Albums

A Maui Holiday - 2005

Tue, 05 Oct 2010 00:37:36 -0700

Jim and Kay, my brother and sister-in-law, invited me to share a winter holiday in Maui. It sure beats dealing with the usual Alaska snow and sleet.

Bahamas 2007

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:17:28 -0700

I was invited in October by one of my good buddies to help learn the ropes of his new 43 foot cruising catamaran based in the Exumas, Bahamas. Indepencia is a fine craft and well suited to the area. We had an awesome time!

Sparrow Project: the "during" pictures

Sun, 09 Aug 2009 15:21:13 -0700

Work is progressing on Sparrow. These pictures document some of the ongoing projects and pain inflicted. There has been lots of grinding and cutting of fiberglass. Fiberglass dust is a very nasty substance! I'm still scratching and iching ...

Anchorage Home

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:58:29 -0700

Because my job requires me to live in Juneau for 5 months of the year and Anchorage the remaining 7 months I rent where ever I go. Here are some pictures of the home I lived in during my stay in Anchorage from 1999 through 2002. And I've decided to return to the same spot each summer from 2005 through the present.

Tavish and Griffin

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:57:28 -0700

My friends Jeff and Donna Logan took me up on my offer to introduce their kids to sailing. Both Jeff and Donna have sailed quite a bit in the past. But, they are between boats at the moment.

Spring 2005 'butt Fishin'

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:56:38 -0700

Here are some quick snaps I took while on a couple of 'butt charters out of Seward this spring.

Sparrow Project: the "before" pictures.

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:56:31 -0700

I've begun to bring little Sparrow back into sailing shape again. Its a major undertaking! Here she is up on blocks at Custom Marine, LLC's yard in Whittier. This series of pictures will help me remember her "BEFORE" condition and where all of the deck hardware was originally located.

Broken Parts

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 22:55:29 -0700

Broken stuff I need to send pictures of to potential vendors.

Shark Fishing

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 21:07:52 -0700

I went shark fishing in the fall of 2008 with my friends Theo and Peggy. As you can see we were successful.

I'm not one to mindlessly slay critters for trophy reasons. I'm OK with this as I know they and I will consume the entire critter: from leather for wallets to a lot of nice high quality protein to feed families.

Theo has his Flickr slideshow posted too.

Manuals

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 18:04:45 -0700

I've scanned several manuals relating to my sailboat and converted the scans to *.pdf files. This way I'll have backup copies available.

Crunchy Grindy Noises

Sun, 27 Jul 2008 20:14:13 -0700

My transmission's clutch on Serena developed a bad slippage problem right in the middle of the Seward harbor channel amidst the boat traffic, wind and chop. Within seconds I was banging and grinding against the rip rap rocks on the west edge of the harbor wall. Volkswagon sized rocks. With lots of boat eating sharp edges.

Northwestern Fjord - 2004

Sun, 11 May 2008 13:36:40 -0700

Friends and newlyweds, Hans and Anna, decided to explore Northwestern Fjord and Aialik Bay with me this summer in mid-August. A fourth crewmember, Jennifer, was also scheduled to go, but had last minute work commitments waylay her plans. We had great sailing weather, good fishing, and a great time. We missed you Jenn!

Disaster - Serena Almost Sunk - 2005

Fri, 09 May 2008 17:53:54 -0700

My buddy Craig and I arrived in Seward early so we had plenty of time to make my appointment with the travel lift for Serena's routine spring haul-out maintenance. I unlocked the cabin hatch and found 18 inches of oily, nasty, salty bilge water above the floor boards. Panic!

I've spent the entire 2005 summer, fall, and early winter dealing with repairs. I'm still not done. But, it could have been much much worse. I could have arrived at my slip to find 3 feet of mast sticking out of the water.

Sea Lions

Fri, 09 May 2008 17:50:24 -0700

While checking up on Serena before I left for the 2006 legislative session in Juneau I ran into this pod of sea lions snooping around for a meal in Seward Harbor.

The one in the middle distinctly said in a canadian accent, "You got any grey poupon, eh?" He must have been visiting relatives up north.

Locum Tenens

Fri, 09 May 2008 17:44:00 -0700

1989 37' Pace Arrow Moterhome

Men are just boys with bigger toys - and I upgraded to a boat. The RV has to go. This class A motorhome has been well maintained throughout its life and is in great shape. Gas engine has approximately 41,000 miles on it. The RV has a 6.5 kw Onan generator, two color TVs, VCR, stereo, washer/dryer, dual roof air conditioners, new tag axle for a smooth ride, queen bed in rear, side aisle with large bathroom complete with tub and glass enclosure, recent full service on engine and systems, recent tires with low miles, awning, electric step, double sink, 4 burner propane range, oven, microwave/convection combo, dual captain's chairs, driver's door, furnace, basement storage. This is a great coach with lots of room and at a reasonable price.

