uncompacted.

not sure how they do it. but i think i'd ask a peony to pack my luggage any day. how are they able to fit so much into such a tight, little ball?



these arrived as dense, firm spheres with a dear and thoughtful (and expectant!) friend the other day...and started to uncompact themselves very shortly after entering a vase of lukewarm water.

like copper river salmon, peonies have a short but very sweet season.

sun dog.

i like to watch the weather report. i'm not in love with any one particular meteorologist or anything, but some are better than others. a couple of weeks ago, while watching the local 11pm news, the witty smarmier area meteoroligist shared a viewer question and corresponding image. the question was "what is a sun dog?" and it was later explained. not three days later, i was enjoying the weather on a friend's dock by the sound and everyone there couldn't help but notice the almost otherworldly halo around the sun.




the photos don't do it justice, but i tried to capture the image through various lenses (i.e., sunglasses).




from wiki:

A sun dog or sundog (scientific name parhelion, plural parhelia, from Greek parēlion, (παρήλιον), παρά(beside) + ήλιος(sun), "beside the sun"; also called a mock sun) is an atmospheric phenomenon that creates bright spots of light in the sky, often on a luminous ring or halo on either side of the sun.^[1] (formed by ice crystals)

splash of color.

another view from another day, another season, another angle and another place...

needlicious.

on wednesday night i dined atop the space needle.


the view from above was breathtaking...and everchanging, as skycity happens to be one of them rotating restaurants. boy, what will they think of next?


what did i eat, you ask? well, in keeping with my delights-from-the-sea theme, you won't be surprised to learn that i thoroughly enjoyed the cedar wrapped king crab legs.

persistance.

much like you, i have a list of things i simply do not like, and perhaps even hate. however, that doesn't mean i am averse to trying some of the items on the list from time to time (just to make sure i still don't like them...or perhaps have miraculously developed a liking).



i was sure i didn't like shellfish...but little by little i am introducing more into my diet, and perhaps even culinary repertoire. mussels can be all about the broth or whatever soupy (and hopefully garlicky) goodness they're cooked in. so that works out well for me. my transformation started with crab and then to shrimp. while i've always liked scallops, i'm easing into the other bivalves slowly. clams and oysters are still a little iffy for me. but i'll keep you posted.

not something you see every day (part II)

the copper river is in south central alaska and yields some of the best-tasting (and best-looking) salmon i have ever been lucky to taste. but it's not something that lasts. the season just started and it's only available for another month or so. yet, it is perfectly timed for summer grilling.

not something you see every day (part I)

when we approached it as we traveled south on i-5, the conversation went something like:

me: what is that?
him: i dunno, i'll try to speed up and get a closer look.
me: is it...is it...a big fish?!?
him: holy shit.
me: it's an enormous salmon!
him: where's it going?
me: only in washington.
him: that thing is crazy.
me: can you pull up closer? i gotta take a picture.