A friend says that among his most satisfying moments are those he stands contemplating his pile of firewood. He inhales the sweetness of birch, the tang of aspen and the sharp bite of spruce while he ponders the moisture wafting out of his wood.

Constitution Monday is a weekly column that examines the Bill of Rights.

Senator Ted Stevens lost his bid for re-election in 2008 to Anchorage mayor Mark Begich. The week before voters went to the polls, Stevens had been convicted of seven counts of failing to report gifts received from VECO Corporation and its CEO Bill Allen on his Senate financial disclosure forms. The conviction was later dismissed due to prosecutorial misconduct. Stevens was one of five victims in a plane crash near Dillingham yesterday.

Constitution Monday is a weekly column that examines the Bill of Rights.

Constitution Monday is a weekly column that examines the Bill of Rights.

Rain. At this point in the brief Alaska summer, you may not be its greatest fan, especially if you live in Eagle, where rain has twice within a month eaten your road connection to the rest of North America.

Constitution Monday is a weekly column that examines the Bill of Rights

Constitution Monday is a weekly column that examines the Bill of Rights.

Has the long-term relationship between Alaska Regional's owner Columbia/HCA and Wells Fargo had any influence on the choice of Columbia/HCA Alaska Regional Hospital over Providence Anchorage Hospital? Not easy to tell, but there is opportunity here for the Department of Administration to provide the public with more information that could help answer that question.