Any questions, just ask. Take a look! Leave a comment if you want, I’ll be waiting….

San Francisco 2011 photos

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter

And yes, there will be pictures here soon. But not yet!

We decided to take a short trip to San Francisco for our anniversary. We left Friday early afternoon and arrived a couple hours later at our first destination, a reuse/recycle store called Scrap. We found a few things there but not much, but it was still fun to look. Then we made our way through the traffic and rain to our hotel, the Galleria Park. It’s in a great location and close to a lot of things. We checked in, just in time for the free daily wine reception (translate: free wine). We were getting pretty hungry and luckily we had brought with us  a 24-page list of vegetarian/vegan friendly places. Good luck, there was a pizza place five blocks down the street that offered vegan cheese as an option so we walked in the drizzle, looking forward to the meal. Alas, they no longer offered the option so we left, a bit disappointed. But after checking on our phones, we found an all-vegan chinese food  restaurant less than half a mile away, just into Chinatown. We walked there, to the Lucky Creation. The rice was just ok, but the other two dishes were really good. Then back to the hotel and we called it a day.

Saturday we had a full day planned. We starting walking and stopped for a few minutes to watch people skate at the outdoor skating rink near Macy’s. Then we took a ride on the famous cable car system to the North Beach area. We had lunch at Cafe Sapora, with a number of vegan and vegetarian options on the menu. It was a tasty sandwich. Next we stopped at XOX Chocolates, a very small shop that also offered four types of vegan truffles. Dessert! Then we hopped a bus to the touristy area. We breezed through Ghirardelli Square, not finding much to see there, on past some street vendors, through the Fisherman’s Wharf area, and then to Pier 39. All tourist stuff but still fun and a nice way to spend the afternoon. We rode the cable car back and, lo and behold, at the turnaround end of the line there just happened to be a five-story record store, Rasputin Music! Yes, we spend a while there and our wallets got a little lighter too. So we walked back, pausing again briefly at the ice rink. But we were hungry again! We found a little place called California Golden Cookies and Cafe (really!). It was cold and damp outside but this place had the best vegan lentil soup I have ever had. So good. Then back to the hotel, just in time for the free wine reception! It was time for more shopping though, this time to Amoeba Music. Their three locations are huge, and this one is a former bowling alley and truly massive. Two and a half hours later they were getting ready to close so we grabbed our purchases and left. We headed a couple miles down Haight Street and had a vegan sandwich at Love and Haight. It was pretty good and at after 10:00 it was fine. And that was Saturday.

On Sunday we took the BART train over to the Mission District to go to a vegan restaurant (a chain of three actually) that we had been to a few years back, called Herbivore. We had a great brunch and we were ready for the day. We stopped at a nearby shoe store, the Bonita Trading Company, because Petra wanted some rain boots (yes, it was raining again) and she found some. We took the BART train back to the hotel and then went to spend the afternoon at the Museum of Modern Art. It was my first time there but I will be back. It was large and full of interesting art, all modern, which is what I like for the most part. Next, it was back to the hotel for that free wine reception again. Afterwards, we had dinner at a mall food court. Say what? Well, this was actually a vegan place in the food court, one of the worldwide Loving Hut locations. We thought we were going to see the play Hair in the evening but due to a scheduling mixup it didn’t happen. We were bummed about that but went back to the hotel and had a couple glasses of wine and got a decent night’s rest.

Then it was Monday, the day to go home. We took a brief walk at the third floor garden area and then checked out. We went back to Herbivore and had brunch again. And it was really good again, maybe even better than the day before. Instead of going home, though, we took a side trip to Santa Cruz, about an hour and a half southward. Our friends Larry and Robin live there and we always like to see them. But the draw that day for Petra was that former American Idol finalist James Durbin was at Streetlight Records signing copies of his first CD, released that very day. We stood in the cold for a couple hours and then got to talk to James and he signed her CD and t-shirt. He seems to be a really nice and genuine person. More power to him. We had dinner with Larry at Cafe Gratitude, a local vegan restaurant, which was very good. Then we said our goodbyes and drove home. It was a good trip!

I call it “Spongebob with Collard Green Leaf”.

What do you think?

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter

Save the date! On November 12th, 2011 it’s the (fourth) annual Swell Sister Art Show and once again my wife, friend, and partner Petra B will have a piece or two in the exhibit, along with various types of art by other members of the Swell Sister Society art group. The free event is part of the city’s Second Saturday festivities and will be held at Shine, 1400 E Street in Sacramento, CA from 5 PM until 8 PM.

