Non-Fiction

In Humboldt County, California, a young man is missing. Caribou, a trained German Shepherd Dog, is deployed on her first search after she was declared "mission ready." The cliffside terrain is dangerous, and the man seems to have disappeared from the face of the world ...

Everything the author learned the hard way, her husband learned over a chess board. In this first installment, they look at two words that politicians love almost as much as "free lunch".

A white-throated sparrow stops by for the winter in the central valley of California.

Welcome to Month of the Dead here at the Press.

Where the turf meets the surf<br> down at old Del Mar<br> take a plane<br> take a train<br> take a car.<br><br> There is a smile on every face<br> and a winner in each race<br> where the turf meets the surf<br> at Del Mar...

Katrina Stonoff reviews <i>The Madonnas of Leningrad</i>, and finds it exquisite.

The astronomy community is all a-twitter about Pluto. How did it get to be a planet, and why isn't it one anymore?

Hot air balloons take to the air.

A view of the white city Vejer, Spain.

California poppy illuminates the garden.

A droplet catches the sun and the center stage.

Official mascot of a trip to Hunter Island, South Carolina.

A Kansas sunset on the road.

Some things from childhood are still as sweet as you remember them. Lydia Manx takes her memories of fairs past with her as she visits the summer fairgrounds.

The German Shepherd Dog Kodiak, and little playmate Sam.

A patriotic garden

Are Ed Wood films as bad as people say they are? No, they're actually worse, but that doesn't take away from the fact that he was able to achieve his vision by making his own movies. Sure, we all want others to like what we create, but that shouldn't be the main reason why you do it in the first place ...

A juvenile scrub jay comes back for seconds when the food is peanut butter.

A macaque, in a regal pose.

A choppy San Francisco Bay tosses the sailboat "French Kiss."

Coyote graffiti howls from the rock

We remember Flanders Field and all the places our servicemen have given their lives to preserve the peace of their citizens.

Phil and Barbara Seeger share a story and photos of their travel to Egypt to view a spectacular eclipse.

A portrait of an ibis at Micke Grove Zoo.

Red, white and blue flowers in nasturtium, carnation, and lobelia.

Blind bald eagle at Micke Grove Zoo.

Caterpillar in the Sun

For the last sixty years, there has been one question repeatedly asked by novice historians. What does the "d" in D-day stand for? Ironically enough, the answer is in the very word itself. (Originally appeared 2005-06-06)

Who were the tall caucasians who lived near China's Taklamakan Desert for two millenia before the Chinese arrived? (Originally appeared 2005-05-23)

Fog drapes the manzanita bushes and wisps across the pavement in front of my car. The road is dark with damp and at its edge sits a golden animal. I brake because I think it's a stray dog, maybe injured and in need of rescue. The animal turns its head to look at me for a second, then bunches its muscles and springs. Its front feet hit the center line of the road, then the back haunches roll forward. The hind feet strike the pavement, while the front legs stretch for the opposite side of the road. The tip of the creature's long tail flicks, as if waving good bye, before it disappears into the thick brush.<br><br> My heart thrills and a tingle launches itself up my spine. I have just seen one of the most elusive animals in North America: a mountain lion.... (Originally appeared 2005-02-13)