The Ester Republic

• cheesy question

  I received this note on proposed milk regulation changes, forwarded by Lynn Mayo:Dear Friends and Family;
  
  I’m asking you for a favor, one that won’t take much time but could make a difference. A little history is in order about how I came to be asking for help. I [...]
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  Posted: November 25, 2009, 12:59pm EST
  

• Battery technology and life forms

  Here's an interesting little piece in the Economist all about a biological battery based on the biology of electric eels and other electricity-producing animals:David LaVan of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Maryland and his colleagues wanted to study the operation of living cell membranes and their [...]
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  Posted: November 04, 2009, 12:04pm EST
  

• Library meeting today!

  I've been working like mad writing up stuff for the John Trigg Ester Library meeting today. I was here until 9:30 or so last night, and was bushed. I'm still not done...it'll be fun, and Hans is off getting some ingredients for our potluck contribution. Hoo!
  
  Back' [...]
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  Posted: October 25, 2009, 10:44am EDT
  

• 350 ppm

  Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has reached about 383 parts per million. Our atmosphere is actually mostly nitrogen (78%), with a bit of oxygen (21%) and argon (1%) and a few other trace elements thrown in. Carbon dioxide, the fourth most prevalent gas, is really a very small percentage of [...]
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  Posted: October 24, 2009, 9:59am EDT
  

• Yes Men muzzled by my old ISP

  Hurricane Electric used to provide hosting for my website. I've since been on another host, and it's a good thing. Hurricane Electric doesn't know that parody is protected speech. From the Yes Men:US Chamber Shuts off TheYesMen.org and Websites of Hundreds of Other Activist Groups
  
  Free Speech,' [...]
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  Posted: October 23, 2009, 10:47am EDT
  

• A land planning alert from Roy Earnest

  The Department of Transportation has several Ester-area projects on its slate. Roy Earnest sent me this note about the plans:The STIP (Statewide Transportation & Improvement Program) is money set for the future at best and money that can be pulled at any time when it is at its [...]
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  Posted: October 15, 2009, 5:43pm EDT
  

• Luke vs. Tammie?

  Hoo, boy. The Fairbanks North Star Borough voters strike again. It's a runoff between Tammie Wilson and Luke Hopkins.
  
  Yet another reason to institute IRV or something similar.' [...]
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  Posted: October 07, 2009, 7:49am EDT
  

• Fairbanks about to learn an expensive lesson once again, probably

  Here's a little prediction: Luke Hopkins will win the plurality of the vote, but he won't get 40%, because of the thoroughly split conservative vote. So the borough will have to pay for a runoff. Election turnout has been pretty pathetic over the last several years, averaging less than 20% [...]
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  Posted: October 04, 2009, 12:17pm EDT
  

• An entertaining exercise in futility

  You know what they say: when a squirrel in Alaska is shot or relocated, a squirrel in New Mexico moves two inches northward. I discovered this blog today (via Kodiak Konfidential): The Cliffside Road Squirrel Relocation Project. Red squirrel #26 has been moved to Near Island. Note also [...]
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  Posted: October 02, 2009, 9:22am EDT
  

• A bit of silliness from my day job

  Here's some annual craziness: Flying Axes: the Farthest North Forest Sports Festival, sponsored by the UAF Resource Management Society and the School of Natural Resources & Agricultural Sciences. The video is from the 11th annual fest, last year. This year's is tomorrow, October 3, at the Fairbanks [...]
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  Posted: October 02, 2009, 8:54am EDT
  

• And then there isn't

  Well, the first lecture in the John Trigg Ester Library series has been cancelled, alas. But Marjorie is still on for the Oct. 3 literary reading at the Bear Gallery. And she wrote up her comments, so we may have them available for posting on the library website [...]
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  Posted: September 30, 2009, 10:13am EDT
  

• And then there's poetry

  Oh, right. Forgot another thing. We (the library committee/board) have been talking about this for a while, but it's finally getting off the ground: the John Trigg Ester Library Lecture Series. Marjorie Kowalski Cole has agreed to be the inaugural speaker, and will kick us off on Wednesday (Sept.' [...]
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  Posted: September 27, 2009, 4:34pm EDT
  

