Friday Funny 08/25 (Missing Zak's)

With cream, or 1/2 + 1/2.

One of the things we will miss, being away from Wrangell, is Zak's Cafe. To our good fortune, we have a place in Wrangell that serves food so good, we just have to go there to enjoy a delicious home cooked meal.

Sometimes in the morning, we have some kind of oatmeal, steel cut, 7 grain, or hot granola, if we are up to making that. Most of the time, it's cold cereal, or nothing.

When noon or so rolls around, we are usually starving, and no one wants to heat up last nights leftovers, (if there are any). A quick plan is made, lunch, a trip to the Post Office, possibly the library, probably taking things to storage, or retrieving something, and shopping, if needed.

I like to check out the day's specials, which James, (owner and chef), posts on Facebook Zak's Cafe. Sometimes he takes photos, and posts those on Facebook Wrangell Community Board. Everything always sounds, and looks yummy.

For example: this is a loaded pizza for $10.00!

The cafe is named after their nephew Zak, and not to slight anyone, the specials board is recommended by their niece, Robyn. 

Cafe atmosphere, comfortable, and cozy.

There's always something delicious on the specials board, sometimes Katherine has to erase the selections, because they sell out. Katherine, who is also an owner, the only wait staff, and her Facebook page says she's the boss. 😃

Here's what Robyn is recommending for the day.

Like this day, they had also advertised Amish Bread B.L.T with cheese Panini, and it was gone when we got there. I had the chicken salad, and it was delicious.

James, who comes to Wrangell from Maine, and Katherine, who is a lifelong resident and Tlingit, from the Frog clan, do everything at Zak's. This married couple is responsible for creating the homemade goodies that we eat. Mostly all of the bread, and all cookies, cakes, pies, cheesecakes, and the parfaits are made by hand, and all are delicious. If you order a hamburger, the bun will be handmade, and your choice of fries, handmade potato salad, or green salad side will complete your meal.

Hungry yet?

Here's Bill's double hamburger, with bacon, japalenos, cheese, and BBQ sauce. I have the honey mustard chicken salad, and just because, a side of fries. Most of the time, I don't hardly eat any dinner in the evening, since this fills me up till bedtime.

Getting his mouth around his burger.....

A visit is like a "Cheers" episode. "Hey Norm!". Where everybody knows your name. 🎶  The usual gang will get all the latest news from each other, talking across tables, or introducing themselves to a new person/tourist, and inviting them to tell us all about themselves.

Remember this?

The regulars all have the usual orders, peculiarities, and places to sit. Katherine and James have pretty much memorized all of the preferences, and usually delivers coffee to one, iced tea to another, or knows whether you like onions, or mayo, or plain iceberg lettuce. Katherine will save an apple pie for Bill. She knows if she made a fresh one, it won't last long, and Bill won't get one if it isn't saved for him. She heats it up in the microwave, and then serves it with vanilla ice cream. It certainly doesn't get any better than that!

Katherine, explaining something to Bill.

James, on a foray out of the kitchen.

Be careful if you are a sports fan, James, being from the other side of the US, will regale you with the latest scores, and triumphs from his favorite east coast teams. You can have a lively discussion.

Stop reading now James.... Shhhh, don't tell James, the Patriots are not my favorite team. 

Thinking back three years ago to our first evening in Wrangell, our first visit to downtown Wrangell, we ate at Zaks. To be honest though, it's not just their cooking we will miss. Katherine, and James are funny, warm, generous, kind people. We enjoy their company, and a visit to Zak's is more than just eating a meal. It's sharing food with friends.

Italian sign in the cafe. Translation; Shut up and eat.

What is your favorite restaurant? Which delicious menu item can't you live without?

As always, we enjoy hearing from you, either here in comments or on our Facebook Denali Rose Sailboat page.

Friday Funny 08/18 (Off to the Library)

I love to read.

