Trimming The Tree--Day Two

This is the patio door upstairs, a sliding glass door that right now leads to nothing but provided a large amount of sunlight to the upstairs. The days are short now and for the season, I hung icicle lights across it. I bought some frosted plastic leaves a couple years ago and wondered how they would look if I hung them on the ends of the icicles.

I like how it looks.

So, since House was a rerun last night, I spent the hour trimming the tree. Most of our ornaments are crystal, silver, gold or frosted glass--an old-fashioned look. I noticed a few years ago that holiday trimmings were taking a decidedly Victorian turn. It's kind of ironic that as we enter the 21st century, we seem to draw comfort by surrounding ourselves with reminders of the 19th.

When I was a kid, the latest in Christmas decor involved obviously fake trees in white or even metal. Artificial trees were new and expensive and so to have one was a sign of suburban prosperity, a mark of being on the cutting edge. The height of modern taste was a pure white tree trimmed with all blue ornaments or a gleaming silver metallic tree with all red balls.

As we Boomers age, our Christmas decor hearkens back to a simpler, more innocent time. Are we seeking security from the confusion and uncertainty of the present by creating a facsimile of the past?



*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

As I trimmed the tree last night, my thoughts were distracted. On the evening news, I had heard that a Lifeguard Flight (air ambulance) was missing in Prince William Sound, just over the mountains to the east of us.

Lifeguard Flights are a familiar part of Alaskan living. For many of us in rural areas, they represent hope and help when we are facing a traumatic injury or serious illness. A system of helicopters, twin-engine aircraft and executive jets make it possible for a critically-ill Alaskan to be within an hour or two of state-of-the-art medical assistance. Along with the Internet and satellite communications, Lifeguard flights are part of the landscape of our modern frontier life

The snow we didn't get Monday and Tuesday was contained in Prince William Sound. Blizzard conditions moved rapidly in at dusk on Monday. The medevac flight--out of Cordova en route to Anchorage--was last heard from over the Sound.

Anchorage Daily News

Peninsula Clarion

I talk with this particular helicopter once or twice a week. It serves hospitals in Anchorage and Soldotna. Lifeguard One-four-one-Lima-Golf is a familiar sight flying in and out of our little airport. Although I don't recognize the names of the crew, I Know that I have talked to them on the radio many times since I began working in Homer.

Despite the tenaciously up-beat press releases, it doesn't look good. Helicopters are notoriously poor at handling airframe icing--the type of conditions that might be expected in a wet, cold air mass. If the flight went down in the water, it was over quickly. The crew and passenger were gone even before the flight was declared overdue.

The smallest ember of hope is that somehow the helicopter was forced down over land and that the survivors are waiting for better weather to allow rescue. I would love to see that be the case.

But the cruel winter takes no hostages.