• Running the Reader Ragged

  I've been doing a lot of prep work for the Readers on the Run race/benefit for the library, mostly in the name of publicity, but since I'm also working on creating the back panel for the t-shirt, that means I'm looking for sponsors for the race (so I' [...]
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  Posted: September 27, 2009, 4:26pm EDT
  

• Ester fire department meeting

  Just got back from the annual meeting of the Ester fire department/district. It was pretty good turnout this year. Kate Billington is the newest EVFD, Inc., board member; Bill Kopplin stepped down and Margaret Rogers and Nancy Burnham got re-elected. George Riley spoke on the fire commission. Mark Simpson [...]
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  Posted: September 27, 2009, 4:19pm EDT
  

• Bar blogging, books, and music

  Well, the below two posts were a little rough; I'm not used to this live blogging thing. Missed parts of the conversation between Don and Mike (where Mike explained that yes he had heard of the bag ordinance and no, he'd voted against it).
  
  I spoke with Pete [...]
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  Posted: September 23, 2009, 6:50am EDT
  

• More Musick

  So I'm back, after snarfing a few munchies (some excellent black bean salsa and chips). The band is great. If you want to hear some good music, come on down. I talked with Pete Bowers about Into the Woods, and met Jack Hebert, who looked terribly familiar but I couldn't [...]
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  Posted: September 23, 2009, 7:32pm EDT
  

• Mike Musick meet and greet

  Your intrepid blogger is here at the Golden Eagle, blogging live from the scene of a political fundraiser/gathering for Mike Musick, who is running for re-election to borough assembly. (The election is October 6.) Mike arrived a few minutes ago and is looking cheerful, chatting with Joe Thomas (that's state' [...]
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  Posted: September 23, 2009, 6:14pm EDT
  

• We're screwed

  Yep, that's what the headline reads in the New York Post. Well, the edition published by the Yes Men, that is. From the press release:Early this morning, nearly a million New Yorkers were stunned by the appearance of a "special edition" New York Post blaring headlines that their' [...]
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  Posted: September 21, 2009, 6:13am EDT
  

• Possible location and industry for the first oceangoing arcology

  Arcology: portmanteau of architecture and ecology. There's only one arcology in existence right now, that I know of: Arcosanti, a village in the Arizona desert. This was originally conceived by Paolo Soleri, who wrote Arcology: The City in the Image of Man.
  
  It seems to me that' [...]
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  Posted: September 19, 2009, 10:49am EDT
  

• You read it at the Frontiersman first

  I laughed out loud when I read this. Talk about confused people! Here's the Frontiersman interviewing doofuses Adam and Kelly Hullin of Wasilla:F: How do you respond to the criticism the president has had on race issues or that those who take him to task are racist?
  
  A:' [...]
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  Posted: September 17, 2009, 9:18am EDT
  

• Another video on a similar theme

  
  
  Not one for the Banana Girls, though--a bit complicated for ukeleles, I think. [...]
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  Posted: September 16, 2009, 2:18pm EDT
  

• This is one song I'm going to learn how to play!

  
  
  Aren't we just.' [...]
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  Posted: September 16, 2009, 2:10pm EDT
  

• Of pies and libraries

  The 4th annual Li-Berry Music Festival and Pie Throwdown is coming up, and this year I am going to bake a pie for it. Jay Stange organized the first pie throwdown, and we had some absolutely delicious entries. (The first year we did the music festival we didn't' [...]
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  Posted: September 03, 2009, 8:45am EDT
  

• A worthwhile proposal

  Nadine Winters introduced this ordinance on the 20th of August. It would provide for a voluntary program by retailers (of large size) in the borough to charge a small amount for "disposable" plastic bags which would then be used to support borough recycling programs. Just in case you didn't' [...]
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  Posted: September 01, 2009, 1:15pm EDT
  

• Publication prognostication

  Right. So, assuming my various authors haven't given up on their extremely tardy publisher, the list of forthcoming books from the Ester Republic Press stands as follows:• Inside, Outside, Morningside, a collection of poems by Marjorie Kowalski Cole;
  
