Monday I had half of my teeth cleaned, not the top half or the bottom half, but the right side of my mouth from the molars to the gap between my front teeth. Which may be why I felt so lopsided until the second half was cleaned yesterday afternoon and my balance was restored. Then I had an interview from a journalist in New York who asked me if it was summer here now, since Alaska and Australia have the the same seasons, right? And I wondered if maybe my ears needed a cleaning, too. The highlight was a visit from Juneau author Ernestine Hayes (Blonde Indian: a Native Alaskan Memoir) which began with changing the bed and cleaning the bathroom and cutting a bouquet of greens for her dresser, and then a lunch on Wednesday, a radio interview we did together, a lovely early dinner (if I do say so myself– smoked salmon, deer, sweet potatoes, green beans, mushrooms, salad) with library folks before her talk that night.
The plan was for Ernestine to fly to Skagway Thursday, and then home to Juneau Friday, for two more talks, but a blizzard and slushfest gave us a whole extra day at my house spent, in part, singing the “will the planes fly?” “will the weather clear?” “let’s just drive to the airport and check” opera. Then over a pretty nice breakfast today came the buzz of an airplane in the clouds over the inlet, and an Alleluia Chorus from the both of us, as the next ferry is Monday and Ernestine has a lot to do and many more places to go while sharing insights into her book, the first “Alaska Reads” title that everyone all over the state is reading this winter. So now she’s off, and I have a column due this afternoon. Luckily, there’s so much to write about.
Also, I did want to remind you about the basketball games with Petersburg tonight- both the boys and girls team play so it’s an all evening affair. And Kerry Cohen has an opening at the museum 5-7, and it is First Friday downtown. I hear that Joanie is making chocolate dipped pretzels for her gallery snacks, and I know the roads are all plowed now, and since we’ve been kind of holed up for a day, it will feel good to head out and see folks tonight.
