One Day of Pretty

My folks came for a visit last weekend. Somehow, each time they come up they manage to have a beautiful Saturday. Sundays usually are rainy or are cold. But, Saturdays somehow turn out to be beautiful. Such was the case last weekend. We went to the Bellevue Botanical Gardens- the weather was fantastic, it actually hit about 75 I think. There were only a few clouds in the sky and all the cherry blossoms were out. I have such a hard time picking my favorite time of year. I love the Spring, when everything is starting to bloom, and it is just gorgeous. I love fall too - when all the leaves turn crimson and gold and it starts to get cold and I can bust out the sweaters and boots. But this last Saturday was just plain pretty.

Of course, this week we are back to crappy weather, there is talk of snow this coming Saturday, and I am really wondering where the heck Spring has gotten to?? Don't get me wrong, I love the cloudy, rainy weather here. But I am ready for some sunshine. Some Spring time. I'll be down in Los Angeles and San Francisco in three weeks, so I guess I will have to wait until then!

New posts with pics of the townhouse to come...

It's.....Spring?

On the drive home last night it started to sleet. Then it turned to big, fat snow flakes. And by the time I got home and changed into comfy clothes this was happening outside:






Um, it is nearly April, right? It was pretty though!!

I've Always Been Too Old For This Shit

I ventured out tonight, the night of all holy and horrid nights for those of us who are unattached. As NPR coined it "National Singles Awareness Day" a.k.a Valentines Day. I figured what the hell, I'll go out with a few other co-workers who happen to be unattached. So we did. We signed up for a singles mixer and paid our (ridiculous) fee to attend tonight's event at a nice Seattle bar/restaurant. Now, don't get me wrong, these types of events are fine, may even lead to something. However, tonight? Not so much. Tonight four beautiful women walked in and soon realized that we were knee deep in desperate. And not the fun, funky, hip desperate of your twenties, where you could at least count on getting asked out/made out/got laid at the end of the night. Oh no, this was the horrible, jaw dropping, almost (but not quite) humorous desperate of the thirty to forty somethings. The kind where you wonder what the hell you are doing in this room, with all these people, with a half-assed DJ playing semi-decent hits from the 80s, and then want to kick-yourself-for-actually-paying-money-to-attend kind of desperate.

I was talking to a woman who seemed to be in her early forties, and she said she was considering moving because while she had met many very fine women here in Seattle, the men had little to be desired. And, while I am sure this was not exactly a great cross-section of men to base an opinion on, being that it was Valentine's Day for god's sake, still I had to wonder if she didn't have a point. For example: One of the gals bought the first round when we arrived. I then asked everyone if they needed a second round, in front a guy who had been chatting us up for the past 10 minutes. Said guy, turned to my friend after I walked away to place the order and said "Oh, I guess I should have gone to get you all drinks." Um, hello? Yes. You are the man. Pay for the drinks for the women you are trying to chat up. I know, it's not cheap, and maybe you aren't sure if you want to invest in drinks for 2-3 women at once, but for fucks sake, be the man, grow some balls, and at least OFFER to buy them. Or place the order. Or make some sort of gesture that verifies that you produce testosterone. If you see a woman that you have been talking to that is holding a nearly empty glass, realize that perhaps she could use a fresh libation. Think about it. The very least is you waste $8-$10, the most is you liquor her up enough that she may actually want to continue talking to you. Or, *Gasp*, she may even think you are a gentleman and say yes if you ask her out. But when you watch her friend walk away to the bar to get a drink, and you do nothing, then don't be surprised when we move on. I'm sure there is some anthropoligical explanation somewhere about it, but women (and when I say 'women' I mean 'me') want you to take the damn lead and pretend you know more than the 21 year old bartender that I am now ordering my drinks from behind the bar. For Fuck's sake.

Happy National Singles Awareness Day.

Holy Cow- It's Been a While!

It's been over a month since my last blog posting, life just gets hectic sometimes! I just got back from visiting Payal and family in Hawaii. Wow, what a great place to live! It was lovely and sunny and warm (well, we had a nice debate about that- Payal would get cold and when it hit 68 degrees. Hmmm.... it snowed a few days before I left Seattle, so I think we have different views of 'cold').



I got to spend quality time with her, which is by far more time than we have spent together in the last 10 years. I got a fantastic shot of the girls, who I adore:




And this is the beauty of Oahu:



Maya decided that I had to teach her to knit, so we went out and got her a little starter kit. She would see me knitting and run and get her needles and 'thread' and sit next to me. It was one of the cutest things I have ever seen, and the best part was that she took her knitting in for show and tell to her kindergarten class the day I left. She is such a great kid, I love her with all my heart. Her little sis, Kayla, has a smile that warms your heart, and I was there just in time for her 2nd birthday party, which was all kinds of fun. I miss hearing them coming down the stairs calling "Masi???" (Aunt in Hindi).

Got back to Seattle and had a lovely weekend- went to the Pike Market on Saturday and had one of those rare gorgeous days where there is hardly a cloud in the sky and the water was sparkling. I wished I had my camera with me, but it was sadly at home. Sunday night we had a few inches of snow, which meant I was stuck at home since I couldn't get my car up the driveway. I tried my hardest, but just managed to get about halfway up and then lost traction and started sliding backwards. Let me tell you how much fun that is!! Since I am a So.Cal girl originally, I have NO idea how to drive in snow. And, I have found, not many people here in Seattle are that great at it either. So I got to work from home on Monday, and then it was back to the normal grind as usual this past week.

On the knitting front, for those of you who are keeping track, I am about to start a sweater for Dad. My first full sized sweater, so this should be interesting. I just have to seam the tank top I made for Kayla, then I can mail that to her. Of course, I have about 3 other WIPs on the kneedles, and a dozen other projects that I have waiting in my queue of things I want to make. My next start will be a felted bucket hat. Perhaps I can get that done prior to my parent's visit in a few weeks. It's been so cold lately that I think that will help my mom stay warm. :)

Anyway, I hope to post more often, but that is the latest update!