The sun rose this morning at 7 am, and will set this evening at 8:33 for 13 hours, 33 minutes of daylight. At its highest it will be less than 30° above the horizon. Already I cannot drive south at noon without using the sun visor.

Frozen vegetation

9:30 this morning. Yes, that’s ice. Thank goodness I got the potted plants in before I left.

We had our first killing frost Saturday night while I was at the Alaska Writer’s Guild conference in Anchorage. That much was obvious when I returned after dark Sunday night. The squash in pots on the patio was frozen, as was the tomato plant. A check with the flashlight last night indicated the plastic covers may have protected the lower parts of the squash plants, so I might be able to get a few more zucchini. Beans likewise had better have their last picking, and I guess it’s time to pull the rest of the beets.

This morning I found that not only was everything frozen and brittle, we had a thunderstorm with hail while I was gone. So I’m not sure how much of the garden I’m going to be able to salvage.

By 11:30 this morning the sun was shining.

I’m not sure when I’ll get the time. The plane from Anchorage to Fairbanks was supposed to arrive at 8 pm, comfortably before sunset. It was 45 minutes late, and dark enough I could not drive. Thanks to a fellow attendee at the conference, I made it home — but my car is still at the airport. The transit system appears to make it as difficult as possible to combine the only route where I live and the only line that goes to the airport. The best combination, if it’s possible, involves a 1-minute transfer downtown. If I miss the connection, it’s an hour and 45 minutes until the next bus to the airport. Other transfers involve at least an hour or two twiddling my thumbs in the downtown transit station.

Added complication? My first OLLI class is 2:45 this afternoon. I think I’m going to give up and call a cab — or the airport limousine service, which gives me better rates. If tomorrow’s post is missing or late, you know why!

To end on a good note: the local paper’s book reviewer, Libbie Martin, was at the conference and told me her review of Tourist Trap would be in the paper this month, before the last day of the Farmers Market (where the book is for sale) September 22. I hope it’s as good as the one she wrote for Homecoming.