Author: Carl Setzer

Follow Up: Taste Of Edmonds

Carl Setzer

So, just two days ago I was complaining (whining?) about the Taste of Edmonds. And, then, today, well, there I was, walking the stalls. I did find a few food vendors with smaller servings so was able to try a few different items without feeling like a boa that ate a goat.

Ok, ok…it was fine. I actually enjoyed myself and spent several hours there. Of course, part of the fun was running into an old friend who plays in the Michelle Taylor Band. While my wife and son explored the stalls and got henna tattoos, I was able to watch Taylor and Co perform. For me, that was the best part. They have a driving, bluesy rock sound that charged up a wide variety of covers: Tracy Chapman, Adele to Pharrell Williams. It was pretty early in the day, and they still got people out dancing. Got a kick out of watching my chum Jim walk around with his keytar. So, I recommend catching one of their shows. Or, at least, check out their Soundcloud page. Here’s a video to whet your appetite.


Food was ok, vendors were nice. Didn’t like the massive crowd, dust and heat, but all in all, a decent afternoon. So, yes, I enjoyed my time. And feel it was worth the admission. (Our stop at Revelations Frozen Yogurt, though, was glorious). Fine. I still stand by my recommendations/complaints, though. I believe they’d make the event better and more productive to the community. And there you have it!

Thoughts on Taste of Edmonds and Bite of Seattle

Carl Setzer1 Comment

At the risk of sounding curmudgeonly, I’m not a fan of these community events: the Taste of Edmonds, and it’s older cousin, the Bite of Seattle. Perhaps it’s a case of “back in the day” sentimentality, or just that grumpy “get off my lawn you damn kids”, but these events just grate on me. I’m charged an admission fee to wander through booths and buy one dinner (I suppose I could buy several dinners, but I’m really trying to make less of me in the world).

What I’ve seen the past few times I’ve gone are loads of booths, where you buy full meals. That’s not a “Taste”. The value of an event like these is to sample the wares of many (all?) the vendors. In the recesses of my memory, there’s notes about buying a punch-card that entitled you to one sample from each vendor. Perhaps another sign of aging, but if it’s not my memory, it should be.

To be more specific to the Edmonds event, I have another issue: most of the vendors I remember seeing don’t have restaurants in Edmonds. They seem to be, predominantly the same vendors who attend the Edmonds Arts Festival, amongst other area events. Blah!

Add into that the closing of my beloved Farmer’s Market for a day, the masses of traffic that descend into the Bowl, and that the Edmonds Boys and Girls club is displaced for several days, and my aggravation meter pegs high. Maybe that’s the larger issue. Maybe. Still, I’ll be sitting this one out, and back in the area after the madness has passed. But before the streets are swept, I expect.

Road Healing Coming to I-5

Carl Setzer

Generally, the first response when seeing news like this: groans. Ugh, more roadwork! More snarls; slow, slow, slow! I try to think of the long-term with this stuff. Sometimes it works. But knowing that not doing this, not taking care of the preventive stuff only makes things worse. And, maybe, this will result in something better. A better, more wonderful life for us all. Well, one can dream…

New pavement preservation project begins on I-5 next week
A new pavement preservation project begins on I-5 in Seattle and Shoreline next week.
Beginning Aug. 11 contractor crews will start replacing more than 300 old, cracking and failing concrete panels that make up the I-5 roadway. The work is located between SR 104 at the King-Snohomish County line and Northeast 117th Street near Northgate. Crews will start in the southbound lanes and then work northbound. After the concrete panel work is done at the end of October, the crews are scheduled to start grinding the highway. The grinding will start no earlier than Nov. 1. The project will also add a new overhead electronic sign near Northeast 155th Street which will display travel times and messages. Durable, high visibility striping will be added in spring 2015. Thank you in advance for your patience as we begin this work that is so important to keeping commuters and freight moving on I-5.

 

Cycling Backpack/Bag

Carl Setzer

I delight in seeing new bike gear. And I consider Timbuk2 gear “bike gear”. This one looks pretty groovy. (Note: I don’t think I rock the hipster style quite this well.)

