Raincharm’s Weblog

We just left the mariner’s game. They were losing 12-2. They are now losing 13-6, but we left to get home a little earlier. (We went Saturday and yesterday, and are going tomorrow and Thursday.)

We also watched the 2nd half of the Sounders game, on my phone, during a few dismal innings.
It was streaming video – not bad.

The Sounders beat FC Dallas 1-0. This particular game was not a regular season MLS game, but a semi-final game of the US Open Cup. They will play the final on October 4th, in Seattle! The Sounders have won the US Open Cup for the last 2 years.

The winner gets an automatic berth into the CONCACAF tournament (a tournament for all the Americas). So they are also playing that tournament’s games as well. Just recently they won their first game ever in Mexico, against what the players termed, “the best team they have played all year.”

I will admit that I probably paid more attention to the Sounders game than the Mariners. But I did continue to score the baseball game. Until we left, that is. The people sitting next to us were from Columbia, and they were interested in how Freddy Montero (also from Columbia) was doing. In fact, Montero scored the Sounder’s goal.

Celebrating Montero's Goal

Note to Ashlan. If you look at the picture in the previous post, you will see Arms in the background. I just noticed that today when the picture got moved around so I was just looking at that particular part of the picture.

Tonight’s Mariner game ended better than last night’s
First of all we won. 5-3 over the Angels.
It was some sort of celebration of the ties between Seattle and Japan, particularly baseball ties. They had a pre game Taiko drum group with some very colorful costumes.

During the game Ichiro got 2 hits, scoring at least once. And the winning runs were scored on a home run by Carp (which I always associate with Japan) off of Takahasi.

We left our house a bit before 9 AM, and got home sometime before 10 PM.
The short version = walk, Art Museum, Soccer Game, Baseball Game, bus, walk.

The longer version.

Walk:
We wanted to walk downtown, just for some exercise.
I have also wanted to walk over the Aurora Bridge. It is a very high bridge. Here is a picture of it being built. The bridge spans the ship canal between Lake Union and the Puget Sound. It is a high bridge, not a draw bridge. Last ship out, or you’re staying in.

Aurora Bridge under construction

It also has the dubious distinction of having the second most suicide/attempts in the US. 1st place stays with the Golden Gate Bridge. The relatively low outer rail and fast traffic made the bridge daunting to me as a walker in the past. As part of the suicide prevention efforts (and to help the people who live and work near the landing zone) they recently erected a higher outer fence. So it was time for me to walk the bridge. It looks like they are still working on the new bits, or maybe this is just regular maintenance. In any event it meant that the lane next to us was blocked from traffic – nicer for walking.

Bridge work - the workers are actually under the bridge

Carl – starting over (east side, north to south). I am sure many of us played punch-bug for VWs growing up. Double punch for the VW bus. More recently Carl’s kids have been playing Pinch Mini for Mini-Coopers. (Jet says you just say it, and you don’t really pinch.) We have now added Pucker Prius. You have to kiss every time you see a Prius. [In Seattle that can really slow down a walk.]

Together.

On the bridge

Have I mentioned how much I appreciate that we do things together? I think a lot of people tend to pigeon-hole Carl to baseball, and he is a fanatic, but also so much more.

View to the east – a marina, houseboats (Sleepless in Seattle?), a dry dock (looks like a boat with an open end), and GasWorks park.

North Lake Union Waterfront

View to the southeast – downtown in the distance.

Towards downtown

Good manmade straight lines. I just saw a NOVA on fractals. The repetition of fractals in nature vs the smooth lines of man. And noting artists who had utilized fractals in making their depictions more “lifelike,” long before the word fractal was coined. Very interesting, and I find myself looking for the fractal repetition in all sorts of things as we move along our route.

A few paddlers taking advantage of the beautiful Seattle summer. (Finally!)

Paddle board (the newest trend) and kayaks

Having crossed the bridge it is time to make our way down to the lake level. Notice how they show you where to land at the bottom if you trip.

Don't trip

There are many travel modes available to get to the south end of Lake Union.
Car, trolley (SLUT), bus, foot, bicycle, boat, and float plane.

float plane

The South Lake Union park has been completely redone/re-created over the last several years.
Here is a new pedestrian crossing of a small arm of the lake.

