Here are a few pictures taken for my
favorite real estate agent. Karen Dunbarr
specializes in properties located in
North Idaho in Kootenai and Bonner County.
For more information on buying or selling
a home call Karen at (208)659-5630.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Commercial Photography
Here are a few pictures taken for my
favorite real estate agent. Karen Dunbarr
specializes in properties located in
North Idaho in Kootenai and Bonner County.
For more information on buying or selling
a home call Karen at (208)659-5630.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
With Renee (Chapter 4) by, Michael Blankartz
From shore it looked more like a cruise ship than the ferry I had ridden on with my grandparents. Once on board the ship, I explored both stories and found that the outer deck on the second story had a glass overhang installed with heaters. I remembered what the lady had told me about sleeping anywhere that was open so I put my bag on a plastic lounge chair. I was really excited to be able to sleep outside under the stars. I would be on the ferry for three days which meant that I didn’t have to worry about finding a safe place to sleep or make any decisions. For the first time in awhile I was like everyone else and it felt comforting.
As the ferry started to move I was watching a father and his son. The dad was acting like a child himself running around the boat looking at everything through binoculars. His son who must have been around nine year old was struggling to keep up because he couldn’t move fast enough in all the extra layers of clothing he was wearing.
“There’s an army look out tower. See it son, I bet they do all kinds of top secret military testing out here! Holy cow look at the wave this thing puts out! This has some serious tork!” The kid never took his eyes off his father. He didn’t even ask to look in the binoculars because he cared more about being with his dad than anything else.
I laughed my way to the back of the boat. The wind was strong and it sent a chill down my spine. I glanced at the reflection of my hair blowing all over the place in passing by windows. When I reached the back of the boat I saw a road of disturbed ocean all the way to the horizon. I watched the propeller turn the water white until the sun went down.
The next day there was deserted islands everywhere and the water was so still that it looked like a mirror. From the front of the boat I watched the water split into two thin patient swells until I noticed the jellyfish. Below me was so calm and clear that I could see palm size jellyfish rise to the surface like bubbles before floating away. A log passed by the boat carrying a stowaway seagull and I watched the fins of killer whales glide above the water in the distance. My breath was taken away by the sight of bald eagles flying gracefully over a sparkling sea. The inside passage of Alaska was beautiful and I felt blessed to have been able to see it. Sitting on that ferry I was just another traveler and I felt like I belonged. I wasn’t worried about being beat up while I slept or tired from carrying a huge backpack.
The first place that the ferry ported was in Ketchikan Alaska at 7:00am. I exited the boat with an hour and a half to spend on shore. While everyone else headed for the gift shops and tourist traps I walked off into the neighborhoods because I wanted to see Alaska how the locals saw it. I don’t know what I expected to see but I figured that people who lived in Alaska would be a lot different than Californians. I knew that they would be living at a slower pace. After walking down the main street for about a quarter mile I came to a small bridge. It was something that could have been located in San Diego. It was made simply out of concrete for the sole purpose of putting the road over a creek. The only difference came when I looked over the side down below. Back home there was a ninety five percent chance that the creek bed would have been dried up and filled with trash. But what I saw that day in Ketchikan were hundreds of salmon swimming up the creek. The top of the water was almost completely made with the backs of fish but I was even more impressed with the size than the quantity. When I was twelve years old I caught a five pound trout. It was the biggest fish that I ever caught and I even got recorded in the weekly fishing report in the newspaper. Almost all of these fish were about that size give or take a pound. I laughed at the fact that it would have been very easy for me to walk down the small bank and grab a trophy sized fish if I wanted too.
The neighborhoods were surrounded by woods and it felt like a bear could walk down the street at any moment. The weather was about 40 degrees and cloudy but I was warm in my green fleece jacket. I saw fathers warming up there cars before going to work and kids going to school. I guess that Alaska wasn’t as different as I thought. Even out in the middle of nowhere people were going to work and raising families. I called my mom and told her that I was alright. When I told her about the Salmon and the ferry ride she got very excited. In a way it made me even happier that I was getting to see Alaska. As I described it to her I thought more in depth about what I had seen and her reaction confirmed to me that what I was going through was special.
