50+ Books, 31 Drawings, and One Amazing Concert

The past couple of years I have been really trying to challenge myself. Some of the challenges were thrust upon me, but many I chose to do. Last year, I finally was able to get out of the driving department, and go into the area I wanted to be. It seemed to take forever to happen, I was doing overtime beyond driving, just to prove I had what it takes to do the job. It did not help that my pain from the car accident got worse for awhile, making it difficult to stay as long as I would have liked, having to make time for doctor appointments and therapy for the pain, but I finally made it. Unfortunately, now my supervisor, who has been a very good fit for me, has decided to move on, leaving me wondering what will happen next.

At the beginning of this year I decided I would finish 3 books. Three that I started years ago, but never finished.  That all changed when I was asked if I was interested in a 50 book reading challenge to be completed within the year.  The reason being, each book had to be from a different category from a given list.  Since Les Misérables was on my personal reading list, I immediately dropped it.  The book is long, and difficult to read, and I did not have the patience to put it with a list of 49 other books.  The other two were fit into other categories, and I figured I would get them both done.  I decided towards the end of the challenge, that I would leave one to finish after the challenge, so I could take more time with it, to enjoy it more.

The challenge started in mid January.  I finished November 11.  I have finished other books since, but I felt really accomplished in having read 50 books!  It wasn't easy for me.  I normally do not read that fast.  I figured out a way to make things work out though.  The challenge helped me find books in categories I might not normally seek out.  I also reread books I had not in years, and felt I got something new out of them.  I found new books I liked, but also realized some popular books are severely overrated.  I wrote reviews for each one as well.  If you are on Goodreads, I think you can view them here: Jackie's Extreme Nerd Reading Challenge Books/Reviews.

If that wasn't enough to keep me busy this year, I also decided to do Inktober, a drawing challenge that happens every year in October.  People from all over the world draw from a prompt list (or create their own), doing one drawing per day.  It started with someone interested in challenging their inking skills.  I tried it last year, but only did a handful of the challenges.  This year, I did every single challenge. There were times it was incredibly difficult to think of something to do, even though the word for the day was already given.  Other times, it was a challenge drawing what I wanted to.  I got through it, though, and hope to do more with my art in the future.  You can see my artwork, and some of my photos from before the challenge here: Jackie's Instagram Inktober Drawings (as well as some photos).

In August, I decided to give myself an early birthday present, and take myself to the Train/Daryl Hall and John Oates concert. I invited my friend Jan, who I have known for many years, but have not done a lot with. I noticed she was interested in going to the same concert through Facebook. I invited her to go, and we had a blast! I have been a forever fan of Daryl Hall & John Oates, and have been to a couple of their concerts. I became a fan of Train around the time they first started, and have wanted to see them in concert, but never have been to a live show.  I do have a DVD of them in concert, however, that cover all my favorite songs from the "Drops of Jupiter" album, but it is not the same as seeing them in person. It was definitely worth it.

Kandace Springs opened the show, and had a lovely beautiful soulful, jazzy sound.  She set a nice calming vibe at the beginning.  I really enjoyed her part of the show.

Even though I did not realize that Pat Monahan is now the only one left in the band since I became a fan, they put on an impressive, high energy show. I also did not realize how long Train has been around. I think it has been about 18 or 20 years!

Train started their set with a song called "Drink Up."  I am not absolutely sure I had heard the song before, but I knew I really liked it, right away. As the show progressed, Pat took selfies of himself with some lucky audience members cell phones, and threw them back (I hope everyone caught their phones okay). Later, he brought out some Train t-shirts, threw some out to the audience in front of him, then put one on. He had each member of the band sign it, while he sang wearing it.  Then he threw it out to the audience.  An older guy who did not seem very excited (probably because he was more a fan of Hall and Oates, maybe?), caught it.  He gave a little smile, then dabbed his head with the t-shirt. Such a shame.  Too bad it wasn't thrown to someone more enthusiastic. The concert went on, and people lit up their cell phones during "When I Look to the Sky."

