Dogs of Our Own

Well, we finally did it! After many years of looking at Petfinder.org, Marc and I adopted dogs. Welcome Bailey and Sprout! Sprout is the black and tan, Bailey is the brown and tan. They are middle aged dachshunds, raised as pups with a family that gave them plenty of love and attention. Now the family has 2 little kids, which makes it harder to take care of "the boys," as I like to call them, so that's how Bailey and Sprout came to live with us. We're going to have a grand ol' time taking walks, sitting in front of the pellet stove, etc.! Mike, Marc, Bailey, and Sprout

Junior the Tiny Dog

Does anyone remember the Cities 97 version of "Dixie the Tiny Dog" by Peter Himmelman? We'll, it's a song about a dachshund sung in first person. Marc and I took care of Junior for about a week when Peter and Maria were away. We loved him so much that I had to make a little video of our 9 pound friend. Hope you enjoy! Mike & Marc

A territorial view

Well, one of the things that the folks of Seattle love is a view. We don't have a perfect mountain, sound, or lake view, but we have what is labeled a "territorial view." If you stand in the right place in the house, you can see the foothills of the Cascade Mountains, as well a a bit of Lake Washington. Pretty neat city living! Can you see the mountains and the lake? You might have to click on the photo to enlarge it!

Yap On - Yap Off - The Yapper

Well, we've found out that in addition to clapping hands, the bark of a dachshund can also activate "The Clapper." We're taking care of Junior for a few days - he's a great dog and doesn't bark much, except when people come to the door. Well, yesterday Marc and I decided to walk to Whole Foods, so we left Junior home alone. He got a bit lonesome, and as we were just one house away down the street, we could hear him barking. We sat there for a bit watching the light flick on and off as he barked and just chuckled. Today we had Bailey and Sprout (another pair of dachshunds) come over for a visit - the three dogs barked at eachother, and we watched the lights blink on and off. I snapped a pic of Marc and Junior - they've become good buddies, and Marc even loves Junior's breath after giving him fish treats! I think that Marc will put a bow in his hair to keep it out of his face!

Take a slow boat to Ketchikan

Well, now that I've discovered how easy it is to load videos onto Blogspot, I thought that I would upload some of the videos that I have made this year. In May, Marc and I took a cruise to Southeast Alaska. Neither one of us had been on a cruise before, and we wanted to see what it would be like. The ports were so-so - immediately off the docks were jewelry stores and other little stores that were not so interesting. Beyond the immediate town, however, Alaska was gorgeous. I especially liked taking the train up the Yukon Pass. We were on the port side of the ship and had a balcony - one of the most relaxing things was just sitting in our room and looking out at the coast of British Columbia and Alaska as we sailed North. All in all, it was quite a relaxing trip. I created a video that is a photo montage of our week. Enjoy! [Mike]

This home boasts a "roughed-in 3/4 bathroom!!!"

At least that's how the realtor explained it on the MLS listing. This is a basement bathroom that tops all, even some of those in Southern Minnesota that I've used while away at a curling tournament! We like to refer to the toilet as the "stool in basment," a term that I got from a former coworker in the lab. Since the floor is unlevel, it is built up on a pedestal (line by 1970s gold linoleum)! We told Emilie that it was "her bathroom," and to my surprise, she used the toilet without fear! The shower is a bit scarier - the water just flows on the floor, underneath the shower and beneath the toilet to the floor drain. Marc's dad Dennis is the first and only person to use it since we moved here - to quote the professor, "It's not a big deal, it's just like the army!" Anyway, it is a little rough, but the plumbing is all there for a future remodel. Besides, it is nice to have a second toilet, no matter how rustic! DT insists that we shouldn't remove it and that it's the best feature of the house - I suppose that if we ever pull it, we'll have to wrap it up for him as a gift!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

Great thing about Seattle, is that we have 4 true seasons - just like Minnesota, although they are much milder. This snow shouldn't last, but it sure looks great! I tortured Marc by making him listen to the Chipmunks Christmas album to celebrate Dec 1 and the beginning of the holiday season. Marc even filmed a little video, which I edited and posted on the blog. Hi to everyone - we miss all our friends and relatives back in the Midwest! Mike and Marc

