blogitäytettä

Lately, life has been in a rut. A pleasant rut, but a rut nevertheless. Jason has been busy with a manuscript, a funding proposal (or was it two?), and other scientific stuff. Me, I have been teaching two classes, taking one, and learning to crochet (so far I have made two hats and a potholder). All this busybodiness means that our blog has been left to fend for itself, and apparently, it doesn't write very well (or at all). It doesn't help that it is dark most of the time and this year seems to be another one with not that much snow (combined with the normal cold weather). Long story short short, we haven't done anything exciting (Fred Meyer's at Sunday afternoon doesn't count).

I won't promise that we'll be any better next year. I'll be teaching three classes, and Jason is graduating (in theory, he should have plenty of time after March. Right?).

4 countries, 4 currencies, 3.5 languages, and heck of a lot of strawberries

Inari and I just returned from a whirlwind trip across the Atlantic. We first went to Finland to visit friends and family and eat way too many strawberries. I do like strawberries, but at some point it's nice to eat something other than strawberries... We managed to find some adventure, rock climbing, hiking, kayaking, and feeding squirrels near Helsinki. The climbing and hiking weren't anything too special, but I really like being on the ocean and Inari really liked squirreling. If we ever move to Finland I'll definitely have to buy a kayak.
After a couple of weeks in Finland I left for rainy Newcastle, England, for a conference. The conference was good and I got to meet a lot of people, but at the end of the day it was still a conference. I was exhausted from thinking about nothing but science for a week, so I was pretty happy to continue on to Switzerland, where I'd meet up with Inari and friends that we knew from Alaska. There were nine of us in total - eight that could walk and one that was so close to being able to walk. And, eight out of nine had blue eyes. I felt a bit out-numbered.

The rain that I found in England followed me to Switzerland (and later to Minnesota and now Fairbanks...). We still managed to have a good time eating cheese and chocolate. And we did make it out for a hike to a mountain hut in Sustenpass.
Christoff, skeptical Marlo, and Tanja.

My favorite photographic subject, Lena. Although Lena and I don't speak the same language, she was quite sad to see me leave. She wasn't sad to see the other guests leave though, just me... Maybe it had something to do with this:
Finally, I made a short stop in Minnesota (photos not yet processed) on the way back to Fairbanks. It was nice to spend time with my family, but I was also happy to return to Fairbanks after a month on the road.

Back(s) to Prindle

It's been a great summer so far - warm and sunny, but not too hot. Admittedly though, heat is rarely a problem in Fairbanks. An occasional rain shower to keep away the forest fires would also be okay. I've experienced thick forest fire smoke before, and don't feel the need to do it again. We've had a couple of days of smoky air this summer, but the smoke was blown in from faraway places and wasn't too nasty.

A few weeks back Inari and I went hiking near Mt. Prindle with a couple of friends. I had previously visited Mt. Prindle in 2007. It was nice to go back, and I was happy that Inari came - I'd been wanting her to see the place since my first visit. Its a beautiful place that feels very arctic, as though it were hundreds of miles north of Fairbanks, but really, its just about an hour by car.

A couple of photos from the trip:

We were surprised to find that the newish outhouse at the trailhead was frozen solid.

The author and vaimo with their backs to Mt. Prindle (and hair blowing in the wind like in the shampoo commercials).

Since our Mt. Prindle trip, we've been busy gardening and trying to catch fish. We failed at fishing, guess we'll have to wait until the end of summer to see whether or not our gardening efforts have been successful. Next week we'll probably try to squeeze in a 3-5 day hike down in the mountains.

Bizkit

If you haven't already seen the videos of Bizkit, the sleepwalking dog, then you should. Pretty darn hilarious.

Columbia Glacier

As usual, I find myself back-blogging. It's been a busy couple of months, what with working on the second chapter of my thesis, helping Inari get ready for her exhibition at Well Street Art Company (photos coming eventually), a couple of canoe trips, a new (for me) road bike, some spring cleaning, a backpacking trip, and a weeklong field excursion to Columbia Glacier.