I took the ferry the farthest north that it went. I thought that the last town would be the best one to stay at but I was wrong. It was called Skagway and it looked more like Disneyland than a rustic Alaskan town. It was a complete tourist trap with the theme of the gold rush. I decided to return to the ferry and stay for awhile in Haines Alaska. It was only an hour south of where I was. At the front of the boat I met up with some college kids. The wind was so strong coming through the canyon that it almost blew you over. We all hung on to the railing and enjoyed the power of Mother Nature.
It was too dark to see much when we reached Haines but I wasn’t worried because I expected to be greeted by shuttles and taxis like I had seen in Ketchikan. When I saw the deserted parking lot I didn’t know how to feel. The good news was that I had found a rustic Alaskan town with minimal tourism. The bad news was that I was stranded in Alaska in the middle of the night. Luckily I was greeted by the number for the local cab company inside the phone booth and a taxi arrived in less than ten minutes. It was a jeep Cherokee that had no distinctive signs that it was a taxi other than it was the only car on the road.
“Where are you going,” the driver asked. She was a middle aged woman with brown hair and a decent figure for her age.
“To the hostel, do you know where that is?”
“Of course I do. Go ahead and put your stuff anywhere,” she replied.
The drive wasn’t far; it consisted of me making small talk, which I was getting really good at. She told me about moose attacks and how they are much more aggressive than bears. She described how they get you down and than stomp on you kicking with all of their legs.
As we drove through the town I noticed that there wasn’t a single traffic light. Actually the only intersection was a four way stop in the middle of town. The view lit up by the headlights out my window began showing nothing but trees and she told me that the hostile was two miles further. When the destination was reached a helpless smile took over my face. The hostile consisted of five little shacks that were nothing more than the size of tool sheds. There were two cabins that I would later find out were the kitchen and bathroom.
“How much do I owe you?”
“Fourteen dollars.”
“Holy mackerel,” I replied with bulging eyes and an exaggerated tone. All that I could think was that I should have walked. I had spent the money for a whole night stay in a hostile for a three mile walk. Than again I would have been walking in the pitch black dark with no idea were I was going.
“I’m sorry, my boss told me it’s eight into town and six from there to here.”
“I’m joking, here is fifteen dollars. I would give you a bigger tip but I don’t have it.
“No, let me give you your change your going to need it,” she answered looking guilty.
I didn’t feel like arguing over a dollar so I accepted back my change and said goodbye to the nice lady. It was starting to sprinkle rain but I didn’t mind because I was finally roughing it in Alaska.
“What can I do for you,” asked an older woman as she watched T.V behind the counter.
“I would like a room for a couple of days.”
“How many,” she asked releasing a very dramatic smile.
“We’ll do three for now.” I was happy to be able to have a place to stay for three days. In traveling with no destination or plan I was spending more time thinking about shelter, food and security then when I was back at home.
After I paid she told me my cabin number and asked me if I needed her to show me were it was. I told her not to worry about it because it was late and muddy outside. What I didn’t tell her was that a complete idiot could find cabin number three in a village of seven shacks. As I walked out she warned me that I had two roommates sharing the shed with me. One of them was a doctor named Brian and she couldn’t remember the other ones name. The thought of waking up too men sleeping in a shack made me nervous. Was the place so crowded that she couldn’t give me my own shed?
“It will most likely be locked so just knock and they will let you in.” She said forcing another huge smile. Her dramatic face expressions were starting to remind me of my mom’s twin sister back home. There was something about her that was very similar to my aunt but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
“Don’t you have another key?”
“No, all of the cabins come with deadbolts.” She gave an even bigger smile and I realized what she was doing. Whenever she saw the slightest chance of me getting upset she would smile to avoid confrontation. I figured that she was very insecure but I couldn’t figure out why she reminded me of my aunt other than her voice showed signs of smoking. Outside it was raining hard enough to turn the ground into one big puddle. I walked to my cabin admiring the stars while the rain touched my face. The water was soaking into my shoes filling them with water but luckily there were small stones everywhere so the ground wasn’t muddy.
After I knocked I was immediately told to hold on. He must not of been sleeping I thought. When the door opened I could make out two bunk beds, a table next to a heater and a very wrinkly old man in his underwear.
“Hello, there,” he grumbled half asleep.
I could make out another man rapped up in his sleeping bag on the bottom bunk on the left side. “You guys don’t mind if I turn on the light for a second do you?” I whispered.
