IGA Kress Supermarket on 3rd between Pike and Union

The grand opening of the new downtown grocery store is old, old news. However, due to my crazy work schedule these past couple of months, it’s been a while since I’ve left my office long enough for more than a quick lunch in the building. Yesterday, however, I managed to escape (to go to the dreaded post office eek!) and thought it would be a good time to check out the miracle on Third. I mean, much of the press generated about the store mentioned the large pre-made area geared towards downtown office workers and their lunchtime needs, so I decided to take one for the team and try it out.

I should mention that I have old memories of the scary Safeway in downtown DC that I’m using to compare the Kress to, so my opinion of the place might be a little shiny. That said, my first impression of the place, of course, was pretty good. The entrance is kind of overwhelming, what with it’s escalators right into the cherries, but I suppose it is a good use of space…and as in any heart of downtown establishment there were a few crazies talking loudly already, but easily avoided. The layout was easy to follow and even though it is in the basement, the lighting is good. The produce was nice and shiny and the peach I had for lunch was tasty and ripe. They had a good selection of dry and frozen goods as well. Everything one might need, including the same ginger beer that I had gone out of my way to get from Metro Markets the night before (mmm Dark and Stormy).

As far as the lunch bar area, it was indeed large, taking up a good third of the place, it seemed to my untrained eye. The options include a salad bar, soup station, Asian food counter, sandwiches and other deli options. I decided to give the sushi a whirl and also ordered a small (that wasn’t so small) bowl of hot and sour soup. Normally I have neuroses that keep me from cross-culturally ordering, but I wanted to try out a few options and everything else seemed too heavy to pair with the sushi.

lunch: sushi combo, hot and sour soup, a peach and free reusable bag

Everything looked good and clean and fresh. The customer service was quick and friendly. Prices weren’t that bad; my lunch was a little over $13 for the sushi combo, hot and sour soup, peach, and free reusable grocery bag. I really wanted to like it. However, as you might expect, it was still just grocery store food. The sushi was the same as you can get at any area grocery store, and quite frankly I can get better sushi over at Sushi Kudasai in Century Square [us]. The hot and sour soup was decent, but I don’t think this place is a lunchtime destination at all. Harried and Hungry next door can get you better food for the same or less price and time. Sadly, the food gives me no reason to abandon my routine of delicous sandwiches from the Other Coast, located in my own building. I say sadly because I really do need to get out into the sunshine more.

That said, it is still the long awaited and nicely stocked grocery store that downtown has needed forever and I’m glad it’s here. Just not for lunch.

3

So what’s up with the weather the past few days? Our mountain’s gone, our sunsets are hazy, yet even more dramatic than usual, and the thunder last night at 2 am had me thinking my house was falling down around me. Well, it turns out that we can pretty much blame California for all of this.

We’ve been in a weather pattern where warmer air is coming up from California and picking up moisture as it travels over land. It’s also picking up smoke particles from all of the California wildfires, resulting in poor visibility and air quality. According to the weather report I heard this morning, we’re in for another few days of this.

2

It’s official. The city of Seattle, having completely blown their legal case, settles up with the Sonics owners for $45M and the SuperSonics name.

I’d love to say that this is horrible, but hasn’t anyone watched the last 11 or so years of Sonics basketball? Shawn Kemp’s kids? The inexplicable signing of Jim McIlvane? Draft picks that were either rough and unready teenagers or European players that barely knew how to play — when they actually signed with the team? Howard Schultz running off Nate McMillan and ultimately handing the team to a bunch of Oklahoma City businessmen and scurrying back to Starbucks where he’s done nothing but continue SBUX’s run into the ground?

It’s sad to say this, but good riddance. I’ll always remember ‘96, but the Sonics have turned into that girlfriend you’ve had that just let herself go, sits on the couch all day, gets stoned, and ultimately tells you she’ll dump you for that guy down the street unless you start giving her more and more expensive toys. Ultimately, the only thing you can do is point at the door and maybe call and tell the guy to swing by Tiffany on the way back.

