Alaska Stories, Moose Droppings Alaskan Style

Just about everywhere in Alaska can you find souvenirs made of moose droppings.  These moose nuggets are shellacked and sold as everything  from earrings and jewelry to swizzle sticks and Christmas ornaments as well as other “fine” touristy collectibles.   Moose droppings abound!

It was something odd that I encountered repeatedly when I first moved here.  Still have no real idea why Alaskans or anyone visiting Alaska would want to collect moose poop souvenirs…

There’s even a festival held yearly that celebrates moose poop!

From Anchorage Daily News:

 

Only in Talkeetna is moose poop worth $1,000

MOOSE DROPPING FESTIVAL: 5-K run won by Grizwald and Pratt is just a part of the fun.

 By RON WILMOT

Anchorage Daily News

 (Published: July 10, 2005)

In 1989, a woman who said she was with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals contacted board members of the Talkeetna Historical Society. She was indignant, outraged, and disgusted.

She somehow got the idea that people in Talkeetna drop live moose from an airplane — and have the gall to organize a celebration around it. It took some work to convince her that, no, the good people of Talkeetna do not drop live moose from airplanes. They drop moose droppings.

Gina Hansen, manager of the Talkeetna Historical Society museum, was on the board at the time.

“She was aghast. She was outraged,” recalled Hansen with a chuckle. “That was priceless. That will go down in our history.”

And so on Saturday it once again rained moose droppings at the 33rd annual Talkeetna Moose Dropping Festival.

According to local legend, the event was hatched over a round of drinks at the Fairview Inn as a way to raise money for the historical society. Locals combed the woods and gathered the saw-dusty moose nuggets and painted them, then sold each dropping with a number printed on it. The droppings were then dropped out of an airplane toward a target. The dropping closest to the target won a prize.

The droppings no longer fall from a plane, said Clarence Wells of the local Myron F. “Ace” Ebling VFW Post 3836. That’s because the original target area, the softball field near the old Talkeetna airstrip, bustles with activity during the Moose Dropping Festival softball tournament.

 One year, he recalled, the droppings were released from a helicopter. That didn’t work too well either.

“The downwash of the helicopter just blew them everywhere,” he said.

So this year, the droppings were released from a bag suspended high above the ground by a cable. The cable ran from a large tree to a tall post.

People lined up at a booth in downtown Talkeetna to pay $5 a nugget. As they bought the brightly painted nuggets, VFW members wrote numbers on the nuggets and gave each person a ticket.

Two thousand nuggets were dropped at 6 p.m. Saturday, and the nugget closest to the target won $1,000. Second place earned $500, third through ninth paid out $100, and the nugget furthest from the target was worth $250.

“That way everyone’s got a chance,” said Wells, 70, with a smile.

The throngs of people who flocked to Talkeetna Saturday were there for more than moose droppings and sunny skies.

A 5-kilometer run attracted almost 200 runners and walkers. The softball tournament, played on a cozy field nestled amongst the trees near the old airstrip, attracted 12 teams from around the state. A parade featured floats from local businesses, marching    bagpipers from the Anchorage Scottish Pipe Band, blaring fire trucks from the Talkeetna Volunteer Fire Dept. and women from the Red Hat Society.

There was also live music and booths featuring pottery, crafts, prints, food (deep-fried halibut, burgers, turkey legs, bratwurst, Cajun-fried catfish) and one craft product that is certainly unique to Alaska:

Cucumber-melon-scented moose poop fire starters.

Proprietors Robert Georgeson and Casey Steinau of Big Lake soaked moose nuggets in paraffin wax and stuck them together to form a candle-shaped fire starter.

“It’s Alaska sawdust,” Georgeson said as Steinau, wearing a baseball cap festooned with droppings, talked with customers. “It makes perfect fire starter.”

I didn’t copy the rest of the article as it didn’t relate any more to the moose dropping part of the festival.

