Here There and Everywhere

Expat wanderer

Reconnaissance Trip in Homer

Did I tell you how this trip came about? How last year I saw a notice about The Celebration in Juneau, but we were already en route to Zambia on those exact dates?

As we started planning this Alaska trip in 2014, we discovered we had more ideas than we have time. The Qatari Cat is ten years old now; we don’t like to leave him at the Wee Tuck ‘Em Inn longer than a couple weeks at most. The more we decided what to include in the two weeks, the more we came to the realization that we needed to do a reconnaissance trip :-). I found the Alaska Marine Highway System, and we realized we could cover a lot of ground and see a variety of terrain by taking this cross Gulf ferry, the M/V Kennicott.

Homer is almost the end of the line. The ferry continues to Seldovia, which is picturesque and beautiful, but we wanted to explore Homer, and to figure out where we will go next year after the Celebration.

Homer is so much fun. It’s been voted one of the hippest cities in America, for it’s 70’s counter culture and community values. It is a very fun place to be, and full of breathtaking scenery.

HomerPublicArt1

00HomerSignage

00HomerFarmersMarket

00HomerFarmersMkt2

Even a Homer quilt shop!

00HomerQuiltShop

00HomerLupinBlooming

00HomerLupinCloseUp

00HomerGrandView

00Homer2Glaciers

00HomerRussianOrthodoxCemetary

00HomerFirstGlacier

00HomerGlacier2

September 8, 2013 Posted by | Adventure, Africa, Arts & Handicrafts, Beauty, Cultural, ExPat Life, Living Conditions, Public Art, Road Trips, Travel | , , , , | 4 Comments

The Duncan House Diner in Homer

We awake to a gorgeous day, a day with not a cloud in the sky, horizon to
horizon beautiful weather. That is thrill #1. AdventureMan goes outside while I
finish getting dressed, and comes swiftly back in for his camera – there is a
huge eagle perched on the turret of our building! We spend about half an hour
while he does what eagles do – soaks in a little sunlight, looks for a sparkle
in the water that might signal some breakfast – he knows we are here, and he
doesn’t care. How cool is that?

We can’t find Two Sisters Bakery (and discover later we stopped just feet short
of where it was hidden behind some shrubbery,) but we head up Main Street and
find Duncan Diner, with a parking lot full of pickup trucks and a very hip ’70’s
feel. I rarely eat pancakes, but I ordered something called the 1-1-2, which is
one egg, one pancake, and 2 strips of bacon.

00DuncanHouseDiner

00InteriorDuncanHouse

00AMBiscuitGravyEgg

00Intl1-2-3

“Blueberries?” the very hip waiter asked. I must have looked puzzled, and he
asked again “Blueberry pancakes or plain?” and I said “Oh! Blueberries!”

That pancake was so good. I couldn’t eat it all, but it must have had a full cup
of blueberries in it. I only used a little bit of butter; the pancake was so
good just plain.

00BestBlueberryPancakeEver

As we ate, we formed a plan. We had intended to just walk around Homer, but
Homer is bigger than it looked on the map, more spread out. There are sights to
be seen! Homer is nearly at the tip of the Peninsula, on Kachemak Bay; whether you go east or west, you end up in Anchorage.

We call Hertz, they have a car available, and then we call Kostas taxi (907-399-8008) who come and takes us to the airport where we pick up a car. I mention Kostas specifically because every single local we asked mentioned them by name as the most reliable, and we found that to be true for us, too.

September 8, 2013 Posted by | Alaska, Community, Eating Out, ExPat Life, Food, Living Conditions, Restaurant | , , | Leave a comment

Recipe For Life

Thank you, Renee, for sending this lovely little reminder of how to lead a happy life:

Great Recipe (one of the best that you will ever read)

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate antidepressant.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.

Talk to God about what is going on in your life.

3. When you wake up in the morning complete the following

statement, ‘My purpose is to__________ today. I am thankful for______________’

4. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.

5. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild
Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds & walnuts.

6. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

7. Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip, issues of the
past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead

invest your energy in the positive present moment.

8. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.

9. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.

10. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

11. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

12. You are not so important that you have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

13. Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.

14. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about
.

15. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

16. Frame every snowballed disaster with these words: ‘In five years, will this matter?’

17. Forgive everyone for everything.

18. What other people think of you is none of your business.

19. GOD heals everything – but you have to ask Him.

20. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

21. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your
friends will. Stay in touch!!!

22. Envy is a waste of time. You have everything you need.

23. Each night before you go to bed, complete the following statements: I am thankful for__________.

Today I accomplished_________.

24. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

25. When you are feeling down, start listing your many blessings. You’ll be smiling before you know it.

26. Send this to everyone you care about.

“);

September 8, 2013 Posted by | Friends & Friendship, Interconnected, Relationships, Survival, Thanksgiving, Values | Leave a comment