Lingonberry Juice

A fresh taste of the Arctic.

While I was up in Alaska, I had the opportunity to meet some of the folks living out in Wiseman. Wiseman is located about 15 north of Coldfoot Camp.
While visiting I was offered a cup of homemade lingonberry juice. I had no idea what a lingonberry was but they were hand picked in the surrounding countryside, so I couldn't turn down such an opportunity! I said "Sure!"

Lingonberries are like cranberries except they are smaller and grow closer to the ground. They are the same pretty color though. They are common in boreal forests and the Arctic tundra. They are popular in many Scandinavian dishes and recipes.
Jack, the guy who we were visiting, said they also make a delicious bread. He hand picked and reduced the berries in water to make the juice all himself.

It was served in a coffee mug, with a spoon. It was very similar to cranberry juice, except with much less sugar than the commercial stuff. But the best part was the pile of berries at the bottom. For those I used the spoon. They were so tender and tart and yummy! 

What a neat opportunity hu?

Coldfoot Alaska: The Aurora Borealis Tour to Wiseman

The cabin in Wiseman

 When I was up in Coldfoot, I went on the Aurora Tour to Wiseman. You might wonder if it's really necessary to to take the tour. And the answer is, that depends. You can see pretty much the same Aurora from Camp, so if all you want to do is look at them, then you probably don't need to go up to Wiseman. But if you are trying to photograph them, or if it's -30 degrees, you may run into problems. There are lots of lights in Coldfoot. When I was there some miners had a search light on all night, so they could work on their vehicles, and bthere is a bright light at the gas pumps, and  there are semi-trucks coming and going all the time. It tends to wash out the night sky and lower the contrast between the Aurora and the dark. You can walk out away from the camp a little ways, but then you have to worry about equipment/ trailers that are laying around, traffic, and if it's cold, you can't run back inside to warm up. At 30 below that can literally ruin the experience.
In my opinion the tour in Wiseman is great for 3 reasons.
1.) You have a tour guide who sits outside THE WHOLE TIME, while you sit out the boring times in a warm cabin sipping hot tea. When things start happening he/she will run inside and let you know so you can run outside and enjoy them. Some nights the Aurora are out early on, but on others they don't appear till 2:00 in the morning. If you can imagine how cold you'd be by two a.m. if you had to sit out there waiting for them, you can instantly appreciate the fact that you don't have to. It's much more enjoyable to view/photograph the Aurora when your fingers and toes aren't numb with cold, and your face isn't frozen. And the best part is, with the guide, you don't have to worry about missing anything exciting.
2.) The scenery up at Wiseman is much prettier and makes for a much better foreground if you are taking photos. There are three little log cabins in the immediate vicinity, and trees in three directions, and of course mountains. There are also no bright lights like there are in Coldfoot.
3.) Most tours you meet a Wiseman local named Jack. He is a walking encyclopedia on the Arctic. Pretty much anything you want to know about the surrounding area, he can tell you. And as an added bonus he also knows how camera settings need to be adjusted to best photograph the Aurora. That was super helpful (even though my camera was out of focus the first night (sad face)). He keeps you company inside while the guide keeps lookout outside.
My experience was that it was so nice to be able to warm up, without having to worry or wonder if I was missing something spectacular outside. Jack was really interesting, the cabin was warm, and I got to meet new people as we sat inside and chatted. And then, when the Aurora did come out I was ready and toasty and didn't have to worry about whether or not I was going to get frostbite.
 The first night I went, the Aurora barely appeared. We waited 3.5 hours and there were only two little bands the whole time. The second night I went there was much more activity, and so the guide (after an hour of good viewing) said that he would only come inside if it got extra-super spectacular. That happened twice. So most people stayed inside after the first hour and only came out when things got exciting.
I would advise those going up to the Arctic specifically to view the Aurora to plan for AT LEAST 3 nights in Coldfoot (and maybe 1 night in Fairbanks). Sometimes they don't come out, or it's overcast, or a storm is blowing through or something. But chances are pretty good you will see them if you are up there for 3 nights or more. Don't be worried by light clouds, or a full moon either. Neither of those will affect the viewing as long as the Aurora are really showing.

The Aurora over the Dalton Highway

The Aurora over the Brooks Range

Aurora almost straight overhead.

The Aurora and the Ursa Major

Our tour guide Jason.

Inside the cabin, getting warm.

Aurora on a faint night.