Alaskans can be a little backwater, a little off.  I still discover things about Alaska and Alaskans that leave me shaking my head and thinking, “Only in Alaska!”   I’ll share more about our unique weirdness in upcoming blogs.


As The Story Goes, Part 1

How I Met My Prince

Two years ago, after being made to move back to Washington by my Alaskan based company, I moved in with Dear Friend. He secured a townhouse in my hometown for us to live in. Dear Friend was single, a guy and one of the most supportive people around me. I started working nights in Tacoma and he offered to watch Dude. On the surface, we functioned as a couple. We agreed to stay roommates until Dude had completed the school year. This was in August. By October, Dear Friend met someone and fell in love. He suddenly started skipping out on his share of the bills, his car got repossessed and then he told me about her in mid-November. He then announced that he was moving out at the end of the lease and in with her.  The end of the lease was February, not June.

So during this time, I didn’t date. I was extremely busy with work and I had a guy roommate I didn’t want to explain. Besides, I had about all the attention I needed at work. I was a female dispatcher in a trucking company. Not only was I the “boss”, but I was young. 

So, what’s that get a sassy, redhead who already made herself infamous in Alaska? Lots and lots of attention. The “you don’t need a boyfriend, you have us” kind. The “we’re your brothers and fathers” kind. It kept me from being lonely. Besides, I barely had time to sleep at home, let alone have a private life.

So, after the shock of “what am I going to do?” wore off and work slowed down, I created an online dating account. I flirted online a bit with my matches but wasn’t really ready to let them into my life until the Corporate Prince. I was worried that most of them couldn’t handle me working in a male dominated field.

The Corporate Prince is almost a fairy tale come true. Almost.   (From this point forward in my tales, Corporate Prince shall be known as “CP”).

In early December 2006, I sent a wish out to the Universe. I wished for the exact person meant for me to come into my life. I left it really open. I didn’t specify anything beyond that he be the one meant for me.

Almost the next day, CP became one of my matches. We emailed back and forth but as Christmas approached, it tapered off. I spent that Christmas with a pagan friend north of Seattle. And that Christmas, she sent out a prayer that I find the one meant for me.

I heard from CP the very next day, December 26th. He had been away dealing with family commitments for the week leading up to Christmas. He hoped that I was still available and that I hadn’t lost interest and that I would forgive his absence. We exchanged personal email addresses and emailed back and forth a lot that day.

I stopped at the grocery store on my way home from work to buy myself bday cake and a bottle of wine. It was officially December 27th, slightly after midnight. The checker didn’t even comment on my bday when he carded me. I was pretty depressed that there would be no one around who’d give a rat’s @– about it being my birthday. 

As I walked out to the parking lot, something shiny by the driver’s side caught my eye. It was a Scooby-Doo balloon that said “Happy Birthday”, a little deflated and wet, but in decent shape. I took it home.

I ate birthday cake by myself that night and drank my wine. I felt alone and dejected.

When I woke the next morning, it was to snow. Now, I’ve always wanted snow for my birthday and it was the very first time in my life that it snowed in Washington on my birthday! I blogged about it and off I went to work. 

By this time, CP had read my blog and, AND knew where I worked. That night, he had flowers sent to my office. (He still says, “Do you know how hard it is to find a florist to deliver flowers at 9pm in Tacoma?”)

I called him that night. He offered to drive up from the Willamette Valley in Oregon to have birthday cake with me. For the rest of the week, we talked on the phone a few times a day and emailed more and more.

On December 30th, a Saturday, at 11pm, he talked me into letting him come up and meet me.  CP offered to take me out for cake, stay in a hotel room and be respectful. I accepted. We talked on the phone for his whole trip up.

Around 3 am on December 31st, he pulled into my parking lot, stepped out of his car and at that very moment I knew he was meant to be my husband.

CP passed inspection from my dogs (very important and I’ll explain another time).  We talked on the couch for a couple hours until I was tired. He offered to go to his hotel. I asked him to stay. So, he spent the rest of the night next to me just holding me while I slept.

