Fremont Blog

More Naked Biking

2008-07-11T20:15:00.001-07:00

Looks like tomorrow there will be more naked bike riding going on in case you didn't get a couple weeks ago from the summer solstice parade. I guess every neighborhood has their schtick, ours just happens to be naked bike riders.

R.I.P Sonics

2008-07-02T21:50:00.000-07:00

I've been absent from blogging lately, but figured I'd hop back on the saddle for a little venting about the Sonics officially leaving town. I guess we all kind of knew that this day was coming when that sellout Howard Schultz sold the team to an out-of-town ownership group who clearly had no plans on keeping the team. It's amazing to me how dumb really smart people can be. I blame bennett the least in this. Even though him and Stern wanted out from the beginning, he overpaid for a something that was for sale. I'd say our city and state government is naive at best, and incompetent at worst. I'd rather vote for Don Imus for president of the NAACP then these assclowns. So much for there not being a dollar amount that would make them break the lease. Even if a new team comes a few years down the road, it won't be the same. The worst part of it for me is knowing that we'll never be able to see Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp's jersey's raised to the rafters. I could go on, but I figure the best thing to do now is go back to my fridge and hope I'm not out of beer.

2008-03-20T07:47:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite parts of living where I do is the convenient locations for all kinds of outdoor activities. With the weather getting better and the days getting longer, it's nice to come home and still have a few hours of daylight to play with. I usually try to split my time between working on my golf game and going on a nice run.

For golf, I either go to the course over in Interbay or the tiny course at Greenlake. The course in Interbay is great because it has a big driving range, nice putting green, and 9 holes if you want to get out and play for real. The best part is that it is cheap as well. 9 holes is $13 and a medium bucket of balls is only $8. The other golf course is a tiny little par 3 course on Greenlake. Par 3 is pretty generous since there isn't a hole over 80 yards. Still fun to go hack around a little bit.

I've decided that since I sit at a desk for 8+ hours/day, getting some other physical activity going is a good idea. I usually end up either running through and around the streets of Fremont or head up to Greenlake and run around that a time or two, depending on how tired I get. Greenlake is also great because of all the tennis courts and other possible outdoor activities around there.

I just hope that I'll be able to keep my motivation going through spring and hopefully summer. I'll check back in later.

Joule

2008-03-12T16:32:00.000-07:00

I was browsing through the seattle metropolitan magazine the other day and came across the section where they talk about new restaurants in the Seattle area. They main restaurant that they featured happened to be in 98103. It's a restaurant called Joule, with two NY-transplanted chefs. From what I've read on their site and the magazine, it sounds like something that I look forward to trying as soon as I get the chance, which unfortunately I have no idea when that will be. It's conveniently located on 45th and Burke. Judging from the prices, it looks like a place you'd want to take a girlfriend/wife/or some sort of special occasion. Part of why I'm excited to try it is because it's been in my limited experience since moving here, that most of the eating options aren't geared towards finer dining, with a few exceptions. Anybody who gets the chance to eat there before I get a chance to post, feel free to leave a comment.

Fire

2008-03-06T18:34:00.000-08:00

I made the unusual decision to drive to work this morning. As I approached Aurora today I noticed how unusually slow traffic was moving. I merged into the stop and go traffic when I noticed flashing lights up ahead up on 39th. My first thought was a bad car wreck. As I got closer I realized there was a house that was bellowing smoke. There were no visible flames and everyone appeared to have made it out ok when I drove by. I found this article in the PI that was able to explain more then I could. Thankfully everbody was ok and they didn't lose their whole house.

Finally!

2008-03-05T17:26:00.000-08:00

So after months of procrastination I finally made it into the the sports card shop on Fremont Ave. that I have wanted to go to since I moved in. I finally pulled the trigger while walking up to the market to grab a few items. It was everything one would expect. I thought one of the best parts about it was that it didn't have a lot of high priced memorabilia all over the place, just a lot of stuff us less wealthy fans would want to own. Sometimes lesss is more when it comes to sports card/memorabilia. Everything seemed to be cheap too.

Part of the reason I wanted to go was to browse whatever collection of Griffey card they had. To my delight they had a big binder dedicated only to him. I was only interested in the M's cards though. Unfortunately, I already own a decent amount of the cards that were in the binder. This led me to believe that either I owned a ridiculous amount of Griffey cards, or the selection wasn't actually that big. Could go either way. They had a lot of other things too that I didn't spend a lot of time browsing. All I know it's a good stop for those of us who still have a little bit of youngster left in them. I know next time I stop in, that I won't be leaving empty handed.

Fremont Bridge

2008-02-29T16:21:00.000-08:00

Came across this article today while browsing the PI. Short story shorter, Fremont Bridge will be closed at various times next week.

They're Grrrrreeaat (Clips)

2008-02-28T12:23:00.000-08:00

At first I was pumped about having a hair cutting place so conveniently close as Rudy's is. However, after 1 visit I decided it wasn't worth it to me. Not only was it expensive, but also I walked away feeling pretty unsatisfied with the results. Obviously I am in the minority since it seems busy all the time. I just figured for the simply hair style I have, I could save myself a decent amount of money and drive a little bit further. The Great Clips on 86th has always treated me well. I've always had great results whenever I've been there and they are friendly and there is never a long line. Pretty much the perfect situation if you ask me. They also seem genuinely interested in getting to know their customers. They are always calling their customers by first name as soon as they walk in the door and seem to pick up conversations where they left off last time they came in. Reminds of the small, hometown barbershop I grew going to. For those of us on a budget it is also a better bargain.

