Seattle Tuesday: One Busy Day

I had an agenda for Tuesday, and we not only accomplished it, we outdid ourselves! We started off with a trip to Top Pot donuts. Roadfood had swooned over their peanut donuts. I couldn't wait. When the girl at the counter reminded me that peanuts had been recalled, it was like that shot in the movies when the main character throws their head back and screams to the heavens and the camera pans back up into the sky until you just see the earth and hear the screams of "Nooooooooo".



But the blueberry donut was still dang good. They had such an elaborate menu, the counterperson confided in me that she has never even see a few things on the menu, like the lemon bullseye and she has been there for years. We tried to split a cream filled donut but after already eating one, it was just too much sugar. Even for me. Even for a 12-year-old with an endless supply of milk.





Next we hit the Seattle Art Museum (SAM), newly re-opened after a two-year overhaul.

I have always loved Borofsky's Hammering Man.





I was impressed by Inopportune: Stage One by Cai Guo Qiang, a horizontal version of the vertical artwork I had seen last year in the Guggenheim.

Flying cars test our reaction to unexpected events. Are you seeing the fulfillment of an innocent dream about flying through space? Or is the future hanging by a thread with the ominous air of disaster?

There was a fantastic exhibit of "Edward Hopper's Women". I never really appreciated him that much before, but in person, the colors and brushstrokes were inpressive. At the time, many midwesterners were moving into the big city to work in the factories. His juxtoposition of country bumpkins with big-city loneliness and industrial images is much more striking given the context. His self-portrait, dark and brooding against the black oil painting is in stark contrast to the gentle pastels he is known for.



On the second floor, we moved between the rooms, Textiles, American Art, European Art, etcetera, and discovered a small room hidden away in the corner. The wall described it as "Black Art". We looked at the bathrooms on one side and the plastic sheeting from construction on the other. I didn't want to say anything, but Eartha announced loudly, "Well, that's racist." This kid doesn't pull any punches.

We passed through a section filled with native Northwest art, which always makes a chill run through my DNA. Eartha said, "Look, they have dimples just like your dimples." We passed figures wearing traditional native masks. Even though I have always liked them, especially The Crow, the stuffed human dummies always give me the creeps. So when we hit the top floor and discovered an empty floor inhabited only by masked "characters" I really got the willies.

"African Crowd Control" Mingle with an unusual crowd of masked characters from today's Nigeria. Some are on parade, wearing clothes that indicate whether they are Muslim, British, or of high status.

There was an interactive area with a building made out of blocks. We were dying to knock it down. A security guard busted us - not for knocking down the blocks, but for using a camera in the museum. Killjoy.



For lunch we went to Salumi, a charcuterie and sandwich shop run by Mario Batali's family.





I wanted to order the Porchetta - braised pork with fennel, carrots and celery, but I got the porky names mixed up and ordered the lomo. I also ordered a Salumi Muffo to take home for dinner - hot soprasetta, cotto and provolone with a fresh olive tapenade - the only one on which they mix meats.

Eartha ordered lasagne, which was one of the best lasagnes I have ever stolen a bite of.












After Salumi, we went over to The Science Center, where they had Lucy, the first human being found - an Austriolopithicus Afikanus. I studied her in physical anthropology, so it was very exciting. Anthropologists really are obsessed with the foramen magna. I also learned a lot about the history, culture and food of Ethiopia.

The Science Center had all kinds of crazy stuff for kids, kind of like the Exploratoreum in San Francisco. We hit IMAX 3D. Nothing beats IMAX underwater 3D














The Science Center has all kinds of scary mechanized bugs to freak me out.






Anne and Ed came to the hotel that evening. They packed up Eartha and took her back home. I was kind of looking forward to an evening to myself, but I missed her right away. Luckily I was on my way to meet my nephew Justin, who is going to school at U Dub.

Seattle Monday: More Pikety Pike Pike

I was staring out the window, and I asked Eartha if she might want to go up in the Space Needle. She pointed out that we were looking down at the Space Needle and therefore had a better view anyways. Smarty.





After splitting an eggs benedict and one more viewing of the can't-get-enough-of-it Twilight, Anne picked up Eartha and I Tuesday and we went down to Pike Place. Eartha was a little rambunctious, running around the boardwalk. Anne asked, "Have you been giving her sugar?"
"Of course not."



I got a baffling fortune from one of those animatronic fortune tellers:

Standard setting directives you set must be followed but the important thing is self reformation. The words of appointment for accomplishment are pleasing but the important thing is self reflection. There is nothing you can do to gain complete satisfaction without self reflection. Nor can there be compliance without self reformation. Put loyalty and reliability first.If you have faults do not fear self-improvement.