During a more upbeat song, Pat threw large beach balls out to the audience on the main floor. Everyone was singing, having a great time. Except for maybe the guy with the Train t-shirt, who knows?  They ended their set with my favorite song still, which is "Drops of Jupiter."  It sounded incredible.  I wanted to hear it again right after it was preformed, but I was also excited to hear Daryl Hall & John Oates.  It had been awhile since I had seen them live.

During intermission people were still excited and happy, the arena showed excerpts from Daryl's online show, "Live at Daryl's House."  They showed a clip where he sings with Cheap Trick, several audience members (including myself) waiting for the next set burst into song, "Mommy's alright, daddy's alright, they just seem a little weird...."  It was great.

The seats next to me, that no one was sitting in during the Train concert, filled.  They really missed out, I think.  As Daryl Hall and John Oates are taking the stage, two girls are standing, blocking the view, and talking to each other.  Seriously?  Someone yells, "Sit down!"  They don't do it.  I yell, "Sit down!"  My friend Jan, taps on the guy in front of us, who then quietly asks the girls to sit down. They finally do.

Daryl Hall & John Oates are still amazing in concert.  I was happy because I got to hear some of their more popular songs live, that I hadn't been able to before.  They sang hit after hit after hit.  They also sang a new song, that Train and Daryl Hall and John Oates collaborated on, "Philly Forget Me Not."  I love the song, their voices really blend well together.  They sang a couple of more songs together.  "Wait for Me," a Hall & Oates song, and "Calling All Angels," a Train song.  Pat leaves the stage, and the duo keeps singing. When the set is over, they leave the stage, but are called back for an encore.  They sing three more songs. They finish with "You Make My Dreams."  Even though it is late, I wish the concert wasn't over.  I kind of feel the same way about this year.  It was a pretty good year for me.  So long, 2018.

Bellevue Arts Fairs 2017 & 2018

My purchases in the past two years.  Above, a card "The Sincerest Form of Flattery" by Eileen Sorg.

Below, coasters "Cozy Afternoon," and "Miss Tater" by Mary Gibbs.

So, almost every year I go to a couple of art festival fairs/festivals that happen in Bellevue at this time of year.  I started going a long time ago, when my family and I were just heading out for a trip to the mall, and came across this festival, that was set up on the bottom of the parking garage at Bellevue Square Mall.  It was much smaller then, but it was something neat, and memorable.

It, as well as Bellevue, has grown so much.  Now, two festivals happen at the same time (the BAM ARTSfair and the Bellevue Festival of the Arts), so there is plenty to look at.  It normally takes me about 4-5 hours to see everything, if I am up to it.  I almost did not go this year, because I wasn't sure I was up to it this year, but I am really glad I went.  I just love seeing all the amazing talent people have and the variety of styles.  They also have good food out there, in case you are hungry.  I decided to eat at home this year, before I went.

One of the most impressive pieces of work, was a sculpted dragon that really breathes fire!  The artist, Gunter Reimnitz, is happy to show a demonstration of his work.  I did not get a photo of the fire breathing, but there is a great one shown here.  It was at the festival this year as well as last year.

Inside the Bellevue Arts Museum last year they had some intricate paper sculptures.  This one was my favorite.  I am not sure who the artist was, but they did a really great job.

This year, there were some interesting silkscreen and screen prints by Alex Katz.  The one shown below is called, "Nichole," and in it's reflection is "White Roses."

Also, this year, was a colorful display of fashion by FEMAIL:AMPM.  I really like how it seems to combine different cultures into one.  It is a really beautiful display.  You can read more about it here.

Outside the mall they had a sidewalk chalk artist.  I missed the sidewalk chalk artist last year, so it was good to see it again.  This one is done by Gabrielle Abbott.

The festival outside had so many other great things, that it would be impossible to cover them all.

