The story broke a year or so ago: the motorcycle-riding, tattooed scary guys that rescue kittens and dogs or just make sure they’re treated right.  It’s amazing how owners suddenly decide to do the right thing when being talked to by this gang. Now Rescue Ink has a book for sale and their own show on the National Geographic Channel and it’s a whole lot more entertaining to watch them in action than just to read about it.  Here, the chicken almost won:

I really do love to treasure hunt.  I haven’t figured out how to make a living at it yet, but there are people out there that do.  And while there is probably a lot of money being made from things found in a quasi-legal setting, what could be worse than having to give back what you’ve found?  It’s not that hard to hunt legally and through trustworthy guides:

1. Dive for Spanish treasure (not quite pirate treasure but the stuff looks the same)  If you invest with Mel Fisher’s Treasures (finder of part of the Atocha) you can dive with and get a portion of the year’s loot.  The minimum investment isn’t loose change but less than the price of most cars. Or just do what I’m planning on and take a metal detector to the Florida beaches; no entry fee and the stuff does still wash up.
2. Hit the antique malls – it’s just as much fun to find a plate made around 1740 and valued at around $1000 for only $40!  The secret is to the enjoy the hunt more than day dreams  of a full bank account…
3. Hunt for gemstones – check out any of the Cash & Treasure / Treasure Hunter sites from the Travel Channel. Just be sure to double-check the information with the mine owner’s website. I’ve tried several of them and found most to be as advertised but a few took advantage of the sudden fame to well… take advantage.

It’s a universal truth that pirates can make anything more interesting -  from getting a toddler to eat to studying economics (see the new book The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates) The career of legalized piracy known as privateering doesn’t get as much press but it’s still technically legal in the U.S. so if you always kinda wanted to try it out, you can still petition Congress.  If you don’t get their permission, it’s the frowned-on kind of piracy.  No promises on success but it’s there in section 8 of the Constitution: To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water.

If that fails, you can take the harder road of trying to become a Seafair Pirate, but you’ll have to live in the Seattle area for that one and quite frankly the odds are better with Congress. Like any career, there’s a job guide, Pirattitude!: So you Wanna Be a Pirate?: Here’s How!

If that all sounds like entirely too much work, buy some legos and practice talking like a pirate as a way of easing into it!

Now that the bubble has burst on always making money with a computer science degree it’s time for students and parents to consider some of the more out-there, quirky majors!  Fewer jobs are everywhere, maybe less competition is the key…

1. Carnegie Mellon is the only U.S. college to offer bagpipes as a major (other schools offer it as a class but don’t consider it a ‘real’ instrument.)  There’s even a scholarship to go with it. Sounds better with that, doesn’t it?
2. The University of Wales, Lampeter offers a Master’s degree in Cultural Astrology and you can start with a BA in astrology from Kepler College
3. Several colleges offer graduate degrees in astrobiology (i.e. aliens) including Penn State and the University of Washington
4. Duke, Johns Hopkins, SUNY Plattsburgh, and the University of Vermont all offer degrees in Canadian Studies – somewhat odd that none of these are in Canada, eh?
5. You can also major in blacksmithing at Southern Illinois University

Could this be why marriage is on the decline?  Maybe we are left to much to our own direction these days…

http://www.storycorps.org/listen/stories/bill-schifrin-and-his-son-in-law-herman-rotenberg