Kalib moves out, final: He shares his dad's birthday dinner, helps? decorate the Christmas tree; Today in Wasilla: Familiar face regurgitates, then pops through the door

I take one last journey back to last Friday night, when Kalib moved out. Here, he looks through the window of his new house as his Uncle Kalib pulls into the driveway. Just moments before, his dad pulled in with something special in his vehicle.

It's a Christmas tree! Kalib gives instructions and directions on where and how to place it.

Before the tree can be decorated, we all go out to celebrate Jacob's birthday. Jacob chose the nearby Taco King.

We all ordered Mexican food.

Kalib ate a wedge of lime.

Then we returned to his new house to eat cake. There were no candles at all, this time, so Lavina tore off a piece of a paper bag, rolled it up and lit it on fire. The lights were turned out. The paper only smoldered, and try as I might, I could not take a picture off the glow of the smolder. 

In desperation, I dialed my shutter speed down to something like maybe a full second or two and tripped the shutter. Even as the image was exposing someone turned on the light.

Kalib lifted up the first piece and dumped it upside down atop the cake. Oh, it was a good cake, though. Margie made it. Lisa bought the ice cream.

Next it was time to decorate the tree. Kalib began the task with confidence.

Can you see how sleepy he is? Remember, he had hardly had a nap at all. He was very tired. Everything in his world was changing.

He started to cry and ran across the floor. Lisa tried to amuse him with a balloon. He ignored it and zipped right past her.

Then he flung himself face down upon the rug that his parents will soon replace. Caleb tried to amuse him by bouncing the minature Spiderman basketball.

Kalib would not be amused.

And right after this, his gramma and I had to say goodbye and leave.

Early the next morning, his actual birthday, btw, his Dad had to leave to go to Washington, DC, for some training. 

Today in Wasilla:

What!!!??? Who is this, sitting on our couch with Caleb, eating strawberry Jello??? Why, it's Kalib! But he moved out? How could this be?

Last night, he started to vomit. Fearing that it was fumes from the new paint that has gone up on the walls since he moved in, Lavina brought him home. He is going to stay here for a few days now.

We have since learned that three of his day care peers had to go home today, because they were vomiting, too. So maybe it wasn't the fumes.

Whatever, he is here again.

And here I am, driving down Lucille Street, on my afternoon coffee break.

As you can see, weather-wise, today was exceptionally nice. It sounds like we were about the only place in the country with good weather today - except for Hawaii, where surfers were cutting up giant waves, 30 feet tall - a gift to them from Alaska.

I want to ride a 30 foot wave.

Do you think I could?

Or would such a wave tear my artificial shoulder right out of its socket?

I wanted to go to Hawaii this winter to find out. But I can see that its not going to happen. No money for such a trip.

Life is hell, I tell you.

Maybe next winter.

Maybe I will be richer then. And stronger. Grayer as well. Richer, stronger and grayer.

If so, then I will go to Hawaii and ride a wave.

Maybe not a 30 foot wave.

They don't get such waves every year, you know.

Nobody can know exactly when they will come.

And then when they're done coming, they're done.

There's nothing anyone can do about it.

You can't schedule that kind of surf.

It happens when it happens and only when it happens.

I answer a knock upon the door to find two Mormon missionaries standing there, looking back at me; Kalib and Caleb; Breakfast at Family; Talkeetna alpenglow

I was in the bedroom, trying unsuccessfully to log onto an Apple help forum on my laptop, when I barely heard a knock upon the front door. Everyone else was gone, so I went to the door to find these two, Elder Smith of Nevada and Elder Wadsworth of Utah, standing there, looking back at me.

I was not interested in getting into any kind of religious discussion, but, having stood in their shoes, I have a great deal of empathy for these guys, who I know for a fact are really just young men, who want all the things that all young men want, like freedom and female companionship, but they can't have these things for awhile.

I also thought they might like to meet the cats. I invited them in. They posed with Royce.

Muzzy wanted to get into the picture.

He headed toward the missionaries, but this did not please them. In fact, it scared them. They did not think Muzzy was vicious. They thought he would mess their suits up. So I sent Muzzy to the garage.

Elder Smith, Martigny, Royce, Elder Wadsworth. 

Kalib and Caleb on the computer, where the missionaries sat not so long before.

I got up very late today. Very, very, late. It was necessary, though, because I had gotten up very early yesterday and had then worked until very late, not going to bed until about the time that many of the early risers among you were already yawning, stretching as you prepared to leap right out of bed.

