Contributed by Marilyn Bennett
This time of year, everyone seems to be talking about “Termination Dust”.
Being new to Alaska, I was curious as to how such a negative term came about, so I looked it up in the wiktionary and this was their definition:
“Noun. Termination Dust (uncountable) (US) In Alaska, a light, high-altitude snowfall that indicates the end of summer. The miners hurriedly prepared for winter as the termination dust settled on the slopes above them.”
Not sure if that was correct, I then checked out the web page “Learning to Speak Alaskan” and they stated the following:
“Termination Dust: The construction workers during the building boom in the 1940s called the snowfall each year “termination dust” because it meant their jobs would be terminated for the season. Now, it is used to refer to the first snowfall signaling the end of the summer season.”
I guess that whether the term came from the early miners or the construction workers of the 40s, it doesn't matter much anymore. No matter what, the origin of the term does mean the end of fall and the beginning of winter.
Legend has it that snow will fall on the valley floor within 6 weeks of the first showing of snow on the mountain peaks. So, I guess the countdown began back in October. Either way, winter is on its way and since we’re Alaskans, we are going to make the most of it!
I also discovered that there is a band that started out in Anchorage by the name of “Termination Dust”, and it was voted Best Indie Band in Anchorage Press Picks 2017. Their music seems to convey a very positive message, which is great in our world of too much negativity. Unfortunately, they left Anchorage in 2018 for the worst of reasons, money. They are playing with Modest Mouse and touring the Lower 48 states. Hope to see them back here soon.
Also the Anchorage Hockey Association has a Termination Dust Tournament each year.
However, even more interesting is that the Midnight Sun Brewery has both Termination Dust Belgian-Style Barley Wine and in 2015, came out with Midnight Sun Termination Dust Beer. This is a specialty wood-aged beer 13.0% ABV, pretty strong beer. It apparently has a dark brown, almost black color and the consensus seems to be that it is a great shippable beer and one of the best to come out of this brewery. Not being a beer drinker I cannot attest to it, but with a name like Termination Dust it's worth a try at this time of year. Just be careful, as you wouldn't want to terminate your driving privileges by sipping too much before heading home.
This is also the time of year that we have a termination of daylight savings time. We ‘fell back’, and now 6PM feels like midnight. I will be glad when days begin to get longer again. Now that the lovely autumn leaves are gone, we all need snow to cover the boring brown landscape. I do enjoy looking at the snow on the mountains, as it makes me contemplate painting pictures or creating poetry. Others may think about winter sports and wonder when they can get out to the slopes. Winter does have its pleasures and compensations. There are so many activities in Palmer between now and the end of the year, that it is just a matter of deciding what suits your particular fancy.
Termination Dust is our first sign of the beautiful snow cover yet to come and the quickest way to terminate winter blues is to get out and enjoy the season, or hunker down inside with a good book or hobby.
Enjoy.