  • Freebird, the collected comic strip by Layla Lawlor;
  
  •' [...]
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  Posted: August 26, 2009, 8:45am EDT
  

• Even the American Library Association wants single-payer health care

  Congress, and in particular the Blue Dog Democrats (which I am increasingly suspecting are actually DINOs, or Democrats In Name Only), need to PAY ATTENTION! Here's what the ALA said in their press release:ALA Calls for ‘Public Option’ in Health Care Reform
  August 19th, 2009
  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE[...]
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  Posted: August 23, 2009, 10:20am EDT
  

• The Onion's got it right

  Again. Congress Deadlocked Over How To Not Provide Health Care
  
  "Both parties understand that the current system is broken," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters Monday. "But what we can't seem to agree upon is how to best keep it broken, while still ensuring that no elected official'" [...]
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  Posted: August 19, 2009, 9:42am EDT
  

• Archie's eyes

  
  I created this for my InDesign class last year, basing it on the photo of Archie, below. [...]
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  Posted: August 17, 2009, 10:38am EDT
  

• Update on ocean acidification in Alaska waters

  This came out on August 11 from the UAF Newsroom:New findings show increased ocean acidification in Alaska waters
  
  Fairbanks, Alaska—The same things that make Alaska’s marine waters among the most productive in the world may also make them the most vulnerable to ocean acidification. According to new findings by [...]
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  Posted: August 17, 2009, 10:12am EDT
  

• That's MY mom

  
  My mother, the publisher, recently interviewed on 49 Writers. [...]
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  Posted: August 15, 2009, 6:02pm EDT
  

• Archiecat

  
  Well, yesterday was a bummer. Our twelve-year-old cat, Archie, had to be put down. He had, it seemed, developed a tumor on his layrnx, which led to slightly louder snoring and a little bit of whuffling over the last few months (not really noticeable), and then [...]
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  Posted: August 14, 2009, 11:06am EDT
  

• The Return of the Blogging Editor

  It came from the crypt of old back issues: the publisher has FINALLY managed to get on line at the office once again. No more waiting for the computer at the bar or borrowing the laptops of various friends! The office computer is functional, thanks to the amazing Darwin Cameron, [...]
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  Posted: August 13, 2009, 10:49am EDT
  

• The Editors' Revenge: hilarity at the expense of politicians

  It's an occupational hazard: editors, if the ones I know are representative of the field, compulsively edit. And that includes the often poorly composed political speech. We do it for money, we do it for amusment, we do it because we love picking nits. Vanity Fair decided they couldn't stand' [...]
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  Posted: July 28, 2009, 1:17pm EDT
  

• Slow Money

  Just discovered this interesting site, Slow Money, another form of localism in economics and food. The principles of the concept (quoted from the website) are:I. We must bring money back down to earth.
  
  II. We must bring our money home. We must put money back into local [...]
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  Posted: July 27, 2009, 8:09am EDT
  

• Gibberish

  This morning on the news I heard part of Sarah Palin's farewell address. It was gibberish. It was full of clichés, incomplete sentences, full of stereotypes of the military, of the media, of government, whiny excuses for why she did or didn't do X, Y, or Z. This transcript' [...]
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  Posted: July 27, 2009, 7:08am EDT
  

• History of Alaska music

  Suzanne Summerville just sent me a link to her website, AlaskaMusic.net; rather an interesting site. The actual name of the page is North to Future: Musical reflections on Alaska's history. There are lists of songs that pertain to Alaska, some lyrics and recordings, a chronology of events in Alaska [...]
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  Posted: July 22, 2009, 8:15am EDT
  

• Fruit, fruit, glorious fruit

  Here's a really interesting little slideshow on fruit and seeds and the techniques plants use to spread their progeny. One of the fruits that interested me was the citron called Buddha's hand:
  
  
  
  You learn something new every day!' [...]
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  Posted: July 21, 2009, 8:41am EDT
  

• The Politics of Food

  I plan on going to this lecture tonight, and thought I'd spread the word:
  
  Politics of FOOD - Personal Responsibility vs. Social Responsibility
  
  A FREE lecture by noted author and educator
  
  Marion Nestle, Ph.D.
  