Check out the photos. Just use your back button to get back here.

What do you think? Feel free to leave a comment…

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter

Note: These photos came from my cell phone camera. There may be other pictures posted later.

Any questions, just ask. Besides Petra and me, you might even notice a couple pictures of our friends Mama O and Liz. Take a look! Leave a comment if you want, I’ll be waiting….

Seattle/Bumbershoot 2011 photos

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter

Monday September 5

Last day of the Bumbershoot Music and Arts Festival and the routine is familiar. A bit of food in the room and then we took the monorail over to the festival. Once there, we snacked at the hospitality room and pondered the myriad of possibilities for the day. At one of the booths we watched a song or two by Lemolo, which I didn’t really like. It was very low-key female vocal but much too low-key. Today we had decided to see some comedy too, not just music. Our VIP passes got us to the front of all the comedy lines so we wanted to take advantage of that. The comedy show we went to had a short funny introduction by Baron somebody (I think), didn’t catch the last name. But the main show was two fairly well-known comedians, Amy Shumer and Eugene Mirman. Seriously, Amy was so funny I barely stopped laughing for her whole set. Politically incorrect. Yep. Funny? Hilarious! And Mr. Mirman was very funny too. Great show. After that, we watched a four-person panel discussion about being vegan, featuring the Black Metal Vegan Chef. He is so cool, check out his videos on YouTube. The panel was humorous at times and informative.

Petra headed out to see more comedy, including some she really liked (Hari Kandaboly, Kyle Kinane) and one guy that she didn’t like (Anthony Jeselnik). I went into the basement stage (aka “the pit”) to see Eisley, a family band (three sisters up front, plus a brother and cousin) who do alternative rock but with hooks and really nice harmonies. They were very good and I stayed for the whole set. Afterward I bought their newest CD and they signed it for me and chatted with me for a minute or two. Awesome! (side note, I saw this band again a few days ago in Sacramento, you can read about that here). We hooked back up at the hospitality area. Larry and Robin had been there earlier and offered to save us some seats (thanks!) in the Mainstage for the evenings blue-eyed soul double bill. First up was Fitz and the Tantrums, a newer band who had a minor hit with “Moneygrabber”. They were entertaining if not exactly innovative. It was soulful rock that was good but, like I said, felt awful familiar and didn’t challenge the listener at all. Still, the audience was on their feet and loving it! Next up (and I would use the same compliments and criticisms) were veteran rockers Hall and Oates. Yes, that Hall and Oates. They have had a ton of hits and ran through most of them. They put on a good show and did just what people expected. There was not one new song and nothing that hadn’t been heard before. But they have their stuff down and put on a very entertaining show. And that was it, Bumbershoot 2011 was over. Sigh. How many days until next year?

Tuesday September 6

We had today free before we had to fly home tomorrow so we took the chance to see more of Seattle. We took a free bus down to near the Seattle Ferry docks and caught a ferry boat (I’m on a boat! - watch at your own risk) to nearby Bainbridge Island. There are plenty of shops and stuff there so we looked around a bit then had lunch at Emmy’s VegeHouse, an all vegan asian mini-restaurant. It was delicious! The we looked around a bit more and found Doc’s Marina Grill, a nice and friendly place with a big patio area looking out on the harbor. We had a drink and relaxed for a bit there. Then we took the ferry back to the mainland, what a pleasant ride. We caught a bus up to the Capitol Hill area, in search of dinner at the Sage Cafe, another vegan place but with sandwich and burger type selections. Good stuff again. We bussed back but stopped at Everyday Music, a big record store, and Elliot Bay Books, a huge place too. Then a bus back to the hotel. After that day, we went up to the eleventh floor Cloud Room for a glass of wine or two. Not a bad day, huh?

Wednesday September 7

The last day. And this makes stevenology sad. Sigh. So we packed our luggage. Sigh. But it was NOT over! We walked over to Cyber-Dog for an awesome vegetarian dog with plenty of toppings. I love this place! The owner (Tatiana) actually left us in charge of the place when she went to move and park her car. If you go to Seattle then GO THERE. Even if you are not vegetarian, you will like it. Then we checked out of the hotel, caught the light rail to the airport, had a margarita with some chips and salsa at the airport, and then flew Southwest (my favorite airline) back to Sacramento. That wraps it up for 2011. See you in 2012, Seattle! Wait for me!

