Here is a follow up to a previous email about the cars with missing tires in my garage, which I had posted as a more of a joke than anything else.

The car that had no tires? Yup, they were actually stolen, right off the car. In the garage. And here I thought that was only what it LOOKED like. I thought that somebody in the building was just really car savvy and was in the middle of changing their tires. I mean, I did see a tire under the car, so I thought that was a logical conclusion.

But that tire I saw under the car, well, the theives had "borrowed" it from the jeep missing its spare to hold up the car from which they stole all 4 tires. And from what I understand, the tires that were stolen weren't even flash tires.

My whole life, I've had my mom's voice in my head, reminding me that you should never leave anything even remotely valuable and visible in your car. Check. So how do you prevent somebody from stealing your tires?

Have you ever seen a silent film? With live music? I had never watched a silent film in any capacity before this week. A local theater puts them on, complete with live organ and percussion. I saw "The Golem," and it was fantastic. Free snacks in the lobby (free is always good) and a 30 minute lecture about the film beforehand. I had no idea that silent films were so hilarious. If you ever have a chance to see one on the big screen with live music accompaniment, do. The way that the musicians mix their own soundtrack live is just astounding. It makes you want to yell out, "Again! Again!" at the end of the film.

Currently, in my apartment building's garage, there is a car with all four tires missing and a jeep without its spare on its hatchback.

Should I be worried?

You may not know this little fact about Seattle, but apparently, it is the most literate city in the US. Given the weather we've been having recently, this is not a shocking piece of trivia. There are also a lot of writers that call Seattle home. Last night I went to my first ever open mike poetry reading, and I loved it. And not just because you could buy a whole bottle of wine for $5. Things I learned while at Cheap Wine and Poetry:

• It is possible to successfully combine hiphop with TS Elliott. I really had no idea that you could work "who's your daddy" into TS Elliott, but it works.
• Mixing merlot with cabernet savignon, no matter how tempting, tastes pretty disgusting.
• Bike messengers covered with intimidating tattoos can have a softer side.
• If you decide to tattoo a wedding ring, rather than just wearing one, and you get divorced, you can counteract the tattooed wedding ring with another tattoo on the ring finger of your right hand. Got that?
  

As expected, Seattle is extremely excited about the new US President. The three hour time difference didn't keep people from getting together, all over the city. Even the bars were open at 8am, serving alcohol. Due to a very busy work schedule, I opted to check out the celebrations happening after work hours. I headed to downtown, around Pike Place Market, where people had been celebrating in the streets when President Obama was elected. Needless to say, I was somewhat surprised when I found every single bar totally empty. I guess people must have gotten their party on in the morning. But then I remembered that there was an inauguration party being held in my neighborhood:



By the time I got to this establishment, the "throw a shoe at Bush" contest sign had been removed. I assume that was due to some liability issue. The bar was totally packed.




Overall, the scene was pretty entertaining. There was an "Obamatini" being served. Whenever President Obama was on the TV, the bar would start chanting, "Yes we can!" but would get totally silent when he was speaking. Periodically, the bartender yelled out "Obama!" and the entire place would echo his call. I tried really hard to figure out what the reason was for his sudden outbursts, but to no avail. I guess I needed to have another cocktail.

This just made me laugh. I can't exactly explain why, it just does.

Last week I went to two "culture vulture" events that basically prove that there is something for everyone in Seattle. One was a fundraiser for the Seattle Opera at the Arctic Club Hotel. It was quite the swanky place. The ceiling was quite spectacular.



At this event I found, what I think is a perfect fancy handbag. I mean, it is purple and it is sparkly. What else could you possibly ask for?



The other event was a "pre-play" mixer at the Seattle Rep Theater. On your name tag, in addition to your name, the attendees were asked to put down what they would have for their last meal if the world was ending. To be different, I just put down my food request. Believe it or not, there were some people who thought it was my name.



There was also an arts and crafts table, where attendees could create their own mosaic. This may seem a little different, but the play was about an artist who made mosaics, so it was meant to set the mood. My mosaic is posted below:

I had no idea that there could be snow near LA. I mean, it was 80 degrees. And yet, you could see snow in the mountains. Every day is a school day.

One of the main reasons for my visit to LA was to, believe it or not, go to a NJ Devils game. This was a treat for several reasons - one of which was that I was going to go with a bunch of Devils fans. Another was that I would be able, at this "away" game, feel totally comfortable walking in wearing Devils garb (unlike when you go to MSG where you just might get lynched). It was wonderful meeting other Devils fans (we actually sat in front of some). I found myself searching faces attached to red jerseys, convinced that I would recognize somebody.



I didn't know what the Kings' mascot was before Saturday. A "king" can be a lot of things, apparently in LA, it is a lion named Bailey. He took exception to us Devils fans:



We also got the attention of the 2 year old sitting directly in front of us who belonged to a family of Kings season ticket holders. She was totally entranced by us, despite her family's attempts to get her to understand that "el diablos" were the enemy. She was hilarious.



Another highlight of the evening were, what I like to call.. the "Ice Gals." I have been to a lot of hockey games in my life, but i've never seen this. During the "commercial" breaks, these girls would come out and scoop up the ice shavings around the goal. Seriously, only in LA.

So back on the West Coast. Whoo. My first weekend back on the Left Coast involved a trip to LA.

I had always wondered if people in LA had real christmas trees.. now i know. I love how there are palm trees in the same picture:



While walking down Melrose, I came across this sign. Somehow, seeing this in LA didn't exactly surprise me.

Happy New Year, everyone! I will be taking a little blogging hiatus (for about a week) while I am on the East Coast for work.

In the meantime, I would like to employ the help of my readers once again. My time in Seattle marks the first experience in renting an apartment of any kind. Certainly my first time ever living in an apartment building. I had heard that people don't like living in apartments because you always know what your neighbors are having for dinner. I actually don't mind this because the people on my floor who do cook, are pretty good at it.

The issue I do have, however, is that my bathroom seems to periodically smell of coffee (not too bad of a scent if I had to pick one) or pickles (not one I need first thing in the morning). These odors have only started recently - maybe in the past month or so. It is really odd, the way they switch off. The pickle smell is really intense and pretty awful. If I actually had pickles or coffee in my apartment, I wouldn't be that concerned or annoyed.

So I guess what I want to know is, why is it that my bathroom is the only place that these smells manefest themselves and is this normal? Should I call my super? Should I just suck it up as being a part of apartment living and get an air freshener?