Paper cranes still flocking downtown

Esther Short — We’ve been craned! And we love it. Last month The Columbian noted that some anonymous and whimsical soul was busy hiding paper cranes all over downtown Vancouver. The little birds, traditional Japanese symbols of prosperity and good luck, started popping up around the streetscape with no explanation. It was a pleasant phenomenon, with some readers more interested in joining in than solving the puzzle. This month, we’re happy to report, the cranes may have slowed down but they haven’t stopped. In fact a few of them flew over to the paper’s building, west of Esther Short Park, where they were discovered all over our front entryway and in the mailbox. The cranes started appearing in the weeks before the first anniversary of the devastating tsunami and earthquakes that devastated Japan last year. Whomever you may be — thanks.