Wet, Wet, Wet

It has been pouring for three days and is going to keep-it-up for the rest of the week. It is AMAZING how fast the snow has disappeared. My driveway is now completely snow-free. My outdoor activity is limited to running to and from the car and standing on the porch for a couple of minutes every two hours or so while Boopsie does his business. And everything has taken on that break-up cast of brown dirty snow. Ugh!

I note for the record that the 10-day forecast for Corvallis includes several days of sunny weather with the temperature in the 50's. That's golfing weather...

A couple of news stories worth a quick mention...

First, from today's Seattle Times: Proposed bill: humans, pets buried in single grave

State Senator Ken Jacobsen has introducted a bill in Olympia to allow pets (just dogs and cats) to be interred in cemeteries heretofore reserved for the exclusive use of homo sapiens. Setting aside for a moment the inevitable equal protection issues this bill, if enacted, would raise (why can't I be buried with my budgie, damn it) I certainly think this is a fine idea as does at least one owner of one of the state's pet cemeteries.

Louis Clarke, owner of Pethaven Cemetery in Kent, thinks the bill is a good idea. The cremated remains of more than 20 people have been buried at his cemetery because the deceased wished to be with their pets.

"Sometimes people ask for their ashes to be mixed in one urn — that's how connected many people feel to their pets," Clarke said.

One gravestone of human and pet remains in the cemetery reads simply, "I loved my pets."

So far all the comments posted are supportive of this bill; but I suspect once the local mullahs get wind of it the verbal fur will fly...stay tuned. And I am most curious to see if Mr. Clarke finds himself in hot-water for allowing human remains to be buried in his pet cemetary.

Meanwhile here in Palin Country, the winner of Alaska's first half-million dollary lottery was beaten by a man wielding a tire-iron or metal pipe.

This is actually a story, within a story, within a story - from the Anchorage Daily News over the course of the past week. The first bit, the actual lottery part is not particulary interesting except that it was the biggest purse in Alaska' history and a significant portion of the ticket sale proceeds are destined to support the local Anchorage women's shelter.

Well, as it turns out, the winner of the $500,000 was a three-time convicted sex offender. Ain't that special.

And now the winner has been beaten to a pulp.

I've never known of anybody to beat somebody up because of their winning a lottery," police Lt. Dave Parker said. "There was no apparent attempt at robbery. He was struck eight to 10 times, and then he threw his Pepsi at the assailant and he ran for Phyllis' Cafe and the assailant ran off."

The assailant is a newcomer to Alaska.

Los Angeles resident Brandon J. Hughes, 20, was arrested on charges of second-degree assault and tampering with evidence for allegedly taking the weapon with him while fleeing the scene. He was booked at the Anchorage jail on those charges with bail set at $90,000.

Hughes was also wanted in California on a no-bail felony weapons warrant issued last Wednesday, Parker said.

Sex, gambling, and vigilante justice by a 20-year old aspiring psychopath. Excellent.