Besides the way the back stores your commuting essentials…

…I love the idea of a “ventilated back panel”, especially if it prevents soggy back syndrome. That’s what I’ve always hated about backpacks (and beyond cycling). No air on my back, ooey-gooey-soggy back/shirt. Blech! Yet I like the feeling of carrying gear in a backpack; more comfortable.

So, I hope this works. Whether I’ll pony up the ~$80 for this remains to be seen. I have a rather large collection of bags, and bringing home a new addition has been determined legally justification for kicking me in the shins.

Everett Has Public Pianos, Too

Carl Setzer

Seattle recently launched, in conjunction with KEXP, the Pianos in Your Parks projects. 20 pianos, placed in parks throughout the city, for anyone to play. I find the notion brilliant! Take a moment to follow that link and learn.

Now Everett has launched something similar. See the details below. I intend to check these out.

Experience Everett (EE)
Street Tunes showcases interactive art in
Downtown Everett
Come play one of the 18 beautifully decorated pianos August 6-26, 2014


Street Tunes is an interactive art project, from start to finish, beginning with the commissioning of artists to decorate each piano.  Pianos are placed on the street and anyone can stop and play a tune or just tickle the keys.  Each location has maps so that you can create a treasure hunt of unique pianos while exploring Everett.  The piano with the most votes will be awarded the “People’s Choice Award” by the City of Everett.

See the 2013 Street Tunes pianos’ locations below and for a map, pictures, and an opportunity to vote go to: http://www.ci.everett.wa.us/default.aspx?ID=2129  (Go to the bottom of the page below the map to vote for your favorite! – or  these may work – View Street Tunes: Piano Locations in a larger map Click here to vote for your favorite piano

1.   Scuttlebutt Brewing Co., 1205 Craftsman Way – Buccaneers, by artist Lyussy Hyder
2.   Under the Red Umbrella, 1502 Rucker Ave. – Broadway Boogie Woogie , by artist Si Newland
3.   Sisters Restaurant & Sno-Isle Food Co-op, 2804 Grand Ave. – Music Leopard Lounge, by artist Janet Wold
4.   Sol Food, 1405 Hewitt Ave.  – Mambo Kings Sing Songs of Love, by artist Cheri O’Brien
5.   Everett Library, 2702 Hoyt Ave.  – All Star Piano Players, by artist Cathy Tanasse
6.   Schack Art Center, 2921 Hoyt Ave. – The Jimi Hendrix Experience, by artist Jesse James Jeter
7.   Imagine Children’s Museum, 1502 Wall St. – Intertwined, by artist Amber Forrest
8.   Mermaid Café, 2932 Colby Ave. – Nature’s Melodies, by artist Cassandra Reed
9.   Bite Me Cupcakes, 2811 Colby Ave.  – Meow Art, by artist Cathy Tanasse
10.  Everpark Garage Breezeway, 2816 Colby Ave.  – Pianobots of the 25th Century, by artist Mike Capp
11.  Wicked Cellars, 2616 Colby Ave.  – Epoca Rosso,  by artist Alexander Vincini
12.  Petite Sweet & J. Matheson Gifts, 2615 Colby Ave. – Pacific Coast Rocks, by artist Melana Bontrager
13.  Wetmore Theatre Plaza,  2710 Wetmore Ave. – Night Concerto,  by artist Anna Mastronardi Novak
14.  Café Zippy, 2811 Wetmore Ave. – The Phantom, by artist Jeromy Sawdon
15.  Everett Comics, 2831 Wetmore Ave.  – Summer Reflections, by artist Shannon Danks
16.  Comcast Arena, 2000 Hewitt Ave.  – The Scenic Route, by artist Jody Carlson Cain
17.  Everett Transit Station, 3201 Smith Ave.  – Sun in Raven in Whale, by artists Darrin Hess & Jane Meagher
18.  3231 Creatives, 3231 Broadway Ave.  – Peek, by artist Jules Anslow

Safeway’s Been Acquired By Albertson’s

Carl Setzer1 Comment

One little tidbit I missed earlier this year: Albertson’s is acquiring Safeway. In my humble borough of Lynnwood, we have one of each on opposite corners of the same intersection. With this M&A, I expect that one of the two will be shuttered, especially since part of the justification is the cut costs and improve our competitive position. Especially since they’re surrounded by competition: < 2 mile radius to two Krogers QFCs and a Walmart, with another of Kroger’s Fred Meyer stores just slightly further away.

