8:20am Kenai, AK
I can only imagine the treasure trove of presents i am going to find later when i make my rounds. As i was putting up my signs i saw someone going into one of the bathrooms and i told him not to flush. He looked at me pleading and nervous doing a variation on the 'pee-pee dance' so i said, "you can use the toilet just don't flush it." Then he ran into the bathroom.
Aaaaanyway...so I thanked the Ukrainians for the meal and went back to my room to change. Molly and Charlie were already on their way so i threw on some clothes that didn't smell like cleaning products and walked over to 'the landing.' (the truck is here! Hooray!) We were sitting at the bar enjoying some Kodiak Brown when Bobbie called Charlie. She wanted him to casually leave the bar, bringing Molly and me with him and get into her car which would be waiting outside. Apparently you have to be very sneaky otherwise people think Dale and Bobbie are playing favorites (even though Charlie is their nephew.) So we each paid our tabs and left. I was the last one to pile into the car but as soon as I was in we were off. The sunroof was open and the music was up - we were just 5 people looking for some fun on a Saturday night. We went up the road a spell to this other bar called the Albatross. It's a real old smokey bar, very classic looking. They have pool tables and outside they have a grill and some horseshoe pits. Just a cool place to be. Molly and I had the Moosehead lager while the other three went for something a little stronger. A round of drinks for 5 cost $20. You can't beat that with a stick. So there we are just sitting around telling stories and laughing taking turns buying our cheap rounds.
One of the other choice amenities at the Albatross is the used DVDs for sale. Now i don't usually buy used DVDs but i do have a movie buying problem and i needed a fix. (Chris said this is the perfect bar for me - beer and movies for sale. What's not to love?) So i did it - 3 for $20 - August Rush, No Reservations and Nancy Drew...make fun of me all you want because i know you are - i don't care. My night just kept getting better and better.
After 4 or so rounds we decided to leave. We were on our way home when Dale took us on a scenic detour. He wanted to show us the road to the beach. It really isn't far from the plant and people can go there and make fires. It was beautiful - very peaceful at dusk. There was a group already there with a fire going, all bundled up in their blankets - not a bad idea. We hopped back in the car and decided to go cruising for moose. So we got back on the road, drove passed the Albatross and kept going with our eyes peeled. Molly saw one but we were already gone before we could stop. After a while with no moose Bobbie thought we should take the next right we found so that we could sit and look out over the bay. We came to this opening that looked like a good spot - so we parked the car and got out. There was a guy sitting there having a beer next to his fire so we went over and started talking to him. He worked at a cannery up the road and was doing some off-site drinking. The fire was nice and warm and smelled so good. We stood around it for a bit chatting and then the beer kicked in. Molly and I tried to discretely walk towards the tree line but everyone knew. "Watch out for bear." yea...right...I was more worried about crouching over poison ivy. Molly is more of a city girl so everyone was laughing at her trying to pee in the woods. She had to find some thick trees to hide behind for privacy while me, I just found a nice tree to lean on. At some point they must have looked over because we heard them laughing - Molly in her bright white ski coat and me with my bright white butt - we must have been quite a sight...like beacons in the night. We got back over to the fire and before too long Dale had to go too. He was gone for a while and had disappeared from sight. I was trying to keep an eye on him because they had warned us about the ground giving way and dropping us down to the beach below if we got too close to the edge. A few minutes later here comes Dale with his arms full of brush. This is when i learned that when you go pee it is customary to bring back wood for the fire especially when you are crashing someones fire like we were. Good to know. We hung out for a little bit longer and then said our goodbyes. It's pretty cool that you can just walk up to a stranger and share his fire and neither party be worried.
As we were driving home we saw a moose! They like to forage at night. It was close to the road so we slowed down and watched him eat. It never gets old. I love them so much. He was just eating some leaves enjoying his dinner - it's neat to watch them chew. I think he started to feel awkward because after all, it is rude to watch someone eat, so he turned and walked away. It was 1am or a little later at this point so we decided to go home too. It was just a good night. Nothing too crazy but fun all the same. I can't wait until the moose start getting their antlers.