“How else are you going get ready for bed?” the old man asked.
“Good point,” I laughed nervously. After closing the door I noticed that the deadbolt was a one inch hook that latched onto an open circle. I unrolled my sleeping bag on the bunk above the old man and climbed into it.
I was comforted when he started to make conversation with me because it meant that I hadn’t disturbed him too much. He was a sixty year old retired doctor named Brian. He and his wife traveled all over the world. She was a teacher and together they worked all over Asia. After retiring they moved back to Australia and he still travels once in awhile, just leaving Africa prior to arriving in Alaska. The pile of blankets was awoken by our conversation and identified himself as Ryan from Arizona. He seemed like a nice guy.
Before Ryan went outside to the bathroom he asked Brandon, “Why doesn’t your wife travel with you?”
“Oh we had grandchildren and the nesting instinct took over. Now I travel alone a lot. She says she would miss the kids to much.”
“Sounds a lot like my mom, I’m sure she’ll be the same way when I have kids.” I responded. I missed my mom.
“Oh you can bet on it. As sure as the sun coming up tomorrow, all women are like that. Well almost all of them. It’s good to travel with a bird though.”
“A bird?” I asked puzzled. I had no idea what he was talking about.
“A bloody female, You Americans I swear,” he laughed. The whole time we had been talking which was about fifteen minutes he continuously released minor farts that I tried to ignore aside from laughing into my pillow. But as he laughed he let out a loud one. I didn’t even have the option of pretending that I didn’t hear it.
“Ryan is going to come in her thinking the bathroom smelt nicer,” I said laughing.
“Trust me I’m a doctor. It’s when you can’t fart that you start worrying.”
“Ya, or if you poop in your pants,” I managed to say between laughs.
We laughed for a long time before he sighed, “Oh, let me tell you something my friend because of simplicity, I’m the happiest guy in the world.”
“I believe you,” I said smiling at the ceiling. And the truth was I really did. I was sleeping in a small building that wasn’t insulated in the middle of Alaska but I was happy. I felt really warm wrapped up tight in my sleeping bag listening to the heater sing. The mattress was softer then the lounge chair that I had been sleeping on and I didn’t feel alone. I fell asleep smiling.
Hours later I was awoken by a BANG! What was that? I was dazed from sleeping but I knew that that noise wasn’t in my head. For a second I wondered if it was a bear trying to get into our shack. As I started to become more awake I thought that a tree branch fell on our roof. After a long pause I questioned, “Did you just fall out of bed?”
“Oh my god, I did!” replied a dazed Ryan in complete shock.
We both began laughing but we didn’t start laughing hysterically until Brandon surprised us by screaming, “I thought the bloody Chinese had invaded!”
As the ferry started to move I was watching a father and his son. The dad was acting like a child himself running around the boat looking at everything through binoculars. His son who must have been around nine year old was struggling to keep up because he couldn’t move fast enough in all the extra layers of clothing he was wearing.
“There’s an army look out tower. See it son, I bet they do all kinds of top secret military testing out here! Holy cow look at the wave this thing puts out! This has some serious tork!” The kid never took his eyes off his father. He didn’t even ask to look in the binoculars because he cared more about being with his dad than anything else.
I laughed my way to the back of the boat. The wind was strong and it sent a chill down my spine. I glanced at the reflection of my hair blowing all over the place in passing by windows. When I reached the back of the boat I saw a road of disturbed ocean all the way to the horizon. I watched the propeller turn the water white until the sun went down.
The next day there was deserted islands everywhere and the water was so still that it looked like a mirror. From the front of the boat I watched the water split into two thin patient swells until I noticed the jellyfish. Below me was so calm and clear that I could see palm size jellyfish rise to the surface like bubbles before floating away. A log passed by the boat carrying a stowaway seagull and I watched the fins of killer whales glide above the water in the distance. My breath was taken away by the sight of bald eagles flying gracefully over a sparkling sea. The inside passage of Alaska was beautiful and I felt blessed to have been able to see it. Sitting on that ferry I was just another traveler and I felt like I belonged. I wasn’t worried about being beat up while I slept or tired from carrying a huge backpack.
