Raincharm’s Weblog

And once again I have missed a few days.
I have no excuse for last night, except that I was late getting home. But I was not at the ball game.

Here is the Thursday Rhody picture. (Taken in the evening, which seems to show a lot more of the dirt on the window.)

Thursday Evening Rhody

And a Friday morning picture

Friday morning – with sun

So – I was late getting home from work, but I was also late getting to work in the morning.
Started the day with a dentist appointment. Nothing big, and my teeth feel cleaner.

It was only 7:30 when I left the dentist so I called my carpooler to see where he was.
He had been considering 1) waiting for me to get through my appointment, 2) calling another potential ride, 3) taking the bus. [He had tickets to the M’s game in the evening, and did not want to drive/park in the evening. I was scheduled to drive him to the game (as he has done for me many times), but he ended up getting a ride from a different co-worker.]

When I called he was on a bus. But the bus had been delayed by an accident which close the 520 freeway for a while.
I checked the traffic app, and it looked like the freeway entrance to 520 was blocked, but 520 was fine. The alternate freeway, I-90, was difficult to reach since I-5 was full of traffic. So I decided to go 520, tolls be damned. But since the entrance had appeared to be in trouble I would cut through the University District.

First bad calculation of the day. Slow, lots of traffic and students.

Finally reached the entrance ramp to 520. As I was winding my way down to the freeway (tollway), at <5 mph, I noted a sign saying the bridge would open/close (depending on your perspective) at 9 AM. [The 520 bridge is tolled to help pay for its replacement. The construction work at one end has blocked the area where taller boats could get under the bridge. So in addition for paying to cross, you run the risk of having the drawspan open for a sailboat.] I checked the clock, and realized there was only a very small chance that I would be caught by the bridge opening. Then decided that it would probably be interesting enough to be worth the delay.

Finally on the bridge, but continuing to poke along, it was time for bird watching, 520 style.
First up was a bald eagle.
Then a hawk, but what would a hawk be doing at mid-span. I don’t think they pluck fish from the lake.
Then an osprey. (I think the hawk was also an osprey, just a different angle.)
All of the birds were sitting on light standards right above the freeway.
In retrospect I could have gotten my camera out and taken some pictures, but I was a good driver and kept my hands on the wheel.

Finally across the water, and after another 1/2 hour arrived at work.

Work was actually pretty interesting, as work day’s go.
Finally really digging into some databases. No real data work yet – just data cleanup.
(You know when <500 records to check is a victory, and <2000 seems reasonable, that your life is just too good.)
Finished a team review of the first draft of a major rewrite of our emergency plan (volume 1).
Was able to get a bit of work done for today action (which is good, since I am not there in person today).

And – it is time for me to get back to cleaning up databases.

Meet Peggy Sue

Peggy Sue

Then there are her friends the Witch, Marylin and Inga (a little hard to see but has two pigs and a pony tail).

Bleachero’s 2012 version (this support resulted in a single).

Three times they donned their wigs and raised their signs.
Two times Ichiro responded with a hit.

I tried for a better picture, but there was a redhead in the way. Didn’t she understand that this was a night for blonds?

But the Mariner’s lost – 3-1 – to the Rangers.

Sorry, not much to add today. Ready to go to bed.

Here is the Rhody from this AM.

Tuesday’s Rhody shot

If I went in chronological order, I would get to the bad last.
But I am generally a bad news first girl, so here it is.

Carl was playing baseball yesterday and did something to a tendon in his foot/ankle. We think it is the peronius brevis. Whatever it is called, this is the same tendon that popped before, and had him in a boot for a few months. Luckily, we still have a boot around, so he put it on. I am insisting he go see the doctor however, even if he thinks he knows what it is.

On the good news side, he was legging out a double (really nice hit, to hear it described), and it popped when he was rounding first. (He was safe. This is different from when he tore his Achilles tendon and was tagged out between first and second.)

Back to chronology. It has been since Friday morning that I posted.
Friday was busy with work and meetings. Not too much else to report, at least that I can recall.

