KAREN BREWSTER: Today is March 29, 2016, and this is Karen Brewster and we're here in Kotzebue, Alaska with Ross Schaeffer for the Northern Alaska Sea Ice Project Jukebox project. And we're here at Ross's house in Kotzebue in -- joined also by Andy Mahoney and Becca Rolph, am I saying it correctly? And then sitting in the background is, um, somebody who doesn't -- who's not going to say anything. Okay.
So Ross, thank you for letting us come visit you today. So just to kind of get us started so people know a little bit about who you are, can you tell us a little about when/where you were born, your growing up, things like that.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Ok. Yeah. Well, my mother's mother was from Barrow. And my grandmother on my dad's side was from Buckland. And they moved here in 1898 and we've lived here since.
And Dad grew up here as a hunter. Probably one of the most prolific hunters around.
And it was an era of the dog team, they had no other means of transportation except for the dog team. So it was a different kind hunting. You know, they -- they spoke fluent Iñupiaq in all their hunts.
I had a brother, Pete, that came home in his freshman year from Copper Valley when I got there in 1961, and he said he had a chance to go hunt with dad and the rest of the guys.
He kind of really felt left out because they only spoke Iñupiaq. They didn't speak English. So Pete said he had a tough time.
Unfortunately, our folks didn't teach us Iñupiaq. But luckily, we learned so much from our folks on our traditional way of living, which was hunting, fishing, processing the foods, storing it, and getting to know the land and the ocean.
My dad spent most of his time out in the ocean. You know, they had to feed their dogs so dad said every half mile out in the lead was a hunter. And that's the way it was when they were growing up.
And now, as I told you earlier, that I'm the only one that goes out there. And if a guy decides to go hunting, he's looking for my trail. Because dad taught us very, very well.
KAREN BREWSTER: What -- Before you said something about somebody in your family learning Iñupiaq. That was -- Was that your grandfather? Who came from someplace else?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, my -- my -- our grandfather was from somewhere around the Michigan area. And he came up in the gold rush in 1898.
And then married my grandma who was a full-blooded Eskimo. And when we grew up with her, she spoke just few words of English. But she spoke fluent Iñupiaq.
KAREN BREWSTER: And she was from Kotzebue or she was from Buckland?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: She was from Buckland. Yeah, mm-hm. And she was a very traditional Iñupiaq in terms of the Native spirituality. She didn't go to church, she lived totally the Iñupiaq way.
And my dad learned everything from her in terms of the spiritual way of hunting. And he lived at camp for many years, about 11 years, with his dad and mom and three siblings.
And then they moved here to Kotzebue and he spent all his time hunting out of Kotzebue.
KAREN BREWSTER: And may I ask what year you were born?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: I was born in 1947. Yeah. All of us were born in our folk's home by midwife.
KAREN BREWSTER: And so you're from a big family. How many boys and girls?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Uh, we actually had twelve. And two died very young. And I'm named after my grandpa who was Roswell Schaeffer.
And my Eskimo name is Qalayauq.
KAREN BREWSTER: And then you said you went to school at Copper Valley?
ROSS SCAEFFER: Yeah, we had a BIA education here, and luckily my mom decided to send us to Copper Valley because they sure taught us how to read and write and do math, you know.
When we came out of the BIA education, we didn't know how to write, we didn't know how to read, and even simple math was difficult for us.
And the nuns and the priests over there taught us right from the beginning and brought us up where we were able to go to college right after high school and -- and actually do well.
So, we were very, very lucky to have that experience.
And the beautiful thing about Copper Valley was that -- and it's between Glenallen and Copper Center, was that we hunted for the school. We hunted caribou, we hunted moose. Rabbits. Ptarmigan, you know.
So, we didn't give up much of our way of life. In fact, I started learning how to trap when I was down there. My dad taught me the basics when I was a little boy. And then I started trapping down there.
KAREN BREWSTER: They must've had a big garden, also, at the school?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, my -- my grandfather was a farmer. In fact, there's stories about his sod roof had huge turnips growing out of it. So, yeah, he was real proud of that.
And the reason I got my Eskimo name Qalayauq was that he traded with a good friend of ours, her name was Lena Sours. Her name was Suuyuk.
She -- she lived to be about 111 years old. And her -- her mother was Qalayauq.
And so, her mother and my grandpa had a relationship in terms of trading. Trading his fresh goods for mukluks, parkies, and stuff like that. And so when I was born, they gave me her name.
KAREN BREWSTER: And then you said you went to school in Fairbanks?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, you know, after high school I had a choice of going into the Vietnam War or going to college, and the nuns convinced me to go to college.
So, I went to college and luckily I never did get drafted. I finished college in 1972. Got a B.A. degree in sociology and social work emphasis.
Moved back home that winter in December of '72 and there were no jobs. It was a real eye-opener.
We had about 1,100 people living in Kotzebue at the time. And by the spring of '73, I landed a magistrate job and worked that job for eight years. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: And then what else? Did you do other things after that?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, I did a lot of things. You know, I -- I trapped full time. I hunted sea mammals full time. I commercial fished full time. And I worked full time.
I trapped at night, and I did a lot of my hunting at night and weekends.
And any free time that I had, like annual leave, would be hunting sea mammals and also commercial fishing. So, I traveled this country, all this whole country at night. Just with a -- carry a .22 mag and trapping almost full time.
KAREN BREWSTER: And, was that -- that -- by then you were using a snowmachine, right?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, you know we -- my dad switched his dog team in 1966. Winter of '65.
KAREN BREWSTER: Wow, that's early.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. He was one of the later ones. KAREN BREWSTER: Oh, really?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. And, in fact, when I came home in December of '66, that was when I -- my first semester of college. I took his dog team out and they were really out of shape. And I traveled ten miles across and it was about 38 below.
KAREN BREWSTER: Did you use your social work?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: You know, I -- I learned a lot on how to deal with people. So I became more of a manager of people and programs.
I worked for the school district as a student advisor, it's a counseling job. And my job at the time was to get the juniors and seniors ready for college or vocational schools.
And then once they went to the schools, then I followed them to the schools periodically to bring Native foods and have a gathering and get them to support each other.
And I did that for five years, and then I became the NANA president. And I didn't last long in that job. I had some real serious health problems and -- and once I quit the job and got my health problems fixed, I recovered very well. So.
And then I trapped full time 'til '85 and I -- after my magistrate job in '83, I trapped for two full years.
And then I hurt myself and then I kinda got away from that. Went back to managing again.
KAREN BREWSTER: Yeah, you said you -- is that when you fell off that cliff?
After that, I had different jobs but I was looking for the right job and I finally -- I worked in different programs with the State just to build up my retirement.
And then finally landed a -- a borough mayor job and held that for two terms, six years. Then I retired after that. Yeah.
And so, now that I'm retired, I hunt and I was trapping but my grandson does all the trapping. I just go along with him and help him.
KAREN BREWSTER: And how many children have you raised?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Just three. Yeah. Mm-hm. And twin grandkids. A boy and a girl, yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: I need to interrupt for a second, I know you probably don't even -- but you're tapping on the table. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Oh. Okay.
KAREN BREWSTER: If you could you try not to do that? It's probably -- you don't even realize you're doing it, but the microphone -- so, sorry. I don't want to constrain you.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, that's alright.
KAREN BREWSTER: Anyway, so let's talk about your hunting and out on the ice and all those kinds of things. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, okay.
KAREN BREWSTER: How old were you?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: We couldn't do it when we were in high school because we were in Copper Valley during the winter. But we -- we came home every spring and we went out on the ice hunting ugruk with my dad.
And he was a really good teacher. And he knew the ice better than anybody around here.
And he drilled it in our minds never to hunt in a lead after a west wind. You always hunt after a east wind.
And you could hunt after a north wind along the Sisualik coast, which is a coast toward Kivalina, because then you have an offshore wind and all the broken ice is gone.
The west wind brings in the ice and then it covers up everything and you get fooled that it's safe. So that -- that he drilled into us all the time.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: They were experienced but they -- they made the mistake of going out after a west wind.
And a mistake -- the other mistake they made was they traveled together.
When I have -- out on the ice I say, "You travel 50 feet behind me. You might have to save my life," you know.
So you never can know what's gonna happen. Because snow can cover up danger places and especially now where you have extreme thin ice out there it's, it's -- you have to be very, very careful.
KAREN BREWSTER: I find it interesting about the east, west wind. I would think east wind would push the ice out, so you wouldn't want to be out there 'cause it'd get pushed out.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: No, no, it pushes the ice out so you have a clear lead. There's no broken ice, it's all gone.
ANDY MAHONEY: So-- so the loose ice is gone but the safe ice stays? So, you know where the safe ice is?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, the safe ice is right there. So you can drive right up to it. Yeah.
And we thought we had that last year. We had an east wind. I didn't go out in December because it was too warm, but I want out in January.
When we went out there, after a east wind, the sikuliaq or the young ice didn't even move out. It was still there.
And so I stopped and pulled out my stick and my second hit I went through. So that meant that the ice was about a inch thick.
But it had about four inches of snow that kept me afloat. And then I checked my grandson's snowmachine behind it and he was on good ice and I was on the thin ice.
KAREN BREWSTER: And that's what you said, that it was starting to get wet around your snowmachine?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, mm-hm. The ice was only 3 inches thick. We went the whole coast out in the ocean where the channel is and the sand bars. And the ice was only 3 inches thick out there.
In fact, when we got to the southern part there was no snow on it and we could tell it was green ice. It was very, very thin ice.
And when we went from there right to the beach, about two miles from my camp, which is about nine miles from Kotzebue, the lead was right to the beach. Right there. And that was in January.
KAREN BREWSTER: That's down the coast. Towards Cape Blossom?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, Cape Blossom way. Yeah. So, each year, I -- I check the ice. Because I hunt seals in the late spring in April. We call them qakiruaq, seals that go on top the ice.
And I always look at the thickness of the ice. And the last ten years the ice -- the maximum depth was about four -- three feet. There was nothing more thicker than that.
In the area, we used to get four or five feet, six feet of ice, you know. And this year we have eight inches of ice out there.
And it froze since March, and right where Bob and I were putting the crab pots it was about a foot thick. So, since three weeks ago, it only gained four inches.
KAREN BREWSTER: So, where you were putting your crab pot, three weeks ago, a month ago, it was open water? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, hm-mm. KAREN BREWSTER: And now it's ice? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. It's ice and it's only a foot thick.
KAREN BREWSTER: And how far out was that?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: That's 25 miles from here and about a mile out from the shore. Yeah. Yup.
KAREN BREWSTER: So that's pretty far down into the -- so 25 miles -- ROSS SCHAEFFER: Hm-mm, yeah. On the coast.
KAREN BREWSTER: -- on the coast, that's pretty far down to still be open -- to have been open water.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, normally you get a real strong east wind, we have a lead out here straight out from Kotzebue. Anywhere from 8 to 15 miles out. In a normal good, solid year.
And nowadays, it's right up to the sand bar, which is only eight miles out. Yeah, so -- Much, much different.
KAREN BREWSTER: When was the last time you had a normal year?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Mm -- it's hard to -- you know. When I'm looking at four foot ice it's a long, long time ago. I would assume maybe eight to ten years ago.
Just for an example, one time I went out in first of March. And I traveled 65 miles out. From Kotzebue straight out on the lead. Followed the edge of the lead.
And now, you can only travel eight miles out without hitting bum ice. Thin ice.
So that's how much difference there was in -- probably in 1990s the year that I traveled out there. 65 miles straight out from Kotzebue.
KAREN BREWSTER: So you -- when you were a little boy, did you go out -- your dad taught you in like high school. But did you go out when you were younger than that?
You know, the -- the way you learn is you do all the chores, and you do the driving. And that's how you learn how to hunt.
And then once you get a certain age and you can handle the 30.6, then you're advanced to a gunner.
And so we spent a lot of our time driving the boat.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: In June. Yeah. Usually June 15th. Normal break-up time.
And the difference now compared to the old days -- in the old days, what happens -- the reason why the belugas come here is that the Noatak River break -- break a channel.
And once it comes down, the ice is going underneath and it's breaking the ice. All the way out and it goes straight out into the ocean.
And as soon as we get a -- that little -- it's like a funnel. It breaks a little, then it goes out to the ocean.
Then the belugas are waiting out there and they come right in, 'cause they know they're gonna have lot of fish.
We have lot of tom cod migrating out. We have lots of herring migrating in. We have whitefish migrating in. And trout migrating out.
So, once they get into our bay, then the ice starts to move and closes up, they stay in our bay for three weeks.
Nowadays, like last winter, you saw the ocean right from town. And so, the belugas don't have that funnel into our bay anymore. So they go wherever they want to go, they don't come into our bay when it's like that.
Some of them come in and they just head right straight up the Kobuk Lake, Selawik Lake. And fish there all summer long.
KAREN BREWSTER: So they -- so you -- they sort of have a wider area, open area. They're not funneled.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, they -- they go wherever they want to go.
One of the interesting things that I -- that I observed when I was on the Beluga Whale Committee was that we did some interviews with people from Elim, Koyuk, and Shaktoolik.
And in the interview, the interviewer was confused. The people there were talking about belugas and all of the sudden they're talking about beavers.
They said, "Wait a minute, wait a minute, you guys are talking about beavers." "What do they got to do with the belugas?" he says.
The Eskimos told him that what's happening with the beavers, once they get populated, they dam all the lakes. So the whitefish have to move someplace else. And so they displace that food source.
So the belugas move somewhere else. And that was their connection.
And now when you look at Kotzebue and Buckland Bay and Deering, all our areas are contaminated. There's no safe water because the beavers are everywhere. And so they've made a huge impact on where the whitefish go.
KAREN BREWSTER: Even up all the way up here, huh? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Mm-hm, yeah. Yup.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: That's -- that's part of it and the other part is the -- is the openness of the ice.
KAREN BREWSTER: Yeah, that funnel. Yeah, that's really interesting. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, yeah.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, in fact, you know, these last few years that people wondered why Ross Schaeffer got beluga all the time. And the only reason was that I hunted the way our dad taught us, and that was to go out there and wait for them. And so we'd wait and wait in shallow water and when they finally came, we got them.
But when you have a year like last year, we waited twelve days out there. Never saw a single beluga. Yeah.
And they tell me they were out there by the hundreds, they see them. But they never come in.
And so the other problem we have, too, is there's a lot of killer whale activity in the deeper water.
And, in fact, last year my friend, Harry Clark, saw a killer whale right at the mouth of our channel, which is eight miles out. And they're -- and they -- they were after a walrus and the walrus climbed up on the shallow water and just stayed there for the whole day. And the killer whales left.
So, you know, we have all these things that are happening that allow the killer whales to come right into our Sound and stay here and hunt.
And so the belugas are deathly afraid -- they're more afraid of the killer whale than they are of the human with the gun. They'll come right to us to get killed. They'd rather get killed by us with a gun than being chewed up -- chewed up by a killer whale. Real interesting.
Yeah, and they -- they chase them right into our shallow waters. In fact, the last two belugas we got, my grandson and I and James McClellen went out. There were six boats ahead of us.
And I was trying to find somebody to -- my truck was broke down so I was trying to find somebody to take my boat out. Finally, my buddy came by and we were about an hour late. We were the last boat out.
And all of a sudden our motor started coming up, it was shallow water. They were in water half way on their bodies.
So I -- I was able to get rubber boots after I killed them to walk right up to them and put lines on them. But they were chased by killer whales.
And as we looked for more belugas further over -- we put buoys on those and went over and my buddy saw some further over. We didn't see them.
But on our way back, we saw one beluga way inside. And we thought we saw one.
That beluga was on so shallow of a water that more than half it's body was up. And the guys thought it was an island until it moved.
Just to show you how frighten -- frightened these belugas are of killer whales. They just -- we call it qakisaaq, they just go right up on the shallow water.
KAREN BREWSTER: Beach -- beach themselves. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Beach 'em, yeah. Hm-mm. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: So, you had mentioned learning from your father and I forgot to ask you what your father's name was.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Oh, his name was John Schaeffer Sr. Yeah, hm-mm.
And he was the first beluga hunter with a outboard. Twenty-two horse. The old one with the gas tank on top. And he built a 19-foot speed boat. So he was the first one to learn how to hunt belugas with a -- with a -- a speedboat.
KAREN BREWSTER: What year would that have been? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Oh boy, that's about -- KAREN BREWSTER: Mid-'60s?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: No, no, no. That's way before that. That would have been probably the beginning of the '50s. Because his cousin's husband gave him that motor. And they left for Seattle, I think, at that time.
When you look at the beach, I -- I didn't know it was happening that way. But I knew he took other guys out.
But, my oldest brother, John, told Bob that every hunter along the beach was all white with maktak hanging. Because dad took all these guys out.
And so we -- we learned very young that you have to share your food. Especially with elders. And -- and so now, as I'm getting older, I spend all my time hunting for elders.
And I hunt what I need and then the rest I -- I send to villages and people around this area. Feed a lot of people. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: So, talking about ice and so, that kinda of, you know, you're a big seal hunter. And so that's natchiq and ugruk?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. We hunt natchiq in the wintertime. All the spotted seals and ugruk migrate out.
There are ugruks out here in -- in the ocean. You could go down like Rabbit Creek between here and Kivalina about half way and get ugruk. I've done that before.
But we hunt natchiq all winter long. In fact, the natchiqs were so fat this year that we could barely lift them onto the sled. Normally, they'd be 150 pounds, this year they were probably 175 pounds. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: And so, when is the -- when is freeze-up?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: You know, in the old days freeze-up was between the first and second week of September. To the first of October.
Nowadays, freeze-up is in November. And when the ice starts to melt -- first week of April is when we start having our first thaw.
Last year, it was first week of April. I got a bearded seal mar -- May 25th last year.
KAREN BREWSTER: From -- from shorefast ice?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Mm-hm, yeah. In fact, three, four years ago I got one May 22. And a friend of mine got me one May 20th. Normally, we hunt ugruk the second week of June.
So our springs and our falls are super extended, and we have about a six-month winter.
In fact, now, when we look at trapping. You can't go through these creeks anymore, they're all flowing. And so we -- we have an area that we really want to trap, but it's so dangerous we fell through how many times and we just kind of avoid it now. Yeah, yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: So when we talk about freeze-up, what -- what does that mean to you? What does the ice do? What counts as freeze-up?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Where you can drive your snowmachine on it. And we have a big bay here. And once it's six inches to eight inches thick. You know, most of us Native folks know where all the thin parts are.
So we're -- we're able to travel with snowmachine at that time. When it's about that thick. That's freeze-up for us.
So, the ocean is just open about four miles down. But the rest of this bay is kind of fresh water, brackish water. So it freezes very early.
ANDY MAHONEY: And the -- where the ice is safe and where it's thin, is that related to where the water is deep and where it's shallow?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: No, it -- it's related to where the creeks are. ANDY MAHONEY: Okay.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, mouths of creeks, and when -- when you look at a big lake like Sela -- Kot -- Kobuk Lake, you're looking at the middle. Where usually the middle is always thinner, you know. ANDY MAHONEY: Right. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, yeah.
And there are places where in that time of year when the surge of water comes in with the tide, with either a south or a southwest wind, all the areas where the sandbars are overflow. So that's the dangerous part.
ANDY MAHONEY: Oh, okay. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. Because the sandbar freezes, but all around it breaks. And then it over flows.
ANDY MAHONEY: So there's a crack and water comes up the crack?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. In a normal year, in the older days, after January you had no more overflow. 'Cause all the ice is solid to the beach. It's not that way anymore, you got overflow all the time.
ANDY MAHONEY: Oh, interesting ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. Because the ice is too thin.