We do more than read at the library. Since moving to Denali Rose, all of our internet needs come from our ATT cell data plan. We can't afford to do most of the updates that all of our devices require, so we park ourselves at the library for an afternoon, and use their free wifi.

Wrangell's Irene Ingle Library, is a modern facility, with a terrific selection of books, DVD's, magazines, newspapers, children's section, and checkout equipment.

Irene Ingle Library in Wrangell.

This summer, we have had to carefully pick our times to visit. When a cruise ship comes in, many of the passengers beeline it for the wifi, and it gets crowded. That's when the wifi sloooows down to a crawl. Cruise ships are the smaller ones, and don't come to Wrangell every day, so some days are better than others. Last winter, of course, no ships, kids are in school, most folks at their jobs, and we have it all to ourselves.

Bill, catching up on "Cruising World" magazine.

Watching the updates roll by.

We have three computers, three ipads, two cell phones, and my kindle. Most of these devices are used for navigation, or backups to the navigation. That's why it's important that we keep the weather, and the navigational aids up to date. There are power strips located at every seating area, so power to devices is readily available.

In my previous life, (in which I wore formal office clothing), one of my last projects, was to work with an outstanding group of people who were awarded a large federal grant. The program was named "OWL", for Online With Libraries.

We had funds and sponsorship from:

• US Department of Commerce, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program
• The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
• The Rasmuson Foundation
• Alaska Department of Education and Early Development

We worked to bring as large an internet connection to 96 libraries as we could afford, and new computers, laptops, digital learning, staff training, and video conferencing. I'll make the story short, and just say there were challenges, meetings, setbacks, and successes. 

Here's a link to a short youtube video that the Gates Foundation made in Craig, Alaska, about the program. Craig is a small fishing community on Prince of Wales Island in Southeast Alaska.  

Libraries: Expanding Boundaries, and Shrinking Borders.

I had no idea at the time, that later, I would be using, and reaping the benefits of the hard work that we put into this project. Hooray for serendipity! 

Yes, like this!

As always, we enjoy hearing from you, either here in comments or on our Facebook Denali Rose Sailboat page.

Friday Funny 08/11 (What is Where?)

Or maybe that should be: Things I can't find now; Things I can't find later; Things I'll never find.

I've written a bit about my organization, and labeling on Denali Rose in previous posts. I've asked myself the question; Can I remember where I put things, without writing it down? Here's the answer.... nothing. I remember nothing. I usually go out and buy an item again, because I couldn't find it, or I didn't want to look for it.

It's a good thing, to know where the booze is, when you can't find anything else.

Here's what that looks like.

Locker above lower dinette. I know when to have a margarita! Thanks Alexa.

Under stairs to back cabin

In bilge, before aft head door

We're stocked up for a couple of months of cruising. We have crackers, cookies, nuts, cheeses, snacks, and the freezer is full of proteins. We'll need to replenish our supply of orange juice, creamer, milk, and fresh veggies along the way, as available. We might even catch a fish or two, and possibly some crab and shrimp. One can always hope. Oh, yeah, and cat food, must have the cat food.

Under one side of dinette bench

Notes about what is where on the lid.

We filled the upper bunk in the v-berth, complete with the lists with what is up there.

I must own the Rubbermaid company by now.

We use plastic bags all of the time, so I made this holder for them. Sandwich, quart, and gallon bags are ready for a quick grab.

Need a bag? Pick a bag.

Here's a great idea I got from The Boat Galley.

Whiteboard for fridge contents.

The whiteboard is for the contents of the refrigerator. This keeps us from forgetting what we have in there, eliminating the science experiment gone bad. The other two notes describe what's in the "snack locker". I think I should get another whiteboard, it'll just fit there. Oh, and check out the lower left corner, doesn't everyone have caulk, and a temperature reader on their countertop in the galley?

V-Berth

I made diagram in Google Draw, so it can be updated in our shared Drive. This is the v-berth, with descriptions of what is underneath, and in the drawers. I left plenty of room for Bill to put Denali Rose's spare parts.