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter

Saturday September 3

Mid-morning we took the convenient monorail over to the Seattle Center, the site of the Bumbershoot Music and Arts Festival. Today was the first day of this amazing event. Doors opened at 11:00 but we got there at about 10:30 and they let us in early! I took that as a good omen. We got our Starbucks pass, allowing us free coffee drinks for the entire festival. Can’t argue with that. Then we went to the VIP hospitality lounge for some food to get us started for the day. They were determined to provide vegetarian and even some vegan options too. We checked our schedules for the day and decided to start with a new stage this year (EMP Level 3) where Seattle’s Tomten was playing. They had won a competition to get a performing slot and were pretty good. Indie-type rock with a little more to the songs than some. Oh, and in case I forget, all three days of the festival we ate some festival food too. Eating is fun! But back to the music. The next act we saw was at the Main Stage (moved indoors this year), 90s act The Presidents of the USA. We watched about half of their set and they are still doing what they have always done. Of course they did their hit “Lump” and a bunch of others. Meanwhile, we realized that with our VIP passes we got some free drink tickets, so we went to one of the beer gardens and had a beer (or in Petra’s case, a glass of wine). At a nearby stage P.S. I Love You was playing but we didn’t hear anything that made us want to stick around. Not with so many other options. What are there, 12-15 stages?

Oh, plus the small “secret” stage that VIP passes get you into, or you can win tickets like Larry and Robin had done. We saw Vetiver in there next. They were good if not memorable.  Pleasant at least. Next up in the secret stage was Trombone Shorty and his band. The music was basic funk and blues, but he was very charismatic and talented and it ended up being a great show. Then we went back to the Level 3 stage to see Pickwick. There were hundreds of people in line for this act, people obviously knew something we didn’t. Luckily our passes got us up to the front of the line and we got in. And the show was really good! It was blue-eyed soul but well done and the band had really made their sound tight. After that, I watched part of a set by Little Dragon, which was kind of electronic with a woman singer. For a couple songs it was interesting but got less so. Petra had left to see the “real” (non-secret) set by Trombone Shorty and soon enough I went over there too. He was good again but not quite as good as the earlier show IMHO. After that was Mavis Staples, and for her we watched the whole set. She is great and has been for, what, 50-60 years since the Staples Singers days. She’s a mix of gospel, political, pop, funk, and soul. This makes twice I’ve seen her live and both times she  delivered the goods. After all of that, we all went back to our hotel room to talk about the day and to strategize over who to see the next day.

Sunday September 4

Day two of the festival. Once again we had a little food in the room and then took the monorail to the festival. We catch it a few blocks from the hotel, it takes about 90 seconds, and we get out right at the festival grounds. So convenient! First thing, we got our free Starbucks drinks. Then the hospitality lounge and a snack there too. First up, in the small “secret” stage, was Mad Rad, a blend of hiphop, electronic, and rock, and some energetic cool weirdness thrown in too. This was a really good set. We chose the “secret” stage again for Tennis (the band, not the sport). This was a decent set by the three-piece, but the guitar was too loud. The woman’s keyboards and vocals were lost a lot of the time. So it ended up being loud guitar mostly. And we were in the center of the second row (our spot for all the small stage shows), so it wasn’t that we were sitting in the wrong place. It was just mixed badly. After that, at one of the booths there was a 4-song mini-set by Allen Stone, a white, long-haired, shaggy guy who sang like a long time soul crooner. He did NOT look like he sounded! Petra liked him a lot and made a note to see his full set later. While waiting for another act a bit later, we heard a few songs by the Jim Jones Review. It was sloppy, punky, and nothing special at all. But we were waiting for Pickwick to play the small stage. We had seen their full set yesterday and liked it so much we wanted to see them in the small stage too. And they were very good again!

Of course there was plenty of food today too, don’t ever doubt that.  Then I went to see an all-female band called Warpaint, who ended up being good. I watched for a while and then ran into Mama O and Liz and talked for a couple minutes. Meanwhile Petra was seeing Allen Stone’s full set and loving it. We met back up in the hospitality lounge for more food and then back out into the festival. After a couple minutes of Toro Y Moi, we both decided that was enough of that. Then we watched some of the set by The Kills, a man/woman duo that has a noisy, bluesy minimal rock sound. It was good but it was late and we headed back to the hotel room. The rest of the gang came by and we strategized about the next day and which artists to see then…

To be continued. Day three and more coming soon…

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter

We just got back from our annual trek to Seattle for the Bumbershoot Music and Arts Festival (and more). I’ll post some pictures soon, but in the meantime here is a short synopsis of what we did. Enjoy, and maybe we’ll see you there next year…

Wednesday August 31

We flew to Seattle (Southwest Airlines) and arrived in the afternoon. Seattle has a great light rail train system that took us from the airport (nowhere near the actual city) all the way up to three blocks from our hotel. For just a few bucks! We checked in at The Camlin and then walked about five blokcs or so to the nearby Whole Foods Market, to get some supplies. You know, chips, salsa, cereal, fruit, soy milk, bottled water, wine, just the necessities. We lugged all that back to the hotel and then we were truly ready for anything. Well, pretty much. But we were hungry too! We were walking the block or so to Cyber-Dogs, a great vegetarian hot dog place, when we bumped into a couple of our fellow Sacramento friends, Mama O and Liz. We chatted a bit on the street (sidewalk actually) and then went to Cyber-Dogs for our meal (menu). This place gives you a lot of food, not just a measly hot dog. Next it was back to the room to plan out the event of the next couple days. Yes, I love Seattle!

Thursday September 1

We had some food in the room before heading out for the day, to the Seattle Center area. First stop was the Experience Music Project, a great music museum that we try to visit every year. New this year was a very comprehensive Nirvana exhibit, and the neighboring Science Fiction Museum (part of EMP, same admission gets you into both) has a really nice Avatar exhibit. Then we went to the Bamboo Garden vegetarian food nearby. A combination plate was a fine choice, though any of the hundreds of things on the menu would have been ok since it is all vegetarian (mostly vegan actually). Sufficiently stuffed, we walked down the street to Silver Platters, a good record, CD, and video store. Of course we found some music we needed. Of course Next we headed back over to the Seattle Center and picked up our VIP passes for the upcoming Bumbershoot Music and Arts Festival. The VIP passes cost more but they give you a lot of benefits that make the festival a much better and easier experience.

As we left there we met up with more of our group that had traveled from Sacramento, Larry and Robin. The four of us walked over to the Visual Arts preview. This was a sneak preview of the visual arts exhibits for the festival. One room had “Bumber By Number”, a huge paint-by-number that wrapped around three walls. Anyone could paint in a few spaces so that by the end of the festival it would be all done. So Petra and I did just that. One other quirk was that the paints were actually chalk-like things that looked like vegetables. Yeah. Art! Another room had “The Magic Show” which had objects as art, with emphasis on illusion. There was more, but you get the idea. We took the monorail back to the condo room and then the four of us went to see a Major League Baseball game! The Seattle Mariners to be specific.  We had excellent seats in the first row behind the visitor’s dugout. It was a lot of fun and I got friendly with the mascot, a very energetic moose. Well, not THAT friendly but he was next to me a bunch of times. After the game we went back to the condo but headed up to the 11th (top) floor “Cloud Room” to relax with a couple beverages and to talk about the day and also the one to come next.

Friday September 2

Today’s destination was the University District and the four of us bussed it over there. We checked out a vegan store (Sidecar for Pigs Peace) and then had lunch at the Wayward Vegan Cafe. Man, was this a good meal. Serious. We walked around the district a bit and popped into a few stores here and there. Larry and Robin headed back to town but Petra and I stayed there a bit longer, including a visit to Half Price Books, where we (of course) found more to bring home. Not a big surprise. Next, we bussed it back to the hotel and the took the monorail to the Seattle Center area. We stopped in at Easy Street Records and of course found more music that we needed. Yes, needed. A quick stop at the supermarket formerly known as Larry’s, and then we lined up for the evening’s entertainment. It was a film preview of the Seattle International Film Festival. The film festival is part of the Bumbershoot festival, but we were able to see six short films the night before it for free! These short films are always interesting. One of them had actually won the short film Academy Award. By the it was getting late and we all went back to the hotel room to strategize. No I don’t mean to talk, drink, laugh, and wonder who to see at the first day of Bumbershoot tomorrow. Ok, ok, that is exactly what we all did. Six great minds in one room. And after that we got some sleep.

To be continued…

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter

Our granddaughter (the seven year old, not the nine year old) did this music-themed art in her class recently. Very cool, don’t you think?

Get stevenology by email

Follow stevenology on twitter