ANDY MAHONEY: Right. 'Cause it's not freezing to the bottom. Which means it can lift up with the tide and -- ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. Yup.
KAREN BREWSTER: I've heard the word supi. Supi, like the flooding. Is that what happens in the spring when the creeks -- Is that what -- ? Maybe it's not the right Iñupiaq word.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, yeah. It might be different for us than it is from Barrow's.
KAREN BREWSTER: No, it's -- it's actually was from Bob Uhl.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Oh, Bob Uhl. Uh huh. Yeah, I -- I, you know, I haven't heard that.
KAREN BREWSTER: Okay. But yeah, so is there an effect of the tide? With the ice floating up?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Mm-hm, absolutely. The southwest and south wind, and sometimes the west wind, brings in the good tide. But it's mostly southwest and south. And southeast.
In fact, when -- when you're looking at the effects upon our community, our region, our prevailing winds in the summer used to be west wind. When you have west wind, all the gravel is deposited on our shores.
Now our prevailing winds are south and southeast. So it's taking back all the gravel and we're losing all our coastline. So that -- that's the real difference.
Right now, when it gets towards spring, we had no west wind all winter. All of a sudden we got this cold west wind. Soon as it warms up in the Interior, we end up with a west wind. Until finally there's a big low that hits us from the -- from Anchorage.
And then, when we were growing up, on -- we'd come home May 20th from Copper Valley. We already had trees that are green, water's all melted, come home, ice and snow. Absolutely no melt.
Get our cross-country skis, go hunt ptarmigan. About a week later, we'd have a big wind from the east. Everything would melt all at once. Within a week. Noatak River would come down, maybe a little bit longer than that.
So by May 29th through June 4, to the 10th at the latest, Noatak River would come out. And then we'd have our -- then we start breaking the ice out in the ocean.
By the 15th of June, we were already bearded seal hunting or waiting for belugas.
In the older days, we hunted beluga first because they were -- they were right there in the channel. And wait 'til the ice completely break up where it's in smaller pieces and then we'd hunt bearded seals.
But nowadays, the young guys want to hunt bearded seals first. And that's why a lot of guys don't get beluga. And so I -- I kind of wait out there.
And there's a real difference. The belugas have learned this.
In the older days, all the exhaust and the noise from the outboard was on the surface. Now everything goes in the prop.
So they could hear that prop long ways and they adjust their behavior based on that noise.
The other huge problem is the jet. No sooner that the jet came in here in 1982, the belugas got scared. They -- they -- it must have took the belugas years and years to get used to all the noise in Anchorage.
Because when you look at -- when you look at the jets flying by and the belugas are swimming normally, that doesn't happen here.
In fact, a few years ago a friend of mine from Sisualik, he lives there in the spring, he said -- he was watching a big pod of belugas coming in. The jet took off in Kotzebue "pshew" they went back out. They're still sensitive to the noise.
You know, after all these years of having the jet in here since 1982. Huge impact.
And once that happened in '84-'85, we also had a huge pod of belugas that got caught in Serenity -- Serenity Strait over across from Nome. And there were about 6,000 belugas.
Of the 6,000 belugas, the Russians killed 1,000 for their fox farms in '84, '85. And then they had to bring in the ice breaker to -- the surviving belugas were about 350 to 1,000. So there were a lot of belugas that died that year.
five years ago, six years ago, we got lot of belugas. And my son and I shot and killed six. The belugas were so skinny that it was like getting two belugas. They -- they were caught in the ice somewhere.
And I was told by one friend of mine that caught a beluga, it was so skinny it was like a skeleton. And there was just no maktak on them. When you have a healthy beluga, they have about six inches of fat. And their -- their volume stretches so they got lots of maktak.
One year we got three belugas, huge belugas. And they were all fat. We had more maktak then than we had with those six belugas that we caught that one year. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: I'm wondering about Sealing Point. We talked about how going out there for seal hunting has changed. What -- How you do that and how that might have changed?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Well, you know, you can't go far out right now. Because at Sealing Point, the -- the lead is about a mile out. Maybe. If that much.
KAREN BREWSTER: So there's no shorefast ice?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: There is just a little bit. KAREN BREWSTER: Just a little bit.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. Because what happens is that -- we had a southwest wind about three weeks ago. And so it finally piled up the ice. And once it piles it up, then you have shorefast ice.
And it has to be -2 below or colder for that salt water to freeze. If you have temperatures that are above that, that salt water isn't going to freeze. That's why it's so thin out there.
At 32 degrees our fresh water is still freezing. But you get out on the ocean, it's not freezing.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: In the old days. Like I told you, I -- I traveled 65 miles out. What I did was I traveled from here to Sealing Point. I was nine miles out from Sealing Point. And I followed the lead and I went all the way out -- it's about 30 miles straight out from Kotzebue to nine miles out from Sealing Point.
So then -- then I was able to get 65 miles out and finally land some polar bears. Yeah. And that's -- I had seen polar bears -- I had gotten three seals the week before. The weekend before.
And so I went back out to see if I can find one and I end up getting some.
But, Sealing Point is right here. And so, about nine miles out would be like this. And then I went straight out this way.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Probably way out, 65 miles out. ANDY MAHONEY: Really? Wow.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. And that -- that was in 1990.
ANDY MAHONEY: Hm-mm. And -- and this was all landfast or was it -- ?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: All frozen. We had a -- we had a lead right on this edge like this.
ANDY MAHONEY: Oh, so you crossed the lead?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, but -- and I just followed the edge of the lead. And this lead went this way and it was all ice, thin ice. We call it sikuliaq. ANDY MAHONEY: Yeah, yeah.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: So out here, when I got the polar bears, I -- I cut open the thin ice and put a crab pot. Because I knew I'd have to skin three polar bears.
So I skinned the -- the female completely and then I gutted the two smaller ones, and then loaded up and came home. Yeah.
REBECCA ROLPH: So we were out, like, here?
REBECCA ROLPH: And that's where the ice edge is or not the ice -- ? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, right around here REBECCA ROLPH: -- but the thin ice was.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, it's right there. Yeah, it's -- This year, the -- the channel is right about here somewhere. And the ice -- in March -- or February, there's just a little bit of ice right up to here. And that's it.
In fact, Rex Rock told me that this is the first time he's ever seen that the lead was from Kotzebue, Shishmaref, all the way to Barrow. ANDY MAHONEY: Yeah. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. It's the first time.
So now that we have some colder weather, you know, we probably got some sikuliaq, young ice, most everywhere.
ANDY MAHONEY: And so the west wind, that might add on?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Mm-hm, yeah, the west wind pushes it in and keeps it in.
And soon as we get a strong east wind, you'll have a big lead out here again. Yeah. And when we're looking at thaw, it's going to be wide open again.
REBECCA ROLPH: When was this? The -- ROSS SCHAEFFER: 1990. REBECCA ROLPH: Okay. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Hm-mm. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: But then like across to Sisualik, does that stay frozen longer?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Um, yeah. Right, you know, our -- right from these sandbars, to about eight miles out to Sisualik. Right near Sisualik there're sandbars, too. And that's what makes the ice. It's the sandbars right there.
And so it freezes following that and sometimes it just goes way inside here.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Last time we went crabbing over there, we had to go home through Deering. ANDY MAHONEY: All the way around. Wow. Yeah.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: And we had to go get gas from Deering because we ran out of gas. Normally, we can just go straight across. It's 40 -- 40 miles straight across.
KAREN BREWSTER: Yeah, I was going to ask if people ever went straight across to Espenberg.
KAREN BREWSTER: He used to do that straight across?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: He used to do that all the time. Yeah, yeah. Yup. And now he don't even come to Kotzebue anymore and that's probably the reason because there's no ice out there. Yeah, yup.
KAREN BREWSTER: But so, when the shorefast ice used to be wider at Sealing Point, did people go camp out on that ice? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Not, not anymore. Not in my -- KAREN BREWSTER: No, in the old days.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: In the old days. In fact, my dad said that they've gone out -- he and Fletcher Gregg went out -- And we're talking about same place way out here somewhere in the middle of the ocean. Looking for a lead. And camping out and not finding one. Yeah.
ANDY MAHONEY: So when you were that far out, were you worried that the wind could change and the lead would open up behind you?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: No, you know, I -- you -- you can kinda tell the weather. And I figured it wasn't gonna move. Yeah. So I wasn't worried about it. And soon as it starts to pick up I'd scoot out of there real quick, you know.
KAREN BREWSTER: So you're -- when you were out there, you're -- you're paying attention to the wind?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: All the time, all the time. Yeah. You have to.
And -- there are times when I went out there in recent years where I'd have to watch the ice where it layered. So that I can get to the lead to hunt seals. Because it's so thin, you know.
And there were times when I'd get up and take off, like Sarah Belcher. We were out there and I thought the lead moved so we went back and no, it was okay, so we went back out and said, "Got four seals, that's enough. Let's get out of here." So, yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: Do you check the current also?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Well, the current is real strong where I normally hunt. And when you look at Sealing Point, towards Sealing Point, Anigaaq area, which is 25 -- Anigaaq is 25 miles from here. Sealing Point is more like 35.
That area has very little current. When we shoot seals, they just stay there. Whereas the current out here straight out from Kotzebue, straight west, about eight, nine miles out, ten miles out the current is super strong.
In fact, I've gone out to get seals and they just go "phew." They go right, four feet under the -- the current's so strong it takes them right down there. Scares the heck outta you. Yeah. Especially when you're just with a kayak, you know. It could easily just grab you and "phew." You wouldn't know.
KAREN BREWSTER: And what direction is the current going?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: It's going out, usually. KAREN BREWSTER: It's usually going out? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, hm-mm, straight out.
ANDY MAHONEY: So that's -- so that's the current that's really -- the ripple flowing out?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: So when you're look at Sealing Point, the current is going this way. Or this way. Right here, right in front of town, it's going straight out.
ANDY MAHONEY: So here it goes backwards and forwards? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, hm-mm. ANDY MAHONEY: But here it just goes out? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. Hm-mm. Yeah, that's the way it -- because we have that channel that's right out here.
ANDY MAHONEY: The -- the channel that's marked on this map? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, hm-mm. Yeah, yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: So does that current affect the ice movement?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Mm-hm, yeah. Absolutely. But the ice is -- changes so much with the wind, you know? Yeah, yeah. It could break at any time.
In fact, Bob, when he first put out his crab pots there were no crack, so he finally had to move his crab pot and make a little hole inside the crack. It was wide enough to put a crab pot in.
But we made a hole on this side, so in case it closes then we could open it back up.
KAREN BREWSTER: Yeah, so I heard that -- that a long time ago at Sealing Point, they'd go camp out there for a couple months.
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, that's in the spring. In -- in June. Yeah.
In fact, the Noatak people camped out at Qiḷiqmiaq, which is a major camping place for Noatak people. And also Sisualik and Sealing Point.
That's why they call it Sealing Point. 'Cause they're -- when you go there in the spring there's hundreds of seals basking in the sun right there. And that's why they hunt there quite often.
It's -- lot of our people hunt seals in the fall. And then after that, they don't hunt seals. I guess that I'm one of the few that still goes out and hunts.
I try to get anywhere from eight to ten seals in the wintertime. Sometimes 16. Because I share with all the village folks, the elder folks.
I think a lot of our folks in the villages don't eat seal me -- seal oil anymore. 'Cause they don't have it. In fact, last fall, when we were hunting caribou we had a couple guys from Noorvik. I said, "Hey, man, this caribou soup is really delicious with fresh seal oil, you guys gonna have some?" "No." They -- they refused to have it.
Older folks, man, they'd jump right at the chance and, you know -- Because when you're battling the cold, you need that oil in your system to -- to adjust to the cold.
REBECCA ROLPH: So the currents, have you noticed changes in the currents at all?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: No, not -- not the currents. It's just changes in the wind that causes so much affect.
When you look at west wind in the summer, you have a real normal tide, which is about two to three feet. When you look at the southwest and south wind, we have a surge of tide.
REBECCA ROLPH: Because, they just came in?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. And -- and uh -- The last few years we had -- like last year we had no walruses on the beach. So the bears have a tough time. The grizzly bears.
We had a big grizzly bear down at Sadie Creek. He left Sadie Creek, he went up river to get food. And we monitored his trail by what houses he broke in to, you know.
And he was a big bugger. He was about 8 foot. He ate up two seals by Sadie Creek, went over to Lavonne's, which is about a mile from my camp. Ate up a whole walrus in two weeks.
REBECCA ROLPH: So the -- Yeah. For -- for the wind, you said they used to be more prevailing west winds and now it's definitely south and southeast. Do you notice more, like, changes in the wind now? Or is it just mostly now it's prevailing south, southeast?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: You know, it's mostly prevailing south to southeast, but uh -- It's really impacted the -- like Sisualik, most of the towers that were there in the '90s, they're all gone. Because it ate up the shore. And these towers were 100 yards from the beach, you know.
KAREN BREWSTER: Like radio towers?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: No, no. Hunting -- hunting -- hunting towers. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They're all gone.
REBECCA ROLPH: Because they just got washed away? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. Mm-hm. Yup.
REBECCA ROLPH: And that's because of the wind?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. Because of the change of how the wind affects the beaches, you know.
And when you look at Kivalina, they had a big -- it's like a sandbar in front of their village. From all the west wind that deposited that sand. And so the waves would break way out there.
Well, what happened with the southeast and the south wind, that whole gravel thing is gone. So it's hitting right into their village.
So that's -- that's the difference. That's what I'm talking about is that -- the difference of wind that really impacts the coast line.
KAREN BREWSTER: You had mentioned those two guys who disappeared. Are there historically stories about people drifting out?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, the last one was Robert Todd Hunter who was my dad's cousin. He was a superb hunter. He was also a real athlete, they tell me. And very strong.
And this one other guy, John Nelson, he was a really good friend of mine. He -- he was really old, old guy. He was a half Swede and half Eskimo.
And he told Robert that if you don't fix your kayak, his rim was fraying, that you're gonna tip over yet. And Robert didn't fix it and he went out seal hunting and he was going out to get a seal and he flipped over.
His partner was kind of a -- a man that had -- he was, he never aged after 12 years old. That's how he's thinking.
And half a mile away was another hunter. He panic, instead of waiting for Robert. Robert was so strong that he made it to the shore, but nobody was there to help him.
This guy panicked, went over to get the other guy. Came back, found his hat right on the edge.
And his body was found over on the Shishmaref side. In fact, my son last summer found a skull at Shismaref side and Cape Espenberg side that belonged to one of these two guys that disappeared.
KAREN BREWSTER: Did people drift out and kind of go out and come back around? Did that ever happen?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Well, um, no. If you're drowning out here, you'd probably go straight out and then end up on Shishmaref side.
KAREN BREWSTER: Yeah, did people -- I mean, I've heard stories, like up in Barrow that seal hunters. The ice would break up, you stay and you float around, and you -- you find a way to get back -- to walk back. Did that happen around here?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, yeah, I've heard of guys from Selawik going out, trying to go hunt seal. Try to get their own seal. Cross a crack, end up on Kivalina's shore. You know, never go hunt seal again.
These are old guys telling me the story with dog teams, you know. Yeah, and when you pass a crack, you're asking for trouble. Because that east wind comes up and that crack becomes miles wide.
If they were lucky, they ended up in -- right between Kivalina and Point Hope.
KAREN BREWSTER: Yeah. So it did happen?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, oh yeah. It happened, yeah. In fact, my dad done that before.
And then in modern history, I know of Noatak guys going to Rabbit Creek and going out and seeing a crack and go out and hunt. Come back and the crack is 100 yards wide. And wait until it closes up again. They're lucky it closed up again, you know. Yeah.
Only once I almost made a fatal mistake. I went toward Cape Blossom, it was real thin. I went out, shot a seal, and put it in. I went back and the ice was already separated. I was lucky I made it across. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: And what caused the change? The wind?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Just the current and a little bit of breeze. Yeah, yeah. It was thin enough ice where it cracked real quick.
KAREN BREWSTER: So what are the things do you look for when you're going out in terms of to make sure you're safe?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Well, you have to look at the color of the ice, you know. And you have to test the ice all the time.
As soon as I get out to where I know it's gonna be a little bit touchy I -- and it's fresh snow, I get out my stick.
And uh -- last year I made the mistake of getting right up to the edge of the ice about 20 feet. And then testing it, it turned out to be really thin.
ANDY MAHONEY: You -- you should have tested it sooner?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, I should have -- sooner than that. And I normally do.
But I figured, well, it blew so hard that it should be safe. But it wasn't. It was different.
KAREN BREWSTER: So you decide where to start testing based on the color and how rough it is, does the roughness of the ice make a difference?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Mm-hm, yeah it does. Where it's rough, it's real thick.
So when we look at going out to the lead, we kind of stay close to the rough ice to get to the lead because it's thick. It's layered.
KAREN BREWSTER: It's usually grounded?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: No, not necessarily. There's a lot of ice out there that's -- like when you went down to Sisualik, you see all the jumbled ice. Yeah, it was all flat ice when I left for -- I left for Anchorage, March 7th for surgery and it was all water.
And some places, real flat ice. Now it's all jumbled. We had a southwest storm. So it comes -- the ice moved in from the other side and piled up all the way. It's really rough, this time. You have to really look how to get out there. Yeah. Much different than a month ago.
KAREN BREWSTER: And -- and when you were younger, that -- when we went out yesterday and, to me that ice seemed so flat and smooth. Is it always like that? Or this is unusual?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: You're probably looking at the ice between here and Sisualik is flat. Yeah. It's always flat.
When you start getting toward a channel, which is about eight miles out, there's usually some huge ice piles out there. 'Cause we have sandbars there, and so when the west wind blows, it piles up there.
Well, this year, the southwest wind blew so it piled up on Sealing Point and that side. Anigaaq. Yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: Yeah. Ivuniq, is that the term you guys use?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah. And I'm glad to see it, because the baby seals have to be born within those protected areas. And they -- they drill holes in there and they make a little den in there.
Last year, we didn't have that. And so, when you look at the impacts on babies, we had many bearded, young bearded seals. More than I've ever seen in my life in the fall.
But we had very few young spotted seals or young natchiq.
But the ugruks are a lot larger animal, so the foxes don't kill them. They kill all the other baby seals.
When you get out the ocean in the spring, when we used to travel between here and Espenberg, you'd see red fox tracks everywhere out there.
In fact, one day we were coming home from Shishmaref and I saw a fox dragging something and I caught up with it and stole this young seal he caught.
KAREN BREWSTER: So the natchiq are denning and pupping in those ice piles? ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, yeah.
KAREN BREWSTER: What about the ugruk?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: They're -- they migrate more further out. So most of the ugruk are between -- probably between Nome and -- and that's the Yupik country.
KAREN BREWSTER: So they den out farther?
A young bearded seal goes into all the sloughs in the spring. After break-up. And that's where they spend the whole summer.
When they come out, they're about two to three hundred pounds. And they're about four to five feet long.
The males are usually a lot larger and the females a lot smaller. But they're very fat, and this year almost every load we got of seals, half of them were bearded seals. Young bearded seals. So we had an exceptional crop.
KAREN BREWSTER: So how does the thinning ice affect the seal population and you being able to go hunting?
ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, because -- because they got -- last year we didn't have much wind. We had very few storms. And so you had no ice piles. Very little snow.
This year we have lots of snow, blowing snow. And it really impacts the ability for the young seals to have their protected dens. So they have to stay up on the ice and the -- the foxes find them very quickly.
And they'd probably die from cold when you get wind like what we have now, you know. Yeah. No protection.
Because when they're in their den, that sun penetrates right through that snow. And so they're -- even though their skin on the outside is creamy colored, their hair -- I mean, their hair is creamy colored, but their skin is black.
You know, whenever you get a seal and you scrape out the top skin, everything is black. Same with the polar bear. That's how they keep warm. KAREN BREWSTER: Right. ROSS SCHAEFFER: Yeah, yeah.