Computer Cable Chaos Conquered

This afternoon I took some time to tame the computer cable clutter under the table we use as a desk in the office. I got the idea from the Unclutterer blog. The whole project took a couple hours and less than $20. [Marc]

Before:



After:

Marc's Family in Seattle

OK, so once again, behind on the posts - Marc's brother Joel came to visit us in August - Marc and Joel went to the Space Needle, and the three of us went to Little Mount Si - it was raining, so we couldn't take a longer hike. Marc's parents (Dennis and RuthAnn) came to see us in October, and the four of us went on the Seattle Underground Tour. It was great that family could come and see us out here! [Mike]

The Nieflings

I think that I heard this on "A Way With Words" - nieflings is a combination of nieces and nephews. So, instead of writing a post on "my niece and nephew," I can write about my nieflings. I haven't been able to find a link to that show, but a Google search for "niefling" or "niephling" identifies other blogs. Anyway, Emilie is now 5 and Jack is 2 and a 1/2. This is a recent photo that was taken of them at school.

The Clapper

Does anyone remember the 1970s or 1980s commercial for The Clapper? Click on this link (The Clapper) to see the YouTube rebroadcast of this quirky gadget. Anyway, this morning I was hauling stuff out of the garage to take it to the King County Hazardous Waste Site. Up high on a shelf, I found a Clapper (I suppose I could have sold it on E-bay, but I thought that I would keep this one)! I remember that Anne had gotten one of these as a gift, and for a short time, we put it in the family room hooked up to the fire engine lamp. Unfortunately, it would make the light blink on and off when the stereo was on. Well, we don't have a ceiling light in our living room, and the wall switch does not control an outlet. Thus, when we walk in the house, we have to cross the room to turn on the lamp. Well, thanks to the Clapper, we can now just clap our hands as we come in/out the door! We'll see how it works, I guess! It does seem to be a bit more responsive than the one in the old house, mainly because the wood floors reflect sound better than carpet. Clap on, clap off!

Jukebox Saturday Night

We have a habit of having folks over for dinner, drinking wine, enjoying the new pellet stove, grilling something to eat (last night it was grilled pork tenderloin), and listening to LP records. Anyway, Erin and Chuck represent the first couples dinner party we've had in our house. Erin just adopted a greyhound named Rhea (a potential new pet to pet-sit), so Rhea came along to be with us. We had a great time together, and Rhea was one of the most well-behaved/low-key dogs I've met in quite awhile! Rhea is pictured with the squeaky crab chew toy that she chose herself at the pet store.

Mike y Molly

Hi All - well, it's November, but I'm still posting events from October. This is a snapshot of former classmates, Mike and Molly. We were in school together from 1998-2000 at the University of Minnesota Medical School until I started my PhD years. Molly and I had many adventures then, including helping to teach medical Spanish to other health professionals. To this day, we still make Podcasts and videos for each other in Spanish to keep up with the language, although I will admit that Molly is much more disciplined about it than I am. Anyway, Molly and her husband Aaron came out to Seattle to eventually take a trip around Port Angeles and the Olympic Peninsula. Luckily they were able to spend a night with us before they took their big excursion - the weather was perfect - in the 50s and sunny - and we were able to walk all around the neighborhood. We snapped a photo of Molly and me at the base of the Ravenna Park Ravine, which is just south of our house.

Lounge Lizard

Mike rightly pointed out that, with the exception of our jack-o-lantern exhibit, I haven't been contributing much to the discussion here lately. Trust there is lots going on, including evening classes at UW, and I will probably have more news to report in the next few weeks. But for now, just a small news brief: Tonight we made a trip up to Lynnwood to get a deal on a new chair. A recliner, to be more specific. It is a little more contemporary, not the traditional cheesy rec-room plush-pillow kind. We chose pattern somewhere in between the red and tan pieces that Mike got when he moved to Seattle last year. (We took cover and pillow to make sure it will look okay.) Even though the won't be ready til probably after Christmas, I was able to assemble a computer simulation on the manufacturer's website as a preview in the meantime. [Marc]