We started out at a nice fish restaurant upstairs so we could relax, but I knew I wanted fish from The Salmon Cooker, so I just had a clam chowder. For once I forgot my camera, and didn't take any pictures of that meal. Shocker. But then Ed showed up with a camera and I was able to get some photos of the arcade and The Cooker. Here is what I said about it on my last visit to Seattle:

The Salmon Cooker is owned and operated by local indians. They alder-smoke all of their fish. The cod was smoky and flaky, and the chips were done perfectly all the way to the center even though they were humongous. The chowder was intense with the usual Italian herbs - rosemary, thyme, possibly marjoram, but there was one distinct taste I couldn't place. The helpful cook let me in on the secret - mustard seed! Anne loves their coleslaw and can eat 2 orders in one sitting.

This time I tried the halibut with their thick-cut fries. The cod is the better of the two.









The view from our room was lovely, especially the sunset that evening.

Seattle Saturday cont.: Pike Pike Pike

We met up with Anne and Ed and pushed our way upstream to Beecher's where I ordered a grilled cheese sandwich with crab and a small mac and cheese.



The mac and cheese was amazing -- as always, with a bigger cheesy sauce to mac ratio than I remembered. The crab on the sandwich was just gilding the lily really. Dungeness crab is a little fishier than the blue crab I'm used to.









Anne and I went for a walk along the little cobblestone side streets. We startled a group of pigeons, and they fluttered over our heads. One fell short and hit me right in the face. Just like Fabio on the rollercoaster. We were doubled over with laughter. As funny as it was for us, my friend Ellin later pointed out, "I bet that pigeon went home and was like, 'You won't believe what just happened to me!'"

Anne and Ed had Thai food, which looked good enough, then they headed back to the hospital. I noticed we were right next to Cafe Yarmarka Even though I was stuffed, I placed an order for a combination to take back to the hotel for dinner. And a few Eastern European cookies for good measure.





Eartha was coveting my mac and cheese so she and I headed back to Beecher's but they were all out. Denied! I picked up some of their Flagship cheese and Cowgirl Creamery triple cream to take home as well. In addition to the usual guava paste they had a variety of fruit pastes and I couldn't resist the apricot.

We added some lovely raspberries and perfectly ripe blueberries to the growing grocery bag. I made a fatal error in not picking up a loaf of bread somewhere.



But then I spotted the Roadfood-recommended Crumpet Shop. Sadly there was no bread or scones but we got a pack of crumpets. We ordered an open-faced pesto sandwich out of curiosity. It was a little disappointing.







I asked Anne to bring some crackers to the hotel when they stopped in at dinnertime and we all had a nice Pike picnic. The meat pierogie were a tad spicy but far better than the potato-cheese, in which the cheese was barely discrenable. I wish I had gotten some dufferent pastes and another wedge of Beecham's cheese to pack in my suitcase.

Seattle Saturday: Instant Auntie

I got an urgent call Saturday to fly to Seattle. I reserved a hotel near the hospital and headed to the airport.

After a visit to the Medical Center, we had a late dinner at the little hospital take-out. We headed back to my hotel so everyone could take a break. My friend Anne's 12-year-old daughter Eartha hung out for awhile. Then I just kinda kept her. And I didn't give her back until she had to return to school. As much as the fluffy bedding might have helped her feel more comfortable during a rough week, Eartha's boundless energy and fearlessness were exactly what I needed. (her name has been changed, and yes, she picked her own).



Sunday morning we ordered room service and cozied up in our beds watching Twilight. Little did I know that was going to be one of many, many viewings of Twilight. Eartha figured out that if you paused the movie 5 minutes before it was over and rewound it you could watch it over and over and over...





We hit Pike Place market in the afternoon. There was a huge crowd, it being a long weekend.



Sadly World Class Chili is no more. Most likely due to the recent loss of the owner, Joe Canavan.

Mr. Canavan died Nov. 11 2008 while vacationing in Maui with his wife of 48 years, Dorothy. While snorkeling for the first time, he took in water after possibly suffering a heart attack or stroke and died the next day. He was 78.

Mr. Canavan had bounced back from a heart attack in 1980 to run a marathon and climb Mount Rainier. More recently, he had returned to the Market after a hip replacement.

Luckily there were still donuts. Fresh out of the fryer, they are the best donuts in the world. After sitting for a few hours, they are pretty comparable to grocery store donuts.







I can't get enough of the market.