The Evergreen Aviation Museum

We were driving the last leg of a 4-day road trip, in a van full of accumulated tourist maps and junk food wrappers and smelly hiking clothes. It was getting late, and we were behind schedule – it looked like we wouldn’t be getting to Seattle until well past midnight.

And yet, when we rocketed past the Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Oregon and saw the Spruce Goose shining like a beacon from within the hangar-like glass structure, we couldn’t resist turning around to take a closer look. The museum was closed for the night, but we walked around it and pressed our noses against the glass.

Howard Hughes’ famous plane, an enormous flying boat made almost completely of wood, is a touchstone of aviation history despite the fact that it only ever made one short flight. Looking up at it, one can’t help but be impressed that they got it up into the air at all. The museum has other delights as well, like sleek fighter jets, old wooden prop planes, and bizarre little helicopters hanging from the rafters. The building is small, but there’s a lot crammed in there, and more scattered around the grounds.

So if you’re the type that gets jazzed by flying machines, drive down to McMinnville and have a look.

Please welcome the newest member of the Metroblogging family: Chennai.

Since I’m a product of American public schools, my first reaction was: where the heck is that?

It’s in India, along the southeastern coast in the state of Tamil Nadu. It used to be called Madras. And it evidently produces some lovely writing and pictures. Go take a look.

Technorati Tags: metroblogging

[img, artbrut.nikkidio.com]

It really seems that there are lines to be drawn by your selection of Saturday evening entertainment. We already know that certain metbloggers won’t be seeing the big Belle & Sebastian / New Pornographers extravaganza at the Paramount. If you decided against that show, or just didn’t buy your tickets when we told you about it ages ago, there is still hope.

Let’s start with the U.K. import heavyweight in the other corner. Those who find Belle & Sebastian a bit too twee for their punk soul, will be happy to know that tickets still seem to be available for Art Brut at Neumo’s [#]. I don’t know if you can blame the non-sold out status of the show on everyone seeing something else, or just on simple luck. But get a ticket before the rest of the crowd remembers that this is the band that recorded Bang Bang Rock And Roll, Pitchfork’s number three album of the ‘aught-5 (which is pretty high praise [ED: perhaps a little too high? --yes, maybe so. but still.], considering it was bested by Illinois and Late Registration). They sing confident songs about identity creation, incipient fandom, and (possibly, I’m bad with lyrics) about impotence.

At first, you listen and think that somewhere in there, there must be an in-joke. But after a few close listens, you suspect that the earnest might just outweigh the ironic here. Beyond these questions, though, is a soundtrack for a few hours of fun. The type of concert where the band’s showmanship combined with the infectious melodies just might inspire a sort of “dancing” in the crowd. It’s enough to make me almost wish that I was back in Seattle a few days early. Have fun out there, be nice to your neighbors, and please don’t go all superfan.

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And speaking of hyped bands dropping by Seattle. Don’t forget to start your Saturday music extravaganza by trekking over to Ballard to crowd into Sonic Boom for a free in-store from Tapes ‘n Tapes. Seriously, if mp3blog praise was gold, these kids would be swimming in a vault Scrooge McDuck style. And if you listen to a few of their tracks (available on their website — in the “tapes” section), you’ll understand why. Layers of spare urgent vocals over rolling almost-suspenseful atmospherics and all the sudden, you’re hooked.

They made the long drive from Minnesota, be sure to drop in to say hello, gobble up cred points, and meet one of your new favorite bands.

via: espn

So, I have to be honest. I couldn’t picture myself holed away in a bar at 9 a.m. last weekend watching a basketball game instead of enjoying the lovely, lovely weather we were having. No, instead, I watched basketball in my house with the windows open, pretending I was enjoying the lovely, lovely weather outside. And what a weekend it was. UW made it to the Sweet Sixteen! This was something unexpected but hella nice.

After the Huskies dominated most of the first half, I was about to write the game off and go for a walk in the reserve next to my house, but then. Then, Illinois started mounting their come back. Of course, I was hooked. I watched the second half with growing dread, and thought UW was going to squander its lead and lose. They did squander their lead, but, as you all know, still managed to win the game in the last few seconds. Woo Hoo! Go Huskies.