I did spend the evening hauling boxes into the living room.
I figured the way to make sure I held a garage sale was to make it more difficult to not hold the garage sale.

In retrospect, it probably still would have been less work to just haul the stuff back downstairs,  but in the end I think it was worth it. I think I cleared a bit over $130, and there may be a bit more money flowing our direction from some neighbor sales, when they did not have any money.

After I put out a tarp with a sheet over most of it (to keep the dew off the offerings) and set up the folding metal table (which is determined that each time we put it up will be its last), Carl & I walked to the end of the block and the block beyond to put up our signs. Then it was time to put out the merchandise.

Carl helped haul out the boxes and boxes and boxes of garage sale fodder. Most of it was clothing. The result of our winter break sorting of clothes with kids. The good part about it being the kids’ clothes is that they are much more likely to be clothes that others would want. There was also some “junk” and a few gifts (of the toy variety) never opened, and the turtle footstool, and 6 pairs of skis, 4 pairs of ski-boots, and a handful of ski-poles, and the playpen that had not sold at numerous previous garage sales. [I don’t do numerous garage sales, but my neighbor has, and I would put it out over and over and over again.]

I have to admit, I did not take any pictures of the covered lawn. But two different groups of folks told me that I had a very nice layout. Easy to see things, and well presented. I guess I achieved feng-shui for garage sales.

Highlights of the garage sale:

• Sold said playpen.
• Sold two pairs of skis (really the only two worth buying)
• Sold one pair of ski-boots
• Sold the turtle footstool
• Met (re-met) a class-mate of Rey’s from 2nd grade forward. Alice Manos. She was there with her mother and grandmother, speaking Greek. I think it was Alice who said I looked familiar, and we figured it out from there.

I was surprised that t-shirts sold as well as non-t-shirt shirts. People were nice, and it was a relaxed day. I had put up a sign saying that they could pay whatever they wanted, and the funds were going to support the fight against breast cancer. More than one brought up the earlier Komen/Planned Parenthood debacle, but agreed that the direction had been corrected, and it really should not be a political subject.

And – since it was not exactly a hopping sales day, I was able to work most of the day. I set up the computer on the front porch, and actually completed (almost) a couple of small projects.

The take-down was more tiring than the set-up. Probably because Carl was at his baseball game.
I know I made progress because I had two empty boxes at the end.
The next, “We have a truck in your neighborhood,” call that we get – will get the remaining full boxes.

Flinging in bulk.

Since it is spring in Seattle, the flowers are blooming. I took pictures of a few specimens from the backyard.

Backyard bud

Backyard bloom

The calla lilies are actually volunteers.

Calla Lily

Backyard volunteers

I have decided to try to follow a rhododendron bloom that is directly outside of the front window. (Great plan, we will see how it all works out.)

Friday – front yard bud

Sunday – front yard budding

Now to begin Sunday. Newspaper or Street fair?

Wednesday evening when I arrived home Carl was out patrolling the fields of friends playing sports. Kids, parents, t-ball, soccer. So I set out on foot for his current destination, a parent playing soccer, approximately 1-1/2 mile from home. Not too far, but it was already 7 PM, and dinner was still waiting.

I took the under route to cross the freeway, and wound through the Greenlake neighborhood. The neighborhood is city-rectangular for a while, and then has a series of divergent and curving streets. These either parallel the lake/park in a fashion or angle down to the lake. It is not always easy to determine which direction you are really headed. As I crossed one street at a tee into a long block, a sign on a fence helpfully said, “Lake” with an arrow. I was actually not trying to just get to the lake, so I went the other direction.

Eventually I reached Green Lake Way near the golf course. This is a pitch-and-putt golf course, but that was the first sport I encountered in the next 1/4 mile. Golf, ultimate frisbee, jogging, running (yes, they are different), softball, skateboard park, bicycle-cross, and finally soccer. Carl was there watching his charge’s father charge around. I joined him, but soon we were kicking a ball around with a 5-year old. (That always seems to happen.)

As the second half of the soccer game started, we decided it was time to head home for dinner.