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The New Black Panther Trailer Reveals One of Marvel's Most Ambitious Movies Yet
Welcome to Wakanda's afrofuturist utopia.
The new Black Panther trailer takes us on a trip to the Afrofuturist world of Wakanda, a technological utopia ruled by our hero played by Chadwick Boseman. Like in Guardians of the Galaxy and the Thor movies, Black Panther marks an expansion of the Marvel universe, taking us to some visually stunning places—this time back on our own planet. Full of flying machines, massive cities on mountainsides, and futuristic technology, Wakanda is a brilliant kingdom rich with vibranium, which is the powerful material that makes up Black Panther's suit and Captain America's shield.
While this new trailer doesn't give much in the way of plot, it provides a good tease of some seriously amazing action and special effects. From director Ryan Coogler, the truly ambitious Black Panther also stars Michael B. Jordan, Angela Bassett, Lupita Nyong'o and Andy Serkis. Also, props to this trailer using Vince Staples's "BagBak," whose unedited version has these lyrics: "Tell the one percent to suck a dick, because we on now / Tell the president to suck a dick, because we on now / Tell the government to suck a dick, because we on now"
'Black Panther' Is Marvel's Greatest Achievement
Will Michael B. Jordan Return For Black Panther 2?
Explaining Bucky's Future After 'Black Panther'
Trevor Noah Had a 'Black Panther' Cameo
First Trailer for 'Black Panther' Has Dropped
Why 'Black Panther' Is History in the Making