Factory43 had some great whimsical pins and prints.  It was one of the few booths that encouraged photos.  I especially like the cat with the eye-patch, but I also like the crying ice cream cone.  Their website is also pretty cool.

Last year there was an artist who used gold foil in his photo/paintings.  I did not see him this year, but his name is Michael Bryant.  It is hard to tell by looking at them online, but there is a wonderful looking glistening and texture when you see his works in person.

This year some artists I liked were:

Coffee on Canvas:  Artwork created by using coffee as a medium.  Creates a fascinating visual in great earth tones.  I love the Seattle Skyline one.

Michael Rohner:  Does a great job with pen and ink.  Draws many animals.  My favorite one is the one titled "Aeon."

Steven Vigil:  Interesting style.  Some look halfway finished, with paint drips.  I really like "Whatever you do, Don't Run."

Some favorites were back again:

Justin Hillgrove:  Always has new and great stuff.  I just love his work.  His work includes parody and tributes, that he makes into his own, but he has original stuff as well.

Amy Flynn:  Creative and fun Fobots, made with found objects.

Diane Culhane:  Colorful, story-telling art.

Last year, I added two new coasters to another coaster I bought previously by Mary Gibbs, as shown at the top of this blog.  She has beautiful watercolor artwork.  I especially love her cats that she draws.  I had to resist from buying more coasters this year.

I did purchase some cards from Eileen Sorg.  I really love how in "Imitation Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery," that a bird and I think what is a grasshopper(?) try to imitate a rabbit.  It is humorous, yet deep, and brilliant.

The festival is almost over, but you can still check out these artist's work at their websites or at other art festivals.

Eating Well & Keeping Cool at The Bite of Seattle

The second day at  the Alley (at The Bite of Seattle), most of the food portions were in good sized basket-type containers.  It was a little awkward to get them all onto one plate.  In fact, was worried some might fall off, but luckily, they didn't.  Here is what was served today, starting at the top, going clockwise:

Anar - Mujadara: Protein Bowl with green lentils, brown rice, labneh, pepitas, pickled turnips. - This was one my favorite things today on my plate, but it was my dad's least favorite.  It was at this point I learned that my dad doesn't like sour cream (which it has a dollop of).  All these years I have known him, and I had no idea he dislikes sour cream.  He said maybe if it didn't have that, he would like it.  He said he didn't like the cabbage, either.  I told him I thought those were turnips, because cabbage was not a listed ingredient.  He said he did not like turnips, either.  So, I really liked this dish.  I thought it had several great textures, a unique flavor, and I thought the sour cream was a great touch, but I guess it did not have a chance with my dad.

Hurry Curry of Tokyo:  Japanese Beef Curry with mixed vegetables & Japanese style curry pickles. - This was my dad's favorite.  It had a nice, savory flavor.  I am not sure what Japanese style curry pickles are, but maybe they are the red things on top that remind me of a bell pepper?

Salty's On Alki Beach:  Seafood Ceviche: Scallops, prawns, sweet onion, and aromatics. - I was a little nervous about trying this dish, when I read it on the menu, but I did not need to worry at all.  It was delightful, and fun looking with a bright, crisp chip to add crunchiness and flavor.

Conscious Eatery: Walnut Salad: Pear, blue cheese crumbles, fried candied walnuts with champagne vinaigrette over spring mix. - I liked this dish, but the flavors did not really stand out, I am not even certain mine had the vinaigrette, but if it did, it was very light, which was fine, but I guess I was expecting a tad more flavor from it.

Maslow's by Farestart: Jerk Chicken Skewer with Pineapple Slaw.  - This was my dad's second favorite.  I thought it was pretty good, too.  I liked the sweetness of the pineapple in the slaw.  The chicken was tender, but a bit difficult to eat on the stick, so I pulled it off with my fingers.

