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- All this week I've been seeing lots of bearish bus drivers and the occasional passenger as well.
- This morning my cow-orkers and I were having a conversation about Burn After Reading in which my ex-boss recommended people see the trailer and skip the film because the best parts of the film are all in the trailer. So, speaking of spoilers, I pointed out the two T-shirts that T-Shirt Hell advertised right after one of the Harry Potter books came out that read "[so-and-so] dies on page [such-and-such]; I just saved you [this many] hours and [this much money]", with the US version bearing one page number and a price in dollars, and the UK version having a different page number and a price in pounds. When he asked why the US and UK versions had different page numbers, my cube neighbor pointed out that the words in the UK are longer with the extra "u", as in "colour", etc.
- Speaking of films, I keep wanting to call this one Mountlake Terrace ;-) (This is a neighborhood just over the county line between Shoreline and Lynnwood, north of Seattle proper.)
- Over in soc.motss, someone posted his surprise at hearing the "Flute Concerto" by "Jacques E. Bear" performed by James Galway. Looking at the program notes he discovered the composer's name is Jacques Ibert. Sort of reminds me of the first time I saw Chantal Hébert ("Eh, Bear") on "At Issue" on the CBC's The National.
Some observations, and a shameless plug
Apr. 5th, 2006 10:05 pm- A guy at work had beeping noises coming out of the cell phone he had in his pants pocket. When some co-workers asked him why the beeping noises, he said, "Well, I was just touching it. And then I touched the phone." ;-)
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gmjambear and I went up to Redmond for dinner at Todai, a Japanese buffet with tempura, seafood, salads with noodles or seaweed or kimchi, and a wide variety of sushi. It's expensive but worth every penny. I thought it would be nice to get away with Gary before concert weekend begins in earnest tomorrow evening (tech, dress, evening show, and Sunday matinee).- After dinner we went window-shopping in Redmond Town Center and grocery shopping in Overlake (a neighborhood of Bellevue very close to the Redmond line). On the way home from the store we were listening to The Randi Rhodes Show and she played a clip of an interview with Tom DeLay. In the clip he mentioned that God "commanded me to love Barney Frank". My response was to say "In other words..." and begin singing "You Made Me Love You", which Gary began to sing along with me until we both fell to laughing and couldn't continue.
- Speaking of You Made Me Love You, if you want to come hear the Seattle Men's Chorus concert by that title this weekend, check out the "Buy Tickets" link on the concert page.
Dude, where's my brain?
Mar. 29th, 2006 12:23 amWatching TV I noticed the new Dell ads are just a little too fast for their own good -- if I'm not listening very carefully I swear I hear the announcer hawking the "Dell Dementia" at a new, lower price. (Yes, I know, it's supposed to be "Dimension".)
Call and Answer
Mar. 22nd, 2006 07:24 pmdetailbear asked me..."Which is the properest day to sing?"
Oh, any day is fine by me... (no, I don't quite have the reference but I'll run with it anyway...)
Actually, what's the biggest difference culturally about the area/people that you've noticed since you moved to Seattle?
I think that West Coast laid-back attitude, so often stereotypically applied to Californians, does extend this far north and then some. This has two big benefits. One, the incredible mess that is Seattle traffic has so far not led to the road rage (both internal and external) I'm so familiar with back east, for which I'm eternally grateful. Two, I'm finding it easier to make friends here, even though I'm not spending every free moment socializing (and as a result I don't feel like I'm overscheduling myself so badly, the way I used to feel like I was doing back in Rochester).
As the winter clears up and I get to know more people better I think I'll discover more differences but for now that's the big one.
Found music?
Mar. 14th, 2006 11:03 pmThis link points to some music (if one wishes to call it that) which is either made of and inspired by, or in one case composed entirely of, the sounds of Hitachi disk drives dying horrible deaths.
Shopping spree
Feb. 26th, 2006 02:03 pmgmjambear and I decided to take a trip to the nearby Costco in Tukwila to sign up for a new membership. I did a little research on costco.com and found that the original Costco warehouse is still operating in south Seattle, while the nearby Tukwila one is warehouse #6. Let's just say I feel more comfortable shopping with a local chain which has made good nationally, than an already national chain that beats up on local economies. 'Nuff said.Anywho, we ended up on rather of a mini-shopping spree. We needed some new sheets for the futon, as my old waterbed sheets are becoming rather threadbare. We also wanted something we could cook right out of the freezer, and picked some Gardenburgers and Alaskan salmonburgers. We resisted the temptation to pick up the pies and cheesecake, which drew a remark from a nearby shopper, but we did go nuts (so to speak) over almonds and "south of the border" trail mix. Also, we both noticed the number of bearish guys, both those working for the place and fellow shoppers.
