Bye-bye, Boeing Surplus Store

Gather ye air tools while ye may. The Boeing Surplus Store is closing on December 21.

That's where we got this classy-looking container, the new home of our little raspberry patch.

Pirates of the Caribeacon at Beacon Pub Tonight

Parking Strip Planting on Beacon Hill

My future sister-in-law (hurray) planted this parking strip outside her house at one of the intersections on 15th. Thank you! I love this.

Hawthorn Tree Outside City Hall

A coworker of mine is a smoker, and I've started hanging out with her when she goes outside to smoke because I like her and I like outside. Yesterday I talked her into walking across the street to City Hall to light up, and she asked me what this tree was. I told her I didn't know but that I would take a picture so I could find out.



But then we noticed that the fine City of Seattle folks tagged it for us. English Hawthorn.



Then we went back to work.

Fall Morning in the U-District

This morning I went to the Farmers Market in the U-District, my first Seattle neighborhood.





I miss all the hippie yards.



I'm a peaceful and cowardly person, but I think if I saw a person spray-painting a tree, I'd want to kick their ass.









Doesn't "Sweetbread" mean brains? I'd never heard of this little local vineyard before. I gambled on the cheapest white and red.



Then I went to Esquin Wine Merchants and lollygagged in the Loire whites section before finally settling on Cheverny. What I really wanted was a Sancerre, but apparently Cheverny is another steel-fermented Sauvignon Blanc wine from the Loire Valley, and it was $10 cheaper than the Sancerres. Hopefully it will have that minerally taste that I love so much in Sancerre -- we'll see.

Then I suddenly decided that I also wanted a Niagara ice wine for dessert, so I grabbed one from Jackson-Triggs, a vineyard that I blogged but didn't name back in July.

No More Hangar Cafe

They were too good to be true (for long, anyway). I will miss them.

Unless one of you wants to buy it?

In other local business news, the ownership of Yoga on Beacon is changing hands. The former owner is moving to California.

Quick Rainier Cold Storage Update

Looks like the Architectural Review Committee of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board wants to explore the idea of having Sabey rebuild the western wall of the Stock House (an idea I dismissed as stupid a couple of days ago).

You'll probably see more details on this morning's meeting from Dan at Seattlest, who was also in attendance, before I'll get a chance to write more.

Rainier Cold Storage, Landmarks Preservation Board -- Sept. 28

As The Paper Noose recently noted, this Friday the Architectural Review Committee of the Landmarks Preservation Board will review Sabey's response to ARC's request that they estimate how much it would cost to preserve the west wall of the Stock House, or replace it brick by brick.

Sabey's estimate is $8-11 million to save the wall, and they note it may be dangerous, irritating to neighbors while work is done, and potentially impossible.

(They also came up with a figure for how much it would cost to replace the wall brick by brick. But I don't really care about that, because that's a stupid idea.)

(They also came up with a figure estimating the amount of money they would lose if they preserved/replaced the wall because the lack of windows would make it a less desirable space for tenants. But I don't really care about that, because they bought the buildings with the intent to preserve them if possible, so that particular figure does not represent any change from their original plans.)

As enamoured as I am with my own ideas about what could replace the Stock House, of course I'd rather see it preserved.

Since I work right across the street, I may try to make it to the 8:30 a.m. meeting at the Municipal Building on Friday and see what goes down in this round. Join me? Come here: Friday, September 28, at the Landmarks Preservation Board's Architectural Review Committee (ARC) at 8:30 a.m. in Room 4070 of the Seattle Municipal Tower, 700 5th Avenue, 40th Floor.

Pirates of the Caribeacon This Saturday

Guerrilla Masquerade Party will be invading Beacon Hill this Saturday night. Where will the Dread Ship GMP land -- the Red Apple, Beacon Pub, Baja Bistro, Inay's, Jefferson Park? If you know, don't tell. Pirates rely on the element of surprise.

Avast ye scurvy Guerrillas!

Shiver me timbers! September be the month fer Pirates! And unless ye want to spend eternity in Davey Jones' Locker, we urge ya to channel yer inner Pirate and get yer self aboard.