No Thai Cuisine:  Crispy Spring Rolls - Miniature fried spring rolls stuffed with glass noodles & vegetables, served with plum sauce.  These were so incredibly good!  May have been my favorite or second favorite.  My dad's third favorite.  Crispy, sweet, and delicious!

The weather was quite warm today.  Perfectly sunny.  Even though we were pretty full after eating at The Alley, we wound up trying 3 different desserts later.  They had some really interesting desserts at a few different vendors this year.  I did not get very good photos of them, so I will just describe them to you. They were found in the Munchies at the Mural section of the Bite.

The first one I tried was called LBJella Ice Cream Cane (picture #6, click to see).  Soft serve ice cream is served in what looks like an umbrella handle or "J."  I was uncertain how stable this cone would be, but it was rather thick, but also puffy, so it held the ice cream inside well.  There is a bit of extra ice cream on each side, and you get your choice of toppings for each side.  I chose toffee for one side, and Fruity Pebbles for the other, and had two Strawberry Pocky sticks sticking out on either side.  It was pretty good.  The purpose I found out, was to create a cone that would not drip.  However, it was so hot, that the bottom part with the extra ice cream did a little onto my blouse.  It wasn't a disaster like my dad thought it might be.  I liked the taste of the cone, which seemed to be puffed corn, and the ice cream inside complimented it greatly.

The second dessert (or whatever it was) named Twenty Three Below, was bought at the same place (picture #3, click to see).  It looked really cool, both literally and figuratively.  The dessert was also made of puffed corn, with some slight flavoring (one tasted like a banana flavored puff).  The dessert lets off a freezing cold steam, which makes a very interesting presentation.  The trick is that it is dipped into Nitrogen.  So, it looks awesome as you are eating it.  There are rules on eating this novelty for your safety:

First, you stab each piece with a stick.
Second, you blow on the puff 3 times.
Third, you stick the puff into your mouth, chew, and then keep chewing on it (meaning: don't let it linger on your tongue).

Steam will come out of your mouth, or out of your nose while doing this.  Even though it was quite fun and interesting, it was mostly air, so it seemed overpriced.  Many people were eating them, though.  I guess it was just too cool to pass up!

Both my dad and I felt we needed something more after finishing our desserts, so we wound up getting two popsicles from Seattle Pops.  The booth won best dessert, yet everyone was flocking to the stands around them.  I ordered a Coconut Cream Popsicle, my dad had a Blueberry Cream one.  There were other flavors, some not creamy, but the coconut appealed to me most.  It was incredibly good.  It was creamy and smooth, and flavorful.  My dad liked his, too.  Simplicity was better in this case.  It was my favorite of the three desserts I tried.  I looked up their website, and I definitely want to try them out again.

The day was pretty hot today, and is expected to be even hotter tomorrow, so if you go down, be sure to dress light, and maybe bring some water to keep cool.  Have fun!

The Alley Raises the Price at The Bite of Seattle 2018... Is It Worth It?

Several years in a row, I have gone to The Alley at the Bite of Seattle with my dad, my friends, or on my own, and for years it was $10 per plate.  Last year it was a little more, but this year, they doubled the $10 amount to $20 per plate!  I read it ahead of time, before going, but it made my dad and I hesitant about going all three days like we used to do. Furthermore, the parking this year went up to $20 itself.  So, the Bite is not exactly cheap anymore.  At least there is no entrance fee.  So, if you can walk there from where you live, you are pretty lucky.  Seems like everything went up in price this year, more than usual.

The Alley was advertising "6 LARGE BITES," but that isn't actually true.  There were definitely two that were quite small.  Some were what I would consider medium-large size, and maybe a couple were large.  However, everything filled us up, to the point we did not need to eat anything else while we were there, as we walked around.