(Aside: Why is it that the day after I wash the windows of our cabin, some poor little bird commits suicide by flying straight into one of the windows?)

My field trip to Columbia Glacier (near Valdez) was rather unplanned on my part - a friend/colleague called me on a Monday asking me if I'd like to go along because somebody had hurt their back and wasn't able to go. We were to fly to the glacier on Thursday... I couldn't resist, so I scrambled to finish some things at work and get my stuff packed, and three days later I was in Valdez.

It was really cool to see Columbia again (I was there for a couple of hours in 2004). It's a beautiful place, but it's also pretty important historically (well, at least to glaciology) and shares some similarities with Jakobshavn Isbrae ("my" glacier). And, the trip was a much needed break from thesis writing, which has been pretty all-consuming lately.

We had great weather the entire week, so that we finished most of the work rather quickly and had time to sit and watch the glacier.

The drive back to Fairbanks was nice as well. The view going over Thompson Pass:

juu, ei, vaarinhousut

Toisinaan virallinen Suomi muistuttaa olemassaolostaan postin välityksellä. Saanen eurovaalilipun, mutta ääni jää käyttämättä, koska lähin äänestyspaikka sijaitsee Vancouverissa, 2252 kilometrin päässä.

Ollapa mahdollisuus tarkistuttaa ääni virallisesti ja äänestää missä päin maailmaa tahansa. En tosin kannata täkäläistä systeemiä, jossa vaalilippu lähetetään pyynnöstä annettuun ulkomaiseen osoitteeseen, täytetään kotona ja palautetaan postin välityksellä äänestyspiiriin. Usein nämä hajaäänet saapuvat viikkoja vaalipäivän jälkeen, eikä niitä yleensä vaivauduta laskemaan ellei äänestys ole ollut äärinmäisen tiukka.

Napsuttelin kuitenkin uteliaisuudesta vastaukset sekä Hesarin että Ylen vaalikoneeseen. Molempien sivustojen kysymyksenasettelu on turhan yksinkertaistava. Monimutkaiset asiat oli murjottu kyllä-ei muottiin riippumatta siitä voiko asiaa edes esittää joko/taina. Yle sentään käyttää neliportaista asteikkoa, jossa väittämään voi joko yhtyä voimakkaasti tai vähemmän voimakkaasti.

Hesari kysyy: "EU:n perustamisesta asti sen keskeiset tehtävät ovat olleet rauhan ja vakauden turvaaminen Euroopassa sekä Euroopan talouskasvun vauhdittaminen sisämarkkinoita kehittämällä. Kumpi näistä historiallisista perustehtävistä on mielestäsi nyt tärkeämpi?" ja antaa vastausvaihtoehdoiksi: "a) Vakaus, b) Vauraus ja c) Eivät ole tärkeitä". Hesarille tiedoksi: sekä vakaus että vauraus kulkevat käsi kädessä eikä vakautta ole ilman vaurautta (tai vaurautta ilman vakautta).

Tasapuolisuuden nimissä esimerkki Ylen yksinkertaistamisesta: "Maailman vapaakauppaneuvotteluissa EU:n on oltava valmis tinkimään maatalouden tuista ja tuontisuojasta.". Voimakas kyllä, jos puhutaan kolmannen maailman heikosta maataloudesta, joka kärsii tuontitullien myötä epäreilusta kilpailuasetelmasta. Voimakas ei, jos puhutaan hormonilihantuotannosta ja geenimanipuloiduista tuotteista, joita erityisesti Yhdysvallat haluaisi työntää Euroopan markkinoille.