  Wednesday, July 15, 2009
  7:00 p.m., Schaible Auditorium
  
  Marion Nestle is' [...]
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  Posted: July 15, 2009, 11:25am EDT
  

• The Banana Girls posing in front of the Golden Eagle

  Here we are on Saturday morning, shortly before heading over to Mali's for yet another practice session in her little house before heading into the parade lineup on the 4th. A kind gentleman took lots of stills for us while we got everyone together and in the proper place. A' [...]
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  Posted: July 08, 2009, 1:57pm EDT
  

• A little Fourth of July problem

  Her Editorship made a tactical error regarding the reportage on the Ester Fourth of July Parade: no lists.
  
  Every year, the volunteers at signup create a big long list of who got what paper plate number. They give this to the judges, who assign prizes and make up [...]
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  Posted: July 08, 2009, 10:34am EDT
  

• The Fourth of July Parade

  Jesse Hensel made this excellent little slide show with interviews about the Fourth of July parade in Ester.
  
  
  
  This is an intriguing and very positive contrast to some of the comments that were posted on the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner's blog in reaction to Rebecca George's [...]
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  Posted: July 07, 2009, 9:40am EDT
  

• Ester Fourth of July information

  Every year this time, I get lots of people calling me wanting to know when the parade starts and how they sign up. I'm not sure why folks are under the misapprehension that I know what's going on, but they keep calling, and I am afraid that I have not' [...]
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  Posted: June 30, 2009, 10:31am EDT
  

• Why the post office has such a miserable reputation

  With apologies to the many postal workers I know who do a great job, today I encountered a frustrating example of idiocy in the post office. Three returned copies of Agroborealis, addressed to people in Cuba, bore this stamped notice:"Return to sender for correction. Country name must be in English" [...]
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  Posted: June 29, 2009, 8:00am EDT
  

• What you can get me if you want to give me a present

  I discovered this delightful website today, and was immediately entranced. Dandelion! Fire from Heaven! In the Library! Talk about cool.
  
  One of the creepiest books I've ever read is Das Parfum, by Patrick Süskind. I read the English translation. I have not seen the movie. The book' [...]
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  Posted: June 24, 2009, 2:44pm EDT
  

• Desperate Househusband makes the News-Miner

  Dan Darrow got himself the spotlight article this week at the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. And, speaking as his regular publisher, I can attest to the truth of this little tidbit:“I wait for the deadline to come and panic,” he said.Yep, that's my cartoonist.
  
  The article describes his [...]
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  Posted: June 23, 2009, 6:11pm EDT
  

• Banana Nah Tonite!

  [...]
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  Posted: June 20, 2009, 3:49pm EDT
  

• Emma Creek West: they still haven't fixed that public planning process

  Attention Esteroids! The borough (read: the Land Management department) is planning to go forward with Emma Creek West. From the Butteris:I did talk to Karrie Shaw, and she confirmed that they are indeed going to try and push through the subdivision, as a considerable amount of money has [...]
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  Posted: June 15, 2009, 4:37pm EDT
  

• Innocent Americans and Sarah Palin

  Jamie is stirring up a spot of trouble with one of his cartoons (so what else is new?) when it appeared on Alaska Report:
  
  The cartoon links to the original post on Jamie's blog, Ink & Snow.' [...]
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  Posted: June 07, 2009, 7:09pm EDT
  

• Marching band update

  Our band appears to consist of Kate, Hannah, Leah, perhaps Cameron, maybe Debbie Rimer, and myself. (So far.) We've chosen two songs (two genres) with two more yet to be decided on. Next practice: Sunday at 1 at the Golden Eagle Saloon porch. The first practice was great fun, with' [...]
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  Posted: June 02, 2009, 3:20pm EDT
  

• Ester Community Market!

  
  Or maybe it's the Ester Farmers' Market, or the Ester Village Farmers' & Craft Market, or just the Ester Market. Whatever it is, it's coming to a community park near you, very soon! [...]
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  Posted: May 29, 2009, 4:48pm EDT