Washington State

Screw you microbrews, ’round here it’s Rainier Beer
Seattle, home of the microbrews, also includes fans of the old stalwarts that once ruled the beer-in-the-can roost, Rainier Beer (2014).

I had a fun time yesterday taking a “summer holiday” trip in Seattle. It is possible to do that here, without even leaving the city. As the sun was going down, I stopped with a friend at Pono Ranch, yet another watering hole establishment that opened in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. The beer garden/restaurant is not quite like what one would find in Englischer Garten in Munich, Germany, but the owners have turned the industrial landscape into a fun place to enjoy a summer night and have fun connecting with friends.

I shot this picture with my Fujifilm X-Pro 1 camera, using a 24mm Leica Lens. A fairly diverse clientele seemed to favor this place. I liked the vibe, the metal fountains, and the metal scrap art. Apparently they serve organic fried chicken, if you’re into that kind of thing. Be prepared for a limited beer selection, though. (Click on the photo to see a larger picture on a separate picture page.)

Last Sunday in May at the Seattle Center

The Northwest Folklife Festival takes over the Seattle Center every Memorial Day weekend. As a younger man, I used to gravitate to this like the music and culture lover that I always was and remain to this day. I think I got busier and the crowds got too large, and perhaps too many people appeared stoned and the number of smokers became too unmanageable. That is a story for another time, and it is complex. Anyway, the vibe totally changed. That is fine. For small doses, I still enjoy seeing the music, the dance, and the diversity of people who will turn out on a rainy day to support the arts.

The John Wayne Trail … it’s alright

Today I biked one of my favorite off-road trails, the John Wayne Trail. The trail itself runs 100 miles. The ride I normally do on the trail, from Rattlesnake Reservoir near North Bend, outside Seattle, to the old train tunnel at Snoqualmie Pass, is 36 glorious, smooth off-road miles and an excellent way to see some of the front range of the still snowy Cascades. Good for running and even horseback riding too. Yes indeed, it is very much alright!

Seattle at twilight, still nice after so many years

 

Seattle’s skyline as seen from Gasworks Park in summer 2012.

I cannot count how many nights I have watched a lovely evening in Seattle. It has grown up considerably since I first moved here in the late 1980s (and left several times), but that is a story for another time. Enjoy (shot in 2012). (Click on the photo to see a larger picture on a separate picture page.)

Public, you are not invited to the port
This is a shot of the cargo container yard at the Port of Seattle, from behind the protective razor wire that surrounds miles of land off-limits to anyone but companies who use the port, employees, unions like Teamsters who run the unloading of goods, security teams, and those working on the ships and planes that come and go (2014).

 

Port authorities, as quasi-public entities, with minimal and almost no public oversight, amaze me with the scope of their power and the size of their land holdings. The Port of the Seattle is the largest property owner in the city. It runs an international airport and one of the country’s largest cargo container ports. Yet almost none of the city’s 600,000 or so residents have the slightest idea what happens behind the razor wire fences. Mainly all of those low-cost Asian-made goods come in, and some of our heavy materials, industrial goods, and agricultural goodies go out. I cannot fault any authority for maintaining security, but is this management structure more about protecting the interests of the large corporations that utilize these public resources for their business models or about keeping our commercial sector safe from “bad guys.” And have no doubt, bad guys do use this port to smuggle everything, from illegal drugs to people. They are like a big no-go zone that everyone agrees is good for all of us. That remains the weird part. Who decided all of this, and who benefits from all of this? (The port would say, I do, with cheap goods and a strong economy, I know.)

The importance of celebrating milestones
Whenever you accomplish a goal, after investing a lot of work, remember to thank yourself for all that you did. Setting and achieving hard goals is the most satisfying of things to pursue in life.

Normally, I do not like to promote vanity, nor my own mug on my web sites. However, I was thinking about a great time nearly two years ago to the day when I finished my last graduate course at the University of Washington School of Public Health. The value of the MPH can be discussed at another time. And we can have a spirited discussion. I just happened to like how the light broke ever so perfectly. Yes, you are so vain, and this picture really is all about you! (Click on the photo to see a larger picture on a separate picture page.)

Iris blooms now taking center stage
The irises this year bloomed exactly a week earlier than in 2013. That is interesting.
The iris is a damn seductive flower, almost tawdry in its wilting, rich, dark petals dropping down (2014).
This was shot in my front yard, which is now covered with these amazing flowers (2014).

Irises give tulips a damn good run for the money. I wonder what pollinators think? They probably love those pollen rich pistils to get all crazy about and do the pollen dance.

View of Vista House, Columbia River Gorge
It was the 96th birthday party of Vista House the day I took this shot (May 4, 2014). This is just a great perch, and one visited by tens of thousands annually.

 

I used my consumer-grade Canon digital for this shot. Sure, I am a tourist, but this is one of the premier views of the Pacific Northwest, from the scenic highway along the Columbia River Gorge, about 30 miles west of Portland, Ore. Sometimes, having fun and having a good memory is what matters. (Click on the image for a larger picture on a separate page.)

Port’s eye view of Seattle
Seattle’s skyline is seen from the Port of Seattle, south of downtown (2014).

The Port of Seattle is the biggest landholder in Seattle, and it occupies miles of land along reclaimed tidal areas. This is a view looking toward downtown Seattle from the southern end of the cargo container port berths. (Click on the photo for a larger image on a separate picture page.)

Market and Leary

I set up my GoPro on the busy corner of Market and Leary tonight, in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, and just chilled for about 20 minutes. Here’s how life slipped by on Willie Nelson’s 81st birthday, the same day the old master earned a fifth degree black belt. There is no connection between this place and Willie, except perhaps in my imagination. And I have been listening to and playing Willie the past few days.