Alaska Vocabulary

Cheechako - anyone who is new to the 49th state

Sourdough - an old timer: anyone who has lived in the a-k a lonnnnnnng time.

Bullchitna - you guessed it: "BS" (Chitna is a town on the Copper River)

Up Ship Creek without a paddle - meaning out of luck, helpless, etc... (Ship Creek is an actual creek in the middle of downtown Anchorage)

Termination Dust - the first snowfall that dusts our mountain peaks. This snowfall signals the end of summer/fall - usually occurs in August (yes, August!)

Outside - lower 48, or just anywhere outside of Ak

Going Outside - leaving ak for any reason

Lower 48 - the 48 continuous states

Bear "Fast Food" - tourist in sleeping bag or tent

Bear "Insurance" - your trusty .44 / other weapon, or the friend you can outrun!

Cache - hiding place or stash...in Alaska it is a small log house built on stilts to prevent wildlife - both human and animal from accessing

Permanent Fund - money we get for living in the Last Frontier (like we need to be paid!)

The "Bush" - no, not those long, unsightly beards! anyplace in Alaska accessible only by plane or boat - ok, ok, pretty much all of Alaska except for Anchorage, grin

Mosquito Dope or Bug Dope - any product used to kill/repell mosquitos which are so big here we consider them the State Bird!

Mukluks or the modern version the "Bunny boot" - mukluks are fur- lined boots that keep your tootsies toasty used by the native population and the bunny boot rubberized to keep those same tootsies warm at -50 plus!

Alpenglow - is an optical phenomonon. When the sun sets, a horizontal red glowing band can sometimes be observed to the east. In mountainous areas, like we have in Alaska, this can be caused by snow, moisture or ice, on the mountain sides which receive the scattered red light from the setting Sun.
When there are no mtns present, the aerosols in the eastern portion of the sky themselves can still be illuminated in the same way by the remaining red scattered light straddling the border of the Earth's own shadow. This back-scattered light produces a red band above the darkness rising in the east. In simpler terms: the sky is a pretty pink color just above the mountain tops!

Ice Fog - Dense fog of suspended ice particles that sparkle in the air on a sunny/partly sunny day.

Moose nuggets - moose droppings: will surprise you because moose scat is not large like in the size of cowpies or horse manure...instead, looks like a pile of walnuts! We sell dried moose dropping to you tourists in the form of earrings, swizzlesticks, necklaces, keychains, etc...proving anyone on a vacation will buy just about anything...

Musher - person who drives sled dog team...yells gee and haw (left and right) and mush, mush -sometimes runs/races in the Iditarod (the Last Great Race)

Ulu - Knife used by native Alaskans (OO-loo) is a versatile cutting tool crafted by the Native Alaskan people thousands of years ago. The knife was used by Eskimo women for skinning and cleaning fish. It has played an important role in the survival of the Arctic people. Blades were originally made of polished slate and given a bone, ivory or wood handle. The handles were often inscribed with distinctive drawings or markings exclusive to the maker of the knife.
Today, we still use the ULU as a cutting tool. We also display ulus as collector items.

Cabin fever - light -deprived Alaskans who don't go out and take advantage of winter activities i.e. drinking, skiing, snowboarding, ice fishing, snowmobiling, may become crazy with the cabin fever

Three Dog Night - so cold that huddling up with two dogs doesn't do the trick

Combat fishing - fishing shoulder to shoulder during height of season with hundreds of tourists, yelling "fish on" - weaving and ducking under other peoples' poles to get fish...usually occurs on the Kenai Peninsula especially near the confluence of the Kenai and Russian Rivers.

Moose Gooser - similar to cattle catcher on the front of a train - see this on the Alaska Railroad

Spenard Divorce - Spenard used to be the seedier part of Anchorage and a divorce there included a lot of hollering, brawling and gun totin

Permafrost - below the surface, ground is frozen for two to five feet. Makes it unbelievably hard to do any kind of burying or road work.

Break-up - see story posted below...

Sun Dog - a large circle seen around the sun on very cold days

Fireweed - see post below, but the weed commonly growing all over ak - especially southcentral, (no! not that weed)!


Ice Worms - minute worms that hang out in glacial ice

Can't wait!

I love movies and usually would be watching the Oscars tonight, but Michael Buble is performing in Jacksonville, Florida this evening and we have tickets! I can't wait to hear him in person! Concert is at 8pm, so we are leaving Gainesville around 4:30...Its gonna be a late night and well worth it!

Note: Attended that concert last night. Have to just tell you'all - if you are a Michael Buble fan, or even if you aren't - go see him live! What an entertainer - he was fantastic/put on a great show.

thoughts from "up top": A Sourdough's Journal

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Break-up v. to separate into parts with suddenness; to collapse or give way, to change suddenly

A friend of mine from Arkansas was visiting one winter/early spring. Took her to one local hotspot where we sourdoughs shake the cabin fever by dance, dance, dancing the night away. She overheard Jim talking about a "break-up" and remarked it was too bad he was having girlfriend troubles...I explained that break-up had a different significance in the Last Frontier:

Webster's Dictionary cites the above definition of break-up. The second portion of the above is the most appropriate: " to collapse or give way, to change suddenly". Our breakup is nature's melting process: snow and ice melt fairly rapidly - usually within several wks. anywhere from late March - April...even May some years! Many Alaskans would argue the point that breakup does not come quickly enough - after months of shoveling driveways, dodging potholes and darkness to/from work....When I was new to Alaska and still a
cheechatko (a newcomer to the ak), break up could be a little unsettling...the sound of ice "cracking" on a lake is frightening when you are boring a fishing hole with your trusty auger - once firm ice - now softened into a top layer of slush! Fortunately that slush covers another two feet of good ol' ice pack. It is amazing how quickly this, too, will disappear. You drive by Jewel Lake on your regular work commute and it is blanketed with its winter ice coat...then take your usual glance one afternoon and voila! the ice is just a memory!