Safeway always seems to be empty, whereas Albertson’s seems pretty active (now that is completely subjective, so take that into consideration). However, I’ve lived around the area for years, and both stores have maintained continuous presences. So I guess they’re both fine sales-wise, but I anticipate the Albertson’s is stronger. And the Jame’s Village Albertson’s has been in the same location for ages. Thus, if I were putting a wager, I’d lean towards Albertson’s winning out. As I haven’t seen a timeline for this being completed and through regulatory review, we’ll just need to wait for the future to get here.

 

Riding the Snoqualmie Valley Trail

Carl Setzer

Friends texted us Friday evening. We’d discussed riding the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, part of my want-to-ride list for ages.

IMG_5741

We parked and set out from Loutsis Park in Carnation. One side note: Apple’s map/Siri got us near Loutsis, but to a different park .3 miles away. Google Maps was able to get us the rest of the way. The ride was, well, mostly half uphill, with the ride back being down. MapMyFitness does a create job of mapping out the ride, providing all the great geeky details like splits and elevation gain. Here are these details from this ride.

It’s really a nice trail for this kind of ride. Well packed gravel, and, though solidly up-hill, a gentle grade (to be expected from converted train tracks). For us, this was perfect: our group had a significant range of age and skill: ages 6 to early 50s. My son, with one of his friends, rode ahead with me while the rest of our crew adopted a more leisurely pace. I felt proud of my son’s pace and endurance. More good rides ahead for us!

Not much wildlife to be seen, but I’m certain that was mostly a function of the time of day. There are placards warning you how to react to bear and cougar sightings. I kept my eyes open as I’ve never seen either in the wild and would actually like to do so. As there weren’t too many other users, the likelihood of seeing something was a lot higher. Yet we didn’t see much. A hawk or turkey vulture, Stellar’s Jays, and not much else. I thought I saw a coyote, but it was far enough away that it might well have been a dog. Who knows?

My favorite “thing”. This quirky thing: a tsunami evacuation sign in the mountains?

Not what I was expecting to see.
Not what I was expecting to see.

If you look closely at the top of the sign, you’ll see the world “Tolt River Dam Failure”. This is the dam that had folks worried a few years back. The incongruity caught my attention, though.

Summing up: this is a trail I want to ride again.

Fun Event In Darrington Tonight

Carl Setzer

Friends of mine run the Whiskey Ridge Brewery in Darrington, who will be hosting an open house this evening starting at 6:00 pm. More details here. If you’re in the area, or love the region and can spare the time, I highly recommend making the trek. We’re going to do our best to be there.

Friends Facing Challenges

Carl Setzer

Friends, Todd is good friend of mine. The grace he’s shown while facing this challenge has been amazing. We’re trying to raise funds to bring him home, which is frightfully expensive. If you have it in your heart to help, it would be graciously appreciated and help a great local family. Here’s where you can find the details, and stay up-to-date on Todd’s progress.



Spam from Zillow Email Address

Carl Setzer

Hey folks,

I’ve noticed a slough of email from zms-248310770403394@reply.zillow.com. Besides a bunch of messages “We have received your case…”, I also have noticed that any reply to the that address goes to “everyone”. My theory: there’s a bot somewhere that’s taking every reply and blasting itself out. No, I don’t think Zillow has anything to do with it. 

So, my recommendation: in gmail, mark this as ‘spam’, and then ignore it. I noticed that gmail (at least) has been fast about capturing this whole thread as spam.

DO NOT REPLY TO THIS!!!

There isn’t anyone sending these messages consciously. As far as I can tell, there’s no email list to remove yourself from. So, until the bot is located and deleted by it’s host, we can only mark as spam and move on.

Also, make sure you’re running up-to-date anti-virus and anti-malware software. I recommend AVG & Malwarebytes, but the tool is less important that the simple act of using it.