I understand that the chain places like Super Cuts can be a bit sketchy sometimes. We've all had our own bad experiences with those types of places. That being said, with the amount of customer retention they appear to have and quality I have experienced, they seem to have strayed far away from that stereotype. I would suggest this place to anybody. I would also recommend James if you get the chance.

herfy's

2008-02-21T15:19:00.000-08:00

Finally got over the hump and stopped in Herfy's burgers and teriyaki the other day. Since I moved here, I wanted to stop by but haven't been able to bring myself to make the trip. I was always a little offput by the "burgers and teriyaki". It always seemed like an odd combination to me. Finally I made it in, and the first thing I noticed was the low prices. Everything across the board was cheap. I tried their basic chicken teriyaki dish. Marginal is the word that comes to mind. But, you get what you pay for. I still want to try some of their burgers other offerings. I found out you can call in your orders ahead of time too for takeout. All in all, I would say Herfy's is a great spot if you're looking for a cheap, decent, and convenient place to eat, but nothing more.

V-Day in 98103

2008-02-14T12:34:00.000-08:00

Fremont doens't offer a wide variety of fancy restaurants for hallmark holidays like Valentines Day, but it doesn't provide a few different places for a more casual(and in my opinion, preferrable) environment. The Swingside cafe located across from the Buckaroo Tavern on 42n/d and Fremont Ave. It's real small, so that might be a problem. But it is well hidden and I've never seen it very busy, so you might be able to sneak in and beat the rushes at all the other high-end restaurants. If you do want to go the fancy route, I'd suggest Kabul on 45th in Wallingford.

New developments

2008-02-12T17:44:00.000-08:00

News recently hit of a new shopping center in Greenwood that is in the works. I haven't spent a lot of time in Greenwood, but have come away with a favorable opinion whenever I have spent time up there. There have always been restaurants and bars that have caught my eye and made me want to go back and check them out. Issues of building large shopping centers like this always raise the same issues/controversies. This one has the added element of having environmental concerns since apparently the new shopping center will be located on a bog(which I didn't know existed up there). So not only are the normal concerns for small businesses and residents there going to be problems, the environmental concerns are going to raise a lot of questions as well. I suppose I had to take a stand somewhere, I would say build the thing. Without knowing what exact stores would go in, I think that it would give a solid alternative to some of the other shopping locations.

Also, apparently I was wrong about Mike Huckabee not having a chance in the Washington republican primary/caucus(not sure what it was exactly). From the sounds of it whomever is in charge of calling the vote one way or the other pulled the trigger a little soon. Now Huckabee is demanding a recount. Thankfully I highly doubt that this will turn into our own Florida circa 2000 drama.

Shooting

2008-02-08T15:28:00.000-08:00

We've all been through the painful "just in case" fire drills and what not, thinking that nothing was going to happen. The same can be said for school shootings after Columbine a few years back. Apparently there was a gunfight near Ballard High School today and they were forced to go into immediate lockdown. Goes to show that as much as they suck most of the time, they can turn out to be worth it.

A taste of the Middle East

2008-02-08T11:14:00.000-08:00

Last night I finally broke through and experienced a local 98103 restaurant that I had been interested in since I moved here. Kabul met all of my expections I had going into it. Ever since I had moved to Seattle, I had never been dissapointed in any of the ethnic cuisines that I was introduced to. The dining area was smaller then I expected, but overall ambiance was great. The staff was fast and friendly. I was surprised at how small the menu was, but the food was great. The mushroom appetizer was awesome, which says a lot because I don't even like mushrooms. The entree was even better. I wish I tell you the name of what I had, but the names were hard to say, let alone to write. In a nutshell, it was a lamb kabob with rice. That doesn't paint the right picture, and come to think of it I wish I would have taken a picture. I would say the one downside is that the food is on the expensive side. Still worth it if you're looking for a nice, quiet, and quality meal. Also, beware of where you park since we got to our car to find a $44 parking ticket. There isn't a parking lot, so if you can't find a good place on 45th, make sure you're not parked in one of the casually labeled residential areas. I'll save that topic for another post.

A sign of things to come

2008-02-07T15:11:00.000-08:00

On my regular morning walk to the bus stop this morning I was happy to see a sign sitting near the bus stop saying that the Fremont Bridge is closed. It wasn't set up yet to inform people, but they were obviously getting ready to close it in the evening. One of my biggest complaints about the area is how they never give any warnings of when the bridge will be closed until you actually get there. My frustrations with this have been pretty well documented at this point.

In the interest of being fair

2008-02-07T14:15:00.001-08:00

I dug up some information on the republican side of the primary season. Much to my surprise, John McCain IS going to make an appearance in Seattle before the caucuses. This is surprising to me for a couple different reasons. The first is because Mike Huckabee has about as close to 0 chance to win here as you can get. His pull is centrally located down south and we're about as far away from there as you can possibly get. John McCain knows this too. That is why I'm surprised that he's wasting his time here when he's obviously going to win here, especially with Mitt Romney exiting the race. The other reason I'm surprised he's coming is because he's more then likely not going to carry the state when the general election comes. Even though he is more moderate then many republicans would prefer, he's still going to have a difficult time stopping the Obama or Clinton machines in what is already a heavily democratic-leaning state. I guess we'll have to see what happens.

Anyways, any GOP supporters can find places to vote here

Get Ready

2008-02-07T11:57:00.000-08:00

As I was said in my previous post, and even moreso now that "Super Tuesday" didn't settle anything(probably made things more confusing), Washington is finally relevant in the primary/caucus process this election cycle. Now that the politicians feel that we're important, both Dem. candidates are scheduled to be in Seattle in the next 24 hours. For those of you who want to hear the same stump speeches that have been recited thousands of times by now, here are your options.

First to bat is none other then Hilary who will be speaking at Pier 30 at 8 p.m. tonight. Barack Obama will make his appearance here on Friday at 11 a.m. for those of you that want to skip work.

These speeches don't do any good if you don't get out and vote. You can find places around King County to participate here.

