This Morning
It was very calm and almost warm, but things still showed evidence of last night's rain:










Rainy iris:


















Rainy Calla:
















Wet paw prints:













Cloudy sunrise:

Poppy Profiles



In bloom:


Post-bloom:

Babysitting
Today, I got to watch Ella (Juliet's little sister) while Holly and Robert moved some furniture from my house to theirs. They weren't gone long, and Ella and I had a pretty good time together. You know, the usual stuff: Peek-a-boo, shaking things that rattled, looking at ourselves in the mirror. She also enjoyed chewing on the plastic spaghetti portion measure--but it didn't do a thing for me.
 

Heaven on a Bun...
Hamburger seasoned with Penzey's English Prime Rib Rub, formed into patties. Refrigerated overnight. Grilled over charcoal, topped with gorgonzola, leaf lettuce, red onion, sliced tomato and light mayo served on a lightly toasted bun...
penzeys.com

Three Degrees of Asparagus:
Asparagus at Pike Place, about to be purchased:












Asparagus at home, prepped for grilling (sesame oil, kosher salt and white pepper):












The heat is on: 

Flowers at the Market
These were taken at the florist/flower stall on the corner of 1st and Pike.


 

Water Taxi
Ahoy Matey! This morning I took the Water Taxi over to downtown. There were kayakers leaving the dock at almost the same time we were. A seal also made a brief appearance before we left.












Kayakers + Seal:










Kayakers heading toward Harbor Island:

















Weird view of Space Needle:

City Hall Fourth Avenue Plaza
I still haven't checked out the inside of the building yet, but I find the translucent red wall very appealing from the outside. I actually like a lot of the materials they used on the exterior of the building. I'll try to get some more pictures without arousing suspicion...(taking pictures of buildings downtown isn't just automatically considered good, clean, fun anymore...) 

Dahlia Lounge Little Taste: Tequila and Tacos
So after my virgin mojito at Lola, Becky and I crossed the street to go to this Little Taste event at the Dahlia. They had a taco bar set up complete with the items shown on the menu, however, what is not mentioned on the menu is the heavenly handmade corn tortillas being rolled, pressed and cooked right there too. Mmm. SO good.

Now, onto the tequila: Rob, the Patron rep had many handouts and told us quite a bit about how tequila is made. We tried four different varieties of tequila. And a coffee flavored tequila liqueur. All Patron. All delicious, but some more than others. Gran Patron (at about 200 dollars a bottle) was the best...as it should be at that price. The coffee liqueur was surpisingly good as well. (For better or worse, it was not as sweet nor as coffee-y as Starbucks.) Far better than Kahlua. I'm not willing to say it was better than Starbucks though. (That will require more rigorous testing on my part.)

Then we were forced to try an orange liqueur that they make as well, not tequila-based but designed to complement their tequila in a margarita. After that, again--practically with guns to our heads--we were forced to try some Pyrat rum. (A rum company owned by the Patron folks.) Both of these were very good as well. (I foresee a trip to the liquor store in my future.)

For dessert, I should mention that the churros were served with a warm chocolate-cayenne sauce on the side.

Another tasty and educational evening at The Dahlia.

Salud!

Yesterday's Mojito at Lola
I even requested that it be a "virgin" version of a mojito, as I was going to be heading to a tequila tasting across the street at the Dahlia Lounge afterward. And I must say, a virgin mojito is still quite refreshing. A delightful summer beverage with or without the rum.

Dave's Mojito Recipe:
1 Tablespoon sugar (or 3 sugar cubes)
12 roughly chopped mint leaves
zest of one lime
1/4 cup of lime juice (juice from one lime)
1 1/2 shots of Myers' Platinum White rum (optional, as I just found out)
ice
club soda
Muddle sugar, lime zest and mint leaves together.
Add lime juice and rum (or not), shake with ice, top off with soda

Juliet Rocks Hard!
Juliet loves to rock on the Eames rocker. Last night, she decided to try it upside down. She wants her dad to buy it from us.










Decorating note: We're sick of our bamboo floor, so we've covered it up with cardboard. NOT! The cardboard is there for the duration of the furniture-moving from bedroom to living room and back again...

My Morning
Went something like this:

I don't know what this plant is (as usual), but it's cool and it's very blue, so it makes me think of Granny every morning (that it's been in bloom) when I walk past it on my way to the bus stop.








At the bus stop, I see a tugboat heading out with a barge in tow. Lucky!











Looking east back toward the city. Queen Anne is on the left. The sun rising over the Cascades is in the center of the picture, as are two other early morning beach goers.









Reflection of the Seattle First United Methodist Church dome in the lower atrium portion of my building. I took this right outside the Rainier Club on 4th Avenue. There are plans to tear down the church and put a new office building there. So I should enjoy the view while I can.

Scenes From A Deck
I did it. I took the cover off the table and chairs and washed them down. It's beginning to feel a lot like summer around here.
































This is the reflection of the trees and sky on the tabletop:


















Maple leaves in sunlight. (No reflections here, just the real thing.)