Blue Jelly Fish with a Sail - Newport Oregon - Velella Jelly Fish

Anyone up for Jelly Fishing?

These little jelly fish have a sail that they use to travel.  They are called Velella Jelly Fish.  I had never seen one before, so I snapped a photo and did some googling.  No one else I ran into on the beach  knew what these were called.

These little jelly fishes are so obscure that they are NOT listed on Wikipedia.  But they are ever so cute and very well designed.  They go a little crazy during the "dating season," and sometimes bunches of them end up on the beach.  That's what I saw, hundreds of these little creatures covering the beach in Newport, Oregon.  Their little sails pointing toward the sky.

How did I identify this Pacific Ocean sea creature?  When my effort to identify it on Wikipedia failed, I went to some very simple googlings … like, "blue jelly fish with a sail on the oregon coast." But that failed as well.

I was pretty sure that it was a jelly fish, although the blue color made me think that it was a Portuguese Man of War.  Then I got lucky.

A friend recommended that I check a local news source at http://www.newslincolncounty.com and there I identified my jelly fish.  These jelly fish are called Velella Jelly Fish or Sail Jelly Fish.  

Mike McKenzie © 2014

Awesome Food - Pork Taquitos from Pura Vida in McMinnville Oregon

Allow me to share some nice food with you.  This is an $8 order of pork taquitos from Pura Vida in McMinnville, Oregon.  This plate of food was adequate for me, but I am a light eater.  Eat more at risk to your own pocketbook.  The presentation was awesome and the entree was laid upon a bed of thin slices cabbage and greens.  Next time I will try the Cuban sandwich.

Mike McKenzie © 2014

McMinnville UFO Festival Pet Costume Contest

Zoozoo, my Rhodesian Ridgeback mix, in her "Alien Abduction Costume."  Makes me want to sing, "Fly me to the Moon." She won first prize in the McMinnville UFO Festival costume contest.

Finally, after many, many years of failed attempts, I made it to the McMinnville UFO Festival.  Of course, the main reason I went to the UFO festival is because they have a pet costume contest.  And I love to play doggie dress up!

There was a UFO sighting there like 50 years ago or something.  They say that some of the most compelling UFO photographs came out of that sighting.  Sounds like a good excuse to party if you ask me.  


Dress the dog up in a costume? Hey, now you're really talking my language.


The two Chihuahua (all Chihuahuas are space aliens, in case you were wondering) were in silver sparkly costumes and behaved like champions.  They took the coveted 5th place prize.

 Zoozoo's costume include a rocket ship riding monkey on her back.  I walked her out in front of the judges, put her in a sit-stay and then counted it down, "Three, two, one, blast off!"  


Then Zoozoo and I ran and the monkey bounced around on her back in a wildly comedic manner.Zoozoo took home first prize.  Yeah, that's right, first place.  A huge basket of treats AND a $50 gift certificate to Buchanan Cellers, a grain and feed store in McMinnville.

Fun, fun, fun …

Mike McKenzie © 2014

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to see a cool video

"Honering" Your Mother on Mother's Day …

Bad spelling looks bad enough on a sheet of paper, but it's a lot worse when your inability to spell is displayed in large letters on a big sign on a busy intersection in front your church.  

But it does beg that question, what is "honering?"  It sort of sounds like an adult activity involving a harmonica, doesn't it?

The unfortunate part is this was the local church's big Mother's Day sign, which leaves lots of room for idiots like me to make rude jokes about "honering your mother…"  I don't know much about Presbyterians or how they worship.  Okay, I think they meant HONORING … but you never know. 

Signs are weird things.  Sometimes they tell us what to do, sometimes they us what not to do.  Sometimes, though, signs that tells us not to do something bad might actually plant the seed of trespassing in a far garden of the mind.  Yes, the sign below makes me want to go beyond the warming sign.  Perhaps I should write a novel, "The other side of the warning sign."  But if I spelled like the guy who does the sign at the church, I think it would say, "The other side of the warming sign."  

Have you seen a funny sign?  Send it to me.  I love funny signs.

Mike McKenzie © 2014

Got time for a video?  Click THIS LINK to see a CHIHUAHUA BRUSH ITS TEETH

You look like your dog

You look like your dog. I said this to a woman who lives in my building the other day. She had bleached her hair all white and she looked just like her dog, a Samoyed. I was like, You look like your dog!

She was complimented. (It was meant as a compliment.) Who wouldn't want to look like their dog? Happier, skinnier, healthier, less stressed out … Yeah! Dogs are smart.

So, the next time someone tells you that you look like your dog, just smile and say, "Thank you." It is a grand compliment.

Mike McKenzie 2013

Elephant Keeps the Beat

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CLICK ON THE VIDEO TO SEE "ELEPHANT KEEPS the BEAT!"

Elephant Keeps the Beat.

http://youtu.be/Nzsx-iIC9n4

When it comes to captive elephants, there are two forms of contact that humans may have with them -- protective contact and unprotected contact.

What you are seeing in this video is protected contact.  The zookeeper can touch the elephant or feed it through a door or window.  The protective wall makes it much less likely that the elephant will hurt a handler.  If you watch the video for a while you will notice that it is not always a good idea to have "unprotected" contact with an elephant.  Elephants can be dangerous.

Of course, it also depends upon the elephant.  Some places do unprotected contact with elephants.  Yes, I have stood next to a captive elephant.  That elephant was super mellow compared to the one in the video.  You wouldn't get me into the cage with the elephant in the video ... just saying.  Elephants are so big, they might bend down to scratch their toes and inadvertently crunch a human being into a wall.

It also depends upon the interactions the elephant has had with humans.  Some elephants have not had positive interactions with humans.  That can be the problem for captive animals in circuses, that the training to get them to do behaviors was not very humane.  Therefore, it is not unheard of for an elephant to injure or kill a trainer.  Killer elephants end up in zoos, that is true.  No where else will take them.

I used to be very anti or against zoos.  They seemed like animal prisons to me.  But at some point later in life, I came to understand that but for zoos urban children throughout the world would never have a chance to see or touch or smell an elephant.  Children are the hope to the future.  It is better to let them see an elephant, to consider that areas of the Earth must be set aside for such animals, and for children to learn to love and care for animals.

Mike McKenzie 2013

Dogs are expensive. Can you afford a dog?

Before you get a dog, consider what it's going to cost you.  Rescue shelters and societies charge an adoption fee.  That can be a couple hundred bucks.  Then there's shots, food, regular care.

How much do you make per hour?  Are you willing to spend an hour per day exercising and training your dog?

Even a small dog needs attention, care and at least a short walk a couple of times per day.

I'm not saying not to get a dog, but if you do, know that it is a responsibility and honor to own a dog.  But it is a lifestyle choice, almost as significant as deciding to have offspring, and it requires your time as well as your money.

Mike McKenzie 2013  "In Dogs I Trust."

This photograph is copyright protected under a creative commons 3.0 Attribution license.  Use of the photos contained on this page is allowed for any purpose on the condition that it attributed to the Author, Mike McKenzie, and a link back would rock.

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CLICK HERE TO WATCH A COOL CHIHUAHUA VIDEO ON YOUTUBE 

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