Stoked!

Last night Caitlin and I caught the ferry over to Seattle to attend the World Premier of Matchstick Productions' 20th ski film, Superheroes of Stoke. And, as if attending the World Premier weren't already exciting enough, Caitlin's cousin, Michelle Parker is one of the film's featured athletes!


Caitlin, Michelle, and I posing with Saucer Boy.

The film was fantastic and being in a snow driven atmosphere felt like home.

Is it ski season yet?

Riley

Ira Glass!

Last night Caitlin and I had the pleasure of listening to Ira Glass speak at Benaroya Hall in downtown Seattle. His show, "Reinventing Radio", took aim at illustrating why the removal of the visual sense gives radio such a special feel. This was perfectly demonstrated as he began the show in complete darkness before the lights revealed the man behind the voice.

The show was wonderful. It was informative, humorous, and most importantly, interactive. Ira is just as you would imagine him, a bit scattered but genuine. His ability to move from a substantial tangent to complete cohesion is impressive.

My favorite part of the show came when Ira was describing a film, Sleepwalk With Me, recently directed and produced by he and his NPR counterparts. During his description he mentioned that it was playing at the "Harvard Exit" Theatre in Seattle. Curious as to the origin of why it was called the "Harvard Exit", he asked the audience. "Because that's where the exit to Harvard Avenue is," was the response he received. He stood for a moment in disbelief before saying, "Really? That's pathetic." Returning to his story he progressed into describing Sleepwalk With Me and how its first showing was at the E Street Theatre in Washington, D.C. Just as he proceeded the audience burst into laughter. He paused and asked, "What? What did I say?" Someone yelled out "E Street" and he stopped dead in his tracks realizing his "pathetic" ridicule had been countered. He animatedly replied, "Touche!" It was fantastic.

Listening to This American Life has become something I cherish. I can't remember the last road trip I took where I didn't listen to at least three episodes. I know that the ride around Bainbridge Island is approximately two-and-a-half This American Lifes. Today is Sunday and I know that at 7:00 p.m. I will download the latest episode which I've been salivating over all week.

Last night was truly a dream come true. Part of the credit is due to the This American Life team but the majority of it goes to my wonderful fiancé who treated us to the evening as a tribute to our two-year anniversary.

I love you Caitlin!

Riley

Visit From "The West"

The week before this one, Calla and J came to visit. Calla was the Maid of Honor in a close friend's wedding near Seattle, which meant that we had the opportunity to see her a few times over the week. We loved it! She and Jalen were our first official visitors to the Bainbridge Island apartment.

We had beautiful Seattle Summer weather for the entire week. That meant a lot of fun activities...


After picking up Calla and J from the airport, we went to Madison Park playground and beach.



J and Riley had fun throwing sand and rocks into the water. Following the beach, we headed from the mainland over to Bainbridge by ferry. J was very excited about the boat, the birds and the airplanes!







It was windy!

It was also really fun for Riley to share the Islandwood campus with us all. We walked the trails, crossed the suspension bridge, and climbed up to the top of the canopy tower.



Thanks for coming to visit!!! We had a fantastic time and cannot wait to see you both again!

Cait