Change in Karma: I Saved a Cat from a Tree and a River

Tonight I was lucky to check off another Life Goal from my Things to Do in Life list:

Save a Cat from a Tree. ... And / or River

[HERE is an article the local newspaper wrote up on it.]

Now that item/goal did not actually exist on my list- which also mainly exists in my head, sometimes forming itself on paper. However, after the experience, it seemed appropriate to add it retrospectively.

Here's the process of events that lead to perfect timing of the universe, the cat, and myself:

- I finish work in the kitchen at CHI and go for an 8 mi run.

- I return from the run, grab water from the kitchen and prepare to make a massive amount of granola for Friday breakfast.

- A volunteer enters the kitchen and invites me to the banya (sauna).

- I put on my bathing suit and head to the banya, putting off the granola for later.

- It's now night time and very dark in the country.

- 2 of the interns are near the banya and river and tell me they hear a crying cat and they intend to save it.

- The other interns shine the flashlight and we deduce that the cat is on the other side of the river but still can't see where its cries are coming from.

- I say, "Well, I'm gonna do the banya and then shower and if it's still there, I'll put on my pants and boots and hike over there to find it."

- I come out of the banya and the interns have found the cat: It's at the very top of the trees hanging over the river, approximately 50+ feet in the air!

- We decide there's no way to climb the tree that high, especially at night.

- The cat starts to move more in the tree as we shine a light on it.

- We think it may try to jump.

- I walk to the end of the dock with some anticipation of the cat falling. I worry about the current and if I'd actually be able to see the cat in the river at dark.

- Cat falls or makes a leap of faith from the tree.

- I immediately jump in the river as cat falls 50+ feet.

- I see the splash and I search for the cat.

- I'm able to catch a glimpse of the cat from the interns flashlight.

- The current brings the cat towards me, I make a clean grab and pull it out of the water.

- I hurry to the dock where the cat jumps from my hands and scurries off into the night.

- No bites or scratches.

- I return to the banya.

Cat Lives = (9 - X) - 1 [X = Lives previously lost]

Lazer's Karma Points = X + 1 [X = Previous karma points. Exact number of points unknown.]

Boom!

Change in Karma: Camera Gear, Lost and Found

Lost Flyer by Kelly

Kelly and I park our car near the marina on Douglas Island, AK. We shoot a few photos across the water of Juneau, we get back in the car and drive across the bridge to Juneau library.

After parking the car I realize the back door hatch is wide open! Either I forgot to shut the door or I didn’t close it all the way and it popped open. There was no way to notice the wide open door while driving because our car is filled with so much crap that you cannot see a thing out the back, let alone hear a sound. Nor did anyone honk at us on the 8 minute drive to indicate that our life possessions we’re dangling precariously from our tiny car.

This is our stuff that was in our car while the back door hung open...

I’m panicking as I survey the back of the car, fearing what may be missing. My camera bag… it’s not there! My chest clenches and I say my favorite swears for a full minute. We jump back in our car and immediately retrace our route back to Douglas Island. Nothing. We retrace the route a second time as I repeatedly hit the steering wheel and yell my favorite swears. I hit the steering wheel so hard that my hand is sore and I hope my car allows me to vent my frustration without ejecting my airbag.

The disappointment of my idiocy and losing the camera bag sinks in.

Luckily, my camera was in the front of the car and not in the bag. However, I still have lost all my accessories valued at approximately $500. Not to mention important photos still on my memory cards.

In further idiocy, I don’t think my bag had a name tag on it… If it did, it was probably my old home address and phone number. Even if someone tried to return it, there would be a likely chance it may get lost in the mail…

[Insert a long string of swear words here.]

It’s approximately 7pm and we’re scheduled to leave Juneau on the ferry the following afternoon. Kelly and I have little time to employ lost and found efforts...

We post a listing on Craigslist even though it’s not widely used in Alaska.

We file a police report. [P.S. This is probably the best place to return something if you cannot find the owner yourself.]

And last but not least, we used the good old fashioned “Lost” flyer. Kelly drew up the flyers while I taped them all over Douglas Island: the marina, parks, cafes, gas station, library, telephone poles and more.

We get on the ferry the next day with less photographic resources to document the remaining part of our expedition. My tripod is also rendered useless because both tripod plates we’re in the camera bag…

We arrive in Sitka, AK the next morning. I check my voicemail, fingers crossed… nothing.

I’m really hoping for good karma at this point. Earlier this spring I found a wallet while running through the woods. I went to the address on the license which was a halfway home where no one heard of the guy. With no luck finding him myself, I went to the police who were able to track him down through an employer on the check stub. I hoped that this one-hour good deed would come back to me one day…

And it did!

The next day I received a voicemail from a woman who had my camera bag. Apparently, it fell out of the back of my car in front of her home where someone later found it and brought it to her door. The next day, she had found our illustrated “Lost” flyer at the café!

Boom! The old school "Lost and Found" flyers actually worked! What a relief! The kind woman even fronted the money to ship the case back to me. Thank goodness for her and thank the goodness of Alaska!  After receiving the bag in the mail, I sent back a small reward check along with some good karma I’m sure!