2009 ChristmaZ PhotoZ

These three photos do not show any of the hassles in getting one wife, one dog and four cats into the same "session" in order to get some X-mas photos for this year (and if you pay attention, we never managed to get all four cats "together").

Hence, better check the slide show...


All that said, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New 2010 !!!!


And to be true, these photos were not uploaded until the 4th of January, so if you feel you got shafted, don't take it personal - everyone did this year...
Wife was sick throughout Christmas and I got a small dash of a cold just after New Years, so photos got stuck in camera far too long.

AmaZing Fly-over...

Just got back from walking the the dog. As we were talking to a neighbor up on the hill, a Korean Air 777 slowly passed overhead - very low altitude! Cool in itself, but this one was followed by TWO small (fighter?) jets tailing it just by the tailwings. Very cool scene.

Called one of the local news stations to report it, but in retrospect, it was likely just a photo shoot by Boeing, before the plane is delivered to Korean Air (since there's nothing on the news, nothing on the blogosphere, at least not yet).

And, did I carry the camera? No, of course not... Gotta buy that smallish Canon!

Update: According to reliable sources, it was all part of a Boeing golf event. More events like that, and I might even start to like golf (yeah, right)...

It Ztarted raining...

Since this was such a big news in the media, I just have to mention it here as well. We got rain! Actually a mini soaker. Not that it shouild be strange, but what was strange is that we went for soooo long w/o any noticeable precipitation. Think we were up to close to 90 days or so, and that is rare in Seattle, especially early summer.

But, not complaining and it was also sort of "on schedule" since I told everyone that when I was starting to put up siding, the rains would arrive. Sure enough, I was about to cut the first strip of Cedar T&G siding when it started coming down.
All said, sun's to arrive with full summer later in the week again.

RainZ, what rainZ? - and HealthCare

They sort of more or less promised rain for today, but we only got a misting, if even that, when walking to Starbucks in the morning. When lunch hour arrived, so did the sun and it turned out to be just another gorgeous day. Perfect for some work on the wall...

On a more serious note, there has been a ruckus over the past few days over a badly needed healthcare reform. Congress is on summer recess, and that means they are home and reaching out to their community/constituents.

But why are people so scared for healtcare reform? It is sorely needed. It is a Royal (or should we say Federal?) shame that a country like the mighty United States of America does not provide even basic healthcare for its citizens. No, in this country, you either are lucky in getting it (in esssence tax subsidized) from your employer, or you better "pay up" yourself with "after-tax" dollars - and that at a much higher premium than what an employer pays for same "services".

If healthy, it is only a sizeable cost (~$400/month and up) but if you happen to have some type of "pre-existing condition", meaning you've actually been sick before and its "on record", you might not be able to find an insurance company willing to take you on. Or in a better case, take you on but at such a cost that you cannot afford it. In either case, you are SOL when it comes to healthcare - unless you have an emergency and then you'll be treated at the local ER - at great expense to the hospital, the system, and the country (possibly after you've been stripped of everything you own, and forced into personal bankcruptcy).

We live in an increadibly rich nation, and it is unfathomable that we do not prioritize heathcare. ANY modern nation on the planet has a system that provides for some basic (in most cases actually really good) coverage, and that at a far lower overall cost than what we in essence are paying in the U.S. (we are spending some 2-4 times more than the closest nations, and with pretty lousy outcome).

On top of that, if it can be a way to measure success, even with all the money that we waste on ineffective healthcare for a few, we still only rank 30th nation or so in life expectancy for our citizens.

It is time that we - as a nation - step up to the plate and TOTALLY reform the system so we can start early on with guaranteed healthcare for the young, for the students, for the "prodcutive years", and for when you are settling down in retirement. Switzerland, England, Canada, Japan, Sweden, Germany, France, all have systems that provide far better coverage and services than ours, and that at a fraction of the cost.