How do you do that? How do you leap out of bed in the morning?

Margie had already eaten her oatmeal and so had Kalib, so I went to Family Restaurant by myself.

There was a man there who still reads the newspaper. Sometimes I do, too, but mostly I read it online. By the time the paper version reaches our house, I have usually already read everything in it that I am interested in.

I am part of the reason that newspapers are dying.

And the slow death of the newspapers makes my profession all that much more difficult. But new avenues are opening up. It's just a matter of figuring out how to go down them.

My waitress, who generally knows what I want before I order it. She is very good about not bringing my toast until I have eaten the rest of my breakfast.

As I paid my bill, this guy came walking by, aided by a walker. In my head, I saw how to make a good portrait of him and I decided to ask, but you see that little paper the lady at the cash register is taking hold of? That is the credit card statement that I have to sign.

I did not think the man would move that fast and I figured he was probably going to get in line behind me, anyway, so I sat my camera down, wrote in an extra two dollars for the tip, and signed the bill.

When I turned around, he was gone.

I wonder how he did that? I'm sure no one went out the door. I would have heard it.

I will see him again sometime, but he might not be wearing the "these colors don't run" shirt.

I was busy working away at 3:30 PM, absorbed in what I was doing, when I realized that I had not yet taken my walk. If if I didn't take it soon, it would be dark. So I took it. The sun had gone down, but alpenglow lingered upon the Talkeetnas.

A few days ago, one of my readers left a comment that said my blog makes her glad she doesn't live in Alaska.

I love living in Alaska! If I had to live anywhere else, I would damn near die.

The only thing that bothers me is that ever since I fell and got hurt 17 months ago, it has been one damn thing after another that has kept me from getting out and enjoying the country - except for a few work outings last summer on the Arctic Slope.

But I will get on top of things and I will take you out there and then you will see why I would not want to live anywhere else.

Except for Hawaii, maybe - but just for short periods at a time.

A school bus shoots down Seldon, the glow of the set sun behind it. Now the Talkeetnas are behind me. 

Our Thanksgiving Day, 2009

Not long after Lisa arrived for Thanksgiving, Jacob began to treat her just like he did when she was a little girl and he was a big boy.

Lisa's boyfriend Bryce, who is deeply allergic to cats and dogs, came too, of course.

Lisa and Bryce.

Needless to say, the other boyfriend, Melanie's, Charlie, showed up as well. Soon, he engaged Kalib in a game of "Peek-a-Roo." Here, he sings out, "peek-a..."

"...Roo!" That's because we sometimes call Royce, "Royce-a-Roo." Naturally, that sometimes gets shortened to just "Roo." Hence, the game of "Peek-a-Roo." 

Kalib was greatly pleased with the game.

When I get time, or just take time, I will let Grahamn Kracker post more of this game - and other cat activities from the day - on his No Cats Allowed blog.

Lavina and her feet.

Lisa and Bryce pour the punch.

Kalib comes to the table.

Setting the table. Traditionally, I am the one who cooks the turkey, but, somehow, Margie cooked two of them today. I still cut it up. See that pumpkin chiffon pie? Melanie made that from a recipe that originated with my late mother. It is the best pumpkin pie in the world.

Melanie also made some cranberry sauce out of cranberries she picked herself.

Sooooo goood!

And she made a walnut pie. Margie tells me it is excellent, but so far I have found no room for it in my tummy.

I will try it tomorrow.

As baby Kalib peeks down from a picture on the cabinet door, the feasting begins. I have no more pictures of it, because I was too busy feasting. Please note the state of Caleb's facial hair. 

Readers who have been with this blog - and especially those who visited after the excellent feast that we had last year in Anchorage at Rex and Stephanie's house - cannot help but notice that two members of the family are absent: Rex and Stephanie.

Again, I just want to give them space and not say too much, but Rex went to Homer to spend the weekend alone in a cabin contemplating life. Stephanie - well, we don't know. She no longer shares her life with us.

It is a painful and puzzling thing.

Charlie brought his guitar and gave Kalib his first-ever live concert.

Soon, under the watchful eye of Royce-a-Roo, Kalib was dancing to a tune about little fishes - a song composed just for him.

Lisa and Bryce left a bit early to go back to Anchorage to share a second Thanksgiving with Bryce's parents. A bit after that, a bunch of the rest of us crowded into the Escape and headed to Metro Cafe for a coffee break.

