the Walrus and the Carpenter

 Great oyster bar in Seattle.  I love the sign, especially the font!  And the oysters were very good, too.

 Really cool chandelier.

 This gentleman was a very skilled oyster shucker.

Buckets of oysters on ice.

Love the open shelving with neatly stacked items.

 I liked this wall.

Ode to Summer Foods

Now that summer is officially over and it's cold and rainy over here, I've been dreaming about the delicious foods I had this summer.  Ok, some of these aren't exactly summer foods, but you get my drift. 

 Tomato caprese drenched in olive oil.  I miss you already.

Veggie lasagna.

Fried pork cutlets with pickled cabbage and spaetzle from Bratz in the U District in Seattle.  So good!

Morel mushrooms from the farmer's market.  They look very suspicious, but fry them in butter and they taste amazing!

In and Out. (We ate it in 108 degree Las Vegas heat.  That qualifies it as a summer food.)

 The best blueberry jam I've ever had comes from Pike Place.  Canter-Berry Farms.

 Iberian ham in Spain.

 Marinated potatoes and anchovies.

 Hooray for grilled summer vegetables!

 My husband smoked a brisket for the very first time this summer.  It was a little dry, but very delicious!  Isn't that what sauce is for?

The Counter (It's a burger joint)

I have to write about the delicious lunch I had a couple weeks ago.  I didn't have high hopes when we walked towards The Counter and saw their store sign.  Their font reminded me of a Kinkos.  But we had a groupon, so that's where we headed for lunch.

I loved the inside though.  Very clean, modern, lots of stainless steel.  But it was sunny, so I didn't feel cold.  We each got a form to fill out, so we could build our burger.  You get your choice of 1/3, 2/3, or a 1 lb burger meat.  You get four vegetable toppings, one sauce on the side and a whole lot of other toppings I never thought to put on a burger.  (eggs, mesclun greens, chili).

Both our burgers were delicious!  I opted for a standard burger, but with grilled pineapple.  It was amazing!  Grilled pineapple should be a standard burger condiment.  My husband got the chili burger with a fried egg on top.  Not my favorite, but objectively delicious.  The Counter gets two thumbs up!  We'll be back!

Odd Sign

I thought this sign was odd.  Made me laugh though.  At Tutta Bella in Seattle.

Sweet Treats

Amazing desserts from Belle Pastry in Bellevue, WA.  The chef studied in France and his croissants were voted the best by his peers!  This was supposed to be my once-in-a-great-while-special treat place, but it's quickly turning into a more frequent habit.  Everything there is good.  And I mean EVERYTHING!  Pictured above is the raspberry napoleon and a pear caramel tart mousse. Yum!

Stellar Weather!

Gorgeous weather today!  Not a cloud in the blue sky.  Hooray!  This is a spectacular view from, our house (just kidding, I wish!)  This is a golf course up in Newcastle, and although we don't play, it sure is a beautiful spot to check out the million dollar view.

Cherry Blossoms!

April always reminds me of cherry blossoms.  It makes me think of D.C. and how gorgeous the tidal basin is this time of year.  This year, sadly, it makes me remember Japan and how much they are struggling with hit after hit.  They are in my prayers and thoughts.

Photos of Neighborhood Things I Never Notice

Signs of Spring

On Saturday, the clouds parted for about 30 minutes and we had some blue sky.  We saw the first signs of spring.  Then the dark clouds came rolling back and blocked out the sun, so we went to a coffee shop nearby and I saw this. 

my hubby,reading.

Grey Day

Another grey day (is it our third one?  I've lost count.)  I've been consumed with documenting our weather patterns.  Not that there is a pattern to the weather here in the Pacific Northwest.  I call these "Twilight" days.  Ever seen the Twilight movies?  There's a reason they set a vampire movie up in Forks, Washington.  I have to say, we do try to keep a positive attitude about the weather and look forward to our sunny days, but sometimes you just wanna gripe. :O)

Meanwhile, here's some new stuff I've been working on.

I like topiaries.

Unbelievable Cloud Formations!

The cloud formations here in Seattle are unreal.  The clouds to the left look like thick, gray insulation.  Meanwhile, there's a piece of blue heaven just to the right.