So America, what are you afraid of? Why are you out and screaming "no socialism" to Predident Obama and members of Congress? Providing healthcare to a country's citizen is not socialism, it is just simply basic compassion. And when doing it smarter, wiser, cheaper than the corrupt system we have today, it is also sound Economics - one of the cornerstones in America's economic power.

Check out just a few of these links:
Sick Around the World
Canadian Health Care
An excellent - but long winded - commentary by Keith Olbermann

Cash for ClunkerZ

CARS - CAR Allowance Rebate System - is not a bad idea to stimulate the economy, but it is far too lenient when someone can go and trade in his old Chevy pickup truck, for just another pick-up truck (albeit a new Ford F-150). No, if you are getting free money (tax payer provided), you should really be forced to select a vehicle that gets MUCH better fuel ecomony than a F-150 truck.

I have nothing against the Ford F-150, and drive a large SUV myself, but if you decide to buy/drive a huge vehicle, well it should really be on your own dime.

I guess the underlying problem is that if the rules were more strict, most would be "forced" to buy (much better quality) Japanase and Korean designed/made vehicles, and that would not help out Detroit a great deal.

Politics...

AmaZing weekend at the Lake and SeaFair

Spent the entire weekend out on the lake, and started out by sleeping onboard Friday night. Better to do that, than to fight the rowdy crowds at the ramp on Saturday morning. On top of that, there was absolutely NO spots available down at the marina, so a night at anchor was a much better solution.
Reward was an invasion of bugs just before midnight, followed by a tad of chilly weather (too lazy to crawl into the sleeping bag...), and an amazing moonlit sky over the bay, and then a wonderful sunrise. Amazing how beautiful it actually can be, more or less in the middle of the city.

To survive the hardship (?) of sleeping onboard, wife and dog came down Friday night with pizza dinner, and Saturday morning freshly delivered Starbucks. Call that service!

Saturday lunch we loaded up with some friends, food, and beer and jutted out into the horrible wake out on Lake Washington. That is what you get when there are 5,000 (?) boats in every shape and size racing to the area north of the I-90 bridge to enjoy the always impressive Blue Angels literally overhead. Bumpy ride, but we got down just in time to find a decent spot for the air show.

Coming back, we were lucky to find a protected spot dockside in downtown Kirkland and Aksel and I spent the following hours just basking in the sun and watching the scenery (!) passing by. Decided to leave the boat there and go home for a "real" bed, and brought along a BBQ for wife and dog. Great evening out on the deck, and still just as hard to believe these temperatures! Still way past 80F at bed time.

Slept in a bit Sunday and only we were only two heading out (the rest were too beaten up by the sun from Saturday). Ended up a tad further to the west than the day before, and we really hit the jackpot! A few amazing low altitude fly-overs in formation of six - just over our boat made the weekend! The aerials are mazing, but there is still nothing better that when a single or a few jets pass directly overhead so low that you can almost reach up and touch them.

Enjoyed checking out some of the other vessels before heading down to Aksel's friend Laurie and her family's beach side party on Mercer Island. On the way down, we saw a number of boats being "pulled over" due to speeding, inattention, and likely also BIUs. Police was really alert, and had even set up a shore side booking station with a small portable jail - and a TV crew to really make it the "walk of shame"...

Turning northbound in late evening, we just puttered up along the East shore, and even got to see a rare opening of the 520 bridge close up. Also slowly followed by a large catamaran with a helicopter - and landing platform - on top. Back in Kirkland it was dark - but no spots. Aksel waited behind while I got the trailer from home and we pulled out of the water. A truly amazing weekend out. Seattle hardly can be any better than this!

Oh, almost forgot: After wife left the boat to go home on Saturday, she had to stop and pick up some dog food. Well, she also ended up bringing home another kitten. A black little guy by the name "Edgar". So now, we are getting closer to a "zoo" again. Funny guy though, totally fearless - like all kittens!

The PreZ is having a Brew...

Last week a minor incident in Cambridge sort of escalated and ended up on the National Scene. A black professor was essentially "breaking in" into his own home, a police officer was called to the scene, and it escalated, ending up with the professor being temporarily arrested.