When we got there, Carmen told us that Lisa and Bryce had stopped on their way to town. All week long, Carmen had been telling me that the drive-through would be open from 10-7 on Thanksgiving Day, while her family would gather from all over to have dinner inside. Every day, she reminded me, and urged me to come by.

Naturally, with our bellies stuffed and us growing sleepy, such a break was essential, so we did stop by.

She prepared hot drinks for everybody, engaging us in conversation through it all. Before I could pay her, she closed the window. I thought she had forgotten, so I waved the 20 that Melanie had insisted on contributing in front of her.

Carmen opened the window just a crack, to tell us this one was on the house.

"You're a real good customer," she said.

And it was good coffee, too. It always is.

Back home, we ate the pie. Then Kalib came with the paper, looking at the Christmas ads.

So this is how it will be for the next month.

This year, I want to see if I can experience some Christmas spirit.

It was easy when I was young. Now it is hard. Despite all the promotions, Christmas tends to sneak up on me suddenly and then it is gone and I wonder if it ever happened at all.

Well, we will see.

Melanie and Charlie.

It is time for them to go, because they need to spend some Thanksgiving time with Charlie's parents. Kalib comes running to say goodbye.

Out the door they go and then they are gone. It always comes to this. Always.

I walk from the front door into the kitchen, where I find Kalib eating butter straight off the butter plate.

Kalib goes to work at 10:00 PM, beardless, but with a mustache. None of us have seen him like this before. Four of his coworkers are doing the same thing.

Maybe it is a contest, I don't know. He just needs a cowboy hat, a good pair of boots, spurs, a six-shooter and a horse. Can you imagine how sharp he would look, sitting on that horse, dressed like that, with this mustache?

Sushi birthday party

When you enter Ronnie's Sushi house in Anchorage, there is a tank full of live fish close to the door.

The girl on the left - Lisa - she is the reason we gathered here. It was her 24th birthday party. H'mmm? Did I just call her a girl? Twenty-four. That must mean she is a woman - a full-fledged, beautiful, talented, woman. But she is my little girl. She will always be my little girl. My little baby girl.

Behind her, you can barely see the forehead of her boyfriend, Bryce. Bryce's parents, Brian and Lorena, came, too, as did his little nephew, Logan.

Lisa, as photographed through my glass of water.

Margie, as photographed through my glass of water.

You will remember Ryan from Rex's birthday party. This is he and his girlfriend, Jessica, as seen through my water glass. I photographed everybody this way, including myself, and I was going to post them all, but this is enough. You get the idea.

Lisa's boyfriend, Bryce, bought this sushi boat. Margie tried to pay for it, but he got to the counter first. So Margie was going to pay for everything else - and there was quite a bit else - but Charlie beat her to it.

Well, if Charlie is going to pay for a huge portion of the dinner, then surely he should be seen through my water glass, too. Here he is. This is Charlie. It's not Dan, it's not Robert, it's not Michelle. 

It's Charlie.

He is a mighty generous and thoughtful man and he lives with a great black cat named Pizzles that Melanie rescued a few years back.

Kalib told a funny joke and everyone at that end of the table laughed. I would share the joke with you, but it was rather ribald, so I had better not.

Bryce's parents gave Lisa this Chicago Cubs hat as a birthday present.

I think that it was Jacob and Lavina who gave her this pair of shoes. I could be wrong. She got a variety of gifts and I cannot remember who gave her each one. I do know that Melanie gave her a table with a yellow top and Lisa was very pleased with it.

She and Bryce have been eating off the floor and were in need of a table.

I might exaggerate the circumstance just a little bit.

We then moved to Melanie's house for the cake and ice cream. Here is Diamond. Margie and I gave Lisa the mix-master, plus a spatula to go with it.

Jacob and Cassie.

Jessica, Kalib and Ryan.

Rex carries Lisa's birthday cake to her. Margie made the cake.

Lisa blows the candles out.

After she blows them out, the candles light right back up again. They are trick candles, that is why. Kalib is very amused by this unexpected turn of events.

It takes a great deal of blowing by multiple lungs, but, after a couple of hours, the candles had all been blown out. 

And there was a lot of spit on the frosting.

Kalib, who enjoyed his cake.

Melanie, Kalib and Rex dance.

I have a couple of friends in the hospital and I wanted to stop in and see them before we drove back to Wasilla, so Margie and I left a bit early. Kalib waves to his Grandma.