One of my favorite break up activities is betting the Nenana Ice Classic/Breakup Lottery. It has been going on since 1917. A bunch of really smart folks in Nenana, (or maybe they were just bored out of their light deprived minds) - anyway, these sun starved hustlers got the idea to set a tripod up on the Tanana River come January. They set up the tripod, attached a rope and then tied the rope to a clock on the river bank. When the ice gives way sometime in April or May, the tripod falls down tripping the rope and this records the exact time the ice gave way! Last year, the ice let go on April 27 at 3:47 pm -Alaskan Time. 22 people split $303,272.00 - and that is no bullchitna (ak for BS - Chitna is a town on the Copper River).


Ok, the best part about breakup is it signals the end of winter and the beginning of ...no, not spring/summer - you guessed it construction season! (We only have two seasons winter and construction - whoever thought up gold stars on a field of blue for our state flag was way off...our standard/banner should have been those orange pennants the flaggers use).

congrats to Jeff and Crystal!

My little sister was married Saturday Feb 2, in Cozumel, Mexico! I've posted one of their many gorgeous wedding photos~ they had a wonderful honeymoon there and are now bk in Wisconsin.

Fur Rendevous

Many Alaskans live by this motto (to paraphrase/I don't know who made the original quote) : "Life shouldn't be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive, well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, salmon jerky in one hand - Alaska Amber in the other, body used up/worn out - yelling: whoo hoo WHAT A RIDE!!!

Hence the reason for Fur Rendevous. It is one of the largest winter parties in the United States. Modern Alaskans didn't come up with the idea: bk in the good ol' days miners and trappers would gather at an agreed upon meeting place to sell their furs and in the process catch up on news and cure their loneliness/socialize. In our times, it is salve to our lightless souls. The Rondy, as it is called, breaks up our long winter and brings happiness to all!

http://www.furrondy.net/ see this site for a list of all events and you can also watch the Rondy tv commercials here (or on Youtube).

We have had Fur Rondy in its more updated form, since 1936 (name became official in '37) and over the years many events have been added. Some that I recommend:

Miners and Trappers Ball - A charity costume ball with 2 to 3 live bands, drinkin and dancin'!

Great place to people watch. Folks dress in outlandish costumes and i guess because of a feeling of anonymity, their behavior is sometimes bizzare/eccentric. One year, a group of about twenty coworkers from our local electric/gas co-op dressed as "the Kenai River Dancers" a take off on "RiverDance" that was popular at that time. Michael Flatley would have been proud - as they danced their version in hip waders and flyfishing vests/hats! Contests held for best costumes/beards. As I mention, in blog below, my old neighbor John P. was Mr. Fur Face/Best Beard for many years. The ball is so popular, people line up in the bitter cold early morning to get tickets. You never know what you will see at the ball - one year my friend, Mike, dressed up in a tux instead of costume. We had no idea why - until later that night, he climbed up on stage and asked for Karen's hand in marriage!

Fireworks, carnival, snowshoe softball, the World Sled Dog competition and Frost Foot race are a few of the other fun events.

I love wildflowers especially daisies and fireweed...

In many photos of Alaska, you will notice an abundance of the flowering herb known as fireweed. When I first saw a field of this pink petaled beauty - it took my breath away! I asked one of my friends who was a long time Alaskan, how it got the name fireweed - since it was covered with those lovely pink petals....she responded that it gets its name because it grows easily at the sites of forest fires.

The plant does like slightly acidic soil. It colonizes quickly as long as their is plenty of light (which we have in summer!) and open space (another thing we have plenty of!). The plant, besides it beauty is useful as a source of Vitamin C and A. The native Alaskans use the plant as a food source and for medicinal purposes as well. I have used it to make jam and jelly it is of a sweet/spicy delicate flavor. Delicious!

Fireweed has the pink flowers during the summer months. The petals start out blooming at the middle of the stalk and continue to bloom up the stalk as the summer progresses, it is said that you know summer is over when the flowers reach the top!" One of the other reasons it may have been tagged "Fireweed" is once the flowers are done blooming, the stalk turns a reddish colour.

Advise for surviving our harsh winters

Many of you ask me how we put up with the harsh and lightless winters back home. You liken Alaskans to the pioneers of the Old West - hardy, full of endurance and grit. You picture us in -45 degree temps - bundled in layers of furs, snowshoed/bunny booted, beard adorned....icicles hanging from those same beards/nose hairs frozen - and when we speak it is garbled - unintelligible for aren't we crazy with the cabin fever? Oh, naive outsider, this is not the case! See photos to side of this note for tips on handling winter in "the Last Frontier".