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March 28, 2024

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No Time for Tuckerman -

Thursday, August 3, 2023

The Quitter Returns! -

Monday, March 21, 2022

Putting the goober in gubernatorial -

Friday, January 28, 2022

Aurora Hunt Successful

Saturday night while most people are hitting the bars and partying – Mudflats contributor Carl Johnson, Frank Stelges and I journeyed to an undisclosed location to hunt the elusive aurora. (I have been sworn to secrecy) While our prey took a long time to show – when it did – it was a glorious one. The moon was out in full force, and barely a cloud in the sky, the stars were shining bright and thankfully the temperature stayed relatively nice… so here my mud-puppies are the spoils of a victorious hunt. The mighty aurora.

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Do Alaskans Like Fish More than Pot?

Me: Hey, Alaska! Alaska: WHAT? We’re busy fishing. Me: Just a couple quick questions… you can keep your line in the water. Alaska: Make it fast, the silvers are running. I don’t want to get distracted. Me: Would you rather have more money in the coffers of the state, or make sure you always have fish? Alaska: Fish. Me: Would you rather have people earning more money and boosting the economy, or make sure people can earn a living fishing. Alaska: Fishing. Me: Would you rather smoke pot, or salmon? Alaska: I can’t do both? Me: No. Alaska: OK, salmon….

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Salmon: Feel the Love, Have the Party

I fell completely in love with an ad campaign. I know. Between the halibut haters at Domino’s and “The Salmon Project,” I should have whiplash. The campaign is brilliant. It’s got a fantastic kiss mark with a salmon in it! If I were a tattoo girl, that would be my pick. It’s genius. Salmon is more than something on a plate — it’s a lifestyle.   I first noticed all this when I stopped to get supplies at the Seward Safeway on the way to my very own salmon project: Operation “Acrobatic Coho!” (Mission accomplished. Thanks for asking!) Even if…

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Open Thread – Banana Dragon

My kid made a dragon out of a banana using a toothpick. And now, I’m putting it on the internets. Because, Banana Dragon!  

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Palin: In or Out, or In… Or Out. Maybe.

In the never ending edge-of-your-seat boredom that is Sarah Palin’s future “political career,” we’ve got some hot breaking news! Remember how she wasn’t considering a senate run in Alaska? Then, she was… unless someone other than Joe Miller and Mead Treadwell stepped up to run. Nobody has. Still just them. Yet now she says she currently has no plans to run. Someone else can do it. But she’s also not ruling anything out. She’s not closing the door. Back in the day, an open door was God’s message to “plow through.” Now, it’s merely an option. It’s just there, open,…

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Bird of the Week – Fiery-Billed Aricari

WC will break away from Alaska bird species for a bit and show some of the tropical species of the Western Hemisphere. The Fiery-Billed Aricari is a cousin to the better-known Toucan species. The spectacular bill has evolved to allow the bird to pluck, crush and eat fruits, berries and nuts. And it’s worth a close-up view. You can see the serrated edges in this closer view; they allow the bird to hold fruits and nuts. The bird is surprisingly delicate as it uses that big bill, plucking tiny berries and working the skin off of big fruits. The spectacular…

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Gone Fishin’ in Seward, Alaska (PHOTOS)

It’s back to school time here in Anchorage, and on the last day of summer vacation, two of your editors here decided to seize the day and head south to go fishing with The Seward Fishing Club. Sometimes it’s necessary to reboot the system, cleanse the soul, and get off dry land. We loaded the Subaru, left Anchorage in the predawn light, and skimmed down Turnagain Arm, around the bend and up the other side to Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. The weather was sprinkly and grey and Shannyn and I were both prepared with good waterproof outerwear, and hot coffee. The…

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Part Two – Detroit: An American Autopsy

This is part two of our excerpt from Charlie LeDuff’s Detroit: An American Autopsy (out in hardcover now). You can read part one here. Journalists parachuted into town. The subjects in my Detroit News stories started appearing in Rolling Stone and the Wall Street Journal, on NPR and PBS and CNN, but under someone else’s byline. The reporters rarely, if ever, offered nuanced appraisals of the city and its place in the American landscape. They simply took a tour of the ruins, ripped off the local headlines, pronounced it awful here and left. And it is awful here, there is…

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Detroit: An American Autopsy – Book Excerpt Part One

Charlie LeDuff is awesome. He’s the ultimate local news man. You may remember his name from a post I did on a hilarious but pointed broadcast on police response time.  A couple of months ago he released Detroit: An American Autopsy – it looks amazing and couldn’t have been better timed. I’ve just started reading it and highly recommend that you do as well. You’ll notice in the excerpt below he even has an Alaska connection.  Look for part two tomorrow, and my review of the book in a couple of weeks. (I’m not that slow of a reader… just…

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Bob Shavelson at Salmonstock

Check out this video Inlet Keepers Exec Dir. Bob Shavelson spoke at Salmonstock 2013 explaining to everyone at Salmonstock why they were there. Chuitna, HB77, No Pebble – the fight is varied but together we can win. Go to InletKeeper.org for more info.

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