I'll hopefully post some Republican information shortly.

Super Tuesday Frenzy

2008-02-05T16:37:00.000-08:00

For months it seemed like all the election shenanigans have been so far removed from our state. That perception changed recently with a subtle knock on my door Saturday afternoon. I was taken away from my weekend sports-watching routine to pledge my unbinding support for Barack Obama. Then last night it finally happened. The first two political 30 second tv ads of the election year. Oddly enough, they were Republican ads. I figured they would use their money and place the ads in areas with a strong republican lean. There have been countless amounts of debates that have settled virtually nothing. The guys who were expected to be front-runners stayed that way while hoping to avoid their own personal Howard Dean Moment. The west coast has largely been ignored up until now, and that's only because California is in play and could decide the nominees. That is all set to change with the Washington Caucuses next weekend. I haven't been able to find any scheduled visits by our new prospective commander-in-chief, but I'm sure that the annoying, redundant ads are sure to increase over the next week. I'm just glad that I'm not from Iowa or New Hampshire where they have to put up with this nonsense for months.

More snow

2008-01-29T15:23:00.000-08:00

I realized that I hadn't posted in awhile, so that I figured I should probably hop back on the saddle. I was planning to write about the recent snow that we experienced recently and make more jokes about how people can't even drive a little bit. Then I realized that the last post I had before my break was making fun of the bad snow drivers. So I will spare you all the redundancy, and just say that I saw nothing that made me change my mind.

I do know that the last two days the #5 has been incredibly off schedule. With the (really light)snow on Monday, I can kind of understand that. But today is a different story. This morning was no different then any other early Seattle morning . It wasn't snowing. There was no ice at all. Just a the normal light rain. So imagine my surprise when I had to cram on the bus because it was jammed full. Apparently people were still scared from the snow that no longer existed. Hopefully tomorrow things will be back to normal.

Chaos no more!

2008-01-16T16:37:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning was a treat. I got a front row seat to the pathetic excuse for driving displayed by the citizens of 98103 with a little snow and ice on the road. Aside from ALL 4 of the #5's getting stuck on 45th and Greenwood(which my fellow 8:16 a.m. bus catching crew and I didn't find out until about 8:45) and standing there unnecessarily for 30 minutes, I couldn't have had more fun watching the panic ensue. I had always heard of the unthinkable terrible Seattle drivers whenever there is a snowfall, but it didn't prepare me. I have to admit, that I took for granted my eastern Washington upbringing and our ability to navigate in less then ideal conditions. I also admit it was definitly a little slick, but not as bad as people made it look. I know this because after finding out that the buses were going to be late, I hopped in my 2-wheel drive 1997 Chevy S-10 with bald tires and motored downtown so I could get my work day started. I had heard from people I work with, who have lived here a lot longer then I have and also around the country, that Seattle has the worst drivers in America. Now I'm in no position to say, but disregarding any DOT statistics, I have to believe that we're up there. Also, atleast I don't have a Tuesday morning transit story like this.

Also found this interesting piece on the front page of today's PI about the Google office in Fremont(which I didn't know was even there, along with the other big company offices). I'm trying to figure out when they get any work done. Sounds more like a day of R&R then work. I work in what can be described as a casual work environment, but this blows my work out of the water. Maybe I'm just old-fashioned.

Best place to watch the big game(s)

2008-01-11T14:44:00.000-08:00

One thing I wish Fremont had more of are great sports bars. It would provide a perfect balance with all the other fun bars that come along with fremont. Researching on OpenList confirmed what I had already suspected as well. Sure you can probably go watch the game at The Ballroom(but why waste your time) or Norm's even. If I'm going to a bar to watch the big game, and luckily this weekend has 2 of them, I would head outside of fremont. I have to admit that I only put one bar to watch the games because I haven't had a chance to explore that many sports bars since I moved over here. I hope to rectify that soon. I encourage feedback as well.

So here is the best semi-local place to watch the big games in my opinion.

- This is easy, and anybody who is a Coug already knows of the Village Pub in Magnolia. Its a moderate drive from Fremont. You're not going to find a better bar to watch a Coug game at. They have Coug merchandise all over the place, tons of tvs so no matter where you are and how busy the bar is, you will be able to see the tv. The tricky part is that the game is at 11:30, so I'd get there as early as you can since it will undoubtedly fill up fast for this huge game. If you're not a coug, no worries. Great environment, drinks, atmosphere, etc. Just don't wear any UW apparel and you should be ok. Also, if you're able to make it and sit through the Coug game, they will be showing the 'Hawk game after so you can get 2 great games in a fun, festive environment.

BEWARE!

2008-01-09T16:11:00.000-08:00

Sorry to regurgitate another story from the local newspapers, but this story about a serial flasher that is locally relevant and kinda funny at the same time. I couldn't resist This whole scenario is eerily similiar to the Women's Appreciation episode from season 3 of The Office. It kinda makes me wonder how police go about bringing these kinds of people to justice. Do they put undercover officers along the jogging trail hoping to catch a glimpse or use Dwights method? I know if I was a cop assigned to this case I would hope that the guy turns himself in

some people never cease to amaze me

2008-01-04T16:28:00.000-08:00

After reading this article about the police finally arresting a "fortuneteller" after scamming almost 1/4 of a million dollars out of another woman, I thought that the police had gotten it half wrong. I think that the police should arrest the woman who gave them all that money and sentence her to an equally harsh sentence. How delusional must she be to spend that much money to get, not her husband, but boyfriend back? I don' think it matters how in love with him she was, he obviously wasn't that great of a catch. I can only imagine the how much the two women must have been laughing when they accepted all that money. Like I said, some people never cease to amaze me.

