Marty Van Diest, Your Alaskan Realtor

The Chugach Mountains over Palmer were beautiful in today’s late afternoon sun. Gerrit had been asking to get the old Skidoo Elan out for more than a week so we brought it up to Jay’s place on Lazy Mountain. Jay and his family have ten acres there which gives the kids room to zoom around without going on anyone elses land.

This is almost a 30 year old snow machine, but Gerrit loves to zip around with it. It is nice and light and rarely gets stuck. If it does, he can horse it out by himself.

His cousin Thomas had his Snow Sport going and was spinning brodies all over the snow.

The two boys kept zooming around as it got darker and darker.

Thomas finally slowed down when his hands started getting cold.

We left Gerrit out in the dark and went in to Aunt Susan’s hot chocolate. Gerrit finally got the hint and came out of the cold as well.

A great snow day…and it isn’t even November yet. It’s going to be a fantastic winter !!!

The photo above was taken by my daughter near Eureka, Alaska in January at about -20 degrees. I was overheating so had to take off my hood and mittens.

If you don't like winter...you don't belong here. If you haven't liked it before, make a point to enjoy it this year.

The first step to enjoying winter is to have warm enough clothes.

To do this forget about any idea of fashion.

Get a pair of bunny boots that fit.

Get a REAL WARM parka. I mean one that looks like it would keep you warm in liquid nitrogen. I got an Alyeska Pipeline Parka in 1974. I still use it and it still keeps me warm. I thought it was expensive then but as at 40 below it feels great.

Get real warm mittens. And get them large enough that you can wear warm gloves inside of them.

Get a pair of warm overalls or pants for your legs.

Those are just for starters...you won't be real active in the super warm stuff, but just the knowledge that you can be comfortable and warm in 50 below weather will help you enjoy winter.

Then you can get layers of less warm fleece, poly, mukluks, etc. You learn to adjust for the temp and your activity level.

But start with the real warm stuff and get out this winter. Get out of town and go outside in the absolute warmest clothing you can get at 2 AM when the northern lights are out. Lay down in the snow on your back and watch the northern lights for awhile. If you can't enjoy that...forget it and move back to Florida or someplace.<!-- google_ad_section_end --> <!-- / message -->

1. Your idea of a traffic jam is 10 cars waiting to pass a motor home on the highway.
2. You know what is in a "honey bucket".
3. You measure distance in hours.
4. You know several people who have hit moose more than once.
5. You often switch from “heat” to “A/C” in the same day.
6. You use a down comforter in the summer.
7. Your grandparents drive at 65 mph through 13 feet of snow during a raging blizzard, without flinching.
8. You see people wearing hunting clothes at social events.
9. You install security lights on your house and garage, and leave both unlocked.
10. You think of the major food groups as: meat, fish, and berries.
11. You carry jumper cables in your car, and your girlfriend knows how to use them.
12. There are 7 empty cars running in the parking lot at the grocery store at any given time.
13. You know what Bunny Boots are.
14. Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
15. You think sexy lingerie is tube socks and flannel pajamas.
16. You know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter, and construction.
17. It takes you 3 hours to go to the store for one item, even when you’re in a rush, because you have to stop and talk to everyone in town.
18. You didn’t know what the word “county” meant, and we were never taught about “area codes”… 907 is all you had to know
19. You think bald eagles aren’t that great
20. You know to go to Best Buy a month after a CD release because that’s when it will FINALLY arrive in Alaska
21. You wish seagulls came with a mute button
22. You can go to McDonalds and order off the $1.50 menu which they feel is equivalent to the $0.99 menu
23. You were appalled by the “Carrs-Safeway” merge a few years ago
24. You have to have a raven cage around your trash to keep them out
25. You go to school, work, or both in the dark and come home in the dark
26. 30 degrees is shorts weather
27. -10 is a bit nippy
28. Buses leaving school are delayed because a bear is in the parking lot
29. You tell people you live in an igloo for kicks
30. You don’t swim in natural bodies of water for fear of swimmers itch or beaver fever…or leeches
31. Having a moose in your front yard is a legitimate excuse for being late to school
32. There is nothing like Matanuska Maid…who cares about Meadowgold, Dairyland and Viva!!
33. You only go to the fair for turkey legs and a husky burger
34. You refer to the continental US as the “lower 48″
35. You get an attitude when you have to pay tax in the lower 48
36. There is 4 feet of snow the night before school and you STILL have to go.
37. If you don’t like the weather wait for 5 minutes and then go back out outside.
38. You sleep through an earthquake like nothing ever happened; the only way you know is because the clock fell off the wall
39. Salmon isn’t a delicacy, it’s a staple
40. Halibut is beer battered rather than cooked some fancy way
41. 70 degrees is equivalent to 90 degrees in the lower 48
42. You know who “Sleeping Lady” is
43. During the winter you rarely use your freezer
44. You think $4 for a loaf of bread is cheap
45. A “cookout” is not all the time outside because it’s entirely too cold for all of that
46. You don’t sleep in the summer because it’s too short to miss a minute of it
47. Half your friends own a sled (snow machine) and you think people that call them snow mobiles are idiots
48. You have been chased or know someone who has been chased by a moose at least once.
49. You’ve seen the northern lights, and you know why they are such a “big deal”
50. You know its all about the snow, DUH.
51. You know that Cattle Company has the best potato soup there is.
52. Your bedroom windows are covered in aluminum foil or black blankets.
53. You know the two speed limits in Alaska: the ‘get outta my way limit’ and ‘taking cover limit’
54. You only watch the news when they announce the amount of the year’s dividend
55. Your school classes were never canceled because of ice
56. You have to start your car at least an hour before you leave so most of the ice and snow will melt off by the time you leave
57. You wear flips flops all year without getting sick
58. You’ve never seen cotton or tobacco growing, but your neighbor has a 30 acre potato field
59. You literally can’t leave the house without seeing some one you know.
60. You know the term “studs” isn’t referring to hot guys.
61. You have to ski in gym class
62. You know who “Binki” was, made fun of that stupid Australian tourist, and was so sad when he died.
63. You expect to see a moose crossing Tudor every time you drive down.
64. You give up and tell people in the lower 48 that you DO live in an igloo and you DO have a pet polar bear named Mishka when they refuse to believe otherwise.
65. You call someone without a crack in their windshield a tourist
66. You attend a formal event in your best clothes, your finest jewels and your Sorrels.
67. When you go to the lower 48 you wonder where everybody’s block heater cable is
68. You’ve been to the Peanut Farm but refuse to tell anyone…ever
69. Combat fishing isn’t a joke, it’s a religion.
70. You’ve seen a 2-month old moose get hit by a full-size van at 65 MPH, then get up and run off
71. Two words “Korn Fritters”
72. Your parents taking you trick-or-treating involves riding door-to-door in the car
73. You design your kid’s Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.

Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, (AHFC), recently introduced several incentives to try to help alaskans save money on energy.

We have all heard about the energy assistance program where a one time check of $1,200 will be issued to all alaskans. You should have that cash in hand soon if you qualify for a Permanent Fund Dividend.

But in addition to cash to pay heating bills, Governor Palin and the Alaska State Legislature approved three more programs to help alaskans use less energy.

These are the Weatherization Program, the Home Energy Rebate Program, and a Second Mortgage Program for Energy Conservation.

The weatherization program provides free energy saving renovations on homes for home owners and renters as well. There are income limits on this program that are actually pretty generous. I think this is an amazing program that anyone who qualifies should use. You need to be patient because there is a waiting list. I believe it may be possible to receive up to $30,000 in renovations. The decision of what and how to renovate is made by AHFC and not the homeowner or renter.

Then there is the rebate program. There are actually two divisions of the rebate program. One for current home owners and another for new home buyers. There is no income limit for the rebate program.

• For new home owners, if you purchase a 5 star plus energy rated home, you receive a $7,500 rebate from AHFC. Simple and to the point. This is something to keep in mind while you are shopping for a new home.
• For existing home owners, you can also qualify for a rebate if you upgrade the energy rating of your home. You need to document the current energy rating by having an energy rater test your home. This costs $395 and will be refunded by AHFC if you follow through with the application. The energy rater will give you options on how to upgrade and you decide how and what to do. Then after you upgrade the energy rating and document it you can be eligible for up to a $10,500 rebate depending on the level of the energy upgrade.

The third program is the second mortgage for energy conservation. If you would like to upgrade your home but don’t have the cash to spend up front you can borrow it from AHFC. The rebate program for home owners requires that the upgrades be done before you receive the rebate so this creates a problem for cash short home owners. That is where the second mortgage for energy conservation comes in. You can borrow the money to make the upgrade and then pay the money back with the rebate after you receive it.

To find out more about these programs, check out Alaska Housing website here.

If you have more questions about these programs or real estate in general feel free to call me at 907 232–7900 or email at marty@valleymarket.com

John McCain just shocked America by choosing our governor and former Wasilla mayor as his Vice Presidential running mate.

All of a sudden, people all over the world are talking about Wasilla. They are even pronouncing it correctly. No more Waseea.

Almost everyone I met today is excited about her candidacy. Most of the people in this area voted for her as governor and still support her. I think she still has an approval rating in the high 80s.

Our home phone started ringing early this morning. Reporters were calling for my wife Grace who is a delegate to the Republican National Convention. She is in New York state visiting relatives before heading for Minneapolis tomorrow for the convention.

I’m not sure how this is going to change our little community. Wasilla is already one of the fastest growing communities in the Alaska. I guess we will wait and see.

Until then…GO SARAH.