Today would not have been my first choice for taking to the sky’s but that’s what I did. The flight from Vancouver to San Francisco was just over two hours and given the recent events in England passengers were asked to check-in three hours before the flight. The security was not hyper vigilant however I got the feeling there was a lot of unobtrusive ‘watching’ going on.

All the same one could have been forgiven for anxiety levels to be somewhat higher the day after a major ‘bust’. So I was delighted to find an article in the Alaska Airlines Magazine on the Giant Pacific Octopus by Brandon Cole. His close up photograph of the critters disc-shaped suckers as well as a number of other stunning close-ups had me transfixed, and distracted, for most of the flight south.

Sometimes it is skillful, and compassionate, to distract ones mind. To direct ones attention purposefully to something other than what’s occupying it. Or in my case for the last 24 hours, pre occupying it.

Here’s some script from the article for your interest and amazement.
“The arms of the Giant Pacific Octopus are lined with up to 1,600 disc-shaped suckers. They work together to grip with Herculean strength or manipulate with wondrous finesse. The suckers are wired into the creature’s advanced sensory system and are used to ‘taste” objects and creatures it encounters.” and latter in the article… “Enteroctopus Dofleini is the world’s largest octopus species–examples weighing more than 200 pounds with an arm span of more than 20 feet have been recorded in the cool, nutrient-rich waters of the Pacific Northwest.” The author goes on to say, “I’ve had them hop onto my head, ride piggyback on my air tank and play tug-of-war with my camera.”

As coincidence would have it Victor, who took the photo of the bridge at Lytton, has spent quite a bit of time down in the depths swimming around with the long armed ones between Vancouver Island and the mainland.

I’d like to think I will be able to continue to post regularly however these past couple of weeks have shown me that I’m most likely going to be sporadic for awhile. Thanks for continuing to visit. Do take a look at the photos to be found by following the link.