Some make Cookies, Some Want Meat

Last month I shared about some holiday goodies I made up. Well, guys sometimes make different treats during the winter. Like Bou Burger.

Start with free-range Alaskan caribou meat.

Forget the Kitchen Aide mixer. A Cabelas meat grinder is needed for the task.It may be a two-person job.And then quality control may arrive on the scene.At the end is a freezer with over 20 pounds of healthy ground meat. Caribou tacos and other meaty meals were consumed throughout the Christmas week. This author helped with the bagging process.Just as we appreciate the hours and skills needed for hunting and then processing the animal, we also appreciate the hours upon hours Nikki spent in her Nome kitchen to produce this stunning holiday cookie tray.We were lucky, and fat, because "Gorn Brothers and families" were sent some authentic Wisconsin cheese and meat for holiday snacking! Thanks Aunt Barb and Uncle P for the staples in our diets. I hope Bucky "going under the knife" wasn't the losing affect on this weekend's Rose Bowl performance.

Man, we were spoiled with good eats.

*Amy

Our Christmas Story

A little under a week before Christmas Andy and Amy left their cheery, but snowless home in Southeast.

Their northern flight to Nome was delayed given a snowstorm. The pilot must have used Santa's GPS because the plane landed when not expected to. So Andy and Amy joined the G2 household for a week's time, and enjoyed holiday hospitality. The new snow was glorious and Amy went for a snowshoe hike with friends.The newlyweds helped take care of their niece and nephew part-time throughout the week. Lots of play and fun was had with the kiddos. Like super push-ups.Being good for Santa was on everyone's minds. Santa doesn't mind acting silly though.

Amy visited at KNOM and enjoying being back on the air. An evening "rock show" with buddy, Wes, turned into Moon songs preceding the exciting lunar eclipse. Andy chopped fire wood and fixed a truck with his brother. Together, Amy and Andy watched the sun rise and set on a clear winter solstice.

Joyful Christmas came to Nome, which turned very windy and chilling. Everyone attended or participated in Angie's organized Christmas pageant at Church. The niece was an angel, the nephew a king, the Auntie a singer and the Uncle a photographer. The Christmas story came to life in the cutest way.Then Santa delivered, presents shared, too much food eaten and happy memories made!What other tales will be told from this cold trip to Nome?

Cookie for You, Cookie for Me

The big fat BOO of the week goes to Andy being in Florida during the holidays. It's a week of work for him in Jacksonville. So I'm doing happy holiday things to enjoy/get thru the solitude. First on the list was hosting a small Christmas Cookie Exchange today. It ended up being just 4 lovely ladies and 5 kids but there was mucho cookies to go around. Yum!

So I've been ripping up the kitchen while watching White Christmas and whatever else pops up on the ole tube, or playing a Christmas music blitz that Andy would not handle well.

First, get your ingredients laid out.

Make sure your environment is fitting for the task.Then, lay out your assembly line.Finally, present the final product for the taking.Gingerbread and christmas (corn flake and marshmallow) wreaths. Later this week I'll play movies Andy won't watch and whip up my usual peanut brittle and peppermint bark. I simply won't manage eating all these goods by myself so I guess Nome will have to be the beneficiary. Yes, I suppose I should bring the excess sugary cheer on our Nome Xmas trip!

I'm happy to report Andy is blissfully watching Megamind in 3D right now so the FL trip does have its benefits. He's been very excited to see this one. I even got a Happy Meal at McD's a few weeks ago to give him a Megamind toy.

Now, if I could just import some of the snow off the Metrodome's roof onto my property and I'd be all set. Enjoy your holiday happenings!

*Amy

It's All Good in Antigua Part 2

This is no long-awaited sequel, but I thought December would be a nice time to offer up more on our tropical honeymoon five months ago. Thing is, it doesn't feel like winter in Sitka. No snow, near 50-degrees and some sunny days. No snow flying past the window, slush in my boots, or a poofy jacket to heft loaded with scarves and mittens. I guess I don't need a mental vacation from winter to remember warmer places, but c'mon...the free drinks alone give cause for reflectin'!

Andy did extensive research for where we should spend our newlywed indulgent getaway. Resort or no? All-inclusive or not? Typical age-range? NO KIDS. Big enough for variety, but not thousands of guests. Where in the warmer hemisphere? Again, we recommend The Sandals resort chain if that's your thang. Here's some pics from the lovely grounds.

We liked to poke fun at the poor dolphins spotted with bird poo! Just outside our door the gardens were incredibly lush.We were set in just a wee bit from the beach. Our lil' building looked just like this one below, which I snapped while coming in from snorkeling.
A lovely part of our room was the bar area. Hunter and Lincoln, or liquor fairies, always kept it stocked. Honeymooners get a trophy if they consume everything, including the bottles of booze, during their stay. We wanted to make our butlers proud and contemplated the feat. Then we realized it's impossible because it all gets restocked and replenished as soon as you feel the buzz!We also left the resort twice for excursions. Every Sunday night an island party bumps at Shirley's Point. It's a gorgeous cliff-top setting for visitors and neighbors to BBQ, jam out and walk along trails filled with cacti (in the Carribbean??). We went with a couple from NY and the sunset was lovely. Behind Andy along the peninsula is an estate that belongs to...Eric Clapton. He's been known to show up and play on Sundays at Shirley's Point. Total gimmick sale-hope I bought into!Highlight of the excursion was the legit steel-band reggae machine pumping out music. There was about a dozen people working drums of all sizes.Wanna hear a sample? I just loved watching the local guy who danced in front of the band the entire night.

