OKTO

• 2 bottles Widmer Brothers OKTO - LRobb's house
  

West Fest

• 1 can High Life - home
• several plastic pints Elliott Bay Brewing Hefeweizen & Pilot Light - HRS WF
  

nine eighteen oh eight

• 2 pints PBR - The Siren
• 2 glasses Domaine du Grand Prieur Cote du Rhone red - home
  

Hot Tub!

• 1 bomber 22 oz. Elysian The Immortal IPA - home
  
• 12 oz. Deschutes Anniversary Wit - home
• 12 oz. Snoqualmie Harvest Moon Ale - home

THE FAIR

• 3 bottles Red Hook Summer Ale - Isner's house

Sometime from when I was 2 years old or so until 8 years old, I lived in Puyallup, a small town about 40 minutes south of Seattle. It's grown much since I lived there 32+ years ago, but Main Street is still the same as it was when I lived there. The Western Washington Fairgrounds inhabit much of the downtown area of Puyallup and it was here that I have many great memories. Riding in the backseat of the car down the steep hill of Meridian and into downtown, I never forgot to look into the fairgrounds, vacant most of the year, dreaming of the late summer days when I could finally ride the rollercoaster and enter baked goods for prizes. The wooden rollercoaster was my very favorite ride, and I still love coasters to this day. It would clackety-clack up the first steep hill; the large chain pulling it, pulling it to the top, where the sign at the crest read "Keep arms inside the car at all times." When the final car was released from the hold of the chains, the coaster would speed down, rickety-ricking over the steel tracks, shuddering the wooden supports below and securing my body against the boxed confines of the cart. I loved the roller coaster and looked forward to it throughout the year.

As much as I loved the roller coaster, I may have loved entering baked goods more. My mom taught me how to bake at a fairly early age and when I was five, she helped me with my very first entry into the Western Washington Fair: Hot Wheel Sugar Cookies. My mom was clever and Hot Wheels were those little metal cars that were very popular. She thought it would be a good idea to make sugar cookies cut in the shape of a car, and then use red hots to outline the shape of the car, hence, (such a funny word!) Hot Wheel Sugar Cookies! I won a blue ribbon (First Premium!) and a scan of it is shown above. It was September 15, 1972 - 12 days before my sixth birthday. I think it's funny that the category was "WOMENS HANDCRAFTS". Over the next few years I continued entering baked goods....Blueberry Coffee Cake (blue ribbon), Blueberry Pie (red ribbon (the crust burst and the pie spilled through)), and Nut Bread (blue ribbon). Later, when we moved to Kansas, I continued entering items in the fair - Finney County Free Fair - ranging from flowers, furniture, collections, my cat(!), my cat's cage, woodcrafts, fruit, and models. I won many ribbons, but it was my first one for Hot Wheel Sugar Cookies of which I am most proud.

Susan, London, and I went to the fair today and it is much like I remember it. I love going and it's amazing how much it's the same...the animals - cattle, bunnies, chickens (I loved watching the just-hatched chicks in the incubator when I was younger), sheep, goats, horses, cats, and dogs; the dairy room with the life-size butter cow and free milk; the collection of quilts, flowers, fruits, and baked goods; and the wonderful world of amusement park rides. The same roller coaster is there, but I didn't see it running. There's an innocence to the fair - so much has changed in 40 years - yet the fair exists on it's own timeline. Quilters will always quilt, bakers will always bake, vegetable designers will always lay out their prized vegetables in amazing arrays, and farmers will always compete for "Largest Squash". I look forward to the day when I can return with London, showing him the fair that I grew up with, and perhaps, just maybe, he'll enter his own version of Hot Wheel Sugar Cookies.

