Mere days into the new year that started Monday, it’s already been grim on Oahu’s roads. The first traffic fatality of 2018 involved a motorcycle crash on Mailiili Road in Waianae Tuesday night: a 57-year-old motorcyclist who was speeding and not wearing a helmet. Investigators said he crashed into a chain-link fence and was thrown onto the road.

Also that night, across town on Pali Highway, a two-car accident between Waokanaka and the Pali tunnels caused lane closures and left a woman, 22, in critical condition. Then on Wednesday night, a hit-and-run near the Nimitz viaduct area claimed the life of a Wahiawa man, 35, who had exited his car after striking a barrier, then went over a concrete guardrail to plunge onto North Nimitz Highway below, where he was hit by a vehicle.

These tragic incidents are timely reminders to take care on our roads. Don’t drive impaired, stick within speed limits, buckle up and helmet up.

Clarence Lee’s stamp for Year of the Dog

Artwork by the late Hawaii graphic designer Clarence Lee — a cut-paper design of a dog — will grace the first 2018 U.S. postage stamp (a “Year of the Dog” Forever stamp) slated to be issued. Lee’s Postal Service-commissioned 12-year Chinese Lunar Stamp series began in 1992, with the year of the rooster. He also designed a U.S. stamp for the Beijing Olympics.

A First Day of Issue ceremony is set for 11 a.m. Thursday at the Chinatown Cultural Plaza. Attendees may purchase sheets of the Year of the Dog stamps and have them hand-canceled for free with a special commemorative postmark.