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I think I can say 
that this without hyperbole this was my favorite Fremont Solstice Parade. (The worst one being the time I made the mistake of standing next to a very loud sidewalk evangelist who was offended by everything.) I had gotten an invitation from a friend of mine (The same one who brought the Romney Doll to my political drinking group a while back.) The way he had put it I had assumed he just meant we’d find a parking lot nearby and walk over there. So I was just a little confused when he and his wife kept kept talking about food and stopping at a QFC en route for snacks. I discovered that what he had been talking about at was another friend’s spot at a marina right next to the parade path. Which meant we had front row seats with food and beer!
Because this wasn’t at the beginning of the parade path we had to wait a little bit longer for it to come our way but that was quite all right. Since we were having a great little block party while we were waiting with the aforementioned food and beer and I had lot’s of fun meeting new people. And it was well worth the wait! After years of having to take full advantage of my height three rows back it was nice to watch the whole affair up close in a nice comfy chair.
As always was good starting with the nude bicyclists streaking by in just about every possible color of color the most memorable was one in a Guy Fawkes mask and a female Darth Vader (with a mask a cape and black body paint) Then came the parade itself in all of it’s chaotic home made glory. Marching bands, puppets, characters, the works… The best piece I think was a huge dragon made entirely out of trash. My friend took every opportunity to get participants to pose with the Romney doll. The only down side was a wave of fatigue during the second hour from a combination of relaxing in a comfy chair and too much sun.
But all in all a very nice way to spend the day
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I decided to throw in this sketch today because I noticed one of the better signs that summer is upon us. In this instance I am referring to the Lake City Way farmer’s market and fair season in general. I did this sketch during the Pioneer Day event during Seafair a couple of years ago. It’s a standard ponyride where the ponies are tied to a bar and trot around in a circle for about five minutes. One look at the pony’s expression of stoic martyrom and I knew I had to draw it.
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For today’s Rhapsody we will be playing the Newfoundland Rhapsody by Howard Cable performed by the Hillcrest Wind Ensemble
Other than most of the second half being a variation of “Sweet Betsy From Pike“, I quite like it.
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Following up on my entry on biking from a few weeks a go I had been planning to do a number of entries regarding my ever growing list of the pet peeves of mild hazzards that occur when one is commuting on a bicycle.
Just yesterday I got a new one which was probably a once in a lifetime occurrence (here’s hoping) that I just had to share before I got to the more in depth tirades that I have planned for the future. One of the main parts of my commute consists of Lake City Way. I should point out that this is not a particularly smart route to take and lots of my fellow biker prefer to take the back roads. I still risk it because it gets around the worst hills in the area (there are times I’m convince that Lake City is at the very bottom of a small valley.) And as far as Lake City Way’s very heavy traffic it is safe enough for me to risk this calculated bit of stupidity.
Anyway what is probably the riskiest part of this is when you initially turn into Lake City Way from Ravenna Ave. The visibility isn’t perfect and there’s a few time’s I’m amazed I didn’t get clipped when I do it. If you know there is going to be a car making the turn about the same time you have to hug the side of the road as much as possible and it requires all of your concentration.
So this was the situation yesterday… and as it happened I heard I heard a loud barking right in my ear that surprised me so much I nearly lost my balance. As the car passed me I saw a Jack Russel Terrier sticking it’s head out of its window.
So here is my newest biking pet peeve (and this time it’s literal) Small dogs in cars barking at very inopportune times.
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