Ask almost any person who doesn't live in Seattle about our weather and you're almost always going to hear the word “rain”. In reality, we don't get a lot of heavy rain but have many days where there's at least some. This past week, however, was very different, as we had a historic heatwave.
Read MoreThe 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing is getting a lot of deserved attention, and there is a lot of media coverage and documentaries. Even in just the past ten years, a lot of great items have shown up in various media forms.
Read MoreIt's been 75 years since FDR signed Executive Order 9066, so I went through to see what photos I had of my mom's family while they were in Jerome, Arkansas. I don't have any photos of my dad's family in Gila River, Arizona.
Read MoreMany things happen with the beginning of a new year, among them the Seattle Times' annual Pictures of the Year event at the Seattle Library. We've gone every year, and the event has become quite popular, completely filling the Microsoft Auditorium.
Read MoreWe heard an interview with Virginia Wright last week at the Seattle Art Museum. She’s well known in the area for her art philanthropy. The interview was part of KUOW’s Front Row Center series, and Melody is a big fan of Marcie Sillman’s work on the series of events.
Read MoreFame is both fleeting and fickle. It's some sort of combination of hard work and luck, the exact combination being different for everyone. One's rise can be slow or meteoric. And you only have a little control over how long you stay (or how many times you rise). Knowing all that, it's still exciting to see people get their chance.
Read MoreI only met Don Nakanishi a couple times, but the first time we met (for only an hour or so) he very nearly changed the course of my entire adult life. He passed away early this week.
Read MoreAfter several years of waiting, the new Sound Transit Link Light Rail stations by Husky Stadium and on Capitol Hill are now open. There was quite a bit of fanfare this weekend, and Melody and I went to scope things out and ride the new segments.
Read MoreI’ve never really felt comfortable with public speaking, but I’ve done enough presentations and toasts that I've worked out how to cope with the process. They've all been small-time gigs, for sure.
Read MoreI'm fortunate to not have color blindness (that I know of), but it's still interesting to know more about what it is, and once you realize that, how you can give people a workaround for certain kinds of color blindness.
Read MoreKing County Metro is testing all-electric buses in the Eastside, with hopes to use them to increase transit service without increasing greenhouse emissions.
Read MoreI saw an article in the Seattle Times about the UW regents voting to demolish the More Hall Annex. This decision is controversial, and the building itself is far from usual.
Read MoreAmazon made a foray into the brick and mortar world by opening their first physical bookstore in Seattle. It's in the upscale University Village, less than a half hour away from their South Lake Union headquarters. While there seems to be quite a lot of interest around the store, there doesn't seem to be the large crowd of people you might expect.
Read MoreFor the last few years we've gone to the annual Seattle Times Pictures of the Year presentation at the downtown Seattle Public Library building. Each year the work of a couple staff photographers are highlighted, and they get to tell the story behind some of their favorite shots. This year's event was a couple nights ago, so of course we went.
Read MoreWe enjoyed last year's Seattle Times Pictures of the Year presentation so much, we made sure to go again this year. Not only are we glad we did, but we remembered to get there early enough to grab good seats. In fact, we sat very close to where we did last year. The highlighted photographers this year were Steve Ringman and Erika Schultz.
Read MoreThe Chicago Sun-Times made news by laying off all 28 of their full-time staff photographers. It's not surprising that a lot of people have begun to rally behind the photographers, especially since the paper is counting on the remaining journalists to become mobile photographers.
Read MoreEarlier this week two people were killed and two others are at Harborview (still in comas from what I gather) after being hit by a vehicle at the intersection of NE 75th and 33rd NE. When I first saw the SPD and SFD tweets, I could visualize what had happened, as well as the probable direction of the vehicle. I used to live about a half block to the north, and very often crossed the same way as the victims. It's quite a dicey intersection. The story has been covered pretty thoroughly by the Seattle Times, including an update describing the event in detail.
Read MoreToday is Walter Cronkite's funeral. I can't help but think that it's a passing of a journalism torch, which in a way he inherited from Edward R. Murrow, who recruited him to CBS. But who has the torch now?
Read MoreYet another anniversary today, as the Looff Carrousel at Spokane's Riverfront Park turns 100. We happen to be in Spokane for this weekend, but this is probably the first time we haven't made it to Riverfront at some point. However, it sounds as if Melody's relatives made it there earlier in the week and got t-shirts.
Read MoreThis must be the month for notable anniversaries. Ten years ago today the first pitch was thrown at Safeco Field, the new home for the Seattle Mariners. I had only attended one Mariners game in the Kingdome, but it definitely didn't fell like a ballpark. Most years I've been to at least one game at Safeco, and it feels right, with the open air and great views all around. Even when high against the upper railing behind home plate (nose bleed territory) we could still see everything that was going on.
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