Fairbanks to Stockholm to the San Juans

Stockholm was a welcome respite from the freezing slush of Fairbanks...

Beautiful facilities at the University...

But it was the wandering, tasting, and reflecting that were most captivating

The Morning Wind Spreads
The morning wind spreads its fresh smell.
We must get up and take that in,
that wind that lets us live.
Breathe before it's gone.
Rumi

and then a stop in Seattle and a trip to the San Juans via the tulip festival and Popeye the Harbor Seal

The way to heaven: By Chung Dong-muk

I followed a green glimmer
that sparkled after the rain
And realised I could walk
all the way to heaven.

I embraced all those stories
I heard along the way
Not glancing back to see
How far I had walked.

I walked on and on,
And realised I could walk
All the way to heaven.

The way was clear and bright
As the dew of early morning.

Life's Good ON the Snow

I'm riding shotgun down the avalanche

Tumbling and falling down the avalanche

So be quiet tonight the stars shine bright
On this mountain of new fallen snow
But I will raise up my voice into the void
You have left me nowhere to go

S. Colvin - J. Leventhal