Don't hear this everyday

2008-01-04T13:20:00.000-08:00

In the spirit of the Iowa caucuses, I decided on a post with some political leaning. I found this article in my morning newspaper browse about Gov. Gregoire and her plans for the Alaskan Way Viaduct. I gotta say its kind of refreshing to hear a politician not going with the typical politician-speak and actually speaking forcefully on an issue. I, like all 98103 residents use Aurora/viaduct regularly. Tearing the whole thing down like the Gregoire said, would change things drastically. I also know since the Minnesota bridge collapse this summer, there have been times that I have been driving through it and had visions of our own similar nightmare. Regardless of political affiliation, you have to agree that its good to hear our state's leader take a firm stance on an important issue. Lets hope this gets resolved before we actually do have to tear it down.

well... better luck next year

2008-01-02T14:25:00.000-08:00

With all the excitment of experience my first New Year's celebration in Seattle, I was a little dissapointed. Not because of a lack of fun. My hangover the next day is enough evidence to dismiss that idea. It wasn't the people. They were the ones that helped contribute to the hangover. I'm talking about the fireworks show at the Space Needle. I was pretty excited because I didn't have to leave my apartment to see them. All I had to do was go on the rooftop deck at my apartment complex. Apparently there were some technical difficulties that caused all the problems. It's not something that I'm going to lose any sleep over. Better luck next year

what was your first clue?!?!

2007-12-28T15:07:00.000-08:00

From the Department of Redundancy Department, I am revisiting yesterday's post because I found this article about the Tiger escape in the San Francisco Zoo that killed 1 and injured a few others. According to zoo officials, the wall seperating the tiger from people was too low. YA THINK! The tiger escaping and killing someone wasn't evidence enough of that fact? My favorite part of the article is right under the headline where it says that the wall being too short MIGHT have contributed. Really? I also enjoyed the part where it said the wall was "far shorter" then they thought it was. Little bit late to come to that conclusion isn't it? I'm sure that makes the vitcim's parents feel better too. And not only were they off, but the wall was about half the height that they thought it was! Not like it was a foot or two either. They were off by 8 feet on what they thought was a 20 ft. fence! I would think that someone would have wandered by on the way to feed the damn tiger and noticed that the wall seemed a little low. Lets hope that after these guys lose their jobs at the zoo that they aren't in charge of building the suicide-prevention fence along Aurora.

Tigers Oh My!!

2007-12-27T10:15:00.000-08:00

By now I'm sure most people have heard or read about the tiger that escaped from the San Francisco Zoo. This story has made the rounds at very newspaper and broadcast. I haven't had a chance to go to the Woodland Park Zoo, located in 98103, and I assume that they don't have any tigers there, but I'm sure they are looking into all their safety barriers after this news broke. Imagine enjoying a leisurely stroll through WPZ and enjoying all that comes with it, only to have tiger escape and maul you to death. Equally as crazy, think about witnessing that from inside or some place else. All I know is that there are probably a lot of people who have some explaining to do.

Dad Watson's knows best

2007-12-24T16:58:00.000-08:00

Surprisingly I made my first trek to Dad Watson's today. It's in a great location on Fremont Ave. across from the Dubliner. Also a surprisingly large crowd for a day-before-Christmas lunch. Obviously the work crew was caught off guard as their 3 person staff was struggling to keep up with all the customers. It was probably worse for the one cook that they had working and putting together an almost full restaurant's load of orders. I'm going to to reserve my judgements on the service until I get a chance to come in when they have a full staff working. The food was great though. I also didn't try any part of their large beer selection, which includes nitro beers. I'll revisit those aspects next time I find myself there.

revisiting...

2007-12-20T15:01:00.000-08:00

an older post regarding a new park they were building in Fremont, I stumbled across actual park Web site. It has a name now too, the Fremont Peak Park. Apparently it is now open for business. I found this link while browsing a neighbor blog in Ballard. I had actually forgot about it, but now I have a renewed energy on trying to make it there to check it our for myself. I'll cut this post short now, not only because my last one was so long, but because since I haven't been there yet I don't have any worthwhile comments to make.

Where do I begin...

2007-12-18T15:41:00.000-08:00

So I was doing some local blog browsing in the local papers and came across this article in the Seattle Times. I'm not sure where to begin with this article because there are so many things worth mentioning/venting about. Anyways, the story is about the Aurora Bridge that connects Fremont to Queen Anne. Long story short, our state government is dedicating $1.4 million to building a suicide-prevention fence along the bridge. Without trying to sound insensitive, why?!?!? Not because I am in favor of people killing themselves, cause I'm not. It just seems like there is a better use of tax dollars than blocking one method of suicide and presumeably leading them to another. I'm no expert in suicide, but it seems to me that building this fence is just going to delay the inevitable. What person, who is obviously down on his luck is going to go the bridge for that fateful jump only to realize that a fence has been built and then all of a sudden realize that their life is worth living? Not saying it won't/can't happen, but I'd be willing to put my money on the fact that they will be able to think of another method finish the job. I'm not doing a real good job of being sensitive, I know, but I like to think of it as being realistic. My point is that people who want to kill themselves for whatever reason it may be... are probably going to find a way to do it no matter what our government tries to do to prevent it. That's all.

The peak of amazement, however, came from reading the part of the article that talked about previous suicide-prevention methods which included putting up signs encouraging people to seek help and installing phones on the bridge to call whomever helps with these kinds of things. My mind was pretty well blown after reading that. I would love the opportunity to sit down over a nice frosty brew(I'll even buy) with whomever thought that was a good idea and ask why. Thats it. Nothing else needs to be talked about. Just for my own curiosity. Just think of the man power that was wasted making and putting up these signs and installing these phones, and the problems that it could have been put towards. One possible alternative would be organizing support groups for depressed people, among other possibilities.

