Another post? I just
posted this morning! Well, this time I'm trying to get a jump on things: tomorrow is Thanksgiving, I have shit planned on Friday, and I likely won't have time to post tomorrow. I certainly won't have time to post in the morning, and I'd rather not have to catch up later on both Wednesday
and Thursday rather than just Thursday.
And I actually had a social engagement today that I did not realize I would have until this morning.
Gina and Beth have been talking about coming up for a holiday tour of Seattle one of these days. They did it once before, but it was several years ago:
in 2017. So, seven years ago.
They were in town today. Barely too early to get the full effect of Seattle holiday sights—the Lighting of the Tree Ceremony is on Friday. Now, as we already know from two different blog posts I've had since Saturday (including this morning's!), the Fairmont Olympic Hotel is already decked out for the Seattle Festival of Trees. Gina threw that out as a possibility for today but they didn't have time for it. in the end.
They were bringing Jaycee up for her first college campus tour. I wonder how many of my readers remember who Jaycee is and how she's related to me? She's the eldest of all my grandnieces and grandnephews. (I didn't even realize she was a "grandniece" until several years after she was born, on Shobhit's birthday, in 2009. That makes her 15 now.) She is also Gina's grandniece, though. It's Angel, actually, who is Jaycee's grandmother—something I often forget, just because of how young Angel was when she had Brandi (at age 15, the same age Jaycee is now). And even though Brandi was at the ripe old age of 23 when she had Jaycee, that still made Angel a grandmother at the age of 38. (Even that's six years older than Sherri was when Brandi made
her a grandmother: Sherri was 17 when she had Angel, so when Angel had Brandi, Sherri was 32. Are you following this?)
I'll give this to Brandi: she's a fantastic mom, at least by all appearances, who not only spoils all her children, particularly at holidays and birthdays, but she's a fierce advocate for them and is openly proud of their achievements. Brandi constantly posts about Jacyee's consistently excellent grades, which I'm sure embarrasses Jaycee to no end. I'm not sure how it came to be that Gina and Beth offered to bring Jaycee to Seattle to check out the UW campus rather than Brandi, but Brandi works as a hairdresser and was presumably working.
College wasn't even on my radar yet when I was 15. I suppose it probably should have been. Gina indicated today that she assumed I had gone through college on a full scholarship, but nope: I had no scholarships at all. I probably could have, but I had no idea what resources there even were when I was a teenager, let alone know how to research and attempt to harness them. Gina's around now to do all that kind of research on Jaycee's behalf, which is awesome. Gina didn't say this outright, but there was a bit of an inference that, among all of hers or Angel's grandchildren, Jaycee has the most potenital—at least as of right now, to be fair; several of them are still very little yet.
In any case, they were coming to down, Gina and Beth and Jaycee, and Gina texted to see if I wanted to meet up with them. At first I wasn't sure, as I knew Shobhit would want some help with food prep: both for Thanksgiving tomorrow and for having his friend Ellen over for dinner on Saturday. Plus, the texts with Gina started before I was even done writing the blog post I wrote this morning.
Shobhit went to a Weight Watchers meeting mid-morning today, and I managed to finish the blog post and then barely finish getting ready by the time he got back. I did indeed do some food chopping for a bit after he got home. When I told him about meeting up with Gina and Beth, he didn't seem bothered by the idea, so I was like: okay. I could get up to the U District pretty quickly via Light Rail anyway.
Also, Shobhit wanted to walk to QFC to get his lottery tickets. We walked together, and I just peeled off when we passed the Light Rail Station.
There was a little bit of confusion with texts with Gina, trying to figure out where the hell they were and how I could find them once I got off the Light Rail. It took about 15 minutes of walking before I finally caught up with them at the Student Union Building (SUB), where the environment very much reminded me of the similar Compton Union Building (CUB) when I went to WSU in Pullman thirty years ago—just at a bit of a larger scale. Gina was hungry so we all got ourselves a slice of pizza at the Pagliacci Pizza down there in the basement level of that building.
This was when I got an idea, which I posed to them: I have this new hobby of visiting beautifully designed library buildings, and I remembered that the University of Washington has its own library, renowned for its architectural splendor. I didn't have a photo album for that library yet, so why not rectify that? Gina was like, "Yes, I'd be interested in that. A hundred percent!"
The library is called
Suzzalo Library, and its first portion was built in Gothic style in 1926. The building is both visually and historically fascinating. Plus, the famed Suzzallo Reading Room actually bears some similarity to the Mortlock Wing of the
State Library of South Australia.
The whole library was constructed in phases, in 1926, 1935, and 1961. I can tell you the 1961 additions are far less interesting. The architectural star of the show is that Reading Room, which is accessed right up the stairs one level from the entrance facing UW's "Red Square."
I got 11 shots in that Reading Room alone. Okay, I took 10 shots; Beth texted me a shot she took in there.