The Prez said something that the Cambridge Police department acted "stupidly" and boom - it WAS a national and big issue. Have to admit, it was maybe not the best comment from the Prez, not knowing all the facts at that time.

Today, the Prez, the arresting officer, the black professor, and the vice Prez meet in garden outside the White House for a brew and "conciliatory" (my choice of words) talks. Cool - literally cool - way to defuse the situation and have some guy talk over a few beers. Even a Prez needs a few of those once in a while. Even though these brews looked like VERY chilled "run-of-the-mill" beers and not something of a better "vintage".

Sort of sad though that there was probably 200 photographer at the other end of the lawn, so it did not really look like much of a private moment.

Never the less, three people that probably acted a tad stupidly and hastily got to sit-down face to face over a brew. Not a bad way to end the day.

Zizzling - yes we reached 103F

If we thought Monday was "Zcorching", today and possibly even tomorrow will have even more of it.

Walked the dog last night just after midnihgt. Temperature was more a night in Dallas than here in the PNW. Only missing was the sound of nightly crickets. As it was for us, it was dead silent (nice) and it seemed like most people really had not only tucked in, but also zoomed out. The heat can do that to some.

This morning it was already past 85F when jumping out of bed around 8.30 AM. At noon it passed 95F and if all goes well, we'll set a new Seattle record if we hit 101F out at SeaTac.

After airing the house out over night (or rather, letting cooler air in), house is now boarded up and we'll do OK even without any A/C or large fans. Sort of reminds of Dallas where I normally never turned on the A/C, until the cat really needed it (and then put the A/C at 85F just to keep the humidty down inside). Compare that to one of my bosses who kept his house at 65F in the Texas summer...

UPDATE:
As predicted, at 2.53 PM this afternoon the old "all-time-high" record at Seatac (100F) was broken and a new offical high-temp of 103F was recorded later in the afternoon around 5 PM. Pretty cool!

Even at past 11PM, it is still above 90F outside - that is RARE, since it under a normal year barely ever hits 90F as the high temp of a day. But, we are not complaining. Fans are humming slowly to bring in the (now) cooler night air.

Some of today's temperatures in the PNW:
Vancouver, WA: 107
Kelso: 106
Portland: 106 (all-time record: 107)
Chehalis: 106
Renton: 105
Tacoma: 104
Olympia: 104 (ties all-time record)
Shelton: 104
Seattle (Sea-Tac): 103 (all-time record)
Seattle (Boeing Fld): 103
Gig Harbor: 103
Arlington: 102
Bremerton: 102
North Bend: 102
Everett: 100
Friday Harbor: 97
Bellingham: 96
Port Angeles: 92
Forks: 83
Hoquiam: 77

Zcorcher...

Well, not sure what's going on, but for the past 70 days or so, we really have had a it warm and dry - pretty extreme for Seattle in both cases.

But, people are complaining about the record heat that is upon us this week. I'd just say, chill out and enjoy it. The fal lrains and the wet winter will be arriving sooner than we realize, and a few days with 90+ temperatures is really not that bad. We just have to slow down a bit, enjoy the cooler evenings even more, and be ever thankful for not living in Florida or Texas, where this type of weather is a very daily occurance.

Zyttende Mai

One of many reasons for living in the PNW is the great celebration of Syttende Mai in Ballard. This year was no different with wonderful weather, an active parade and just a festive atmosphere, surrounded by friends and Norwegians...?!

Beth and I decided to bike and got there just as the parade started. A good 25 mile ride along Lake Washington under sunny skies. Sort of does not get better.

The celebration of Syttende Mai is what the celebration of June 6th should have been in Sweden all along. A fun day of partying and just being happy for ones heritage/nationality. At least when I lived in Sweden, June 6th passed pretty silently and those who wanted to celebrate "I'm Swedish and I'm proud of it" sort of got labeled nationalist and not in the good sense of the word. Hopefully that have changed, but few places are as "happy" as Ballard on Syttende Mai!

