A Familiar Face

July 7, 2010

One of my favorite faces of the Columbia River is when it reflects warm light, shadows, and images from a surface that is glassy and yet fractured. The gray lines in the lower right corner are the distorted reflection of the radio tower out of the photo in the upper left.

Follow this link to see wonderful reflections from around the world. James's image at the top of the linked page is really special. It's one of my favorite reflections ever.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

The Fir on the Corner

Photo taken July 23, 2010

DOUGLAS FIR

Height of Tree 231 Feet

Diameter . . . 115 Inches

Age . . . 624 Years

* * * * *

This Log From

David Douglas Park

Contains . . . 9,701 Board Feet

Weighs . . . 61,115 Pounds

---

* 1937 *

The log in its shelter can be seen at the corner of 7th and Commercial Streets at the corner of the Clatsop County Courthouse, across from the post office.

Unfortunately, some people have chosen to deface the log, even on display. However, in many towns and cities, the markings would be much worse.

. . . a venerable old piece of history. Unlike on many such display logs, the tree rings are not marked as to what events took place at what points of the tree's growth. So we can only imagine what it lived through.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Without Feathers

July 18, 2010

Where the seagulls nest has been somewhat of a mystery to me. I've seen nests on the other side of the peninsula on pilings, but it was hard to believe that these birds would lay their eggs and raise their young in such a vulnerable spot. As it turns out, they often pick vulnerable spots, such as on pilings where water constantly washes into the nest. On July 18, this baby seagull appeared on the deck next door. When I called the wildlife rescue people, they told me the gulls often nest on the top of the building where they are easy prey for weasles. At first I thought this baby didn't look too healthy, but it seems to have been OK, because it appeared again the next day walking normally. The parents were keeping watch and scaring away crows. The wildlife rescue people said they would come out on the first day, but I had to leave and I didn't see them. After its second appearance, the gull has disappeared, and I feel that it probably met an uhappy fate, with no feathers to fly. However, I'm hoping it lived to fledge and fly. I also learned from a recent sad news story about people baiting and shooting these birds across the river in Washington, that harming or killing them is illegal due to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act between the U.S., Canada and Mexico. I'm glad they at least have some legal protection.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

There Goes the Couch

After shouting about this dumped couch on the blog and on Facebook, making phone calls, and finally putting it on craigslist (with no calls and no takers, but then it had a broken leg and didn't smell that good), Lee finally paid Don Sparks to come and haul it away. It was cheaper than paying the waste management company, but it also should not have been our problem. Francisca was right in her comment. Someone needs to re-think the incentives (or lack of) and the process of disposing of these cast-offs. (Maybe someday they will all be made of recyclable modules, but that's another story.) There was another interesting comment about thrift stores going out of business because they also have to find a way to dispose of the junk that is pawned off on them rather than only the things someone would want to buy. I've noticed that it's very hard to get thrift stores around here to take anything, because they are overloaded anyway.

By the way, this intersection is 15th Street and Marine Drive. The lower part of the building on the right is Area Properties. Lee owned the business before he retired, and it's now owned by mother-daughter team Barb and Meagan.

Don's truck is not going the wrong way (see the sign), but the block is only a few yards long here, as Commercial and Marine Drive converge going opposite directions. The "One Way sign is for Commercial Street. Here's a view of that short block from the east with Marine Drive on the right and Commercial on the left. The building in the middle is Area Properties.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Ocean Angel Once Again

July 5, 2010

We saw Ocean Angel II on July 4th in heavy fog. Here she is the next day looking entirely different.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Passing the Buck . . . er . . . Couch

July 25, 2010

If this is your couch, would you please come and get it? (Alternatively: As of 1:19 p.m. Monday, it is still here and in reasonably good shape. It has not been rained on yet! FREE COUCH, EVERYONE! Call me at (503) 338-8646 if you want to check on availability :)

We've been having remarkably beautiful weather the past few days. I walked out my door on the River Walk into the pleasant atmosphere only to find that someone had tried to get rid of their old couch by dumping it in front of the "Cardboard Only" sign on the recycling dumpster.

The blue dumpsters are supplied for free by WOW (Western Oregon Waste) for anyone who needs one for the type of cardboard waste one might collect when running (for example) a retail business with inventory. It's also perfectly OK for passers-by to dump cardboard in them. WOW also supplies (for free pick-up) recycling bins for other materials. One pays for actual trash pick-up, and I have to say it's a service I'm happy to pay for; it's useful, and is not that expensive when compared with other utilities such as a business phone line.

However, when thoughtless people put other types of refuse in the cardboard recycling bin, it becomes the responsibility of the person who requested the free bin on their trash service to pay for separating out the non-cardboard trash or recyclables. Although people throw cans, bottles, and paper into the "cardboard only" dumpster, I have so far not been charged for it. In part, this is because people down on their luck or "traveling light" have often scavenged the returnables to get cash. This is good.

WOW tells me that someone (in this case, me) will be responsible for either paying $35.23 to have them come and get rid of the couch, or (since I don't own a truck), I can find someone with a truck who is willing to take the couch to the dump, and I can pay only the $12.18 dump fee. Most of the River Walk being industrial, there are a lot of dumpsters and recycling bins that are tempting places for people who don't want to take responsibility for their own trash and cast-off articles. But it doesn't just go away. "They" do not pick it up and dispose of it for free.

Please, if this is your couch, come get it and do the right thing.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

On SE 12th Place

July 23, 2010

I found some interesting old metal things on a farm along SE 12th Place, aka the road to the airport and the UPS office. Does anyone know what this is for? There was another one with some differences in the shape of the metal bars, and it was green.

The hill in the background is Astoria's south slope, and if you enlarge the photo, you can see the Astoria Column. Unseen before the hill is the expanse of Young's Bay.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Clatsop County Courthouse

July 13, 2010

The Clatsop Country Courthouse is directly across the street from the Astoria Post Office, and takes up the block bounded by Commercial Street, 8th Street, Duane Avenue, and 7th Street at the west end of downtown Astoria. I've shown the courthouse from several angles; this is the main front entrance. I've also shown the post office in many guises. Click on the keywords beneath to check out other posts featuring these buildings. Clatsop County is named after the Clatsop Indians.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

A Point of Land with Benches

July 6, 2010

This charming little park can be found along the River Walk just beneath the Astoria-Megler Bridge. I took the photo from the 4th floor of the Holiday Inn Express on Marine Drive. The Columbia River reflects the wide blue sky. In this post, you can see the park in situ with a hint of the view.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Ships Passing in the Light

May 14, 2010

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