Hullo ~
I thought I’d share a little about our trip to the Seattle area the week of August 13th.
Our
car doesn’t have a normal sized trunk; we refer to it as the “rear glove compartment.” We packed the Solstice with our laptops, video projector and a few changes of clothing and headed north for the 3.5 hour drive to the Seattle. The rest areas along the Interstate are perfectly spaced to allow for frequent sandbox stops and to stretch our legs.
We did a TSFL presentation Monday evening in Edmonds and then headed to Seattle to meet the slender and darling Amber. She is a perfect example of one who follows the BeSlim Philosophy – she aims for 10k steps a day, as do we. Most downtown cities provide a great way to walk and gawk; one can exercise as well as window shop!
Fortified with our daily breakfast serving of Medifast Maple and Brown Sugar Oatmeal, my husband Terry and I donned our athletic shoes - walking in Seattle always proves to be an adventure! Leave the high heels at home – some of the streets are very steep.
Here’s a view of the Space Needle:
We parked in a hotel lot and headed towards the wharf area and for the Pike Place Market.
Words cannot describe the sights and smells of the Pike Place Market.
Ya gotta go there! I’ve been to many Farmers’ Markets – it is similar to the Embarcadero in San Fran but ya just gotta experience this one for yourself.
Pike Place Market is celebrating their centennial this month and to help celebrate the Market's 100th birthday, a Pike Place Market Street Fair was held in late May with a Parade of Pigs.
Local artist decorated 100 fiberglass pigs in honor of Rachel, the Market's life-size bronze piggy bank.
Here’s a picture of Rachel for your viewing pleasure:
After the parade in May, the porkers were placed along various sidewalks and throughout the downtown area.
We actually came upon our first pig site in front of Ben Bridge jewelers on our way to the market.
Terry snapped my photo – there are strips of paper glued all over the Ben Bridge Pig, similar to what you find locked inside a fortune cookie. The pig’s ‘fortunes’ refer to jewels, gold, etc. I was hoping Terry would get the hint when I showed him the one that said, “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend.”
Nah, didn’t happen. My right hand SO needs a honkin’ diamond…
Here’s a picture of Terry with a pair of porkers atop an old flatbed truck in the market area.
To market to market…
Among the many seafood vendors is a shop where the fish virtually fly, the Pike Place Fish Market.
Terry tried to capture the fish a’flyin’ but it was near impossible.
When a person orders a king salmon, one of the Fishmongers calls it out and flings the fresh fish behind the counter to get wrapped. Sometimes several fish are tossed back and forth and on occasion, a fake fabric fish is flipped into the bystanders.
The crab and shrimp are succulent and you can purchase a seafood cocktail to enjoy as you walkabout the market.
I had my picture taken with Anders. The guys that work there have a ball and Anders said, he “never feels like he is working” because it is so much fun and he enjoys meeting great people.
Mingled with the smells of fish are bouquets of fresh flowers, fresh baked bread, and tantalizing smells from the culturally diverse restaurants that line the streets.
Here’s a BumblePig atop the marketplace:
Upon Amber’s recommendation, we had lunch at Etta’s on Western Avenue.
Terry and I shared the Dungeness Crab and Butter Lettuce salad with lime vinaigrette dressing. It had some fresh watercress and a few slices of peeled pink grapefruit. It was served with fresh from the market steamed green beans and some crusty whole grain bread. We also shared a luncheon entrée of Tom’s Fresh Dungeness Crab Cakes with green cocktail sauce (Oh, I loved that!) and it included some french fries (since I was going to dine out that evening, I passed on the FF, Terry had some of them).
Washington State is where Starbuck’s was birthed and we always have to go to the original store located at 1912 Pike Place. …the first time I visited this store was in the mid 1980’s and it was busy then, too. It was hoppin’ on Tuesday, August 14th.
We had the pleasure of meeting Jim Whittaker, the first American to ascend Mt Everest.
Starbuck’s had invited Jim to promote their original Pike Market Roast Coffee. It is available only at their flagship store and Starbuck’s donated $4 per bag for the Pike Market fund the week we visited their store.
We noticed the poster of Jim Whittaker on the wall and chatted it up with him while we waited in line for a house grande with room…
What an incredibly friendly and healthy man – he admitted to being 78 years old and both knees are replacements – his arms are muscular and he looks fit.
He chatted with us about some of his experiences – when he and his team received the Hubbard medal from President Kennedy and other personal experiences with the Kennedy family.
Somehow he asked Terry about what we do and Terry showed Jim my pictures. He kissed and hugged me and congratulated me on my accomplishment – it blew me away!
He introduced us to his wife Dianne and told her about me – he made me feel like I was a hero.
Jim’s book, Life on the Edge, inspires us to look to his example to tackle the things that seem impossible.
Jim writes, “If you aren't living on the edge, you are taking up too much space.” Here we are, endeavoring to not take up too much space!
Jan and Paul spent the morning in Edmonds and they caught up with us at Starbuck’s and we walked to the Pier area and took in those sites.
It is a good thing we are thinner, there were lots of stairs to climb on the way back. Here’s a picture of Jan coming out the door at Starbuck's with a cup of tea in hand:
As we headed back, we stopped in at the Chocolate Box for a whiff of fresh truffles and another porcine pose…
We had a fabulous time in Seattle! We then headed north to Lynnwood and Edmonds.
I did a little shoppage…and we had supper together at Anthony’s in Edmonds with Jan, Sharon (SeeMeLose) and their husbands.
Here’s a picture of me being goofy when we had dinner. I have a hairnet and a pair of Billy Bob teeth that I whip out every once in a while…
Lovin’ my thinny life with our new grandson Jake (he’s 3 month old now) and playing with his big brother Nick (age 26 months).
While you are in the losing phase of your weight loss journey and creating optimal health, concentrate on the things that bring you the greatest pleasure and delight in them – focusing on what we are gaining and not what we are not giving up will enable us to keep on keeping on towards becoming our healthiest best selves.
!!
--Diana
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