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Blah Blah Blog - LiveJournal.com

09/22/18--07:53: Vacation begins

Tuesday was my last day at work for a week, and we left Wednesday for a couple of nights in Moclips. It's a perfect place to get away because there's really nothing there but a huge beach. On the road up above the beach, there's exactly one store.

The beach has a resort, where we stayed, and some houses. It's pretty great. I got a few time lapses, but the one from the first night was the coolest.

https://instagram.com/p/Bn7uTnLAPwi

The resort's in a neat spot where the beach ends at a river outlet, and has trails through the woods that lead to the river. It's really fun to explore that area on the way to the beach.

Here's a view of the resort from the beach. We had the top floor unit on the left, which has a wraparound deck. Very spacious, excellent views, really the only drawback is that you have to go through the bedroom to get to the bathroom. If you're into digging for clams, this resort is ideal. You can tell when you're on the beach that you're surrounded by thousands of them just below the surface, and there's a whole clam shack set up for cleaning them. Not really our thing, but neat for those who want it.

The view from the corner of the condo.

We took the scenic, non-freeway route back so we could pop by the same casino I visited on my way back from Port Angeles that time I spent the night on the sailboat. Unfortunately, the restaurant and buffet were closed. I'd hoped for a fancy lunch there, but had to settle for something in the cafe. But! I played yet another version of my favorite Buffalo slot machine, and did great! I was down to about $18 from $60 put in, but right when Garrett found me, I got the coin combination that unlocks automatic free games, and those kept spawning more free ones. All told, it played through 55 free games on its own, and I climbed from $18 to over $126. I decided I'd play one more max bet spin ($6) and when that didn't win, I cashed out, doubling my original amount. That easily paid for lunch and our ferry crossing, where I took one of my new favorite photos.

We took a whole week off but don't have any plans for the rest of the days until I return to work Wednesday. This was a much-needed break. The vacation made me realize work's been really crazy since we got back from the last vacation, and it's been a long time since I had a hectic half year. Thankfully we're moving into a new phase on that project at work, and things should improve a lot. Maybe not right when I get back, but soon.

09/23/18--18:19: Visual aid

Here's what I was talking about when I said they dug the road out at Langus. The water's a little low in this photo, but when it comes up a bit, all the mud will be completely covered just beyond the heavy equipment.

Here's where there used to be a road that connected the West side of the former loop to the East, quite far South, though. It's now flooded so I'm not sure why they felt the need to start filling the road in.

It was foggy most of the walk, but I stopped for a photo as it started to clear. There are a few others at flickr.

09/28/18--07:43: SchadenFriday

09/29/18--06:01: CATURDAY

BONUS Saturdogs

Many thanks to:
Animals Being Dicks
Señor Gif
k00l 4 k@+z
Almost Famous Cats
Cats, Beavers & Ducks
Derpy Cats
FAT CATS
FUCKYEAHFELINES!
CHEEZburger
Every Day is Caturday
Cats and Dogs
And everyone else who happened to put a cat or dog where I ended up seeing it this week!

09/29/18--08:55: Goodbye, moon. Hello, Zab!

Coming back to work on Wednesday after a week off, I was prepared to spend the whole day catching up, but managed to blaze through almost 200 emails in 67 minutes. Thankfully my boss needs to cover much of what I do if I'm not there so it can't really pile up. That allowed me to pop out to the marina for a walk. It was foggy there, which doesn't happen often. The fog comes from the valley West of downtown and can't usually make it up and over the hill downtown is on to flow into the Marina to the East. Glad there was a bright, full moon, otherwise there really wouldn't have been a reason to make a video.

https://instagram.com/p/BoMlHMugQAC

I've wanted to try Zab Thai for a while, but it's in the South end of town along with a lot of other places to try, so it kept getting put off. Lisa wanted to meet up for lunch Thursday and told me to choose the spot, and since she lives even further South, it was the perfect time to try it. Check out this gorgeous appetizer platter we shared.

We also each had a lunch special, so I was nice and full and burping tasty Thai spices all afternoon.

Yesterday was another tattoo session on my back. We added a lot of '80s decorative elements around the DeLorean and colored in the sun between the keytars. I'll get photos when the swelling goes down.

I noticed this morning that the tattoo comes quite close to the top of my butt crack. Made me laugh.