Coldfoot Alaska: The Trucker's Cafe

The Truckers Cafe

If you are heading up to Coldfoot Camp, you might be wondering what to expect in terms of food. Well, you options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner are conveniently narrowed down to one option: The Truckers Cafe.
But what exactly does that mean?
1.) It means that ANY food you do not bring with you will be purchased in the cafe. There are no quickie-marts, vending machines, hot dog stands, salad bars, no nothing.
2.) The menu is practical for where the truck stop is located and for the people in charge of cooking (i.e. it's a long way to transport fresh produce that only keeps for a day or two, and (surprise) there is no executive chef.) There are mostly things like burgers, fried cod, chicken fingers, sandwiches, melts, tater-tots, fries, pancakes, eggs, bacon, and grilled cheese. All delicious but probably not so low on calories.
3.) That being said, there are some healthier options available. You can get a sandwich on wheat bread, a garden salad with a side of grilled chicken on it, and their soups of the day are not only homemade, but quite delicious. I had soup almost everyday for lunch or dinner. And they make oatmeal for breakfast.
4.) The menu is not so bad for vegetarians. There are egg sandwiches, pancakes, egg salad sandwiches, salad, some of the soups, grilled cheese), but pretty tough for vegans. In terms of breakfast it is limited to oatmeal, or hash browns and ketchup (or maybe with some veggies on it if they have them), and for lunch either salad, peanut butter and jelly, tots, and fries. My vegan brother actually ordered a salad with tots on it and it looked pretty good. But in general it's slim pickings. The pancakes have milk, and most of the other stuff that could be vegan had some kind of dairy product in it. I'd suggest if you are vegan and planning to spend a few days up there to bring some of your own supplemental  food.
5.) The Arctic Safari tour gets its lunches from the Cafe, and it's actually pretty great! Your choice of sandwich, condiments, chips, fruit, cookie, and beverage. I would have been the coolest kind in school if I'd have brought lunches like that every day. The sandwiches are big, and as good as most places. And I think you can order a lunch to go, if you are heading up the road, or back down to Fairbanks.
6.) There are a couple highlights on the menu (this is based on my personal opinion). For breakfast it's the oatmeal (it's not slimy or watery, and comes with milk, brown sugar and raisins), and the reindeer sausage. If you do order the sausage (comes as 2 links, each split in half), note that it's probably enough for 2 people to share. I love it, but can only eat one link at a time. It's salty and tasty, and in my humble opinion is a nice balance to the healthy semi-sweet brown sugar and oatmeal. The club sandwich is probably my favorite thing on the whole menu. I don't know why it tastes better than any other club I've ever had, but it just does. It probably has about 1000 calories, but it's truly worth every one. I paired it with soup or salad instead of fries, just to alleviate some of the guilt I felt at ordering it every other day. The soup's of the day were excellent, and so perfect for those -30 degree evenings. They are all made from scratch, and I found every one I tried to be wonderful and totally tasty.
7.) The Cafe is the only place to get coffee, and it ain't no Starbucks. The regular is OK, and pretty much always fresh. The decaf is not so great. It comes in a tea bag. But it is drinkable. They have a great selection of teas, and an endless supply of hot chocolate. I mixed decaf and hot chocolate, and it was better than the decaf by itself. All of the tours provide hot water and the above options (although the regular coffee is instant on the tours) and are especially wonderful on the late night Aurora tours up to Wiseman.
8.) Around the corner (in the same building) is the saloon, and the only place in camp to buy alcohol. They have a selection of Silver Gulch beers, and the usual Bud, Miller options. And they have individual bottles of red and white wine (one option for red, one for white). There is no liquor. If you want to drink a beer with dinner you must sit and the saloon. The menu is the same as in the Cafe.
Well, That pretty much sums up everything I can think of concerning the menu/food options at Coldfoot Camp. See below for some photos of the food!

The Lunch/Dinner Menu

Decaf in a tea bag.

The delicious Club Sandwich!

Big bowl of Oatmeal

Breakfast Sandwich

Reindeer Sausage!

