emerald

:)

Here on the pulse of this new day
You may have the grace to look up and out
And into your sister's eyes, into
Your brother's face, your country
And say simply
Very simply
With hope
Good morning.

- Maya Angelou, addressing the nation at Bill Clinton's inauguration

details

Went for a solo hike yesterday at Twin Falls. The trail takes you along the South Fork of the Snoqualmie River, and it's primarily a moss-laden forest. I thought I would be soaked by the time I was finished, but it's just really humid, like a rainforest-- and I stayed dry. The massive old logs give places for new new lush growth to occur; it's a pretty inspiring place to be.

I decided before I went to take some pictures, which I don't normally do, and wanted to focus on the specifics... the little stuff. Maybe I was thinking about my Mom. She takes pictures of flowers and plants all the time. I am missing people (and trying to ignore it), and maybe this was my way to regroup, recharge, and grab some fresh air.

Not bad for 30 minutes from home :)

Twin Falls photos

behold!

This is the most amazing stapler on the planet. If you don't have one, you're living in the dark ages.

Now I just need to focus, get it together, and stop stapling everything within arm's reach. And figure out how I'm going to get detached from my chair...

the chocolates underneath us

I have to stop going here. Giant mounds of krispy delishisness. Frozen chocolate bananas. A bazillion different caramel apples on sticks. The bear in the window is approximately what I will look like I'm one year's time.

sweet graffiti

i walked from home to the office today to see how far it really was, and it really isn't that far. I discovered all sorts of cool stuff along the way. i turned the corner to look at the parking lot outside our office and saw these guys hard at work... pretty cool.

mary and brian

they came to seattle for a wedding, brian climbed mt. rainier (yah.), and they both made time to squeeze in some good ol' fashioned chicago chuggin' with me. (ok i forgot to post these and just found them on my phone). they're getting married next year, then hopefully they'll move to seattle! (?)

how much fer yer lil' dog

Went to an amazing part of Seattle called Ballard today, looking for a coffee table and maybe some chairs. We didn't find anything, exactly, except for this awesome little dog hanging out in the window.

Alas, the little pip was not for sale.

pintar! mas el pacifico, por favor!

erin and i are painting the office, with a little help from el pacifico. if any of you are unsure what el pacifico may be, it's the beer that erin's holding while she's painting. high up on a ladder. we take every safety precaution her at byndoo. but if you know anything about painting, or rather, pintar, than you are aware of the necessity of el pacifico!

things are moving along. desks and chairs come later this week...

hope all is well in your neck of the woods. cheers, rob

the streets

seattle firsts

There's a lot to talk about and not nearly enough time to post all of it, but this city is pretty amazing. It's definitely taking some time to get my bearings, but beyond getting lost 4 or 5 times a day (use a grid, urban planners, use a grid!), I'm thoroughly in love with the way the city operates, and the friendly people who inhabit it.

Erin told me that I would experience the common salutation, but I hadn't until I went downstairs to Starbucks (of course there's a Starbucks downstairs!). The barista took my order, then with all sincerity said "How's everything going for you this morning?" And I said "Things are going good", which is what I would normally say, but here's where the genuine-ness kicks in— she actually started telling me how her day was going: "Well, this morning it was really slow, and I had a hard time waking up, but now it's picking up and I'm feeling much better...blah blah blaggety blah" WhAt!? And she really meant it! I have to get used to telling people exactly how my day is going... and what if I'm having a crappy day?

Anyways, I'm busy filling the apartment with needed items, and Erin and I are in the process of setting up shop. Both the apartment and the office are amazing. Erin did an amazing job of picking them out.  Now it's just a matter of getting some desks and other things in there and we'll be set to go.

Here's a few pics of my apartment, and a few other things I've done over the weekend...