Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Tsunamis, Volcanos and Bears...oh my!

Actual bear in Homer
I was talking on the phone the other day with on of my best friends, Gigi (which is short for Girlie Girl I am not sure how that nickname came about but that is how we always refer to each other. She has many redeeming qualities, but her best is that she is TALL and still loves to wear high heels! Gigi doesn't knit, but I am willing to overlook that small blemish  - since she has so much more to offer.). Anyhoo, Girlie was just checking to make sure I was still alive. Apparently, she was concerned I might have been tragically eaten by a bear.
Actually, of all the things here in Alaska, I AM afraid of bears. I know it is very possible, and maybe even probable, that I will see a bear up close and personal one day. Danger S.A.M. tried to tell me this scenario is highly unlikely. I would, however,  like to go on record that within the first days of being in Homer, the lead story of the Homer Tribune (Danger's OWN newspaper) was about a bear wreaking havoc around town ... right there in print! Clink on this link for proof (and shameless publicity for the Trib) : Bad day ends for nuisance bear.

View we have of Mt. Iliamna and Cook Inlet from our porch
So once I had assured Gigi of my aliveness, we went on to chat about what else Homer has to offer in the way of life-threatening attractions. I didn't mean to scare her! I was casually talking about the view of the Kenai Mountain range that we have out the kitchen windows. I then made the mistake of bragging about the view of Cook Inlet and Mt. Iliamna that we have right outside our front door. (It really is gorgeous. I promise. Especially in the evening with the sun setting across the water...ahhh.) I guess the news that there are two active volcanoes just hanging out in the inlet was rather startling to Gigi. She didn't even want to hear about how Mt. Redoubt (which you can also see from the front porch) erupted Summer of '09 and covered Homer in inches of ash for days. She just kept saying "Active? There are two active volcanoes?"

Sooo, now I was in a pickle. My good friend (whom I had always thought of as fearless) now demanded to know what else she might need to worry about. I should have just pretended it was just bears and volcanoes and gone on to talk about pigs and my lack of cute shoes (naturally a huge worry to both of us.) Quite frankly though, I am more afraid of Girlie Girl kicking my butt than I am of being mauled by bears! If I just glossed over the earthquake thing and she found out later, I am pretty sure I would be sorry. So I totally just blurted out - "Tsunamis,"  (which is really a very, very, very small chance of being damaging. I mean the one a few months ago caused like an inch increase in the tide for goodness sake!) and in tiny, quiet voice, "and earthquakes." Let's just say this was a serious lapse of judgment on my part. The butt-whooping would have been more enjoyable.

I don't think Gigi will be coming for a visit anytime soon. She was even a little freaked out about the 600-pound baby moose in the front yard. I was sure that would be a charming story to distract her from the "perils" of  Homer.Oh well, I did learn that if I want my friends and family in the Lower 48 to remain unworried, I just won't mention the impenetrable blizzards, eagles carrying off small dogs and frequent house fires. Ya'll come back now, ya hear?

4 comments:

  1. Personally, I am more skeered of the lack of wood in Homer than all that other stuff!! Besides, wouldn't the volcano spewing its guts warm things up a bit! Just a thought!!

    Hey is Mount Crumpet in your backyard as well?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Girly Girl I know who you are talking about and that would be me. I may be fearless but I muswt admit I have a healthy aspect for nature. My coworker whom I just read this to would like to know why you left out rock slides and avalanches from those damn blizards you mentioned. And we did talk about the eagles taking away the small doggies. Look at Maddie. Please make sure mommy looks out for you on your walks and not only looks around but also up. You also failed to mention frost bite or have you learned to make a fire onl your own yet.

    Miss ya

    ReplyDelete
  3. Just enjoy Danger Sam and the scenery!! The lions, tigers and bears--oh well!! You could be eaten by a cow in Kansas!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh, and I like how the temperature on your widget is not registering anything! Is it so cold it broke it??

    ReplyDelete