Saturday, March 31, 2007

Reflected Old & New


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

A 19th century church building is dwarfed by highrises in Seattle's downtown. The Columbia Tower reflects the Municipal Building. A skeleton of bare spring tree branches is superimposed on it all.

Have a lovely, relaxing spring weekend everyone! (I'll be doing my taxes. . .sigh.)







urban

Friday, March 30, 2007

SPU Story Pole


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

This is a "story pole" on the campus of Seattle Pacific University. Native peoples of the Canadian and American Pacific Northwest and Alaska have long carving traditions. Individuals and people groups have distinct styles and symbols with which they express themselves through the totem pole art form. I have found much to appreciate as I look at more and more of these, and am beginning to recognize which tribal tradition a pole has been carved in or influenced by. The link can give you more information about these beautiful, skillfully crafted, purely Pacific Northwest native wonders.







pacific northwest

Thursday, March 29, 2007

MetroNatural


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Mt. Rainier seen at sunset, dominating the skyline to the south of Seattle. Urban meets the nature, big time. Many of Mt. Rainier's developed areas and facilities were overrun and destroyed during the November 2006 rains and floods. The mountain will look different to visitors this summer, although it will continue to loom over the city, seemingly unchanged.

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Study Spaces


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Where to hang out and get some work done on a rainy day? A clean, well lighted place for books, and scholars. The patterned carpets of the Central Library add another element of texture to the dominant grid of the glass walls. Unique seating configurations remind me of plus signs on typeface put together. The library features an in-house coffee spot, and computers galore, and is well patronized.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Gustafson's Hyacinth


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Seattle is awash right now in spring bloom. I thought I'd share with you a gift that keeps on giving (beauty, fragrance, metaphors to think about).
A sprouted bulb given to us as a Valentine's Day gift by friends, we planted it outdoors and are enjoying its fragrance at full bloom now. So many gifts to enjoy, just by opening our eyes or breathing it in.

Seattle is a gardener's paradise and boasts the lovely Washington Park Arboretum & Botanical Garden. I hope in the next couple of weeks to share with you shots of the magnificent cherry trees and blossoms that put on a spectacular April show there each year, and the cherry trees in the quad at the University of Washington,

Monday, March 26, 2007

Abstraction 1


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Let's start the week with an abstract. This downtown highrise building reflects differently every time I pass. I love the small stripe of glass that runs up the center of this side, adding a little iridescent glimmer between the matte surfaces on either side. The colors vary with the time of day.

Blogger is having some sort of bug difficulty. Please excuse the problems with the template. I hope it will be resolved very soon. Thanks for you patience.

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Not Quite Prayer Flags


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

It may be a cold and rainy weekend here in Seattle, but these colorful papel picados blowing in the breeze add a touch of bright color to a wet and dreary Sunday. To see this colorful Capitol Hill storefront in full, click here to go to my More Seattle Stuff page. I love to walk through the various city neighborhoods' shopping streets. Each neighborhood commercial zone has its own flavor and charm, usually with fewer chain names than locally owned and individually operated small businesses.

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Spring "Snow"


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

The plum trees all over Seattle are at their peak of bloom. Streets and sidewalks are strewn with pink and white petals to greet the start of spring. For a view of some trees go here. Have a relaxing Saturday everyone!

Friday, March 23, 2007

Alki Point & Ferry at Dusk


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Best viewed large. You can see the light house at the point across Elliott Bay, as well as Alki Bakery (maroon canvas canopy along the shore if you know where to look). The ferry's lights are on so you can see the cars aboard, Bainbridge island in the distance. This was taken at dusk from the southern slope of Queen Anne Hill looking southwest.

Ferries are a favorite way to get around here in the Pacific Northwest. They have become increasingly costly over the years . This is a Washington State Ferry. British Columbia also has a large fleet. Riding them is relaxing. Have a great Friday everyone!

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Miniatures Among Giants


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

This interesting, charming, and vastly different grouping of smaller buildings looked absolutely dwarfed by the huge skyscrapers surrounding them. The Dutch-looking building is the Rainier Club, and the Chruch with the terra-cotta dome is First Methodist. I shot this from the observation deck of Smith Tower, 36 stories up.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Okay. . . No Prob With Me


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Time for a double take, and some humor! I was surprised by this fun sign in the First Hill neighborhood. It was near the intersection of a street that crosses over the I-5 freeway and a street that runs parallel to the freeway. i

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Waiting Limo


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

I wasn't able to photograph the protests or candlelight vigil here in Seattle that marked the 4 year anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq. This photo reflects my sadness and concern about the effects of the continuing occupation, and my thoughts of those who have lost their lives and their grieving loved ones. This shot was taken from the same corner as the shot two days ago, across the street from Kerry Park Viewpoint, but focusing on a tree's blossom in the rain.