And about this guy, er, city. Oklahoma City.

Truck stop to the world,
Call center, Flamer of Lips,
Player with Freeways and the Nation’s Cherry Limeade maker;
Sucky, soulless, boring,
City of the Big Slouchers:

Having grown up in Tulsa, well, of course I hate Oklahoma City. It’s a suburb in search of a city, a vast array of strip malls, tract housing, and interstates that were being continually rebuilt my entire childhood. Urban renewal usually meant a tornado plowing through town. Home to the Oklahoman, or Jokelahoman as we used to call it, which the Columbia Journalism Review once dubbed the Worst Newspaper In America. OKC was always the city in search of a soul and a purpose. Tulsa had the ballet, the opera, the art museums. Oklahoma City had the Cowboy Hall of Fame.

In some ways OKC is the mirrorverse Seattle. Republican, sprawling, flatter than flat, a bus system that doesn’t really go anywhere. And yet… you see one similarity with Seattle — they want to be something else. Seattle was founded on the idea of “New York by and by,” but that has in the end meant striving so hard to be big that it never really figured out how to do it sanely. Oklahoma City was founded in a day during the Land Rush, and since then it’s been trying to be a big city, but never has quite figured out what it meant. Both Seattle and Oklahoma City have done their best to knock down anything pretty in the name of progress. Both live in the shadow of larger, more global cities (Vancouver/Dallas) and smaller, artsier, happier with their lot towns (Portland/Tulsa).

So, yeah. The Sonics are gone. Off to the giant truck stop in the middle of the plains, where they will be begging Tulsans and Lawtonites and McAlesterans and Woodwardians to make the drive into the City, pay $150 a seat, buy a $10 small popcorn, and watch the NBA paste their asses 41 games a year. And us? Well, if we want to, I guess we can rebuild the Key, steal ourselves another NBA team, and make some other town unhappy.

In the end, though, we’re keeping Seattle, our ugly, lovely town amid the hills and lakes and trees. The Sonics, meanwhile, get Oklahoma City, out of which only four good things have come: The Flaming Lips, I-35, I-40, and I-44.

I think that’s a pretty fair trade.

PS to Mr. Tramel: Sorry, the guilt goes with the team. And also, all the crappiness we’ve seen the last 11 years. Enjoy.

3

The International Fest of Cinema and Technology is a world tour of cinema designed to give exposure to independent films that might not otherwise get much attention from the public eye. Naturally there’s a stop in Seattle since we all love our movies so much here. IFCT takes place in Seattle this weekend, July 5 and 6, at Northwest Film Forum.

This is the 7th year of the ICFT; this year they’re showing a series of shorts programs. Just as short stories can often be more challenging to write than full-length novels, short films can sometimes be more challenging to produce that feature-length films. Having a lot of story to tell in a limited amount of time forces shorts filmmakers to be exceptionally creative in their use of resources both on and off the camera and the results are often amazing.

There are eight screening segments going on during the two days of the festival. Saturday’s segments include Experimental Films, Documentary Showcase, Films about Obsession and Love, and Variety. Sunday’s screenings include Young Actors Showcase, Animated Shorts, Focus on Romantic Stories, and Science Fiction showcase. Each segment offers up a number of great short films on its topic. Among the films are a documentary about bullfighting, a film about a long-distance relationship filmed through Skype and a webcam, and a sci-fi film about travel to an unknown underwater world. The films comes from all over the world, including the US, the UK, Canada, Portugal, Brazil, and more.

Check the IFCT website [site] for the schedule; tickets through their site, Brown Paper Tickets or at the door.

0

Rumors are flying. The Seattle PI just posted this tidbit, 9 minutes before the final results are posted:

A source told the P-I the agreement will allow Clay Bennett to take the franchise to Oklahoma City, while leaving behind the Sonics’ name and history along with a cash settlement in the $75 million range.