Above and below waterline.

This diagram is a very important one, but I didn't do it. The previous owners left this terrific map of the above and below the waterline thru-hulls. Land-lubber interpretation; Holes in boat, yikes. No worries, we have a wooden bung tied on a string to each lever that opens and closes each thru-hull, so if the fitting fails we whack a stopper in the hole.

No need to label the first aid kits, but maybe we need to document or label where they are. 

Marine Medical kit

The everyday stuff.

The large kit is behind the settee cushions in the pilothouse. We don't store anything on top, so that it is an easy pull and out it comes quickly. The everyday stuff plus a bit more, is in the step leading to the galley. I should probably put red cross stickers on them, but also these locations are shared in the "welcome onboard" speech for guests.

I still need to do a diagram of what is under our bed, and inside a few more lockers, but like everything else, this is a work in progress.

Do you know where your "stuff" is? Do you keep a description on paper, computer, or is it in your head? Would you ever do this in your house?

As always, we enjoy hearing from you, either here in comments or on our Facebook Denali Rose Sailboat page.

Friday Funny 08/04 (Leaving the Dock)

Sitting at the dock of the bay...... 

I think we are leaving the marina, and heading out for some fun. It's best not to tell anyone exactly what day we plan on, because then everyone wants to know why you aren't gone, (if you're late), or that they missed you, (if you leave early). We are also waiting on the USPS to deliver a part we need. The brand new water depth transducer was DOA out of the box, and we need the replacement. How much water under the keel is kind of an important piece of information to have. Right now, it says we have 4 feet, no matter if it is high or low tide, that can't be correct!

Check out the weather reports on Storm, a Weather Underground app, for Wrangell, and Gustavus, (Glacier Bay - our intended destination).

Nice! Summer has finally arrived in Southeast Alaska.

I'm hoping for whales, dolphins, and bears, oh my! We're also meeting up with friends in Glacier Bay, who recently retired, and are bringing their sailboat from Valdez. The weather window for them to cross the Gulf of Alaska from southcentral to southeast Alaska, is now, and they are on their way. That means we need to be on our way as well, in order to buddy boat with them when they arrive.

Great website, many boaters around the world use it.

We haven't been on a lengthy excursion anywhere in quite awhile, and I'm going to need to brush up on my nautical knowledge. Lights, day marks, cans, buoys, rules, as well as knots, and ship procedures. Many things have changed now that we have all new, and rearranged electronics.

Bill is finishing up his projects, and I am trying to clean up, organize, stow things away, and (most important), document where everything goes. It seems I rearrange every time, and if I don't write it down, who knows if we will ever find things again. "Honey, where did you put the TP this time?"

Unexpected chores added.

Bill got to do (another) unexpected chore. We heard the bilge pump running in the middle of the night, it's not a comforting sound. He discovered a leak in the head pump mechanism, and since he had been planning to refit to electric, now seemed the time. So in addition to the new instrument install, he has (unplanned) re-bedded the companionway hatch cover, fixed a problem water leak into the pilothouse, and rebuilt the companionway stairs.

Currently, I believe I got the better chore with putting away provisions. 

 Can goods locker-all labeled

The Foodsaver is well used.

Organizing foodstuffs

The sewing machine will be put away, I think I've done enough for now. I accomplished all of the projects that I had put on my list for this summer, and I feel great about that. I have more to do, but it can wait for later.

It's going to be so nice-  

  a. have our home back, clean, clutter free, operational, 

and 

  b. to go have some fun exploring, relaxing, and enjoying ourselves.

PS, my lifelong friend's mother wrote a book about coming to Alaska in the early 1950s. I can't wait to sit in some picturesque bay, with a glass of wine, and read about her adventures. 

Check it out on Amazon.

As always, we enjoy hearing from you, either here in comments or on our Facebook Denali Rose Sailboat page.