Monday, March 19, 2007

The Archtypal Postcard View


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

So, here is the unobstructed view all those photographers were snapping in yesterday's photo (best viewed large). The shot is so overdone, it's beyond cliché. Urban jumble and iconic tower meet the gigantic force of nature that is Mt. Rainier. The city's new motto (printed on colorful banners all over the downtown convention center area) is "METRONATURAL." No one seems to like it much, but I can see what it means here. Still the slogan is more than a little weird, since British Columbia, just a two hour drive north, already has as its motto "Super, Natural British Columbia."

3rd Place: Thanks to Metroblogging Seattle for including Seattle Daily Photo in the mix of 38 local blogs they chose for a best blog of Seattle poll they called Blarch Badness. And thanks to those of you who supported SDP by voting. The first and second place blogs are both baseball fan stat blogs for Seattle's great Mariners baseball team. SDP and West Seattle Blog were voted third and fourth place.

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Shooting at Kerry Park Viewpoint


Shooting at Kerry Park Viewpoint 2007
Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.
You can see at least 8 photographers in this frame. They are shooting the postcard view of Seattle and Mount Rainier from Kerry Park and getting ready for the sun to go down and the city lights to come up. When I was at this park the night before, it was raining and no one was around. This evening I saw from my driveway that the mountain was out so I went back again in the beautiful sunset light. There were zillions of people this time. Carloads of tourists, a bachelorette party rolled up in a limo. Neighborhood people walking their dogs and strolling their children. This shot does not even show half the length of this very small park. It was more crowded in the 3/4 you can't see. The tripods were thick from end to end! Really friendly photographers out there, too. I learned a thing or two from a kind pro. This view is popular because there are no wires, poles or other obstructions to mar the incredible vista of the downtown, Seattle Center, Elliot Bay, West Seattle, Puget Sound, and Mt. Rainier (when it is out). This is a popular place for outdoor weddings and wedding photography, too. A great place to people watch.

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Vintage Pumps & Somebody's Pot o' Gold


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Happy St. Paddy's from Seattle (where it's a big deal!). Hey, there was a rainbow when I was out on a rainy day walk, so I followed it to the end and this is where it led. Gas hit over $3.00/gal in Seattle again this week (the high gas prices of last summer were lowered throughout the US before the November elections). These old pumps are not self-serve, but the gas/oil companies with record profits in the billions the last couple years sure seem to be ;^) . Here in the western US most gas stations are set up for customers to pump their own fuel, with the huge exception of Oregon where I got a weird look and a rude awakening, "You must be from out of state, miss. We're strictly full service in Oregon. It's against the law for you to pump your own." But here in Seattle, this full service station in the Capitol Hill neighborhood is the exception. I think the pumps are so vintage they don't have the required health safeguards of newer self-service pumps.

So, are prices going up again where you live, too?

Friday, March 16, 2007

"X" Marks the Spot


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Playing with the Space Needle again: I was walking downhill when this X of wires suddenly came in view across the Space Needle. It was a rainy, gray spring day, plum blossom spice on the breeze. Today is warm and sunny, the birds are singing, the bulbs in the garden are finally starting to bloom. Happy Friday, and have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Thursday, March 15, 2007

No! & Non!


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

The Alaskan Way Viaduct is a raised roadway that carries two decks of busy Highway 99 traffic around the perimeter of Seattle's waterfront. It was slightly damaged in an earthquake a few years ago and deciding the best way to address the need to repair or replace it has been, to say the very least, uh . . . controversial. So much so that when a decision was punted from the mayor and city council to the state's governor, she called a special election for an advisory vote of the people. The ballet gave the choice of a rebuild of a similar structure or a tunnel option. Voters on Tuesday voted No and No, rejecting both plans as submitted on the ballet. The democratic process continues to play out as public debate continues and differing factions attempt to regroup to work together on a solution that will meet long-range needs within budgetary constraints.

For those unfamiliar with the Seattle waterfront, this is what the discussion is about.. Looking from the waterfront toward the northeast, the Space Needle just visible through the Belltown jumble of condo high rises, the Public Market buildings are to the right.. The Seattle Aquarium and the Alaskan Way Viaduct are in the foreground. This shot was taken at sunset. I remember vividly the Loma Prieta quake that happened at about this time of day. I worked in San Francisco at the time. Several of my workmates lost their lives or were critically injured when their vanpool home, riding on the top deck of a similar structure in Oakland, CA, was caught in the pancaking action of that double deck freeway's collapse. This is the type of nightmare Seattle is seeking to avoid and to do it in the wisest possible way in environmental, economic, traffic safety, and aesthetic terms. Wish us luck!

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Unplugged & Wired


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Two readers diverged near a yellow wood. . .

She with her I-Pod, notebook computer, and cell phone at the ready, is spending a working lunch here. He, on the other hand, is taking a break for coffee and reading.