Kirkland 5K and Half-Marathon

Very late we decided to join the "race" down at Juanita Beach. Since I wanted to bring Phoebe (dog) the 5K was the most suitable distance and she did really well, even at the start where it was crowded and tons of people with dogs (she can get a tad nervous when there's too much action/crowds).

Just upon entering 98th Avenue I stumbled - badly - fell flat on my stomach, and ripped open my left little finger as well as scraped my right hand and the watch band. But, this caused a small delay and the reward was the priceless showing of an "aerial fight" between a Bald Eagle and a Heron, just over our heads as we ran down Juanita Park Bridge. Had I not fallen, I would have been far past this spot and missed it all.

Truly amazing and yet another reason we we love this place!

Finished in a decent time, pulling dog the last mile, and realized that my finger had been bleeding all the time. My racing bib was nicely blood stained!

All in all, a good Sunday in Kirkland!

More Znow -> a bamboo emergenZy

Woke up this morning to more snow. What's really up with the weather? But after over two weeks with really sunny and warm weather, maybe it was payback time...

Every snow fall puts stress on the bamboo. See before and after (shaking off) resuce here below. It has been much worse, but these "grass" are obviously very resilient to stress, and always recover after having been squshed down.





But why does this little snow force closure of schools? Or cancellation of garbage pickup? Can this be a "regional" emergency (apart from for the bamboo, of course)?

A New PreZident - a Good Man

Today was a good day - in many ways. The eight years of Bush Jr. finally ended. Not a day too late. He should never have been elected to the office, but one can only say that "a people get the politicians it deserves"...

That statement is certainly still true, so what a difference only 8 years can make. Today was a big day, for the US, and for the World. Probably no inauguration of a head of state has ever gotten so much attention from around the globe. And, it is not just because Bush is history, or that this is the first African-American elected to the highest office, it because finally a "good man" finally has taken the oath.

I do not know Obama, never met him, but based on what I've seen so far, he is smart, intelligent, well educated, well articulated, supposedly a good listener, engaging, and we just have to hope that he will use all his "skills" to "stand his ground", make a lot of "correct" decisions, and get people engaged and interested in the running of this nation - a nation that still has a huge impact on the rest of the globe.

The expectations on his presidency are sky high, but I think he will work hard - and it started in his speach - to get them down to a more realistic level and get people to gather around both the problems as well as the solutions. If the solutions are the "right" ones, well, only time will tell!!!

From my little cocoon out on the West Coast, I did get a chance to watch some of the day's events, and the day was "sealed" with a glass of good Single Malt. It was truly a day to remember!

To be noted as well: The White House web page has been completely overhauled and open to search engines like Google and MSN Live. The Administration really has taken a step into the 21st century - literally over night.

Finally - a TUNNEL deciZion

Puget Sound leaders today took the only sensible decision for the future: A Tunnel!

A tunnel is the ONLY sensible alternative in a region where natural beauty and access to the water literally is worth millions - if not billions. Seattle only has one waterfront and we'd do a disservice to future generations if we blocked it off with new construction - be it viaduct, condos, or warehouses.

As for the cost - yes a tunnel does cost money - now it is time go overseas and truly LEARN from what has been done on similar projects in cities around the globe (Oslo, Norway and Gothenburg, Sweden are two similar and recent project that directly comes to mind). Tunnels CAN be built wisely and cost effectively. Well managed projects do not turn in to another "Big Dig" a la Boston.
Hence, there is no reason a tunnel in Seattle should cost 8 to 10 times the cost of a recent - and similarly sized - tunnel along the waterfront in Gothenburg.

We have bright engineers, good workers, and construction companies that ought to be very interested in a project like this. On the other hand, we need regulation - yes, that pesky word - to ensure that there is ample competition for this project and not only one or two overpriced bidders (like for the recent ferry bid), or worse, like on the EastCoast, the mob and paybacks drive up the cost of construction.