Then another group came on and Andy had his cheesy reggae fill. Me? Lapped it up all the time. I mean this guy has PASSION for his pop song. The video is crap to watch because people kept walking in front of me, but there are moments you hear and see the talent.

We heard excellent live music throughout the trip. A reggae performance of Prince that would bring you to your knees. Unfortunately, nearly all song selections everywhere on the island were behind the times. We revisited the music scene from several years ago. The most current tune we heard was Black Eyed Peas "Tonight's Gonna Be a Good Night." We heard it so much, in stereo or performed, that it's basically ruined for us.

So as we gear up for our next travel adventure to Nome, Alaska along the frozen Bering Sea, we'll remember our special time by the pool as a newly married couple. I wonder if G2 will act as our Butler and stock a special orange cooler wherever we go on the snowy tundra??? Probably not, so these last images will have to do!

ALET #1002

As we wind-down Thanksgiving weekend, we are grateful for how much Andy has enjoyed teaching at his first Alaska Law Enforcement Training. It's basically a semester of intensive learning and para-military techniques to provide Alaska its latest crop of Trooper recruits, certified Police Officers, Airport Police, etc.

Corporal Gorn taught sessions on Taser, Defensive Tactics, Traffic, Field Sobriety Testing, some Driving, Pepperball basics, Criminal Justice overview, and other throwdown courses while commanding a squadron of cadets like all the Corporals do. He's been a hard worker! And thankfully, he's really enjoyed the change in his Trooper career. I'm really proud of him, especially when he wakes at 4:30am to lead or participate in 5am P.T.! This transition to Sitka has been going really well, and now Andy has nearly one Academy under his belt. Learning curve nearly over. I attended his first ALET graduation as a Corporal (and not the recruit!) a few weeks ago. Then, after graduation, newly minted law enforcement grads returned to their spots across the state while the Troopers remain for 3 more weeks of learning. Just one more week of this work to go.

The graduation ceremony was attended by honored guests and proud families. The opening was kicked off by an impressive appearance of ALET class #1002 as they marched in and chanted: "There's a story that must be told/about the Blue about the Gold...sacrifice the price they pay...Nothing in this world is free, law men's life is made for me." A great show of solidarity.

I sat across the room from the Academy Corporals; Andy is at the far right among his comrades.

Lieutenant Governor Craig Campbell served as the guest speaker and he complimented Department of Public Safety Commissioner Joe Masters.Each Corporal presented an award to the ALET class. Andy gave the Physical Fitness plaque to an impressive 50-year old recruit. Have to turn up your volume for this video; audio not so good.

While he's actually wearing a Class A tunic, we had to get a picture together!

I'm so thankful for a hard working and respectable husband, who comes home safely every day!

Just to take a looky-look back in time, here's AAG1 at the start of his law enforcement career. Graduating ALET #36 in 2006. Getting the badge pinned by G1.

And a big THANK YOU to all officers and military who work to ensure our safety, protection and well being.

*Amy

Down the Rabbit Hole--Si?

Where has time gone? I read about good friends whose new babies are growing and developing so quickly. Yes, time is tricky when you hope it goes slowly. I thought time would feel slower once moving to a small town after a busy year of wedding planning and trips. Instead, we've taken many trips and October was a happy blur. Thought I'd share a few highlights as we contemplate this week what we're grateful for, which includes happy moments and visits with friends.

• Trip to Colorado. We stayed a few nights with Megan and Zach in Denver as part of Andy's work trip to Greeley. We learned (and Andy dominated!) a new Midwest card game, took in the simple loveliness of a farmer's market, and went hiking in the Rocky Mountain National Park while the aspen trees turned fall colors!!

Megan and Zach in the National Park!

Clearly Alaskans attract the animals! haha

ELK spotted asap in the park, and many of them too.

• Amy's time to Anchorage with friends included "Mamma Mia!" and girl time in Girdwood at Alyeska. Reunion with Beth (Soldotna) and Nikki (Nome) from 2008.

• Halloween. We purchased coveted and quickly sold-out tickets for KCAW's Stardust Ball. It was like falling down Alice in Wonderland's rabbit hole. The most amazing, creative, scary, odd costumes I've ever seen. All adult ages got into the fun. Including a woman with a long cape (horned collar) carrying a staff with a crystal ball and a fake raven with wings extended mounted atop the crystal ball. We were over-dressed and ordinary. The only person to comment on us was an older woman questioning our costumes in Spanish. Apparently, if you go as two forgotten Chilean miners you should know their language too. Si? The live band from Seattle and lip sync contest let us forget how uncreative we really were in those costumes compared to other party-goers. Seeing Andy wear a black-haired wig that I pulled into a ponytail made it worth the while.

