right? It could always be worse. And of course by the end of this book it is worse. You follow the fortunes (or misfortunes) of Wang Lung's family as they face malnutrition, set their children to begging, endure war, pestilence and calamities and still make it through for 300 pages to the gloriously bitter, tragic end.

I bet if you knew nothing about this book but that I told you it won both the Pulitzer and Nobel prizes you'd know for sure that it was a real downer because everyone knows the real glory always goes to books that convince you you're glad you're not the next guy.

2. Escape from Sobibor by Richard Rashke
I must have something about the Holocaust on a list like this but not just any old book or movie would do. If I'm not careful I'd put up something like Schindler's List or The Hiding Place that, while terribly sad and depressing, is able to pull itself from the ashes long enough to give you a taste of true human courage and resilience. That man (and woman) can succeed and be better than their surroundings. But that wouldn't do for a list like this.

No, I needed something that wasn't quite so cheerful and this one will do nicely.

This novel tells the story of the most successful uprising ever at a Nazi extermination camp. Notice I said "most" which should give you an idea of the level of rosiness you can expect from this one. I believe this was made into a fine movie with Alan Arkin (a favorite) but don't expect it to have any song and dance numbers--and bring the Kleenex.

3. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Can any one of you honestly tell me that there isn't a final scene in all of Western literature as depressing and gut-wrenching as the one at the end of this colossus?

Of Mice and Men is sad. The Pearl is even sadder (and pointless). But this? This closing scene is not only sad but disturbing and despairing in a way that a mere euthanasia or infanticide can't rival. Rose of Sharon nursing a homeless man in the barn as everyone succumbs to poverty and ruin is pretty much the complete antithesis of Cinderella and I still remember the shock of reading that scene for the first time. It's like the exact opposite of Disney and it sticks with you. Ugh.

4. The Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Anderson
It was probably the Cinderella reference that triggered this memory but if you've ever had the mistaken notion that fairy tales are about happiness and fairies you haven't read this one.

In a nutshell the plot is this: A little girl--on New Year's Eve of all times--is out in the cold, frigid night selling matches. No one is buying her matches but she can't go home because she knows her father will beat her for not finishing her work so, freezing and alone, she ends up striking a match to keep warm.

In her hypothermic condition she slips into hallucinations that end with her grandmother, the only person to have ever shown her any kindness in her meager life. Striking match after match to keep the vision alive the girl's grandmother eventually takes her home with her and in the morning the townspeople find the little girl dead in the snow.

Yes, that's a bedtime story for you. "Nighty-night kids. Go to sleep . . . see you in the morning!"

5. "Misery" by Anton Chekhov
Not actually a novel at all but a short story and I'm going to include it anyway. With misery as only the Russians can tell it, it is the story of a cart driver in Petersburg (I think) who, during one particular winter, picks up passengers and takes them to their destinations.

Each person he carries is in a hurry and eager to get where they're going but none understand his pain because yesterday his son died. He tries to tell his grief and misery to someone but no one will listen so he eventually talks to his horse.

It does not get more pathetic than that.

Even Crime and Punishment had its bright spots but this? Nothing but misery--which is probably why it's titled like that.

6. Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
I can't remember why I even bothered to read this one, it is so not my style, but read it I did and talk about depressing.

Written as a memoir, the McCourt family lives in poverty in Brooklyn but that's not quite enough for them, what they're looking for is real poverty so they return to the homeland--Ireland--to remedy the mistake their parents made by emigrating in the first place. After all, there can't possibly be a good reason for them leaving a country whose population was starving could there?

So back they go and little Frankie records his father's alcoholism, his mother's begging and his siblings dropping like flies from the horror of it all.

But survive he does only to end up on a boat back to America to meet up with prostitutes (apparently the Welcome Committee) in time for the closing pages. Grim doesn't even begin to cover it but oh how those Pulitzer people loved it.

7. Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
Girl is pressured by family to work for rich relatives. Rich relatives--namely dissolute son--think girl is hot and seduce girl, making her with child. Family is not so happy but girl returns home to have baby whereupon baby dies at birth. Girl tries to get life back together and eventually finds True Love. She's worried True Love won't like her sullied past but takes courage after he confesses one of his own sins to her.

Bravely girl tells True Love about her past and the wrongs committed against her but instead of acting like a human being True Love dumps girl with self-righteous horror. Girl goes back to original seducer-guy who never stopped lusting after her. When True Love finally comes to his idiot senses and realizes his mistake and goes to reclaim girl he finds her shacked up with original Bad Guy.

When girl realizes that True Love has come back she takes the only route she sees available and stabs Bad Guy, effectively removing him from the equation and allowing her to pursue life with True Love (even though he's late to the party). Of course the local law enforcement isn't as sympathetic with her plight as we, the readers, are and end up hanging her for that whole pesky domestic stabbing episode. Oh, and True Love ends up marrying her younger and purer sister. It's a story you'd see on Jerry Springer.

It's a toss up as to which is more depressing--Tess or Jude the Obscure which I won't summarize because it would make this entry too long but trust me, it's possibly worse than the fallen woman done wrong story.

8. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Written in 1966 this is a science-fiction style story where a lab mouse, Algernon, is treated to increase his mental abilities. Charly, the first human test subject, is a mentally retarded man who at first responds well to the treatment but soon realizes his gains are short-lived as Algernon regresses to his previous state in an ominous foretelling of the future Charly himself can expect to suffer.

Nothing like descending into darkness and knowing just enough to comprehend your prison to brighten the mood. Not a happy story. Not even an inspiring story--just sad and gooey like a melted Rocky Road bar that's been left on your car upholstery in the hot sun. Not a pretty sight.

9. L'Etranger by Albert Camus
I should say anything by Camus is worthy of this list but instead I'll focus on this, my first introduction to this existentialist-who-claims-he-not (which is indeed ironic if you ask me, kind of the complete opposite of the whole philosophy, n'est pas?).

I read L'Etranger (or The Stranger) in my French studies in college alongside other cheeries such as Graham Greene's The Power and the Glory. Boy that's a cure for what ails you. If you're ever feeling like you have too many friends and your life is going just too darn good and what you need is some good ol' fashioned nihilism and abandonment then this is should be the first stop on your road trip to Agony-ville. Population: 1.

Oh, and before I forget, the story is about a man who kills an Algerian man while on vacation (because nothing says relaxation like a bloodthirsty crime) and the accompanying results of his actions. Skip it.

10. The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy
This novella is almost too moral to be included on the list (because after all, if the reader actually learns or gains something rather than feeling as if all is lost then it's not really depressing but instead rather enlightening) but regardless I'll include it just for the sake of the Russians.

I could have padded this whole list with Russians--Crime and Punishment with its axe murdering student, Anna Karenina with its tribute to Amtrak, The Brothers Karamazov with some juicy patricide but really, where is the challenge in that?

Instead I'll just leave you with this story where the titular character, after an accident that leaves him dying a slow death over a period of weeks, realizes that not only was he a jerk and a rotten husband and father but that he lived completely for himself as selfishly as one can. While this causes mental anguish worthy of this list the real cherry on top is that deep down (I think) he still really doesn't care about his actions and that he's just screaming because he's dying--and dying alone. No remorse, just more selfishness.

Yea, that Tolstoy must have been the life of the party.

Sponsored by Tiny Prints for the holiday party invitations for children.

Goodbye to Summer Vacation

I've been posting quite a few activities for children each Wednesday during the summer but I'm nearly done because today is the first day of school!

I have one more week of ideas then I'm turning thoughts to other things as my kids go back to hitting the books instead of each other.

But if you are lucky enough to have your little critters around for another week or two before that glorious institution known as public school takes over here's an idea that was fun for us--particularly the boys who are competitive at every level.

