The Squirrel Eating Lady

Some time ago, we did our own version of the story featuring a Seattle lady who likes to trap neighborhood squirrels and eat them from time to time. I guess this is quite common in some parts of the South but here in animal-loving Seattle, this was a bit of weird news.

The woman used to be a vegan, by the way.

Flash Bang

 I was almost hit by flash bang at a recent Occupy Seattle protest.

And it was kind of fun.

That day my assignment was to cover the Occupy The Ports protest in Seattle. Similar protests were happening along the West Coast. In Seattle, Occupy had decided to march from downtown to Port of Seattle's Harbor Island, which houses a handful of terminals.

It all started with the standard fare: people blocking semis, then police moving in, followed by chants, and speakers. Like many Occupy events, it wasn't exactly an organized event. From the get-go, the crowd of about 500 people split into several areas near the entrances to the port. One group had speakers, others picketed in front of an entrance, and yet another, had more disruptive plans.

To make their point, a group of the protesters grabbed debris from the area _ wooden crates, metal scraps _ and blocked one of the main streets. They had a huge banner, and began to chant.

Mounted police moved in.

By the time I got there, the protesters were trying to "hold the line" by pushing against the mounted police. I saw a couple of them lighting flares, then I saw one of the flares fly toward the horses, prompting the cops to become more aggressive about cleaning the street. A tussle broke out, with the cops forcefully removing people, and protesters pushing back. One person threw a sign at the cops.

As it was getting heated, I was in the middle of the barricade, I decided to step to the side to avoid any injuries. As I did that, a loud boom went off, and smoke from a percussion grenades went up. Then a second grenade went off near me, about 10 feet maybe. Check the video out.

I was told the police horses were hit by paint, which they had a hard time removing from their skin :(


And here, a picture from my phone:

Camera Stolen

Sigh. There will be no more pictures on this blog for a while. My camera was stolen from my car. I can't remember if I locked it. Cop said the door could have been picked open too.

Filed a police report, though I doubt it will do anything. Cop said to call all the pawn shops in the area tomorrow.

Sigh.

-M

Missing Child

A few weeks back I got to do a video report on the disappearance of a 2-year-old boy in Bellevue, Wash. The story around it is weird, to put it nicely. The mother claimed that he left the boy in her car after it ran out of gas, but police later on said there was enough gas in the tank. This plays against the backdrop of a bitter custody battle between the two parents.

Vancouver, B.C.

The skyline from a corner of Stanley Park.

Just a few shots from the metropolis up north.

Canadian fight! outside a bar.

I forget this area's name, but it's basically their Ballard, except swankier.

I also forget the artist's name from this piece. But it's lovely.

Paddleboarding off Stanley Park.

Beach art.

Zoo Animal

A wolf munches on meat at the Olympic Game Farm in Sequim. Big predators, like this wolf and tigers, are in enclosure is no bigger than a small studio.

Zoos are unique places that allow the every man, woman and child to see exotic animals representing far off places, and many work tirelessly to conserve nature around the world.

Yet it seems cruelly ironic that the creatures we marvel at, even if bred in captivity, are basically prisoners behind bars, pacing back and forth.

What do you think of zoos?

For some reason, I found myself at three zoos recently. Here are some pictures:

Olympic Game Farm in Sequim

A black bear looks on as cars drive by her enclosure.

A lion eats in a den attached to his enclosure.

Around all the big predators, bunnies run around free.

The main attraction for the Game Farm is a drive through the property. Drivers can feed yaks, deer and horses bread that's provided.

Vancouver Zoo

Spectators watch a trained beluga whale at the Vancouver zoo.

Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma

Owl food.

The Point Defiance Zoo has a breeding program for red wolves. Only 100 live in the wild, re-introduced from zoos.

Homeless

Vancouver, B.C.

I shot from the hip and accidentally under exposed this picture. But I kind of like in black and white, and grainy.

Otoño

Autumn is in full bloom in Seattle. Here area few pics from Sam Smith park near the I-90 bridge. 

This family was taking advantage of a new camera and the nice day to take pics of their cat.

Aaaaaaaaaaah!