We did go up to the fifth floor, at my request. I wanted to see what kind of views we might see out the windows. I got a few semi-interesting shots from there.
Adding several of the shots I took of the exterior of the building, Plus just a few shots we took in other places (the HUB; a large lecture room in Kane Hall; the University Book Store), I got a
full photo album of 33 shots—not bad.
This now makes 10 libraries I have in my
Libraries collection of photo albums—three of them from this year alone: the Toronto Public Library; the Burton Barr Central Library in Phoenix; and now the Suzzallo Library on the University of Washington Campus.
It did occur to me today to look up the Central Library in Washington, D.C. It's not nearly as architecturally interesting as these other libraries, but I learned today it's on the National Registry of Historic Places, so that alone will make me want to check it out when Shobhit and I are there next June. Maybe it looks more interesting on the inside. As it is; the photos I've seen make it look like a pretty plain, black box.
Speaking of the trip to D.C., I shared the news of our booking that trip to Gina and Beth today, and later to Gabriel over the phone. In sharp contrast to Laney and Danielle, who both were simply excited for us, Gina and Beth and Gabriel all acted like this might be some incredibly sad, possibly even dangerous affair. The re-election of President Fuckwit notwithstanding, I just don't understand adopting such an attitude about it. I expect all the same, countless, amazing things to see there to be the same. We've survived a President Fuckwit administration before. Yes, I know we are bracing for something much worse this time around, but I actually think we will survive it again. The fact that this country has endured much worse remains unchanged. Besides, I see no reason
not to engage in queer joy while also engaging in civic protest. In fact, there's never been a greater need for it.
Beth acted like we should get harrassed at any Pride event in Washington, D.C. Do people really not know that the city of Washington and the Federal government, while long linked to an unfair degree, are not one and the same? Washington is actually a much more progressive city than many people seem to realize. Beth actually asked me, "Have you ever been in a Pride Parade where people threw eggs at you?" No, I have not. And although she was clearly insinuating that this could happen to us in D.C., right now I don't particularly expect it. Honestly, rather than enduring open hostility by the authorities, I think it much more likely that they will just be ignored. But Beth even added, "You couldn't pay me enough to go to that!"
I don't really get the idea of hostility toward the capital city itself just because the country elected a vile excuse for a human being to the Presidency (granted, they did this
twice). I separate the two in my mind. And, I am with Shobhit on the idea of wanting to tour the White House, even while President Fuckwit is desecrating it with his mere presence. There's still a great deal of history there, worth experiencing. I feel the same way about the other landmarks there. And as for Pride itself: D.C. has a vibrant queer community. Should we abandon them just because of a shitty turn in government? Come on.
Anyway. I had that conversation, briefly, with Gina and Beth, while we were walking from the Suzzallo Library, to a nearby building—Kane Hall—where Gina wanted to find a large lecture hall, as she had never been in one. This one was so large
it had a balcony, making it bigger than any I experienced at WSU, as far as I can remember.
We walked from there to the University Bookstore, where Gina and Beth bought most of a UW sweatshirt for Jaycee by making her a deal: she can kick in $25, plus do dishes at Thanksgiving tomorrow. Seems like a pretty sweet deal to me. Especially if it means Jaycee will do all the dishes! (She'll probably still get help.) From there, we walked back to their car. They were headed to Alaska Airlines Arena by Husky Stadium to see a volleyball game. I split from them at their car, as I had another place to go and do a bit of Christmas shopping.
I took a bus to the University of Washington Light Rail Station, then took that back to Capitol Hill Station. I then had two hours to process my photos, then assemble the cucumber sandwiches I took to Action Movie Night at The Braeburn Condos theater.
Shobhit had a work shift tonight, so he didn't come. Still, somewhat to my surprise given tomorrow is Thanksgiving, there were nine people present: Tony, a new guy Tony introduced named Greg, Jake, Chris G, Chris B, Joe, Andrew, Daniel, and myself.
In an unusual move, Tony gave Greg the choice of movie tonight. Otherwise, it would have been my choice tonight. Now my choice is scheduled for next time, December 11. Being December, I find myself once again bumping a particular movie I have been wanting to choose from the start but just keep postponing—mostly because I have another idea of a movie I love that takes place at Christmastime (much like my choice of
Batman Returns in November of last year).
Chris G brought a vegetarian pizza, which was only half eaten when the evening was over. He insisted I take it and he didn't have to twist my arm.
Anyway the movie Greg chose was the 1985 film
The Return of the Living Dead, which is about as eighties schlock horror as you could get. This is a kind of movie this group tends to be really into; I could take it or leave it. Some of it was amusing. Clearly the movie overall was much more amusing to people in the eighties. Well, at least next time it'll be my turn to choose and I can re-introduce some quality!
[posted 10:55 pm]