Koska kysymyksenasettelu on väistämättä yksinkertaistava, kuvittelisin, että jokainen ehdokas haluaisi selventää näkökantojaan kommenttilaatikossa. Näin ei kuitenkaan aina ole, vaan ehdokkaat jättävät kommentointimahdollisuuden käyttämättä. Tosin sekä Ylen että Hesarin vaalikoneen valitsemat epäsopivimmat ehdokkaat saavat hampaani kirskumaan kommenteillaan. Yle kysyy: "Suomen hallituksen tulee esittää EU:n komission jäseneksi eli komissaariksi sekä naista että miestä." ja ehdokas vastaa: "Eli transu komissaari!". Kätevää toki, että ehdokas itse ampuu itseään jalkaan. Hesarin epäsopivin ehdokas väittää olevansa freelance-toimittaja, mutta ujuttaa jokaiseen kommenttiinsa kirjoitusvirheen saaden minut epäilemään ehdokkaan ammattitaitoa.

Mielenkiintoiseksi vaalikoneiden vertailun tekee myös ehdokkaiden sukupuoli- ja puoluejakauma. Hesarin vaalikoneen mukaan kymmenen sopivimman ehdokaan joukossa on kuusi vasemmiston ehdokasta ja kaksi vihreää. Ehdokkaista kaksi on naisia ja loput miehiä. Epäsopivimpien joukossa on kolme köyhää (KÖYH?) ja kaksi ruotsalaista, kolme naista ja seitsemän miestä. Ylen puolella saan kolmentoista ehdokkaan joukkoon mahtumaan kahdeksan demaria. Loput viisi edustavat kukin yhtä puoluetta. Miehiä joukossa on kuusi, naisia seitsemän. Epäsopivia on tarjolla vain viisi, näistä neljä kuuluvat IPUun (itsenäisyyspuolue?). Ehdokkaista neljä on miehiä.

(Vasemmalle painottuva poliittinen näkemykseni ei tosin tule yllätyksenä. Älkää kertoko Yhdysvaltain maahanmuuttoviranomaisille että ovat päästäneet maahan sosialistin.)

the reason for the current sleep deprivation

Join me on Friday 5/1 to see this and other paintings at Well st. Art Company.

Note to self: do not agree to have a show opening a week before semester ends ever again.

A vague promise for out-of-towners: at some point some of the paintings will find their way to my website.

my paintings travel farther than I do

I painted this image for a friend of mine when he finished his Ph.D. Andy is now in Antarctica and my painting went with him to Scott Base. I might never get to see Antarctica, but at least my painting got to go.


Oh, and that vehicle in the background is a Hagglund, a Swedish made ice transportation unit that researchers use to travel around.

Thanks Andy. Truly appreaciated.

not all anniversaries are good anniversaries

On march 24, 1989 the oil tanker Exxon Valdex left the port of Valdez with an overworked crew, an alcoholic master, and a broken radar system. Only three hours after the departure, the vessel struck Bligh reef and spilled 10.8 million gallons (40 million litres) of crude oil into the Prince William Sound. The spill covered 11,000 square miles (28,000 km2) of ocean, killing hundreds of thousands of animals. NOAA estimated in 2007 that more 26,000 gallons (98,000 litres) remains in the sandy soil surrounding the spill area, continuing to contaminate the shoreline.

In 1994, an Alaskan jury convicted Exxon, ordered the company to pay $287 million for actual damages, and one year's worth of profits ($5 billion) for punitive damages. Exxon appealed multiple times managing each time to reduce the amount. In June, 2008, the Supreme court ruled that punitive damages were excessive, returned the case to a lower court, and limited the amount to $507.5 million. Exxon continues to argue that any amount over $25 million is excessive since the spill was "an accident". (You do the math: when divided between the 30 000 plaintiffs this amount becomes ridiculous compensation for lost livelihoods.) In comparison, when Lee Raymond, the president of Exxon at the time of the spill, retired in 2006, he was awarded a $400 million as a bonus.

Here's to this sad anniversary.