Delicious tater-tots (and another Club)

We are our Synapses

One of the many books I have read lately is Synaptic Self by Joseph LeDoux. It's one of the most interesting books I've ever read about the subject of who we are. For those of us who don't believe in things like souls or spirits, the questions surrounding who we are have been difficult to answer. Of course the solution lies somewhere within the mushy folds of the brain, but where and how does it all come together to make me feel like myself?
Well, this book answers that question. And in my opinion the author does it clearly and methodically. It was simply a fascinating read. He begins simply, and sort of teaches you as you go about the different functions of brain regions, the interaction of chemicals and the processes that influence them. He interweaves the history of neuroscience with our modern understanding of how the brain works. His discussion on depression and anxiety were really interesting, as well as his explanations of how medications are taken up and used by the body.
It took me forever to read (on and off for a couple months), but I never lost interest, and I enjoyed it every step of the way. It was definitely not an easy read. In fact thinking back on it, it was more like the summary of a textbook and less like pop-science.

Stem cell neurons.

It is truly amazing how brains work. It seems nothing short of a miracle, yet it is made up of normal things, it functions using the laws and relationships that nature has provided everything else, and it was created by a universe that can't even know itself like the thing it created. Truly one of the most awesome things I have ever thought about. And to think I have a whole brain (at least I think it's a whole one), right up in my head, to keep all for myself, and use for all of my life! Sweet.

I recommend this book to anyone interested in a biological understanding of who we are. 5 out of 5 stars on this one.

Trading T.V. for Bird Song

Sunrise, Mono Lake, 2009

I am in love with the morning.

I find myself laying in the dark and smiling when I know I've woken up before the birds have begun their day. I lay there and anticipate the first song that will shatter the nighttime silence. I wonder will it be the crow with it's raspy caw? Or the brisk "cheep cheep" of the little brown bird that I conveniently named Cheep Cheep? Or a more melodic tune by one of the hundred other birds that nest in the trees around my house?

Since I am in no rush to dash away to work, I have time to lay in bed and think about what I'd like to do. Usually I put the coffee on and crawl back into bed and just enjoy being awake but not having to get up. It feels extra luxurious on the weekdays. But sometimes if it's foggy out, or the sky is pretty colors I'll stand at the kitchen window and watch the transition from night to day while the coffee brews. Other days I will curl up with a blanket on my "reading island" (i.e. my overstuffed chair and ottoman) by the fireplace and read a chapter of something while enjoying my coffee. And yet on other days I am up making lists and organizing my day, folding laundry, or trying to (quietly) wash dishes. There are so many wonderful options!
Often times the weather helps me decide. Rain is definitely reading island weather, fog lends itself to quiet contemplation while staring out the window and sipping coffee, sunshine can go a couple ways, either laying in bed listening to birds (the lazy way), or getting a jump start on the day (the less lazy way).

Some people wouldn't be willing to trade their evenings for early mornings, and I'll admit is a pain in the butt to adjust the ol' "internal clock". But for me there's no contest. Absolutely none. At night I mostly watch TV, or some other equally unproductive task as I wind down to bedtime. But my mornings are filled with relaxation, quiet thought, and energetic anticipation. And all before work!

I've never been a sunrise kind of girl, but I am now. And I love it.

Haiku

I find that as I get older, I don't surprise myself as much as I used to. When I was younger, I was always coming upon some new thing or activity that I didn't know about before, and it was often surprising what things I actually enjoyed versus the things I didn't. I'm not saying it doesn't happen at all now, I mean who would have thought I would actually love kickboxing so much right? All I'm trying to say is that it happened much less frequently now. I feel like I've tried most things out, encountered most everything. Of course that isn't true technically, since there are millions of things to do and see, but in my little corner of the world and based on the other restrictions in my life (like having a job, and financial responsibilities), I feel I've sort of exhausted the novelty of everything. But then last week something strange happened.
I have been trying to go to bed earlier and get up earlier because I find that I am more productive in the morning than I am at night. Anyway it's been a challenge, but I think I'm finally getting there. And for some reason (I guess the reason being that I am not jumping out of bed at the last minute, and racing off to work) I have begun to notice things about the morning that I'm not sure I ever have outside of camping. And...(this is the weird part) I have begun composing haiku in the hazy time between dreaming and when my consciousness is first stirred. This is not on purpose. Meaning that I'm not trying to compose poetry (I don't even know how, nor do I read it!) But last Monday I had written my first haiku since second grade, and all before I was fully awake! To be honest, I might have still been dreaming. Isn't that the strangest thing though? I've gone 33 years without any real interest in poetry, and suddenly I'm writing it, and really enjoying it! Who would have thought? I've done two others since then it the same sleepy way. I think of them best before I am too awake. Once I'm up with a cup of coffee in my hand it's hopeless.
I don't know if they are any good (probably not), nor will I post them here (I have always had a fear about writing poetry and having others read it for some odd reason), but I just wanted to comment on how utterly surprised I am by this new facet of my life. Early mornings and Haiku...will wonders never cease?