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09/29/18--09:28: Face update

Forgot to put this in the last post. My beard was getting pretty big and I took off enough that I had to pop the guard off my clipper to empty it. One thing that's really great about the cordless, waterproof clipper I use is that instead of a different guard for each length, there's just one, and it mounts to a sliding clamp to adjust the length.

Of course, when you put it back on, it goes back down to the shortest setting, and you have to remember to dial it back up. I forgot, took it a huge chunk out of my mustache, and had to take the whole thing down to stubble.

I don't hate the way it looks, but it's definitely weird to see so much of my upper lip area. I feel like I should be smoking a cigar in gay porn.

10/04/18--08:39: Catchemups

This week! All walk, no talk.

Here are some photos of the results of the latest tattoo session. Sun colored in between the keytars, shapes added and colored in around the DeLorean.

That was on Friday.

My coworker Tammy invited me to SnoHomo Bingo Saturday night and even picked me up since I live on the way! The theme was pajamas because they were doing a pajama drive, which was quite successful with four huge barrels filled overflowing with them, plus lots of money raised. Pajamas is such a great theme because people can go as crazy with it as they like, or just wear some pajamas. I don't have a full set, so I did pajama pants, my astronaut cat shirt, my robe, and a sleep mask. I really wish I hadn't tossed my old, trashed duck slippers, it would have been great to wear them one last time.

https://instagram.com/p/BoVnr6Lg1MP

Those guys behind me got engaged! I normally hate public proposals, but somehow it feels different when you're in the middle of hundreds of people cheering and the couple is crying.

Bingo was fun except for the extra long break while the queens who hosted did a costume change. Thankfully someone took advantage of the option to sponsor a message to be read over the sound system to let them know they were doing a great job but needed to pick up the pace.

I think everyone was wiped out and grumpy anyway because they keep it pretty warm in the senior center where it was held, which was packed.

Sunday was a nice walk at Langus and my piece for Live in Everett about it came out this week.

https://instagram.com/p/BoW4PJKgIyd

Did some short walks in the dark Monday and yesterday down at Edgewater Beach, and between the two days, only took one photo Monday. I was going to set up a time lapse today, but the camera batteries were dead.

That worked out fine, because my ankle was feeling pretty pushed to the limit after so many walks with no swims thanks to the tattoo healing time.

My early call Tuesday is now even earlier! 6:30. I stayed in.

Yesterday was a clear day at the marina with some fog rolling in at the end.

I even had to stop the car on my street on the way home because the fog was so neat.

And last night I used our new Instant Pot for the first time to make a lovely batch of boeuf bourguignon, one of my favorite meals. The bread is sourdough English Muffins toasted, rubbed with raw garlic, and buttered.

I was out of tomato paste and rosemary, but it didn't seem to matter.

10/05/18--05:22: SchadenFriday

10/06/18--06:43: CATURDAY

10/13/18--07:19: CATURDAY

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10/14/18--08:33: Push it real good

On a normal Sunday I might be heading toward the car at Langus right about now, but I've known for weeks I wouldn't be there today. Two years ago I arrived to find the place mobbed, and when I couldn't figure out later on the internet what the event was, I really wished I'd asked around before heading out. Last year I got there unaware that it was happening again, but encountered the crowd on the way back to the car, and had a hell of a time driving out with all the people wandering around in the road. There must have been a sign or something, but I can't remember exactly how I found out the name of the event. Glad I did, though, because that allowed me to put an annual item in the calendar a few weeks earlier to check for the exact date and then put another item on that day so I know not to go.

Most years, that'll probably be a good day to just go to Japanese Gulch or something, but today it was a god day to just stay in. On Friday, I decided to walk the entire marina so I could get a good map to use for a Live in Everett piece, and after those 7.3 miles, my ankle's a little sore. Great walk, though.

My father-in-law turns 75 this week, so the four of us went for lunch at the casino and lost some money on the slots. Actually I think he's the only one that won a little bit. My winning streak is over. Got a good shot of Bella before we headed out.

Most of the food we've had at that casino restaurant his been pretty average, but yesterday's meal was fantastic. They're doing an Oktoberfest special and I had a really wonderful schnitzel plate.

It's a big casino and a bit of a walk for Dennis, so we relaxed for a bit near the side exit where we parked before heading out. They didn't notice me taking this. :)

I really like the cake Bev found. Four types of cake and not too big. I had the carrot, my favorite.