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This Porcelain Baby Dish Set features beloved Peter Rabbit with his mother and siblings, Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cottontail, featuring an original illustration by Beatrix Potter, the beloved English children's book author.
Paired with our Tale of Peter Rabbit Board Book, this dish set makes a perfect gift for a new infant or a baby shower.
Dishwasher-safe, food-safe, and certified lead-free, this set includes a 6 oz two-handle mug and a porcelain bowl with 7-inch diameter.
Peter Rabbit & Family Porcelain Baby Dish Set (2 Pc) has a rating of 5.0 stars based on 2 reviews.


Take the time to contemplate the Loire, its varieties and the people contributing to the wine route.
Discover the subtle fragrances of our wines.
Marvel at the private meeting room with its alcove bathed in light.
Fall back into childhood by playing unforgettable games with your family and friends.
This is a preface to the commented tasting of Ackerman's wines (Saumur brut, Cremant de Loire) and the great appellations from the Loire Valley (Saumur, Champigny, Chinon, Vouvray, Coteaux du Layon…).
Ackerman fine sparkling wine tastings – moments of conviviality and sharing.
Ackerman offers a guided visit of its cellars (over 30,000 visitors/year) combining tradition, innovation, information, leisure activities and art.
The Loire Valley is made up of over 50 appellations and denominations, explaining the richness and the diversity of its wines.
Saumur, the town of Jean-Baptiste Ackerman.
Take the time to roam the Loire, a UNESCO World Heritage site – and its grape varieties.
The French art of living in the gardens of the House of Ackerman.
Will you be clever enough to succeed at Funamboule?
Fall back into childhood and play Japanese billiards or bowls with family or friends.
After the visit, awaken your senses with a commented tasting of our white, red and rosé Loire Valley wines.
Serving temperatures: 15° to 18° for full-bodied reds, 12° to 14° for light reds, 8° to 10° for dry whites and rosés, 6° to 8° for fine sparkling wines and sweet whites.
Take your passion for wine a step further at the Ackerman cellars where you will discover the heritage of Loire wines and the company's expertise.
Forerunner and specialist in fine sparking wines, the House of Ackerman has grown from one generation to the next, all the while respecting its local partners and the region's terroirs.
Games: The Loire Valley's art of living.
Ackerman's cellars are located close to the Abby of Fontevraud and just a hop, skip and jump from the National Equestrian School.
Epicurean values and the art of living have been a source of inspiration for the House of Ackerman's wine tourist attractions.
The mellow atmosphere of the Loire wine tourism route.
As the leading producer of Loire Valley wines (situated in the second largest French sparkling wine vineyard), the House of Ackerman is breathing new life into the region's wines.
The company's vineyard is part of the Loire Valley's heritage. It also benefits from in-house expertise, as the forerunner in Loire Valley fine sparkling wines and the leader in Loire and Saumur Cremant AOCs.
The House of Ackerman is highly implicated in the Loire Valley vineyard via its winemakers, its vintners and its commitment to the region.
Room rentals for weddings, baptisms, anniversaries and tastings. Handicapped facilities.
Situated in Saumur on the banks of the Thouet river, a tributary of the Loire, the House of Ackerman's cellars boast charm, magnificent local scenery and the prestige of great wine houses.
The perfect setting for business meals.
Ackerman, first circuit oenotouristique of France to have had this label for 4 handicaps!