The one part of the article that was interesting to me from a fact standpoint, was the part that the bridge is the second most suicide committed bridge in the U.S... only behind the Golden Gate Bridge. Suddenly the time I was driving across the bridge and there was a lone woman walking along peacefully with police chasing after her made sense to me. Maybe she saw one of the signs or used the phone, I have no idea, but it looked from my standpoint that she was just minding her own business and the police were chasing for no reason.

Also, 2006 interestingly enough was tied 1972 for the 2nd deadliest year with 9 suicides. 40 people have jumped over the last decade, but compare that to the 25 at the Golden Gate Bridge and we're getting dominated (thankfully I might add).

Well I just reread through this whole thing and I suppose I should end this post/rant now and stop talking. Anybody who reads this(if anybody even made it all the way through), I would be curious on any feedback/opinions.

Fat Facts

2007-12-18T10:06:00.000-08:00

I was doing some browsing for other 98103 related blogs and came across this article in the PI archives from September. With all the talk about the ever growing obesity rate across the country, the residents of 98103 can be proud that we are the thinnest zip code in the Seattle area. According to the article, a lot of it has to do with the close proximity of fresh markets and the availability of fruits and veggies. Central Seattle and Bellevue are under 10% obesity rate, while residents of south Seattle are over 20%. Burien, Kent, Renton, and Federal Way zips all check in with over 25% obesity rate. Check out the map to see info on the whole area.

kinda makes you wonder

2007-12-17T10:35:00.000-08:00

I was browsing the P-I today and came across this article about some of the restaurants in the Seattle area who have been cited for health code violations. The article is a little more in-depth then I would even care to know. It got me thinking of how many times I have eaten at a restaurant that had less then ideal food handling practices. The article talks about cockroach infestation, sick workers, amongst other violations. Anybody who has watched Kitchen Nightmares with Gordon Ramsey has seen some of the disgustingness that can happen. Luckily, none of the restaurants in the Fremont area were cited in the article. For now I'm going to stick with my food policy of "...see no evil..." when it comes to eating out. Seems like to best way to make sure I'm not paranoid.

its never too early...

2007-12-12T13:54:00.000-08:00

to think about your New Years plans. Even though I hardly know what I'm going to be the following day most of the time, this is just one of the activities going on around Fremont for New Years. Nectar will be hosting its annual "Off The Hook New Years Eve Bash". Sounds like it is going to have a couple live funk bands that will keep the party going. This will be my first Seattle/Fremont New Years experience, so I'm pretty excited to see what all the bars have to offer. I imagine it will be a larger/wilder then normal crowd, so I'm planning on getting there early.

isn't that nice of them

2007-12-11T13:34:00.000-08:00

Found an interesting article in the P-I today about apartments, rent, and housing around Seattle. Apparently we should all feel lucky because our rent is about $100 lower then the "expected" avg. rent was thought to be. I know I will sleeping better tonight.

Victory!

2007-12-07T10:22:00.000-08:00

Ok, this doens't have a lot to do with Fremont, but it's close enough. For those who didn't know, the big WAZZU/Gonzaga game took place Wednesday night. Unfortunately, FSN decided against all reason to show the game to a wide and captive audience in the region. Needless to say, myself and a bunch of other Coug/Zag alumni migrated to the Village Pub in Magnolia. It was great because not only was it a great atmosphere and an even better game, it also served as the location for a pseudo-date. Don't worry, she was just as excited about the game as I was, so I didn't feel bad about not going out to the fancy dinner/movie routine. Plus who needs all that pressure anyways? It served as a great location for a low pressure, fun night. My only complaint is the amount of people there made it a little stuffy and uncomfortable at times, but overall it was a good night. I'd highly recommend it anytime you want a place other then your couch to watch the big game. They have TV's everywhere you look, even at every table so you don't have to worry about having a blocked view. The food was also real good, a little higher quality then normal bar food and the drinks were priced right as well.

A nice cup of Jo

2007-12-05T10:39:00.000-08:00

I have to admit that I haven't had a chance to check it out for myself, but I have heard a lot of good things about a local Fremont coffee shop. Cafe` Ladro is the name. I've heard everything from a nice, friendly environment to overall quality of the coffee itself as just a few of the perks of hitting up this spot. It's located on 36th, so if you're already down in the main area of Fremont, it provides you a good place for a little caffeine pick-me-up. To be completely honest, I usually prefer these kinds of places over chains like Starbucks, SBC, and Tully's. I'll give another update once I get a chance to check it out for myself.

Oops...

2007-12-04T15:40:00.000-08:00

So I was a little hard on the Mayor and City Council in my previous post. I found some pictures that made me grasp how much rain we actually took on. I still stand by my point that we should have been better prepared and should continue to work towards being better prepared.

Simply stunning

2007-12-04T10:46:00.000-08:00

Shortly after publishing my previous post, I did some browsing of local blogs. I came across the "Big Blog" in the P-I to find this article that left me completely dumbfounded. Apparently our Mayor and City Council members aren't hip to the fact that inclement weather has a tendency to hit here in the winter months. One only needs to think back to the huge storms we had last winter which left thousands of people powerless and in some cases homeless. I'm not saying he is to blame for the flooding and everything, but it seems like after what happened last year we would have taken steps to better prepare ourselves for this kind of weather. I also understand that with the amount of rain that fell there were bound to be problems. I'm not sure what or who to blame for this. Perhaps it is pure ignorance, or government bureaucracy, or lack of funding but whatever it is needs to be fixed. Newsflash, Seattle has its share of bad weather. Get together, talk about it, and figure out something that we can do to not have as many problems when this kind of weather hits.

Rain Rain go away...

