Why...yes...

Yes, that is a .45 ACP cartridge. Why do you ask?

The Day after...

Well, our Christmas decorations have been taken down and the two-week process of removing all the pine needles has begun. We (well, actually it was liddy) began the process of redecorating the house with some of the new household goods. I spent the day after Christmas redecorating in an entirely different manner, but that is for a later post. Here are a few shots of the new mirror that Liddy had her eye on...

Christmas Morn!!

Well, we spent Christmas Eve overnight at the In-laws and enjoyed the nostalgia of being children at the mercy of parents on Christmas morning. We then made our way over to the Sister and Brother-in-law's to witness the chaos (thoroughly enjoyable, of course) created by placing young children in close proximity to mountains of gifts. Just look at these two...chaos I tell ya!!

The Festivities

More from Christmas Eve. First we have "Beautiful Kate". That is her real name. I guess that her parents have legally changed it to "Beautiful Kate". Mom and Grandma enjoying the strange antics of their daughters' husbands. This Christmas I found out from Brother-in-law Dave that I play "War" incorrectly. I guess he learned how to play at a casino and such a learning environment is beyond question. In any case, I still beat my 4 year old nephew and can maintain the title of "Master of War". And, finally, Benjamin the First Grader.

Christmas Eve

The Verplank/Brooks/Bizak/Young clan gathered at The Fort for a Christmas Eve dinner and celebration. Before dinner, Liddy took the parents and grandparents up to San Pedro Chapel for a view of the mountains and foothills.

Lost opportunity

A while back we invited the Young parents to visit Tucson during Christmas. We were rebuffed. So, to get back at them we have redesigned (can you redesign an empty room?) the spare bedroom. This blog is also acting as Elizabeth's portfolio...should she ever move into decorating.

Merry Christmas!

Our Tree. You can't tell from the picture, but it's a conflagration waiting to happen. It's like living with the little girl from "Fire Starter"...you're afraid of turning your back on it (the tree) because you know that it's just waiting for the chance to burst into flames. Sometimes, I'm sure that it's watching me.

"google" + "dan young"=FUN!!!

More thanksgiving

The day just isn't complete without a picture of a baby sleeping in a position usually occupied by a dog, a ruined cup of coffee, a picked nose, and cousin Peter. I'll let you figure which description goes with each picture. Personally, I usually end my day with a picture of a pastrami sandwich, but that's just me.

A very late Thanksgiving post

Thanksgiving day with the Verplank/Bizak/Young group. Cousin Peter Verplank joined in on the fun.

slow night...

I'm reading a political blog, liddy is sleeping...and I'm a big nerd



Entish


To which race of Middle Earth do you belong?
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Safety First

Well, yasee, I'd help set up the tent but someone has to stay near the truck to keep a hand on the "fire stick" in case any bears come huntin'...safety first.

Calvinist work ethic

Still working...really hard. It's hot, there are bugs, this is a two person tent....what gives?

Oak Creek set up

Well, it's our Yom Kippur holiday and we left Tucson to get some cooler clime. We aren't that original or clever, so we did what we usually do...Oak Creek. Liz works...

Bedroom

Here are some shots of the bedroom and the view that greets us each morning.

This is the standard by which all houses are measured. Elizabeth and I can now say that we live in a "house". Why? Well, because we have a HALLWAY!!!!

Excuse me, but adulthood beckons.

Here are some of the photos of our new place. These are just some of the shots we took of our back porch. The interior shots are taken from our living room.

weekend fun brought to us by the Hutchinsons

Flowers and poop and good lookin' ladies and handsome men. And beer. Don't forget the beer. Hutch's, this was a fabulous weekend.

We had been warned. Anchorage=Los Angeles. Actually, I would rather spend a month in L.A. than in Anchorage...okay, I'm overreacting. We rolled into town trying to find a hotel before spiriting off to the Kenai penninsula...not going to happen. Trashy dives were charging 130 for one night. So, this sign is the summation of our Anchorage experiencce.

Day 2-Alaska

After our wonderful experience with Western plumbing we set out for Fairbanks. Why? Beats me. So, we drove the 3 hours to Fairbanks to find...not much. This, of course, brought about the brilliant question "At what point was this trip to Alaska focused on the urban areas?" Well, don't come to alaska to be awed by the brilliance of the urban planning. We spend the night (rainy) at a city park that was conveiniently located at the foot of the Fairbanks International Airport. Around 3 a.m. I found myself frantically praying that the inbound Alaska Air 747 would miraculously miss the forest green Toyota Tacoma parked in site 40. God heard my prayers...unfortunately, the neighboring Holiday Rambler and Airstream offered their 4 inhabitants to final reckoning. There was one fun discovery and that was that our campground hosts were from Tucson, AZ. They have hosted this same campground for the past 3 years. Appearantly they are hard of hearing and don't notice the jets. We set out in the morning for Anchorage. Yes, we still were stupid...heading for another urban area. Actually, we had been warned...our hosts refered to Anchorage as "Little L.A."...amazing how astute an observation that was...

Noah!!! Another Bear!!!

It was while we were our first stop, the Border RV park, when we began to experience the Alaskan wildlife. We were driving in our truck and we saw, not one, but TWO bears in less than 3 minutes. They were just next to the road...they didn't even move...they just stayed there watching us...Noah, can you believe it?

4000 miles later...

alaska border 2
Originally uploaded by Dwyoung.

We made it! We crossed the border around 9:30 or 10 at night..yeah, this photo is taken that late at night. We thought we'd send a copy of this shot to the gentleman who sold us the truck...he said it would get us here and he was right. However, he did not mention the Customs Officers...they were anxiously awaiting Liddy just a few miles down the road....

Yeah, far behind

Well, the internet being what it is, and Canada being what it is (remote) we have skipped a few steps and are now enjoying the land of midnight sun. I guess that's actually a reference to Scandanavia, but I'm borrowing it. We officially crossed the border into Alaska on Friday night. Actually, we were intially detained at the border because Liddy was acting suspiciously (sp?) terrorist like...you know the signs...standing outside the vehicle, rustling through bags frantically searching for a purse...all very threatening. So, once she had the purse (and I almost ran over her) she returned to the truck and was promptly berated by the customs officer for acting suspicious. We were only saved from further haranguing by the plague of mosquitoes that were plunging him...God Bless the USA. So, we spent the first night at the Border City Motel and RV park. Camping was unexceptional...however, the bathrooms were wonderfully American. The faucet was well set, the sink was stationary...it was everything we have become accustomed to. Hmmm, hot showers.

Close enough to smell him

grizzly close up
Originally uploaded by Daniel Wade Young.

Our first bear!!! We pulled off the road near Kluane Lake to take a closer look. Liddy wanted a better shot, so she sliced up an apple and ran out and fed it to the bear. Kidding. She made me promise to keep a lookout on the treeline to ensure that it wasn't a sneak attack...

What is this on the horizon?

grizzly scenic approach
Originally uploaded by Daniel Wade Young.

As we neared the end of the Yukon territory we finally saw what we had been watching for the entire trip (well, maybe not in Las Vegas, but it sure would have made the stupid city worthwhile).

Yukon's Finest

Yukon's Finest
Originally uploaded by Dwyoung.

This was one of the last Motels available in the Yukon Territory. Liz and I were tempted...but ultimately decided to push on to Alaska. There was also some strange banjo music playing in the background...