The first place that the ferry ported was in Ketchikan Alaska at 7:00am. I exited the boat with an hour and a half to spend on shore. While everyone else headed for the gift shops and tourist traps I walked off into the neighborhoods because I wanted to see Alaska how the locals saw it. I don’t know what I expected to see but I figured that people who lived in Alaska would be a lot different than Californians. I knew that they would be living at a slower pace. After walking down the main street for about a quarter mile I came to a small bridge. It was something that could have been located in San Diego. It was made simply out of concrete for the sole purpose of putting the road over a creek. The only difference came when I looked over the side down below. Back home there was a ninety five percent chance that the creek bed would have been dried up and filled with trash. But what I saw that day in Ketchikan were hundreds of salmon swimming up the creek. The top of the water was almost completely made with the backs of fish but I was even more impressed with the size than the quantity. When I was twelve years old I caught a five pound trout. It was the biggest fish that I ever caught and I even got recorded in the weekly fishing report in the newspaper. Almost all of these fish were about that size give or take a pound. I laughed at the fact that it would have been very easy for me to walk down the small bank and grab a trophy sized fish if I wanted too.
The neighborhoods were surrounded by woods and it felt like a bear could walk down the street at any moment. The weather was about 40 degrees and cloudy but I was warm in my green fleece jacket. I saw fathers warming up there cars before going to work and kids going to school. I guess that Alaska wasn’t as different as I thought. Even out in the middle of nowhere people were going to work and raising families. I called my mom and told her that I was alright. When I told her about the Salmon and the ferry ride she got very excited. In a way it made me even happier that I was getting to see Alaska. As I described it to her I thought more in depth about what I had seen and her reaction confirmed to me that what I was going through was special.
I took the ferry the farthest north that it went. I thought that the last town would be the best one to stay at but I was wrong. It was called Skagway and it looked more like Disneyland than a rustic Alaskan town. It was a complete tourist trap with the theme of the gold rush. I decided to return to the ferry and stay for awhile in Haines Alaska. It was only an hour south of where I was. At the front of the boat I met up with some college kids. The wind was so strong coming through the canyon that it almost blew you over. We all hung on to the railing and enjoyed the power of Mother Nature.
It was too dark to see much when we reached Haines but I wasn’t worried because I expected to be greeted by shuttles and taxis like I had seen in Ketchikan. When I saw the deserted parking lot I didn’t know how to feel. The good news was that I had found a rustic Alaskan town with minimal tourism. The bad news was that I was stranded in Alaska in the middle of the night. Luckily I was greeted by the number for the local cab company inside the phone booth and a taxi arrived in less than ten minutes. It was a jeep Cherokee that had no distinctive signs that it was a taxi other than it was the only car on the road.
“Where are you going,” the driver asked. She was a middle aged woman with brown hair and a decent figure for her age.
“To the hostel, do you know where that is?”
“Of course I do. Go ahead and put your stuff anywhere,” she replied.
The drive wasn’t far; it consisted of me making small talk, which I was getting really good at. She told me about moose attacks and how they are much more aggressive than bears. She described how they get you down and than stomp on you kicking with all of their legs.
As we drove through the town I noticed that there wasn’t a single traffic light. Actually the only intersection was a four way stop in the middle of town. The view lit up by the headlights out my window began showing nothing but trees and she told me that the hostile was two miles further. When the destination was reached a helpless smile took over my face. The hostile consisted of five little shacks that were nothing more than the size of tool sheds. There were two cabins that I would later find out were the kitchen and bathroom.
“How much do I owe you?”
“Fourteen dollars.”
“Holy mackerel,” I replied with bulging eyes and an exaggerated tone. All that I could think was that I should have walked. I had spent the money for a whole night stay in a hostile for a three mile walk. Than again I would have been walking in the pitch black dark with no idea were I was going.
“I’m sorry, my boss told me it’s eight into town and six from there to here.”
“I’m joking, here is fifteen dollars. I would give you a bigger tip but I don’t have it.
“No, let me give you your change your going to need it,” she answered looking guilty.
I didn’t feel like arguing over a dollar so I accepted back my change and said goodbye to the nice lady. It was starting to sprinkle rain but I didn’t mind because I was finally roughing it in Alaska.
“What can I do for you,” asked an older woman as she watched T.V behind the counter.
“I would like a room for a couple of days.”
“How many,” she asked releasing a very dramatic smile.
“We’ll do three for now.” I was happy to be able to have a place to stay for three days. In traveling with no destination or plan I was spending more time thinking about shelter, food and security then when I was back at home.