Monday

• 1 pint Deschutes Inversion IPA - Duke's on Alki
• 1 bottle Dogfish Head Immort Ale - home
• 1 slow shot Corazon anejo - home
  

Sunnyday

• 1 can mhl - home
• 1 pint Manny's Pale Ale - Ama Ama Oyster Bar

WABL Oktoberfest

• 10 tastes x 6 oz. = 60 ounces (5 beers) Tastes included: Big Al Brewing Brown Ale, Elliott Bay Brewing Mashing Pumpkin, Georgetown Brewing Super Chopp, Rogue Ales Double Dead Guy, Schooner Exact Brewing 3 Grid IPA, Snoqualmie Fall Brewing Harvest Moon (delicious!), Two Beers Brewing Echo IPA, Widmer Brothers OKTO, among others.
• 1 pint Rainier - Triangle Tavern
• 1 pint Manny's Pale Ale - Owl and Thistle
• 1/2 can(?) MHL - The Barking Lamb
  

What can I say? Fisher brings out the best in me.

We hit the WABL (just love that acronym (pronounced 'wobble')) Oktoberfest behind the Pyramid Brewhouse on Saturday. Sunny and warm day that it was, we arrived to find the taps covered by...

tents! Seattle just can't get enough of it's shade. Anyway...

tokens were purchased, plastic 12 oz. mug was seized, and breweries were found. Most were local breweries - I even was introduced to one located on the Admiral end of WS - and many gave us more than the allotted 6 oz pour we were supposed to get. Fisher and I found a spot in the sun, 'tween the shadows of the Pyramid building (and didn't that used to house an online porn company at one time?) and the viaduct. Ran into Michelle's sister and said hi. "You're ALWAYS at these events!" "Noooo, YOU'RE always at these events!" "Nooooooo, yOu'RE always at these events!" After a few hours our tokens were gone and we decided to "wabl" towards the water taxi to catch it back to West Seattle.

As fate would have it, we crossed paths with the Triangle Tavern, which is the corner of what is the only thing left standing from what used to once be a pretty tall and awesome brick building. You've probably seen it packed with Mariner's fans on gameday. Saturday it was filled with locals...that is, those of the street variety, or so it seemed. I was a little hazy at ths point...I don't even remember what I ordered. A PBR maybe? (It was a Rainier Fisher reminded me later.) I do remember using the bathroom however - those did make quite an impression. I'm not sure why, and I'm a little worried because of it. I also managed to rip off the Miller High Life beer code from an empty 24 pack, but my ripping skills aren't what they used to be because I missed the last of the 12 digit number. I can barely make the 11th out to be a 5, or maybe an F, or an E. Anyway...

Donna calls at this point to say that she is heading to our house. I think it was pretty close to 7:30 and we realized we missed the water taxi, so we decide to continue walking to catch the 8:30. As fate would have it, we crossed paths with the J&M, one of my favorite Pioneer Square bars. I think it was taking awhile to get served, so Fisher suggested we continue walking. I'm not sure if we ever did get served, but we continued walking. Thinking we still had some time to kill, I suggested we duck into the Owl and Thistle, which is a cool Irish pub in the shadow of Fado, or somewhere near there. It was pretty empty, but that didn't stop us from ordering a beer, of which I forget what mine was. Maybe Fisher remembers? (Fisher reminded me later that it was a Manny's. Manny's? At an Irish Pub? I really was drunk.) Around this time Susan calls and is very upset because apparently we missed another water taxi. We decide to take a land taxi home, which we do, but by then I don't remember much. (Fisher later reminds me that I demanded to sit in the front seat, so the taxi driver had to remove all his stuff from the front seat so I could sit next to him.) Too much beer in too little time on an empty stomach. After we departed the land taxi and entered the Barking Lamb, I only remember the following:

• scarfing down two types of dip with any and every available cracker or chip
  
• opening a High Life for Fisher and myself
  
• hanging out in the kitchen wobbling back and forth
• listening to Donna make fun of me (later she told me she didn't. I believe her.)
  
• holding London in the bed room
• stinking up the kitchen badly (sorry guys! that was horrible)
• being confused that Jeff was there, but I didn't know where he was (with Hazen)

and unfortunately that was about it. Luckily I woke up Sunday feeling fine - thanks to consuming Advil, lots of water, and a gallon of spinach and artichoke dip with two types of chips before passing out. The interesting thing was, at the time, I felt pretty much in control and cognizant of everything around me. The next day however...things had been forgotten. See you Saturday at Fremont Oktoberfest!

