I drove to Portland today and, boy is it hot here. It was interesting feeling the temperature rise and I headed south on I-5. I think it was 59 when I left Anacortes at around 10am. By the time my wife and I crossed the Columbia River and drove into Portland it was 87. And that was the official high temp today at Portland Airport, which you may know is located right along a river.

My wife is participating in a conference put on by Guardian/Conservator Association of Oregon on Friday. And, driving back to Anacortes as soon as we can on Saturday so we won't miss the Waterfront Festival and the opening day for the Farmers Market.

While Lexie (that's my wife) is at her conference, I will be biking. I found a nice sounding paved bike trail in Clackamas. I'll head out early in the morning and save the afternoon for I don't know what. - Art 

The New York Times Sunday Magazine has some bold ideas to reduce your carbon footprint. Worth reading here. It goes much farther than I did in my short list of things you can do. Art

Tuesday is Earth Day and I wanted to take an opportunity to suggest changes you might want to make to help the planet. We humans are the only species who have the ability to save the environment. And, we’re the only species that is damaging it. So, here are some things you could do to help save our living space, the Earth.

• Switch to compact fluorescent bulbs. They last much longer than incandescent bulbs and they use much less electricity, too. And, that will save you money in the long run.
• Use your computer’s power-saving options to shut off the screen after 10 or 15 minutes in inactivity. And, set the whole thing to shut down after an hour of non-use.
• If you’re thinking about buying a new computer, think seriously about a notebook or laptop. They’re much more energy efficient and, as a bonus, they don’t take up all the space of one of those big boxes that you have to sit on the floor.
• When you’re thinking about buying a new car, consider an energy-efficient hybrid. Again, you’ll save money on gas. I don’t want to mislead you, the added cost of a hybrid doesn’t pay off for 4 or 5 years.
• Go plant a tree somewhere. Or, donate to an organization that will do it. Like the Nature Conservancy. They want to plant a billion trees. Visit their Web site.

Wanna have some fun on this Earth Day? Visit Google’s Earth Day ’08 page .

I'd like to share an email I received from an Anacortes man who is helping rebuild homes in New Orleans. Vince Sellen tells the story of a young woman who needs more help than Vince & his wife can give. Here's his story:

"At 15 Winnie dropped out of school to get a job at the Hilton Hotel and start making money. Though she was young, she stayed with it for several years