On the way back we passed the offices of Fatigue Technology, Inc. Gary remarked, "I'm tired of computers!" I told him, "That would be technology fatigue, not fatigue technology." ;-)
Fat Tire Amber Ale
Feb. 19th, 2006 12:21 amThose of you who read my travelogue from Kansas City may have read about this particular brew. I was surprised to find it here in Seattle as well, so it actually has a fairly wide distribution. This makes it definitely not a microbrew, but in my humble opinion it's as good as one if not better.
So I saw the lady ahead of me at the grocery tonight pick up a 12-pack, and got it into my head to find out where it comes from. The New Belgium Brewing Company is based in Fort Collins, Colorado, which makes sense that Kansas City and Seattle might both be served by a brewery there.
Of course, I still think I'll end up calling it Flat Tire after downing a few though. I mentioned this to the cashier but it went way over her head.
So I saw the lady ahead of me at the grocery tonight pick up a 12-pack, and got it into my head to find out where it comes from. The New Belgium Brewing Company is based in Fort Collins, Colorado, which makes sense that Kansas City and Seattle might both be served by a brewery there.
Of course, I still think I'll end up calling it Flat Tire after downing a few though. I mentioned this to the cashier but it went way over her head.
Jack Butler: You wanna beer?
Ron Richardson: It's 7 o'clock in the morning.
Jack Butler: Scotch?
-- Michael Keaton and Martin Mull in Mr. Mom
A Columbus radio station used to play this clip at the stroke of seven every morning, which was my cue to get up for class. Now that I'm seeing this side of 7 AM on a regular basis I'm reminded of it once more.
Just thought I'd share.
Ron Richardson: It's 7 o'clock in the morning.
Jack Butler: Scotch?
-- Michael Keaton and Martin Mull in Mr. Mom
A Columbus radio station used to play this clip at the stroke of seven every morning, which was my cue to get up for class. Now that I'm seeing this side of 7 AM on a regular basis I'm reminded of it once more.
Just thought I'd share.
More general Super Bowl ruminations
Feb. 5th, 2006 09:13 pmBeing new to the Seattle area I didn't have a lot invested emotionally in the outcome of Super Bowl Extra Large. It would have been really nice for the Seahawks to win, if only because the Steelers beat out my beloved Bengals in the AFC division playoffs.
But the fact that we did move into a metro area with an NFL football team -- and a good one at that, at least this year -- makes me smile.
Better luck next year for the Hawks, may they not become the Bills of the Pacific Northwest. That is all.
But the fact that we did move into a metro area with an NFL football team -- and a good one at that, at least this year -- makes me smile.
Better luck next year for the Hawks, may they not become the Bills of the Pacific Northwest. That is all.
(no subject)
Feb. 1st, 2006 10:36 pmA comparison, such as it is, between our old home and new home...
| Western New York | Western Washington | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Rochester | Bellevue | Seattle is just on a different scale from WNY so it's difficult to make an apples-to-apples comparison with Western NY. Bellevue, on the other hand, is a city in its own right with a real downtown and all. |
| Henrietta | Tukwila | Major malls and industrial center |
| Greece | Redmond | Home of the region's famous employer, busy commercial town center |
| Pittsford | Woodinville | Overcrowded little village with expensive homes nearby |
| Fairport | Bothell | Sprawling high-tech campus with a problematic commute |
| Victor | Lynnwood | Shopping and entertainment just over the county line |
| Irondequoit | Renton | More or less gracefully aging lakeside community |
Intellectual property
Jan. 31st, 2006 09:25 pmSeahawks ordered to stop using "12th Man"
After reading what others had to say about this on KING's blog, I wanted to post my comments here to see if I'm barking up the wrong tree.
( Party-poopers and lawyers... )
Ah well, between this and George II pontificating, I think I've had quite enough bovine excrement to deal with this evening. I feel so much better getting it off my chest, so to speak.
After reading what others had to say about this on KING's blog, I wanted to post my comments here to see if I'm barking up the wrong tree.
( Party-poopers and lawyers... )
Ah well, between this and George II pontificating, I think I've had quite enough bovine excrement to deal with this evening. I feel so much better getting it off my chest, so to speak.
One more thing...
Jan. 23rd, 2006 12:26 amgmjambear pointed out during the Seahawks game this afternoon, "Haven't we seen [this or that player] in one of the bars on Capitol Hill?" (the gayborhood). I said "Well, you know the Seahawks aren't allowed to hang out in Pioneer Square anymore." (Pioneer Square, which is in downtown Seattle just north of Qwest Field, was the scene of a season-ending assault on one of the Seahawks players back in October.) We both realized that it might be the logical conclusion that a few of the players just might end up coming up the hill to some of our favorite watering holes. ;-)A couple of observations
Jan. 22nd, 2006 10:41 pm* gmjambear and I have taken to pronouncing the "XL" in "Super Bowl XL" as "Extra Large", as opposed to "Forty".