Wanted

• 2 pints PBR - Poggie
• 1 bottle Singha - Jhanjay Vegetarian Thai
  
• 1 bottle Rainier - Admiral Pub

Impromptu visit to the Admiral Theater tonight to see Wanted. It was on my list of things to see/do before London was born. Bless the Admiral Theater.

Aunt Janice & Uncle Ken

• 1/2 can mhl - home
  
• 1 bottle Sam Adams Oktoberfest - HR Rectory

Tonight I visited with my aunt and uncle from Oakdale, California. They are heading out on a cruise tomorrow morning and were able to spend time with us...my aunt has been out since Saturday however, so I've seen her off and on throughout the week. I always have great memories of Aunt Janice and Uncle Ken. One of my earliest is when Michelle, Ken, and I (and mom and dad) visited them in Stockton one Christmas (this was back in the 70's) and we all slept in cousin Steven's (now goes by Steve) bedroom and we kept waking up and running to the living room to see if Santa had made his visit. The parents kept telling us "Go back to sleep!", but of course, we just couldn't. [I don't think cousin Andrea was born yet, but maybe she was a baby.]

They are all special to me for a few reasons: Andrea and Steven are the only cousins that we visited regularly (I've never met my cousins on my dad's side) as children, and, Janice is my mom's younger sister. There is no real resemblence between them (I leave that to my sister who is, now, more than ever, a ringer for my mom - both personality-wise and look-wise), but the fact that she is my mom's sister is special to me. Mom and Janice were very close to each other too, sharing many personal things. When Janice found out that our baby's name was London, she immediately thought that maybe that's where Susan and I conceived him (not true), and she said that if my mom had done that, Ken's and Michelle's names would be Hughson and Hughson. (Hughson is where her dad lived and we'd go to visit often). So I know there were many personal things shared. It's stories like these that I cherish hearing.

I can only guess that my mom and Janice were close because they were closer in age to each other than their youngest sister, Becky. I forget how much younger Becky was than the two of them, but it might have been around six years, which isn't much, except that Janice and Ken were married when they were 19, and Becky would've been 13 and my mom was 23, so in those terms, it's a big difference. Unfortunately Becky is in a psychiatric hospital and I haven't heard from, or about, her in years. She used to play with me when I was a baby though and I still have pictures of Becky as a young girl holding me.

A few years ago Janice and Ken invited us to their time share in Maui. It was a great time and they showed us my grandfather's, and great-grandfather's burial site. I also saw the house where my mom lived the first few years of her life. Even though Janice was born in Centralia (another coincidence), Maui holds a special place in her heart and they vacation there every year. I've only been to Maui twice, but I feel a connection to my mom when I'm there. It's where she began life and I like to imagine her as a baby sitting in her mom's arms in the hot, humid Hawaii'an sun with her dad and her grandmother, dressed in muumuus, sitting under palm trees, cooling themselves in the salty breeze.

Janice and Ken live in Oakdale, California, which is the only other place in the US where there is a Hershey Chocolate plant. We used to tour it as kids. Janice told me however that it is no longer the chocolate plant and some other company purchased it. I was sad to hear this! Driving to Oakdale, you drive through miles and miles of orchards; the air is dry and the land is arid. Every once in a while you might catch a whiff of a turnip factory, and do they ever stink! I like to think of it as Steinbeck country, but I'm not exactly accurate by saying that. There are many fresh fruit stands along the way and it's always fun to stop and get a couple of treats. At my mom's funeral, Uncle Ken talked about how my mom used to drive those dusty back roads through the orchards at top speed, scaring her passengers - he was terrified to ride with her - ...she didn't do it on purpose, that's just the way she drove. I like to think of her flooring that pedal and kicking up the dust as the orange groves blurred by.

Saying goodbye to AJ & UK is never easy...they're all I have left of my mom's family. The memories I have of cousins Steven and Andrea, of sisters Yvonne and Janice, of Ken and Michelle....

