because

I need one more book to pack along.....but as my juniors and I had coffee in Poulsbo, we just had to stop at the local bookseller and this book leapt into my hand.

luck for the journey

Think a major part of the charm of Asian gifts, is the gorgeous manner in which they are wrapped/presented.

One of my jr. girls presented me with this good luck hanging; looking forward to hanging it up in my new home.

hot pot

 

V. fun 5th period class today with just the juniors.

One of them had been saving a secret spice packet for us to make hot pot today.  My pores are toxin-free at this point; as their ratio of peppers to water was a bit off.  Another fun day o' class.

puzzles and persistence

One of the usual weekend delights includes a listen to Keillor's rambling radio production; this tagline from Guy Noir felt apropos for this week/summer of transitions:  "A dark night in a city that knows how to keeps its secrets.  But one man is still trying to find the answers to life's persistent questions...."

And while avoiding the last dregs of packing, stumbled upon this song and decided it shall be June's theme song:  Enjoy Yourself.

overwhelming delight

 So, iPhoto decided to load these photos in willy-nilly and I'm too tired to organize them chronologically....so enjoy these fragment bits of my farewell wandertag in Seattle.  The first shot is of the divinely rich mac/cheese from Beecher's at Pike's.

Part of the joy in going to the local chocolatier is how elegantly they treat each purchase; no matter how small.  Wax paper, golden foil, and real ribbon--of which, you get to choose the colour.  And she creates some of the best chocolate I've ever eaten.  Which, is saying something!

 Sparkly sunny water on the ride in.

 Why look!  It's more chocolate; this time from Cupcake Royale.  Needed susustanance for my last Aveda school visit.  (Am pleased to find that they also have a school in downtown Austin.)

 Tried to catch the ferry directly under the sign, but some moronic tourists kept standing in my way.

Am bummed this Ferris wheel won't be up/running until the 4th of July weekend.  What fun and what a view this would have provided!

Aside from the hair fixing, the main reason I wanted to get into the city today was to see this new exhibit by local glass artisan, Dale Chihuly.

Fell in love with glass work during my formative years in Lincoln City and even more during my visits to Venice.  

It's magical to think that heating and twirling sand can create such whimsical sculptures.

Each room I walked into caused me to just gasp and smile and feel like twirling about.  (no, I held still....the teensy vases for sale in the gift shop started at $7000.  So.  Yes, walked v. carefully, but gleefully.)

This was my favorite room; the entire ceiling was covered with these--jelly fisheqsue shapes.

I would love for this to be my dining room ceiling some day.

 It was a bit like a Seuss book come to life.

Or Willy Wonka's world.

Would love to attend a posh party at night in this atrium.

 grass of glass

A gorgeous farewell to this chapter and city.

where are those ruby slippers?

No poetry today; just a pose of my mundane slippers that got a coat of silver glitter paint during the packing/sorting process.  It is amazing what activities one can conjure up to avoid placing things in boxes.

One week to go, but absolutely ready to load up & leave at this moment...

life, condensed

The Viking flags were unfurled today--by wind and rain.

And what better way to procrastinate with the packing than to try to make the aioli recipe that was in the Food Section of today's NYT?  It turned out divine; lightly lemony with garlicky undertones.  If only I hadn't packed my large kettle, I could steam some artichokes to go with this.

Life.  Condensed into 40 sq. ft.