Tuesday, March 13, 2007

The Office


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Facing the world outside, seeing only the screen inside. This could be almost anywhere in the world these days, but it is right here in Seattle's Pioneer Square area at the window counter of Zeitgeist. Free wifi has mad it possible to work in very pleasant surroundings . . . not that it seems to matter much.

Metroblogging Seattle's voting is still open if you would care to support SDP in the blog poll. Thanks!


Monday, March 12, 2007

Lunchtime at Zeitgeist


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Zeitgeist's busy counter scene at noontime. This Pioneer Square coffee house features good healthy eats, fine coffee, art gallery, music, and wifi. . .lotsa working folk in this design-heavy business area love this place.

Metroblogging Seattle's voting is still open if you would care to support SDP in the blog poll. Thanks!

Sunday, March 11, 2007

In the Cheerful Cafe


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

We had an excellent lunch in this downstairs cafe at Pike Place Market. There was an interesting view of Belltown buildings, the bay and Olympics beyond, but what caught my eye above the cafe's dish stacks and service counter was this cheerful old print and a sprinkler head ring that has slipped a bit. Have a restful Sunday! And HAPPY 2nd ANNIVERSARY to Eric at Paris Daily Photo!

Metroblogging Seattle's voting is still open if you would care to support SDP in the blog poll. Thanks!

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Retro Spring Cruise


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Best viewed Large- (click photo, click All Sizes, click Large). These three guys came gunning up the hill in this absolutely bomb green car. . . it was like watching some retro episode of "The Streets of San Francisco," except that's not the Trans America Pyramid behind all those plum blossoms. . . I shot this yesterday just before another rain shower. The sky was dark with clouds, but hey, these guys had the windows down.

Have a great weekend! Hey, don't forget to "spring ahead" your clock tonight at midnight if you are in a daylight savings time area. Do you do that in Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, etc?


Voting is still open if you would care to support SDP. Thanks

Friday, March 09, 2007

This Is a Sports Town For Sure!


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

(Best Viewed Large: click photo, click All Sizes, click large.) Across a large parking lot to the south of King Street Station is Qwest Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks (American-style) football team. I took this photo from the top of the Smith Tower. Just beyond this stadium you can glimpse Safeco Field, home of the Seattle Mariners baseball team. It is a noted architectural wonder with its silent retractable roof that moves into place if foul weather threatens games and opens for sun breaks.
Thanks to everyone who supported Seattle Daily Photo through four rounds to the semifinals in Metroblogging Seattle's "Blarch Badness" poll of best blogs of Seattle. It was very kind of you to vote through all those rounds, and fun to be included at all. The two finalists after all that are baseball-related blogs. How appropo for a city that loves its great sports teams. Congrats.

This just in, 12:45 PM: Well folks, "It ain't over 'til it's over." ~ Yogi Berra. Metroblogging Seattle has put us back in a run-off vote for esteemed third place against the other semi-final candidate that got slammed by one of the baseball blogs, West Seattle Blog, one of my faves that made it through to the end (see its sidebar link and those of some of the other wonderful local blogs I've come to love). . .but, go ahead and vote for Seattle Daily Photo by clicking here if you would care to ;-) "It's deja vu all over again!" ~YB

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Mr. Railroad Man Redux


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

If you were to go out the King Street Station doors that say "departures," you might glimpse The Coast Starlight conductor getting ready to roll. Far too cool to ask, "Good morning Mr. Railroad Man. When will your train roll by? 9:15? 2:44? 25 minutes 'til 5:00?" Looks more like we should be cuing up the music for "Mission Impossible," cuz he's looking Tom Cruise-ish.. All aboard!

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

When You Emerge, This Is The Scene That Greets You


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

Taxis wait for fares at curbside along King Street at the train station. This is the view looking north toward downtown. Columbia Center Tower and the Seattle Municipal Building rise in the distance, and two cranes (our new city bird, ;^) , can be seen to the right. You needn't take a taxi to find interesting places and things to do. Qwest Field with it's exhibitions and ball games is right next door, and Pioneer Square and the waterfront are an easy walk away, as is the International District (old Chinatown).

Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Period Doors


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

These beautiful oak doors with brass hardware lead to the exterior of the station. Each exit of the newly restored section of King Street Station has clear and elegant signage. As indicated in yesterday's shot, it's this way to the Taxi's on King Street.

If you would care to support SDP in the semi-final round of Metroblogging Seattle's best blogs of Seattle poll, please vote here.

Monday, March 05, 2007

Lovely Ornimentation


Photo & Text Copyright 2007 Seattle Daily Photo. All rights reserved, including reproduction or republishing.

The King Street Train Station lobby has been transformed to reveal lovely ornamentation long hidden by a false ceiling. Above each doorway or archway there is large bronze signage to direct people confidently in the right direction. Plaster relief panels abundant with cornucopias of fruit surround portals which bleed light from one room into another.