A Georgetown Getaway

• 2 pints Snoqualmie Hefeweizen - Smarty Pants, Georgetown

Oh did I have such a delly-i-shus sandwich today! It was a Philly sandwich with vegetarian Field Roast - grilled onions, peppers, swiss cheese, on a toasted french roll with horseradish sauce. I just {heart} when traditional meat sandwiches are made veggie-style. Yummmmmmm. And(!) there was a large patio with rEaL sUn and it was oh-so-hot and luscious!

Million $ Listing

• 1 can mhl - my sub-million $ home
• 1 margarita - my sub-million $ home

So I started watching this show on Bravo on Saturday when they had a mini-marathon, and I got hooked. The show highlights three very young (21-30 y.o.) real estate agents who sell multi-million dollar houses in the LA area. I had never seen it before and it was very easy for me to get sucked in. I'm not even sure why I got hooked. The season finale was tonight and it was left with somewhat of a cliffhanger and I'm anxious to see what happens next season! Will Chad really move in with his girlfriend, will Madison sell his first double-digit listing, and will Josh decide to stick with the real estate business??? I guess I'll just have to stay tuned.

Manic Monday

• 1 can Natural Light - home
• 1 bottle Fishtale Ale Organic Ale - home

Not really a manic Monday...I just needed a good title. Thanks Bangles!

Haircuts, Hot Tubs, Hoochies (and Herencia)

• 4, maybe 5, cans of the High Life - home
• 1 shot tequila Herencia - home
• 1 glass Mt. St. Michelle merlot (delishy) - home

Hair was cut, hot tub gotten in place, hoochies were hollerin' and Herencia was shootin'.

Really, the big event of my summer was/is the hot tub I got for free! You can't beat free! (Unless it doesn't work, but still....) even if it doesn't work, things can be replaced...motors can be replaced, tubes can be replaced, heaters can be replaced, filters can be replaced, excitement can be replaced. So, this week:

• get an electrician in...
• get it filled with water...
• turn on the jets...
• check for workedness...
• call a hot tub specialist to assess...

Thanks to everyone who helped move that sucker.

FAQ

• 0 drinks
  

Q: Why are you keeping a list of your drinks?
A: I guess I thought that it would be interesting. I've heard of other people keeping track of their food online, or keeping and tallying their garbage, or taking a picture a day. I like alcohol, so I thought a list would be interesting.

Q: How do you remember what you drank? Sometimes it seems like you drink a lot, so how do you remember all that?
A: Most of the time I just remember and make a mental note as I get a new drink. Each time I get a new drink, I review what I've had before that. Kind of like that game you played in school where a student would start with "A = aardvark" and then the next kid would be like "A = aardvark and, uhmmm, B = bronco" and then the next kid would repeat A, B and then add a C, and so on. So it's kind of like that. And I also use my phone. Some people think I'm texting, but I'm really typing a list on my phone's notepad.

Q: Do you think you drink more or less now that you keep a list?
A: I'm not really sure. I do know that I try to get out to more places to try a drink so that I can post the location. But really, if I was to search back through the past 8 months, there probably are very few new places that I've been.

Q: Do you list every drink?
A: Yes.

Q: C'mon, eVeRY one?
A: To the best of my knowledge that I can remember, yes. There are only two times that I can think of that I've left a drink or two off the list.

Q: Ooohhhh, what are they?
A: Not saying. There's a reason I didn't list them. :)

Q: What's your favorite drink?
A: I don't have a favorite, but I have been drinking much more beer over the past few months than I used to. It's kind of funny - I love cheaper beers...Pabst, Rainier, Oly, Miller High Life; but I love the stronger, well-made beers too like IPA's, summer brews, winter brews, Belgians, etc. I first remember tasting Miller High Life at Noc-Noc back in December or January. I bought it because it was only $1 a bottle or something like that and it tasted sooo good and refreshing. So I had another one. It's my favorite macro-brew right now. I especially love the bottles; the shape of the neck isn't that of a typical bottle. Plus, the glass is clear. I like that.

