Looking to the south
Lake Union and the city
These brilliant lights
One of my favorite views of the city. Something about the sparkling lights reaches into the deepest recesses of my mind.
Tag: seattle
Compline at St. Marks Cathedral
Every Sunday night at 9:30, Seattle’s St. Marks Cathedral hosts compline. For those not versed in Anglican church history, compline is sung evening prayer, harkening back to monastic traditions. They’ve been performing this weekly for decades.
It was compline that attracted me to the Episcopal church. After attending the service for several months, a friend of mine and I tried regular worship. And I became a member there, staying for several years. Met several of my dearest friends there, and it’s s key piece of my faith journey.
Many years ago, KING FM started broadcasting the service live. At one point, they shifted to playing a recording of the week prior. I’m listening to that right now.
I’m flooded with memories. Of this massively diverse array of humanity and it’s conditions. There are millionaires sitting eith street people. All are welcome, and all hold the moment holy
Someday soon I hope to introduce my son. Such a deep, powerful and rich part of my life, and Seattle’s. I want it to be part of his experience, too.
Discussing Coffee
Coffee came up several times for me today. Ok, well that sounds like a case of indigestion. Coffee came up in discussion several times today. Which got me thinking…
Coffee holds a special place in my life, and my heart. First: well, coffee goes back to childhood. I adored smelling coffee brewing growing up. Loved the feel of the old Starbucks in Pike Place, back when there were spices and stuff. That very first espresso. The sophisticated feeling of sitting in cafes. Oh, so very much delight in the old, old feels.
Being a broke college student post-Navy, the cafes on Capitol Hill, Queen Anne and the U-District were important haunts. Places to study, to read, meet friends; so very critical at that point of my life. Low cost style and elegance.
For just over 5 years, I worked on the Corporate Social Responsibility team at Starbucks. For a year before that, I was part of the Public Affairs team, within the Global Communications group. I lived and breathed coffee during that time. That’s where I learned about roast curves, growing regions, different flavor profiles, the agricultural impacts upon the coffee, as well as the “processing method” and the instrumental way that impacts flavor.
I got to gently counter disparagement to my former employer. Even though I was laid off from there, nor is it my favorite coffee (that honor is tied between Ladro and Tony’s right now). (Fun fact: Tony’s was roasting Ladro’s beans until very recently). Yet I think highly of Starbucks, both in the coffee quality as well as the quality of the company. Several of my dearest friends came out of that experience.
Also, I went by Narrative Coffee’s space again, and saw Cafe Wylde. Both are places I want, well, need to try out. And I think I should write more about coffee here. Kinda fits a “Not Just Seattle” theme, don’t you think?
Care to recommend other coffee establishments for me to try? I’ll need to craft a list of my explorations to-date soon.
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The Season TransformsÂ
Sun flows into through glass
Counting days for routine’s return
Crisp mornings, sunlight hidden
Shall transform into damp,
Gray tranquility
A Haiku About The BC Fires
I guess I’m lucky. My major impact from these fires has been increased sneezing. It might also play a part in the migraines I’m fighting these past few days. There are many folks for whom this is seriously debilitating. I’m glad that’s not me.
Any way, as I’m want to do, here’s a haiku for you.
Seattle vs The HeatÂ
I’m not excited by the expected high temperatures over the next few days. Sure, for much of the world, these temperatures are not considered hot. In western Washington, though, this is near inferno.
This region is often described as “temperate”. Our relatively narrow band of temperatures makes those of us adapted to it very uncomfortable elsewhere.
My ideal band fluctuates between the upper 50s to mid 70s. Hence why it seems Seattleites are perpetually complaining about the weather.
Funny that we generally don’t bother with AC, considering this. It’s not hot enough to spend money, just enough to air grievances. And so we go. Fortunately, we tend to cool significantly overnight.
Stay comfortable my friends.
Housing market concerns for greater SeattleÂ
I’ve read several articles the past few days that give me pause. The rise of housing prices is the center. And the fact they’re outpacing wage growth deeply concerns me.
There’s a significant population who’s losing their ability to afford basic subsistence in this region I love. Many friends of mine, who’ve lived here their whole lives, and some for generations, who are getting priced out.
I know the many see very few basic entitlements: life, liberty, and perpetual servitude.
In seriousness, I wonder what we can do. Market forces are hard to resist. We’ve tried things like rent control and minimum wage increases, to varying degrees of success. Our ability to game the system are limited. We tend to end up with unintended consequences countering our efforts.
I firmly believe there are solutions out there which will provide stability for the less highly compensated, without spiking home price inflation somewhere else.
I work to not be a cynical free market catalyst. Tis often a challenge. I shall grab a hold of hope and embrace optimism.
Some Recommended Regional Real Estate Reading
Here are few articles that feature important information about the greater Seattle area:
- Seattle home prices rise at more than twice national average, as U.S. tech hubs see biggest gainsI know most everyone is aware of the regions housing prices and the issues they’ve spawned. It is valuable to have quantitative info to support the feeling. 13.3% year over year is quite a statistically significant increase.
- Seattle’s software job openings outpace Silicon Valley’s: more jobs, more demand for housing, prices shall continue to rise. Positives and negatives, my friends
A new band to me: Fell From A Star
My friend Anna, over at Anna’s Transformation mentioned a band, Fell From A Star in her recent post. I listened to their song Made of Diamonds, which I think is pretty good. Love the vocals along with the harmonic blend. If you have Spotify, you can stream their album Made of Diamonds, which I’m doing now. They’re also on Google Music, if that’s your jam. I expect they’re on Apple music as well, but I’ll let you search them there. :)
Give them a listen today. If you like them, they’ll be playing tomorrow out in Woodinville. The price is quite fair.
Anyway, definitely check them out.
Sakura-Con
Presented by the Asia Northwest Cultural Education Association, Sakura-Con is the oldest and most well attended anime convention in the Pacific Northwest. Member attendance for Sakura-Con 2016 was over 23,000 individuals, with most members attending all three days!