Tales from an Alaskan Cabin: Chapter Fifteen

Gerald told this story:

When I was driving in from Canada, I made one mistake. I didn’t fill up at the border. I don’t know why I didn’t. Maybe it was the stress of going through border patrol, or it was the hours I had been putting into driving. I was tired and not thinking correctly. Whatever the reason, my car sputtered to a stop about 30 miles from where I thought the border was – the place that was marked by the U.S. flag on one side and the Canadian Maple Leaf on the other.

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Stories from an Alaskan Cabin: Chapter Thirteen

John got up absurdly early and started puttering around the cabin by the light of his battery-powered lantern. The sun wouldn’t be up for a while. Darkness covered the cabin like a threadbare blanket.

John stoked the fire, and threw some paper into the wood stove. He added some kindling and then threw a larger log on the top of the pile. Soon, the fire was warming up the cabin. He went to the sink area and grabbed the coffee pot. He put coffee grounds in first and then added water. He put that in top of the stove.

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Stories from an Alaskan Cabin: Chapter Twelve

“Ordinarily, I would’ve told you a story about the Northern Lights or why there are no penguins in Alaska, but I guess I will save those for later,” Gerald began. “The idea that common sense isn’t so common was something that my grandfather said on several occasions. He didn’t really think that schooling was a necessity, but he encouraged his grandchildren to go to college. He just warned them about the dangers of getting too educated. He thought too much education sabotaged common sense if you weren’t aware of what was happening. I want to tell you about the time that led to my grandfather and me gaining respect for each other and learning to love each other’s differences and what we had to bring to the table in our interactions.”

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The Mystery of the Brown Goo: A New Zealand Suitcase Caper

When our bags came off the plane in Auckland, one of them had a putrid smelling Korean sauce with the consistency of jelly spilled on it. The brown sauce covered about six square inches with a spicy-smelling stain. It stank, and we had no idea where it came from. People aren’t supposed to bring food into New Zealand; it’s a huge deal. If the food isn’t declared or disposed of, you could face a $400 NZ fine. We got rid of our food in Seoul.

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My Granddad’s Trial

Everyone was in the hall, and I mean, everyone. It made sense for them to all be there. Most of the people were writers, painters, musicians, and teachers. Those who weren’t volunteered to do jobs they enjoyed for the society they lived in. Most of the mundane jobs were handle by automatons. People got to choose whatever they wanted to do. From childhood, everyone was exposed to every possibility, and they gravitated toward what they liked best. A kid in the city could grow up to be a farmer if that is what he or she wanted. It didn’t take a parent to show the way anymore though many children did follow their parents’ professions.

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‘Frozen 2’ Builds on its Predecessor while Exploring Creativity and Revealing Human Nature

“Frozen 2” is one of those rare sequels that is better than the original. The team, somehow, remained true to the source material, created characters that are like real people, and explored several levels of story depth, including creativity and what people are really like. I loved “Frozen” so much that my roommates in Malta got me Olaf themed gifts for Christmas.  I’m not saying I planned our entire New Zealand trip around the release of “Frozen 2,” so I could see it in English, but… In case I need to say it, spoilers after the trailer.

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Mars Planetary Outpost No. 23

Colonization of Mars was doomed to failure the first few times. There just wasn’t enough knowledge about living on a planet that wasn’t Earth and too much belief in the ability of scientists without the aid of creatives to survive. Smaller groups didn’t fare well because of interpersonal dynamics that were either ignored or cropped up after a year living alone together. When two people out of six start bickering and sides are drawn in a place with limited oxygen, there just isn’t any good way to go outside and take a breather.

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Exterminating the Ice Goddess

Author’s Note: This is one of the stories that I have proposed to turn into a book. Leave your comments and let me know if you would be interested in more of the story.

The cave mouth opened up in front of us like a lesser dragon’s maw searching for its prey. It was foreboding, but several members of the township below had disappeared into it. The council hired us to find out what was happening and to take care of the problem. I held the torch up to the mouth of the cave. It was tall enough for me to be able to extend my arm without the flame reaching the roof. My partner leaped up and turned in midair to land upside down. Her leather-clad, three-toed feet grasped the rock of the cave above.

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Stories from an Alaskan Cabin: Chapter Eleven

This is the story John told:

I have a friend who works with Fire and Rescue in Anchorage. Every year, he has to go down to the mud flats to rescue tourists who think it’s fun to hike on them. They don’t realize that Turnagain’s bore tide comes in so quickly, and sometimes, they get stuck in the mud. More than one pair of shoes has been left on the flats as people fled the coming tide. Still, in spite of numerous warning signs, it seems that many tourists are oblivious to the danger. Some are more oblivious than others.

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Tales from an Alaskan Cabin: Chapter Ten

Lee took a sip of his drink and decided to start his story before Gerald or John could jump in:

In the early centuries of the Far East, India was the most populous country in the world. India’s population exploded to levels not seen before the modern era. They attributed their success to the amount of beef they ate, and every person from rajah to peasant ate as much beef as he or she could afford. The rajah worked to expand the borders of India in order to get more pasture land for the cattle, but no matter how much land he was able to take, the population grew faster than the growth of the herds could handle.

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