A few years back, I had the pleasure of attending the annual meeting of the Oregon Chapter of The Wildlife Society. Among the papers presented was one titled “The Effects of Stream Crossing Culverts on the Movements of Coastal Giant Salamander (Dicamptodon tenebrosus).”

Essentially, the researchers were interested in the role of culverts in the distribution and genetics of the Coastal Giant Salamanders living in the Coast Range. The results indicate that culvert design will greatly influence the genetic diversity, safety and distribution of salamanders. This, in turn, has led to the redesign of forest road culverts by U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) engineers to ensure the welfare of the salamanders.

Never underestimate the political power of the lowly salamander...

Did you know that your couch could kill you?

Yes, that inviting haven ofcomfort in your living room could actually be overstuffed with carcinogens. Every day, your friendly sofa may be burping off deadly gases and cancer-causing dust may be gathering on your lovely wool carpet.

Go flip over the cushions on your couch right now and look for a tag. If it says that it complies with “California Technical Bulletin 117,” then you’ve got a killer couch.

Arlene Blum has the data to prove it, but so far not enough people are listening. Arlene, a biophysical chemist at the University of California, Berkeley, is the founder of the Green Science Policy Institute. She also happens to be a pioneering mountaineer who led the first all-women teams up Denali and Annapurna in the 1970s.

The sands of time play before my eyes as I type.  I see an hourglass, half-full, half-empty, depending on how you look at it.  Today is my dog’s birthday, and mine too.  She’s nine years old; I’m 48.  Sometimes, getting older can be a good thing- like when you enter a new age group for PPP.  But, the grey sprinkling Sprocket’s muzzle and the bag of blue ice resting on my shoulder make me only too aware that we are past the out-and-back turnaround and headed toward the finish line.

A friend posted this familiar quote on his Facebook wall the other day: “Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, martini in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming ‘WOO HOO what a ride!’”

The closing ceremonies of the Winter Olympics are almost here and most of Bend will probably go into TV withdrawal. I mean, how can you sit there and watch Desperate Housewives after the thrill of seeing Apolo Anton Ohno in action?

ICE CRIT

Seriously, is there anything more fun to watch than a criterium on razor blades? The next best thing,  at least for those fans missing the winter sports action, may be the 2010 Ice Crit on March 6th at Wanoga Sno-park. Registration happens at the event at 6:30 p.m. and the race starts at 7 p.m. Any kind of bike is OK and costumes are encouraged. If I recall correctly, there was some bare skin at the last one. Race fee is $10 with profits going to COTA.