If you can't see my little pictures here I'll be more specific. You use the packing peanuts and toothpicks to build your own war ships then launch them in the plastic swimming pool to see which can stay afloat longer. You build the best ship you can then add weight to it and try to sink your brother's ship. The best wars get started that way you know.

Anyway, lots of fun to be had in an inflatable swimming pool. I had a small one I used to blow up when Grace was a toddler that I'd fill with pillows on the living room floor in winter and she'd have a great time pretend swimming with her dolls. I guess when you live in Alaska you get those swimming thrills when and where you can, right?

Sponsored by Beau-Coup for unique baby shower favors.

I've Waited Long Enough. I Couldn't Wait Any Longer

I think I've mentioned once or twice how I'm a Type A Planner--I even have my posts outlined for the month just to give myself a general idea of things that I could write about (should the mood strike). In fact, since I've been rather lazy about sticking to my outline this summer I had a burst of productivity preparatory to school starting tomorrow (YAHOO!!) and I even planned out my posts through September. Crazy I know.

But my point is . . . I had this post lined up for farther down the road but I must say I've been so excited about it and have been yakking about it to my family that pretty soon it'll hardly be news anymore so I decided to just get it down right now, schedule be darned. Besides--it makes me happy just thinking about it.

I finally got my library's copy of Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. I've wanted the book for quite a while and put it on hold at the library where I was approximately number 427 on the list. My turn finally came up and I got it last week and I must say it is GOLD.

In fact, if I had the cash I'd turn right around and buy the book myself, it's that good. "Why?" you may ask? I'm so glad you did because I'm going to tell you in ten paragraphs or less.

It does exactly what it the title says: it teaches you this new (dare I say revolutionary?) technique for making homemade bread that takes no more than five minutes of labor and produces absolutely restaurant-hearth-baked-artisan-quality bread just like you savor in the bakeries. I've tried for years to be able to do this, have worn out four different bread machines along with two replacement buckets and still never reached the summit. I figured I needed one of those fancy open-hearth ovens or something because I could never get that chewy crust and soft, spongy interior I so coveted.

Not anymore. This bread Bible says all you have to do is mix up the four simple ingredients in a mixer or in a bowl by hand. Set the combined unkneaded dough aside to raise for a couple hours then pop a lid on the bowl and stick it in the refrigerator where it lounges, awaiting your pleasure for perhaps weeks. When you're ready you just lop off a ball of the dough (it'll be wet but easier to work with when it's cold) then shape it and leave it to raise on a cornmeal dusted peel (or rimless cookie sheet such as I have) then after 40 minutes of rising time you bake it in a thoroughly preheated oven at 450 degrees. You slide it off the peel and onto a clay baking stone for it to bake then quickly add a cup of hot water to a tray in the bottom of the oven to produce steam. Shut the door quickly so the steam doesn't escape and bake for 30 minutes.

It's like magic because when you open that door half an hour later you behold a golden ball of perfectly baked bread that literally crackles as it cools on your kitchen counter.

A couple of notes here about the process (and again, while I'm letting out the secrets here I completely recommend buying the book for yourself because they have great recipes and specific methods for baking the different styles of bread that you won't want to miss).

First, I zapped my dough in the microwave on 20% power for about 20 seconds after taking it out of the refrigerator just to take the chill off and let it raise a bit more. The cold dough worried me but after trying it both ways--heating and not heating the cold dough--I can say it didn't seem to make much of a difference in the finished product. Both seemed to rise enough and since the warmed dough is more difficult to manage without flouring or wetting your hands I say go with their instructions and don't try warming it up.

Second, I used to have a fancy $50 pizza stone and pizza peel but never used them so I gave them away (dang!) and not wanting to go out and buy another stone I used a large terra cotta saucer like you'd see in any gardening store and inverted it to use as a makeshift stone. Now it won't be as sturdy and might crack later on but it's a lot cheaper than the alternative if you want to play at this before investing in something so nice as a real stone. Plus, unless you're making a pizza or a baguette that won't fit on your saucer you'll only need something ten inches or so anyway.

