Jerry GarSalmon on tour and going strong

Sporting a Cosmic Retro Camper covered in flowers and cheap Smiley Face stickers, Jerry and his entourage have hit the streets of Anchorage in a desperate attempt to bring the past to life and rekindle the flames of Free Love and affordable housing! Long Live Tie-Dye!

"Grateful Red" is The Arc’s 2007 entry in Anchorage’s annual Wild Salmon on Parade. Created by Artisans of The Arc Debra Burt, Valerie Mothershead, Clark Hinchey, Andre Hogg, and Dru McAlpine (with technical assistance and a deliciously wacky sense of humor provided by Art Director Wendy Poss), "Grateful Red" is on display for the summer downtown at the corner of 4th Ave. and E St.

His last hurrah before the frying pan will be at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer August -- through September 3. Like his fellow Wild Salmon on Parade, "Grateful" will reach his final spawning ground on September 7 at the annual Fish Fry and Buy dinner auction (you can buy tickets by clicking here).

To cast your vote for the best fish in the sea, visit Wild Salmon On Parade.

Alcoholism, homelessness and disabilities in Anchorage

Melissa Freemon, Anchorage Services Division director with Rural Alaska Community Action Program, wrote the following Compass entry for the Anchorage Daily News on August 13, 2007.

The issue is one our Behavioral Health Services and substance abuse programs deal with on a daily basis--helping an individual overcome an addiction while simultaneously working with their lack of housing and mental or developmental disability.

Read it here.

Medicare and Alaskan Physicians

This interesting feature from the American Academy of Family Physicians highlights a growing problem facing our local doctors. Not only is the cost of living higher in Alaska than the Lower 48, Medicare reimburses Alaskan doctors at a lower rate than the majority of the contiguous United States. This puts local doctors in a difficult spot...

Read it here.

Arthur Miller and the son he hid from the world

Playwright Arthur Miller stood as a moral beacon for his time. But he had a dark secret. This Vanity Fair article reveals how the playwright cut his son, born with Down syndrome, from his own private drama.

Read it here.