You are currently browsing the monthly archive for July, 2009.
I dumped out my two bags when I got home from the airport early this morning and – magic! – piles of laundry appeared. Aside from those piles, being home smells really nice – not as a comparison to Alaska but just because home always smells nice. I did all the things I’ve missed: running, showering, drinking beverages with ice.
I suppose I could have put up another nice scenery picture instead of my dirty clothes. Eh. Expect more photos in the next few days as I sort through the summer in a not-quite-timely fashion.
The salmon are bright red and entering the streams now. I am always awed by how strong they are, and almost eerily determined. To make it this far they’ve already made it back from the ocean and dodged gill nets, gulls, bears and hooks. All that’s left is to keep dodging predators, find a mate, make a nest and die.
Kidding, that’s the sauna. We reclaimed it from the bats and got it working. It is not the most efficient sauna on the planet, but felt great all the same. I’m not a picky Finn.
I don’t care the slightest bit about laptop computer advertising. But when two journalists I know and trust post apparently conflicting information three minutes apart, that gets me curious. (And Rikki, bless your heart.)
I think there was some discussion I came across recently about credibility and how it’s all you’ve got on Twitter. It seemed to me just a new version of the journalist’s question of how much accuracy we are sacrificing for speed, though up here in Alaska I haven’t been able to read media stuff without my eyes glazing over in approximately four minutes.
Before I checked the two links I was thinking I’d trust Nick more, for several reasons:
- he is accountable to a professional news organization
- he gets information directly from Microsoft as a beat reporter
- and certainly not least of all, I know him better and I’ve seen how he works
So then I checked the links (Nick’s, Vadim’s), and essentially the stories are the same. Microsoft is still running the ads, but with adjustments that remove the specific price information that Apple complained about. So darn, it’s not a “gotcha” error, it’s a gateway to issues of framing and bias and sensationalism and all those other fun topics. Does the brevity of Twitter give framing an exaggerated effect on news? If so, does that create an inherent risk of bias for journalists using Twitter? Or is it just the same as different papers writing the same headline for different stories?
My four minutes are up, but I figured I couldn’t be a decent journalist without devoting a handful of industry-centric words to Twitter at least once this summer. And I do think it’s an interesting example.
I’ve got one week left in Alaska and the forecast says rain, rain, rain.
Before warming up with some colorful beading and warm drinks, Luna and I spent some damp time outside eating a picnic lunch and watering the flowers. We’re not ones to let a little thing like weather ruin our plans.
Today is my first truly stormy day here in Alaska. We’ve been watching the local family of loons out on the battering waves.
The wind started whipping into the bay yesterday evening and the rain hasn’t let up. This does nothing to diminish my irrational belief that the weather and I have some sort of unspoken understanding.
Yesterday evening I headed across the bay to Little Togiak River with field techs Kale and Kenzie for some science and scenery. After a round of water measurements on the lake, we hiked up a little stream to reach the waterfall. Daring Kenzie took off her waders and slid down the last bump of waterfall.
I submitted a photo for my Columbia ID card the other day. The whole process was more frustrating than it ought to be, starting with not having many photos of myself and not being in any condition to take a new one here in Alaska. It’s been more than a month since I even thought about makeup or doing my hair in any way other than a braid or ponytail.
The photo was supposed to be taken from the front with a uniform background, white if possible. I found one and it got approved. Notice anything weird?
I heard a Harry Potter movie is coming out today. Just thought I’d mention it because two years ago it was my job to know every detail of every Harry Potter happening and event. Pretty much nothing about my summer this year is at all like that summer, except that I am currently wearing the same T-shirt I wore while reporting at the 2007 movie release night. My T-shirt is a lot worse for the wear; I’ll avoid thinking of that comparison in regard to myself.
Someday I plan to keep a job longer than an average $5 T-shirt.
One of my favorite things about looking back at photos of friends is noticing that we’ve been wearing the same shirts for years and years.
This is Thor. Luna prefers to call him Cedar. Pete constructed him to keep the porcupines from taking up residence under the main cabin – an Alaskan scarecrow.
Yesterday evening I found Thor hiding beneath a pile of clothes on my bed. Thanks, Pete.
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