Caspian Terns

The last 2 or 3 years I have seen small flocks of birds that look like large seagulls hanging around Lynnterm docks in North Vancouver. They fly high with a harsh squawk and prey on the eggs and young of Glaucous Winged Gulls that nest on top of the warehouses. I had tentatively identified these birds as Caspian Terns but I could not be sure. So tonight I elected not to work and went to Lynnterm as a binocular-carrying, birding tourist. With my Pentax 8X42's, I was able to distinguish the large red beaks, black caps and black legs to make a positive ID.

To see this bird in flight, click on Caspian Tern

Palestinians bring suffering on themselves

Many blogs ask for comments, but the only ones they publish are those that agree with them. Since other blogs will not publish my comments, this is what I think about the Palestinian capture of a young Israeli soldier and the response to it. I invite your comments and will publish them whether I agree with them or not.

Life for Palestinians could be 500% improved if they would stop trying to destroy Israel and work with it instead. They may not like it, but the Jews are there to stay. If they stubbornly chose the path of suffering and death, it is their choice. Palestinians demonstrate again and again that they have no respect for their own lives or anyone else's.

Stopping to Smell the Roses

So many people my age suddenly realize that all these years they have never stopped and smelled the roses. My epiphany is that I am past 60 and all I ever did was smell the fucking roses! Saskatchewan farm boy, to university student who couldn't decide on a major, to high school teacher who quit out of boredom, to logger, fisherman, miner, seaman, construction worker.

Finally, since 1977, longshoreman: a job I can handle because I don't have to turn up on any day I choose not to. So long as I put in 800 hours a year, I retain my job and pension credit for that year. The hourly pay is good; I take frequent long holidays, mostly in Latin America.

So what am I bitching about? Probably just grumbling about getting old. Too old for the young women to take me seriously, but still young enough to want them; too old to do a lot of physical things I used to do, but still, in my mind, the same guy who did them 30 years ago. I know all this sounds kind of pathetic but I don't think I am the only one with feelings like this at my time in life. So if you feel kind of like me, or just want to tell me I am a whiner, write and say so. It is nice to connect with someone.

Oriental Supermarket

Finished work and stopped at the oriental T&T Supermarket for some Kim Chee, smoked duck and exotic seafood. I would have bought some durian as well, but they only had the frozen stuff. I ponder why it is that I keep colliding with people in oriental crowds. Is it that Chinese bump into each other just as much as they bump into me, and I am the only one bothered by this because my caucasian demand for personal space is greater than theirs? Or do I bumble into them because my western body language is so different? I furtively watch to see how many inter-chinese collisions occur, doubling my own collision rate because of the distraction.

Safely home, I share my goodies with the cats, who like the duck and hate the Kim Chee.

The Macaw and Me

With my son's help, I finally got the picture of the Military Macaw and me in my profile. It seems a lot harder to do simple stuff on this site than it is publishing to .mac using iweb. Okay, I am a Mac person, but why should I have to be an ubergeek just to post a simple picture?

Back to the Military Macaw, which is a prop to make me more photogenic: I bought her impulsively in 1965 when I was a poor student irresponsible enough to spend almost my last $450 on a pet that was not allowed in UBC student residence. So I gave the bird to my mother, who has had her ever since. Two husbands have come and gone, but Chico is still my nonagenarian mother's pride and joy.

Who the Hell is Ken Erickson?

    I am a longshoreman from Vancouver who likes to travel in Latin America. One trip I even brought back a wife. At kenerickson.net I have photos and writings from Mexico, South and Central America. You can email me at kenvanportbc@gmail.com
 
    My son Alejandro travelled with me in South America and studied at Universidad Católica in Santiago. His blog is at     http://web.mac.com/luther_driggers/iWeb/Al/  Speaking of Alejandro, I must acknowledge his assistance teaching me about computers: I first got a computer in 2004 and still need lots of advice with it.
 
If you watched "Survivor Panama" on TV, you might enjoy reading “A Vancouver Longshoreman Survives the Pearl Islands”, an account of my 8 days living in bat-infested accomodation in a fishing village, going out every day in a dugout canoe with a fisherman called Chichito.
 
    Most of my photos are of birds or animals; welcome to my trophy room. I am a hunter; I love stalking things, capturing their images and enjoying them later. Sometimes I look at a photo and wonder what the creature is doing now. Nicer than shooting it and having it for dinner, although I admit to dining on iguana, rhea and capybara.