Happy Veterans Day (observed)

Well, I had the day off today, so I booked some chores and got stuff done at home. We were supposed to have the chimney folks out to work on some flashing, but the winds were too gusty. We did have 4000 lbs of wood pellets delivered. They dropped them off at the curbside (the forklift was too wide to go down the driveway), and then I carried them bag by bag down to the garage. Simultaneously, I cleaned out the garage, putting some stuff away, setting some stuff aside to sell on E-bay/craigslist, and throwing out garbage left by the old tenants. I'll probably be a bit sore tomorrow! It will be worth it though, to have all those pellets so close by to keep us warm this winter! Next year I will have the delivery done on a Saturday when Marc and I are both home...

Dawg crazy...

Well, Junior came for a visit today. Junior belongs to Maria and Peter (Maria is a pathology resident with Mike, and she's originally from Ripon, WI). Anyway, Maria knows that Marc and I love dogs, so she brought Junior over to visit. He is a 9 lb 10 year old miniature dachshund. We took him for a walk around the neighborhood, and he seemed right at home with Marc. I suppose that we'll have to get on petfinder.org to find our own pet sooner or later! In the short term, we'll just keep petsitting - I think that we will take care of Junior over New Year's!

My High School Car

There is a special feeling in an Oldsmobile... more than the luxury ride it's the feeling of pride when you get in side...

OK, I have to admit, I troll craigslist a little too much. I found this beauty for sale in Ballard - it's only $700 - a 1984 Oldsmobile Delta 88.

My mother bought a car just like this in 1984. I drove it from 1992 - 1998 - we sold it when I got the Accord. To this day Joanne says "That was a really good car for you."

Anyway, because it was so cheap, I did think about it, but what would I do with it? It would collect dust/rust on the street.

Even though it wasn't a neat car, just a big old 80's boat, it is the feature of one of my recurring dreams - maybe once a month of so I have a dream that I am driving the Olds... now's my chance to actually do it!!!

I can admit that I did go on craigslist to look for 80's cars for my friends - I thought that I would get a blue Datsun B210 for Erin, and a green Chevy Beretta for Kelly. Maybe I could find a LeCar for Jane and an RX-7 for Katie!

Pellet Heat

Well, we have been accused by some of being "country folk," but the pellet stove insert is in, and we love it! For those of you who have never heard of a pellet stove, basically it is a small freestanding stove (or fireplace insert in this case) that burns wood pellets. The wood pellets are made from scrap sawdust, and are basically a way of using waste material from the lumbering process. For those of you who'd like to read about the technology, see an overview at Wikipedia (pellet stove). Anyway, I first got hooked on the idea when I visited Kelly and Marty's house in Nevada. They have an all electric home, so they are using a pellet stove for their primary source of heat. I vowed that when I moved from Minnesota to Seattle that I would seriously consider a stove as an option.

Anyway, Seattle is a bit quirky in that natural gas isn't as popular as the Midwest. In 1926, our home was built with a coal furnace. In the 1950s or so, many of the city homes changed to heating oil - that is our main source of heat now (another blog to come on the EnerRoyal, our funky little oil furnace). Our house has always had a masonry fireplace, although by the time that we got here, the firebox was shot (the chinking had fallen out). So it was repair the firebox or put in an insert.

To get a gas insert, we'd have to pay for hook-up. A wood insert was an option, but that meant splitting wood. So, the pellet insert was ideal for us - the warmth of a wood or gas fireplace, without having to pay for gas hook-up, and without stacking/splitting wood. We just pour the pellets in and go. It is self-igniting, and we have a remote control programmable thermostat.

I did this big pellet survey, and I found that actually the best deal for us are the Blazer pellets from the Home Cheapo. They're made in Oregon. I bought a few bags to try them out, and will have 2 tons delivered next week. That should get us through the entire year!

The greatest thing about this stove is that you can choose it's heat output - anywhere between 8,000 and 28,000 BTU per hour. So, in comparison to the furnace that can either be fully on or off (blasting out 68,000 BTU per hour) we can run the stove continuously at a low level. It heats the whole main floor, and it makes the living and dining rooms ever so toasty. Jane is just going to love it!