Let me note that there is a new pocket camera out now, called the G11. It is much better suited for low-light photography than is this G1O that I am using, and I have been tempted to buy it. I probably will. But right now, I hate to spend the $500.

My pro-cameras would produce much finer image quality, but I do not want to carry them to such a function. I want to carry only a pocket camera.

So I come knowing that the images will be noisy, grainy, with much motion blur, because I am shooting mostly at 1/30 and even 1/15 of a second. But I don't care. I know a lot of people do, but not me. As long as I can catch a bit of the feeling and emotion, then I am fine with the noise, the grain, and the blur.

Still, one day, in time for this year's tax returns, I will get that G11. 

It kind of looks like yesterday, but it isn't (and yet, by the time this post appears, it will be)

No, you haven't accidently logged on to yesterday's entry. It's just that today's begins just as did yesterday's. Once again, Kalib was ill and had to stay home from daycare. Once again, despite having worked all night, his Uncle Caleb devoted himself to his care and entertainment.

Lately, I have been working on a story about the role of Iñupiat uncles play in teaching hunting skills to their nephews. This is because a father can be so overprotective of his own children out in the dangerous Arctic environment that he can fail to teach him what they need to know to survive.

So I thought about that. In both the Apache and Navajo cultures from which Kalib hails, the uncle also traditionally plays a teaching role that the father does not, and for similar reasons.

But I tell you - no one is more protective of Kalib than his Uncle Caleb. I have never seen a relationship quite like the one these two share. Kalib and Caleb - what a bond they share!

I wish I had had such an uncle.

Four dogs that I saw as I took my walk. It was warmer today - just a few degrees below zero at this point. And snow is forecast sometime within the next couple of days, so it will get warmer yet.

I just hope that none of those "Pineapple Express" storms blows in from the South Pacific. They make a mess of everything and just ruin winter.

But it is an El Niño winter, and these are the winters that the Pineapple Express gets completely out-of-hand, so it is inevitable. Just watch.

And whenever it gets really warm up here, it gets cold down in the Lower 48. You will see.

I used to park my airplane right about there, where this playground sits in Wasilla's downtown park. Yes, this used to be Wasilla's airport and the Iditarod Sled Dog race would start right here. It was a terrible place for an airport, though, as Wasilla Middle School and High School both sat under the flight pattern.

During take offs and landings, I would see the buildings and kids outside, beneath my spinning prop, doing PE, practicing football and such. It seemed to me that it was just a matter of time until an airplane went down there.

In fact, one day, a Super Cub did, crashing not far from my son, Jacob, who was a middle school student at the time. Fortunately, nobody was hurt except for the pilot. He was hurt pretty bad, but he survived.

Somewhere in my files, I have a picture of that crashed airplane.

Today, I passed by on my coffee break. I took it early, at 3:00 instead of 4:00, because I could hardly stay awake.

Again, I took the long way home and saw this horse. "Hey Bill! Come ride me!" it neighed out as I drove by. I ignored the invitation.

Someone might have thought I was a horse thief and shot me, or lassoed me and then hung me on the spot. That's what they do to horse thiefs, you know.

I think that horse was trying to trick me, to get me in trouble. Look closely at it. You can see that it is a very mischievous horse.

A short distance later, I saw this guy pedaling his bike. All that conditioning I did pedaling my bike is gone now! I missed five days in a row during AFN and then two days after that, my back tire went flat and I still haven't fixed it.

And whenever I ride a bike in the winter, sooner or later it slips on the ice and slides out from underneath me and I go down. This was not so bad in the past, but now that I have broken my shoulder and have this titanium one, I really don't want to fall.

I'm going to get my cross country skis out real soon, though.

I don't want to fall on them, either. But I will. But I will have snow beneath me. I think I will be ok.

After the bike, I saw a school bus.

I am now nearing home. It is 4:00 PM. The sun has gone down. Alpenglow lights up the Talkeetna Mountains.

Today, in Barrow, the sun rose in the south, then set in the south an hour later. On the 19th, the Barrow sun will come up for just half-an-hour, will go down and then won't rise again until January 23.

I will get there sometime between now and then and I will show you the dark noon.

Of course, if you are already there in Barrow, or anywhere on the Arctic Slope, as many of you, my friends are, this won't be anything new at all.

I am just about home now. Look how much traffic rolls down Seldon! I wonder why?