 Loading …

0

As followers of my Twitter or Tumblr know, I spent last Wednesday night in the UWMC ER. Why, you might ask?

I’ll be damned if I know. I mean, I know, but I don’t actually remember the circumstances. Here’s what I remember: sitting at the bar at Cafe Presse, NOT BEING DRUNK AT ALL (this is key to the story), feeling woozy, getting up to go to the bathroom, waking up on the floor unable to see but laughing it off, then waking up again on the floor, this time with my head cradled by a bartender and my face bleeding.

Turns out I passed out. Twice. At Cafe Presse. And fell into a rack of glasses. And broke one, which cut my face. (I look like I was in some awesome brawl.)

But you know what? The Cafe Presse bar staff was absolutely awesome. Like I said, one of the bartenders sat on the floor with me and cradled my head until the ambulance came. The other bartenders huddled around and examined my cuts and bruises, keeping me talking and keeping me company. One of them called an ambulance almost immediately, and they kept watching me until I was carried away on a stretcher.

A stretcher! I know!

So I just want to send out a big thank you to Cafe Presse for their general awesomeness in a crappy situation. You guys rule, and you will definitely be getting lots more of my business once I get over my profound embarrassment. If you haven’t been, look them up for awesome French food, late night and early morning hangouts, and best of all, genuine human concern.

4

Looks like the Murder City Devils are going to be getting back together for some fun this summer. The only official news as of now is that they’re playing a show in Portland on September 6th for Willamette Week’s Musicfest Northwest. According to them that “might not be the end of the news”. For some reason, I had the feeling they’d be getting back together this summer. Actually, I kind of wondered if they’d possibly be playing the Sub Pop Anniversary Show since they were affiliated with Sub Pop. There is no news of them playing that show as of yet, but I wouldn’t be overly surprised. Should be interesting to see what they get up to.

Photo courtesy of ianbart via Flickr.

0

more cat pictures

We’re looking for a Full-Time .NET Developer/Superhero with a passion for coding with expert .NET expertise. You will make the intarwebs a better tube for millions as we develop some amazing tools and features (we’re more than just a blog under this fur!). We offer flexible hours, a fun work environment, health benefits and freedom from the tyranny of spelllcheck. (Plus free cat pictures!)

The One and Only Technical Requirement:

* A deep, expert understanding of developing, deploying and managing customer-facing web sites using ASP.NET (using C#), SQLServer and IIS. We need .NET developers who have been working with the .NET (ASP.NET, IIS and SQLServer) for at least 5 years. We’re looking for expert-level developers at this tiem. :)
o Experience with AJAX is a real plus.

Bonus Skillz:

* All your bases must belong to you
* Cannot have lost the game
* Can make the cake a reality

Please send your resume to lol+jobs@icanhascheezburger.com. This job is available for telecommuting from within US and Canada only. Travel to HQ in Seattle is required.

0

The Seattle Times reports that early this morning, a fire destroyed Darcy Burner’s Redmond home. Burner, her husband, son, and dog made it out safely, but her cat died in the fire. No word currently on how the fire started.

0

A more complete report on today’s West Seattle bank robbery and ensuing police standoff downtown is available here.

Police opened fire on the suspects after warning them at least 10 times that they’d shoot if they didn’t get out of their vehicle. One suspect was shot in the neck and taken to Harborview, while a construction worker sitting in a nearby van was injured by shattering glass from the gunfire.

Witnesses said it was “like something from Hollywood,” and one even said he thought the scene was a movie being filmed.

Insane….

0

Many dog owners do not know that you can ride most buses with your four-footed buddy. I’ve done some research about busing with dogs on the various transit agencies in the greater Seattle area and thought I should share this knowledge with everyone. With high gas prices, this might help others leave their cars at home for shorter trips.

