I’ve been caught up in ferries, grandchildren, dogs, friends, family, and helicopters for a few days and now it is snowing for real. So here’s the big good news: Martha is up and talking and laughing and thanking God for all the blessings of her life on the Presbyterian Church Facebook page today. I am still buzzing with the miracle of it all– I can’t quite wrap my head around all four of them living to tell the story of the time their plane crashed and sank in Lynn Canal in November. Honestly, this trumps surviving being run over by a truck.
Also, Linnus had surgery and it was a pretty big deal. She has a leg full of plates and screws and it hurts, but her spirits and prognosis for recovery are good. There is a fundraiser to help with the expenses of being in Anchorage for these weeks for her at the school Nov. 17. (Details soon…)
There’s that, and then my dad, Papa Bob was hit by a car while coming out of the new James Bond movie the other night. “Flew like a rag doll” he said, in his “macho man” way, but nothing broke. “The old man is tough,” he said. He is bruised and has some stitches but is on the mend, too. “The EMT said I was in better shape than he was. He thought I was in my fifties not eighties. I told him ‘you got that right you need to lose a hundred pounds’.”
“Did you really say that to the man helping you?”
“Of course I did. The guy’s only 35. He should work out. ” That’s Dear Old Dad.
We were thinking of visiting Juneau anyway, then strep throat struck the day care, so Caroline (5) and I hopped the ferry down to Juneau Tuesday– and returned yesterday– to hang out with baby James and visit with the Juneau girls for a few days while my husband and a son-in-law are deer hunting out in Elfin Cove. I got home in time for my radio show, a lot of weather, and a planning commission commercial heli-port conditional use permit hearing for two new ones. (There are five private heliports already, not including the airport, between 10 and 37 mile.) There were about 50 letters opposing more, and all sorts of last minute information ( a letter from the University of Alaska opposing the 26 mile heliport and the borough manager’s recommendation for it, both arrived about 2 hours before the meeting.) Another issue was after learning about the pros and cons of the 36-mile heliport proposal for an hour or so, it was revealed that a half dozen adjacent landowners hadn’t been contacted for comments by the borough, so we postponed that decision until they are. We voted on the 26 mile conditional use permit, and denied it. I’m sure it will be appealed to the assembly. We also asked that the assembly allocate resources and choose a location for a public heliport out the valley between 25 and 35 mile to better comply with the comprehensive plan and reduce conflicts. (And so the rotor spins…)
Tonight I’m going to the movies at the Fairgrounds, they begin at 5:30 and there’s food, drinks, and popcorn. There’s also a fundraising chili feed at the Senior Center and a square dance at the Eagle Foundation 7-10.