2007-12-04T10:32:00.000-08:00

I'm sure you've all read or heard from some sort of media that its been raining in Seattle. Shocking, I know. This wasn't the rain that I had gotten used to since I've been over here though. Usually its just a normal drizzle that doesn't amount to much cause everybody is so used to it. Yesterday however was more drastic. You couldn't walk outside for more then a couple minutes without getting soaked. Couple that with the wind and it made it real uncomfortable to everybody. Even though we did have road closures, mudslides, flooding and other problems, it definitly sounds like the worst of it was in southwestern Washington on the coast. You can't even drive all the way down I-5 for the next couple of days because of some of the damage. Luckily, I live on the 3rd floor of my apartment complex, so I didn't have to worry about a lot of things that other people had to worry about (flooded basements, houses, etc.). I did figure out real quick yesterday when I went to catch my bus that it was going to be an interesting day weather wise when at the bottom of the stairwell in front of the door to exit the building there was a huge puddle that has overtaken the entire floor. Luckily it was all cleaned up when I got back and we didn't lose power because of the wind or anything. Between the snow over the weekend and the massive rain yesterday, this is shaping up to be an interesting week weather-wise.

Snow?? Seriously?

2007-12-03T09:43:00.000-08:00

Moving over to this side of the mountains, I assumed that I had put my days a trudging through the snow behind me for the most part. I figured that there would be fluke days where we would get snowed on maybe, but not like it did on Saturday. Imagine my surprise when I looked out my window to see and Eastern Washington type snow fall. Lucky for me, it was mostly gone by later in the night, but still! Anybody who knows me can tell you my disdain for the white stuff. Hopefully this is just a one time thing this winter. I would rather have it rain everyday in the winter then have snow.

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'Tis the season

2007-11-30T10:53:00.000-08:00

Although it seems like this will be my first Christmas without snow, its kind of cool to see all the lights going up around the area. I am always amazed at peoples dedication to their Christmas decorations. It seems like as soon as the the clock strikes midnight after Thanksgiving, people are gung-ho on putting up their decorations so they can be the first in their neighborhood. Although I probably won't have any decorations, it is still fun to see people get in the spirit.
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Caribbean Vacation

2007-11-26T11:24:00.000-08:00

Ok not really, but this was about the closest I am going to come for quite awhile. After being prodded everytime I spoke to my brother, I stopped in a little hole in the wall eatery called Paseo's. Apparently well known among the locals, and now I can see why. It looks like a little hole in the wall store, which it kind of is, but don't let that fool you. It is an easy place to miss too when driving up Fremont Ave, so you have to be on the lookout. Its a couple places up from the Buckaroo Tavern and if you keep your window down, you'll probably smell it. Anyway, it offers up a menu of caribbean inspires sandwiches and entree's. Prices are reasonable, service was great(and fast), and most importantly the food was great. A little messy, but that has never bothered me before. Its safe to say I'll be back more and more.

walk this way...

2007-11-21T11:15:00.000-08:00

I found a link to this Web site that apparently grades communities on their "walkability". I guess they just take into account everything around you from grocery stores, bars, restaurants... pretty much everything. All you do is just type in your address and it pops right up along with distances to local places. After typing in my address, I was proud to see Fremont score an 86/100 on the walkability scale. Apparently that means it is "very walkable", although not quite up to a "Walkers paradise". Maybe one of these days....

The downside of Fremont

2007-11-20T09:30:00.000-08:00

I guess this is only a downside depending on which one of the two main universities you attended, but since this is Apple Cup week I am ultra-sensitive to all things purple and gold. It never really bothered me too much before, but because of the circumstances this week, I have noticed a lot more people around my neighborhood declaring their allegiance to uw through a number of mediums. I know I know, Fremont is within a few miles of the uw campus and a decent number of current uw students live there, but it is still bothers. Especially since I don't have a good feeling going into the game on Saturday, but I will be sporting my Wazzu garb proudly and come the weekend I will be at husky stadium cheering on my team... I'm just praying for the best

Blast from the past

2007-11-19T10:24:00.000-08:00

So I was walking home from the bus on the same route that I have walked numerous times, only to realize that I had been walking by a hidden gem the whole time! What is it you say? A sports card shop! I have no idea what the name of it is, but its located right on Fremont Ave. towards the top of the hill. Now, I realize that this isn't something that a lot of people would get excited about, but I used to be an avid card collector in my youth and I used to plead with my mom to stop whenever I saw one of these shops. I didn't have a chance to go in because it was closed, but I will surely report back once I get the chance. I'm just hoping they have a steady collection of Griffey cards still in stock, even though it probably won't be good for my bank account if they do.

Neighbors

2007-11-15T10:52:00.000-08:00

I decided to do a little research on the demographics in 98103 zip code. I didn't dig too deep, I only went to the U.S Census Web site to gather all the information I needed. No big surprises, over half the people in the zip code are my age and are recent college graduates. There are very few young and old people around just as I had suspected. I didn't do any sort of income analysis of the people around or anything, but if I run out of things to talk about, I might look into that more later.

Fremont bridge mystery solved

2007-11-14T09:03:00.000-08:00

Remember those posts a little while back about the Fremont bridge being closed at night without any warning or anything? Well I promised I would find some sort of explaination, and while looking through some local blogs, I finally found something. It was convenient because last night I was hanging out with the same friends, playing the same video game, and came home at about the same time and would have made the same mistake if I hadn't came across this article.

Wind

2007-11-13T09:16:00.000-08:00

After hearing about the chaos that came from the big wind storms last year, I was expecting the worst last night with rumors of big wind storms that were going to be sweeping through the area. Much to my surprise and delight, the storm didn't hit anywhere in Fremont. From what I could tell, nobody lost power anywhere in my area. I read about huge winds pretty much from Bellingham to the coast, but not where I live. There were reports of some pretty intense damage to cars, homes and businesses, but from what it sounds nothing like the chaos of last year. I have to say though, the best part about not being hit was getting to watch the 'Hawks slap the Niners around like we usually do on MNF.