And third, the book recommends using all-purpose unbleached white flour because the bleaching process removes some of the proteins from the flour, decreasing the nutritional value and damaging the dough's ability to raise properly. I used unbleached flour and got great results so I'd believe them. Don't worry about cleaning your mixing bowl because as the dough sits in your refrigerator it takes on a bit of a sourdough quality to it and if you mix the next batch of dough so that the older bits of dough get mixed in it just gives that whole tasty process a head start for the next batch.

So there are my raves. I cannot begin to record all the "I love yous" and "You're the greatest Mom evers" I've received since trying this--I think my favorite comment was "These 17 years have all built up to this moment of bread glory and every moment has been worth the wait."

Makes me want to check into their newest book on baking healthy bread. If it's half as good as this first book I'd do almost anything to get a copy.

***

Congratulations to the most recent giveaway winners--to Jaime from Shreveport, Louisiana for winning the Belle Invitations giveaway last week and to Deb from St. Paul, Minnesota and Dee Dee from Hazelton, Pennsylvania for winning this weekend's Wii games. Wii are all very excited and hope Yuu like your prizes.

Sponsored by Alaska Coupon Diva--Alaska's #1 source for coupons, discounts and bargains.

An Open Window

I appreciate everyone's kindness last week when I spilled my guts about Andrew losing his job. Besides the nearly 100 comments and dozens of private emails I got there were those who mailed gifts and someone even sent me their blogging paycheck to be used towards a new camera (I won't give more details for fear of embarrassing the thoughtful givers) but the point is, there are a lot of very kind people out there.

And us? Well we've reached a few decisions.

We looked at our options and figured Andrew had a couple things he could do. He could look for another corporate job like the one he had. Not bad, nice hours but to be blunt it's terribly dangerous. They tend to use you up and spit you out and the last thing we need is to go through this cycle again in another five years.

He could go back to a law firm and do the typical attorney thing but then he never particularly liked being a slave to that billable hour and the thought of being back at the bottom of the ladder as if the last dozen years were nothing seemed depressing and pointless.

Which left the final and perhaps scariest option. He's always wanted to own his own business, has always been the kind of person who wanted the freedom to implement his own unique ideas and has always been more businessman than attorney so we chose Door C, "Start up Your Own Business."

I know it sounds rather crazy to lose your job, face life without a paycheck and then decide to invest money in starting up something completely unproven but after discussing it thoroughly we both felt quite firmly and solidly that this would be the best thing. Of course those of you who have been in this position know what I suspect--that though this may prove the most satisfying, creative and lucrative in the end, it's going to be very hard and time consuming to say nothing of scary.

So I have mixed feelings about it all. I'm quite sure it'll be the right thing for us and I think things will be okay in the end but it's going to mean quite a tightening of the belt around here to get us through this one to three year period (dare I say five??)

Of course a little tightening never hurt anyone (well, almost anyone) and it'll be good for us. I'm not that attached to "things" and "stuff" to resent the lack but I am very nervous about the unknown because I am a huge planner and organizer and stepping into the darkness is what I tend to fear the most.

As I said, it'll be good for us. Right?

So I'd like, with a large drumroll, to introduce you to our new baby . . . Vellum LLC.

My husband's work is in corporate law--contracts, leases, things like that, but at his last job he was also responsible for creating and setting up a corporate compliance and ethics program (yea, let those jokes roll in about hiring an attorney to be in charge of your ethics program) which, if I may say so, was amazing. Now he's setting up Vellum to do this on a contractual basis for others.

It's already been a blessing in one big way--it's given him something to work for. While he's been putting out the resumes and applications this past week he also set to work renting office space, incorporating and setting up the business. He even set up the Vellum website for his compliance and ethics consulting. which is not only a feeling of accomplishment but a sign of some concrete progress.

