Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Seattle




Last week, Husband and I went to Seattle, Washington. I was very excited about going, since I had never been to the Northwestern United States. Other reasons: catching up with friends who live in Seattle, including my friend Natasha who writes the blog Maven on the Move, see sidebar. And there's yarn shops! Lots and lots of yarn shops.


Above is the the Seattle Space Needle seen from the base. Note the characteristic overcast sky.


Husband had to be there for work, I was there for fun. When Husband was doing his work thing I walked around the downtown area. Which is very hilly. That's Elliott Bay in the background, steep Yesler St in the mid ground, and a balustrade in the front. Ooof.

Now I know where there are so many Starbucks and Seattle's Best Coffee on every other corner. So you have a place to sit, rehydrate, and catch your breath. It's a very pretty city, with little pocket parks too to sit and enjoy the sun which it does come out.

After lunch, Husband and I took the ferry to Bainbridge Island. That's the Space Needle on the left, the downtown on the right, and the ferry wake. It was a lovely sunny day for a ferry ride. We didn't even get off the ferry, we just rode back and forth. And we saw a bald eagle fly over us, so that was really cool.


We had dinner at a kosher Indian restaurant with Husband's old college roommate who is now Orthodox Jew and my friend Natasha and their kids. Very nice to catch up with everyone.


The next day, Natasha and I and her kids (3 yo and 17 mo) went on a yarn crawl/tour of Seattle. It was a lovely, sunny day too. We went to Tricoter where I got the Fiesta La Boheme rayon/mohair yarn, Peacock colorway, which they wound for me. For lunch we went to a Vietnamese restaurant then went to the Weaving Workshop where I got the Manos and Cascade Heathers yarn. The Fiesta will become a scarf or trim for a shawl someday. The Manos and Cascade will be a cropped shrug someday. Natasha's kids were pretty well behaved but they have their limits so after that Natasha took the scenic route through the Queen Anne neighborhood before dropping me off at the hotel.


While I was off gallivanting with Natasha, Husband took a ferry ride to Bremerton. Husband grew up on a lake and loves the water. So it was a fun afternoon for all.


Husband and I wandered Pike Place Market. But for dinner we went to Elliot's Oyster House on the pier. We gorged on raw oysters, accompanied by martinis. It was so yummy. My favorites were the Sunset Beach oysters: sweet, big, meaty.




Next time we go, whenever that is, we will have to go to the Experience Music Project / Science Fiction Museum. They had a Battlestar Galactica exhibit! And a Sci-fi Hall of Fame! Oh well, next time.


All in all, it was a lot of fun.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

It's about power, not sex

So the chief of the International Monetary Fund, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, has been arrested for sexually assaulting a hotel maid.

Here's my take: he's a man of immense power, with the ability to mess around with entire economies. He's also got a reputation of being a "great seducer" with a history of messing around with women.

People say "but he's so smart and rich. Why would he be so dumb/not hire a prostitute?"

It's not about sex, it's about power. He's probably so used to him say jump and people, including other people with money and power, ask how high? Plus, being smart about one thing (economics) doesn't mean he's smart about other things. Especially if he's not thinking with his big head.

So I say good for you, hotel maid, for standing your ground and saying "I may be paid to serve you in some ways, but that doesn't mean in all ways."

Monday, May 16, 2011

Drawing cartoons

Meet June. She's not a dog person.

And here's Wonder Woman, in her new uniform, taking a break. I imagine she's flying around and saw a little pond and decided to take off her blue jacket, take off the black boots, the silver cuffs, and rolled up her pants to relax a bit. And the golden lasso of truth and headband double as hair accessories too.


I'm a self-taught drawer, so I'm really happy about how Wonder Woman's hand came out and I think I draw good legs and feet. The face in profile needs more practice. In looking at other cartoons and comix, I think the key is stylizing how the face looks. It's not important to look realistic but rather it's a cartoon, so it should be kinda stylized.

I'm using Prismacolor markers, the prepackaged 12 primary and secondary colors. Then I got a marker in the Sand colorway for the skin.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

May: Asian American Pacific Islander Month

And the 10th anniversay of Angry Asian Man, a blog that keeps us up to date on what's happening in Asian America and keeps us angry.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Osama bin Laden killed

Went to bed early last night and got up late this morning. Looking through my twitter feed, I see that bin Laden's been killed. Have yet to have my coffee, so brain not really on yet.

But, wow.