Buses

2007-11-12T13:26:00.000-08:00

One thing that I started to notice about the bus I take every morning (Bus #5) is that has been consistently showing early for the last couple of weeks. Lucky for me I've only been burned by that a couple times since I've adjusted my morning schedule, but it is still irritating. I would much rather have the bus show up a few minutes late then walk out of the street in the morning and then see the bus I thought I was going to catch pulling away. Atleast when the bus comes a little late, its only going to cost you a couple of cold minutes sitting there waiting. When it comes early and you barely miss it, it costs you usually around 15 minutes of standing there wondering when the next one is going to come. Maybe its just the time that I choose to catch the bus, because it seems like the other times are hit almost spot on. I'll be sure to check back in if this problem continues.

In case you didn't have any plans...

2007-11-09T09:22:00.001-08:00

Found this little tidbit in the PI blogging section about a mini festival thing going on in Fremont on Saturday. I unfortunately won't be here this weekend to partake, but it sounds like this event could be like disneyland for Fremont beer drinkers. Apparently its a yearly thing too, so maybe next year.

fool me once....

2007-11-08T09:41:00.000-08:00

so this relates to a previous post that I had about the fremont bridge being closed at night and nobody putting up any sort of warning until you get within about a quarter-mile from the bridge itself. I figured it was a one-time thing that night. Apparently I could not have been more wrong because I came back from the same friends house, at about the same exact time, so find the stupid bridge closed. Apparently they didn't read my blog and learn that they should have some sort of notification. Hard to believe, I know. But until I have reason to believe otherwise, i will be taking any alternative route.

its like they read my mind

2007-11-06T09:12:00.000-08:00

One of my biggest frustrations since I moved over here has been some of the bikers that seem to think that they own the roads. I understand that a lot of people are doing it for convenience and environmental reasons, and thats completely respectable. It just seems like sometimes there is a disregard for people in cars. Now I would never condone swerving to intentionally intimidate anybody on a bike, but I have had my moments of peak frustration. I think this idea passed by the City Council is a big step in the right direction. I have no idea how long it will take for this project to be completed, but the sooner the better.

this pretty well sums it up

2007-11-05T09:00:00.000-08:00

Although this isn't necessarily a Fremont thing, its a greater Seattle area issue and I deemed it appropriate to put in my blog. Also Queen Anne where the Sonics play is just a couple minute drive down Aurora, so its close enough. But I felt that this article pretty well sums up what everybody in the Seattle area who are Sonics fans thinks of Sonics owner Clay Bennett. This article was interesting to me for a couple reasons. One was because of the content, and two because it came from one of ESPN.coms better, more well known writers. This issue hasn't received nearly as much national media coverage as it probably deserves, so it was nice to actually see something that was more then just a quick mention on Sportscenter. Of course, we also all know that the rest of the country sees Seattle as an extension of southern Alaska, so it was good to read something this strong from someone who has no background from the Pacific Northwest.

Wow

2007-11-02T09:57:00.001-07:00

With my brother in town for a few days this week, we got to discussing about how busy we both are and all that stuff, when he brought up that he gets his groceries delivered to him. This blew my mind. So I did a little research on the Safeway Web site and sure enough, right there on the main page was a link to submit your information to have everything delivered. Now we've all heard Jay Leno's of the world make the same jokes over and over about how fat and lazy we are getting in our country. I can hear their jokes about something like this now. I know from my perspective, going to the grocery store or whatever is usually a welcomed event in my night. With the exception of going to work, I rarely have a good reason to leave my apartment. So most of the time I find myself looking for excuses get out and wander. Now I can understand why people would do this, I mean having food delivered right to your front door makes one less thing you have to worry about. It just just never seemed to me that going to the grocery store was a major inconvience in the first place. Of course, I say all this now but I'm sure in a couple of months thinking to myself that it doens't sound like such a bad idea afterall.

Surprising

2007-11-01T13:31:00.000-07:00

I was a little surprised and dissapointed at the lack of trick or treaters out and about last night. Maybe it was just my area that suffered, but I expected to see more then just a few little guys around. If I had a guess I would imagine that it is because there a quite a few apartments around where I live, but there are still plenty of houses that were ripe for trick or treating.

Halloween Sweetspots

2007-10-31T15:11:00.000-07:00

For those of you who are gonna go out trick-or-treating, here are some of the hotspots... I don't know from experience, but if the Times says so it has to be true

Bridge

2007-10-31T09:33:00.000-07:00

I have no clue why, but whoever the people are that are in charge of this kind of thing, never seem to think to put up signs that tell people like me that the Fremont Bridge is going to be raised for an extended amount of time until you actually get to the bridge. That happened to me last night for the 2nd or 3rd time and it's starting to bother me. I understand that there are going to be times when they have to keep it raised for whatever reason, but I wish they would put signs further then 20 feet away from the bridge so that there is a little warning before you get there. It doesn't take too long going down to and through Ballard, but I think if they gave better notice before people get to the bridge, it would give people like me the chance to take a different route home.

Found this in the Times today

2007-10-30T10:45:00.000-07:00

Didn't know Fremont had room for a place with a view like this, but who doesn't enjoy a good park... Sounds like it has some potential. I will update you whenever I get the chance to head up there

One of the best parts...

2007-10-30T09:56:00.000-07:00

about living where I do is that the traffic is never really too much of an object, regardless of what part of the day it is. Obviously sometimes are going to be a little worse then others, but for the most part you can navigate anywhere on Aurora in a reasonable time. That being said, I'm going to contradict myself a little bit today because for whatever reason, the traffic on Aurora has been a little busier. I first noticed it last night on my busride home from work. It took what seemed like forever to get from where we merged onto Aurora to across the bridge where we exit off. It was one of those things that we were just inching along, and then all of a sudden it was full speed ahead. I've never understood how you can go from stop and go traffic to wide open in about 2 seconds. That is one of the things that I think will continue to baffle me throughout my life. Traffic was also a little busier this morning when I got a ride downtown from my brother. Now its hard to complain when we were still constantly moving and the people on were just sitting there. I have no idea why it has been this way recently, but I'll check back in later to see if things have gone back to normal.

