Aerial photos of Japan Before and After. When Tsunami Hit Santa Cruz. Animal Rescue Japan. Cargo Trailer Mods.

You may not have seen these special before and after pictures of the disaster:
Aerial photos taken over Japan have revealed the scale of devastation across dozens of suburbs and tens of thousands of homes and businesses.
Hover over, and toggle each satellite photo to view the devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami.
These show before and after, all on one picture:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/events/japan-quake-2011/beforeafter.htm
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It's been about two weeks since one of the largest earthquakes on record hit just off the coast of Japan. The quake, measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale, triggered a tsunami over 30 feet high that surged through the northeastern coast of Japan, decimating whole towns and villages.   
Hundreds of thousands of people, with children and beloved pets in tow, fled to higher ground just in time - sadly, thousands more never made it. 
Aerial View of the tsunami:

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Santa Cruz tsunami damage estimate climbs to $22.5M

 

An ocean away: Seeing the Japan tsunami hit California, by Mike Beck

(Mike Beck is lead scientist for The Nature Conservancy’s Global Marine Team)

"The power of the sea is humbling; as a surfer I know this very well. With normal waves, every foot of face increases their power ten-fold.
I went down to the Santa Cruz boat harbor last Friday morning. I’d seen the devastation on Honshu island and at other sites in northern Japan, and wanted to see what effects the tsunami would have in my backyard. Because the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) upgraded the Pacific Tsunami warning system after the Sumatran tsunami, I knew when the waves would reach Santa Cruz and how high they would be.
The waves arrived as expected around eight o’clock that morning. But while the prediction was that the waves would be small and fade after about 40 minutes, the destruction lasted for more than six hours. The surf battered docks and sank boats, many of them were people’s homes.
Every 20 minutes or so, the water would flow quickly out of the harbor, like a fast moving river. The rescue boats had to power hard into the surge just to stand still. The water in the whole harbor would drop more than five feet in about 10 minutes. Soon after, an even faster surge would bring the water barreling back towards shore. Boats and pieces of docks that had been snapped free were flowing back and forth with each surge, slamming into and dislodging other boats."            
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/wilderness-resources/stories/an-ocean-away-seeing-the-japan-tsunami-hit-california
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HSI receives animal rescue grant from GreaterGood.org
This is how your clicks are working:

Mar 21, 2011 10:06:00 PM by Rosemary Jones
"GreaterGood.org announced today that approximately $170,000 has been sent to Humane Society International for animal-related needs in Japan.
In the wake of the March 11 Tohoku earthquake, HSI will use this funding for the purchase and shipment of emergency supplies, and planning and implementation of temporary sheltering facilities in the disaster zone.

Since March 12, the HSI team has been communicating and working with Japanese animal welfare groups on the ground, and with other international animal welfare organizations, such as World Vets helping to determine and meet the most urgent and immediate needs. The most requested assistance by the network of local groups in Japan are dog kennels, animal bowls and collars, and food supplies for displaced, surrendered, or abandoned animals, as well as guidance on setting up emergency sheltering operations.

HSI’s Disaster Response Team members, who were providing veterinary training at Cebu in the Philippines on March 11, have  purchased $120,000 of essential supplies from the Philippines which Philippine Air generously offered to ship for free to Japan.
In addition, HSI is sending $50,000 to one of the lead organizations, Japan Animal Welfare Society, in order for them to procure what supplies they can in Japan for their sheltering operations and to assist in the support of individual veterinarians who were located in the disaster area and who have been helping with pet rescue and subsequent care.
HSI will continue talking with local organizations about increasing emergency sheltering capacity and looking at opportunities to support the animal rescue and care provided by individual veterinary hospitals."
Photo courtesy of Humane Society International. 
From: http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/ars/article/HSI-receives-animal-rescue-grant-from-GreaterGood-org726
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Today:

Twice a light bulb went off in my head.   Both kitchen ideas.

The first idea started hatching in my kitchen yesterday.  I had bought a little toaster oven a couple of months back, but I had to put my larger toaster/convection oven back in that place, as the little toaster oven was no good as an oven, even though it made good toast.  The convection one is a great oven, but dies up the bread too much for toast.  I also have an under cabinet B&D toaster that doesn't make good toast, and a pop-up toaster.  I moved my FoodSaver vacuum thingy, that I never use, and put the little toaster oven there. 
With the under counter toaster removed I had room for tall drinking glasses on the shelf that was below the B&D toaster.  Then with the pop-up toaster gone, I have more countertop.
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Second idea.  For the last couple of days ever since we installed the cargo trailer's counter top, that fridge placement has been bugging me.  To be able to open the door of the fridge, the styles for the lower cabinets would have to be so far apart, that I think it would look stupid. 
We marked the cabinet base, (not shown here) and put styles up to see how it would look, and I didn't like it.  The lower cabinets would be just too narrow.  So where to put that pesky fridge?

Then it dawned on me that I was being old fashioned trying to make a dinette, when these days people want a permanent computer office desk.  So today, Jay and I lessened the depth of driver's side former dinette base, and made it an extension of the kitchen by putting the fridge on that base that is over the wheel well and water tank.  The height is just right. 
Then the curb side will be an office/eating table with moveable desk chairs.  This makes the trailer seem wider in the middle, too.
There will be no dinette to make a bed for visitors, they can sleep on the floor!   Or better still, in their own RV!

All that thinking was enough for one day!