Seattle - Wrapping It Up
Posted by Jay Lee | Filed under Friends, General, Memories, Photography, Seattle, Sony Alpha 100, Travel
Final day in Seattle before I catch the 4 hour flight and give back the two hours I gained flying west. My friend Rich and his mother offered to entertain me on my last night in Seattle and it was a hoot and a half.
As it turns out, another long lost childhood friend of mine lives in the Seattle area. Brian Prosser resides with his family just a few blocks from Rich’s mother’s house and Mary was kind enough to take me by for a brief reunion…
Words fail to adequately describe Brian. The best I can muster is to say that he is a constant flurry of creative chaos. Brian’s an artist, a visionary, a manic dervish and an intellectual contortionist with surprising mental dexterity. And I say that with nothing but love and respect.
When I arrived at Brian’s house he was in the back yard making cement or ceramic hand prints to add to an ever expanding art installation in his back yard.
I really couldn’t capture the backyard the way I wanted, but I did get this shot of just a piece of the huge sculpture going up.
Click image for full size
Brian and I go way, way back. He’s done some 3D animation (Blade, Doctor Mordrid and some others) and is good friends with Bruce Bickford.
Brian even shows up in the documentary of his life, Monster Road.
Here’s a few of his sculptures I shot in his home
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>After visiting with Brian a bit it was off to see some more sights.
First up, the Archie McPhee store.
What a blast!
While shopping in Archie McPhee’s it dawned on me that we were in Ballard, Washington. Well, to be fair I knew where we were but it dawned on me what that meant.
Ballard is where The Lockspot Cafe is located. The Lockspot Cafe is where they filmed After The Catch which was a follow up to The Deadliest Catch. As I have mentioned before, The Deadliest Catch is Cynthia’s most favorite television program of all time. When the narrator says “The vast Bearing Sea” Cynthia always says it back in the lowest voice she can muster. She watches that show each and every time it comes on and even watched the frequent repeats.
Being the loving and thoughtful spouse that I am I knew that to be in Ballard and NOT get a memento of my visit would be a HUGE oversight on my part. I asked Rich and Mary to please drive me by so I could at least snap a photo and they kindly obliged.
This is for Cynthia:
After our touristy photo detour it was off to see Gabe Kaplan who was doing a book signing in support of Kotter’s Back: E-mails from a Faded Celebrity to a Bewildered World
It was just one of those random events and the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. I loved Welcome Back Kotter back in the day and Gabe Kaplan was very funny as he shared anecdotes of his life and career at the event. What an unexpected treat!
Rich and Mary gave me the tour of Ballard and we strolled leisurely about town and then it was suggested that we run up to Sunset Hill and watch the sunset.
After that it was off to have fish and chips at Ivar’s and then home.
I had fun here in Seattle and it was a bonus getting to reunite with some old friends. That really made the trip for me.
One Response to “Seattle - Wrapping It Up”
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Don C. Says:
April 8th, 2008 at 5:55 pmHoly crap, ARCHIE MC PHEE’s!
I remember that place, back when I used to haunt my bedoorm with a spook house I left up all year. Got lots of rubbery goodies like skeletons that glow and the dark and giant spiders!
The store reminds me of the little shop PeeWee gets all his gags from in PeeWee’s Big Adventure. Same sense of whimsical FUN!
Camera totin', wise-crackin', bald headed old man living the good life with a wonderful partner and many good friends.