Mystery solved

I think I now know why all the birds flew away the other day. As I was upstairs typing just a few minutes ago I heard one of my cats repeatedly pawing at the window downstairs. I knew he (it turned out to be Io) was trying to get a bird, but usually he doesn't keep hitting the window because the birds get spooked and fly away. I went down and looked and there was a bird just sitting on the window sill in the corner, right by Io's paw. I couldn't figure why the bird stayed there--it was very unusual. Finally the bird, which is a little Pine Siskin (a type of finch about 4 inches in length), freaked and flew off...only to get grabbed mid flight by a falcon! The falcon flew to a near by stump, poor little bird in it's talons, and proceeded to eat the bird. The Pine Siskin was trying to hide from the falcon, only to be terrorized out of its protection by a big orange cat.

So far so good

The volcano erupted again at 7:30 last night, but the ash went north/northeast. Anchorage got ash fall and they shut down the entire airport. A lot of stores and restaurants closed as well. Ash is particularly bad for electronics as it is really abrasive and can quickly destroy circuit boards and also clog filters and cause them to overheat. Once there is ash in the air most businesses close to help protect their computers.

All winds for today are going north, so we should be okay, even if the volcano erupts later. We're supposed to get more snow, though, and it has been coming down lightly all morning--with 75 mph winds and blizzard conditions happening not too far north of here.

I was supposed to get my Chinese Tourist Visa delivered Next Day Air by UPS on Friday, but the plane was rerouted back to California due to ash. The airport said it won't reopen until all ash has stopped falling and then they are able to clean up the runways. It is not just ash in the air that can get into engines and stall planes (during the 1989 eruption a 737 had all its engines stall when it encountered an ash cloud. Luckily the plane dropped out of the cloud and was able to restart the engines); the ash on the ground gets kicked up and sucked in by the engines and it is like sandpaper on all the metal parts. Apparently to clean the runways they cover the ash with snow --luckily there piles of that around--and then scrape up the snow and truck it off.

Hopefully some limited plane flights will start soon. I might have to book my flight to China through Fairbanks and then drive the nine hours north to get there just so I know I can get out.

Sunny Saturday

It is sunny today, with just the occasional snow flake falling. The volcano has been quiet since it's 1 a.m. eruption last night and we have no new ash.

On top of the new family, new language, new foods, and new everything else, Quin is going to have quite an adjustment to the new climate. It will be the hot and humid monsoon season in Southeast China when we go to get her and here it will be early spring with snow still on the ground. I bet she has never seen snow.

Here is a picture of her from last July, just a few months after her second birthday. I wish I could post the pictures I got from her referral, but I have to wait to post those until after she is home since they were supplied by the Chinese government through my agency. This picture was sent to me from the family that adopted Quin's foster sister.
It is funny how Asian clothing often has English words on them. I first noticed this in Japan and have since seen it on the Korean dramas and Chinese shows I watch. You don't often see clothes here in the U.S. with kanji on them, and yet kanji is so beautiful even without the meaning.

Here is my name in kangi:

It keeps going and going....

There was an eruption at 5:30 tonight and another eruption at 7:30. Ash is up to 45,000 ft. The winds are blowing all the ash to the north, so we should be ash free, at least for the next few hours. However, according to the National Weather Service the winds are supposed to turn Saturday night and head this way.

It snowed here for several hours tonight--the kind of wet, sloggy snow that makes driving difficult. We have more snow predicted for tomorrow. I thought March was supposed to go out like a lamb...

We have ashfall!

Ash has started coming down here. It is very fine grained and very light. It is dark out, so I had to run my finger on my car to feel it. Ash is glass shards caused from the rapid expansion of gas bubbles as they escape from the magma. Ash is made of silica, which is the main component of sand and what quartz is made of. Quartz cuts glass, so you shouldn't use you wipers when ash is on the car as the ash can scratch your windshield. Of course, ash on your windshield makes it difficult to see, so you need to use your wipers....

