Catching Up

I had some high hopes when I first launched this blog, mainly that I’d really be into it and would blog all the time. But you can never predict the route life takes, and I slowly stopped posting. Right after I started this blog, I also launched another blog where I post pictures from different adventures. Because photography is something I really love, it has been easy to keep that one going. However, I’ve maintained my avid blog reading lifestyle, and a recent rash of blog posts regarding “The Trouble of Snowboarding” has me reconsidering my blogging absence, because come on, blogging is actually really fun, right?

Raccoon

I was looking through some old pictures this morning, and found one that has always made me laugh. My parents always have a lot of raccoons/wild cats/possums/who knows what living in their backyard.

One snowy day, a raccoon came to visit and I tried to sneak out the back door to take a picture of him. He was standing on a table next to the house, and when I opened the door, he jumped off to run away. The deck was super slippery due to the snow, and he couldn’t stick the landing. He bottomed out and ran, and this was the only picture I was able to get of him. Cracks me up whenever I look at it.

Take a Picture

I really love photography. Not in the, I think I’ll try to be a professional photographer way. I think that’s a tough market to break into, and you have to be extremely self promoting to make it. My interest lies in getting shots of things I think are beautiful, and sharing them with friends and family. I like to print out pictures and give them to people. I like to Instagram pictures and share them with people across the world that I’ll never meet. It’s all fun to me, and it’s a hobby that I’ve now stuck with for a couple of years.

I got a really cool camera for Christmas a few years ago, and I’ve been using it ever since. It’s the Sony NEX-5, and it’s one of those Micro 4/3 cameras that take D-SLR quality shots. The plus side of this camera is that it’s way smaller than a traditional D-SLR. Here’s the set-up:

Sony NEX-5 with the 18-55mm lens

The 16mm pancake lens

The 55-210mm lens

Between these 3 lens, I feel like I can capture most things. The 55-210 lens has been awesome for far-off landscape shots, while the 16mm is great for wide-angle shots. I also have a wide-angle adapter that attaches to the 16mm lens for an even wider shot. My favorite part of this camera is how easy it is to stash in a pack or a pocket. It’s perfect for hiking, snowboarding, and just having with me daily. I love this camera.

It has been extremely hazy in Seattle this past week as almost all of eastern Washington appears to be on fire. The only thing the smoke is good for is incredible sunrises and sunsets. I gained access to the roof of the tallest building on Phinney Ridge, which gave me a great place to set up the camera and take some pics.

Sunset shot from Friday Night

Saturday morning I got up early figuring the sunrise would be pretty cool too. Here’s dawn, and after the sun is up.

It was a really beautiful morning. All thanks to the smoke on the Eastside.

Here’s what it looked like heading through the canyon towards Leavenworth (iPhone Pic).

And here’s what it looked like going over Blewett Pass (closer to the fires).

It hasn’t really been that windy, which is awesome for fighting the fires, but bad for the air quality. The smoke is sort of just lingering over there (and here in Seattle).

Weekend Wrap Up

My quick trip to Lake Wenatchee Thursday and Friday was the start of the busy weekend. The Huskies played destroyed Portland state on Saturday, with a final score of 52-13. I guess the Huskies playing Portland state is similar to LSU playing the Huskies. After the game, headed back to Phinney Ridge via the #358 (wasn’t as exciting as I hoped), and then headed back downtown for The Head and the Heart show at the Paramount. Met up with friends Kim and Ryan at the Hyatt at Olive bar called Urbane, and then hit the show. It was great!

Blogging for Beginners

Turns out this blogging thing is tough! I’m going to blame it on sitting at a computer all day at work, and not wanting to sit at one when I get home. Seattle summers are really nice, and it’s totally worth getting outside when you can. Plus, I still have more recent blog entries than this guy, so I can feel good about that.

Metro #5

Two Saturdays ago was the season opener for the Huskies. Lance and I decided to ride the bus to the game since the #5 stops right outside his condo, and it’s way easier than driving or parking at CenturyLink Field. The seats are in the club level, which immediately made me realize how the people that usually tailgate on the south side of Husky Stadium live. Wine bar with fancy wine dispensing machines that serves $100 a glass glasses of wine? Jesus. Naturally I bought the cheapest glass of red they have ($13), but totally felt judged. It’s pretty cool though. Great views of the city and nice lounges to hang in. We are sitting by some pretty rowdy and fun peeps this year, and not the stuffy people from the previous two years, so it should be a good season.

The bus ride home was definitely the most interesting part. Seattle was also experiencing PAX and Bumbershoot that weekend, so the fellow riders were top notch.

In third place: group of boys with their PAX schwag. Wizard hats, magic the gathering backpacks, giant nerd posters. I heard on the radio later that all that stuff is now on eBay.

