Once again, I failed to find one item on the list. But that’s okay.

This week’s items are:
Bug – Believe it or not, I didn’t see one VW Bug when I was walking home!
Feet
Seasonal chore
Multicolored
Time

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I’ve actually been thinking about this one this week. Yet somehow, I managed to come up with only three things over the course of the week. That doesn’t seem quite right.

This week’s items are:
Bug
Feet
Seasonal chore
Multicolored
Time

Enjoy!

Our trip ended with a visit with Jeri in Seattle. We walked around the city, went on a hike, and saw some beautiful falls. It was a very nice, laid back conclusion to our trip.

Oh yeah, we went to the aquarium. No offense to Seattle, but I don’t think I’d go out of my way to go to the Seattle Aquarium again.

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Believe it or not, the summer is almost over. That’s right, students come back to Morgantown this weekend, so traffic will be at a standstill for the next two weeks. We’ve already stocked up on supplies, and plan on leaving the house as little as possible, and may even walk to work (depending upon the weather).

So this weeks word is: pencil

We spent almost two full days in Vancouver. Through the cruise ship we bought what turned out to be a two day pass on a sight-seeing bus, so we got off and on and looked at things that interested us at our leisure.

The first place we went to was the Classical Chinese Garden. The garden itself was fascinating, unfortunately, the tour guide we ended up with with far less so. So we wandered around a bit on our own, enjoying the peace in the middle of the city.

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After Ketchikan we continued along the inside passage towards Vancouver, British Columbia.

Here is our last sunset in Alaska:

Luckily, on the last day of our cruise, there was still plenty to see. In addition to the wildlife here, we also saw dolphins and porpoises and sea otters.

The ship went through the Georiga Straight, which is–as you might be able to tell from this picture–a rather narrow and windy passage. These pictures were taken from the bow of the ship, looking at the passage we are about to go through.

Alas, our last night aboard the ship.

The last Alaska stop on the cruise was Ketchikan. Apparently Ketchikan is a good place for fishing, but what interested me was that it is a temperate rain forest. So of course the excursion we (yes, Michael had some say in the matter) chose was a hike in the rainforest.

Hike was used very loosely here. It was really a very casual stroll in the woods.

Living in a land lock state, one thing that was new (and thus fascinating) to me was the preponderance of float planes.

The idea that they best way to get from one city to another is by a plane that takes off and lands on the water was a completely bizarre concept to me. I’m not sure we have a body of water upon which you could land a float plane.

The rainforest hike was easy, but still very pretty. I would have liked to have taken more time in the woods, but, when you’re with a group, you’re stuck at their pace.

And there were a LOT of bald eagles.

And Kingfishers. I was very pleased that this picture turned out so well, since I couldn’t see the birds at all clearly, since they were so far away.

Part of the land on which this park was built, was an abandoned lumber mill. I found the equipment fascinating. (Not that we don’t have lumber mills in WV. It’s just I don’t get to walk through abandoned machinery very frequently.)

When we wandered around town, we not only got to see a fish ladder, we also got to see lots of moon jellies! I love watching jelly fish. I find them so relaxing.

The cruise ended in Vancouver, British Columbia, so we spent some time wandering around the city. One thing that I particularly loved was the rose garden in Stanley Park. Needless to say, I spent a lot of time there, both taking pictures AND smelling the flowers.

There are more pictures if you click through.

NPR’s Top 100 SF/F Books

bold – I’ve read
italic – started and abandoned
* make my personal list of favorite books

* 1. The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, by J.R.R. Tolkien– This isn’t a favorite, in as much as it was a gateway series.

* 2. The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, by Douglas Adams

* 3. Ender’s Game, by Orson Scott Card

4. The Dune Chronicles, by Frank Herbert

5. A Song Of Ice And Fire Series, by George R. R. Martin – Michael loved these.

6. 1984, by George Orwell – I own it, does that count?

7. Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury- I own it, does that count?

8. The Foundation Trilogy, by Isaac Asimov

9. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley- I own it, does that count?

* 10. American Gods, by Neil Gaiman

* 11. The Princess Bride, by William Goldman

12. The Wheel Of Time Series, by Robert Jordan – I read the first book, saw how slowly he was writing, and said, “I’ll pick it up again when he’s done.” Pretty good decision in retrospect.