So now it's Monday morning and he's actually "going to the office" where the real test starts. As I say, I'll keep you posted.

Sponsored by Unique Wedding Invitations by Dependable Printing.

Swiss Enchilaaaaaadas!

This might just be the very first instance of fusion cuisine ever in recorded history. The creamy tang of Swiss cheese . . . the succulent savor of the tortilla-wrapped chicken. I think the Swiss and the Mexicans really ought to consider a political alliance, given that this culinary marriage of cultures went so beautifully.

It's not new and it's not unique but boy is it good.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups minced onion
2 cups diced or shredded chicken, cooked
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 4 1/2-ounce cans of diced green chilies
1 14 1/2-ounce can of diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
6 flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Swiss cheese

Saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil for about five minutes over a medium heat until the onions are tender and soft. Stir in the chicken, chilies and tomatoes and simmer for about 5-10 minutes or until the liquid has evaporated.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan slowly whisk the milk into the flour (to prevent lumps) then cook slowly over medium heat, whisking, until the mixture begins to boil and thicken. Stir in the salt and pepper.

Spoon a bit of the chicken mixture into the warm tortillas and add a bit of the grated cheese as well. Roll up and arrange them in the bottom of a greased baking dish. Pour the milk mixture over the top and top with the rest of the cheese. Bake for about 25 minutes at 350 degrees or until the cheese is nice and brown.

Sponsored by YourWeddingDays.com for beautiful bridal shower invitations.

Up Game for the Wii Giveaway

Did you see Up? I watched the previews for it for months and it didn't look like anything of interest to me (I wasn't a fan of Wall-E) but then the reviews started coming out and I heard so many raves that it got me interested.

In fact now I'd really like to see it because I keep hearing how it makes you happy, makes you cry, all that stuff that makes a movie so fun.

And in the meantime . . . like all good franchises, Up is now a game for the Wii of which I happen to have two copies to give away. Two copies. Two winners--try to beat that.

For a quick demo on what you can expect see this link here. But don't forget to enter.

Here's how to win:

Before 12 am Monday morning go to the giveaway entry form on this page and enter your name and email. I will pick one of the names at random, contact the winner via their email and publish the winner's first name and home town in next Tuesday's post. See the bottom of the entry form for more details.

This giveaway is open to all readers.

The Salmon Are In!

You may be curious what the weather is like here in Alaska but those of us who live here know that the weather matters very little when the fish are in.

As in salmon.

You know you're a true Alaska when you can recite the different salmon runs and know which rivers hold which fish at what time.

The thing about salmon is that they spawn in the rivers and lakes then travel out to the ocean to grow and mature then come back up those same rivers to the place where they were born to mate and die. Remarkable really--to know exactly how to get back again and to go from fresh water to salt water and back to fresh water. How many men do you know who could find their way around like without asking directions?

This picture here is from several years ago when Andrew and I went with my Mom and Dad down to Seward (2 hours south on the Kenai Peninsula) for the annual Silver Salmon Derby.

They have derbies all over the place here but in Seward they have the biggest one every August when the silvers (or cohos) begin to come in from the ocean to make their way back up the rivers to spawn. A few are tagged and released so that you buy a ticket for the derby and if you catch the biggest fish or catch one of the tagged fish you get a prize.

Silvers aren't the biggest of the salmon (not like the king--or chinook--salmon you see here at the left) or the best to eat (like the reds, aka sockeyes) but they're known for putting up a good fight and being fun to catch. Andrew and I went out the first day of the derby and hadn't planned on buying a derby ticket but did at the last minute. Less than an hour later he pulled in this 17.4 pound beauty you see above and claimed first place for opening day of the derby. He didn't win but I still think of it as one of those fun days that will always stick in my memory.

So the point is, there may be rain in Anchorage but it doesn't matter because right now "the silvers are in" and everyone worthy of being called an Alaskan knows exactly what that means.

Sponsored by Pak Naks--decorate your stuff!