Flashlight Under the Covers

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Were you/are you one of those kids whose parents had to confiscate your flashlight so that you would go to sleep and stop reading that great book that your just couldn't put down? Well here's a place where they'll leave the light on for you to read by in the dark. Seattle's Central Library which spans the block between 4th and 5th Avenues and Spring and Madison Streets glows in the night like a giant angular mantel on an old fashioned camp lantern.

Westlake Center Station

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Not so crowded night scene in the Westlake Center Station where shoppers and commuters can access buses and the new light rail system.Seattle's downtown underground bus tunnel system makes getting around easy.

Downtown Carriage Ride

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming. . . :-) I'm still in California but am posting photos I took in Seattle before I left on holiday. Like many cities, Seattle has a number of coach owners who provide horse drawn carriage rides through the downtown area, a special treat at night during holiday time on a clear night. As you can tell by their expressions, everyone was having fun.

Christmas Postcard From California

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Greetings from the San Francisco Bay Area where I'm on holiday for the week. In the town where I am visiting family is a residential Christmas display open to the community that attracts thousands of people who tour the yard each year. It is the home of my sister-in-law's childhood friend who is a deacon in the local Catholic parish known to all as Deacon Dave. For over 25 years he has created a Christmas lights extravaganza in his front yard. I remember in the 1980s when he started there were 3000 or 5000 lights. Every year since the number has grown and so have the crowds to see the fun displays like life sized circling figure skaters, dancing trees, a nativity scene, live doves, and giant shining angels. This year the display includes over 3 million lights. For many this has become a treasured tradition to tour with their children on Christmas. I took this shot with my iPhone. I hope all who celebrated it had a lovely Christmas day!

The Li'l Beaver at Work

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

The red engine of the tiny spur line of the Ballard Terminal Rail Road was hard at work pushing some heavy cars along the rails at Salmon Bay. The Li'l Beaver is pretty powerful and can be seen working all along Salmon Bay from Fremont through Ballard to the Locks. Do you have a model train or a Brio set out at your house for the holiday? Wishing you a fun and relaxing day spent with family and friends.

iPhone Wednesday #23: Christmas Gone to the Dogs

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

While out walking I spied these retriever guardians sporting Santa hats at the base of an exterior stair case. I guess they are friendly sentinels ready to welcome you. It's my iPhone Wednesday shot where I take the photo and edit it in the iPhone using different apps. Chuck and Ming also have iPhone shots for you today.

Bon Star Street Scene

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

A patrol car makes its way along Pine Street in downtown Seattle while pedestrians walk about getting some evening shopping done.. Up Pine you can see the backside of the gigantic Christmas star that has adorned the old Bon Marche building (now Macy's) for 52 holiday seasons. Old habits die hard, and I still hear longtime Seattlites say they are going to "the Bon" to see store windows full of running trains and other festive displays when they mean Macy's.

Festive Ballard Centennial Bell Tower

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

A taxi turns onto Ballard Avenue from 22nd Ave NW on a rainy December night. Ballard's historic district features a lot music venues, restaurants, tea and coffee houses, and bars, so night life is usually pretty lively, but I took this late on Sunday night while walking after a show and it was pretty quiet. The Ballard neighborhood was not annexed to Seattle until 1907 and had its own city hall which stood on this site. The original bell from the city hall is housed in this Centennial Bell Tower now part of Marvin's Garden Park, named for Marvin Sjoberg, a beloved neighborhood character known as "the mayor of Ballard" from the 1960s until his death in 1989.

Tractor Tavern

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

There were two shows at the Tractor I wanted to see last week, both featuring accomplished fiddlers from my old haunts in the 80s & 90s in the SF Bay Area. I couldn't make it to hear Darol Anger playing as part of a limited five city holiday tour of the Pacific Northwest called Cascadia Yulegrass with some former members of the String Cheese Incident. I did get out Sunday to hear Jenny Scheinman perform with Robbie Fulks, who happened into my frame at left while I was taking a shot of the bar menu :-). More gig shots at More Seattle Stuff.

Our Version of Snow This Year

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Last year Seattle had so much snow this week in December you may recall it shut down the airport and left many of the hill streets unused except by sleds, saucers and tubes :-). The city doesn't get enough snowfall to justify a fleet of snowplows, so when it comes down heavy every decade or so and lasts more than a few days, the city just shuts down. No snow so far this year. We are having warm rainy days now, and this is the only version of snow you will find around town. The homeowner arrived home from work and saw me on the sidewalk with a tripod snapping away and apologized that the snowman faced the house instead of the street to entertain her two year old from the window. How sweet!

Skywatch Friday: iPhone Circle Cube Skies

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

A view of our rainy Seattle skies with a little framing thrown in for you. You are invited to peek at skies around the world today. Just click here. Hope you are enjoying your Friday and are moving into a pleasant weekend.

Still Looking for Gifts?

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

If I'm on your list, this is where you can go shopping for me :-). Easy Street Records is a Seattle institution that hasn't gone under like so many record stores have in the last decade. There are frequent in-store concerts, a wide variety of music, a good used section, even vinyl. Hand painted murals of album covers adorn their parking lot wall. Up on the hill to the right you can see the Christmas lights on the King 5 broadcasting tower. Easy Street doesn't need extra lights as their year-round neon sign is already pretty festive. So, what music is on your top 5 list for 2009? How 'bout top 10 of the decade?

iPhone Wednesday #23: Skies Above Alki

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Shadows in the skies, shadows on the water, with the long neck of Alki point bisecting the sunny spot. This is my 23rd in the iPhone Wednesday series. You'll want to check out Chuck of One a Day Mostly Seattle who took his iPhone to an amazing motorcycle show and Ming of Bangor Daily Photo is eating his way through India and taking us with him!

Better Watch Out

Photo & Text Copyright 2009 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Santa Claus is crossing 1st Ave at Pike Street, maybe after a long day of shopping at Pike Place Market. . .or working out at the gym. He's looking a lot trimmer this year . :-).