December is here in Palmer

And with this, the craziest of months, comes concerts, festivals, markets, holy days, parties, fund raisers, shopping, visitors, and opportunities for giving. The calendar is already full and the month hasn’t started yet. But this weekend is the huge Vintage Market Show at Raven Hall. Additional Holiday Bazaars are at the Palmer Junior Middle and Birchtree schools. The Messiah starts up along with the Nativity scenes and Chanukah is being celebrated. There are dozens of things to do in this little mountain town. And carry some cash so you can generously feed the Salvation Army kettles as you wander around.

Weather is a Personality in Palmer—Our Weather is both a friend and an enemy and ever-present in all of our conversations and tasks. We can’t ignore her. We can admire her but we also weary of her constant assaults in the winter. Different pressures, temperatures and moisture collide in an infinite array of convergences in Palmer.

Palmer Black Ice—This deceptive ice is the stuff that hides between the road surface indentations. Because you can’t see the reflection with your headlights, it is sneaky. The roadway looks wet or just plain black and there is no glare. Perhaps there is traction, but probably not so just because you don’t see the glare from the skim of hidden ice, slow down.

Palmer Glare Ice—This is the ice that greeted us on Sunday Morning. You know it well. It looks slippy and it is. Every single intersection in downtown had skid marks running through them. It is obvious and reflective and actually quite pretty—in a smooth sort of way. Except that you really don’t want a frozen ice rink in your road or on your footpaths.

Palmer Hoar Frost—This is fairyland stuff. This is the flocked trees and light-poles covered with thick white crystalline fabric. It often happens at night and the moisture freezes into beautiful morning surprises. With a blue sky and some good sun, there is nothing prettier than Palmer’s white feather ice.

Interchangeable Ice—Okay, so perhaps these ice titles are ambivalent regarding ice in Palmer. But overall, it is good to recognize that the power of ice—causes gravity, and therefore we must all walk like a careful, Palmer penguin. We take tiny steps with our arms out like flippers, doing the tricky balancing act.

Grit Glacier Wind—This wind is owned by the Knik glacier which generously shares the grit and dust with everyone. The velocity isn’t impressive but the abrasion and density scours our faces, cars and nostrils.

River Run Wind—This particular wind is more friendly. It doesn’t last long and it isn’t mean-spirited. It is low in velocity.

Palmer Prairie Wind—This is that constant flattening wind generally from the east and south. It is consistent and predictable. If it goes on for more than two days, people tend to go mad. Or they buy an airplane ticket to somewhere. Or they drive to the Butte, which is one of the few windless areas, during these wind-apocalypses.

Mountain Top Wind—generally comes from the north. It is a fickle, powerful wind with large whooshes and dramatic shears that scare the stuffing out of you. This particular wind comes with large sound effects.

Marsmoon Coming to Palmer—In the next few weeks we will see these two celestial bodies hanging out together. Saturn will be leaving the sky but the Geminids meteor shower will be near the quarter moon. Mercury joins up with oh-so-bright Venus and maybe Jupiter early in the month. Our Palmer night sky promises to be an exciting place to be. Hatcher Pass is a good place to skywatch. The Glenn Highway pull-off at the blowhole is another good sky spot. Dress warm.

Barbara Hunt is both Palmer writer and artist. She works hard to keep the robust pulse of Palmer, Alaska. She shares the good stuff on the weekly Palmer Alaska Buzz in the Mat Su Valley Frontiersman and daily on the Palmer Alaska Buzz Facebook Group. Contact at bhunt@mtaonline.net