Metro:
Metro’s official policy allows dogs on buses as long as they are leashed or in a kennel. Dogs too big to ride on your lap require the same fare as a human traveler. My dog is 42lbs and while he fits on my lap, I usually pay his fare unless the driver waves me off. Dogs may not ride on a seat but sit on the floor. (Source)

Sound Transit:
Only service animals and small pets in containers are allowed on Sound Transit’s buses and the Sounder. (Source)

Community Transit:
This took some work on my part to get a clear answer. Dogs are not allowed on commuter buses (ie: Seattle to Mukilteo rush hour routes, for example), but are allowed on short inter-city trips (ie: Lynnwood to Mukilteo for example) with leash and muzzle. I found a soft mesh muzzle at Mud Bay for $15 that allows my dog to pant and drink. At this time, I am unclear if a fare is required and will assume that one is. (Source: phone call to CT’s customer service line.)

Pierce Transit:
Only service animals and small pets in containers are allowed. (Source)

I’ve heard of bus drivers refusing dogs access on buses for a variety of reasons. Some Metro drivers state that dogs require muzzles (not true) or that there is already a dog on the bus and they are not allowed to pick up multiple dogs (also not true). If you run into an issue with a driver not allowing you to board the bus with a dog and you are following the rules and regulations of the specific transit service, request that the driver call their supervisor or contact the service directly with the route number, bus number, time and location that this incident occurred.

For a treat, Metro bus routes 74 and 75 will take you to Magnuson’s off-leash dog park, located in Sand Point. It is a reliable route, and the park has water access for the pups.

Edit to add a few more details.
Washington State Ferry System:
Pets must be on a leash or in a carrier at all times. Pets, except service animals, are not allowed in terminal buildings or above the car decks, unless they are in a pet carrier. (Source)

Island Transit (Whidbey Island):
Only service animals and small pets in containers are allowed. (Source)

2

This weekend is not only the 4th of July weekend, although that’s exciting enough–holidays that involve barbecues, drinking, and fireworks are fine by me. It is also the weekend of the Wooden Boat Festival.

This 31 year old festival should be even better than usual this year, now that South Lake Union Park is open. There will be ship models of every size and type–maybe some in bottles!–and demonstrations for how to make a ship model. (I’m hoping to learn how to take my ship in a bottle making to the next level, a level I hope involves stabbing myself in the hands less.) The kid’s play area will have a couple of kid-sized cargo ship models with a working crane. On top of that, there are free public boat rides, a treasure hunt, and a Quick and Daring boat building-and-then-racing party. And! You can visit the ailing Wawona, which still sits softly disintegrating in the water until it can be made into part of the park.

On Saturday night at 9:45, they’ll be showing The African Queen, with Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn.

The festival is going on from 10 - 6 Friday through Sunday, with a $5 suggested donation or $10 per family. It’s one of the friendliest festivals we have.

1

Kidding aside, the southern part of downtown is in chaos due to a police standoff.

If you don’t need to be in/around 2nd/3rd/Spring/Seneca, STAY AWAY. Or really, the southern half of downtown. Apparently it’s gridlock on the streets.

UPDATE: Appears it’s ended, well, like a movie. Suspect transported to Harborview after getting shot by the police. (Thanks, mik!)

2

(from City Councilmember Conlin’s office, via Capitol Hill News mailing list)

Dear Friend,

On Tuesday, July 8, at 7 PM, the City Council will host a Public Comment session on proposed legislation that would ban styrofoam and create a ‘green fee’ on bags. I’m writing to invite you to attend and comment on these proposals. The two ordinances were introduced last week and will be voted on in committee later this month. I sincerely hope that you’ll consider coming out to show your support.

The Public Comment session will take place on Tuesday, July 8 at 7p.m. in Council Chambers. Sign-up sheets for those who wish to speak will be available at 6:30 p.m. The full announcement is posted on my Council web site.

You will also find, at the bottom of that page, translations of the announcement in six different language, should you find a use for them. Additional information about the ordinances are located on the web.

Please send any requests for copies of the legislation to rob.gala@seattle.gov.

Thank you,

Richard Conlin
Seattle City Council President
Chair, Environment and Emergency Management Committee

0