This morning (Friday) we took a morning walk. The easy 5-mile walk to, around and back from Green Lake. We did it with pretty good pace. Each mile was getting quicker. That is until we stopped at the Starbucks before completing the last mile. Just enough to slow us down a bit.

Many of the folks out have canine companions along for the walk. We decided that Corgis only have one leg section running from the hip to the foot. There is no room for a knee joint.

We were able to do this early walk because I am telecommuting today. So I had better get to it.

Oh – for the Marquis. It is bike to work week/month, and today is the DAY. We passed this set-up outside of Gregg’s Green Lake Cycle.

Bike To Work Day at Gregg’s Green Lake

Yesterday evening I had a meeting. My part went until about 8:15, and I was home by 9:00.

Tonight was a lot more exciting – we did not get home until after 9:30! (Such madness.)

We went out to the off-Broadway production of “Million Dollar Quartet.”
It was fabulous. We really enjoyed the show.
What we had not done a few years ago was to see the show when it was being developed by the Village Theatre in Issaquah. It got rave reviews there too, and then a Tony for a performer (from the Issaquah show translated to Broadway) later.

The story (true) in a nutshell, as presented in the program.

It was a jam session. And jam they did. The performers are all really playing and singing. There is a bass player and drummer providing accompaniment. They were really good, and played throughout the show.

The drummer in the real event was Fluke. He backed Johnny Cash throughout his career. Turns out the real Fluke was in the audience.

The most touching (for me) moment was at the end of the historical jam session – replayed, they posed for a picture. And then the real photograph appears, along with the real recording of the four singing one of the songs from the show, which was repeating what they had done, so …. Let’s just say it was touching.

And then they launched into several more songs. A fun, rocking night.

Sunday was a pretty mellow day.
Carl got the jump on me and spoke with his mother before I was even downstairs.
Called my Mom, and learned a few things that I did not know.
Bullfights and baseball games! Who knew?

Went out to breakfast. I like going out to breakfast. Good food and no dishes.

Then it was a chance to chat with my kids (separately).
Skyped with Rey. His life just sounds busy. The Smokies game was rained out that day, but not until game-time, so not quite a day off. (He wore his tarp clothes home, because one of his first duties in the morning would be to take the tarp back off the field.)
Chatted on the phone with Ashlan as she travelled home from the Mariner’s game – in New York City. We somehow got onto the subject of goals. She is so S.M.A.R.T.. That is she was telling me about SMART goals. Funny thing is I just learned about SMART goals in the past year. Maybe it is the new “in” thing, but they really do seem to work. (And I can remember the acronym – Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic and Timely.) Ashlan’s goal work had to do with making sandwiches. Mine had to do with responding to emergencies.

Calling home on Mother’s day is a time-honored tradition. But perhaps it has lost some of its luster with cell phones in the mix. Not that talking with your mother can be overdone. However, I remember some Mother’s Days when getting an open line after several busy signals was a real accomplishment. 

And here is a mother to be that I ran into at work today.
She obliged me to take her picture.

This is a Mama to be. She did not move for the minute that I was trying to get a picture.

Since I spent a good bit of time this morning trying to catch up for the last week on the blog, I thought I would take care of today – today.

The weather was spectacular today. It was cool in the morning, but the sun never left the sky (until it set). The morning was spent doing house-centric chores.

A bit after noon we walked a few houses down for a 1st-grader’s birthday party. A bit of fun, a bit of food, and a bit of chatting with neighbors and other folks.

Finally it was time to leave for the soccer game. Given the weather, we decided to walk. Our total today was 8.25 miles.

Since we had gone over Capital Hill the last two times, we decided to head through Fremont, up and over Queen Anne hill, and down to the waterfront.

We have been on higher hills than Queen Anne, but none are steeper (at least by the route that we took). We stopped at a greek restaurant on lower Queen Anne. This was after the first 5 miles. Good food. Enough to power us through the next 3.25 miles.

The game was rough, and in the end Real Salt Lake prevailed (1-0).
Off to the bus, for a crowded ride home.

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Tomorrow is supposed to be nicer than today.
The bluest skies you ever see are in Seattle

Happy Mother’s Day to Gene and Doris (and to all of you other mothers as well).

