Alaska...

I came across this quote and, having lived in Alaska for most of my life, but also having traveled pretty extensively, this quote rang very true to me. It is from Henry Gannett who was the chief geographer for the Harriman Alaska Expedition.

"There is one word of advice and caution to be given to those intending to visit Alaska for pleasure or sight-seeing. If you are old, go by all means; but if you are young, wait. The scenery of Alaska is much grander than anything of its kind in the world, and it is not well to dull one's capacity for enjoyment by seeing the finest first."

It has always amazed me that I see the mountains everyday, yet they never get dull.

I have driven along the Seward Highway, which lies at the base of mountains and on the edge of the ocean, hundreds of times, yet I always stop for photographs and I am always amazed at the grandeur.

We are now entering "tourist season" in Alaska. It is the annual migration of millions of people who flock to see and experience Alaska for a short period of time. I sometimes forget that I experience daily, what most people dream of "one day seeing".

How I love this state!!!

So..We..Kinda..WON A CRUISE..and were given a new TV!

Howdy -

So, it has become a tradition to take part in the Alaska Visitors Industry Charity Walk with our friends. This walk raises money for several local non-profits. At the end of the walk they have a big event with live music, food and a lot of prizes from the Travel Industry. Last year we won a trip on the Alaska Railroad to Denali, a couple nights at a hotel and a river rafting trip, which was awesome. So, this year we go, not expecting to win anything of course, and what happens? We end up winning a 7 night Caribbean cruise for two!!! So, we just have to use the cruise by the end of March 2008. We get to pick the cruise and the dates. We are looking at December or January for the cruise. It should be A LOT of fun!! The most amazing part is that for the two or three weeks before the walk we had been looking at booking a 7 night Caribbean cruise as a vacation for us. So, it's pretty amazing how it all worked out!!

ALSO....

We have some friends of the family who are VERY well off. They recently purchased a 60 inch plasma TV for their new house and were getting rid of their, nearly new, 42 inch HDTV. SO, we were given their old TV! The TV that we had was fine, we bought it new from Best Buy a year and a half ago, but it was nothing compared to this new TV. We sold our old TV and stand on Craigslist for $250.

SO...

We got a cruise and TV and still came away with $250.00 more then we started with.

We are feeling pretty blessed.