Pedestrian Bridge

A big boat, for the big lakes.

The Queen of Seattle

A small pond for small boats.

The Armory, soon to be the new home of the Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI).

The Armory

From South Lake Union it was into downtown proper. View of the butt end.

Not Carl silly, the monorail (look up)
Found the local Potbelly (Ashlan’s employer, about 3000 miles east). We did not order anything this time. We just were not hungry yet, but now we know where it is. (just south of Westlake Square, west side of the street.)

Seattle Potbellys

Seattle Art Museum.
Our first destination.

Hammering Man

Not many pictures. The exhibits we visited were all, “No Photographs”
We did view a small exhibit on “The American Pastime.” Some pictures of really old teams (1880’s) and a couple of Jacob Lawrence pieces that we really enjoyed. There was also a shot of a sign in Fenway Park stating that if a person could pitch, they did not care what the color of their skin was. Of course, they were the last team to integrate, so maybe somebody really did care. There were some photographs of integrated teams before the “Gentleman’s Agreement” that the teams should be fair-skinned.

After we left SAM it was time to move towards Qwest CenturyLink Field for the Sounders game.
We were not the only folks making this trek.

Sounder crowds arriving

This is one point in time that Seattle’s streets may have been more crowded than those in the Big Apple.

Soccer Game
The Sounders game against the Columbus Crew was great fun. (No pictures because I did not take out the camera. Too busy watching.) They won 6-2. For the MSL Sounders this was the most goals scored in a match (6), a half (4), and the fastest three goals in club history (17 minutes). Carl had chosen Neagle as the Man of the Match. Neagle scored 3 of the goals, so Carl won a lottery ticket.

Following the game we went to F.X. McRorys for dinner. We scratched of the ticket, hoping it would pay for dinner. No luck. I had a salmon sandwich and Carl had a blue cheese bacon burger. Judging by how quickly we both finished our meals, the food was excellent. (Or we were really hungry.) On to our destination.

Baseball Game
It was a bobblehead giveaway game. The “player” was Larry Bernandez. Here he is handing out bobbleheads himself at the Home Plate entrance. (We entered at the Centerfield gate.)

The man with his bobbleheads

We started batting practice in right field seats. Carl collected more than his share of baseballs, gave away a few, and then we headed over to the bullpens. Carl had been talking with Juan Nieves (White Sox coach) the previous day, and had returned with an old Brewers #20 jersey, and a baseball card documenting Nieves no-hitter for the Brewers on 4-15-1987. He signed both. We also discussed potential places where and my relatives could have crossed paths. But, he is from Santurce, Puerto Rico, in the mountains, and my relatives are from the coastal areas (Ponce, Mayagaez and Cabo Rojo (did I get these correct?).)

Later Larry threw out the first pitch.

Larry Bernandez

All I can say is it is good to know that some highly paid players still know that the game is just a game, and can poke fun at themselves. After all, he did win the Cy Young last year. [For those that are not in the Seattle TV market, this is all based on a commercial from the start of the year.]

We did not sit in our regular seats at the baseball game. They had been purchased by others from Eugene Oregon through a charity auction (by our good friends the Dixon’s, of Eugene). We were sitting along the first-base line, in the second row. Great seats, but I must admit there were things I much prefer about our seats. 1) Our seats have more leg room. These seats are normal depth, but there is precious extra room. With my bag (full of bobbleheads under my seat) I had nowhere to put my shoes when I tried to give my feet some air. In our seats we can hang our bags over the fence in front of our seats. 2) In our seats you look squarely at the field. These seats were canted to angle the seat more towards home plate, but you still have to look left the entire game. And it makes it harder to speak with anyone to your right.

Alternate View of the field

One of the highlights of the game was in a between inning moment when they focused on an elderly, but spry-looking, woman in front of a sign that said, “It’s Nana’s 100th birthday!” The entire crowd was cheering and on their feet. She stood up and took a brief bow. I sure hope I can do the same on my 100th.

The White Sox were able to match the Columbus Crew score of 2, but the Mariners were not able to match the Sounder’s 6, and lost 2-0. So we trudged off to our final segments of the day.