13. Animal Farm, by George Orwell- I own it, does that count?

14. Neuromancer, by William Gibson- I own it, does that count?

15. Watchmen, by Alan Moore – This falls into the category of very good, but I didn’t like it at all.

16. I, Robot, by Isaac Asimov

17. Stranger In A Strange Land, by Robert Heinlein

18. The Kingkiller Chronicles, by Patrick Rothfuss- I own it, does that count?

19. Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut

20. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley- I own it, does that count?

22. Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?, by Philip K. Dick

* 23. The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood – Should be required reading, but I won’t re-read it. Once was enough.

24. The Dark Tower Series, by Stephen King

25. 2001: A Space Odyssey, by Arthur C. Clarke

26. The Stand, by Stephen King

27. Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson – I really need to go back to try to read this again.

28. The Martian Chronicles, by Ray Bradbury

29. Cat’s Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut- I own it, does that count?

* 30. The Sandman Series, by Neil Gaiman

31. A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess

32. Starship Troopers, by Robert Heinlein

32. Watership Down, by Richard Adams

33. Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey – I loved her, until every series seemed to end in “twoo lurve and make babies to be happy”

34. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, by Robert Heinlein

35. A Canticle For Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller – I admit it. I don’t like dystopias.

36. The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells- I own it, does that count?

37. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, by Jules Verne- I own it, does that count?

38. Flowers For Algernon, by Daniel Keys

39. The War Of The Worlds, by H.G. Wells

40. The Chronicles Of Amber, by Roger Zelazny

* 41. The Belgariad, by David Eddings – This is one of my top series to grab for comfort reading

* 42. The Mists Of Avalon, by Marion Zimmer Bradley

43. The Mistborn Series, by Brandon Sanderson- I own it, does that count?

44. Ringworld, by Larry Niven – Michael loved this.

45. The Left Hand Of Darkness, by Ursula K. LeGuin

46. The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien

47. The Once And Future King, by T.H. White

48. Neverwhere, by Neil Gaiman – Solely because I put it down and forgot to pick it back up. This will be remedied soon.

49. Childhood’s End, by Arthur C. Clarke

50. Contact, by Carl Sagan

51. The Hyperion Cantos, by Dan Simmons

* 52. Stardust, by Neil Gaiman

* 53. Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson

54. World War Z, by Max Brooks – I fucking hate zombies.

* 55. The Last Unicorn, by Peter S. Beagle
56. The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman

57. Small Gods, by Terry Pratchett – I love Terry Pratchett’s Discworld

58. The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever, by Stephen R. Donaldson – Gag. Friends who love this but I couldn’t stand the main character.

59. The Vorkosigan Saga, by Lois McMaster Bujold – I know, I know. It’s on my TBR list. I even have it on paper and as en eBook.