Drawbacks? Well, it is more work than gas - you have to clean out the fly-ash every few weeks (takes 10 minutes or less), once a year you have to clean the chimney out, and you have to haul around pellets. It is much easier than wood, however! Besides, I like to tinker, so it makes me happy.

Some people do claim that pellets are "carbon neutral," although I don't think that this is quite the case. There is some energy expended in the manufacturing process as well as transportation. It probably is better than using the oil furnace, I guess. Also, while it is very clean burning, there is a small amount of ash that makes it up the chimney, so that is a factor as well.

All in all, the pellet stove has been a great addition - I'm looking forward to winter - it will be a welcome addition!

Would love to hear your comments, so please post away! Mike (and Marc)

PS I found a cool pic of the cross-section of a stove so that you can see its innards. Click on this LINK.

Happy Halloween!!

The Pumpkin Patch and Gas Works Park

Whew - I've been told that I've been a bit behind at not posting regularly enough, so I will try to post multiple times this week to catch up.

Well, Katie and Emilie (Mike's sister and niece) came to visit, so we drove to Monroe, WA out to Baylor Farm to pick up some pumpkins. I should note that we first stopped for a picnic along the Skyhomish River. We then arrived at the farm, were greeted by a bassegle (beagle basset cross), and then got behind a tractor for a hay ride down to the pumpkin patch along the river. There we picked out 3 pumpkins totaling 100 lbs which we brought home. The next afternoon Marc, Katie, Emilie, and I carved our pumpkins. They certainly turned out well! Marc's already posted a pic (see post from 10/31/07).

That Sunday, Katie, Emilie and I took a trip on the bus (Emilie's first trip) down to Gas Works Park. It's an old refinery/SUPERFUND site at the edge of Lake Union. Emilie snapped a pic of Katie and I on the hill north of Downtown.

All in all, a great visit!

A Low-Car Diet

OK, OK, so I took the term "Low-Car Diet" from the city of Seattle - it was a promotion sponsored by the City of Seattle - http://www.seattle.gov/waytogo/onelesscar.htm. Basically, once Marc and I knew that we would be moving to this house and that we would be in a location where we could take the bus frequently, we decided that we didn't need to have two cars anymore. Thus, after 9 years and 100,000 miles of excellent service, I retired the Accord - I listed it on craigslist, and within a week, it was sold to a woman in Tacoma who was delighted to have it. Marc and I are sharing his Volkswagen now, which seems to be working just fine. We both take the bus to work everyday, and drive the car only 1-2 times per week to do errands, etc. I anticipate that we will only drive about 5000 miles this year. I subscribed to FlexCar, which is a car-sharing program. One of the neat things about the City is that they will give me $600 of FlexCar credit for selling my car. We rarely need a second car, but what is handy is that FlexCar has a Toyota Tacoma pick-up truck. We use it periodically to run errands - especially when purchasing furniture, etc. from craigslist! All in all, it has been an easy thing to do, and we enjoy being able to walk and take public transportation everywhere. Goodbye Accord - you were my second car ever - thank you for so many years of service!

October is Visitor Month

Well, October is here, and now that we have a spare bedroom, the guests are coming in droves! First to come was my dad - it was his first time to Seattle since the 1960s. We walked 10 miles on the first day - down to the University, etc. Our photos highlight some of our adventures. One is taken at the main fountain on the UW campus. The remainder are snapshots from Snoqualmie Falls, which is about 30 miles east of Seattle. We had a great time together!!! Later on in the month we had Molly and Aaron, Marc's parents Dennis and Ruth Ann, and then my sister Katie and my niece Emilie. It was great to see everyone!

Our Open House

Well, we had a very successful open house. We invited about 100 people - mostly co-workers, friends from church, and other random people that we've met along the way in our first year here in Seattle. All in all, we had 37 people drop by, including 7 kids. The weather didn't hold out - a nice Seattle drizzle kept the party inside, but there was room for everyone, and the house has never looked so good! (Marc and I cleaned from 8:00 am - 1:30 pm - including getting the grill ready for use!) It was a slow start, then everyone poured in around 3:30 - 4:00 pm. There was so much commotion that I didn't get much of a chance to snap a ton of pictures - thus, I'm just posting a few that we snapped - the top photo is of Diane and her baby Sarah (Diane is the choir director at church); the middle photo is of Marc with Christina - she went to Pius X with him in Lincoln and now lives out here; the bottom photo is of me with DT - the infamous VA hospital pathologist. Everyone had a grand 'ol time!!!