In second place: excessively loud and drunk lady who sounded like she was 60 but was probably only 25. She was telling random guy she met on the bus all about her alcoholism, only it wasn’t alcoholism in her mind, just that she really really really likes to drink. Also, turns out declaring how drunk you are is still the number one mating call, as random guy decided to take advantage of the situation and get off at her stop.

But none of these people could beat guy in cable knit sweater. He and his friends had just got done at The Funhouse (I thought that place was closing). He had long, scraggly hair that matched his long, scraggly beard. He was swaying back and forth, and was given one of the sideways seats at the front of the bus. Being in the first row of the forward-facing seats, I was treated to a front-row view! As he goes in and out of consciousness, his friend sits down beside him. He leans over to his friend and asks:

• Guy: Did I embarrass you in front of your friends tonight?
• Friend: No, it’s fine. It was just normal drunkenness, and everyone was laughing with you, not at you. There were some funny moments, but it was fine.
• Guy: Ok good.

He then raises his hand to his mouth, and starts making the loudest gargling, choking, gnarly sound ever and proceeds to throw up into his hand, and then rub it into his beard. Repeated 3 times. While people are sprinting to the back of the bus in disgust. He then leans over to his buddy and says:

• Guy: I should be embarrassed of that, right?
• Friend: Yes

I was so sad my iPhone died.
DMB

The next day, we headed over to the Gorge to see my favorite band, The Dave Matthews Band! I go to the Gorge every year, and almost missed out this year with a herniated disc in my back (stuck in bed for 2.5 weeks, thank god for my chiropractor and massage therapist!!). But I started feeling better, and decided I had to do it.

It was epic! We decided to invest in a box with 6 other friends, which proved to be the best decision ever. No standing on the giant hill, and full bar/food service. Combined with an amazing view and indoor plumbing, it was pretty spectacular, and probably the new norm for every year.

I love me some Dave.

Winter

It may be fall, but I’m already thinking about winter. And what gear I need. I can’t help it. Being surrounded by gear all the time, it’s a constant, what’s cool? What are you getting? That new board is soooooo sweet. Last year at the Mission Ridge demo, I found a few set-up I really liked:

• Burton Root with the Escapade EST bindings
• Arbor Coda with Ride Fame bindings
• The new Arbor Splitboard: looks way cooler than my K2 split

I know I don’t need a new board, but I would totally have fun on a new board. But I’m trying to be responsible and not buy to just buy. So right now my to-buy list is two items deep: snow tires and new boots. I can’t wait to get on the snow again. It has been too long.

Chasing Meteors

Summer

Seattle summers tend to start late, and not really ever reach any sort of full summer glory. I’m okay with it all. I could use a little less gray in the spring, but I’m down with the clear skies, mid-70 temperatures. This week is supposed to reach the 90s. Heyo! Gonna be a hot one. Living by Greenlake has been pretty fun so far, as I have enjoyed many walks to the water. Although, it’s a pretty funny scene. I still can’t believe people go swim in a lake that has zero drainage, but maybe I’m uptight.

Sonny and the Bikini Baristas

My roommate’s dog Sonny needs some Xanax. Dog has some sort of intense anxiety disorder. Can’t be left alone. One morning I came home to find the screen of a basement window laying in the middle of the year. Wondering if it was a break in, I went inside to find no one home. Roommate came home later, and when I asked where Sonny was, he said “here?” and we instantly knew she was gone. Through up a post on Craigslist and got her back 30 minutes later. Sonny had scaled the basement wall to push the screen out and run away. Unbelievable.

Last week, Sonny spent another night alone. This time, she opened the dog door cover and somehow escaped through the fence. Roommate gets a call at 7:45am from a guy that has Sonny. On 109th and Aurora. Flippin’ dog ran all the way up Aurora. At night. And didn’t get hit. We live on 57th (not on Aurora), so it was amazing that she made her way there, then up the road and is alive. Roommate shows up to pick her up and guy at car repair shop says she’s out back with “the girls”. Thinking it’s probably the guy’s daughters or something, he’s surprised to find her tied up at a Bikini Barista stand, getting all sorts of Bikini Barista love. LOL.