Bus
Out of the stadium and over to the bus/light rail tunnel.
As we descended to the south end of the International Station, we could see a 73 bus at the north end. But it was finishing loading, and we were not up to a screaming, arms flailing run. So we waited about 10 minutes when a 71 bus arrived. Luckily the U District is well served by buses. Any of the 70’s will do.

It was a crowded ride, but we had seats. I know I really didn’t want to be on my feet any more than necessary at that point. By the time we reached our stop, most standers had found seats.

Walk:
We had about a 5-6 block walk home. (Someday I will actually count the blocks.) We started out following the rowdies from the bus, but they found home (or a party) after about 1/2 block, so we were on our own.

The couch was a little too inviting, and swallowed me whole until some time in the middle of the night. Carl, on the other hand, did dishes and went to bed in the bed.

All in all, a good day.
I love it when I get to spend an entire day with my husband, doing nothing but fun things.

First the statistics – White Sox 4, Mariners 2
Attendance = 26,000+
Included in the attendance Jay, Carl, Mark H, Kevin S, Jimmy (a guy who would feed tennis balls to players working on their batter’s eye, including Edgar Martinez & Ichiro), and his daughter.

Carl spent a lot of time over by the bullpen, both during batting practice and the game.
While Carl & Mark were over at the bullpen, two men in their 30’s asked to take a picture of Carl and Mark. Now both Carl & Mark have their share of grey hair. (And Mark has a grey beard.) They acquiesced, and then the two men asked Mark to take a picture of them. Then they held up their phone, switching from one picture to the other saying, “Before, and 20 years later.”

Carl got two balls during BP. Gave one to a guy and his wife on Carl’s left from Alaska, and then gave the other to a guy on his right, from the Okanagan (northeast Washington).

Lots of interactions. Met a guy who went to Princeton. This guy played on Princeton’s baseball team as a catcher, under coach Scott Bradley. Scott Bradley was a Mariner catcher. Now Kevin caught Scott Bradley’s last home run in the majors. When Kevin found out Bradley was coaching at Princeton, he sent him the ball. Bradley thanked him and offered to give him a Princeton jersey. But Kevin is still waiting.

One player came out and picked up 5 balls in the bullpen, and then through them back on the field (and not to the fans). Carl figured out who it was, Will Ohman, and noted that this player was a little chunky around the middle. So he heckled him saying, “Time to hit the treadmill, Will.” Will turned around and make a show of sucking in his gut, so Carl did too.

Carl has a project where he sends postcards to baseball players, and asks them about a specific situation, that they would likely remember. First home run, first win, first game, … Don Cooper, pitching coach for the White Sox, is one player that Carl had sent a postcard, and had not received an answer. When the White Sox were in town earlier this year, Carl asked Don Cooper why he had not responded. Don Cooper said, it’s somewhere, but send another and I will answer. So Carl did. Still no answer. So today he said, “I sent another one, but I know you are busy.” Don Cooper said, I will get to it, and then brought over a nicely rubbed up ball with a 50th anniversary stamp from Anaheim Stadium. (The White Sox were just in LA.) Guilt trips by Carl.

But really, many of the players and coaches that he talks to seem to enjoy the conversations, and don’t take steps to avoid him. He gives them his memories of their memorable moments.

WORD from NYC.
Ashlan is 5 blocks from the evacuation zone for a category 3 hurricane.
Planning to get some more bottled water tomorrow. Their larder is pretty well stocked, and they can bunk in their living room, away from the windows. She was not scheduled to work this weekend, and since the subways will be shut down – it would not have been an option anyway.

OK – it has been a few days since I last posted.

To follow up on the suggestions for our license plate on the blog, we had two more:
An E……. Woman (from Carl)
An Exotic Wanderer (from Jay) – which seemed appropriate for the Prius.

Onward.
I have been watching a lot of Carl playing baseball. And they won a few more games.
I missed his game tonight (which they lost – boo-hoo). They are now 3-19

Work – ahhhhhhhhhh. And yet I kind of finished one task today, so hooray!
Since we got back from vacation I have felt like I am running to catch up.
That really hasn’t changed, but if I can check one or two things off the list each day, it will be OK. So I guess the trick is to write the list in such a way that you can’t help but accomplish a few things.

Home – we had a week plus of visitors.
Our regulars, and they are not high maintenance. Really all we do is change the sheets.