* Conversely, over Christmas my dad was channel-surfing and came across the listing for XXX (well, actually, it should be xXx but the TV thingie had listed it in all uppercase) on one of the movie channels, and pronounced it "Thirty".
* And while we're on the topic of numbers in titles and their pronunciation, I've found folks were really amused when I referred to 10.5 as "ten and a half" instead of "ten point five". (I chose not to watch it; Gary thought it was crap. Irwin Allen would be proud.)
gmjambear and I have taken to pronouncing the "XL" in "Super Bowl XL" as "Extra Large", as opposed to "Forty".* Conversely, over Christmas my dad was channel-surfing and came across the listing for XXX (well, actually, it should be xXx but the TV thingie had listed it in all uppercase) on one of the movie channels, and pronounced it "Thirty".
* And while we're on the topic of numbers in titles and their pronunciation, I've found folks were really amused when I referred to 10.5 as "ten and a half" instead of "ten point five". (I chose not to watch it; Gary thought it was crap. Irwin Allen would be proud.)
Juxtaposition
Jun. 21st, 2005 08:49 pmgmjambear and I were watching the AFI's 100 Years, 100 Movie Quotes on CBS tonight. Gary mentioned having seen Marathon Man and the torture scene, which they included for its famous quote, "Is it safe?" We speculated that a lot of dentists lost business over that scene as they went to station break.So what commercial did they run immediately afterward? Colgate Total toothpaste, with recommendations from dentists and all.
Ouch. Side-splittingly funny, but ouch nonetheless.
"A little madness in the Spring...
May. 15th, 2005 12:35 pm...is wholesome even for the King." -- Emily Dickinson
Reading a recent entry indakoopst's journal, along with a bunch of others, it seems like the whole of the USA has gone mad with this nonsense of terrorists under the bed, as it were. (Gee, substitute "Communist" for "terrorist" -- the words even rhyme -- and we're back to the 1950's!)
And yet, on the other hand, we have the unfolding of spring, the flowers in bloom and all that wakens from its winter sleep. It's nice to see the sunlight streaming through the windows for a change. In a moment I shall be walking little Brandy and taking a breath of fresh air.
So I won't belabor the point of how screwed-up this country is; rather, I'll enjoy the nice weather while it lasts. There will be time enough to bitch about things political later.
C'mon, Brandy, let's go.
Reading a recent entry in
dakoopst's journal, along with a bunch of others, it seems like the whole of the USA has gone mad with this nonsense of terrorists under the bed, as it were. (Gee, substitute "Communist" for "terrorist" -- the words even rhyme -- and we're back to the 1950's!)And yet, on the other hand, we have the unfolding of spring, the flowers in bloom and all that wakens from its winter sleep. It's nice to see the sunlight streaming through the windows for a change. In a moment I shall be walking little Brandy and taking a breath of fresh air.
So I won't belabor the point of how screwed-up this country is; rather, I'll enjoy the nice weather while it lasts. There will be time enough to bitch about things political later.
C'mon, Brandy, let's go.
For verytiredmummy
Feb. 17th, 2005 08:59 pmAirlines to compensate passengers
We get to see the ITV news on NewsWorld International, an offshoot of the CBC. The 1830 (6:30 PM) GMT newscast is aired on NWI at the same time Eastern Standard Time (five hours later) and again at the same time Pacific Standard Time (three hours later yet).
Amid all the talk of hunting bans and a missing young woman, there was this little gem about passenger compensation. The news anchors speculated this may put an end to those super-low-budget fares to Europe, although some airline representatives said they will not be able to raise fares due to competition and, as I quote, "too many airlines chasing too few bums on seats".
I immediately thought ofverytiredmummy and those trips on a whim to Germany he writes about in his journal. gmjambear and I suspect he would be most pissed upset if those low fares were to disappear, but on the other hand, having to deal with the vagaries of air travel on several occasions I can see where these rules might need a bit of shoring up.
We get to see the ITV news on NewsWorld International, an offshoot of the CBC. The 1830 (6:30 PM) GMT newscast is aired on NWI at the same time Eastern Standard Time (five hours later) and again at the same time Pacific Standard Time (three hours later yet).
Amid all the talk of hunting bans and a missing young woman, there was this little gem about passenger compensation. The news anchors speculated this may put an end to those super-low-budget fares to Europe, although some airline representatives said they will not be able to raise fares due to competition and, as I quote, "too many airlines chasing too few bums on seats".
I immediately thought of
verytiredmummy and those trips on a whim to Germany he writes about in his journal. gmjambear and I suspect he would be most 
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