There was also neopolitan ice cream and I normally would not have had the chocolate, but Bev put some on my plate and I had it and kinda liked it! I've been saying for years I don't really like chocolate ice cream because it's never anywhere near as good as actual chocolate. But maybe it's time to try some more once in a while.

Bev was also impressed that I had coffee. I never have any when I'm there because I normally only drink coffee in the morning, but I had a party to go to last night and knew I'd probably be up pretty late.

It was the release party for Smokestackers!, a really cool Everett history book by Richard, my former editor at Live in Everett. I already have the book from the Kickstarter, but I got another copy to give to Bev and Dennis, plus a copy of his book of poetry. They hired Revolution by the Barrel for cocktails, and I'll definitely see if Nigel's available if I ever have that kind of a budget for a party. I don't normally drink whiskey, so I had his Whiskey Smash since I drove myself to the party and needed to slowly sip. I could actually drink whiskey more often in that sort of cocktail.

The party was at Soniphone Records, and the main reason I was there so late was a very informative tour of the recording studio in the basement. The owner Kyle (AKA Johnny Lee Ledford, the first performer), has tons of amazing vintage equipment, including the machine for cutting vinyl record masters, which he uses to directly create records. He can even record on vinyl live, which I had no idea was possible.

Another great part of the party was finally getting to chat at length with my new editor at Live in Everett, Henry. He's not only the blog editor, he also edits the videos, including Banh Meetup and the Fuego Hot Wing Challenge. It's funny, those videos get so many more views on Facebook than YouTube. About ten times as many, actually!

Henry said my recent pieces are killing it, which is great, because I would have written about the walking spots a long time ago if I thought people would be into it. Turns out, they are. I guess we could have timed that a little better, starting a few months earlier would have meant more people wanting to be outside. But autumn in Everett is amazing and they've already promoted the posts using that angle.

10/19/18--07:02: SchadenFriday

10/20/18--05:52: CATURDAY

10/21/18--11:50: The (new) end of the road

Not a lot to report as I've been sick for nearly a week now. Monday at lunchtime, I felt a little tickle in my throat and a bit dizzy, and it was all downhill from there. I'm not at 100% yet, but if I had an office job, tomorrow would be the day I went back. Maybe on Friday, but Garrett got sick Thursday and was in pretty bad shape, so I doubt I'd have left.

I had to get out for a walk this morning, though. As much as I love my house, I can only stay inside for so long. It was obvious when I got there and did my stretches that I've been off the exercise and PT for a while. Stretching my right calf hurt the bottom of my right foot! It's all connected, after all.

After three weeks away, hunting season has started, and the Northern trail has a new terminus, about a third of a mile closer than the last spot where they dug the road out. It's a shame, too, that's a scenic third of a mile. This is the new spot where it ends.

It's a bummer for sure, but I'm proud of all the time I devoted to exploring the areas I can no longer get to.

And it's funny that today of all days I discovered I lost a lot of scenery, because I wouldn't have been able to see much anyway. The fog was just that thick.

https://instagram.com/p/BpNHq0hAgKm

10/27/18--05:50: CATURDAY

BONUS Saturdog

Many thanks to:
Animals Being Dicks
Señor Gif
k00l 4 k@+z
Almost Famous Cats
Cats, Beavers & Ducks
Derpy Cats
FAT CATS
FUCKYEAHFELINES!
CHEEZburger
Every Day is Caturday
Cats and Dogs
And everyone else who happened to put a cat or dog where I ended up seeing it this week!

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10/28/18--13:38: This morning at the marina

I'm not sure I've ever gone to the marina on a Sunday, but I went to my Sunday spot on Friday so I figured I may as well. It was still quite dark when I was ready to leave, so I decided to go get gas and come back for the time lapse camera. I spent even longer doing that than I planned because I was forced onto the highway by a detour that surprised me, so I kept going to Marysville and got gas there. I cut out most of the beginning of the time lapse, and you can tell it was just starting to get good as I got back.

https://instagram.com/p/Bpe4r0eAHLD

10/31/18--07:46: Orange bathroom preview

For years, I've had a bathroom filled with orange decor in each of the places I've lived. The one at the condo was quite understated, but the theme was still there. I decided a while ago that it'll be a long time before we can remodel the downstairs bathroom in our house, and what I'd really like is to wait until we can do a major remodel, updating the kitchenette and adding a bar, maybe even turning the shed into more interior space and changing the size of the bedroom I use as my office.

