My cousin Jacque (on the right), who owned the buffalo farm in Wisconsin, died yesterday from complications of breast cancer (she had it some years ago too, but fought it off). She definitely didn't look well in recent pictures of her. :( That made me SO sad, she was such a kind, fun, easygoing, energetic lady, who had lots of family and loved them very much..I always loved going to visit her. I wish I could have seen her again, I think the last time was in 2013. I'll never forget my first visit to the farm (2003), which became one of my absolute favorite places (I wonder if her husband will keep the farm?). RIP Jacque, I will never forget you and will be missed by many <3

Jacque would have loved this though:

Great job, Scott!

( her obituary, if you're curious )

20. What is something you really wanted as a child? "Real" pixie dust haha

21. What parent are you more like? Both in different ways

22. Do you have a preference on name brand vs store brand? *shrugs* I just buy what I like lol

Today's trivia: The Eiffel Tower was originally intended for Barcelona, but the Spanish city thought the design was too ugly, so Gustave Eiffel pitched it to Paris instead, as a temporary landmark during its 1889 International Exposition

1. Mysteries. Do you sleuth alongside Nancy Drew or Miss Marple? Fan of Nero Wolfe? I haven't read any of those, but I do like mysteries! I especially like Nevada Barr and Charles Finch
2. Plan on making a batch of chili? Have a top secret recipe to share? Nope lol
3. Does your car or did a family car have a name? No
4. Did you walk to school with your friends? Take a school bus? In 1st-3rd grade I walked to school (maybe with my brother), and the rest of the time I either took the bus or had my parents take me
5. Ever have someone carry your books home from school? Not that I can remember..

Poor Malaspina Glacier is melting fast. So sad, it's SUCH a cool, unique glacier! I'm so happy when I get to see it from an airplane haha. I wonder if glaciers like Meares are still advancing..

( sept. 15-18 )

So the first person diagnosed with coronavirus in Fairbanks? I KNOW HIM. He is a companion (I always forget the correct term) for people with disabilities, and regularly brings one of his clients to the bookstore. I knew he had been having trouble with his heart, but I had no idea he needed a transplant..he definitely doesn't need coronavirus on top of that! I hope he recovers and gets a new heart, I'd miss seeing him and his client! We now have 36 cases of the virus, with a lot of them popping up in Anchorage now (none in Fairbanks the last two days). This is one of the craziest things I've ever experienced..

This is a good week to have to "hunker down," because we got nine inches of snow yesterday, and another 3-6 inches is on its way. They said the snow depth measured at 32" this morning, and only the third time in 25 years snow depth of 32" or deeper has been measured..wow. I really miss work haha, but I decided I'd rather be stuck at my parents' house than alone at my apartment. This is all so weird..

( pokemon update )

22. If you could make a bouquet or arrangement of your three favorite flowers, which three would you choose? Cherry blossoms, fireweed, lilacs

23. What was a favorite book you read when you were a child? Where the Red Fern Grows..still have my beat-up copy <3

24. About how many square feet is your home? Is it too small, too large, or just right for your needs? I'm not sure haha, but it's a medium apartment. My closet could be bigger lol

I was going to go to one of my cousin Scott's volleyball games in April, but the conference they're in suspended all games until further notice because of the coronavirus. :( Maybe things will be better in April?? I don't remember this much panic during the swine flu and other viruses, though they might not have been as contagious. It's scary hearing about everything shutting down, even entire countries! I hope it doesn't make it to Alaska! I would feel awful if I was the person who brought it somewhere new. D: I hope things get better soon. Edit: Alaska just announced its first case of coronavirus..oh dear D:

Yay, I finally got all my pictures off Photobucket and on Flickr! That only took three months. O_o I now have 10,736 pics on Flickr..wow haha. I hope I don't have to do that again, that was a lot of work!

( march 7-12 )

Today's trivia: The quietest place in the world is at Building 87 at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond, Washington. It set the official world record for silence when the background noise level inside was measured at -20.6 decibels

Day 235: A song with a word, term or phrase that doesn't make sense

Jumping up and down the floor
My head is an animal
And once there was an animal
It had a son that mowed the lawn
The son was an OK guy

Of Monsters of Men, I love you, but really?? Haha

Day 236: An old song that's stood the test of time

The Beatles are timeless lol

Ugh, I keep having nightmares about the world ending..the poor rainforest though :(

( pokemon update )

10 years ago today, I adopted this amazing kitty. <3 When I first went into her cage, she wasted no time in choosing me and winning my heart haha (took about 3 seconds :P). I had to come back to adopt her a couple days later, and when I said her name, she stuck her paw through the cage. She purred all the way home. <3 Her name was Bashful at the time, which didn't suit her at all (she's one of the least bashful kitties I've ever met!), so we changed it to Abby, my favorite character from ER. She's such a nice, loving kitty..besides the vet lol, she's never met a human she didn't like. She definitely makes life better! She is 14 now, but I hope we still have many more years together <3

The first pic I took of her!

Yayy hehe

Andd Irvine got completely annihilated by Hawaii..again. Siigh. They're just on some insanely high different level than everyone except Long Beach..wow. Hawaii's stadium is HUGE..I think I'd need headphones if I was there, it sounded super loud just on the TV! Long Beach beat Santa Barbara, so it's Hawaii vs. Long Beach tonight again..that'll be exciting to watch lol. Now to wait and see if Irvine will make the NCAA tournament..

( Day 109: A song you like from someone you consider a one hit wonder )

Hello from California! Yesterday our flight to Anchorage left at 8, so we had to get up at 5 something..ugh. At least we were rewarded with awesome views of Denali, Mt. Foraker and some glaciers! All three of our flights were under three hours because of an awesome tailwind! I watched How to Train Your Dragon (HOW had I never watched it till now?! That movie is amazing! Toothless the dragon reminded me of a cat LOL) and a lot of How to Train Your Dragon 2 (must finish it on the flight back!!). I saw some cool mountains and glaciers flying out of Anchorage, but then on my side it got cloudy! I looked over at the other side and it looked clear for miles! When the clouds did clear, my side was just ocean..it's a good thing I've seen the glaciers on that side before, but I'm always sad to miss them anyway. :P We flew in to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, which I hadn't been to in YEARS. Everything looked so green flying in!! That always amazes me after a long Alaska winter lol. We got our rental car and drove to the hotel in Costa Mesa, which is pretty close to the airport. It was nice to relax, I was SO tired lol..getting up so early makes me feel awful the whole day :P

Today we had breakfast and geocached our way to nearby Newport Beach lol (really stressful when you're not used to lots of traffic and don't know the area!). I think we found 5 or 6. I don't remember ever going to Newport Beach before (as a kid I mostly went to Redondo or Hermosa). It was pretty nice. We got some yummy food (I'm pretty sure California is more expensive than Alaska, wow D:) and walked on the piers and fed some pigeons..poor things must have a rough life, some of them had deformed feet and one had fishing wire wrapped around its feet and maybe part of its wing..OMG so sad. :( :( :( I tried catching it, but it was still too fast for me. :( That probably happens often, sadly, judging by their feet. Poor things. :( After that we relaxed at the hotel and then Aunt Susan met us for dinner..weirdly, she works at Newport Beach! (She lives near Torrance, 37 miles away.) It was nice to see her again! We ate at a Mexican restaurant, where they make guacamole right in front of you! I don't usually like guacamole, but this looked too yummy not to try. It was indeed really good! Fairbanks guacamole is sad LOL. We talked for a couple hours about dad's health and stuff, and then Susan drove us back to the hotel. Nice seeing her again!

Tomorrow is Scott's game, woohoo! I hope they do well lol

( pics so far! )

It seems that dad has been feeling "off" the last couple weeks..he said he had trouble sleeping and was tired of the winter (he says that every year though). Yesterday I found out that he has been struggling with crippling anxiety. ( TW: anxiety talk )

( Day 33-34 )

Teresa, Ron and Stephanie left this morning. :( I always hate having to say goodbye to them, they're so easygoing and happy and fun. Last night we played Scattergories..everyone is always surprised at how good I am at that game haha. Like I said "welwitschia" for a plant that starts with "w" (it's a tree that grows in the desert and can live for thousands of years. It only has two leaves its entire life!). Everyone was like "...yeah, that was my next answer" LOL. Hopefully they can come to Alaska soon, that would be fun!

After they left grandpa took us to his neighbor's house that has a chicken coop and we got some fresh eggs! Their chickens were beautiful and well taken care of. They also had quail and a nice kitty hehe. We hung out for a couple hours and then went back to grandpa's house. I think his cats are relieved they don't have to worry about a dog anymore :P

( more pics, including more old family photos! )

November 25 - What’s your favorite dinosaur? Blue from Jurassic World is pretty cool, and of course Littlefoot from The Land Before Time lol

1. “Autumn” or “Fall? Fall
2. Pumpkin Carving or Apple Picking? Apple picking..I'm not good at crafty things lol
3. Halloween or Thanksgiving? Thanksgiving, but Halloween is fun too
4. Cashmere or Flannel? Cashmere..flannel is too hot!
5. Cool and Crisp or Warm and Foggy? Cool and crisp, I can't really handle heat anymore..
6. Yankee Candles or Roaring Fireplace? Roaring fireplace..cozy!
7. Scarves or Berets? Scarves
8. Cinnamon or Nutmeg? ALL THE CINNAMON *drool*
9. Reading a Book or Watching a Movie? I like doing both, just depends on my mood and stuff (like on a plane, watching movies makes the time go by a lot faster)
10. Halloweentown or Nightmare Before Christmas? Halloweentown! Mom didn't like me watching it, but I did anyway :P
11. Hot Chocolate or Apple Cider? I don't really like either..
12. Wool Socks or Slippers? Fuzzy socks lol
13. Trick or Treat? Treat :P
14. Marshmallows or Whipped Cream? Whipped cream
15. Jack or Sally? Sally maybe
16. Goosebumps or Are You Afraid of the Dark? Are You Afraid of the Dark?
17. Plaid or Neutrals? Neutrals
18. Coffee or Tea? Neither, smoothies are the best :P
19. Studyblr or Halloween Blog? I don't know what Studyblr is..
20. Red or Gold? Hmm..it might depend on what it is..
21. Blankets or Pillows? Blankets
22. Cabins or Cottages? Cabins
23. Scary or Spooky? Spooky
24. Sweaters or Boots? Sweaters
25. Caramel Apples or Candy Apples? Ew, both look so gross to me
26. Hay Rides or Leaf Peeking? Leaf peeking..so pretty!

Yay mom's back from England! She was very busy, but got a lot done. Too bad the only fun things she and Cindy had time for was dinner in London and watching the play Kinky Boots. We went to dinner and then visited Ryan and Jo, since they got their apartment set up..it's pretty nice, and Ryan loves the big kitchen, since he loves to bake lol

I hate when perfectly fine trees get cut down..there was a big spruce tree I could see from my window and when I walked home a couple days ago I saw it had been cut down!! Sad, I really liked that tree :(

( September 15-19 )

Today's trivia: People walked differently in medieval times. They stepped with the ball of the foot first to check the ground for debris, because well-soled shoes were hard to come by