The Shallows

This month for book club we read The Shallows: What the Internet is doing to our brains, by Nicholas Carr.
From a pure readability factor it was pretty good. Not too heavy, thorough enough, but not too technical. And it was a quick read.
From my personal perspective in terms of content I went back and forth with being a little bored (because I already knew the stuff) to fairly interested. I wasn't so into his whole history of the Internet, or books for that matter, and I thought he repeated himself a bit too much (and stated obvious things that anyone reading this book would already know like what Facebook is...duh.)
But some of the brain imaging experiments, special studies, anecdotes from other writers, and his personal reflections on his experiences were intriguing to me. For example studies show "...that in the long run a medium's content matters less than the medium itself in influencing how we think and act." That goes for the Web as well as T.V, radio, and cell phones as well. You could even throw in GPS units, since it appears that spatial awareness is on a decline.
A few other highlights include:
It was interesting when the author (quoting another author) said "Calm, focused, undistracted, the linear mind is being pushed aside by a new kind of mind that wants and needs to take in and dole out information in short, disjointed, often overlapping bursts- the faster the better." It really hit home for me, because that is exactly what I've been feeling lately. My mind is always running at full speed, looking for something to do.
I thought his commentary on the relationship between authors and readers was really interesting too. He says that back in the olden days when people read books there was an unspoken agreement between writers and those that read their work, namely that the author could write in a manner of full expression and be able to count on the patience and attentiveness of the reader. But now in the "faster is better" world of technology the readers attention is waning, writer must approach writing from an entirely new standpoint. They have to be quick, and exciting. It's less about what the writer wants to say (in terms of Internet reading) and more about what the readers are willing to read.
I found his discussion on the physical reshaping of the brain due to our modern technology, and the prolonged consequences to be really insightful. Reading on the web, with all it's distractions, makes it hard to focus. So our brains are becoming more able to multi-task. What we loose in the process is deep focused understanding. The author likens the modern memory to a Rolodex (for those of you who don't know what this is...go look it up!). We don't actually retain much information, but we are really good and remembering ways to find things out. And we are able to do it faster and faster all the time.
He also referenced another book I just happen to be reading at this very moment, that and that was cool.

This topic is really interesting to me on a personal level because I have lately noticed a shift in my mind, particularly a "loudness", (a scattered feeling like my attention is being pulled in many directions at once, all the time)  that I believe is the result of too much time surfing the net, and playing around with my phone etc. I'm not saying I don't love email and shopping on Amazon, but I think it would do me a bit of good to cut back. I find that I am often sacrificing the physical present for some distraction in cyberspace, and it bothers me. It's like when you get together with friends to go to dinner and then you all sit at the restaurant texting and "checking in" on Facebook....only I'm doing that to myself. For example I'll be trying to read a book, and then it suddenly occurs to me that I might want to marinade a tri-tip for dinner tomorrow, and so off I go clicking around on the Web looking for a marinade recipe. Then I decided to check the weather, then I get an email, then a couple texts, then I get a notice from Facebook so I sign in, and post a few comments of my own...You get it. Next thing you know I read for 15 minutes and was online for 45. The only time I really feel focused is when I am running or at kickboxing.
And as a side note the fact that information and technology is so portable is also changing us. I don't necessarily like that I am accessible to everyone all the time through several different mediums no matter where I am. On the rare occasions when I am focused and my mind is quiet, it is often disturbed by the ding on my phone that I have received a new email, or a text alert, and I get sucked in. Again, I am glad I have my cell phone for emergencies, but I just don't like the distraction of getting emails and texts when I am on the road.
I don't mean to sound antisocial, and I certainly do appreciate it when folks think about me, I'm just saying that it alters my focus and sometimes makes it hard to really be somewhere, doing something. Maybe the proactive thing to do is stop whining about it and just limit my internet use, and turn off my cell phone when I don't want to be disturbed.
Some people really thrive on technology and all of the amazing things it allows us to do. I am amazed by all my friends that manage it so well. But I don't. I appreciate it, but I don't "love" it.
I prefer a little more quiet.

Overall this was a good book, but I'd probably go with 3.5 starts out of 5.