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Sunday, November 12, 2006 Memory Lane Most little boys want to be a fireman when they grow up, or maybe a cop or something like that. Never heard of one imaging himself as a pharmacologist. A dapper lad, ain't he? ... The day opened here gray, wet, and dreary. Closed down pretty much the same way. Mom was away at a conference and missed out on our wet walk at the farm. Walking in the rain can be a transforming experience, but mostly you just get wet. What we endured this morning was nothing more than an ordinary Ohio rain. Let me tell you about rain in Alaska, though. There's a place south of Anchorage called Whittier, on the western side of Prince William Sound. The refrain in Alaska when you're heard complaining about the weather where you are is, "Remember, it's shittier in Whittier." When it rains hard in Whittier you can go from bone dry to thoroughly (and I mean thoroughly) drenched to the skin in roughly ten to fifteen seconds. Mammalian skin is suitably waterproof, though acutely defenseless in a Whittier rain. Stay outside during a hard Whittier rain beyond about thirty seconds and you'll fill up with water until you resemble some grotesque walking edema. Where was I... right. So anyway, we all got wet this morning and hallelujah! - Lucy didn't start stinking again. See, she got sprayed by a skunk a little over a week ago. We quickly deskunked her with the proven recipe that oxidizes those nasty thiols that make skunk spray stink. Problem solved, right? Not exactly. Cleansing in a strong oxidizer (hydrogen peroxide) works pretty well, but you never get it all, and so everytime she gets wet water acts to reduce the thiol bonds returning the molecule to its oderiferous state! Yuck. Given enough time, though, it all eventually disappears. 8:49:25 PM    Comments disabled © Copyright 2008 Rufus. Nonsense, distribute widely and freely! Last update: 7/26/2008; 10:59:32 AM.			Readers Amused       Home About Me Airedale Philosophy How this all got started       FAQ What's an Upright? Upright: noun : a by and large bipedal companion, also referred to as a human being. What's a Cheechako? Cheechako: noun : a person new to Alaska who has come with the intention to live here. Who's Master? Master: pronoun : just the finest upright on the face of the earth, that's who! To read him is to love him. What's Dogdom? Dogdom: noun : Life's venue from a dog's point of view. What's a Sourdough? Sourdough: noun : A long time Alaskan who has an automatic suspicion of cheechakos. What does Outside mean? Outside: noun : A provincial reference to somplace other than Alaska; usually the lower 48. What's Breakup? Breakup: noun : A uniquely Alaskan season between winter and spring when the snow and ice begins to melt for good. Where is SquareBanks? SquareBanks: slang : A self-evident euphemism for a place widely known as Fairbanks, AK. Where can I read the Houston Trip? Houston Trip: vignette : Here What digital camera do you use? Camera: hardware : Canon Powershot A80 (4.0 MP) Who's Mom? Mom: Hottie : Have A Look What's a Squeakamunka? Squeakamunka: noun : your ordinary gray squirrel which can be seen everywhere in our Cleveland neighborhood! « Alaska Blogs »  Stories Fiction Boy Wonder Bat Girl Objects in Mirror Are Larger Than They Appear Used To Be Fish Skin Deep Essay Life Is Good Desert Nostalgia A Voice of Reason Fictional Four Realms of Darkness Poetry Lucky Chain  The Cycling Pages 1999 Canadian Tour 2000 Tour of Alaska "Yooper" : 2001 Tour of WI/Michigan UP 2001 Spine of Italy Tour 2002 Tour of New England 2004 Tour of New Zealand (coming soon!) 2005 Tour Of Nova Scotia Conways Game of Life (needs java plugin) Sometimes Interesting Billy Greg (Hiatus) Virginia Postrel Wendy McElroy Samizdata Atlantic Monthly Reason No Treason Slashdot Derke Lowe Heather Champ (Photo blog) T.C. Boyle Liquid Generation Improved Clinch Exquisite Corpse, A. Codrescu Fred On Everything Assymetrical Information The Daily Ablution (Hibernation) Lileks Frank Kelly (Hiatus) Up In Alaska