Contact Ken at 240-2262 afternoons and evenings. Or use my e-mail at ken "at" alaskapolitics "dot" com.

Cookie Jar

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 14:42:29 -0700

Cookie Jar was a Blanchard 26 Sr. Knock About that belonged to my brother and sister-in-law. Both were kind enough to let me learn how to sail on her. I have many wonderful memories associated with her.

My thanks go to my niece and sister-in-law for scanning some family photos and sending them to me. These were taken in the late 70's.

Aloha Maui Visitors

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 05:03:30 -0700

Kay & Jim Erickson's Maui Vista
2191 South Kihei Road #2310
Kihei Maui Hawaii 96753

My brother and sister-in-law have just completed upgrading and redecorating their vacation condo at the Maui Vista complex in Kihei and it is ready for vacation rentals.

For rates and reservations visit the property manager's website at www.mauisuncoast.com or call 1-800-800-8608.

Swans at Potter Marsh

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 04:49:43 -0700

Photos of swans at Potter Marsh in the fall of 2006.

Dual Monitor Wallpaper

Fri, 08 Jun 2007 13:30:12 -0700

I've got a dual 21" monitor setup at work to help give me enough screen real estate to do my job effectively. I wouldn't go back. It really speeds up the workflow.

Anyway, these are some of the screensavers I've rotated through my system. All of these are images I've found on the web. If you want to use them for commercial purposes you'll need to chase down their creators and obtain permission and get the high resolution versions. I've dramatically reduced the physical file size for display purposes here.

Finishing Up Serena's Repairs - 2006

Thu, 27 Jul 2006 21:34:03 -0700

Serena is pretty close to being guest ready after all the drama from last year's water damage issues. Here I've documented the repair to my port side seat.

S/V Serena

Sat, 31 Dec 2005 19:29:13 -0800

Pictures taken from Serena, my 35' Whitholz steel cutter. This gallery has 100's of pics from many of my alaskan sailing adventures.

Protective Mom

Sun, 13 Nov 2005 04:27:26 -0800

I walked out my front door one day this spring and was dive bombed and chased the entire way to my truck. Mamma seagull was not happy and she spent considerable time venting her ire. Over the next few days those of us living on Romig watched baby seagull chicks wandering through our yard. Both mom and dad were ever watchful.

Former Juneau Home

Sun, 13 Nov 2005 02:11:03 -0800

A very disappointing experience in the last two years. My recommendation is to avoid this place at all costs.

After several years of happy landlord/tenant relations on both sides at this location the new property manager has made continued rental of this space untenable. I recommend that any staffer or legislator talk to me or any recent roomie before they sign on the dotted line. This property manager has openly violated the Alaska Landlord Tenant Act; refused to provide a copy of the lease, delayed fixing dishwasher plumbing leaks for 25+ days, delayed returning our security deposit for over 85 + days, and refused to detail why he believed there was a problem in the first place. He actively refused to communicate nor negotiate by repeatedly hanging up on me. In my opinion refusing to talk is downright childish and unprofessional. Until the Adler's (the owners) replace Daniel Glidmann (the property manager), I will refuse to have anything to do with the place. And I urge you to do similarily.

Pack Creak Bear Sanctuary

Fri, 13 May 2005 20:27:47 -0700

Great bear snaps from the Pack Creek Bear Sanctuary on Admiralty Island. These were taken WITHOUT a telephoto lens!

Kay Linton Memorial Ice Fountain

Wed, 02 Feb 2005 22:17:48 -0800

These images are of the Mrs. Jack M. (Kay) Linton memorial ice fountain located in the Anchorage Loussac Library courtyard. They were taken at night.

The original design was by artist Carl Nesjar in 1986. The fountain soon after its original installation broke down and remained as a static piece for many years.

In 2004 the local arts community and local businesses teamed up to repair the fountain to its originator's concept. During the summer is sprays water and during the winter small amounts of water are pumped through its structure so it slowly oozes fantastic and contantly changing ice shapes.

Third Annual Grinch Party

Sat, 08 Jan 2005 03:22:23 -0800

My friends, Robie and Jennifer, throw a great secret santa themed christmas party every year. I made the first one, missed the second, and have now attended the third. Here are some random shots from this year's event.