After I paid she told me my cabin number and asked me if I needed her to show me were it was. I told her not to worry about it because it was late and muddy outside. What I didn’t tell her was that a complete idiot could find cabin number three in a village of seven shacks. As I walked out she warned me that I had two roommates sharing the shed with me. One of them was a doctor named Brian and she couldn’t remember the other ones name. The thought of waking up too men sleeping in a shack made me nervous. Was the place so crowded that she couldn’t give me my own shed?
“It will most likely be locked so just knock and they will let you in.” She said forcing another huge smile. Her dramatic face expressions were starting to remind me of my mom’s twin sister back home. There was something about her that was very similar to my aunt but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
“Don’t you have another key?”
“No, all of the cabins come with deadbolts.” She gave an even bigger smile and I realized what she was doing. Whenever she saw the slightest chance of me getting upset she would smile to avoid confrontation. I figured that she was very insecure but I couldn’t figure out why she reminded me of my aunt other than her voice showed signs of smoking. Outside it was raining hard enough to turn the ground into one big puddle. I walked to my cabin admiring the stars while the rain touched my face. The water was soaking into my shoes filling them with water but luckily there were small stones everywhere so the ground wasn’t muddy.
After I knocked I was immediately told to hold on. He must not of been sleeping I thought. When the door opened I could make out two bunk beds, a table next to a heater and a very wrinkly old man in his underwear.
“Hello, there,” he grumbled half asleep.
I could make out another man rapped up in his sleeping bag on the bottom bunk on the left side. “You guys don’t mind if I turn on the light for a second do you?” I whispered.
“How else are you going get ready for bed?” the old man asked.
“Good point,” I laughed nervously. After closing the door I noticed that the deadbolt was a one inch hook that latched onto an open circle. I unrolled my sleeping bag on the bunk above the old man and climbed into it.
I was comforted when he started to make conversation with me because it meant that I hadn’t disturbed him too much. He was a sixty year old retired doctor named Brian. He and his wife traveled all over the world. She was a teacher and together they worked all over Asia. After retiring they moved back to Australia and he still travels once in awhile, just leaving Africa prior to arriving in Alaska. The pile of blankets was awoken by our conversation and identified himself as Ryan from Arizona. He seemed like a nice guy.
Before Ryan went outside to the bathroom he asked Brandon, “Why doesn’t your wife travel with you?”
“Oh we had grandchildren and the nesting instinct took over. Now I travel alone a lot. She says she would miss the kids to much.”
“Sounds a lot like my mom, I’m sure she’ll be the same way when I have kids.” I responded. I missed my mom.
“Oh you can bet on it. As sure as the sun coming up tomorrow, all women are like that. Well almost all of them. It’s good to travel with a bird though.”
“A bird?” I asked puzzled. I had no idea what he was talking about.
“A bloody female, You Americans I swear,” he laughed. The whole time we had been talking which was about fifteen minutes he continuously released minor farts that I tried to ignore aside from laughing into my pillow. But as he laughed he let out a loud one. I didn’t even have the option of pretending that I didn’t hear it.
“Ryan is going to come in her thinking the bathroom smelt nicer,” I said laughing.
“Trust me I’m a doctor. It’s when you can’t fart that you start worrying.”
“Ya, or if you poop in your pants,” I managed to say between laughs.
We laughed for a long time before he sighed, “Oh, let me tell you something my friend because of simplicity, I’m the happiest guy in the world.”
“I believe you,” I said smiling at the ceiling. And the truth was I really did. I was sleeping in a small building that wasn’t insulated in the middle of Alaska but I was happy. I felt really warm wrapped up tight in my sleeping bag listening to the heater sing. The mattress was softer then the lounge chair that I had been sleeping on and I didn’t feel alone. I fell asleep smiling.
Hours later I was awoken by a BANG! What was that? I was dazed from sleeping but I knew that that noise wasn’t in my head. For a second I wondered if it was a bear trying to get into our shack. As I started to become more awake I thought that a tree branch fell on our roof. After a long pause I questioned, “Did you just fall out of bed?”
“Oh my god, I did!” replied a dazed Ryan in complete shock.
We both began laughing but we didn’t start laughing hysterically until Brandon surprised us by screaming, “I thought the bloody Chinese had invaded!”
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