And, while at it, I'd encourage WSDOT engineers to go to both Oslo and Gothenburg and see how these cities totally have changed the waterfront for something "better" - not an area that is jammed with traffic, or filled with dilapidated warehouses. Oslo is already successfully done, Gothenburg (tunnel completed in June 2006) is in the midst of the transformation process. Even if we spend a few millions on sending people on "study" trips, in the end it is worth every penny, assuming they truly learn and apply practices deployed in other successful projects.

Another project that is worth while visiting, even though it is "across the water" is the bridge/tunnel combination that connects the southern Swedish city of Malmoe with Copenhagen. A massive project, where the tunnel is 2.5 miles long (out of a total of over 9 miles for the entire link across the Oresund Strait).

Paris, France, is another example where tunnels have been both dug and "lidded" for everything from massive freeways, via high-speed rail links, to pedestrian connections.

Oslo is not stopping with traffic tunnels, but also has other project "going underwater", where parking structures with 800 stalls will be submerged to allow for housing developments go on top.

For those who are scared about the "Big One", it might be best to leave the region since really no area is "safe". Living in an earthquake prone area is a risk we are sort of willing to take (just as we take a flooding risk living close to sometimes raging rivers). But, on the other hand, BART (SF Bay Area) has several underwater tunnels, even though they are "tubes", resting on top of the seafloor, that managed extremely well in the last "big one" in 1989. Look at Japan as well. Earthquakes and long underwater tunnels move massive amounts of people. In a more geologically stable area, we have the the "Chunnel" (yes at great expense but also lenght), a working and vital link between the UK and the European continent.

What I am trying to say is that there are ways to do this right from the get go. Tunnels do not have to be that pricey, nor unsafe. If I have a small concern about this project, it is that it does not seem to include any provision for future transit. As many have stated, the additional cost for building a tunnel that can accommodate three lane in each direction is likely wise. Now or in the future, those added lanes can support some type of mass transit.

All that said, I do not think the final drawings are anywhere close to be presented. If it'll be one BIG "tube" with traffic stacked, or two smaller tubes side-by-side, or if there will be some extra "access" tubes for traffic to/from Magnolia/Queen Anne Hill, it is likely still far to early to tell.

But, all in all, a good comprise has been decided upon; tunnel, surface improvements, transit improvements, should provide ample capacity for everyone that needs to travel through our beautiful city. The leadership did what was needed - they did dare to make a decision for the future! Just too bad it took so many years.

Flooding follows Znow

First a lot of snow, then warm weather, and then rain, tons of it. The weather "stream" is referred to as the "Pineapple Express" since it originates in the waters around Hawaii - warm, moist air - and the end of this firehose is normally the Olympic Mountains or the Cascades. But all water that ends up there has to come down. And with warm weather, add to that a lot of melting snow.

So, here it resulted in amazing (and for many surprising) flooding. All passes were closed, I-5 closed south of Olympia, and only way out of state is driving into Canada or flying. Sort of strange, living in one of the most high-tech hubs on the planet.
Today could not sit home and just watch it all on TV - especially not after that some areas SW of Seattle got over 16 inches - that is more than 400 mm... - of rain over the past two days. So Aksel and I decided to drive up to Snoqualmie Falls and City, one of few areas one could actually still get to, to get a close up encounter of the disaster.
Despite weather report talking about clearing, it started raining heavily and later even snowing, wet, very damp snow. Snow that sticks like wet wool gloves...

It was sad to see the state in downtown Snoqualmie, with belongings thrown out of flooded houses into the front yard, but at the same time, living close to sometimes "raging rivers" (as the amptly named tavern in Fall City), you actually do take a risk (just as we do living in an earthquake prone area...). A river that is beautiful and calm in late summer, can quickly turn wild and raging with some precip up in the mountains.

WSDOT has posted some truly amazing photos of the damage at their Flickr site. There is a lot of destruction, or should we say evidence of Mother Nature's Fury, but check especially the ones taken up on Snoqualmie Pass.

If interested in some stuff from last winter, there are "true" winter pictures in WSDOT's Winter 2008 Flickr archive

FoZter a Dog?