The Bites are reviewed as shown above, from the center, and clockwise:

Community Table by Farestart:  Santa Fe Bowl:  Hot brown rice, matchstick carrots, black beans, corn niblets, cherry tomato halves, green chili tomatillo sauce, cotija cheese, Pico de Gallao, avocado, lime sauce, tortilla crisps.  -  We were asked if we wanted the tortilla crisps, obviously yes!  This bite had a beautiful presentation, in a small cup.  Mine was well balanced.  From the list of ingredients I see that it does not show it has chicken, but I am certain mine had chicken!  My dad did not have chicken in his, and he did not like it as much as me.  I liked it very well.  It was a bit challenging to eat, without spilling it out of the cup, but the plate was there, so that was a minor issue.  My dad thought it may have been better if we dumped it on the plate and stirred it up a bit.  I enjoyed mine just fine.  It had nice texture and flavor.  

Gather Kitchen & Bar:  Westport Albacore with watermelon, heirloom tomato, wild arugula, and balsamic gratrique. - First of all, we got a rather small portion of this dish.  It did not look like there was much left, yet we were there in the afternoon, and it wasn't that busy yet. It was also a bit of a mystery dish.  I did not have a menu in front of me, but I had read the menu a night or two before, and thought, "this is the potato salad."  My dad argued that it was not.  It seemed to have the texture of potato salad, in some parts, with a type of melon, like cantaloupe, but certainly not watermelon, as described.  It had a bit of a bite to it, which was nice.  Despite the fact I had no idea what I was eating, until I read the description later, and it was an underwhelming proportion, I actually quite liked this dish.  My dad did not really like it.  He did not like the textures.  He also said he does not like albacore.  I never had it before, that I know of.  I liked it fine.

Bounty Kitchen:  Thai Basil Peanut Salad:  Mixed greens, purple and nappa cabbage, lemongrass and peanuts. -  The person serving us this dish was very friendly and offered more than expected.  I really liked the colors of this salad.  This was the first thing I tried.  I liked it so much, I had a taste, and waited till later to finish the rest.  It was spicy, with a nice blend of flavors.  Seemed like a Thai style coleslaw.  It was one of my favorites on the plate.  Though I liked everything I had on my plate.

Pescos Pit BBQ:  "The Piggy Parfait": Pecos Best Potato Salad Ever (with bacon), topped with chopped pork and drizzled with the Pecos "The Only" Sauce. - This was my favorite of the bites on my dish today.  The meat was nice and tender, the sauce was tangy and spicy (they had extra spicy sauce to add, which is what I had), I did not realize at first I was eating potato salad, but then it was obvious, and very good.  The potato salad seemed to have cheese in it, besides bacon, and it complimented the barbecue pork very well.

Din Tai Fung:  Vegetable and Pork Wonton with Spicy Sauce & Bok Choy.  - My dad's favorite dish on the plate today.  In fact, he could not stop talking about it the rest of the day.  I felt mine could have been a little more firm, his came from a fresh, new batch.  The flavor was delicious, though.  The booth also gave out red pens, which I liked very much.

Krigles Bakery:  Apple Spice Pie (& Brown Sugar Cherry PIe) - We only got one slice of pie, but it was a generous portion.  It had a strong cinnamon taste which made it unique and pleasant.  It did not need ice cream, but that might have been nice with it.

We also were given a 12 fl oz bottle of water to compliment our meal.  It seemed smaller than 12 fl oz, but it was nice to have.

When previewing the menu over the 3 days, this day looked the best for me.  My dad thought the other two looked better.  I really enjoyed everything on my plate today, and it filled me up plenty.

Afterwards, we walked around a bit, listened to some music, enjoyed the perfect weather in the sunshine.  Something that looked interesting to me, but I did not try, was ice cream served in a cone shaped as a "J."  My dad said it looked like a disaster waiting to happen.  I am not sure I will be trying it, but I thought it was visually interesting.

(Proceeds from "The Alley" at The Bite of Seattle go to Food Lifeline, providing meals to people every day who suffer with hunger across Western Washington. For more information, go to this link.)