Local exploration

Today, with the help of a couple of dogs, I managed to prove something that I had long suspected: the trails by our cabin connect to the Dunbar-Livengood trail. This means that if I so desired, I could ski from our cabin to the Bering Strait, and if courageous/stupid enough, over the strait and into Russia. I doubt that I'll ever do anything like that, but it's pretty cool to know that it's a possibility.

I've been thinking a lot about the future lately. If things go according to plan, I will be graduating a year from now. It's difficult to see how I would be able to stay in Fairbanks and keep doing the research that I'm doing, but it's also difficult to imagine leaving Fairbanks. A part of me is excited for the opportunities (hopefully) awaiting me elsewhere, but a part of me wants to buy a cabin, a dog team, and a canoe, and spend my life exploring the Arctic. Maybe I can find a compromise... Or maybe I've been reading too many books about Arctic exploration.

kotirouva suosittelee

Sarjassamme kummallisuuksia: Miksi netin englanninkieliset mainokset ovat täynnä kotirouvien ja äitien keksimiä härpäkkeitä? Facebook mainostaa: "Uskomaton ihmeparantuminen: kotirouvan keksimä luonnonuute." "Äiti paljastaa nuoren ihon salaisuuden. Taistele ryppyjä vastaan."."* Miksi nimettömillä äideillä on turhakkaiden keksimisvimma?

*Suomennettuina mainokset kuulostavat vielä alkuperäiskieltäkin hölmömmiltä.

++++++

Now that I have frequented Facebook, I get to see a steady supply of GoogleAds. It is weird though how "break through" inventions seem always to be made by nameless moms or housewives. "Get your miracle cure. Invented by a housewife." or "Incredible wrinkle treatment invented by a mom." Are moms somehow more trustworthy? Do housewives have secret inventive superpowers that manifest themselves only as weight loss medication or cleaning supplies?

Update: Jason doesn't get any wrinkle cure adds. His Facebook is filled with business opportunities (with seminaked ladies) and basketball. I must be targeted by housewife adds because a) I am a female (they must then think I find the nameless moms trustworthy) and b) I'm old and really need whiter teeth.

myyrän kosto

The vole is out there.

This time the critter was seen by Jason, not me. It was in the hole (not much of a problem since everything is frozen anyways), freaked out, crawled out, and vanished somewhere. This explains the shredded toilet paper that I saw a few days earlier.

Excitement in Fairbanks.

Moose on the loose

I found this e-mail rather amusing:


TO: UAF students

FROM: Police Chief

SUBJECT: Moose on campus

This is a reminder that moose living near the University of Alaska Fairbanks may pass through campus. Members of the campus community should use common sense if they come in contact with wildlife and be aware that wildlife could be present, especially in the wooded areas of campus.

Do not attempt to feed wild animals or try to approach them.

The University Police Department has had a dramatic increase in the number of reports of moose on the Fairbanks campus this year and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game is reporting an increase in the Fairbanks area moose population.

Moose can be easily frightened, have been known to charge without  notice and can be especially dangerous when trying to protect offspring.

If you see a moose on campus, please call the UAF Police Department.

tekoäly hoi

Google mainostaa: "Suorana lähetyksenä kotona USA Avulla by USA Kokematon Karstata.".

On tää konekääntäminen hupaisaa.

+++

Google translations strikes again. You English speakers just have to assume it is funny.

Upside down Switzerland

Then we were off to the Grand Canyon. We weren't sure quite what to expect, since we knew that (1) the Grand Canyon is always crazy busy with tourists, (2) many of the hiking trails are closed in winter, and (3) even more trails would be closed because of the heavy snow that had fallen while we were getting wet in the Superstitions. We dove up from Flagstaff for a day hike, enjoyed the day hike, decided that the snow and people weren't a big problem, and decided to do an overnight hike. So the next day we descended to the bottom of the canyon, zig-zagging our entire way down to the river. The elevation difference from top to bottom is nearly 1 mile, so it kind of feels like your walking into an abyss.

