July 29, 2009 - All-time record high temperature at Sea-Tac Airport.

Seattle Mariners, first place in the AL West.

We'll see how long this lasts.

It's baseball season, and hope springs eternal. This is a good start.

Mariners win opener, Griffey goes yard

Today was the last day of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. After nearly 146 years, another newspaper bites the dust.

From the front page:


From David Horsey

Even though he's 39, and he's unlikely to contribute on the field the way we all remember, I'm excited to have Junior back with the Mariners.

He gives us a left-handed bat, and a huge emotional uplift for all the fans. This is where he made his name, and we have fond memories of his exploits - especially "The Double." As Willie Mays reportedly counseled, "At the end of the day, at the end of your career, your legacy is with the Mariners."

...but an entertaining story, nonetheless.

Bellevue man outwits 2 criminals, escapes in their getaway van

"Pitchers and catchers report"

I'm optimistic about this year, more so about next.

...when the President is younger than you.

100 things - bold if you've done them, italicize if you'd like to......

1. started your own blog
2. slept under the stars
3. played in a band (school bands count, right?)
4. visited hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. been to disneyland/world (I hope I never have to.)
8. Climbed a mountain - Half Dome and Mt. Lyell, both in Yosemite National Park.
9. held a praying mantis
10. sang a solo
11. bungee jumped
12. visited paris
13. watched a lightning storm at sea
14. taught yourself an art from scratch
15. adopted a child
16. had food poisoning
17. walked to the top of the statue of liberty
18. grown your own vegetables
19. seen the mona lisa in france
20. slept on an overnight train
21. had a pillow fight
22. hitch hiked
23. taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. built a snow fort
25. held a lamb
26. gone skinny dipping
27. run a marathon
28. ridden a gondola in venice
29. seen a total eclipse
30. watched a sunrise or sunset
31. hit a home run - but the chances are slim to none since I don't play baseball anymore
32. been on a cruise
33. seen niagara falls in person
34. visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. seen an amish community
36. taught yourself a new language
37. had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. seen the leaning tower of pisa in person
39. gone rock climbing
40. seen michelangelo's david in person
41. sung karaoke
42. seen old faithful geyser erupt
43. bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant
44. visited Africa
45. walked on a beach by moonlight
46. been transported in an ambulance
47. had your portrait painted
48. gone deep sea fishing - sort of - I've been on a salmon charter boat a few times
49. seen the sistine chapel in person
50. been to the top of the eiffel tower in paris
51. gone scuba diving or snorkelling
52. kissed in the rain
53. played in the mud
54. gone to a drive-in theatre
55. been in a movie
56. visited the great wall of china
57. started a business
58. taken a martial arts class
59. visited russia
60. served at a soup kitchen
61. sold girl scout cookies. (with my daughter)
62. gone whale watching
63. gotten flowers for no reason
64. donated blood
65. gone sky diving
66. visited a nazi concentration camp
67. bounced a cheque
68. flown in a helicopter.
69. saved a favorite childhood toy
70. visited the lincoln memorial
71. eaten caviar
72. pieced a quilt
73. stood in times square
74. toured the everglades
75. been fired from a job
76. seen the changing of the guard in london
77. broken a bone
78. been on a speeding motorcycle
79. seen the grand canyon in person
80. published a book
81. visited the vatican
82. bought a brand new car
83. walked in jerusalem
84. had your picture in the newspaper
85. read the entire bible
86. visited the white house
87. killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. had chickenpox
89. saved someone’s life
90. sat on a jury
91. met someone famous Before they were famous, though.
92. joined a book club
93. lost a loved one
94. had a baby - well, it was actually my wife
95. seen the alamo in person.
96. swim in the great salt lake.
97. been involved in a law suit
98. owned a cell phone
99. been stung by a bee
100. Believed in Love.

I'm having a hard time figuring out what to say. This day is such a beacon of hope for so many people.

I remember the day after the election, it felt like the weight of the world had been lifted from our shoulders. Today it became official.

Now, here's hoping for the best on day 2 and beyond.

I've been perusing the names on our mail lately. The strangeness started not long after I started paying my mother's bills. I would receive mail with my name and hers, as if we were a couple. OK, I can understand that, since both of our names are on her checking account.

The other day, I saw the following combinations:
- my daughter's name and mine
- my mother's name and mine
- my son's name and mine
- And a separate mailing for my wife, whose last name is not the same as mine

The really weird mailings are the ones offering reverse mortgages.

I sense an oncoming identity crisis.

You've all heard about yesterday's incident already. I like this picture.



It was also weird to see the plane floating down the river.

This is hilarious.

Burger King recently introduced a Facebook app called Whopper Sacrifice that allows users to delete ten of their friends in exchange for a Whopper sandwich...

What BK has unwittingly done here is provide a way to determine the valuation of Facebook.

http://www.kottke.org/09/01/facebooks-valuation-in-whoppers

Remember this from December 2007?


This is now:



This doesn't affect me personally - we're not near any of the flooding rivers. But it is a huge mess and hassle for many folks in the state.

I remember this sports story from earlier this year.

Central Washington offers the ultimate act of sportsmanship.

You probably remember it - where the batter hits a home run, stops to retouch a base and blows our her knee, then the defensive players carry her around so she can touch the bases and get her home run.

I have to say, this one is better. Go read it.

There are some games where cheering for the other side feels better than winning

On Wednesday, the forecast was for most of western Washington to get snow. But due to an unusual weather pattern, the Seattle area was in the "rain shadow" of the Olympics, and got nothing.

OK, that saved us for one day.

On Thursday, we were hit with a vengance. We got almost nine inches of snow at our place.

On Saturday, we got another four inches at home, but we weren't here to see it. We were driving to and from Vancouver, WA. On the way back, the freeways were getting enough snow that I couldn't see the lanes.

Besides all this, our daughter was flying here from the east coast. She managed to mostly dodge the weather systems that have been plaguing the country. We got to the airport in time to pick her up.

So, what happens today? Four more inches of snow. And it got warm enough that it started to melt, so tomorrow morning the roads will be skating rinks.

Now, for those of you from places that get lots of snow, and are thinking, "what a wimp," well, we usually get snow once a winter, and then just a couple of inches. So the various governmental agencies are not prepared to deal with this.

I guess we get a White Christmas this year - not because it will be snowing, but because this stuff will still be around.

It is pretty, though.