The Alaska Street Reservoir is located on the south side of South 19th Street between South Wilkeson and South Ainsworth. There are trees painted on the side of the reservoir and for something so large it blends surprisingly well. The reservoir provides drinking water for the city of Tacoma.
Penrose State Park is one of the prettiest parks around. Situated on Mayo Cove at 321 158th Avenue Kp South, Lakebay, WA. the park offers over two miles of shoreline, picnic tables, shelters, a grassy area and a rocky beach. It is obviously a popular spot for pleasure boats and kayakers. Dear daughter and I walked a fair distance along the beach, discovering that flip flops were a poor shoe choice considering the slippery mud and rocks/shells filled with barnacles. But we went slowly and did OK. The best part was wading in the water and flipping over rocks to catch little crabs, both regular and hermit. In the picture of shells below some of the shells house hermit crabs and some snails.
The first full day back at work for a while called for a treat. But not caffeine because it was too late in the day. Espress O Yourself at 1009 Regents Blvd at Alameda Ave in Fircrest, won me over with a strawberry lemonade smoothie that was very delicious! I went in instead of taking advantage of the drive through lane. While waiting for my drink, I munched on a couple of free chocolate covered espresso beans. Espress O Yourself (love that name) is more than a coffee shop. They serve a light breakfast and lunch and have indoor and outdoor seating.
On Friday we found ourselves in Everett with a little time on our hands. Not enough time to take the Boeing Tour, but enough to go check out the airfield near the Future of Flight Museum. There were several wonderful things about the experience. The day was lovely, warm and sunny. Mt. Baker was hoovering in the background. There were a bunch (30+) planes on the field. But best of all, I think, was the fact that the Boeing Co. was thoughtful enough to create berms that provide a view of the field. There were a bunch of people out checking out the planes, and many of them appeared to be fathers and their children. This is the kind of thing that memories are made out of!
The really huge aircraft in the photo below is a Dreamlifter and it is used to move airplane parts. The back part of the plane is hinged and can swing open! I thought that was pretty cool! To read more about it, go here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_747_Large_Cargo_Freighter
I wanted to pick up some information about Destiny Harbor Tours at 8829 North Harborview Drive, Gig Harbor. What I found out is that a two hour tour costs $27 for an adult, which I thought was pretty reasonable. They also offer memorial services, which sounds like a good way to say final respects. Their website is here: http://www.destinymarine.com/
As we dip into the second half of August, I find myself trying to squeeze in as much summer as possible before the rain and cool weather returns. Today dear daughter and I took the loop trail around the Chambers Bay Golf Course. The loop consists of two trails, the 1.25 mile Grandview Trail and the 2 mile Soundview Trail. The Grandview Trail is pretty much flat and looks out over over the Chambers Bay Golf Course and Bay. We were pretty happy to see a quick little Garter snake slipping through the grass on the upper level! The Soundview Trail is pretty level along the railroad tracks and water, but rather steep going up and down! Going counter clockwise, facing the bay, the Soundview Trail starts in a lovely forested area and then goes along the railroad track. Further on there are the remains of the industrial use of the property and then there is the open and extra steep hill going back up. Where the trails meet there is the clubhouse restaurant, where we had a lovely lunch before heading back to the car.
On Tuesday we did another Seattle day and visited the EMP Museum, which has two main components, the EMP (Electronic Music Project and the SFM (Science Fiction Museum). The museum is located in the Seattle Center near the Space Needle. Because of time restraints, we only did justice to the SFM. I loved the Battlestar Galactica exhibit. It reminded me how much I had enjoyed the series, And the Avatar exhibit was pretty cool too!
http://www.empmuseum.org/index.asp
I’ve been meaning to take photos of the five metal palm trees along 26th Street in the Dome District and today was the day! The palms were designed by Kurt Kiefer and the installation is called Washingtonia Domus”. The Tacoma Weekly did a great write up on the art and that article can be found here: http://www.tacomaweekly.com/citylife/art/public_art_dome_district_palms/
I’ve taken these photos with my Hipstamatic App on my phone. It’s probably my favorite app ever! So very cool. This time I tried various film/lens setting and got some interesting result.
http://www.hipstamaticworld.com/index2.php#/home/
The community garden at the corner of Center Avenue and Tyler Street has the most unusual art of any of the local community gardens. The entry arch is appropriately titled “Working”and features a hammer, chisel and gears. A near by bench has pliers and a saw. The art is by Otto Youngers. The garden itself, known as Tyler Square Park, is only half occupied, but that half is full of healthy looking vegetables.
Tacoma Weekly recently wrote an article on the space, It can be found here:
http://www.tacomaweekly.com/citylife/art/know_your_public_art_oakland_madronas_working_gateway/
The artist’s website is here: http://www.ottoyoungers.com/
One of my favorite group of friends gathered today at Green Spot Tea and Art Gallery at 3318 Bridgeport Way University Place, WA 98466. For lunch I had a pot of Ginger Tea ($2.00), a Verrrry Spicy Ranch and Grilled Chicken ($6.50) and a key lime tart ($3.00) for a grand total of $11.50. That is a lot of great food for the price! And I brought 1/2 the wrap back home with me.
I really like the decor at the Green Spot, it has clean lines and not a bunch of cute clutter like many tea stores. The hanging show of fabric based art was lovely.
The Green Spot’s Web Site can be found here: http://www.greenspottea.com/
Update: I went past today (8/20/12) and it was gone. Looks like a wine bar is moving in
