I've been very fortunate. There haven't been a terrible number of things for me to complain about yet (green penis aside - ed). And since this blog has been mostly positive, I'm going to continue that trend with some observations.
New Music: The thing about Seattle is that the music here is great. It's been years since I've actually heard music on the radio and gone "Wow! What is this song? I actually want to hear this at home." I also think it's very cool that Adam Carolla has a morning show and Dr. Drew from Loveline has a talk show at night. A few examples of songs that get played on the radio here, and that I recommend for your listening pleasure, are:
1. Cath... Deathcab for Cutie
2. Human The Killers
3. Spiralling Keane
4. Shattered O.A.R.
5. Between the Lines Sara Bareilles
New Clothes: This is a minor thing but my wardrobe has changed, mostly because things are reasonably priced here. And since its a bigger city than most I'm accustomed to, they have discounted items in my size. I actually have things by Marc Ecko, J. Crew and Eddie Bauer now, in my size, that were reasonably priced and not found at an outlet store. More of a personal observation, because I never saw myself as some one who would own brand-named clothes.
New Food: We're still on the lookout for new restaurants but we've already found a few pretty good ones. It's also amazing to me that a ton of restaurants deliver here... in fact there are so many that restaurants give out a delivery guide for the entire county! There's this place about 5 minutes away with excellent Teriyaki recipes, which is pretty impressive considering that I'm Asian and my mother is an incredible cook. One of the top three pizza places in the city, according to The Seattle Times, is right next to where I work and $20 will get you a large pizza! Plus there's the International District, which specializes in oriental foods and even has a Japanese supermarket!
New Places: We've been the Blueberry Farm on Mercer Island, where you can pick your own produce during the summer time. They have this great trail that runs around the farm with blueberries and blackberries ripe for the picking just growing in the wild. We also love going to Pike Place Market, though we don't go very often. We recently found our way to Archie McPhee's so my wife could buy a corporate zombie action figure pack. And we went to the Kubota Japanese Garden and the Washington Park Arboretum! They have this river that runs through the park, and you can actually rent a canoe and paddle your way through it. Very cool.
At the moment, there's a possible chance that I'll get promoted, which would be amazing right now. I've been thinking about looking at buying a house next year when our lease is up - and have had several places recommended to me by strangers in conversation. I've yet to make any close friends but the people here have a tendency to be friendly, which makes a world of difference. Even our current location, which is a lower income area, is the equivalent of Coldwater back home. And I can live with that.
"We'd like to thank all our S1 transit riders for... you're dozing off aren't you? Well, since you're not driving that's definitely an option. Just watch the drool 'cause the guy next to you didn't sign up for that. And as long as you're not behind the wheel, feel free to read a book too. War and Peace is good. Or at least the Cliff Notes version was interesting. Hey, it was high school, cut us some slack. Like you read War and Peace when you were 14. Anyway, thanks for riding."
I found this message on an official poster inside my bus to Bellevue this morning. Seattle can surprise you like that.
It all started because I got a song stuck in my head and couldn't remember the lyrics. Normally, if that happens, I just made up my own words. It's kind of like free writing, except you slowly become more abstract and hilarious. Does this ever happen to you?
Last night my wife decided to help. We were both reading our current respective books: her The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and my The Pirate King by R.A. Salvatore when I suddenly burst into song.
"You're as cold as ice... something that rhymes with ice..."
"...willing to sacrifice..."
And then we started making up our own lyrics.
Roll the dice.
Dice and slice.
Not once but twice.
One time, I had lice.
My watch is cheaply priced.
Pie is nice, can I have a slice.
Hey, there's some mice.
My hand is in a vice.
And my wife's golden lyric which ended the session in laughter:
You're Asian. Make me some rice.
Hello, blog. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten to write you. Thanks. I've missed you too.
I've started my new job at Harry & David and love the fringe benefits. I work in a candy shop, and I think that's pretty cool. Of all the places I thought I'd go, being surrounded by rich people and chocolate was not part of the planned itinerary. But it has been a very low stress job with better pay than I had in Michigan. And that far outweighs any would be cranky customers... except the people I see on a daily basis are well funded and rarely concern themselves with the trivial nature and stresses of middle income life. Plus, I can get a bag full of truffles for $1.50 now. So, win-win.
Want to know what isn't so win-win? My neighbors. The first week we were here, we met with a few incidents, including some one spraying a fire extinguisher down our hallway and on our door... and the now infamous green penis. Well, tonight I almost had a heart attack - which is either less or more funny depending on your perspective. It seems that the little kids in our complex have found a new amusement - playing with the screen doors outside the sliding glass doors in the living room. Fortunately for me, there's no way to open the sliding glass doors from the outside without something short of a large rock, which is beyond the strength capacity of a toddler as is. Unfortunately for me, when I'm taking a shower in a new apartment and I hear what sounds like some one breaking into my apartment well... lets just say my nerves are a little on edge.
So. I crept out of the shower and got quickly dressed. Quickly grabbing a knife from the kitchen, I assume my sly-mongoose stance, and creep to edge of the blinds primed for action... only to discover a 5 year old kid sliding the screen back and forth. Examining him, just to make certain that he's not a cleverly disguised midget, I look up to see his father staring into space while several of his brood meander in front of people's apartments basically doing the same thing: toytruck tossed down a hill towards a window there, kicking a car tire over here, running in circles laughing... and it goes unstopped until the toddler begins rocking the tire and sets off the car alarm.
I like Seattle so far, don't misunderstand. Tomorrow, the wife and I are going to Archee Mcphee's and the Nordic Museum, basically because she loves strange gifts and I love vikings. But people basically hanging out beside your living room window and vandalizing the walls next to your door... doesn't inspire a lot of confidence. Even if they are just kids. I think it's moving time come April.
The last week went by pretty fast. Cristina had an interview with her new boss and started work. I've been called back for an interview at Harry & David on Monday. And I saw the Space Needle for the first time! I also took a picture with the wife's camera phone just to show what downtown Seattle is actually like:
You'll have to forgive the quality of the picture, but I think it illustrates that there are trees everywhere. There's a corner downtown, not far from Pike Place Market, with a 40 foot pine tree in the middle of an intersection. I bet they dress it up all pretty at Christmas... I'll try to remember to take a picture.
A pretty cool thing about the area is that it's like a bunch of small cities that kind of connect. And because each one is a self-contained entity, there aren't really districts here, which is a refreshing change from Michigan. No place has that steam smell that factory districts have because they don't exist. I've also learned, from first hand experience, that because the city spends a lot of money on its public transportation the buses are both very clean and kept in good condition.
This morning, we kind of ran into our second setback. We were getting ready to leave for work when I noticed one of my tires was flat. I'll note here that this particular time, which shall remain nameless, has had an unidentifiable slow leak since before I left Michigan. Oops. Anyway, because I'm always prepared for every vehicular emergency, I used a can of Fix-A-Flat to get the tire pumped back up so I could at least get the wife to Bellevue Square on time. Luckily for me, as it turns out, Discount Tire fixes flat tires for free! The guy there actually talked me out of getting a new tire because even though it has a slow leak (it turned out to be a screw in the tire... how the hell did that happen? - ed) the treads are still in great condition; he did put the tire under a warranty so that if it does break, I can get a new one at discount...
The major drawback right now is our commute. We happen to live almost directly diagonally across Lake Washington from Bellevue, which means that we have to go all the way around north or south. We elect the northern route across I-90 East because we get to cross Mercer Island and see this view everyday. The picture does not do it justice:
