Difference between living in New York and Seattle
So Puff Daddy (soon to be Slim Shady) and Sunny D came into town this past week to visit us. Both Puffy and Sunny have been looking forward to visiting Seattle, and have recently taken to modifying their lifestyle for the better in terms of their health. This is excellent news. They thought it was going to be vacation, but I told them to expect boot camp. You see – whenever I tell my Dad that I am going to exercise, his response is, "Be careful. Don't hurt yourself" as if exercise is the equivalent of a 4-letter word (no examples will be cited as this is a family-friendly blog). Being that we live so close to Green Lake, I knew I had an opportunity to try and change this line of thinking.
I caught a huge break when I
found out that Puffy drinks decaf coffee, which we have none of in our home. So we had to walk down the hill to get coffee, and then walk back up the hill. Mom wanted her decaf tea, so she came along as well. Dad came along on a walk to Whole Foods one day, which also has a bit of an incline.
By Sunday, Marc and I had them ready to walk all the way around Green Lake (2.8 miles). I took the easy way out by running 4 miles, and walking a mile back with the group. Marc, on the other hand, walked with the 'rents around the lake. Yep, I married well as if any of you had any doubt. J Anyway who needs Canyon Ranch when you have Camp Beck to keep you honest about your eating and exercise. Spots are filling up quickly for 2008, so operators are standing by to take your reservation for next year.
Some of the highlights from Puffy and Sunny's 2nd visit to Seattle include dinner with Rebecca and Michael at the house (congrats Michael on the STP ride), dinner with Chris and Robyn at Coupage (very nice on all fronts), visit to Snoqualmie Falls (see picture above), playing miniature golf at Newcastle on the famed 'Rusty Putter' course, celebrating 5 years of Marc and I being together at Lola (surprisingly excellent) and of course, catching a Mariners game – hence the real reason for this post.
My parents really had one request for their visit – if the M's were home, they wanted to go to a game. So as luck would have it, Detroit was in town and it was a game of significance as both teams are in the playoff race. The M's played horrible, in no small part to the overpriced Jeff Weaver and the back-up catcher Jamie Burke. Weaver walked 3, hit one guy, threw multiple wild pitches, gave up 10 hits, and didn't try and hold any of the runners. So the Tigers were stealing bases left and right, including one by Sean Casey (who is known as a good hitter and one of the nicest guys, but the slowest runner ever – ok, Bengie Molina may be slower), and two by Gary Sheffield (one of those was stealing home). So in the top of the 6th, Weaver hits a guy, then walks a guy and is finally pulled. And then the perfect moment transpires that personifies life in New York vs. life in Seattle:
I know, we still need to post pics from our recent trip to Bend, Sunriver and Crater Lake. I'll leave that to Marc. J
P.S. – Dad, just so you know – there is a coffee shop closer to the house than Peet's. We walked by it everyday.
I caught a huge break when I
found out that Puffy drinks decaf coffee, which we have none of in our home. So we had to walk down the hill to get coffee, and then walk back up the hill. Mom wanted her decaf tea, so she came along as well. Dad came along on a walk to Whole Foods one day, which also has a bit of an incline. By Sunday, Marc and I had them ready to walk all the way around Green Lake (2.8 miles). I took the easy way out by running 4 miles, and walking a mile back with the group. Marc, on the other hand, walked with the 'rents around the lake. Yep, I married well as if any of you had any doubt. J Anyway who needs Canyon Ranch when you have Camp Beck to keep you honest about your eating and exercise. Spots are filling up quickly for 2008, so operators are standing by to take your reservation for next year.
Some of the highlights from Puffy and Sunny's 2nd visit to Seattle include dinner with Rebecca and Michael at the house (congrats Michael on the STP ride), dinner with Chris and Robyn at Coupage (very nice on all fronts), visit to Snoqualmie Falls (see picture above), playing miniature golf at Newcastle on the famed 'Rusty Putter' course, celebrating 5 years of Marc and I being together at Lola (surprisingly excellent) and of course, catching a Mariners game – hence the real reason for this post.
My parents really had one request for their visit – if the M's were home, they wanted to go to a game. So as luck would have it, Detroit was in town and it was a game of significance as both teams are in the playoff race. The M's played horrible, in no small part to the overpriced Jeff Weaver and the back-up catcher Jamie Burke. Weaver walked 3, hit one guy, threw multiple wild pitches, gave up 10 hits, and didn't try and hold any of the runners. So the Tigers were stealing bases left and right, including one by Sean Casey (who is known as a good hitter and one of the nicest guys, but the slowest runner ever – ok, Bengie Molina may be slower), and two by Gary Sheffield (one of those was stealing home). So in the top of the 6th, Weaver hits a guy, then walks a guy and is finally pulled. And then the perfect moment transpires that personifies life in New York vs. life in Seattle:
As Weaver walks off the mound, the crowd applauds and we actually hear people around us saying, "Nice try, Jeff.""Nice try, Jeff." Are you [bleeping] kidding me? The guy is getting paid $8mm+/year and the fans are actually applauding and saying, "Nice try, Jeff." My Dad was stunned and thought he needed to get his hearing checked. He asked, "Why are people applauding this guy? He didn't try to keep anyone on base. He walked guys and he's getting paid how much?" I just nodded my head and said, "Welcome to life in the Pacific Northwest". But as usual, Harv took the loss in stride and both of my parents really enjoyed Safeco Field. He talks about the stadium like it's the only thing to see in the Pacific Northwest. Just ask him about it and he'll start in, "Oh, that Safeco Field….." (think Jerry Stiller in Seinfeld or King of Queens). We booked them on a tour the following day, which they enjoyed. Overall, it was a great visit and we expect to see them back in Seattle in 2008.
I know, we still need to post pics from our recent trip to Bend, Sunriver and Crater Lake. I'll leave that to Marc. J
P.S. – Dad, just so you know – there is a coffee shop closer to the house than Peet's. We walked by it everyday.