I'm just a cock-eyed pessimist

Just got back from a super late dinner at the Honey Court restaurant in China Town. It warms my heart that while the bourgeouis burghers of Bellevue are sleeping in their beds, young Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese, and Philipino kids (and some young families!) are just eating dinner - and really packing it away, too. This place had practically no decor other than the golden walls, but I got a real kick out of the rice served in big thermoses. Worthy Opponent got Pork Chow Mein (enough to serve 4 people) and I got the Chicken Hot Pot (off of the anniversary menu - I think I'll go back for the $8.95 1/2 Peking duck), and we both ate plenty. I probably should have got the duck, or ordered the Prawns with Peaches and Lychees done with chicken (yow!). And I discovered they're having the International District Festival this weekend along with everything else ... I guess we'll have to walk over tomorrow and check it out.

We also saw Rivers and Tides, but I'm too tired to write about it. I have to go clean up my old kitty's mess now.

Across America, people were mixing Bisquik, pouring Insta-pancakes, and popping PopNFresh into the oven, in preparation for a meal with fake maple syrup and a heavy flavor of baking powder (you need extra to cope with the shelf life). Meanwhile, in a little house in the tattier end of Seattle, one household was grating lemons, cracking eggs, and blending fresh-picked raspberries into cottage cheese. Yep, we had raspberry blintzes for breakfast today, and damn they were good. We know how to do breakfast right over here.

Found one of my favorite songs of all time on line today ... "Part Time Punks," which I now know is by a band called "TV Personalities." I've sung this song to myself a million times (Gary from Tracks in Wax, the record store in Phoenix I worked at my freshman year in college, used to sing it all of time making fun of the customers), and I'm not sure if it's more hysterical that the situation is still exactly the same today as described in the song or that I found this on a web site obsessively discussing the songs Morrisey played before, between, and after his concert sets on his 2002 tour. Of course, if you were to ask Worthy Opponent, he's probably say the most hysterical thing was watching me play along to the song as it played on the computer, thanks to some sweet little Flash tool that shows the chords as the song plays.

Just got back from a very successful venture to the International District Street Fair. We had dim sum at the Honey Court (not too impressive but we didn't give them much of a chance: Top Gun is still number one), hit the bank at Uwajimaya and picked up the how to draw Manga book that I lost in Albuquerque at Kinokuniya, then walked back up through the street fair with bubble teas in our hand from the place across from Shanghai Garden. Now we're very full. Next weekend is the Danny Woo Community Garden's annual Pig Roast (roastin' Friday, eatin' Saturday) and the Bon Odori Festival Saturday and Sunday, plus my brother in law is coming into town Saturday night and I'm supposed to get together with my brother and some of his wedding party at some point that weekend. Man!

Am now hoping to go to Lynnwood to the Talbot's Outlet Store and see sallysimpleton's new puppy. The store is open, but is she home?

Just like that, my summer is totally full now. I just wrote about next weekend, but the weekend after there's the Gun Street Girls on Friday and the final day of Brother in Law on Saturday. The next weekend it looks like we're going to Portland to see Jared and Julia, the weekend of the 9th is going to be all about kayaking (full day trip on Sunday), the weekend of the 15th Worthy Opponent is going to San Diego for a wedding (and I could go to Dragonflight or see the Vancouver Early Music Festival), then there's my sister coming out the next weekend ... and the summer is over!