Alaska's stand-up comedy scene has been quietly gaining momentum and a new summer series at the Performing Arts Center is looking to find out just how sustainable that scene can be. On this episode, host Dave Waldron speaks with Bradley Butcher, a stand-up comic and the founder of Comedy Up North. The series debuts in June and will run through July. Hear about this year's roster, which homegrown comics are making a name for themselves and how the shows will work to normalize mental health discussions.

Schedule:

June 12: Michael Lenoci

June 26: Nicole Aimée Schreiber

July 10: Ian Edwards

July 24: Jade Catta-Preta

HOST: Dave Waldron

GUEST: Bradley Butcher, founder, Comedy Up North

LINKS:

Comedy Up North

TICKETS

Daniella Ambrosino is a local food lover, social media influencer and someone who is right in the middle of Anchorage’s growing, global food scene. On this episode, we dive into how social media and cultural trends are bringing exciting new flavors to our city — and yes, there will be some taste testing along the way!

HOST: Kim Sherry

GUEST: Daniella Ambrosino, @eatlocal_drinklocal

Meditation and mindfulness are practices that many of us use either formally or informally, but what are the actual benefits we get from them? How do those practices affect our mental health? On this episode, we have a local meditation teacher answer those questions and teach us some meditation techniques.

HOST: Dave Waldron

GUEST: Rick Zelinsky

LINKS:

Meditate in Alaska

Rick Zelinsky website

You've likely heard of Comic Con before, the annual convention that happens in San Diego celebrating comics, video games and all things geeky, but did you know Anchorage has one too? Arctic Comic Con is now in its seventh year and happens this weekend at the Dena'ina Center.

On this episode, we hear from one of the convention's founders and a pair of local video game developers trying to make their mark in the gaming industry.

HOST: Dave Waldron

GUESTS:

Mike Lajoie, Co-Founder, Arctic Comic Con

Wyatt White and George Young, CakeNeq Games

LINKS:

Arctic Comic Con

CakeNeq Games

Don’t let this recent snowfall fool you. Anchorage had a historically low snow year. On this episode we find out what that lack of snow means for everything—from fire to mosquitos. We did get our usual Fool’s Spring last week, with about four inches of snowfall happening right when we thought we were in the clear.

Earlier this year, the National Weather Service reported Anchorage had received 4.3 inches of snow from December 1 to February 17, the lowest snowfall ever recorded in Anchorage’s history. We received as much snow in about one day last week, than we did for the entire 80 days of our deepest winter months.

So what does this nearly snowless winter mean for our spring and our summer? What does it mean for the fire season, the mosquito population, the bears or for gardening? On today’s show we’ll cover all of those questions with experts from around the state.

HOST: Dave Waldron

GUESTS:

Stephanie Dufek, Wildland Urban Interface Project Manager for the Anchorage Fire Department

Cory Stantorf, biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game

Rich Irvin, Co-President of the Alaska Master Gardeners Anchorage

Derek Sikes, President of the Alaska Entomological Society and the Curator of Insects at the University of Alaska Museum of the North

LINKS:

Anchorage Fire Department

AFD Fire Prevention

AFD Wildfire Division

Alaska Department of Fish and Game: Species Information

ADFG: Living With Bears

Alaska Master Gardeners Anchorage

Alaska Entomological Society

University of Alaska Museum of the North: Entomology

Our great state of Alaska encompasses eight hardiness zones and Anchorage is ranked 9th in the US for cities with the greatest number of community garden spaces. On this episode of Hometown, Alaska we hear from two guests excited about the upcoming Alaska summer growing season. The first half of the show is all about Anchorage's community gardens. The second half of the show discusses the Alaska Pioneer Fruit Growers Association and their long-time efforts to share fruit growing knowledge.

HOST: Kim Sherry

GUESTS:

Blake Sauer, Community Garden Programmer for the Municipality of Anchorage

Mark Wolbers, President of the Alaska Pioneer Fruit Growers Association

LINKS:

Anchorage Community Gardens

Community Gardens Resources

Alaska Pioneer Fruit Growers Association

Join us for a tour of Anchorage Distillery with CEO, John Blasco, and head distiller, Devin Wagner. We learn about using local Alaska ingredients in the grain to glass process of distilling in Anchorage and even taste test some young whiskey.

HOST: Kim Sherry

GUESTS:

John Blasco, CEO, Anchorage Distillery

Devin Wagner, head distillery, Anchorage Distillery

Today is St. Patrick's Day and while many of us will be wearing green and eating corned beef and cabbage for one day, there is a much larger slice of Irish culture that is often overlooked. On the this Hometown, Alaska we explore the other patron saints of Ireland, learn how to speak Gaelic and hear some fantastic traditional Irish Music.

HOST: Dave Waldron

GUESTS:

Kate O'Dell, President, Irish Club of Alaska

Terri Mccoy, John and Vicki Lewis and Donna Feary, musicians

LINK:

Irish Club of Alaska

Ice cream holds a special place in many Alaskans' hearts. Our Alaska Native cultures have been making traditional ice cream for longer than any of us have been around. Typically made with a mixture of snow, seal oil, fish and berries, depending on the region. These days, Alaskans consume the most ice cream per capita than any other state, with an annual consumption of 3 gallons per person! So, why the obsession with ice cream?

On this episode, we visit Wild Scoops, an Anchorage micro-creamery making handcrafted Alaska ice cream. We tour the test kitchen and speak with Elissa Brown, co-founder of Wild Scoops.

HOST: Kim Sherry

GUEST: Elissa Brown, co-founder of Wild Scoops

On this episode, we dive into the latest developments of Alaska’s volcanoes, specifically Mount Spurr which was recently given a 50/50 chance of eruption. It's the closest volcano to Anchorage and currently remains at a code yellow advisory. Matt Haney, scientist in charge at Alaska Volcano Observatory, joins host Dave Waldron to delve into the science behind volcanos.

Later on the program we’ll get into some of Alaska’s history with volcanoes and the science that goes into observing and understanding them.

HOST: Dave Waldron

GUEST: Matt Haney, Scientist in Charge, Alaska Volcano Observatory

LINKS:

Alaska Volcano Observatory

USGS Volcanoes in Alaska