2009.2.22. Tiger Mt. Poo Poo Point.

A short hike, but a nice workout. About 4 miles R/T, 2000 ft. South launch is a nice meadow, overlooking Rainier and Olympic (of course, not seen today). North launch is a bit further, with a bright green plastic carpet for the paragliders, overlooking Lake Sammamish, Squak Mt., houses and highway.
Direction: I-90 exit 17, south for about 3 miles. An parking area of about 20 cars on the east side. A nice map.

2009.2.14. Oyster Dome

2009.2.14. A short hike to Oyster Dome. Less than 2000ft, 6.5 miles (<3 hrs) R/T. Nice view: lots of small island, and some peaks of Vancouver Island, too cloudy to see the Olympics. A bat cave (without bat) about 2 miles in. Otherwise keep left at the forks. A small wedding was in preparation up top, even with proper attires. Snow lingered a bit towards the top, so somewhat slippery and muddy. Some snow geese, lots of ducks and 1 heron along the drive.
Direction: at milepost 10 on north SR 11 (Chuckanut Drive) west of I-5. A restaurant and toilet just north of the trail head. Possible to drive up, from another direction.

2009.2.5. "Memphis" at 5th Ave Theatre

2009.2.5. Memphis at The 5th Ave Theatre, a co-production with La Jolla Playhouse. Written by Joe DiPietro. Music by David Bryan. Storyline loosely follows the life of Dewey Phillips, the first white D.J. who played "race" music on radio. Quite funny at times. Smooth scene changes (scenic design by David Gallo, I especially like the radio box). Effective image projections (lighting design by Howell Binkley). Energetic songs and dances. As always, too much sound amplification.

2009.1.23. "Pearl Fisher" at Seattle Opera

Pearl Fisher at Seattle Opera.

Leïla:    Larissa Yudina
Nadir:    Brian Stucki
Zurga:    David Adam Moore
Nourabad:    Patrick Carfizzi
Principal Dancers:    Bobby Briscoe,    Lisa Gillespie
Conductor:    Gerard Schwarz
Stage Director:    Kay Walker Castaldo 
Lighting Designer:    Neil Peter Jampolis
Choreographer:    Peggy Hickey
Sets and costumes:    Philadelphia Opera (Boyd Ostroff, Richard St. Clair)

Simple yet effective stage sets. Sophisticate lighting imitates water and diving. Better dancing numbers than most. Both Nadir and Zurga went shirtless, and they looked great (probably lots of workout during the past half year). Leila needs to loose some weight. But her voice is superb.

2009.1.19. "Road to Mecca" at Seattle Rep

2009.1.19. Road to Mecca by Athol Fugard at Seattle Repertory Theatre. Inspired by the life of Helen Martins, the play only depicts one afternoon visit by a friend who lives 800 miles away, and a pastor in the same town. It managed to touch various subjects: self independence, aging, trust ..., and done so very well. Quite moving. Fantastic stage set: all these candles ...