I am going to catch up the work week of May 7-11 in one post.
I really need to move on to other things, and it was a quick, long week.

Monday May 7th

Jay and Carl = regular work day.
Mariners = Tigers in town.

Work was work.
The Mariner game was a bit chilly, and it was slogging along.
They kept it close, but the Tigers were up 2-0 going into the bottom of the 9th.
The Tigers brought in Dotel to pitch the 9th.
Problem for the Tigers was that Dotel could not seem to throw a strike.

• Walked Ackley, man on 1st
• Walked Ichiro, men on 1st and 2nd
• Wild pitch, men on 2nd and 3rd
• Passed Ball, Ackley scores, Ichiro to 3rd
• Montero (Jesus – not Freddy) hits a double, Ichiro scores
• Seager sacrifice bunt, Montero to 3rd
• Jaso hits a sacrifice fly to shallow right field. Montero tags at 3rd and races home, barely avoiding the tag.
• MARINERS WIN!

Fans go home happy.

Tuesday May 8th

Work and a Mariner game.
Verlander started for the Tigers, but the Mariners were able to stay close. Down by 2 again as they entered the bottom of the 9th.

• Carp walks, man on 1st.
• Saunders walks, men on 1st and 2nd. (Pinch run Figgens for Carp)
• Ackley strikes out. 1 out.
• Ryan hits into a fielder’s choice 6-4. Men on 1st and 3rd. 2 out.
• With Ichiro up, Ryan steals 2nd. Men on 2nd and 3rd. 2 out.
• Ichiro is intentionally walked. Bases loaded, 2 out.
• Montero hits a foul pop-up, caught by the 1st baseman.

Mariners are not able to pull off the 9th inning heroics 2 days in a row.
Fans leave to find the warmth of their cars and homes.

Wednesday May 9th

Work and Mariners.
Only this time Jay goes home after work, and Carl shares the game with a friend.

As it turns out, this was the shortest game of the bunch. Just over 2 hours long, and a Mariner’s win 2-1.

Thursday May 10th

Work, no Mariners.
And an evening home to try to catch up on all of the things that have not been getting done.
And the architect and contractor spent a bit of time (during the daytime) trying to get an estimate put together for our consideration. This will be provided to us next Friday, so we can better scope the project design.

Friday May 11th.

Work and sunshine.
Jay finally saw the reported Osprey nest on the top of the cell tower located next to our office. There is an adult (or two) and a few juveniles. Could see the nest, and one bird on board, and hear them talking to one another.

Considered an early evening walk, but Carl had been on his feet most of the day, so instead tried to catch up on even more things left hanging.

I should note that this blog post has not noted all of the yard work that Carl has been doing. Weeding, mowing, cleaning, and he is out edging as I write. 

Weeding around the driveway – which does not show the relatively good shape of the lawn.

And it is probably a good time for me to stop now that I have reported on the last 8 days. I just wrote “wright” and “right” trying to get to “write.”

Sunday dawned early and bright. For Carl that is.
I decided to skip the first event of the day in favor of some additional shut-eye.

Carl launched for his old-man baseball game well before 8 AM.
I snored on.

I eventually rose about 9, and went about making myself feel human.
Surprisingly, this did not include coffee.
I did not feel I should make a full pot, and just did not do the one-cup maker.

A little work-out, a shower, a little breakfast, a few e-mails, and it was time to hit the road. On foot again, but this time heading for the bus.

The bus was not the express, and was also stopped by the University Bridge opening for boats to pass. [This should be expected as the Opening Day boat crowd was on the log-boom just the day before. I don’t think they were all able to pilot their boats back to their berths after a day of celebration on the water.]

I eventually arrived at the International District tunnel station near the stadiums. Carl arrived a bit before me and was waiting outside the Starbucks that is adjacent to and above the station. Finally obtained a cup of coffee, and a sandwich and yogurt parfait to boot. We sat in the sun for a few, and then departed for the baseball stadium once again.

The baseball game was enjoyed in the sun. The Mariners were playing the Twins, and despite Doumit’s 2 home runs for the Twins, the Mariners won 5-2.

