The Bellevue Arts Fair 2017

The Bellevue Arts & Crafts Fair is going on this weekend, maybe I will see you there!

Video shared from bellevue.com You can also get more information by clicking the same link.

A Better Bite, and Spam Fries??? - The Bite of Seattle, Sunday 2017

From far right, clockwise:  Conscious Eatery - Southwest Salad,Ten Mercer - Pancetta Wrapped, Almond Stuffed Date, Noi Thai Cuisine - Signature Fried Shrimp Cakes, Hurry Curry of Tokyo - Authentic Tokyo Curry, and Blazing Bagels Bake Shop - Salted Caramel Brownie

I felt hesitant going to Sunday's Bite, after feeling let down on Friday.  Things were definitely better, though.  They had printed menus this time.  The food presentation overall, was better.  Everything served tasted delicious, and up to the standard of previous years.  They still didn't sell any beverages or hand out water, though.  The weather was a little hot for my tastes, but not bad.  Overall, much better Bite than Friday's Bite.  Here is my review of the food served at The Alley on Sunday:

CONSCIOUS EATERY

Southwest Salad with Sharp Cheddar, Corn, Beans & Tortilla Strips with Chipotle Ranch Dressing:  This was the first thing I ate today.  My first thought was, "Oh, this is sooo good!"  Tasty, dressing, nice combination of textures.  I really love tortilla strips in my salads.   

TEN MERCER

Pancetta Wrapped, Almond Stuffed Date deep fried then dipped in Bulgarian Fetta & Balsamic Reduction - I had this before.  It was tastier than expected then, but had a kind of bizarre presentation.  This time, the presentation was beautiful.  It looked good, and tasted very nice. 

NOI THAI CUISINE

Signature Fried Shrimp Cakes (Tod Mun Goong) with Secret Plum Sauce -  I really liked this.  It was cooked to perfection.  I really wish there was more of this.

HURRY CURRY OF TOKYO

Authentic Tokyo Curry with Ground Beef and Veggies over Japanese White Rice - Tender and good flavor.  The red veggies made a nice color presentation, they were just the right amount of firmness.

BLAZING BAGELS BAKE SHOP

Salted Caramel Fudge Brownies - I was excited to see this restaurant on  the menu, because last year, the sample bagel they served was my favorite thing.  Can they make brownies just as good?  The answer is, "Yes, yes they can!"  Salted caramel has become real popular in just the last couple of years, and this was a good addition to that trend.

After we finished eating at The Alley, my dad and I decided to explore the rest of the Bite.  There was a band, playing R&B, soul, neo-soul, and funk music that was really good, called Surround Sound Band. It is not a very catchy name, but they sounded great.  There were lots of people dancing and listening.

After a few songs, we wound up finding a place that was giving free SPAM samples of SPAM sliders and SPAM fries.  A slogan read, "Don't knock it, till you fry it."

 I have always hated SPAM, but for some reason, we were intrigued by their advertising.  We stood in line to try a different way to eat SPAM.  We wound up having to wait for quite awhile.  Once we got to the window, they only had SPAM fries.  Deep fried SPAM cut into long strips, covered with BBQ sauce.  

I was skeptical, but they didn't taste bad.  My dad thought they were too salty.  At least that awful aftertaste wasn't there.  I had quite a few, but couldn't finish.  They were all right, but I rather have regular French fries, which may not be healthy, but probably healthier than deep fried mystery meat.  I guess they proved that anything can taste good if you deep fry it.  I am still waiting to see if "Deep Fried Pepsi Float" will make it back to the Bite so I can try that.

The Bite of Seattle is over now, but there is always next year if you want to try it.  The Alley is only one part of the Bite.  There were 15 food trucks this year, plus many other restaurant booths to try throughout the weekend.  I still highly recommend it, if you are a foodie, like me.

A Boring Bite? - The Bite of Seattle Friday, 2017

Starting at far right, clockwise:  Honest Biscuits - Biscuits & Gravy,  The Roadhouse Restaurant & Inn - Meatloaf sandwich, Hurry Curry of Tokyo - Curry dish, www.superblues.net - blueberries, Kringles Bakery - Blondie Bite.

I always look forward to The Bite of Seattle, especially the event my Dad and I traditionally attend throughout the years, and this year was no exception.  So, I was disappointed when my Highscool Reunion fell on the same weekend.  Problem resolved.  I would do both!

First thing I noticed when I looked up this year's Alley, was that the price went up $5, and the sample Bites on plate were reduced to five items.  I had planned originally on going all three days.  After seeing the price hike, and knowing the fact of travel time between my reunion and Seattle, my dad and I decided to go only two days this year.  Yesterday, Friday, and tomorrow, Sunday.

I realized later, that Friday morning was really pushing it to get to my reunion on time, and traffic couldn't have been much worse getting over.  I missed out on the pre-party before the reunion, but it turned out okay.

The Alley on Friday was a bit of a disappointment this year, unfortunately.  We got there, I asked for a menu.  In the past, they have had menus printed out on paper.  The cashier just pointed to a sign.  No menu handouts.  Well, okay, maybe they are controlling waste.  I looked up the menu online.

Often they have had an option to buy a beverage.  Not this time.  This was very disappointing.  We could have gone to another booth, and bought a beverage, but that was pretty inconvenient.  It would have been nice to have something to refresh and cleanse my palette.

After we sat down, and ate out food, my dad and I felt a bit let down.  The food just did not seem up to par with the food items in the past.  Perhaps because their was no food critic or guest chef featured this year.  It really made a difference.