One miner became more pale than the other. Si?

This miner was cleared to remove his Oakleys and get back to driving among society.

Our fit and fun partners to the Stardust Ball.

Time goes quickly...si? From Halloween now to Thanksgiving. The days are darker and shorter, even in Sitka where the sun sets before 3:30pm. Maybe the holiday season will take its sweet time and allow us to savour? Maybe we should just plan on enjoying every minute before it's 2011 all of a sudden!

*Amy

Farewell and Thank You

Kelly, Tom, Amy and Lynette (with award) seated at the Gabriel Awards in St. Louis, 2003.

KNOM won, again, "Radio Station of the Year."

Halloween night Andy and I gave out a fair amount of candy despite horribly windy weather. Monday morning I was thinking about our next blog post. By mid-morning, my friend in Nome had texted me to say that the backbone of my Alaska family died unexpectedly in his sleep on his 63rd birthday. I screamed out and began sobbing in my home office, and so began a difficult week for Tom Busch's family, of course, but also the KNOM family, Western Alaska and many more throughout the country.

Fortunately, I flew to Anchorage for the weekend to attend his funeral service, and was honored to serve as a reader in his service. It was a weekend of personal and collective grief, wonderful memories, KNOM reunions and overall healing.

It's been said many times over since Tom (KNOM Radio's founder) passed, but he shaped and altered the lives for so many young people as they journeyed to Nome, Alaska to serve at a far-out radio station. He's a life-changer: God works through him and his wife, Florence. I want to share with you a bit of what I wrote for KNOM as they assemble a tribute to Tom.

I first met Florence, then Tom, at St. Ben's during volunteer fairs of my Junior and Senior years. While I courted KNOM during the month of March senior year, he sent me that year's infamous Iditarod diary--in progress. Here's a college senior opening at 70+ page document late at night, about a sport of which she had no knowledge! I could have ran away screaming, but his obvious love and excitement told me this Nome, Alaska could possibly change my life. When I flew into Anchorage for the first time, Tom was at my gate waiting to greet me. He had just flown in from Fairbanks and we sat waiting for Florence's plane to arrive (she was coming from Fairbanks too, just later). Two years later it was Tom who made an incredible offer for me to stay at KNOM as paid staff, and so set the next four years of my life too.

2005 with the RAV4 in front of KNOM; Tom & Flo's last day in Nome.

Many people know my car: the maroon RAV4 that's old with ridiculously low mileage. I bought it from Tom and Florence when they were ready to leave Nome after 30 years and move to Anchorage. I didn't know how to drive a stick shift so Tom gave me driving lessons at Nome Beltz High School and around town. He could have just tried to sell the car to anyone, but enthusiastically spurred this learning idea. What patience and great skill to teach a new way of driving to a 24-year old! Then, this summer we left the RAV4 at their Anchorage home while Andy & I honeymooned for nearly two weeks. He happily dropped us off at the airport, and then brought the RAV4 to the airport when we arrived (Flo followed in their vehicle). To see him drive the car again, more than 5 years later, was a hoot and he declared how he forget the RAV4 was fun to drive!I

Mostly, though, every weekday morning for 3 years Tom greeted me when he first walked through the door at work. He started his work day as happy as could be, refreshed and ready to visit while I worked the morning show. His wide-eyed, cheerful self would smile and enter Studio A, ready to launch into some story or thoughts. Mostly it started in response or comment to something I shared during the morning show. A story he thought of based on something I talked about on the radio. Or, maybe he read something on the Internet the night before and wanted me to know. Perhaps the night sky's stars were in a certain alignment and I should go look, or here's a Cinematography magazine you may want to read, he saw a movie the night before and was considering the actors' performances. Maybe he remembered a story that led to a talk about marriage, mortality, faith and trying times, parenthood. He seemed just at ease contemplating the mysteries of life as he was discussing story arcs from the season of Northern Exposure I was borrowing from him and Florence. Every weekday morning for 3 years I listened and learned from him in those one-on-one moments. What a gift. What an opportunity to share from my young life and have someone take my thoughts, trials, and interests seriously. He would always light up and stop his work to listen to my reflections and experiences when I returned from every village trip. He would delight in my details and recollections, and ultimately have a memory and story of his own to share in return.

At his beautiful and touching service last Saturday, it was said how he never spoke sarcastically and approached everything in life positively and full of learning. Hard to believe someone can actually do that, but he did, every moment. Perhaps we can try to be more like Tom too. I'm going to try. Mentors plant seeds, even after they're gone I guess.

If you want to check out the growing list of tributes and stories, click here to see KNOM's compilation, and to read more about Tom's incredible life. If you feel moved to go a step further, consider making a donation to KNOM radio in Nome in Tom's memory.

Thanks for letting me share. Continued prayers for Florence, Steve and Kate and all those touched by Tom's gifts & saddened by his too soon departure.

*Amy