The Alaska Side

For the most part, my cartoons have always pertained to Seven categories concerning the unique life we encounter in coastal Alaska: weather, hunting and fishing, visitors and tourists, myths and legends, holidays, kids, and most of all wildlife... particularly BEARS! For seven months of the year bears are the topic of the day. "How many did you see?" "Were they Black Bears or Alaskan Brown Bears, ( Brownies) ? " "Did they break into any cars or buildings during the night?" "Did it charge you? " "I hope that limping bear is OK. " "Does that Sow,( Female bear), still have all three of her cubs?" "Are the bears fishing on the river yet?" "Did you see that pretty blond colored bear in town?" "Are the bears hibernating yet?" "Are the bears coming out of hibernation yet?" "I hope that big old Boar, (male bear), survived the winter." "I saw a whole bus load of tourists get off the bus, and walk within 50 feet of a mother bear with her cubs to take selfies!" "I saw three bears on the school playground this morning!" We have a sweet and sour relationship with the local bears, but they were here first, and we ALL respect them. They are of course EXCELENT subjects for my cartoons. There really is a lot of humor related to the bears as well as their interactions with the human population. My cartoons reflect the humorous side of life, but it's important to me that folks realize that there is a much more serious side to these things. Living in or near the Alaskan Wilderness can be dangerous, terrifying and even fatal. Rare, but true that moose trample and even kill people. Bears injure and kill people. Earth quakes, tsunamis, flooding, avalanches, mudslides, snow storms, high winds , and wild fires are things Alaskans and their visitors are unlikely, but could possibly encounter. It's important that we take simple precautions . After all, we all want to share wonderful pleasant stories about our time spent in Alaska whether it is for a day or a life time. Nature in real life is not a cartoon, but it can have a very pleasant, fun, and humorous side to it. That's "the Alaska Side " I look for when I get an idea for a drawing. The cartoons often illustrate puns or a play on words. For example; the first time someone told me they were going to the river to dip net for hooligan, I pictured a gang of thugs running up the stream. It turns out that Hooligan is the mispronunciation of a small smelt like fish called Eulachon. Likewise, every time someone says they are headed up river to fish for "dollies", they mean Dolly Varden Trout. I cant help myself! That funny picture flashes in my mind, and I just have to draw it. Couch potato... you guessed it! Reindeer? In South East Alaska we get a lot of rain, even in winter, even on Christmas Eve some years. "Raindeer"is very appropriate. In the Haines area we also get LOTS of snow so we need to cut our Christmas trees early before they get buried. "Dog Mushing", that deserves an explanation. The list goes on. Coloring is relaxing, and therapeutic. Enjoy some down time adding your artistic inter-being to my cartoons, then tear them out, tri-fold them and mail them to a friend. Always remember that a picture is worth a thousand words. Enjoy!