Home again, and ready for the work week.

After Friday’s celebration, Saturday dawned late. Not too late, but not time to go to work early.

It may have been a late start, but it quickly picked up speed.

After Friday night’s rains, Saturday was clear and dry. So we took off walking.

The first stop on the walk was the Montlake Cut.
You see, the first Saturday in May is the opening day of boating season in Seattle. The Seattle Yacht Club puts on a boat parade through the Montlake Cut. This is the waterway that connects Lake Washington to Lake Union (which then goes through the locks, and out to Puget Sound).

The Cut is a cut. Manmade.
When the cut was made, it lowered the level of Lake Washington about 10 feet, and the Black River (the prior outlet for Lake Washington) ceased to flow. At least a good part of it ceased.

The bridge over the Montlake Cut is a drawbridge.
The days events start with the bridge down, but closed to car traffic.
It is instead home to folks that line the edges to watch the Windermere Cup.

The Windermere Cup is a series of crew races.
The University of Washington is always represented, and there are frequently invitees from distant ports. I am not sure who was in town this year, but we stopped by to see the set-up for the races. We did not stay, as our schedule did not allow for that and a walk.

So we continued on. Our next goal was to get up onto Capital Hill.
Capital Hill is a hill, and we were at water level at the Cut, so the question was which route to take up to the top.
In looking at maps I noted a trail through a green space that looked inviting, so we aimed in that general direction.

For those that know a bit about Seattle, our path took us past the Greek church on Boyer. (Home to the Greek Festival in September) We did not pass it on Boyer, but along its east side, and then crossed Boyer to follow 19th Ave, which is flat for about one house, and then goes straight up. (It seemed straight up, anyway.) We intersected with Interlaken Blvd for a bit, and then after a hairpin turn saw our trail to the south.

The boulder at the trail entrance proclaims it to be established in honor of Louisa Boren. The Boren family is one of the founding families of Seattle. Louisa passed in 1912. This trail is a path, rather than a wide trail, and winds through the woods and up the hill. There are indications of past attempts at definition of the trail and holding the hill. Pieces of concrete, logs, etc.

If you read the post for Friday, you might recall that there were record rains on Friday night. Saturday was sunny, but the runoff from the rains was still very evident along the trail. In a few places the trail could have been termed a drainage. Finding foot falls that did not sink in the mud was occasionally challenging.

In the end, we declared this a fine route choice. Good views, quiet, and very private (no other walkers). It also warmed us up in the morning chill.

Capital Hill provides many opportunities.
We started through Volunteer Park. As it happens, there was a Cinco de Mayo based 5K race on this morning. We picked up a free drink (Fuze) as we walked through. We enjoyed the views as we traversed this high point on our way towards the commercial center of the Hill.

Our two stops today included a Starbucks (first cup of the day), and Panera (home of loaves of bread – and a bathroom).

From Panera’s we started to descend towards downtown. We took Madison Ave this day. The previous week we went through Yesler Terrace.

Our first big destination was CenturyLink Field, home of the Sounders.
The game started with our seats in the sun, but by the end of the first half we were in the shade. The Panera loaf (Asiago Cheese Foccacia) provided sustenance. The second half included the Sounder’s scoring their goal for the day, and holding the Philadelphia Union scoreless. One game – one win. A good start. 

After the games (baseball, football, soccer), the vendors outside of the stadiums usually offer 2 for 1 dogs and sausage. It is interesting to me that they do this even when the post-game for one venue is the pre-game for the adjacent venue. But they do, so we grabbed a sausage on our short walk to Safeco Field. After about 15 minutes, we were inside Safeco, watching batting practice.

Since it was the “late game” (at 6 PM), our seats were already in the sun. Felix Hernandez was the pitcher for the game, so there was a buzz in the air, and yellow shirts in the left-field corner. The temperature dropped with the sunset, but Felix was hot – pitching 8 scoreless innings. The Mariners won 7-0.

We managed a ride home with Kevin.

Pictures from our day in the sun. A very happy, relaxing day.

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