Hiking there is a bit like hiking in Switzerland - it's as if the Grand Canyon was the mold used to create the Alps. You can walk up hill, or you can walk down hill. When you get to the bottom of the canyon, you can go get a beer at the "ranch". You can even sleep at the ranch if you're not cheap like us. There are people everywhere, but you learn to ignore them by soaking in the spectacular views. Sound like Switzerland? Neither of us had been there before, and I'm not sure if we'll be going back anytime soon, but we definitely enjoyed it.

We were feeling pretty good about ourselves on the hike back to the top of the canyon. We were much faster than we anticipated, and we managed to overtake quite a few people on the way. We were feeling good, anyway, until we were overtaken by a runner who had started at the top, ran to the river, and was then running back to the top. This was over 16 miles horizontally plus 1 mile down and 1 mile up. We were impressed. I almost felt inspired to start a rigorous training program.

After reaching the top we drove to Phoenix, slept through New Year's Eve celebrations, woke up early the next morning, and flew back to Fairbanks. We were greeted with nearly two weeks of -40 C (-40 F).

Views of the south rim:

The trail downward. Don't look at this next photo if you get vertigo.

The Colorado River:

Inari jumping into the abyss:


Some of our friends and acquaintances have perfected the art of jumping photos. We still haven't quite figured them out, but you have to admit the leaping into the Grand Canyon is rather dramatic.

Arizona, part 3

As usual I'm falling behind on my blogging...

After our hiking experience in the Superstitions Inari and I decided to head north to Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon (which are about 2 and 3 hours north of Phoenix, respectively). On our way to Flagstaff we stopped at a couple of archaeological sites. We first went to Montezuma Castle National Monument. I would've loved to have lived in such a place. Nowadays though you're not allowed to enter the dwelling, which is an extreme disappointment.

The dwellings must have been a pretty ideal place to live: sheltered from cold winter nights and hot summers and next to a river that allowed for cultivation of corn, squash, okra, and other foods. Nowadays there are some beautiful Arizona sycamores growing in the low lands.


We then continued on to Wupatki National Monument, which is basically a bunch of pueblos (sort of like manor houses) in what appears to be the most inhospitable landscapes imaginable. No food, no water, no wood. Basically just rocks and silence. Very stunning. What I found most surprising was that people lived in this landscape, when just a few kilometers away (less than 50, anyway) the desert rose up into pine forest that must have supported some big game.


Highlight of the day: seeing a jackrabbit, a roadrunner, and a fox within a span of two minutes.

joys of teaching

So far I have spent the beginning of this semester in a front of a computer playing tag with my students, trying to stay one step ahead of them. No matter how much work I put into preparing my lectures, there are always six more to give next week. An endless cycle in a making, but I digress.

This semester I have also seen an increase in student email. Clueless questions varying form "How come you don't have text book listed on the textbook ordering site?" (because I don't require one, honey) to "Where is the Art department located anyways?" (I dunno, maybe looking at a campus map would help). Yesterday's in-class exchange was priceless though. One of the classes I am teaching is called 2-dimensional design, a beginning art class about design elements and composition. After giving a lecture (Intro to composition, art and life or something equally lofty) I am going around, helping each student to do their in-class assignment. Halfway, I reach one them, carefully crafting his name in the tiny print on the middle of the paper. The drawing itself is good, but I raise the issue of paper size and urge him to reconsider the placement and size of his text. He looks at me, confused, and asks: "You mean that this class is about composition?"

I don't know what he thought 2D design was going to be. Maybe I should have asked.

Library criminal

That's how I felt this morning.

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Story: I've been slowly reading Tin Drum by Gunter Grass. It's an interesting book, but not a page turner, and besides, after spending all day trying to use my brain I'm not always motivated to read at night. I first checked out the book from the public library in October. The first renewal wasn't a problem. When I went to renew it a second time I had to ask for permission from the circulation desk. Today, I went to renew it a third time.