The next day, he met Dude. We went to breakfast and spent time talking and talking and talking. He said he wanted to meet my family. So we drove north of Seattle to meet my friend that I spent Christmas with. And CP passed her inspection.  She was quite charmed by CP as was everyone else who was there.

 

That Monday, which was New Year’s Day, we wandered Capitol Mall. I admired a ring in a jewelry store. We spent the rest of our time together until he had to leave to go back to the Willamette Valley.

The next weekend, CP picked me up after work and brought the kids and I down to the Willamette Valley for the weekend. We arrived in the wee hours of Saturday morning. We talked about sharing a life together. We talked about my moving to Oregon. He proposed Saturday night and I accepted.

(I’ll leave it here for now, more later).

The players

“All the world’s a stage” – Shakespeare

If the above quote be true, I should introduce you to the players on this stage.  They are as follows:

Corporate Prince- or CP for short, my husband, techno-geek extraordinaire and love of my life, married not quite 2 years. 

Kitty- my oldest daughter from a previous marriage, almost 14 going on 40- animal lover- karate enthusiast- choir member- environmentalist.  She waffles back and forth with vegetarianism (her choice), is very bright and can be socially retarded.

Dude- my youngest, 7 years old, sweet, loving, NASCAR fanatic, ADHD child.  If it involves science or has an engine, he’s interested in it and will talk to you about it for hours, whether you’re interested or not.  He is solely mine and mine alone.  Well, I do share him with CP.

Doodle- my 7 year old stepdaughter.  Doodle is loving, bright, artistic, and a bit Elmira-ey at times.  She is the dancer of our family.    She is a vegetarian due to her mother’s religious beliefs.

Disney Princess- she is the Corporate Prince’s ex wife and mother of Doodle.  AS the name suggests, she loves all things Disney.  Sometimes, I suspect she’s really a 12 yr old in an adult body.  I respect her for being the mother of Doodle, but like with any ex, she drives me crazy.  We have a lukewarm relationship at best.

The Marine- that’s about the nicest descriptor I can come up with.  My ex, the father of Kitty.  Marines everywhere should be embarrassed he was once one of them.  The Marine likes to play the “heavy” and think he’s so tough.  He is Kitty’s father.  But I don’t have anything else good to say.

Freya- collie/malamute mix, was a rescue in Alaska, is now the “grand old lady” at age 7, has been described as being a “hamster in wolf’s clothing”.

Copper- 8 month old Australian Shepherd, was my Mother’s Day present this year.  Calmer than your average Aussie, he is our sweet, freckle-faced little boy.

Salem- 3 year old black cat, he was mine before CP and I am definitely his person.  

Smudge- 3 year old calico cat, she loves CP best and always comes running if a laptop is brought out.  She is our “techno-kitty”.

Sloan- year old hand raised kitty dumped off on us by the Disney Princess

Mo- Sloan’s brother, also a year old hand raised kitty dumped off on us by the Disney Princess.  He is Doodle’s one, true love.

Casey- newest, most recent family addition.  Casey is a 7 year old Quarter Horse with Zippo Pine Bar breeding.  He was a throw away horse someone didn’t really want.  He’s a little head shy and unsure of people and he has a gimp on his left front that seems to be coming from his shoulder.  We don’t know a lot about Casey, but time will reveal all.

 

Well, that’s the list of players that will appear on this stage most often.  There will be others, I’m sure.  Now that you have the cast, let the story begin!

Intro

The sun does shine here in Oregon.  When it’s not raining, that is. 

Here is my narrative as a housewife living in Oregon with a husband, three kids, four cats and a horse.

Consider this part training journal, life’s journey and catch-all for whatever dribbles out of my mind.

I am a wife, a mother, a dog trainer, an equestrienne and a former trucking dispatcher. 

This is where I’ll tell my tales and spin my yarns.