We both admitted we still liked this year's Alley, but were not amazed by this year's presentation.  We are hoping Sunday will be better. Here is my review of the individual dishes served:

HONEST BISCUITS

Southern Sausage Gravy on a Biscuit. - I think we had this last year.  It was okay then.  Today the biscuit seemed a bit hard.  I have had better biscuits and gravy.

THE ROADHOUSE RESTAURANT & INN
Meatloaf Sliders with Caramelized Onions, Spiked Mayo & Demi-glaze - Too subtle on flavor.  I saw the mayo and onions, but could not taste them.  My dad didn't even notice the added condiments.  The meatloaf had nice texture, but also not very memorable.

HURRY CURRY OF TOKYO
Fried Chicken Karaage with Vegetable Curry & Japanese Rice
First of all, I love the name of this place! - The curry part had good flavor, however, the chicken was tough,  lowering the rating of this dish.

WWW.SUPERBLUES.NET

Blueberries - Fresh.  Firm.  Tasted as expected. 

KRINGLES BAKERY
Blueberry Blondie Bite - I would have liked more blueberries in mine, but it was pretty good.

PURPLE CAFÉ & WINE BAR
Snow Crab Salad with Celery, Shallots, Lemon-Cayenne Aïoli, Microgreens &House Baguette - This was the best thing served today.  Nice texture, great presentation, a good balance of flavors.  Nice subtle taste.

Right after eating, we had to take off, which was sad, because, the weather was absolutely perfect, and we would have liked to have wandered around a bit.  I was glad to go to my reunion, though, despite the fact that most of the people from my circle of friends back then didn't show up!  I was happy to talk with some people who I didn't know very well back in the day, as well as catch up with those who I sort of lost contact with over the years.  At least there is other social media to keep those connections!

Well, if you go to The Bite today, I hope you have fun!  May your dish be full of tasty bites, and if not, may you have the time to find something better!

The Ups, Downs, and Hard Side Crashes of Life

I realize it has been a long time since I have posted, even for me, so here are a few things that have been happening since.

On Father's Day, I took my dad to see this huge rubber duckie that waddled into the Tacoma Harbor for a boat show that weekend.

Some of life's challenges during the year, have been a little rough on me the past few months, but some new challenges coming my way are exciting, and I am hoping they can lead me to something much better.

The aunt I wrote about in July, passed away last December.  We knew when we visited her, it may be the last time we saw her.  She was upbeat and happy that week we visited.  It seemed like there could be some tiny hope that things would turn around.  It was a very good visit, and I am very happy that I got to see my aunt one last time, before she lost her battle against cancer.

As I was traveling to Canada, a former classmate chatted with me online, and said how much she enjoyed my writing, and I think she mentioned that she thought highly of me in high school,  too.  It was very nice to hear, especially during that particular time in my life.  If she is reading this now, I want to truly thank her for her kind words.

For Christmas, I got tickets to go see the Yves Saint Laurent fashion exhibit at the SAM.  I had to wait and go at the last minute, because I got sick during the holidays.

When I finally got to go, it was amazing.  I might post more on that later.

In January, one of my favorite local cartoonists, Michael Jantze, liked a photo I took of a Top Pot Doughnut Shop, posted on Instagram.  I think the main reason I took the photo years ago, was not only did I think it was cool, but I believe I recognized it as a reference he used in one of his earlier strips.  I was just excited to see a landmark from the cartoon in real life!  I was even more excited when I saw he liked my photo!

Anyway, I left some comment about his work, he asked me to draw my version of "The Norm." I did a quick doodle at work on a Post-It from memory before leaving in my route.

When I got home, I looked up the strip and quickly sketched another from looking at one of his characters online.  I didn't think it turned out as well.  I know could have done better if I took more time, and used a pencil, but oh well.

In August, I went to my doctor.  I had some medical issues, and I found out I needed to change my diet and exercise more.  Luckily, I haven't had to totally eliminate anything food-wise, but I have cut back significantly on quite a few things.  I was recommended to take some specific vitamins and supplements.

 I started exercising immediately, kept with it for several months, till work became super busy.  I did manage to lose the weight suggested by the doctor to improve my health.  My co-workers thought it was strange that my doctor told me to lose weight, perhaps because they see me as slender already.   I have never been overweight, but I didn't like the weight I was at.  I wanted to lose the weight suggested, plus a bit more.  I was very happy when I reached their goal.  I plan on continuing to work at it, so I can reach my goal, and  stay as healthy as I can.

In January, I became an aunt again, this time to a nephew.  He is already a charmer.  Always seems happy.

My beautiful niece turned 4 this year, and always asks to Skype.  It is always fun talking to her.  She is trying new foods.  She likes the taste of hamburgers, but not the texture.  She hasn't tried pizza again since she was 3, but she didn't like it then.

I have been learning new things at work.  The supervisor over that department says I am doing very well.  I am really  happy about that.  My goal is to get away from driving, and improve on some new skills, more related to my degree.

Some things you just don't see coming, or once you do, it is too late, and you just got to do what you need to do to keep it from getting worse.  I had a few experiences this year do that to me.

One was my first major car accident on the job, that happened just recently.  It was awful.  It wasn't my personal car.  Once I knew what was happening, I did my best to avoid it, I am sure the other person probably did, too.  We were both cited.

Under the circumstances, I feel lucky to be alive, and not as injured as I could have been.  The other person is fine, too, and I am glad for that.  Things certainly could have been worse in so many ways.  I still hurt some, but feel as if I am improving every day.