text:
Timing Tips for Your Next Disney World Trip
The Top Tourist Activities In California
Disney World In One Day: Is It Possible?
The Top Fives Places to Stay in Los Angeles
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Los Angeles is a city that's difficult to navigate, especially if you're a tourist. Most people live and play in the cities around Los Angeles, not in downtown L.A. itself. Some of the more famous locales surrounding Los Angeles are Beverly Hills and West Hollywood and there are small beach communities located up and down the coast, like Santa Monica and Manhattan Beach. And, of course, don't forget Anaheim, where Disneyland is located. If you're visiting Los Angeles for your next vacation, it's best if you stay in one of the cities to get more fun out of your trip.…
Whenever I think of a trip to New York City whether for a vacation or just a short one or two-day visit I can't help but think of Broadway and the delightful shows that await in these hallowed halls of entertainment delight. Broadway is the essence of New York to me. It can in turns be bawdy, brawling, loud, rowdy, soft, romantic, comedic, and rip-roaringly hilarious. Broadway has it all for those who are willing to look for their perfect fit. The problem with Broadway is that there are so many wonderful shows to see and such limited time (for…
Disneyland Travel Tips, Hints and Secrets
When is the best time to be at Disneyland? When you are planning your Disneyland vacation, you should note that some days are better than, others at the park. The days that you choose to be there will depend greatly on whether you are more interested in attractions or entertainment - or both. For instance, Tuesday's, Wednesday's, and Thursday's are the days when you will have shorter lines for the attractions, because there will be fewer people there. On the other hand, the entertainment on those nights cannot compare to the entertainment that is offered on the weekends. If entertainment…
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Q: How to memoize at class level? I have the following class, with a cached property as so:
class Object:

  def __init__(self, var):
    self._var = var

  @property
  @lru_cache()
  def some_property(self):
     print("i did some calculation")
     return self._var + 3

>> obj = Object(3)
>> obj.some_property
i did some calculation
6

How can I make it so that whenever I make a new Object, with the same var, it will not recalculate, but rather memoize the result fat class level and not recalculate somme_property.
In other words I would need it to behave as so:
>> new_obj = Object(3)
>> new_obj.some_property
6

A: Maybe not the answer but a suggestion. You could just create a function inside Object which will hold the variable.
Something like this:
def memorize(x):
  self.MemorizedValue = x

Then you can pass the value through Object.memorize(3).

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text:
Nickols Island ist eine markante Felseninsel mit Steilküste vor der Ingrid-Christensen-Küste des ostantarktischen Prinzessin-Elisabeth-Lands. Sie liegt 24 km westnordwestlich des Mount Caroline Mikkelsen in der Sandefjord Ice Bay.

Luftaufnahmen der Lars-Christensen-Expedition 1936/37 dienten norwegischen Kartografen 1946 der Kartierung. Sie benannten sie als Instøy. Wissenschaftler der Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions besuchten sie zwischen Januar und Februar 1969. Das Antarctic Names Committee of Australia benannte sie 1968 nach Elektroingenieur Alan H. F. Nickols, der 1968 an der Erkundung des Amery-Schelfeises beteiligt war.

Weblinks
 Nickols Island im Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica (englisch)

Insel (Antarktika)
Insel (Südlicher Ozean)
Prinzessin-Elisabeth-Land

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A couple of days ago, when I was examining a new referral, who was another patient with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), the patient's family asked me, "Are you the doctor we saw on TV?" Then it dawned on me that the TV News footage that was shot in our office two weeks ago (see previous post here), must have been aired already. Am I now a celebrity?
After I asked them when did they see me, they told me that the TV news clip about the patient with ALS, whom I examined was shown the night before. And I did not even see myself on broadcast. I missed my own TV premier!
Fortunately the video clip was in the local TV News website, which I checked later that day. Finally I was able to watch myself on the news. Man, I was really on TV. Move over House, MD!
I'm a TV smash. This type of smash!
As I remember it, the TV news crew was in our office for more than an hour shooting that footage, including the patient performing the breathing test and me examining him. I was with the patient for about 20-25 minutes getting his history , performing my examination, going over his breathing test, and discussing management plans and prognosis with him and his family. The camera was rolling throughout and I even had a microphone placed on me the whole time.
When I viewed the final product of the film clip which was 6 minutes long, I found that they showed me for a total of 2 seconds. Only two seconds! They showed a close-up of my hand holding a stethoscope even longer than they showed my face! Don't they like my Brad Pitt-like image?
But that's alright, at least I was not edited out altogether. And besides the news clip was not about me but about my patient who was raising awareness of his untreatable disease and raising funds for an organization he founded to help other patients with ALS and their family. My appearance was incidental.
So for good measure, I am now carrying a pen all the time. I am being ready, just in case somebody approach me and ask for an autograph.
Bring your pen to church Saturday: I will sure need one autograph! Lol!
I guess you can say you've just had your "Andy Warhol moment," albeit for 2 seconds, as you said. Those two seconds were enough for people to recognize you and remember though. You must have a memorable or distinctive look then! Very important for TV viewing.
When you are a foreign-born doctor in Iowa, you are hard to miss. Des Moines is not that ethnically diverse.
After I clicked the reply button, the realization hit me. I forget about these matters because I'm a little spoiled in the SFO Bay Area.