Me: Hi, I'd like to renew this book. I've already renewed twice, so can I get permission to renew it a third time?

Librarian: You've already had it three months?

Me: Yeah..

Librarian: I don't think we can do that.

Me: And... why not?

Librarian: We don't like books being out of the library for long. How much longer do you need it, a week?

Me: I was hoping for another month. If somebody wants it can't they just put their name and list or have you contact me?

Librarian: ...

Me: Well, whatever, I don't need to renew it, it's okay.

Librarian: Let me see if we have any extra copies...

Librarian gives me a dirty look and says "I'll tell the check out counter that it's okay to renew it again".

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Is it wrong to keep renewing a book? Why do I have to ask permission? Should I be treated like teenager that is continuously late for class? People aren't exactly waiting in line for this book. On top of it all, our library's method of dealing with overdue books is to send out weekly reminders in the mail. There are no overdue book fees. Seems to me that the solution in the future is to not even attempt to renew the book.

Shouldn't technology (i.e., e-mail and online library accounts) have prevented this conversation from ever happening?

my 5-year anniversary

Of dry* cabin life.

And what kind of dream did I have to celebrate this occasion? I was dreaming about a nice, hot shower (this part of the dream was fairly grounded to reality too, unlike other instalments that included a new transportation method where people were lift up by their necks). Maybe my subconscious is trying to tell me something.

*Those of you that are not familiar with Fairbanks realities: dry means a cabin without running water. All water needs to be carried in (and then out). We have an outhouse too.

Feeling superstitious

I've been raving about the U.S. southwest to Inari ever since we met. This year I finally got the chance to take her there. We spent the first two nights in Phoenix with a friend from my Widji days. It was good to catch up with him. But then the desert called us. We thought it was telling us to come have fun and be warm, but we know now that wasn't the case. It was about to rain cats and dogs and all other sorts of creatures that could be used to describe a hard rain that doesn't stop for 36 hours.

But we didn't understand what the desert was telling us, so we headed east to the Superstition Mountains. The Supes, as they are called, are just on the outskirts of Phoenix. As such they are heavily used, but we managed to avoid the crowds by being there over Christmas. We nearly had the place to ourselves. It probably would've felt fairly remote if planes from Phoenix hadn't been buzzing overhead all week.

I vaguely remember being quite miserable on several occasions. Something about wet boots from numerous stream crossings, not having an extra pair of dry shoes for camp, a rain jacket that no longer works, strong gusts of cold wind, and sleet. Christmas Day may have been my most miserable (memorable?) Christmas ever, but I'm not sure. It's just a vague memory now. Actually, I do remember the wind quite well. It was really cool, because you could hear the gusts of wind funneling down the valley before they hit the tent. Sometimes the gusts would pass over the tent. It was like a train coming toward you, but you didn't know if you were standing on the tracks.

There must have been some good times too, because I seem to have lots of photos of cacti glowing in the sun. Such bizarre shapes they have!


After the rain stopped were treated to beautiful colors as the sun was setting:


A view of Garden Valley:


An impossibly gargantuan saguaro cactus:


My favorite cactus, the teddy-bear cholla:


P.S. If you find yourself in the Superstition's, don't try to fight the "cat's claw". You won't win. I didn't.

San Francisco

This December I went to San Francisco for the American Geophysical Union geek fest - 15,000 scientists from around the world talking about science for five straight days. I still can't decide if I like the conference. On the one hand, it's exciting to be in such an international community. On the other hand, when I read through the program I find that many of the talks and posters sound really boring. And by corollary, this must mean that the reverse is also true: that most people who read my abstract must think that my work is really boring.

Inari came down to San Francisco near the end of the week to rescue me from the conference. We spent a few days exploring the city, seeing museums, visiting Alcatraz, and eating really good food. We had to get out of there to avoid going broke.

View of downtown from the Nob Hill area:


Some random shots from Alcatraz:


This last one is for you, Anu: