I've Listed Some Gold On Ebay

This is a photo of the largest piece

Update: I have to say all the pieces sold for a goodly amount. The piece pictured above was 147.5 grams which is around 5oz. It went to the high bidder on ebay for $4050.00.

Polartec Heat

This is amazing! I never knew there was such a product out there.

You can purchase battery powered heated vests and jackets. I tend to shy away from outdoor activities in the winter because it is just to darn cold! This product would make being outside for our cold winter activities a much nicer experience.

These vest and jacket's Polartec® Heat® system includes a heat panel, rechargeable polymer Li-ion battery pack, wireless remote control, and battery charger.

You can have them switched on when you are outside and easily switch them off when you get in the car.

The batteries are even rechargable.

The vests cost about $169.00 and the jackets are $199.00. A fantastic deal!

St. Jude's Recycled Card Program

Donate Used Greeting Cards

St Jude's Ranch for Children has a great program for recycling greeting cards. They now accept all greeting cards (used to be just Christmas/Holiday cards) but only from November 15,2008- February 28,2009

http://www.stjudesranch.org/about_history.php


Recycled Card Program

We are accepting used, all-occasion greeting cards from November 15, 2008 thru February 28, 2009. You can mail your donations to:

St. Jude's Ranch for Children
Card Recycling Program
100 St. Jude's Street
Boulder City, NV 89005


Recycled Card Program History

Over thirty years ago, wishing to show our donors appreciation for making St. Jude’s Ranch for Children possible, the idea was conceived for turning the previous year’s Christmas cards into "new" cards for the coming season. The recipients were so delighted with their unique "thank you," they requested the children sell them the special cards. And so, the
St. Jude’s Ranch Recycled Card Program was born.

Since then, the Program expanded to include all occasion greeting cards…just about anything that starts with a used greeting card front. People from all over the world have sent us their used card fronts!

The children participate in making the new recycled cards by removing the front and attaching a new back made with recycled paper. The new card is a beautiful, “green” card made by the children and volunteers. The benefits are two-fold: customers receive "green" holiday cards for use and the children receive payment for their work and learn the benefits and importance of "going green".

The ongoing support for the Recycled Card Program has been overwhelming! The Program grew and soon we were receiving over one million cards. We temporarily suspended the Program while we redesigned the process to more efficiently manage the increased production from the increased volume.
To Purchase Cards:

Cards are sold in packets of 10 for $8.00 and are available in the following categories:

General Christmas Cards
Religious Christmas Cards
Easter Cards
Birthday Cards
Thank You Cards
All Occasion General Greeting Cards
Orders may be placed by any of the methods below:

Email cards@stjudesranch.org
Phone 1-800-492-3562 or
Send your request and donation to:
St. Jude’s Ranch for Children
ATTN: Donor Office
P.O. Box 60100
Boulder City, NV 89006-0100

To Donate Cards:

Cards may be donated by sending them to: Until February 28th, 2009

St. Jude's Ranch for Children
Card Recycling Program
100 St. Jude's Street
Boulder City, NV 89005

St Jude's also accepts Campbell's Labels for Education and Boxtops for Education.

Alaskans are Independent

I am your typical Alaskan. Alaskan's are independent thinkers. We are opinionated but friendly. We seek adventure. We love the sun (of which there has been to little of this year). We get the job done. We are great drivers We have to be to drive on snow and ice 6 months of the year. Most people only get to visit but we are the luckiest people in the world to be able live in a beautiful place. Sometimes I feel like I get caught up in my daily grind and take my surroundings for granted and need to shake myself awake to appreciate where I am.

The last couple of days I haven't been blogging. The sun finally came out and like starving people everyone was outside biking, running, throwing frisbees, flying kites, walking dogs, rolling in the grass with babies, rollerblading, gardening. We were trying to fit an entire summers activity into one day. Today is a bonus day. I don't think we've had two days of sunshine in a row yet this summer. These are the kind of days that we look forward to when we are suffering through the long winter.

It's like working at Disneyland. Everyone around you is having fun but you have to work. Sometimes we just need to set work aside, and pretend we are on vacation, so we can enjoy what this state has to offer. Summer's short, it goes by in a blink, it's time to take a road trip and find more ways to appreciate this beautiful place.

Denali - The Great One

Most people that come up for their Alaskan experience feel that it's not complete until they've seen Mt McKinley.

There are a couple places along the road where, if it's a nice day, you can see the top of the mountain. If it's an especially nice day, and we have the time, we like to stop for lunch at the McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge. They are located at milepost 133 off the George Parks Highway. From their deck you can order lunch and get a fantastic view of not only Mt McKinley but quite a bit of the mountain range. The lodge is located in Denali State Park on the banks of the Chulitna River. I recommend the crab cakes.


You can sometimes spot wildlife along the road in this area. I've seen fox, moose, caribou and even Ptarmigan (Alaska's state bird)

Along this stretch of road we did see a caribou swimming across the river. Unfortunately, on this trip, we did not get a good Denali picture.

The Road to Nenana, Alaska

After leaving Fairbanks, just before we got to Nenana, we saw a moose standing chest deep in a pond near the road. She was happily plunging her head into the water doing some underwater eating. There must have been something very tasty growing under the water.

About an hour south of Fairbanks you cross a bridge and come to the town of Nenana, Alaska. It’s a small community of about 500 people and sits by both the Tanana River and the Nenana River.

The Tanana River is where the annual Nenana Ice Classic is held. Participants purchase tickets and make a guess as to when the ice will go out on the river. The residents of Nenana place a large tripod on the river. When the ice goes out it trips a clock. Winners must guess the exact month, date, hour, minute, am/pm. Tickets are sold throughout Alaska from February 1st through April 5th. In past years the ice has gone out as early as April 20^th and as late as May 20^th.

Some years there have been several winners, and like this year, just one winner. This year’s lucky winner walked away with $303,895.

There is one main road through town with shops and a few places to eat. There is RV parking in Nenana and also a few bed & breakfast establishments. There is a sign near the main road advertising one of them. It’s called Bed and Maybe Breakfast which is a true reflection of the easy going attitude of the average Alaskan.

Fairbanks to Nenana

Leaving Fairbanks it doesn't take very long before your smack in the middle of nowhere again. There is one thing about the road between Fairbanks and Anchorage...you become aware that Alaska has a lot of trees.

We once took an Alaska Railroad trip from Anchorage to Denali. One of the tourists on the trip kept saying "man there's a lot of trees" "Alaska sure has trees". We couldn't help but agree, and probably take them for granted. We were laughing about it the entire trip.

About 30 miles outside of Nenana there is a little place to stop. It's sits half way between Nenana and Fairbanks and it's owned by a skinny little guy named Dick. Google for their website if your looking for interesting gag gifts. I'd link to it but I'm trying to keep the blog at minimum at a PG rating. I don't know how long Dick's Inn has been there but the website says it's been there almost forever.