All things Alaskan (or Tennesseean?)

Ketchikan 17
Originally uploaded by MicVat.

Well, I finally transferred some pictures to the world wide web. The image presently at right is one of many mediocre pictures I was able to capture while in Ketchikan, Alaska a few weeks ago. Keep in mind they were all taken with my cell phone; I take no responsibility for their quality and I hold true to the claim that, when handed a real camera, I can take some pretty nice shots.

Currently I am in Knoxville (or more precisely, Maryville), Tennessee. The trip so far has been a large success. The folks drove into town for a few nights to hang out, which was teriffic, and they brought with them a final draft of the house plans, so they walked me through the house over (hotel-plastic) glasses of Makers. They departed on Friday, so yesterday afternoon I went solo into Smokey Mountain National Park to visit Cades Cove. The weather held out just long enough for the trip to be a success. Unfortunately my cell phone was dead at the time so I have no pictures. Alas.

It's about time to wrap this thing up - I've droned on and on for hours now - but first I have two quick things to share. The first is that I might be going to Galway, Ireland for work in June, a trip which would amazing for two reasons - that I'd be in Ireland and that I'd be on someone else's dime. I'm not getting my hopes up yet, because the site is not confirmed and June is too far away for anything to be set in stone. I learned earlier this year - the hard way - that it's best not to count your marbles even when they are a week or so from hatching.

The second item I have to share with you is a funny story from work this week. It goes like this: Some dunce walked into the newspaper where I am working and saw one of the girls drinking a can of Pepsi, to which he commented, "Only communists and yankees drink pepsi!" Wow, welcome to Tenessee. I actually had to restrain myself from saying something or at least giving him a dirty look. What stopped me was the thought that maybe he was right. Maybe Pepsi is the clear link between Communism and Yankeeism. Maybe Nazism too! He might be on to something. And on that note, I'm outa here.