Meteors in Vantage

Had a big group camping trip planned for this past weekend, but people with real jobs got called to South America and South Carolina, so camping was postponed. Luckily, the Perseid Meteor shower was peaking this past weekend, so a replacement camping trip went down. Left Seattle around 5:30p on Saturday with BF, Joe and his friend in tow. Hit up E-burg, land of giant trucks and rodeos for dinner, and pulled into the Vantage climber’s camping area around 9:30p. On the way, my friend called to tell me to watch out for gang violence in Vantage, and to camp near fly fisherman or climbers for safety. LOL! I camp out there a lot, but the was news to me! It was Africa hot in Vantage as it’s dessert. Pitched the tent, threw out the chairs and cooler, and settled in to watch the meteor shower. The sky was clear and the stars were out. It’s amazing how the bright lights of Seattle block so many of the stars and the Milky Way. Saw a ton of meteors, some bright and long lasting, a giant bat that kept making big swooping circles, a prehistoric monster bug in a beer and a black widow (gross). Stayed up til 3:30a until I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore, went to sleep and woke up at 7a when the bright burning-hot sun came up. Packed up and headed home.

Got back to Seattle, put all the gear away and headed to Woodland Park Zoo to meet up with my brother and his family. My brother is 14 years older than me, and has two kids that are 13 and 9. Since there is such a big age gap, we don’t really hang out as much as I’d like, but it’s always good to see him.

Zoos are kind of a sad place, even though you get to see some awesome animals. They are especially sad when there is a Zoo Tunes concert going on and the poor animals have to listen to acts like Melissa Etheridge. Highlight of the trip was probably laughing at my niece. My niece is only 9, but appears to already by insanely boy crazy. She spent more than half the timehanging off the bf, poking him and hitting him and repeating over and over “4 words: break up with her” and pointing at me. I had to remind her she has about 9 more years until she can legally date him, not to mention he’s 25 years older than her, so she needed to calm down a bit. The bf was extremely uncomfortable. I’ve never seen him so awkward. It was pretty hilarious.

Labor Day Weekend

Going to Vantage got me really stoked for the best weekend of the year: Labor Day weekend. Every year I make the trip to the Gorge to see Dave Matthews Band. It’s definitely about the music, but also about the camping and hanging with friends. My friend Matt is insane (in a good way) and its like non-stop laughing for four days. It’s great. It would be hard to recap all the crazy memories and things that have been said over the years, but I will try to remember whatever happens this year and blog it afterwards. Matt never disappoints. NEVER!

I really like going to live shows, and wish I would have kept a list or something to remember all the shows I’ve seen over the years. Some highlights from the past year:

• Of Monsters and Men (amazing)
• The Naked and Famous
• AWOLNATION (really amazing)
• Mumford and Sons
• Foster the People (amazing, but at Key Arena unfortunately)
• Ghostland Observatory
• The Head and the Heart
• Grouplove
• Death Cab for Cutie
• Cage the Elephant
• Young the Giant

Seeing DMB, The Shins, and the Head and the Heart the first three weekends of September. Combined with Husky Football, it’s going to be a busy month.

Wow, that list just made me realize why I haven’t saved enough for a down payment on a house yet. Neat.

358 and 38

First

The blog world is tough. There must be some hidden rules stating how quickly you post your second entry. I’ve already been called out by blogger  dude over at Rumorator. Dang, dude. Over here in Seattle we have sun without the sweltering heat. I’ve been busy! I go outside! But I’m committed. So these blog posts will become more frequent.

Sky Fish

Saw the Super Guppy last week. NASA is crazy.

Haute

Seattle may feature runner-up tech companies, giant corporations that don’t pay state tax, and Facebook offices with empty hot tubs, but it still maintains a healthy mix of different classes. I used to ride bus 71 from King Street station to the UW while in college, and was always amazed of what went down around 3rd and Pike. The lady sitting backwards in a seat yelling at the man behind her to stop looking at her (everyone face backwards?). People jumping on, making a deal halfway through the bus and exiting the rear door before the bus leaves the stop. Weird hollaring at girls. But all in all, the ride wasn’t too bad or scary. Most of the time.

But the Internet is hot, and has tons amazing facts and stories to be found. Little did I know there was a little gem called the King County Metro Bus #358. Evidently, this bus has quite the reputation for amazing conversations, police busts, and all sorts of characters. Running from Downtown to Shoreline along Aurora Ave, this bus has had a mixed history, including plunging off the Aurora Bridge after a lunatic shot the bus driver. This bus is so exciting day to day, riders have taken to Twitter and Yelp to share the goodness. I highly recommend checking out the reviews on Yelp. Is it weird I totally want this bus at least once?

But hands down my favorite part of the Internet is probably the access to podcasts. There are so many good ones. Got to check out Comedy Bang Bang Live last night at the Neptune Theater with the BF and A Man. Too hilarious, and I’m now a way bigger fan of James Adomian and Paul F. Tompkins. Podcasts seem to be the best way to discover the comedy heavy hitters. You know, people that are actually funny (read not Dane Cook).

