Too close for comfort

I've just returned from vacation, one of the highlights of which was paddling around Monterey Bay in a sea kayak. It was a real treat for me and my family to hang out in close proximity to the sea lions, seals, and sea otters. For the woman shown in this picture, though, things got way too close for comfort. This sea otter jumped into her kayak, gnawed on her life jacket, and gave her quite a scare.

I told her companion I'd post the photo, so here it is. Not much of a technical hook for this item, unless you count the fact that Google was the easiest way for her companion to find me afterward so I could point him to this picture. Floating in kayaks without paper or pencil, I just said "Google me, and write to the address you find." He did, and SpamAssassin and SpamBayes had no trouble distinguishing his message from the thousands of Sobig.F attacks. So the spam shields help up nicely, but I wonder if next time I kayak in Monterey Bay I'll need a critter shield.

Former URL: http://weblog.infoworld.com/udell/2003/08/21.html#a777