Born in Rochester, NY, one could say Chef Brandon Benack's rich food memories as a child helped guide him on a path to become a chef. Having grandparents from Calabria, Italy, Brandon learned at an early age to roll meatballs for Sunday dinners and harvest grapes for homemade wine.
After his culinary beginnings in Hilton Head, SC, he spent five years at Emeril Lagasse's legendary creole restaurants in New Orleans. His next stop would be the most impressionable on is culinary palate, as he embarked on a three year expedition to Antigua, West Indies. The island's rich Caribbean culture and diverse variety of produce inspired his study of authentic Caribbean cuisine. In 2007, Benack returned to the US and became Chef de Cuisine at Emeril's Miami Beach. After four years at the helm of Emeril's he was recruited by Master Chef Norman Van Aken, known as the "Father of Fusion Cuisine", as a corporate chef at Norman's Orlando and Norman's 180.
In pursuit of a new home for his young family, Benack discovered St. Louis, with its great Midwestern values and emerging culinary scene. Reconnecting with Aleks Jovanovic, with whom he had worked both in New Orleans and Antigua, Chef Brandon found a new home as the Executive Chef of Truffles Restaurant. Together, they are continuing Truffles' commitment to local, fresh ingredients, bringing passion, intensity and meticulous attention to detail in a seemingly simple yet daring approach to the Modern American restaurant. While incorporating southern classics with local influences, Chef Brandon's cooking provides the perfect complement to Jovanovic's "fun" dining approach.
Chef Brandon has appeared on NBC, CBS, Food Network and Plum TV Miami. He has also been featured in publications such as Miami New Times, Orlando Sentinel and Food Buzz.


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Ulrikke Eikeri, née le  à Oslo, est une joueuse de tennis norvégienne, professionnelle depuis 2010.

Carrière
Sur le circuit ITF Junior, Ulrikke Eikeri a atteint le  rang mondial en 2009.

Lauréate de 11 titres acquis sur le circuit ITF en simple entre 2010 et 2017, elle compte toutefois pour meilleur résultat une finale à l'Open de Contrexéville en 2019. En double, elle comptabilise 30 titres dont le 100 000$ de Contrexéville avec Anna Danilina en 2021. Ces résultats font d'elle la meilleure joueuse de tennis norvégienne de l'ère Open.

À partir de 2021, elle obtient de meilleures performances en double et atteint sa première finale sur le circuit WTA à Lausanne. Trois mois plus tard, elle s'impose à Tenerife avec Ellen Perez. Elle est également quart de finaliste à Montréal.

Palmarès

Titre en double dames

Finales en double dames

Finale en double mixte

Titre en double en WTA 125

Parcours en Grand Chelem

En simple dames

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Classements WTA en fin de saison

Références

Liens externes

Joueuse norvégienne de tennis
Naissance en décembre 1992
Naissance à Oslo


As part of our ongoing effort to create buzz about Old City among residents and visitors, Old City District sends out a monthly e-newsletter to inform the public of all of the exciting events and promotions that happen here.
e-Newsletters are sent out on the last Friday of each month, to coincide with the following month's First Friday festivities. While First Friday events will be the main focus, we invite you to send us details for any and all upcoming events and special promotions.
Submit your information only through Submit an Event on our home page (www.oldcitydistrict.org) or at the bottom of any page. E-mailed content or content submitted in other ways will not be included because of the volume of submissions.
To be included in the newsletter on the last Friday of each month, submit your content by Tuesday of that week. A firm schedule of 2018 deadlines and release dates appears above.
Old City District reserves the right to edit any submitted content for length, fit and clarity.
Old City District reserves the right to include or omit any submitted content.
Preferred file formats for images are .jpg, .png or .gif.


A myriad of bikes, wheelsets and components specifically aimed at the gravel segment currently dot the market. So, why not a helmet then?
That's precisely LIMAR's thoughts with the launch of its new gravel specific Air Star helmet.
"With the in-mould triple shell AIR STAR offers a full protection and easiness in cleaning also on the bottom trim of the helmet. Fresh and original in design, aerodynamic in performance and ultrafit and comfortable when on your head", says LIMAR.
Part of LIMAR's Air Revolution series, no fewer than 19 vents and strategically place internal channels create a Venturi effect for the new Air Star, which LIMAR says results in "enhanced cooling and freshness" inside the helmet.
The Air Star also features LIMAR's AirFit adjustment system that allows for precise vertical and horizontal positioning, along with lightweight internal webbing and guided straps for a perfect overall fit.
The Air Star is available in two sizes, medium (53-57/230g) and large (57-61/250g), along with a selection of different color-ways.
You can learn more about the new Air Star by visiting LIMAR's website here.


WADING birds are being given a helping hand by farmers in the Yorkshire Dales.
COMMUNITY safety experts are urging motorists to take extra care when driving in the wintry conditions.
BUSINESSES are being given the chance to learn how they can become environmentally friendly – and save cash at the same time.
THE excitement of Christmas has passed and the bills have started to roll in, with 20 January predicted to be the most miserable day of the year. In response to this, and the financial crisis in the UK, a national charity has today announced that it will be offering local residents in Skipton the chance to get their finances back on track with their free money management course, CAP Money.
FARMERS who want to join agri-environmental schemes and benefit from special Government grants are being offered a new set of advice leaflets to make the task easier to understand.
THE latest results from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) show Britain's birds are flooding into gardens, as food in the countryside becomes harder to find under the blanket of snow and ice.
IF you enjoyed the hugely popular BBC2 programme 'Who Do You think You Are?' why not have fun tracing your own family tree?
THE savage wintry weather is pushing Britain's wildlife to the brink of a crisis, says the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
MID Life Crisis, Grassington's infamous rock legends reveal their exciting new line-up and show, "The Crisis Continues" on Saturday 16 January from 7.30pm, at Grassington Town Hall. There will be music and dancing all night with support from top local DJ Graham Bower.


This a very logical, thoughtful and practical book to help parents discuss the many aspects of parenting. A unique resource and writing style that helps you consider strategies in the development of your own.
This book will help you as parents make the most of your opportunity to develop the right strategies for parenting which will enable you to enjoy time with your children and prepare them for a successful life.
This book is laid out in three key sections; strategies, life skills and preparation for independence. The strategies section helps you focus on developing your overall approach to parenting. The life skills section provides guidance on developing important skills applicable to all stages and aspects of life. Independence is a key goal of effective parenting which incorporate all sections of the book with an approach which begins with steps at an early age.
This is a collaborative effort of a husband, wife, son and daughter team to demonstrate the necessary involvement of parents and children for effective parenting strategies. Authors use a unique combination of guiding points and stories to provide key learning in a thought provoking yet simple way to understand.


6cm Alaska Acustic with rattle is not only bigger than its shorter sisters which have been known and..
Lake 7 Deep Runner is a new lure, but it already have a history. Almost every angler who catch catfi..
Hades was created for catching big catfish. Thick 3mm rip made of polycarbonate, frame attached insi..
Hades with rattle was created for catching big catfish. Thick 3mm rip made of polycarbonate, frame a..
This round built, strong working wobbler is dedicated for catching catfish with spinning and trollin..


