July 29

Awoke to heavy clouded skies, mild temps, no rain.  Spent the morning completing travel plans when Minde comes and making lists.  The apartment is small but we think we have it arranged so Minde is comfortable.  We will not be spending a lot of time here, just enough for showers, sleep and breakfast.  We spend the day at various stores that have the items we need.  Trying to gather food items enough for RV travel times when there are no stores and enough to allow not taking valuable fun time shopping!  We promise Minde will be fed regularly and given heathy options.  LOL.  In Alaska grocery lists include a canister of bear spray!  We drop off all our buys and head out to O’Malley’s on the Green, the city golf course/restaurant.  It sits half way up the mountain.  A course built while we were living in Anchorage, much more sophisticated now.  Bears and moose still wonder onto the course from time to time.  Not tonight.    Tonight is Burger, Brew and a Bucket of Balls for $15.00!  It is well attended by couples, groups of friends and families.  The driving range is fun they provide the clubs if you want.  The Chugach Mountains form the back drop of the range.  The burgers are cooked fresh on a grill and tonight Alaska brewing is featured.  We meet one of their reps who graduated from St John Fisher’s in Rochester, near where both our kids graduated from. He is from the Buffalo area.  They are serving Alaska White which is well established.  The other three beers are known as ‘rough drafts’, limited offerings of potential brews to be offered more broadly if well received.  There is one made with spruce fronds and cranberries.  Pat chooses Assaca, IPA and Chuck gets the White.  Stop off at the club restaurant and have an app and split a small dinner.  The view from one window is Anchorage cityscape, but it is socked in.  If it wasn’t heavily clouded we could see Susitna, Alaska Range, Denali and adjacent mountains.  The backdrop for the band is a view of the rising Chugach Mountains above.  The large windows have crossbars, likely for the winds that come through the area but may help in earthquake as well.  The band plays jazz and eclectic modern.  It’s five piece, horn, sax/clarinet, drums, 2 electric guitars.  The band’s leader sits at our table to talk.  Turns out he was raised in Alliance, Ohio about 45 minutes from us.  He attended Akron U and Cle State Uni.  Family is still in Ohio. He is itinerant music teacher in the Anchorage District, mostly as band instructor.  We share the changes and the now austerity being pushed on the District.  Two of his students have come tonight to jam in the ‘gig’ so it’s fun to watch the young men play.  Our waitress is a local hillside girl who knows our friends the Isley’s.  Anchorage is all about 3 degrees of separation!  Wonderful evening.  We have been able to watch the putters struggle below our window while listening to great music and views!  Minde will arrive very late tomorrow night.  I think we’ll all be sleeping in on Sunday.  Missing Dean as he is fishing in Seward. Let’s hope he and they catch some good fish!!!!

Night baby Dean, sleep tight in your cabin in the woods.