60. Going Postal, by Terry Pratchett – Did I mention how much I love Discworld? I love Discworld.

61. The Mote In God’s Eye, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle

62. The Sword Of Truth, by Terry Goodkind – Michael has read/is reading/ continues to read this series.

63. The Road, by Cormac McCarthy

64. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke

65. I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson

66. The Riftwar Saga, by Raymond E. Feist

67. The Shannara Trilogy, by Terry Brooks – I liked the first book, but then…. meh.

68. The Conan The Barbarian Series, by R.E. Howard

69. The Farseer Trilogy, by Robin Hobb

70. The Time Traveler’s Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger

71. The Way Of Kings, by Brandon Sanderson

72. A Journey To The Center Of The Earth, by Jules Verne

73. The Legend Of Drizzt Series, by R.A. Salvatore

74. Old Man’s War, by John Scalzi

75. The Diamond Age, by Neil Stephenson- I own it, does that count?

76. Rendezvous With Rama, by Arthur C. Clarke

77. The Kushiel’s Legacy Series, by Jacqueline Carey – I strongly disliked this series.

78. The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. LeGuin

79. Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury

80. Wicked, by Gregory Maguire

81. The Malazan Book Of The Fallen Series, by Steven Erikson

82. The Eyre Affair, by Jasper Fforde

83. The Culture Series, by Iain M. Banks

84. The Crystal Cave, by Mary Stewart- I own it, does that count?

85. Anathem, by Neal Stephenson- I own it, does that count?

86. The Codex Alera Series, by Jim Butcher

87. The Book Of The New Sun, by Gene Wolfe

88. The Thrawn Trilogy, by Timothy Zahn

89. The Outlander Series, by Diana Gabaldan

90. The Elric Saga, by Michael Moorcock- I own it, does that count?

91. The Illustrated Man, by Ray Bradbury

92. Sunshine, by Robin McKinley

93. A Fire Upon The Deep, by Vernor Vinge

94. The Caves Of Steel, by Isaac Asimov

95. The Mars Trilogy, by Kim Stanley Robinson – Michael loved this series.

96. Lucifer’s Hammer, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle

97. Doomsday Book, by Connie Willis

98. Perdido Street Station, by China Mieville – Another for the, it was really good, but I hated it group.

99. The Xanth Series, by Piers Anthony – So, like many things he writes, the series starts off strong, but by the umpteenth book, I’ve completely lost interest. I have to have read the first 12 to 15 books however, so that should totally count. And I think the Incarnations of Immortality is better.

100. The Space Trilogy, by C.S. Lewis

There you go. I’ve completed 24/100, read at least in part 36/100 and own and mean to read 16/100.

That’s just over 50%, which considering I don’t read SF at all, isn’t too bad.

OK, so wow. I didn’t mean to start something, but I like seeing what everyone else has read, so here are some more participants: Janiece, Nathan, David, Steve, Tom, Eric, Carol Elaine. Whew!

Failed to find anything Calvin & Hobbes-ish.

Also, may switch back to my Canon point-and-shoot from Michael’s Nikon point-and-shoot. Maybe me, but it seems my pics are extra blurry. Boo!

something that makes you think of Calvin & Hobbes

grass

fungi

summer fruit

lazy

Why YES, I did just get a new lens for my DSLR! 50mm portrait lens. You like it? And he was especially lazy today. Didn’t even greet me when I got home from work. I come up upstairs and he gives me a look of, “Oh. You again.”

Okay slackers! Are you ready for this weeks scavenger hunt?

(crickets)

Well. Fine then. I’ll do it without you all if that’s how you’re going to be!

Today’s items:

grass
fungi
summer fruit
lazy
something that makes you think of Calvin & Hobbes

Got it?

Post links to your pictures in the comments!

As I said yesterday, Juneau was probably one of the most amazing days of our entire vacation. The second part of our excursion with Gastineau Guiding, was whale watching. We saw that most of the excursions guaranteed you would see a whale on your tour, or they would give you $100, which I thought was nice.

What I didn’t realize was that this meant we would see a LOT of whales.

It was, quite honestly, astonishing.

Before we even got on the boat we were seeing bald eagles.

I have to admit that bald eagles aren’t my favorite bird, but seeing them up close was impressive.

We saw Harbor Seals sunning themselves on rocks:

And we saw whales.

This baby whale kept launching himself into the air, again and again. It was so CUTE! (Yes, that’s right. Cute.)

We also saw bubble net feeding, which was extraordinary.

And of course, we saw them diving.

Today’s word is: sunset

Juneau was far and away the best stop of the entire cruise, and has some of the best picture I took the entire trip, so I’m going to break Juneau up in to two days: Mendenhall Glacier and then Whale watching. The excursions were run by Gastineau Guiding, and I want to make a point to name them, because everyone involved with the tour was absolutely fabulous. I would recommend them in a heartbeat to anyone wanting to tour Mendenhall Glacier and go whale watching.

The entire day was amazing, and makes Juneau one of the places I definitely want to return to (the other, of course, being Denali National Park. Just for convenience.)

If you were not aware of the fact, Juneau is the capital of Alaska. It is also completely unreachable by car. You can only access it by boat or by plane. There have been various drive to move the capital, however, when I asked Tania about it, she said that since everything went online, it doesn’t matter where the capital is, as long as someone can email the representatives or watch sessions remotely. And i do believe she is right.

In case it isn’t clear immediately, we had amazingly, stunningly, beautiful weather in Juneau. So first up: Mendenhall Glacier.

No rain, clear skies, and perfect temperatures. (60s F)

I saw tons and tons of fascinating plants while hiking, including lots of moss and lichen.

And lots and lots of gorgeous flowers and trees.

All of which was fabulous, and very impressive, until we stepped into a tiny clearing at the edge of the lake and I had my breath taken away at the sight.