Maybe we'll have rain tonight and it will wash the ash off my car. I have to sign on the computer now so I can bag it up to protect it from any ash that might seep into the house. If the ash is still coming down tomorrow school may be canceled. Unfortunately, when school is canceled here you have to make-up that day later in the year.

Birds Gone Wild

The birds are going nuts at the feeder. I have to fill it up every other day.

Strangely, shortly after I shot this footage all the birds at once rose up and flew away. All the other birds in the yard flew away at the same time as well. They never came back that day. I thought maybe they were sensing an earthquake. The Chinese have successfully used animal behavior to predict an upcoming earthquake. They even evacuated a city at the right time and saved thousands of live. This was a few decades ago and they haven't ever done it again, but there is something there. Right before an earthquake cracks in the ground open up. The EM fields changes, ultra-low radio frequency waves are emitted, radon gas is emitted and there are small pre-cursor quakes, all of which animals are suppose to be more sensitive to. I am glad to report that the birds are back today.

More Eruptions

There was a large eruption of Mt. Redoubt this morning that sent ash 65,000 feet (over 12 miles) into the air. Some of the ash went to Homer, so my parents gotet a dusting (they are predicting about 1/8 of an inch). This afternoon the earthquakes associated with the movement of magma have increased and it is likely the volcano will erupt again tonight (my guess).

In this picture taken from the webcam this afternoon at 4:30 you can see a steam cloud and the lahar (mudflows) that were caused by ash mixing with the melting glaciers on the mountain.
Yesterday we had a blizzard warning. About 6 inches of wet snow fell. Today it is in the 40s and the snow is melting. Homer had some snow today right after the ash and that helped to keep the ash down and make it less of a respiration issue. It looks sunny out right now, but each hour the volcano is getting more seismically active and our sun could go away quickly if there is another eruption. Current wind patterns would send ash here if the ash cloud got to 30,000 feet.

Shifting Winds

Picture of Mt. Redoubt from the fly by on Monday, March 23

The good news is that the volcano didn't erupt again today, so no new ash cloud.

The bad news is that the winds shifted direction and should the volcano erupt the ash will be headed our way.


Yesterday's eruption put a plume of ash 60,000 ft up into the air, which is about the highest any volcano ash ever gets. At that height the ash has no problem getting over our mountains and it can travel far.







You can see the news cast from Anchorage news by clicking here: Eruption video feed
You can also learn more on that website using this link: Further eruption

Traveling In May

Last week I sent off paperwork to the Chinese consulate in San Fransisco to get travel visas. Those should be back by the beginning of next week. I am still waiting on the final Travel Authorization from China. I expect that in a week or two. After that we just have to get the American Consulate appointment scheduled. Because of the three week trade fair in Guangzhou, where the consulate is, and the fact that the first week in May is China's National Day (like our Memorial & Independence day rolled into a week), we probably won't be traveling to China until the first week in May. That will work out best for Phil's schedule, so it is not too bad, even though I want to go now!

These are a few pictures of what the countryside looks like where Quin lives. The first picture shows the orphanage building she lived in for the first two years.

Redoubt has erupted!

Mt. Redoubt erupted last night. There was some light ash, but it is blowing north/north east and is not heading this way. he winds are due to shift in the next couple of days, though and that could send ash our way. Right now we are still on standby. You can click on this link for the Alaska Volcano Observatory to learn more.

Happy birthday, Quin!

It is Quin's birthday today. She turned 3! I sent her a care package through an agency in China and with it was a birthday cake, a teddy bear and a letter from me (she was supposed to get it today).

I was able to hook up with the family that just adopted Quin's foster sister this past February. They sent me a few pictures of Quin that they had with their daughter (I have cut out the foster sister and foster parents to protect their privacy). You can double click on teh image to make it bigger.

Hopefully I'll be on my way to see my little Quin soon.

I have final approval!

Last Thursday I got my final Letter of Confirmation from China that I get to adopt Quin. Now I am just waiting on Travel Authorization from China and I am good to go. I am hoping to go around the third week in April. I'll keep you posted!