The house improvement plans are moving forward. More when we know more.
We are starting to look at how to pay for it all. Looks like it should all work out, and the fact that interest rates are low is promising. In fact, while we were chatting with the banker we refinanced our current mortgage.

On the horizon? More of the same.
Both the Mariners and Sounders (soccer) are in town this weekend, and Carl has two games.

We’ll try to fit a walk in as well – if I have any say.

Here are a few photos from this month (so far)

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OK – our major driving for the summer has been completed.

But I need help.

Please send your suggestions for AEW
Word, phrase, abbreviations ….
Knock yourself out.

This is the start to our new plate.
Washington retires your plates every 7 years (reflectivity). You can pay an additional $20 to retain your prior number, but it will still be a new plate.

Before I retire 907 stabs or stubby (Ashlan), I need a new mnemonic.

HELP

So, you may know already that we have something of a baseball affinity in this house.

We go to a lot of Mariner games, and a fair number of minor league games too.

And there were endless number of little league, right up through high school, and then high school ball games to go to.

And last, but not least, the man himself plays.
His playing days have ebbed and flowed depending on the number and severity of injuries.
This year was a real trial. Last time there was a dislocated elbow, and this season started off with the foot in a boot for several months.

The team joined for this foray into Senior League Baseball looked to need pitchers, so Carl thought he would give them  a whirl. We are well into the season now, and tonight ……

THEY GOT THEIR FIRST WIN!

Carl was the winning pitcher, although he only pitched the end of the game.
Still – wonderful.

(And I was not there. Working evening, and the venue was not close to work or home.)

I often tell Carl I am not, “the good wife,” I am just the wife.

But today I had every intention of calling my father to wish him a HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

But I managed to get derailed. (Actually, I asked my son whether I should eat or work out. He said, “work out.” And by the time I was done working out my brain was mush and did not remember the other things I was supposed to do today. I did not give my son the proper set of choices, or I am sure he would have said, “Call grandad!”)

And now it is too late, for today anyway.

So – here are some pictures from this summer. My Dad – he spoils us!
(Really, running at 84? You go Dad)

Our day was relatively, well, normal for us.

Trying to get caught up on the home paperwork (bills, checkbook, etc).

A baseball game – Carl’s team.

Now this got interesting. His team, new for him this year, has not won a game all year. Carl was pitching, and they got up 4-1. But, alas, the lead did not hold, and they lost 6-5. A few fielding errors were the main reason. [Carl might add that the strike zone was less than consistent as well.] But it was fun to be out playing games.

The team went out for pizza afterwards, with a few wives and kids in attendance. A satisfactory ending for those over 50, playing a game they love.

We topped off the pizza with stop at Baskin-Robbins.

Then home to watch a Midsomer Murders episode.

Fall into bed with a little SNL. (So I could see who Jason Sudeikis is. Ashlan served him a sandwich a week or so ago.)

We have been back for 2 days now (I think).
It has been busy – although we only have ourselves to blame for that.

Jumping back into work with both feet and a few other limbs thrown in for good measure.
Then in the evening I have been crashing – just too tired to move.

We did manage to get a bit of food into the house, but last night was typical.
We had an appointment last night to look forward to retirement funding. So I rushed home through horrendous traffic.

Carl still had two kids running around playing with a hot wheels track that extended from the dining room, through the living room, out the front door and down the steps. They were having a blast. Carl was trying to cook two turkey burgers and couscous, so we could eat and run.

As I walked in he got a call telling him to make sure he went to the NEW Lynnwood High School for their game. GAME? What game? Oh – a baseball game in 1/2 hour, and it is not on our calendar! [Apparently this was added to the electronic calendar, but not on the originally provided calendar.]

Burgers cooked. Put on to-go plates.
Couscous does not look even close – turn off the burner and leave it.
Jay leaves to appointment, Carl leaves for the game.
Turns out Carl left his burger sitting on the table, and the couscous was so liquidy because the couscous had never been added.

Oh, and I am so sorry if any of you received the HEY DUDE e-mail from my account that was hacked/taken over/whatever. I am trying to deal with it, but just delete anything from me that says DUDE, Cell phone, no subject, etc. SO SORRY.