I'm all for...

2007-10-26T10:05:00.000-07:00

supporting local stores that have to compete with national chain stores, but sometimes its just too convenient not to. The other night on my way home from work I stopped by the small market on Fremont Ave. to pick up handfull of items to stock my fridge for few days. I filled up my basket, maybe about halfway up, and walked to the counter to see my total come up to $50. It wasn't like I was buying big name brand products either. It pretty much made my mind up for me that anytime I need more than one or two items, I'm going to go to the Safeway in Ballard. I understand that they can't possibly lower their prices to compete with the large chains cause they will go out of business quick, but for a guy my age who doesn't have a lot of extra money laying around it just makes more sense go as cheap as possible, even if that means going to the Wal-Mart's and Safeway's of the world. The best thing that the little market has going for it is its location. Its hard not to swing by when I'm on my way home sometimes cause it is so conveniently close to my apartment, but for about double what I would pay at a large chain, I will probably keep those trips to a minimum.

Hello World

2007-10-24T10:49:00.000-07:00

I figured since I am a recent college graduate and I am living on my own for the first time, I figured this would be a good way to spend some of my newly found free time. I just graduated from WSU (Go Cougs!)and for the first time, I don't live with atleast one other roommate who is around to get me in trouble or stay up late playing video games with, and doing all those things that college kids do. To be honest, I don't mind it one bit. For one thing, after work its nice to sit on my couch by myself and relax to whatever is on TV that night. It was a little bit of an adjustment at first, but the transition went pretty smooth. Also, after recently going back to Pullman and visiting some old friends of mine who are still in school, I can honestly say that I am glad to be moving on and begining a new life in the "real world". Don't get me wrong, I had a blast visiting people and enjoying all those unique things that Pullman has to offer, but I don't think my body could take the college lifestyle anymore. I know it will probably sound funny to a lot of you, but after living there for four years and having as much fun as I possibly could, it really does feel like a different country over there. Obviously, the town is dominated by thousands of 18-22 year olds, most of whom are atleast 4 hours away from home, so that lends itself to some pretty outrageous fun. I'm sure all of you have heard stories, and yes they are probably true. It really is unique in a lot of different ways that you can't really describe unless you have spent a lot of time there. But like I said, I had to move on at some point.

Anyway, I recently moved into my brother's old apartment in the Fremont district and I'm loving every minute of it. It was convenient because I moved over here to find work just when he got promoted to go down to San Francisco for his job. He was looking to move into a condo or nicer apartment anyway and was going to end up getting rid of all his furniture/appliances/etc. So it worked out perfectly that I could take over his lease and inherit all his stuff in what turned out to be one of the more fun places to live in Seattle. It saved me a ton of money not having to go out and buy new everything since I hardly had any stuff at all to begin with.

Before I moved here I had limited experiences with Seattle, only being here for maybe a week or two at a time and most of it spent at my mom's house. It hasn't taken me long to get used to life over here. I thought it would take me longer to adjust to taking the bus, getting used to taking taxi's home on weekends instaed of walking like I was used to, the weather, traffic, getting used to everyday thigns being more expensive, etc. One thing that helped me transition was figuring out real quick that this area was a hotspot for a lot of people my age. So it is nice on weekends to be able to meet up with friends at my place, walk a few blocks down the hill and share in some good times with people who are my age and going through the same experiences. Its also nice because two of my best friends over here live in lower Queen Anne and Capital Hill, two of the other entertaining areas over here. Most of my time is spent exploring Queen Anne or Fremont though. I don't usually leave my house much during the week unless its to the grocery store, so most of my exploring comes on the weekends. Even though I spend a lot of time on the weekends sitting in front of the TV watching the Cougs, Seahawks, rooting against UW, and watching pretty much any football I can, I still find time to find all the fun bars (I've been pretty successful at that) and cool places to eat.

One thing that surprised me is how quickly I have figured out how to get myself around Seattle. When I had spent time here before when I was visiting my brother or my mom, I could not have been more confused on how to get anywhere. I knew just the very basics. I-5 took me N/S, 99 took me to my brothers, 405 is the exit I took of I-90 to get to my mom's, and that was about it. Now I surprise myself at how fast I picked it up and figured everything out. I realize now that it's not really that hard to figure out, but growing up in a small town and then moving to Pullman, it was definitly an adjustment. Whenever my brother would take me places downtown I had no clue where I was and I was just along for the ride. Now I walk around areas that I actually know now and run into those same bars or restaurants or whatever and it kinda makes the whole thing come full circle for me. One of the ways that helped me figure out how to get around here was getting lost so much. A lot of time i was on my own trying to find certain places and I had no idea what street was what or where it was or any of that. So there were a lot of times that I would get myself lost and at some point would luckily run into an old landmark that I recognized. That made things tie together a lot easier for me. I'm sure there were better methods, but that was the one that worked best for me. Thats not to say that I don't have my moments where I get myself turned around and have problems getting back to where I need to go, but it is definitly a lot less frequent now.

Anyways, all my blogs won't be this long, but I figured since it was my first one I would give everybody a little background on myself and give a context for future posts of mine. My plan is to basically provide information and my opinions on anything and everything that has to do with the Fremont area. It could range from weather and my apartment to food and bars or just about anything. Honestly I'd be a little surprised if anybody actually read this whole thing, but if you did hopefully it killed a couple minutes of boredom for you.