Dangerway Delivers

Well, after all those years of flying to see one another, Marc and I are now in the nesting phase of our relationship. One of the neat things about living in the city is grocery delivery. Safeway - we call it Dangerway - has a home delivery service at www.safeway.com Since I am a state employee, they will discount my delivery fee to $3. I can order a ton of stuff on line, then pick a delivery time. They deliver 7 days a week, and you pick a 2 hour delivery window. I highly recommend it. I've tried each week to pick a new meal to create based on tips from www.allrecipes.com Pictures is our pork chop with apple stuffing - a good fall treat. It was topped off with a good ol' gin and tonic. Probably the last for awhile, as the fall is approaching.

Today we're having a housewarming party - another post will be coming soon. We had the Dangerway drop off $200 worth of beer and brats - plus some other stuff. We'll be running to Trader Joe's soon to get some Charles Shaw. It should be a good time!!!

Our weekend guest... welcome Maya

This is Maya. She is an adorable 7 year old black lab that belongs to Carrie and David. Carrie is a Pathology resident peer of mine, and David is a civil engineer like Marc. Anyway, Carrie and David went away this weekend to a wedding, so I offered to take Maya for the weekend. She's been a joy to have around, and I'm looking forward to the walks this weekend. I figure that it will be good practice for Marc and I to see how we like having a dog around. More to come! Mike PS Mom and Katie - this is one of the thrift sale rugs that I bought from the neighbor.

College Football

Well, it's 9:30 in the morning, and I'm listening to 1150 AM - the Nebraska vs Ball State game is just getting underway. Anyone who knows me must find this hard to believe - I mean come on - I have never even been to a professional football game in my life. I did take in a couple of Gopher games in Minnesota - but Erin S. had to shush me in the stands when I asked her - "how many players are there on the field at a given time?" I guess that if I had spent more time in front of the TV versus in the kitchen with that breadmaker, I would have understood better.

Anyway, becoming a Cornhusker fan is just part of the domestic partnership agreement (Marc even made me sign a document that would guarantee that we could paint a big N in the living room). Last weekend we went to the Nebraska fan bar aka the "Lucky 7" in Kirkland, WA. Nebraska lost to USC, unfortunately. Today we have our radio tuned to see who the victors will be. GO BIG RED!!!

Hope all is well - more to come about our weekend adventures - we have a Terrapins or Blue Devils fan staying with us through Sunday - not sure what teams she roots for, but maybe we can make her a Cornhusker for the weekend!

Hangry

I still listen to one of my favorite San Diego public radio shows, "A Way With Words" on my iPod during my bus commute. (The show is also syndicated at a few affiliates around the country, but it's not on Seattle public radio as yet.) It's fun to listen to fellow obnoxious lexophiles discuss language and word usage (you might want to check out their podcast for yourself if you have time). Anyway, one of their summer podcasts featured a discussion of a neologism that definitely relates to me: HANGRY. A mash-up of "hungry" and "angry," it describes that irritable condition one gets due to hunger. Mike can attest that I am often in such a hypoglycemic huff. At least now I have a word to describe my mood, and a la Eve Ensler, I can shout: "My stomach is HANGRY!" [Marc]

Surfboards and Salmon

Yesterday, a couple of my collegues and I were out for a quick site visit on the Duwamish River in Tukwila (just south of Seattle). The salmon are running and we saw many fish jumping as they made their way up the river. We even saw one of the amateur anglers who was fishing under the overpass walk away with a huge specimen - it must have been about two feet long and probably 20+ lbs. I also learned something new. At least among Washington engineers and environmental types, "surfboard" is a colloquial term that refers to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board (SRFB). Toto, I don't think we're in San Diego anymore! [Marc]