Things I will miss about living in downtown/Capital Hill:

- Living within walking distance of Bumberhoot, Folklife, and The Capital Hill Block Party, Showbox, Neumos, & The Paramount
- Some of the best restaurants in Seattle, all located within a few blocks of our apartment
- The 5 minute walk to three different movie theaters
- Access to the Link Lightrail to the airport
- The Capital Hill farmers market
- The spiral staircase in our old apartment
- The off-leash dog park two blocks away
- Walking to Pike Place Market
- Freeway Park, Volunteer Park, and Cal Anderson Park
- Having a wide variety of places to go (i.e. still OPEN) after 7pm
- Dozens of zipcars within a few blocks

Things I will not miss about living in downtown/Capital Hill:

- Seeing drunks and meth-heads peeing on the sidewalk when I walked to the bus at 5:50am
- Walking to the bus at 5:50am
- Spending an hour commuting 4 miles at the end of the work day
- Walking up the huge, steep hill to our old apartment
- Wading through convention center goers milling around in front of the Cheesecake Factory
- The strung out weirdos who frequent the (very seedy) Bathhouse one block from our old place
- Walking my dog around broken glass, needles, and used condoms
- Ride the Ducks tour busses

So that’s about it. I am super happy that we cut down our time commuting and am excited to live in the self proclaimed “Center of the Universe”. Pictures of our new place to follow….

Unrealistic actor; unrealistic get-a-way shoes

This movie could have been awesome, but it wasn’t. I thought it was going to be be a dark, psychologically terrifying dystopian future film like Children of Men, The Road, or even Repo Men, but it was just a predictable action movie with bad acting and cheesy dialogue. Justin Timberlake wasn’t HORRIBLE, but he wasn’t very good. At all. I did think Cillian Murphy was great; he always seems so calm. As for the female lead, Amanda Seyfried, I was too busy contemplating her incredibly unrealistic footwear throughout the film (running for *hours* in stilettos) to notice her acting. The film’s message (WE ARE THE 99%) was topical but super heavy handed.  2/5 stars. 

Which one is Tobias?

Review of the Blue Man Group:

Earlier this month John took me to see the Blue Man Group for my 28th birthday. The performance was not what I expected- I thought it was going to more like STOMP, with a heavy focus on creative, percussive, music-making. Instead, it was more like performance art- very dada-esque and whimsical. There were definite themes apparent in the skits: science, technology, information overload, art, unexpected surprises, etc. I enjoyed the performance very much, it was engaging and could have been longer (not something I ever say about anything that involves sitting still). The finale reminded me of a Flaming Lips concert . 4/5 stars. 

Review of Andrew and Jessica’s wedding:

The newlyweds!

On October 1st my brother got married. John and I went to Maryland the week before the wedding and helped with the rehearsal dinner and a big family dinner, both of which were super fun. The wedding ceremony and reception were held at Jessica’s mom’s house. Andrew, Jessica, friends and family handmade invitations, programs, and decorations, did months of landscaping, set up hay bales, tables, tents, flowers, cooked the food, DJ’d, and everything else that goes into a wedding. There wasn’t a single “outsider” hired for the event. I can’t believe how hard Andrew and Jessica worked on their wedding- they are incredible! The day of the wedding was rainy and very cold, which was a surprise. The rain held off during the ceremony, and I think the guests anticipated the weather and dressed appropriately, so no one minded the chill. Oh except for me, cuz I was freaking freezing. I was in Andrew’s wedding party (Person of Honor, go me!) and wore a paper thin dress. Luckily Jessica gave me a beautiful shawl and I did plan ahead and buy leggings the day before the wedding. At one point during the ceremony I heard my Aunt say, “Alece looks freezing!”  Actually, once the ceremony started I forgot about being cold b/c I was engrossed in the wedding. I think my body was less engrossed though, and shivered enough to qualify as a cardio workout. The ceremony was great, Andrew and Jessica’s friend Cole was the officiant and did a nice job, the entrance musicwas awesome (Officiant entrance: Passion Pit, groom’s entrance: Jay-Z (instrumental), bride’s entrance: Amadou and Miriam), and the sappy vows were just the right amount of sappy. The reception was held directly after the ceremony and featured a continuation of good tunes, awesome food, fun guests, and good vibes. In fact, it’s actually a good thing that the weather was less than optimal because the reception-goers wound up dispersed both outside and inside, which made it feel like a college party, in a good way. I had so much fun seeing my relatives and was super stoked for Andrew and Jessica. It was a great wedding; I will always look back on the day happily, and I know Andrew and Jessica will as well. 5/5 stars.

Ready to "rescue" a cat stuck in a tree

Review of Pug-o-ween 2011:

Pugoween is an annual event/fundraiser thrown by the Seattle Pug Rescue. John and I went last year, before we had Ivy, to decide if we really wanted a pug. This year we went with Ivy, who attempted to wear a firefighter costume (but was a little too rambunctious). The event was held at a community center and was very well attended. It was fun seeing all the goofy dogs in their goofy costumes. John and I sat on the floor and pet the continuous stream of pugs who jumped on our laps. A good time was had by all, especially Ivy.  4/5 stars.