Seattle - May 20, 2018

Panning Makeshift - Danny Woo Children's Garden

After packing up the dry tents in the SWHS Commons with my mom, I headed into Seattle for the day. My form of transportation changed from bus to train after seeing all of the Mariner gear being worn on the ferry boat. The straight shot down the coast was too hard to pass up. Little League day brought the parents and kids out.

Sounder and Clink

I decided to take a stroll up Jackson Street into the International District. The Danny Woo Children’s Garden caught my attention. Wandering in, I noticed several people tending their small plots, fenced in by found objects. The controlled chaos of the scene was quite attractive.

Invite - Danny Woo Community Gardens

Woo's Pair 

Bird Post - Danny Woo Community Gardens

Reminder

Leaving the garden, I enjoyed a tofu, vegetable, noodle dish at Pho Ba. The food was tasty, but the young man slurping his soup, with his girlfriend looking on, invited my deep breathing technique. I paid cash and was invited back by the woman at the register.

Flair

Strength Pose

Later, while enjoying a latte at Zeitgeist, I glanced up from an educational article to see Lars and his friend Chantelle. It’s interesting how people are magnetic; we just spent last week together chaperoning my eighth grade backpacking trip on the Washington coast. There I met Aubrey Birdwell, a good friend of Lars. He spoke about his current installation in Pioneer Square. Later, looking for the work, I ran into him. He gave me the tour. Things were clicking.

Birdwell

Cycle Prayers

I headed down first street and stepped into the Seattle Art Museum, wanting to spend time with the “Untitled” piece by Basquiat. The early 80’s work had powerful street art influences; I was fascinated by the layers of genius.

Linger

Monitoring my time, I slipped into Golden Age Collectables at Pike Place. My friend Christian had mentioned “Northlanders” as being a worthy read. I picked it up after noticing that the Mariners had beat Detroit in extra innings.

Knowing that the train would leave thirty-five minutes after the final inning, I walked at a brisk pace to the Sounder station. Slipping down the rails with a picture view of the Salish Sea is hard to beat.

On the ferry, I grabbed a chowder and took two laps around the passenger deck, looking to strike up a conversation and, possibly, obtain a lift. Sure enough, two former students presented themselves, Bo and Isaac. They had been hiking in the Wenatchee area. Bo promised a ride to Bayview and my eyes lit up. I had a small drink at the Taproom and called All Island Express Taxi for a ride. On the way back to my house, the driver and I had an interesting conversation about her exploits at the local casinos. My one regret was not asking her to stop at Texaco; I’m certain that I missed purchasing the winning Lotto ticket.