Pretty Parlor: Exhibit Opening August 9th, 2009

Ruthie and Rosemary of Gossamer Collective will have a show at Pretty Parlor. Check out the opening reception on August 9th. You are sure to have fun.

Feedback Lounge and Beveridge Place

Feedback Lounge Bar

Yesterday, after much anticipation I tried the brand new Feedback Lounge in West Seattle. Carly tipped me off that it opened April 25. The Cobalt carpool (Matt, Vic, Owen and I) headed there straight from the hot 50 minute commute. We were lured 90% by the promise of a Sunn Deck, which we all envisioned to be rooftop. Sadly the Sunn deck turned out to be a very tiny porch off the back, that we told was 'closed'. When I told our waitress how sad I was by this turn of events she tried to get the owner, saying "I told him people would think it was bigger!" The website does say it's only 40 feet big, I guess I just wished it was a rooftop deck.

It really didn't matter. There was so much to take in. Original rock tour posters from Led Zeppelin to Montley Crue. The promised Rok Box with its belly full of rock memorabilia. And the appetizers were delicious.

Next we checked out the "new" Beveridge Place Pub, which left its location to the Feedback Lounge and moved about 10 feet over. New location made a huge difference. It is beautiful. Bright and spacious. Dog friendly. I love the Beveridge Place Pub, I wish I were a regular. It's one of the places where the bartenders know everyone by name and neighbors look forward to running into one another.

Photo of Beveridge Pub by Owen Robinson

Watercolor Class At C and P Coffee House

In the spirit of trying new things in 2009 I signed up for a watercolor painting class. The instructor is local artist Jennifer Carrasco. She sent out our material list today. Phew. There is a lot of stuff on it. Stuff I will be wandering around an art store helplessly looking for in the next week. I haven't taken an art class in 5 years.

Should be interesting.

By the by, Jennifer Carrasco has a blog that is updated often. Check out her artwork, poetry and general comments on life at Carrasco Studio. She even has pictures of her last watercolor class at the C and P coffee house. I guess I can stop wondering what it will look like.

West Seattle Art Walk

It's the second Thursday of November and you know what that means? Art walk! I'm going to the West Seattle Art Walk for the first time tonight and let me tell ya, I'm excited. I found a blog that posts who and what will be at each spot. Very cool. There's even a little walking map. I'm excited to check out all the art, jewelry, crafty goodness and, of course, the free wine that's rumored to be a part of art walks.

Prices: Looks like a range of between $30 and $300 for the pieces that will be shown on November 13, 2008.
Location: West Seattle - Map of stores participating.
Website: West Seattle Art Walk
Hours: Second Thursday of every month from 6-9pm.

Washington Skiing | Crystal Mountain Ski Area

I jump at any chance to leave the city and be outdoors. So when my friends Anthony and Dave asked if I wanted to go skiing at Crystal I said yes. We left soggy Seattle at 6:30am, drove through pouring rain until about 10 minutes outside of Crystal Ski Area, where the rain changed to snow.

We put on all our ski gear in one of the lower parking lots, and waited for the shuttle. We waited and waited. We all got ridiculously large coffees at Bigfoot Java, and finally decided we couldn't wait any longer to get to the bathroom... I mean, to get out tickets and start skiing. So we walked.

The skiing was great, the weather changed every 10 minutes making the same runs feel different. (Before visiting check the conditions and Crystal Ski Area Webcam.) One of the perks of the day was watching people fall after hitting a dip in the snow that was invisible when the clouds rolled in. It's right after you get off the Forest Queen Express. Also getting to try the newest lift, Northway, was a huge perk. It was my favorite area of the mountain.

I had a few solid falls myself and my cell phone must have gotten left behind after one of them. At the end of the day it was missing from my pocket. Sad to think of the little guy alone and shivering on the mountain. Its lonely little ring echoing on the empty mountain.

But aside from the shuttle service, which was just as frustrating on the way back to the car, and losing my phone... my first day of Washington skiing was very fun, and actually much better than expected. Now I'm sore and need to get back in shape before heading up to Whistler in February.

Prices: Adult One-Day: $58
Season passes, children's tickets, half day passes and more at: Crystal Mountain Lift Tickets
Hours: Lifts run from 9a-4p
Where: Outside of the northeast corner of Rainer National Park, in Enumclaw WA.
Website: For webcam, driving directions, and even a Crystal Blog visit skicrystal.com

New Park in Fremont - Great View and Greek Mythology

This weekend Owen and I went on a quest to find Fremont Peak Park, the new park in Fremont. It opened on November 10, 2007. We thought it would be big and easy to find, but after driving around in circles we hadn't stumbled upon the park. Finally, we started calling anyone who might be near a computer and could point us to the park. We found it! And it was little and poetic. There is only one entrance to the park, and it begins by telling the Greek myth in which Ariadne gave Theseus a spool of silver thread to help him trace his way through a labyrinth to slay the minotaur. The story is engraved on silver "thread" along the ground. Then you follow the silver "thread" to a clearing with an amazing view of Puget Sound, from the Space Needle to Ballard.
The park might be small but it is deep. By that I mean it is filled with symbolism from Greek Mythology to Cosmology. The more I read about the park the more complex I understand the artist's and architects vision to be. So if you'd like to feed your head and enjoy a beautiful view - visit Fremont Peak Park.

Price: Free! The best kind of fun!
Location: Palatine Ave N. and N. 45th Street, Seattle WA (the north hillside of Fremont)
Hours: 4am - 11:30pm
More Information:
Friends of Fremont Peak Park
Meet the Artists: Haddad & Drugan