Tonight’s games were phenomenal. The Texas-West Virginia game was settled with .8 seconds left. That’s right, I said POINT FREAKING EIGHT SECONDS. I turned to my football loving friend and said, “And that’s why basketball is so awesome.” Little did I know that 6 minutes later (game time) I would be saying the same thing after UCLA came from nowhere and won a game they had been losing for oh about 39 minutes against the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

Okay. I don’t know why I dislike Gonzaga so much. Perhaps it is because they keep getting hype despite their no competition conference. Perhaps it is because UW is somehow in their shadow despite being in a major conference (Pac-10) and having to play powerhouses UCLA and Arizona twice every season. I mean seriously. UCLA has the most tournament wins (11) and 3rd most appearances (36) ever, but have you even heard of another team in the WCC? Yeah, I bet not.

No matter, because UCLA’s win tonight – and Adam Morrison’s crying before the game was even over – was AMAZING. Seriously. Games are so exciting and down to the last fraction of a second. What other American sport can claim that?

I can’t wait for tomorrow. In the meantime, here’s my sort of second round Seattle Sports Bar review.
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Time to get out your sexiest clothes and head to the 2006 Seattle Erotic Art Festival, getting bigger and more mainstream every year. The exhibition runs every day this weekend from noon to 1 AM, with lectures and workshops for artists and photographers thrown in.

Plus, of course, there’s the Deities of Eros costume gala beginning at 8 PM Friday night.

Details, including ticket prices, available from the festival organizers. You can also directly order tickets. And yes, you have to be over 18.

Technorati Tags: seattle

Ever tried to ship a package to the Vancouver area from the US?

Expensive, ain’t it? Those customs fees will kill you.

Ryan of Metroblogging Vancouver and Lipgloss Junkie, one of his commenters, point out a better way.

Mail the package to your recipient, care of one of these fine establishments:

The Letter Carrier

145 Tyee Drive

Point Roberts, WA 98281

(360) 945-0515

or

Blaine Enterprises

936 Peace Portal Dr

Blaine, WA 98230-4040

(360) 332-6825

Have your Canadian recipient head to Point Roberts or Blaine and pick up the package. Then have them take it across the border themselves. Maybe they can do some outlet shopping while they’re up there.

USD $2 handling charge for packages up to 25 pounds. Nominal increases for extra weight. No customs charges, just your recipient’s personal expenses for getting across the border.

Right on, guys. We approve.

It’s a bit farther for us to drive, but does anyone know of any Canadian establishments that perform a similar service in reverse?

Technorati Tags: canada, vancouver, seattle

I’ve been thinking a lot about yesterday’s article in the P-I about how the state is going to refuse funding to SHARE/WHEEL if they don’t provide certain information about their folks. I know a little something about being homeless and staying in a shelter, even if it wasn’t in Seattle.

The database in question is called Safe Harbors, and it’s a pretty standard one with, from what I hear, some serious security on it. SHARE/WHEEL doesn’t want to report on anyone because they believe homeless people should be allowed to be anonymous–that way if they get back on their feet, there won’t be a paper trail haunting them. Which is great, and makes perfect sense. But you know what they need more than a lack of a traceable past? They need beds.

Safe Harbors doesn’t require agencies to verify their information (unlike, say, unemployment or welfare databases), and most of the fields have a “client declined to answer” type option. If they wanted to, SHARE/WHEEL could turn in a whole database full of 9-year-old transgendered Mickey Mouses, and the state would have to accept that. (They probably wouldn’t, but that isn’t my point.) What the city is trying to do is make sure that their information isn’t duplicated so that they can get accurate figures and decide where the spending ought to go. And that’s going to make a lot of people cry nanny state, but at least they’re trying.

I appreciate both sides of this argument. I really do. And I don’t actually believe that everyone isn’t going to come to a compromise in the end. I’m just a little concerned that the people everyone claims to be concerned about–the homeless population–is going to get completely screwed in the meantime.

Back when it was still at 1904 Fourth Avenue, Tom Douglas’ restaurant Dahlia Lounge was made famous by the movie Sleepless in Seattle, where it played a cameo role. These days, it’s moved across the street and become one of Seattle’s staples. Everybody knows it, even if most of us don’t get there too often.