Podcast run down of current playlist:

• Adam Carolla
• Bill Burr
• Comedy Bang Bang
• Todd Glass
• Penn’s Sunday School
• WTF with Marc Maron
• For Crying Outloud
• Dana Gould

After last night, I plan on checking out these and hopefully, adding them to the rotation:

• The Pod F. Tompkast
• Anything with James Adomian. I’m now obsessed and must hear his Huell Howser

Rocks

Headed out to Exit 38 to hike after work Monday while two of my friends rock climbed. I recently set up my friend Zach (friends since 1st grade) and my co-worker (newly appointed BFF) Joe. It was a fun opportunity to get outside and take some pictures while hanging with two good friends. I’m pretty sure my friend Joe thinks I am a plastic bottle hoarder that doesn’t cut up those things that hold six packs together. We had a lively conversation about environmental practices on our way up to North Bend. Turns out, he refills his shampoo bottles at PCC and washes out his Ziplock bags for reuse. I had two plastic bottles of water in my bag that I immediately regretted bringing. He’s definitely committed to the planet, and I enjoy his positive outlook that one person can make a change. Even if I think washing out Ziplock bags is funny. Some Pics:

Pain Report

I hurt my knee twice about a year and a half ago. Both instances while snowboarding. The first I was hiking at Mission Ridge and somehow tore my MCL. Felt a pop, and then it was swollen. After getting it checked out, they said it wasn’t completely torn so I figured I’d keep boarding. The second injury happened a few weeks later when I was traversing above Campbell basin off chair 6 at Crystal Mountain. I was moving pretty quick and caught an edge on  a rock hidden under some windblown snow. I went knee first into the rock, and by the next day, it completely bruised (this is just the peripheral bruising, not the spot of impact aka knee cap):

I have been trying everything to fix my knee ever since. Doctor. Physical Therapy. Personal Trainer. Working out out on my own.  Not doing anything to let it rest. Unfortunately, all of this did, well, pretty much nothing. And protecting the knee basically lead to a locked up hamstring and back. LOCKED UP TIGHT. For over a YEAR! It has been pretty brutal, and has really limited a lot of my fun. However, I’ve been going to a chiropractor and massage therapist for the last month, and for the first time in a long time,  I’ve been feeling great. Which will be really helpful going forward: I can start hitting the gym almost daily like I used to, and I plan on starting to run around the lake soon. All with one big goal in mind: I want to win the women’s category of Splitboarding at Vertfest 2013. You basically tour to the top of Alpental, assemble your split, and race to the finish line. While skiers do two laps, splitboarders only do one. Last year only one girl competed with a time well over two hours and much slower than some of the two lap skiers, so I’m thinking if I start training now, I’ll be able to really smoke up the hill. So this is my official announcement. VERTFEST! Totally not my scene, but I think it’s a great goal for me.

Weekend

Heading over to Lake Wenatchee Friday night and then on to Cle Elum Saturday morning for a hike. Should be a fun outing with lots of amazing picture opportunities (peaks and flowers). Pretty stoked.

Ciao.

Birdhouses and other Phinney Ridge Oddities

This is my first blog post. I’m not sure what I hope to accomplish with this blog other than just having a platform to share what I think. There is a lot of stuff on the Internet. I recently tried to get into this. Turns out the Internet has the ability to completely warp time. And it’s a huge inside joke. Things that are new to me have been on there for weeks or months, and in Internet time, a week is an eternity ago. Just can’t hang. So I will try to just leave my mark by creating some original content. Simple enough.

I’m pretty good at opinions. Maybe too good? I see a lot of weird stuff. Seattle is full of funny groups of people. Hipsters, cyclist gangs mandated by our Huffy-riding Mayor, 40-something new parents that take their kids to the bar. It’s all so weird. You are mad that there is heavy metal/rap/dubstep playing at this bar? Because your baby is here? At this bar? I don’t get it. Or this. Especially this. You guys for real? Pretty sure the fan section didn’t look like this before the team became a FC.

I like Phinney Ridge. I spend a lot of time there. The Starbucks on 67th displays local artists. Recently, the walls were covered with old ironing boards and teapots covered in plastic bugs. You want 85 dollars for that kettle covered in bugs you say? Well, I guess art is loosely defined for a reason. Pretty sure Housewives of Phinney Ridge are eating it up too. That’s what happens when you pump out kids in your mid 40s. Brain warp.

But sometimes there is cool guerrilla-style stuff. Not just some random stickering job. I had seen a birdhouse in a tree along Greenwood Ave, but then noticed that the house across the street was an exact replica. Turns out a bit farther down, another birdhouse matching the house it’s hanging near. It was sweet.

Now that I have this blog, I will be taking more pictures. And sharing some adventures. And things I see. I was told to run from this blog. It’s really for the best to not start. But this was coming from my blogging idol, so whatever. It’s on.