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Question: What Is The Purpose Of Database?
What are the disadvantages of database system?
What are the properties of transaction?
What is the main purpose of database?
What is the advantage of database?
What are the 3 types of database?
What are the features of database?
What is database and its application?
What is the most commonly used type of database?
What is Database advantage and disadvantage?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of a database system?
What are the examples of database?
What is database and why we need it?
What is the purpose of a database and how does the database accomplish this purpose?
What is properties of database?
What is the importance of database design?
What exactly is database?
What are the main components of database?
DisadvantagesDatabase systems are complex, difficult, and time-consuming to design.Substantial hardware and software start-up costs.Damage to database affects virtually all applications programs.Extensive conversion costs in moving form a file-based system to a database system.Initial training required for all programmers and users..
In the context of transaction processing, the acronym ACID refers to the four key properties of a transaction: atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability. All changes to data are performed as if they are a single operation.
A database system provides a data definition language to specify the database schema and a data manipulation language to express database queries and updates. One of the main reasons for using DBMSs is to have central control of both the data and the programs that access those data.
Data consistency is ensured in a database because there is no data redundancy. All data appears consistently across the database and the data is same for all the users viewing the database. Moreover, any changes made to the database are immediately reflected to all the users and there is no data inconsistency.
Types of databasesCentralised database.Distributed database.Personal database.End-user database.Commercial database.NoSQL database.Operational database.Relational database.More items…•
Main Features of a DBMS· Low Repetition and Redundancy. In a database, the chances of data duplication are quite high as several users use one database. … · Easy Maintenance of Large Databases. … · Enhanced Security. … · Improved File Consistency. … · Multi-User Environment Support. … 1- Hierarchical. … 2- Network. … 3- Relational.More items…
A database application is a computer program whose primary purpose is entering and retrieving information from a computerized database. Early examples of database applications were accounting systems and airline reservations systems, such as SABRE, developed starting in 1957.
Relational databases are the most popular and widely used databases. Some of the popular DDBMS are Oracle, SQL Server, MySQL, SQLite, and IBM DB2.
one of the disadvantages of dbms is Database systems require sophisticated hardware and software and highly skilled personnel. The cost of maintaining the hardware, software, and personnel required to operate and manage a database system can be substantial.
What are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Database?Advantages of Database. Data Abstraction. Controlling Data Redundancy. Minimized Data inconsistency. Data Manipulation Easily. Data can be shared. Data Security. Support Multi-users Views. Concurrent Access. … Disadvantages of Database. Cost of Hardware and Software. Cost of Data Conversion. Cost of Staff Training.
Database management system. Connolly and Begg define database management system (DBMS) as a "software system that enables users to define, create, maintain and control access to the database". Examples of DBMS's include MySQL, PostgreSQL, MSSQL, Oracle Database, and Microsoft Access.
A database is a collection of data, usually stored in electronic form. A database is typically designed so that it is easy to store and access information. … This is because the database stores all the pertinent details about the company such as employee records, transactional records, salary details etc.
The purpose of a database is to help people keep track of things. It accomplishes this purpose by storing data in tables. Each table has rows and columns, similar to a spreadsheet. A database usually has multiple tables in order to keep track of different but related things.
A transaction in a database system must maintain Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, and Durability − commonly known as ACID properties − in order to ensure accuracy, completeness, and data integrity. … Durability − The database should be durable enough to hold all its latest updates even if the system fails or restarts.
The database design process helps you simplify the design, development, execution, and maintenance of your corporate data management system. A good database design can help save disk storage space by reducing data redundancy.
A database is an organized collection of structured information, or data, typically stored electronically in a computer system. A database is usually controlled by a database management system (DBMS). … Most databases use structured query language (SQL) for writing and querying data.
Four types of database management systemshierarchical database systems.network database systems.object-oriented database systems.
Below is a list of components within the database and its environment.Software. This is the set of programs used to control and manage the overall database. … Hardware. … Data. … Procedures. … Database Access Language. … Query Processor. … Run Time Database Manager. … Data Manager.More items…•
Question: What Skills Does A Tutor Need?
Is tutoring a skill? What are tutoring skills.
Question: Is The Sun Getting Closer To Earth 2020?
In which month Sun is closest to Earth? JanuaryIt is
Quick Answer: Is It OK To Ask For More Money After Job Offer?
Is it OK to ask for more money after accepting a job offer?
Quick Answer: Why Is Facebook Saying I Need To Confirm My Identity?
How long does it take Facebook to confirm your identity?
Is Pluto Now A Planet 2020?
What is Neptune's color? blueThe predominant
Can You Put An Offer On A House Without An Offer On Yours?
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Quick Answer: Is Axis Bank A Nationalized Bank?
Which is No 2 bank in India? HDFC Bank: HDFC Bank has
Quick Answer: What Are The Purposes Of Market Research?
What are the 3 purposes of marketing? But if you look
Quick Answer: Do I Have To Pay Taxes On An LLC That Made No Money?
How does owning an LLC affect my taxes? The IRS treats
Question: What Means Causal?
What is the meaning of causal relationship?
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How do you correct the following sentence?
Can My Printer Print On Cardstock?
Which printer is best for cardstock? The 5 Best Printers
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The National Garden Scheme offers a bursary in memory of Elspeth Thompson who died in 2010. Administered by the RHS, it is intended to support community gardening projects aimed at bringing the community together by the sharing and acquiring of horticultural knowledge and skills, and by inspiring a love of gardening across all age groups.
'She had a knack of seeing and creating beauty in unlikely places and was enthusiastic about those who gardened for the benefit of others'.
Applications for funding are considered in February each year, the closing date for applications is 31 December of the preceding year. No fixed amount is set but the maximum amount awarded would not normally exceed £5,000.
If you wish to apply, please download the application form, complete and email with supporting documentation to ngsbursary@rhs.org.uk by the closing date of 31 December.


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Daddy's Home 2: Movie Review
The entire main cast of Daddy's Home 2 poses for a picture. From left to right: Mel Gibson, Alessandra Ambrosio, Mark Wahlberg, Didi Costine, Linda Cardellini, Owen Vaccaro, Will Ferrell, Scarlett Estevez, John Lithgow, and John Cena. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)
Posted By: Jacob Polansky, junior editor November 20, 2017
Daddy's Home 2 is the sequel to the 2015 film Daddy's Home. Starring Will Ferrell as Brad Whitaker and Mark Wahlberg as Dusty Mayron, the iconic duo once again proved their comedic chemistry on screen.
The now united "co-dads" Brad and Dusty are trying hard to give their blended families the best Christmas ever, but things get complicated when both Dusty's father Kurt and Brad's father Don come to town. Kurt Mayron, played by Mel Gibson, is the personified old school macho man who has remained absent from Dusty's life for many years. Don Whitaker, played by John Lithgow, is the polar opposite–a soft and loving father. Tensions rise as both families are forced to spend the holiday in close quarters; the entire group will be staying in a vacation home for the week leading up to Christmas. Conflicting personalities and iron wills clash, all while trying to secure the perfect Christmas.
Daddy's Home 2 was released on November 10 in most U.S. theaters. The film received a 6.2 on IMDb and a bombing 17% on the notorious review site "Rotten Tomatoes." Despite these relatively low critic reviews, Daddy's Home 2 managed to get a respectably high 86% viewer approval rating. These contradictory statistics clearly outline the fine line between the film's "quality" (which critics review) and its "entertainment value" (which the average person reviews).
"December may not have arrived yet but, based on Daddy's Home 2, 'tis also the season for dysfunctional families. The trouble is, once you've seen one festive movie on the subject, you've seen them all," said Freeda Cooper, a movie critic for "flickeringmyth.com". The general consensus among movie critics is that Daddy's Home 2 fails to set itself apart from every other "dysfunctional family holiday sequel." As a result, we get misguided slapstick humor and over the top cliches that were done better in movies such as "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" all the way back in 1989.
From a viewer's point of view, I found Daddy's Home 2 to be witty and entertaining–despite its predictability at times. The producers took a crack at the classic family holiday style, and were able to put their own unique spin on it that made it feel unique. Sure it was a celebrity toting cash grab, but the humor was fresh, the characters were enthralling, and the emotion felt genuine. The slapstick was exactly what you'd expect, but it was slightly more on the mark than the original.
In summary, Daddy's Home 2 is nothing overly exciting but an entertaining film nonetheless. With heavily varying reviews between critics and the average viewer, this is definitely a film worth watching if for no other reason than to form your own opinion or kill a few hours. The final verdict on Daddy's Home 2 is not yet out, and its box office success is still yet to be determined.
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There are still some photos from my Korean Trip back in 2017 that I have not shared yet, and I try to put them together in this post. Hope you enjoy them.
Gyeongbokgung is the largest palace from the Joseon dynasty, was destroyed in the war, but ever since has been reconstructed. One of the best thing to do here is to watch the guard-changing ceremony, and it's completely free. However, if you want to go inside the inner complex of the palace, then you will need to buy ticket.
Check the time for the ceremony before you visit, since they only conduct it twice a day.
If your definition of fun includes finding your way in real-life maze, you should head to this museum. Be warned that for people who directionally challenged, this can be a bad idea, but it will surely improve your steps count.
This is a must see place if you're visiting Jeju Island. We were a bit worried because on the day, it was foggy, and you can't see the crater from afar. Fortunately, the fog subsides just before we do our climb. The climb (both up and down) can be done within a couple of hours.
The location is rather far from the Jeju city centre, and while it is beautiful, it is pale in comparison to (as an example) Seongsan Ilchubong. The fact that we were there at the height of noon also make the colour a bit washed out.
Osulloc and Innisfree are actually sister companies, and the tea museum is just beside the Innisfree Jeju House. We paid a visit to both after we finished the submarine tour.
Because we had not had our lunch, we decided to eat at the Innisfree Cafe, which specialised in healthy and natural food, created from only what could be found in Jeju. It was the case of either we were very hungry, or the foods were very delicious (I suspected both). The extra point? The foods looked so damn gorgeous.
Afterwards we took a walk in the tea garden, which is very pretty and scenic, if only we can erase all the people in the background. We took an obscene amount of photos here before we moved to the Tea Museum to buy a lot of (you guessed it) tea!
We concocted the plan to visit Korea back in 2016 with an itinerary to stay in Jeju and Seoul for 4 days each, and we just came back a couple of weeks ago (thus explain the delay between the photo editing and posting time).
This trip was quite challenging in some ways. Firstly, none of us speaks Korean, and most people don't use English here. Secondly, our knowledge of the country was quite limited. We pretty much depend on literature instead of having clear objectives of what we would like to see, taste, or experience. It was somewhat unsettling for me, but the experiences taught me to go with the flow.
The first day of the holiday is always the dreaded travelling time. We decided to visit Jeju first before Seoul, as we heard that the latter is a haven for shoppers, and we definitely do not want to carry all the newly-purchased items in the second leg of the holiday. As such our first-day route was Changi - Incheon - Gimpo - Jeju.
From Incheon, getting into Gimpo is a simple manner of boarding the train to Seoul, which will make a stop at Gimpo within the hour. We put a long period between our arrival in Incheon (6 am) and our departure in Gimpo (3 pm), as we were worried that we might encounter something unplanned on the road. This was really unnecessary, and we had too much time to kill at Gimpo. At least, we took some pictures near the Gimpo Lottemart.
Even though I live just an hour flight away from Kuala Lumpur, I only visited it once before for a short getaway. The city left not much impression on me, and I didn't have any definite plan to come back to the city. However, when E had to fly to KL for a business trip and invited me to join on the weekend, I decided to do just that.
This time around, a friend of her brought us to places that we would, on our own volition, not visit, due to the distance to the city centre, and lack of knowledge of their existence. We took a half-day trip to Putrajaya and visited 2 mosques there, the Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque, and the Putra Mosque. While the former is a marvel in the modern style, the later boasts intricate design and refinery akin to the middle eastern craftsmanship.


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START OF Work and money
START OF Consumer rights
Basic consumer rights
Contracts and unfair contract terms
Buying goods and services
Refusal of service, exclusions and bag-checks
Telecommunications (phones, internet, pay TV)
END OF Consumer rights
Money and debt
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In Queensland, you can buy goods and services in person, online or over the phone, and laws and regulations protect you no matter how those goods and services are sold.
You should always get a verbal or written agreement before buying goods or services from another person (a private sale) in person, online or over the phone.
If you receive unsolicited goods, you may be able to keep them if they're not claimed within the recovery period.
If you're being hassled in person, online or over the phone to enter into an unsolicited consumer agreement, you should be aware of your rights and responsibilities and how you should be treated.
You should also protect yourself from scams such as pyramid selling schemes and other fraudulent activities.
Private sales of goods and services
A private sale is when you buy goods and services in person, online or over the phone from another person who isn't usually in the business of trading goods and services.
Most consumer protection laws don't apply to private sales.
A private sale creates a legally binding contract where the terms may be verbal, written or a combination of both.
When buying goods or services online using a credit card, you may be able to stop payment if the goods or services aren't delivered, even if it was a private sale.
When buying goods and services, the law says they must be fit for their purpose. How much you paid for them is relevant to whether they're fit for purpose.
Private sale agreements can often be hard to enforce as it can be difficult to prove what was agreed. Sometimes the goods or services are only for a small value and you'll need to consider whether it is worth taking legal action.
Get legal advice before making an agreement for a private sale or if there's a dispute about an agreement.
Unsolicited goods and services
Unsolicited goods or services are those that you've not asked for or paid for.
They can be delivered to you, even if you didn't ask for them. You don't have to pay for any goods or services received if you didn't agree to buy them, and you don't have to pay for them to be returned.
It's unlawful for a person or business to ask you to pay for unordered goods or services unless they have reasonable cause to believe they should be paid for them.
If there's a dispute with a business or person demanding payment for unordered goods or services, they'll have to prove you agreed to buy the goods or services. Get legal advice.
Keeping unordered goods
If you receive unordered goods, the supplier can recover the goods from you—generally within 3 months from the day after the goods were received.
If you've written to the supplier telling them you've received unsolicited goods, the recovery period will be reduced to 1 month, starting on the day after the notice was given.
The notice must be in writing and must include:
your name and address
the address where the goods are being kept (not necessarily your own address)
a statement that the goods are unsolicited.
If the supplier doesn't take any action to recover the goods within the recovery period, you may be able to keep the goods for free.
During the recovery period, any unsolicited goods and services must be kept in a good condition and available for collection by the supplier. If you wilfully or unlawfully damage the goods during this time, you may have to pay compensation. Get legal advice.
If you know the goods are meant for someone else (eg the package was clearly addressed to another person), these are not unsolicited goods and you're not allowed to keep them.
Unsolicited consumer agreements
The Australian Consumer Law gives extra protections to people buying goods or services from 'unsolicited consumer agreements' (eg door-to-door sales or phone calls from telemarketers). These usually come from sales when the seller approaches you first rather than when you've contacted the seller with an interest in buying their goods or services.
These rights cannot be waived (given away) by the consumer and it's unlawful for a supplier to try and persuade a consumer to do so.
A consumer agreement is unsolicited if:
it's for the supply of goods and services and
it's been made over the phone or in a place other than the business or trade premises of the supplier and
you didn't invite the dealer to come to that place or to call you and
the price is more than $100.
Common situations where you may enter into an unsolicited consumer agreement include:
a door-to-door salesperson coming to your house
phone calls from telemarketers
being approached by a salesperson in the common area of a shopping centre.
It's not considered an unsolicited agreement if you've invited a salesperson to your house or asked them to phone you at a specific time to discuss buying the goods or services.
Being contacted about unsolicited consumer agreements
A salesperson can only contact you about unsolicited consumer agreements on:
weekdays between 9am and 6pm (8pm for telemarketing)
Saturdays between 9am and 5pm.
They're not allowed to contact you on Sundays or public holidays.
They can't call you if you're on the Do Not Call Register
To stop door-to-door sellers knocking on your door get a "Do Not Knock" sticker from the Office of Fair Trading
If you ask a salesperson to leave your home, they must do so immediately. If they're told to leave, they can't contact you again (on behalf of the same supplier) for at least 30 days.
Cooling-off period
Unsolicited agreements have a statutory cooling-off period, where you can terminate the agreement within 10 business days without penalty.
In some situations, if the supplier breaches certain rules for unsolicited consumer agreements, the cooling off period may be extended to 3 or 6 months.
To terminate the agreement within the cooling-off period, you must let the supplier know, either verbally or in writing (preferred).
You can send a written notice to terminate by post, email, fax or hand delivered. There's no set form for this notice.
Get legal advice if you're having problems terminating your agreement within the cooling-off period.
Copies of the agreement
The supplier must give you a written copy of the agreement once it's been made. For agreements made in person, a copy must be given to you immediately after it's been signed.
For agreements made over the phone a copy must be given to you in person, by post or electronically (if agreed), within 5 business days of the agreement being signed.
Pyramid selling schemes and other scams
Pyramid selling schemes require all new participants to provide a financial or non-financial benefit to the existing participants of the scheme in order to be a member. New participants are then promised a financial or non-financial benefit for recruiting others to join the scheme.
Many pyramid selling schemes are illegal.
Scamwatch has information on how to recognise and protect you and others from many different scams, including:
pyramid selling schemes
lottery and competition scams.
Contact the Office of Fair Trading or the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to report scams.
The Office of Fair Trading also has information on how to protect you and others from scams and fraud.
When shopping online, when you buy or sell goods or services you enter into a contract.
The Office of Fair Trading has information and consumer tips for online shopping, including buying from overseas websites and using auction websites such as eBay.
The ACCC also has information about online shopping.
Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal
The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) can hear consumer and trader disputes for amounts under $25,000 and if the dispute is about a contract for the supply of goods and services, such as food, clothes, appliances, and furniture and car repairs. You should try to resolve your dispute with the other party before asking QCAT to hear your dispute.
If money was borrowed to buy goods and services, you should get legal advice as it may be possible to cancel a credit contract used to buy goods and services. See Consumer credit and guarantees.
From 1 September 2019, if you claim arises as a result of a defective car, you may bring a claim up to the value of $100,000 in QCAT.
Law for All podcast series
Episode 2: Legal tips and pitfalls: buying a used car in Queensland
In this episode, Legal Aid Queensland's consumer advocate Paul Holmes discusses some tips, pitfalls, and legal protections you have when buying a new used car from private sellers and car yards.
Do I need legal advice?
You may need legal advice if there is:
a dispute about a private sale
a dispute with the supplier of unsolicited goods or services
problems terminating an unsolicited consumer agreement
a dispute about buying or selling goods online.
We may give legal advice about disputes involving consumer contracts, private sales or unsolicited goods and services.
Our Consumer Protection Unit gives specialist legal advice about matters where products have been sold in situations where there's been high pressure sales tactics, such as unsolicited sales.
The following organisations may be able to give legal advice.
Community legal centres give legal information and advice on a range of topics. Contact them to find out if they can help with your matter.
LawRight Self Representation Service gives legal advice and help to people involved in civil proceedings in the Federal Circuit and Family Court or Federal Court for matters involving bankruptcy and consumer and competition law. The service may also help with drafting documents and correspondence relating to your legal matter. They don't provide representation.
Queensland Law Society can refer you to a specialist private lawyer for advice or representation.
Who else can help?
These organisations may be able to help. They don't give legal advice.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has information about making a complaint or resolving a consumer problem, consumer guarantees, warranties and refunds, unfair sales methods and tactics, tips for buying goods and services, and product safety alerts.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission have powers to protect consumers against misleading or deceptive and unconscionable conduct affecting all financial products and services, including credit.
The MoneySmart website is maintained by ASIC to provide independent guidance for consumers making decisions about their personal finances. They provide information about:
managing your money—including banking and managing debts and insurance
borrowing and credit—including credit cards, consumer credit regulation and loans
superannuation and retirement
scams—including how to avoid a scam and how to report a scam.
MoneySmart can also offer helpful information about important life events, including:
buying a mobile phone
starting work
losing your job
divorce or separation
losing your partner.
The Office of Fair Trading ensures the marketplace remains fair and safe for both consumers and business. They can help with the following matters:
guarantees, warranties and refunds
making a complaint about a business
consumer rights and responsibilities about refunds, lay-bys, deposits, advertising, credit and finance, pricing, quotes and contracts
rights and responsibilities for Indigenous consumers—including information about buying a car, borrowing money, shopping, mobile phones, gyms, scams, refunds and warranties, and how to make complaints
property—buying and selling your home, information for residents of boarding houses and hostels
motor vehicles—buying and maintaining a new or used car and dealing with car repairers
scams and frauds—recognising and protecting yourself from scams
products and services—buying and using selected products and services
product safety and recalls.
QCAT hears consumer and trader disputes for amounts under $25,000 and if the dispute is about a contract for the supply of goods and services, such as food, clothes, appliances, furniture, car repairs and maintenance, meals served in restaurants, or a haircut by a hairdresser. From 1 September 2019, if your matter relates to a defective motor vehicle, you should try and resolve your dispute with the other party before asking QCAT to hear your dispute. You may bring a claim in QCAT up to the value of $100,000.
Disclaimer: This page is provided as information only, and is not legal advice. If you have a legal problem, you should contact us or speak to a lawyer. View our full disclaimer.
Related links and information
Consumer credit and guarantees
Consumer and trader disputes—a guide to help you resolve a dispute with a trader
COVID-19 (coronavirus) information for consumers
Australian Consumer Law
Competition and consumer law education programs
Consumer rights and responsibilities
Dispute resolution centres
Little black book of scams
MoneySmart Rookie - Online transactions
Product Safety Australia
SCAMwatch
Tips for a fine time shopping online
Unfair contract terms
Main phone line:
Indigenous information line:
Youth Legal Advice Hotline (under 18 or childrens court matters only):
1800 LAQ LAQ (1800 527 527)
Counselling Notes Protect:
Natural Disaster Legal Helpline:
44 Herschel Street
More office locations
@LegalAidQueensland
@LegalAidQld
Legal Aid Queensland acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land on which we meet and work, and pays respect to Elders, past, present and emerging.
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