friends

A friend asked me the other day, “Did you see my note on Facebook?” I had not seen her post. Then I began to wonder how many posts from friends I may have missed in this shotgun world of single-sentence communications. We have evolved into a world of partial thoughts and empty events – “I went to see a show!” – Without a thought to describe what made it wonderful.

As I pondered the continuing reduction in meaningful communications, from letters, to email, to Facebook posts, to IM messages, I wondered if we might be quickly losing the beauty of the written word.

I thought back to the letters I wrote to Anne while we were courting. They were electronic, but they were letters. Each word carefully selected – each phrase part of a larger symphony of thought. I looked at the messages I exchange with her today, and those that I send to my children. They seem devoid of the depth I once knew.

Words are wonderful things. They allow us to express great joy and great sorrow when wielded with care. They can carry us away to mystical lands of fantasy, or expose the cold, hard truth of human cruelty.
We each have the opportunity to read great literature and write the songs of our hearts.

I hope you’ll consider taking the time to write someone a real letter today… and find some time to read a book …
 

For many years our family has supported a young Ugandan through World Vision. We were recently notified that World Vision is ending its program relationship with Daniel’s village. It was a hard message because through the years we’ve been sending letter, cards, and little finger puppets we bought or made for him. We’ve watched him grow from a little boy to a handsome young man. I wish we could have actually met him in person.

As we write our farewell to him, we promise to continue to pray for him – to live up to his biblical namesake. May he always be safe, love the Lord, and dare to be a Daniel.

- - Anne

After 40 years of in various forms (from go-go skirted crewmen, guys in big rubber alien suits, and snow cone space monsters that ate star ships) Star Trek has grown up. I viewed the new movie at an IMAX-branded digital theater. I’m not going to give away any of the story, but I will say that the movie is a rollercoaster ride suitable for anyone over the age of 13. Find the best theater you can to view the film – it makes a difference.

While the J.J. Abrams lens flares were over-the-top (and someone should have been watching the focus more closely), overall the film has a solid story and is well played. While there were plenty of tidbits for Star Trek fans to love, the film plays well for non-fans as well. This is a film not suitable for children (due to violence and language); it should play well for teens and adults.

As side note concerning the IMAX-branded digital theaters: these are not the same as the standard IMAX theaters – the screen is smaller and the projection is not via film, but a digital display via a high resolution DLP projector. Some bloggers have complained that these theaters are “not real IMAX,” and therefore not worth the surcharge associated with the facility. I agree, it’s not “real” IMAX – but the $3 surcharge was well worth it: the image was vivid, clear, with no jitters, no film junk, and no splices. The audio was enveloping and wide range. I felt it was definitely worth the extra $3 to me.

Go see Star Trek – it’s a great ride.
 

If you only know about our life from this blog, you must wonder if we do anything except eat... yes, this is another blog entry about food. Tonight we piled into two cars and made our way to a seafood restaurant in Seattle: Ivar's Salmon House. In this photo you can see myself, daughter Jessica, friend Elena (from Moldova), Anne, Kenny, and his friend Aurora. 

Ivar Haglund is a legendary Seattle figure who opened a string of seafood restaurants in the Seattle area. They each have a different theme; the Salmon House is constructed with a strong influence of the "long house" style of Northwest native americans. You can see the native american influence throughout the facility in its design and artwork. Here is a photo of us with the large totem in the lobby of the restaurant. The food tonight was tasty, although the Mixed Grill Trio (which Aurora and I both ordered) arrived a bit cold. The staff made it up to use with some tasty deserts.

Elena has been subjected to many different kinds of food during her visit with us, and she's tried everything! We've had American hamburgers, Mexican food, Italian food, Chinese food, and now Northwest salmon. We still have a few more places to stop (a teriyaki restaurant and a Mongolian restaurant) before we're done. In addition to eating, she's also had chances to visit our church, do some shopping, visit Pike Place Market, and the Seattle Aquarium. Still on the list of tourist stops: the Seattle Space Needle.

 

Last night we had the opportunity to spend a few hours with friends at Emory's on Silver Lake. Not only was it great to spend time with friends, but the food and the service were outstanding.

Emory's is located on the south east side of Everett, along the Bothell-Everett highway. Given their name, you might expect that the restaurant is on the shores of Silver Lake - and you'd be right! We weren't able to drink in the wonderful view for very long, since our dinner started at dusk, but we've noted in previous visits that it was nice.

The service was excellent. Our server knew the menu, the bar, was prompt, and very curteous. While I was enjoying a Manny's Pale Ale, he brought a sample of Blue Moon (a Belguim-style white beer) for me to try.

The food was varied and wonderful. I had their Kobe Steak, drizzled in a plum-raisin sauce. Anne enjoyed trout. It was yummy, although expect to spend $20+ for an entre.

Want to try Emory's and save a little money? Be sure to visit their website to print a $25 coupon. The coupon is good for "off hours" dinning, which includes Sunday through Thursday after 4:00 pm and Friday and Saturday after 8:00 pm.

We'll be back...

At the end of each summer we make a trip to the Evergreen State Fair, in Monroe. This year we plan on attending twice. Today we took time to visit with our friends Don and Linda. Next week we'll spend a day at the fair with Kenny and Aurora. I've posted a bunch of pictures in the gallery from today's visit for our friends who are far away.