That won't happen any time soon, but there was an urgent need to refinish the bathtub. Since I had to empty out the whole room to do that, I decided to finally paint the room orange. That's been quite a process, and it didn't help that it was my first time ever painting a room. It looks pretty good, all things considered.

The woman at the tub refinishing business who scheduled the job said they don't recommend using any sort of bath mat on the new surface, but also warned that the new finish is very slick. I don't need any slip-and-fall injuries, so I asked if they can do a non-slip finish. She said yes, I asked for it, and she forgot to tell the guy who came to do it. So he's coming back today to finish that, and I can finally finish the room up.

I already had to do the first coat, a second coat, and touch ups, and now I need to do some more touch ups because I got some of the silver spray paint I used on the orange. It was worth it, though, because the old heater was tan and rusty, and looked terrible.

The cabinet doors are also silver, and I wanted to do the vanity doors as well, but I couldn't remove them. Neither the screws in the doors, nor the ones in the hinges would budge. Oh well.

More to come.

11/01/18--13:27: The orange reveal

I'll have to scrape some orange paint off spots where it's not supposed to be, and use a little more to cover up some spraypaint I got on the wall while turning the heater silver, but the bathroom is done enough to show off.

11/02/18--05:06: SchadenFriday

11/03/18--07:29: CATURDAY

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11/06/18--07:52: Reverse chronological schmupdate

My oldest sister's been in town because my niece just had her second kid, a daughter named Rauri. We met up for dinner last night at Avocados, and I really want this rooster from their front window.

I filmed with Live in Everett yesterday afternoon. I'm still losing my voice a lot, so the timing wasn't great. But I got a service I normally pay $45 plus tip for free (I tried to pay or at least tip but they wouldn't let me) so that was nice. I'll of course share the video when it comes out next week. The lobby where we were is so pretty.

Garrett and I went to our neighborhood joint for brunch for the first time in ages. Normally they open at 11am, but during football season, they open at 9am which is much more aligned to our schedule. And we finally realized we can swap toast slices so we can have two kinds.

Now that so much of the Northern area at Langus is gone, I decided to do the island and the paved part for the first time in a while.

Friday night I went to The Great Junk Hunt in Monroe with Melissa, Christina, and Georgia, and we had a nice dinner at El Lago before. I really like the big windows and view there. We paid extra to be able to go to the Junk Hunt on the first night and it was surprisingly crowded. I was looking for orange stuff for the bathroom and didn't really find anything, and all of us were looking for signs saying "laugh" because I mentioned it's possible to cut them and make them say "ugh." No luck for either. But I got Garrett some nice soaps, and found a cool pig tray, a creepy miniature face pitcher, and fireplace end irons which truly fit with our fireplace and decor.

Steve says hi.

They've removed a lot of the stuff at the ferry terminal construction site and moved the fences that surrounded the whole area in to just enclose the stuff that's still there. The project might be on a bit of a hiatus right now because the bids they received were all too high.

11/09/18--18:25: SchadenFriday

11/10/18--05:57: CATURDAY

11/11/18--18:49: In the thick of things

I figured it was time to revisit the other side of Langus near the boat launch again since it had not only been a while, but so much of the area I've been going to is gone now. And it's hunting season. This morning's thick fog made the river disappear, which was cool for photos.

Here are a couple of fun layout flips I made and the original photos.

More fall loveliness.

The fog was still quite thick and I love that my last turn in the video takes me right out of it.

https://instagram.com/p/BqDHOi8A3JL

Later we had a lovely brunch in West Seattle with a lot of friends we haven't seen a long time. The impetus was Brian's visit, he's the one who took this. Great to see everyone and we made pretty good time both ways.

11/13/18--15:22: Do not doubt my commitment to Sparkle Motion

Recently when I was at the waxing salon, I mentioned that I write for Live in Everett, and the co-owner Brandi who works on me said she really wanted to be on it. She also mentioned that she tried before to get the guys to come down and film, but neither of them would get anything waxed. Of course I volunteered!

I chose Waxology because they encourage men to come in, which isn't always the case with salons. It's also a gorgeous, inviting place, which is very different from some of the waxing closets I've seen in the backs of nail and hair salons over the years.

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