Also, I tend to drink heavier drinks in the colder weather, like whisky and wine and higher-alcohol beers. I was also drinking a lot of tequila in the spring. It might have been my trip to California that got me all excited about tequila, but I really haven't had as much this summer as I thought I would.

Q: What's your favorite bar?
A: Hmmm....? I tend to like more of the divey places...those with pool tables (even though I can't shoot worth sheet), dart boards, video games, pull tabs, remnant cigarette smell, carpet on the floor, karaoke, cobwebs, etc. Places that are broken in. The Cloud Room on top of the Camlin was awesome. A piano bar. To go out on the rooftop at night and look at the moon, or the array of clouds reflected off the Camlin's neon, was unforgettable. That's not to say I don't like the swankier bars either, cuz I enjoy those as well, although they're usually not the places I end up going back to.

LA has/had some really cool bars, both divey and swanky. I was in one a few years ago called the "Little Cave". It was designed to look like a bat cave on the inside - it was very dark and black with little coves and hideouts within. Check it out. It was cool because it felt divey, but actually it was very designed and planned. Tacoma also has/had some really cool bars. Magoos was a tiny bar around the corner from where Susan used to live and they served beer and wine and had a few places to sit and one video game. And if you tired of just drinking beer, you could walk next door and get a cocktail at a *really* divey bar.

Anyway, if I had to name a bar that I really like, it's Shorty's. They have tons of cheap beer, awesome video games and pinball, a swanky seating area in the very far back, a few seats on the sidewalk for outdoor looky-loo'ing, but the clincher is, it's the only place I can get a veggie chili cheese dog with my Hamms. I usually only get down there once or twice a year.

Q: What's the worst hangover you've ever had?
A: I can't think of any absolute killer ones I've had lately...usually I'm just tired the next day because I didn't sleep well the night before. I do remember one I had about 6-7 years ago. I went to the West Seattle Street Fair with a good friend, Matt L. whom I used to work with. I hadn't had anything to eat most of the day and we went to the beer garden and we drank a lot of beer; and that might have been all we had to drink, but I had a lot. A LOT. We were out most of the night and he dropped me off on my front porch with my pants around my ankles (not sure how THAT happened) and Susan pulled me into the house, or maybe I stumbled. Anyway, I was hung over for two days. Two days! The. Worst. Ever.

Q: Speaking of hangovers, what do you do to prevent one?
A: Well obviously drinking less isn't usually an option, but I try to drink A LOT of water (when I remember), eat a good amount of food, take ibuprofen before bed (I've been doing less of this lately because it's not good for your stomach), take a vitamin before bed, sleep with a damp, folded washcloth on my forehead, eat a good breakfast with protein, and also drink tomato juice, or V8 or something like that. I heard somewhere that tomatos can be good for hangovers, and I love tomatos anyway, so there you go.

Q: Bud Light Lime. Really?
A: Have you tried it? That's real lime in there my friend.

Q: One last question...can I drink with you?
A: Love to! Know of a good place?

tgif!

• 4, 5, maybe 6(!?) cans High Life - MnM's house
• 1 Creamsicle (deelish!) - MnM's
  
• 1 shot Cazadores - MnM's
  
• 1 shot Herencia with Squirt - MnM's
• 2 bottles Bud Light - Yen Wor Village

Sooooo, I'm currently not working and all the days run into one another, and a weekend really isn't any different than a weekday, BUT, going to a TGIF party is the best! Everyone's happy, everyone's looking forward to the weekend, and everyone's reflecting and telling stories of the week's adventures. It was so great getting to hang out with the teachers and hearing about their week, even though I wasn't part of it - at least in person. :)

Thursday

• 2 Cazadores & Rose's Lime Juice - home
• 1 bottle Deschutes Twilight Ale - home
  

Wednesday

• 1 can mhl - home
  

Tuesday

• 1 can mhl - home
• 1 Mike's Hard Lemonade (hey, there was one sitting around...) - home
• 1 margarita - home
  

Laborious Day

• 1 imperial pint Tetley's Cream Ale - Celtic Swell