Hawk Rescue

Last Saturday morning, on my way to a local park to play flag football, I spotted a wounded hawk in the middle of I-405.

He was in between the carpool and fast lanes directly on the white line. As cars would fly by him at 60-70 mph, he would flap his wings to keep himself upright. I literally cringed as I passed him.

When I was growing up, my Dad taught me to stop and help people on the side of the road. He taught me that helping people is always the right thing to do.

While this is a very different situation, the exact same thoughts and behavior kicked in. I decided that I couldn't just leave him to die hurt and confused in the middle of the freeway.

I looped back around at the next exit, and pulled over on the shoulder near him. All that I had to grab him with, was an extra T-Shirt. I waited for a break in the traffic and ran out to pick him up. He seemed to be in pretty bad shape, and didn't peck or claw me. I set him gently in the back of my Volvo wagon, and closed the hatch.

Then I thought now what?

I called PAWS a local animal shelter that also takes injured wildlife, and asked them what to do. They said bring him in ASAP. So with one eye on the road, and another on my cargo area, I raced to PAWS.

Upon arrival I was informed that many people had called about the downed Red Tail Hawk, but that they couldn't get anyone out there to pick him up.

Paws informed me that they will let me know what happens to him, and I will update this post with that info as it becomes available.

After telling many people this story, a majority of them tell me why I shouldn't have done it, or why they wouldn't have. I find this reaction fascinating, and in some cases understandable.

If I had it to do over again, I would do the exact same thing.

Since childhood, I have really enjoyed taking thins apart. My parents even purchased The Way Things Work book for me at a very young age.

That is why I love the work of Todd McClellan. He is taking taking things apart to a whole new level.

In my wildest dreams, I never thought that it would be possible to make such a messy hobby so beautiful.

Check out more of Todd's work at toddmclellan.com

In a time of instant uploads and virtually instant communication, for some reason, only the worst behaviors of humanity are the ones that that get noticed. Whether its Ariel Castro, James Holmes or even the vapid Kim Kardashian, we are surrounded on all sides by terrible behavior.

I think that the main reason for this is because Good Deeds don't sell, or more accurately draw page views. But that doesn't mean that they don't happen.

For those that are not familiar with Russian dash cams, everyone has them due to rampant insurance fraud. With a dash cam in place, it is much easier to tell who is at fault in an accident for instance.

They also provide another service, catching good Samaritans in the act. Enjoy.

Having recently discovered The Art of Manliness website, I picked up a few things from their store.

As I have sported a beard for many years, I was curious to learn what "beard oil" was all about. When it arrived, I was pleasantly surprised by the packaging. Packed away in a stringy patch of wood shavings was this beautiful bottle of beard oil. With an emphasis on retro typography, and amazing attention to detail, I was delighted to try this new product.

I really enjoy the old fashioned Beemans gum that I ordered, as well. Albiet a little hard, you'll find no aspartame in this manly gum.

Who said that retro packaging is dead?

Went to a local u-pick berry farm. We picked 8.5 pounds of blueberries, and about a pound of tayberries. Snapped this picture as we were paying.

This past weekend, some friends and I jumped on a ferry and headed for beautiful Orcas Island. The Seattle area is one of the most gorgeous areas in all of the world. However, the San Juan Islands, located in the Puget Sound, between Bellingham and Victoria, are in a entirely different category.

Located in a rain shadow, Orcas Island and the other San Juan Islands receive one third the amount of rain that Seattle does, they have more sunny days, and a longer growing season.

With all of this awesomeness, why don't more people live there? It is expensive. An hour and half drive north of Seattle is the ferry for Orcas Island. The cost for one car with one passenger is almost $70! On the Island, prices rival those in Hawaii, however so does the beauty.

The residents and visitors embrace the lack of technology as a way to get unplugged and relax. It was hard for me, but after sending a few emails, I packed my laptop back into my bag and only brought it out to download pictures.... we took quite a few of them.

We filled our days with sailboating, exploring, views from Mt Constitution and plenty of sun. When night rolled around, it was time for wine, steaks, Scrabble and good conversation.

We had a blast, and have felt a bit of disappointment our first days back. Sometime in the not so distant future, one of us will have to come up with a reason to go back to wonderful Orcas Island.