Puget Sound

A view of Puget Sound

I spent some time in the Seattle area this week doing some work and a little exploring. I haven't been there in years, and I forgot how beautiful it really is. The weather was perfect: sunny and 70 degrees, and the entire area was going crazy as summer had finally arrived. It sounds like they had a pretty rough winter up there and everyone was certainly ready to dry out!

I couldn't believe it, but I left the house without my camera! I snapped a couple of pics with the camera in my phone, but it doesn't doesn't quite do it justice.

Mt. Rainier

Oh man....this pic is pathetic, and doesn't quite capture the essence that is Mt. Rainier. The sun was setting and you could see the moon rising in the background. I did the best I could to capture the moment. It was really amazing at the time.

Driving down the highway

Happy Birthday mamma !!

Har den äran på födelsedagen mamma!! Have a wonderful day. I wish I could be there but unfortunately I have to spend all of today on an airplane.....off to Newfoundland, then Nova Scotia and finally New Brunswick. Skål!!

Happy Fathers Day!!

Today here in the US we celebrate father's day so this to all those wonderful dad's out there. Enjoy the pics below, the first one of myself with dad in Malaysia, taken on April 4th 1981. The second one is of Phil with the kids, also taken some time in the 80's. Oh my how time flies.

Sweden pushes on....

After a controversial goal in extra-minutes, Spain scored the final goal of the match making the final score 2-1 Spain. Sweden was clearly the superior team when it came to playing skills although the Spanish definitely took the Oscar for most fake falls and injuries. Apparently Tracy was so confident in Sweden's exceptional skills that she wagered some money for a Swedish victory, alas, $50 dollars that used to be hers is now owned by a certain "Spaniard". Oh well, I guess we can't always be the best. The fight continues with a game against Russia in a couple of days.

Greek salad anyone??

In Sweden's first match of Euro 2008, they crushed defending champs Greece in a convincing victory. Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored the first goal in the 67th minute with a magnificent shot from 25 meters. No more than 5 minutes later Petter Hansson followed up with a second goal which clinched the match. Sweden 2 Greece 0. The victory created massive celebrations as illustrated in the pictures above. Can't wait to see what the celebrations will be like if Sweden beats Spain!!

Sweden's next match will be on Saturday against Spain who defeated Russia today 4-1. The game can be seen live in the US on ESPN2 at 9:00am (PST).

Sausalito Summer Salad

Over the weekend we chefed up a deelish chile-lime crab salad.  The weather has been so nice, the crab is fresh, and this salad just cannot be beat!  To give it a whirl, click here.  

Note:  we changed the cilantro to parsley (Peter is not so much a fan of cilantro) and added some fresh butter lettuce on the bottom to pull it all together. 

The Red Eye Home

It was a fun-filled week in The Last Frontier, but there really is no place like home. A few last pics from the air as the sun was setting at midnight....

Nice backdrop at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport

Who is Ted Stevens?  

FORE!!

On a cold, frosty morning in Alaska 38 teams teed off in the First American Title of Alaska 26th Annual Golf Classic. My company, CaridianBCT (formerly Gambro BCT) sponsored a hole, and I had to do my part in providing proper representation. A couple of new experiences for me on the golf course: for one, I have never been on the course at 6:30 am! (people really like to start their activities early around here!) It was still so cold and frosty....I could see my breath! Not to mention the greens were frozen, so they had to set up temporary greens....which is crazy. Why not just start at a more civilized hour? Before teeing off, a few announcements were made:

• "Be advised of the moose that is heading toward the driving range"
• "Be aware of the mother bear with her 3 cubs on hole 18"
• "Oh, and be mindful of the cow and her newborn calf on hole 13"

Only in Alaska.....

Moose heading toward the driving range.

Turned out to be a beautiful day on a beautiful course.  

Feeling pretty good about my birdie on lucky hole 13!  

I know!  I couldn't believe it either!

Gone Fishing

Marina in Resurrection Bay down the Kenai Peninsula

I had the opportunity to go fishing in Seward, AK today. It was quite an adventure! Unfortunately, the weather was not ideal, but I was so distracted by all of the sights to really notice. Although, by not ideal I mean 45 deg. and raining all day! But what is that Swedish saying Peter? There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes. So true! Not to mention we left at 3 AM! So painful! But seriously, it is like walking around in a postcard up here! The trees, the mountains, the water, the wildlife! The pictures don't even do it justice, but here is a little taste of my attempt at catching the big one.....

Getting acquainted with my pole and our trustly steed.

(Not quite what I was expecting, but I had plenty of rain gear. And how flattering it was!)


The Crew

We saw so much great wildlife! Sea otters, dolphins, seals, jumping fish, bald eagles....unbelievable!

Catch o' the day

We were hoping to catch a King Salmon, but no such luck. Spring has sprung pretty late up here this year, which has made for a later salmon season. This little fella is a ling cod, apparently not like your typical cod, but a delicacy, and illegal to keep when caught in the bay.

Giving him a little hug before I set him free.

I know he looks small, but I was pretty happy about it!

This doesn't even look real!


Taking it all in

So many waterfalls everywhere! Amazing!

Happy Birthday McGrath!

When you have a few birthday cocktails tonight, make sure you put your kids to bed before you pass out on the couch! Cheers Kev!

Back in Alaska

Picture as I am just leaving Anchorage airport at 10:30 PM.

(Note: one should not attempt to photograph and drive, but as you can see the road was pretty wide open)

I am back in Alaska for the rest of the week for some meetings, and then the customers are taking us on a little fishing adventure. I actually haven't been fishing since I was a kid and my Dad took us to a stocked pond full of Rainbow Trout. Should be a good time.....

The Biggest Little City

I headed up over the hill to Reno, NV to do some work during the week and then Peter met me on Friday to do a little exploring in Lake Tahoe. My limit in Reno is typically a maximum of 2 nights, but a graduation party on Saturday night turned it into a long weekend. Lake Tahoe was absolutely gorgeous! It was like picking up Colorado and putting it right next to a beautiful lake! Hopefully we will actually make it up skiing this year!

It has been so dry, so it was good to see the fire danger was low.

This picture does not do the true blue color of the lake justice. So beautiful!

(Also to note we were driving at high speed.)

Crossing the border back into California.



Crazy Reno cabbie who gave us a ride home from the party.



Late night snack run to vending machine down the hall.
It was like a bad Seinfeld episode. Chips actually do get stuck!
(and yes, we ended up scraping up enough change to get the bag behind it as well)