Snow Day(s) 2019 #2
Oh my god! A regular post on the weekend! Well, naturally I wanted to be able to share with you the many photos I have (so far) -- 75 in all, covering Friday and Saturday. I edited and uploaded them yesterday; Shobhit picked up an extra half-shift this morning and that was when I managed to caption them all.
The office closed officially on Friday afternoon at 1:00, at which point there was not yet any new snow, only the promise of the coming storm. And, I wound up staying at the office longer than all but only one other person (Kathy R, in Accounting), for two reasons. First, the snow and ice concerns for other people simply did not apply to me, as I almost exclusively commute home in the winter on foot. Road conditions were of little concern to me.
Second -- and this was the more pertinent point -- I had Happy Hour plans with Laney at 5:15, and I did not see the sense in going home first. Otherwise I might well have taken the free afternoon just like everyone else.
Even Scott waited quite a while to leave; he was third-last, in fact, just before me. It actually started snowing maybe roughly around 1 p.m., but Scott, who was a little smug about having driven his truck to work that would navigate the streets better than most people's vehicles, waited around only until traffic thinned out -- because, essentially, the entire city had the same idea, and everyone went home in the early afternoon, creating a rush hour much earlier than normal.
He must have left around 3:30; I left shortly after 4:00, and then walked straight west on Denny Way, taking photos along the way. I actually reached Laney's apartment building probably around 4:45, but knowing that she works from home and was probably busy, I didn't bother her until 5:00, hanging around in the general vicinity for fifteen minutes (during which I posted that photo of the bread aisle at the Broadway Market QFC, empty except for the gluten free breads on the top shelf).
Laney's building has an inner courtyard with a canopied table and chairs, and I waited there for a minute, totally silent as she came up the stairs and was going to walk right past me without noticing. I didn't mean to scare the shit out of her when I said, "Hey there," but apparently I did.
So then we walked together from her place over to Rooster's Bar & Grill, which is like two and a half blocks from her. I suggested a place for this month's Happy Hour close to her place, knowing it would be snowy -- and, indeed, there was actually quite a bit more on Capitol Hill than there was downtown. We've already easily gotten more snow in one winter snap than we have since the week and a half of snow we had in December 2008, and it's so odd that this time it's happening in mid-February.
To mark the occasion, it was Laney's suggestion that re replace our usual selves in the requisite Happy Hour check-in post with a shot of our cocktails on either side of a small snowman.
We used our straws to give it arms. Laney put a flower on its head as a hat. Its eyes are made of cigarette butts we found on the ground.
We then went back inside, where we were two of maybe sixteen total customers in there at the time. Rooster's is great for two reasons: 1) their Happy Hour lasts until 7:00; and 2) their House Margaritas are effective. I would have had only three, but when I was reaching for my phone I knocked over my second one, and spilled it all over the table. So much of it was still in the glass, I had to get up and ask for help because my one napkin was only barely keeping the spill at bay. But, the waitress replaced it for me at no cost, which really means I got a little extra margarita for free.
I was then super buzzed on my walk home, to a degree I have not been in quite some time. I could only barely remember taking the two photos I got of the snow walking through Cal Anderson Park Friday night.
In an unusual move, Shobhit opted out of Happy Hour this month, so he was just home waiting for me when I got home. I remember that. I also remember getting ready for bed soon thereafter. My Sleep Cycle app says I was asleep at 10:20 p.m. on Friday, so I was home at least a couple of hours before I went to bed. I suppose maybe it was more like an hour and a half.
Anyway, knowing there would be bunches of snow on the ground yesterday morning -- and there was -- I got up and got ready quite soon after waking up, and was ready to head out by 9 a.m. Because it takes Shobhit that much longer to get out the door, we were actually leaving closer to 9:15.
We walked together all the way down to Pike Place Market, because, unlike their condition Monday evening after Sunday night's snowfall, this time all the Alaskan Way Viaduct lanes were blanketed with untouched, un-messed snow. It made for exactly the postapocalyptic look I was going for -- because, and this is key, this winter, 2019, is literally the only time in history the Alaskan Way viaduct will ever be seen both covered in snow and with no traffic running on it whatsoever. By next winter, the entire structure will be entirely demolished.
We were walking past Honest Biscuits in the Market, and I mentioned I have a Chinook Book app coupon for it, and so Shobhit decided we should use it and take a lunch with us to the movie we were headed toward. A few more photos at Victor Steinbrueck Park, and we were then headed back over to Pacific Place. I also got a few 6th Avenue shots from the third-story skywalk that hangs between Macy's and Pacific Place, before we then went to see The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part.
It was all right.
We then caught the #10 bus downtown and rode it all the way up 15th to Boren Park, where I got some nice wintry view shots of Lake Washington, and then a couple shots of Lakeview Cemetery, then several shots of snow-covered Volunteer Park, before walking back home, with a brief stop at the 15th Avenue QFC. Oh an we also stopped for coffee filters at Safeway. It was very important that I add that last bit.
We then stayed home the rest of the day, during much of which, as I said, I edited and uploaded the many photos I had taken on both Friday and yesterday. I feel like a got a lot of fun and/or pretty shots. And, after making pizza for dinner, we watched several episodes of the new, third season of One Day at a Time on Netflix, along with a couple episodes of Cheers.
Most of today, by contrast, has been clear -- but very cold. They predicted severe cold overnight, like 15°, but that never happened -- still, being in the twenties all morning was plenty cold as it was. I even walked through it as I walked down to Convention Place Station to catch a #41 to Northgate to meet Shobhit when he got off work at noon.
But, guess what? Literally as I type this, at 4:17 p.m., it's snowing again. Jesus Christ. This was fun for a couple of days, but . . .
[posted 4:19 pm]