I proposed to my wife at the first Dahlia Lounge, incidentally. My wife says I looked pretty damn funny shifting around in my seat. I claim it was because the ring was stuffed rather uncomfortably into my pants pocket. So if I have a soft spot for the place, well, there’s a reason.

The Dahlia Lounge has been around long enough to be labeled a “classic,” and yesterday we had further proof: they’ve been nominated for the “Outstanding Restaurant Award” by the James Beard Foundation. Despite that little issue of where exactly their money was going a couple years ago, the James Beard awards are still considered one of the prestigious awards of the culinary world, so getting a nomination is an honor.

The “Outstanding Restaurant Award” is awarded to “the restaurant in the U.S. that serves as a national standard bearer of consistency of quality and excellence in food, atmosphere and service,” according to the foundation. Restaurants are only eligible for this award after they’ve been open for at least ten years. Dahlia must compete with four other restaurants around the country for the final award, including San Francisco’s Boulevard and Chicago’s Everest and Spiaggia. Here’s hoping, guys, and congrats to Chef Erik Tanaka and his staff for the nomination.

Also in the awards, Leslie Mackie of the Macrina Bakery & Cafe earned a nomination for “Outstanding Pastry Chef” (and not for the first time, according to the Times). Time to go buy some artisan bread, and hope Mackie finally gets the well-deserved award this time.

In regional awards, the chefs of Lampreia, The Harvest Vine, Cafe Juanita, and Lark all received nominations for best chef in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii.

I love living in a town with this much good food.

Technorati Tags: restaurants

Aaah, how quickly we forget. Or, in this case, how quickly I forget. Seems that it’s newsworthy that whatever you post on the internet basically leaves your immediate control and can go anywhere, and has the potential to be seen by anyone, including people you’d rather not see it. Say, that you’d been hosting a party for the Super Bowl, where underage drinking is happening, which is in violation of your apartment rental agreement with UW’s Housing and Food Services. According to the PI, there’s a new generation of people who’re using Facebook to share photos, send out invitations for parties, and talk about illegal activites in places where University officials can easily take a looksee. And it’s not just UW students who aren’t thinking things through.

What really strikes me about this whole article is the surprise expressed by students that people who “shouldn’t” look at the information are, that it’s a violation of privacy.

I realize that my head-shaking about this dates me. I am the first generation to have the internet. I’ll get my walker out and recall 150/300 baud cupular modems, local bulletin board systems, and archaic software like Mosaic when it was brand new and exciting! This was when we wanted to be found – that was the entire point. To be found, to share. So sometimes it’s hard for me to remember that people who come after me by a significant amount of years have no concept of this. The internet is just another tool to communicate with friends, not a place where data is freely shared. It’s a definite shift in perception, and how the internet as a whole is viewed.

So although I roll my eyes at the need, I think UW junior Jerome McCuin, of the program on Comparative History of Ideas, has the right idea: educate people to understand what happens to the data they put online. To think of it in terms larger than just their tiny circle of friends.

Likewise, I love how David Silver, assistant professor of Communications, is using Facebook: to see what shows are popular amongst his students that quarter, so he can work appropriate pop culture references into his lectures, and to actually learn who they are, rather than just a sheet of paper with an attendance mark next to their name.

But I admit, every time I read one of these stories, I do roll my eyes, just a little, and remember “way back when.”

So you’re not going to see Belle and Sebastian on Saturday night, huh? That’s ok, I’m not either. I prefer my B&S on open roads or in my headphones hunched in busy airports, and I’m pretty sure the Paramount is just going to be full of studiously tousled haircuts and people carefully looking at each other out of the corner of their eyes. Also, I’m a crank.

But if you’re still looking for someplace to be, I suggest the extreme strangeness of The Paradox in Ballard. It’s a space that consistently creeps me out because of its vaguely cult-y vibe, and as such Brooklyn band Say Hi to Your Mom is probably going to fit right in.

I mean that as a compliment. No, really. I liked 2005’s album, Ferocious Mopes, and I liked that it’s self-released. I’m a sucker for bands who create their own record labels. As an added bonus, Central Services is also going to be there, and if you haven’t heard me talking about them for the past few months it’s because you’ve been lucky enough not to be stuck in a room with me. And I’m sure that, as usual, the Paradox will be full of kids with elaborate hairstyles sitting politely on the floor. Which is sort of worth the trip all on its own.