On September 1st, the month o' Pirates kicked off with a very special BaconStrip, then on Wednesday, September 19th, it be 'International Talk Like a Pirate Day' - http://www.talklikeapirate.com/piratehome.html and http://www.talklikeapirateday.com/.

And then we Guerrillas be roundin' out the month on September 29th by pillaging new territory - crashing on the beaches of little island known as Beacon Hill - for PIRATES OF THE CARIBEACON!

The Dread Ship GMP will be needin' a hearty crew of Old Salty Dogs, Peg-legged Pirates and Lusty Wenches, as well as plenty of Sharp Witted Parrots, of course. And it wouldn't hurt to have some extra Pirate Ships around. Be sure to bring your treasure chests full of booty, in case ye be needin' more grog or rum. And if you don't have yer own treasure, bring along a treasure map and we'll find some adventure.

Perhaps during our journey will run across Mermaids or Sea Monsters, Sharks or Sea Hags. Or we could just see plenty of fish, dolphins and whales swimming amongst the seaweed in the deep blue waves of the briney deep.

The exact location(s) we'll be invading will be announced when we be approaching the day o' the party, so until then get yer pirate gear gathered and practice yer 'Arrrrrr!'s. If ye be needin' some inspiration, check out the movies 'Ice Pirates', 'Pirates of Penzance', 'Peter Pan', 'Swiss Family Robinson', 'Treasure Island', 'Muppet Treasure Island', or those 'Pirates of the Carribean' flicks. Or check out photos from the GMP Pirate party, "Guerrillas at Sea!", way back in 2003.

Pygmy Goats in Seattle

Looks like the pygmy goat proposal passed at City Council yesterday--the animals have been added to the list of small animals allowed to be kept as pets.

The cranks over at Crosscut (who didn't edit out any of Jean Godden's three uses of variations of the word "wry" in her recent article about Walt Crowley, I noticed) managed to find something to complain about in the new law -- though I'm not exactly sure what exactly that something is.

Hell, as long as they don't bark or bite, who cares?

Two Words

Van fire.



Porter night.



Manny, Quynh.



Local drunks.



Pharmaceutical weapon.



Falafel truck.



Outdoor movie.



Fantagraphics kid.



Georgetown Records.



Calamity Jane's!



G-town Sandwich.



Cranky neighbor.



And again.

Those Backyard Photos I Promised to Bore You With

Happy heather.



Sad heather.



Despondent heather.





I can't tell if this is going to look cool-weird (like the Cryptomeria) or shitty-weird, this planting-grasses-in-rocks thing.



I guess we'll find out.



That Euphorbia had self-seeded in the front.



The spouse wanted this zebra miscanthus. In general, I'm not crazy about variegation on leaves.



I can't get enough of the Autumn Joy type sedums right now. The unseasonal colors, the weird leathery texture. They seem primordial.







This Point Reyes Ceanothus has had no complaints yet.



I'll spare you from individual portraits of the Cryptomeria this time.



OK, just one.



A lot of plum crisps have gone unmade this year.



I want these Julia Phelps Ceanothuses to grow into a hedge-type barrier. Should I try to move them father apart or let them be this close? They're already touching, and they're only to about 3 feet of their eventual 7 feet.



Wow. Look how little they were just 6 months ago. You can barely even see them in this photo.



May I show you a couple more photos from back in March?

My Red Dragon on March 18:



My Red Dragon on March 21:



My Red Dragon in mid-September:



I know real gardeners are probably all done freaking out how much plants can grow in one season, but me, I'm still astounded. If these things that we take to our homes can grow 100 times their original size in 6 months, what the hell else might they do when we're not looking?

Another thing that happened when I wasn't paying attention. Bars started projecting pro-drinking messages on the walls. Last night at Chop Suey.



I was there to see Editors, my second-favorite band from Birmingham, England. (DD 4-EVER!)



I'll sign off with a couple of photos of things for sale at the Columbia City Farmers' Market today. (I bought 5 pounds of heirloom tomatoes, 8 Skagit Valley Farms pork chops, and some goat cheese from Bainbridge Island.)