Wife thought it'd be a good idea to foster a German Shepherd pup for a few days. One of her colleagues at the hospital is very active in the Northwest German Shepherd Rescue, a great organization that rescues and cares for GSDs that people - for whatever strange reason - do not care for.

Met the wonderful and beautiful pups "Hans" and "Hummel" last night at Amy's house. It is hard NOT to take these guys in, but it is also easy to forget what it takes to take on another dog, especially a roudy puppy.

We in any case decided to have these two guys meet Phoebe tonight up at the AG Bell schoolyard. Hummel was a lot of fun, and followed me around allover, almost tehtered to me, just as if I was his dad. Phoebe did not really care much for him, wanted to play a little bit, but mainly just did not care. Decided to take Hummel to our house home and have him meet Phoebe on her "home turf". In my view it went OK, even though she once sort of told Hummel, "hey, this is my spot, back off", but wife was a tad pessimistic and also sad, since she decided that Phoebe can not be trusted with other dogs in the house. I think it was more of a case that "Hummel" was a tad too old (about 5 months) and large, and no longer just a small "pup", just behaving like one. A younger dog would probably have worked great.

All that said, one could see in Phoebe's face that she really questioned WHY we would take in another dog when we have HER! "I am not good enough?". Once Hummel was gone, she returned to her favorite postion as the biggest couch potato around... Peace in the house.

Neighbors are back - and so is the Znow!

Sort of hard to imagine. When we dropped off our neighbors at SeaTac for their winter trip to Europe, it started snowing when we were driving through Bellevue.

Today, two weeks later, we were driving towards the airport to pick them up, and even though most snow has melted/rained away, it started SNOWING as we were driving through Bellevue. What's up with that town?

Later in the evening, when everyone was safely home, I took Phoebe for a late night walk, and it was almost prettier than during our very heavy snowfall around Christmas. The snow tonight was so wet and heavy, but it was also very "untouched" due to the late hour, and one realizes how much "dampening effect" the snow has on sound/noises. Snow just makes everything so very peaceful.

Back home after the walk, I peaked out into the backyard, and our poor bamboo was probably in worse condition tonight, than after the Christmas snowfalls. The bushes are supposed to be some 30+ feet tall, but were weighed down so much by the vet snow that they did not reach to more than maybe 5 feet. But, bamboo's been through this before and it must be a very resilient plant, or rather grass, so it'll recover. Note to self: Go out early Monday morning and shake off as much of the heavy stuff as possible to help the bamboo recover!

LutefiZk and a very true Christmas dinner in Ballard

Kristine hinted in early December that we'd be invited to a "LuteFisk" party on December 28th at her house. An honor in itself, but due to snow in Seattle some other stuff got in the way, and she rescheduled for tonight.

But what an Amazing Party in Ballard! We expected only a small dinner, with some fish that taste like "snot" (quoted from a good friend), but upon arriving we entered in to something that much better can be described as a Scandinavian cabin at Christmas - with the bonus of being filled with fun and interesting people!

After a few hours of mingling, hanging around the wonderful woodstove (there is NO BETTER heat than the one generated by a wood stove - I don't care what others say), we eventually got seated.

And, expecting "just" lutefisk" we were treated to a full Scandinavian "julmiddag" with not much missing. I am NO FAN of lutefisk (memories of grandma's tasty but a fish so bony you could not eat it still hangs around), but was positively surprised when having a really good bite of this "sloppy" fish in early December at Sons of Norway up in Bothell. Kristine was up for a challenge, especially when declaring she had never cooked lutefisk before...

So, after a very tasty "sill sallad" (once again, a first since I never liked this dish at home), the fish came out and it was GOOD! I even had a few extra servings, on top of the meatballs, the beer and the wine. Coffee, prinsesstarta, an excellent selection of schnapps, and great friendship made this a night to remember.

(all photos are a tad "retouched" due to the dark environs, resulting in more visible images but pretty poor photo quality)