Howdy howdy hey!!!

How goes it??? Things are good here!! I have had a good week :) because Nat Geo left we have been back to our more regular schedule which is so nice! We also have Nadia here (although she leaves in a week :( ) so we get more days off.

So... as I am writing this I am currently on my handy dandy smart phone sitting on the roof of the boat :). This is my second time this week. I am with a family of four and Jordan. It's really fun. On Thursday when I went we went salmon fishing, bear viewing, then deep sea fishing. It was all really cool.

Me on the roof!!  The boat in the back was Luke and some of our other guests :)

The bear viewing was a first for me. It is so funny to me how when I was coming here everyone was telling me I was going to get eaten by a bear or something... Well.... It's been 3 months and no bears.. until now!! We saw 3 bears. A mama and 2 babies. This bear is used to people. She is kind of a pet of Luke's. She is very comfortable with him.  She was catching salmon. It was so cool to watch. I got some good pictures. :) it was cool to see them in their natural environment. They are magnificent creatures. So big.. But cuddly looking. :) don't worry... I didn't try to pet it. Tempting though... :)

Lunch time!!

Today (Friday) went whale watching :) we got right above them to the point that we could touch them. It was incredible. The whales never get old to me. That's got to be one of my favorite things to see. Catching huge fish is cool too :) and sitting on the top of a boat in Alaska.... :)

Well, those are the coolest experiences that I can think of... Oh!! Caitlin and I are making jewelry!! Did you know??? Many fish have ear bones called otoliths. They help the fish maintain balance. You can also cut them open and count the rings in them to find out how old they are. (Now you know!!!!)

But the part we like the most is that you can order supplies on Amazon and make earrings!! We are selling them to clients to hopefully make some extra money. We are waiting for our supplies so it may be a bit... But we sold 3 pairs to a man and his daughter already! We will mail them to him :) so this should be fun!!

To get the otoliths out we have to cut them out with a saw. You drill into their brain and then whack the fish head on the deck until the bone comes out :). I find it quite fun... who knew I would enjoy butchering fish so much!! :) the fish we use the most for this project are the yellow eye because they have nice sized otoliths. The bass have decent ones but they are harder to get out. So anyway.. Something else to keep Caitlin and I busy!!

Oh, quick explanation of the last picture with the beer can...We have no shortage of them around here and the first time I was cutting the otoliths out, Frank said "You need something to put them in.  Here." and he took his knife and right there cut off the top of his beer can, washed it out and then handed it to me.  He thought it was hilarious to see me carry it around.  Now we keep it for a joke.  He kept on saying that he needed a picture with me, the 'sawsall' and the beer can.  So that was why I needed this picture..and then the fish in the bottom corner with his head cut open and everything just made it perfect...couldn't have planned it better!!!

Well, that's about all folks!! Sure love you all and miss you!! Until next time!!