Stuffed-Animal on

Red.

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Red hangs out on a sunflower at the farm

As I was leaving to go to the farm this morning to do some maintenance, my daughter yelled at me to wait. She ran to her room and came back with Red to “keep me company” – it’s been quite a while since I’ve travelled with an animal.

Big Puppy.

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:00:00 +0000

This is not the Big Puppy, my daughter’s absolute favorite animal, but his backup. Big Puppy recently started showing the signs any animal would if he weighed five plus pounds and was carried everywhere, usually in a stranglehold about his neck. My wife and I decided acquiring a backup would be a prudent decision, especially considering the Huge size was no longer available in the catalogs.

big puppy peeking out

I recalled having seen a Big Puppy in the window of Magic Mouse so I went over at lunch to pick one up – I didn’t recall it being so clean and soft! The clerk asked if someone had told us to get a second – just in case – but it was entirely our idea. He told me they get someone in once a week frantically looking for a replacement “it needs to be EXACTLY the same, she’ll KNOW!”.

Dragons, parade, no.

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0000

On of BI’s annual events occurred this weekend: the Bainbridge Island Chinese New Year Parade. Parades aren’t really our thing, as a kid I didn’t care for them and my daughter seems to be following right along. We had some friends coming to visit however and the parade seemed like a great place to meet and catch up.

picture taking

On the way from the car to the parade grounds my daughter needed some coaxing – she loves to take photos so out came the camera. She’s perfected holding it to her eye and pressing the shutter but her hand holding needs work.

Pioneer Square, red, apple pear.

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 00:00:00 +0000

The handing over of animals is usually a production, with the frantic dash – “wait-wait!” – through the house by my daughter finding just the right choice for the ride.

Today was different, when I got to work and opened my bags I found Red and Apple Pear staring up at me – stow aways! We had a little chat and they sat next to me until afternoon coffee. On the way back a quick detour took us to Seattle’s famous Pioneer Square so the two friends could hang out. Look Ma, blue skies!

Sun, mountains, animal.

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 00:00:00 +0000

So many old friends came out today, the sun, blue skies, Mt Rainier and an animal!

I made an animotion for my daughter over the weekend and it clearly re-sparked her interest in sending animals on the “big boat”. I arrived at the boat late, making only the last loading (after the cars) therefore missing the clear shot of the Cascades without the blinding sun – it didn’t matter, I was thrilled for a sunrise!

Submarine, pineapple express, Polar Bear.

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Polar Bear was chosen as today’s ambassador for the great stuffed animal collection. While we’ve been experiencing some really heavy rains recently courtesy of a Pineapple Express today wasn’t so bad. I’m a bit of foul weather junkie so this weather suits me for the most part.

polar bear in seattle

I had two different people smile while I was propping up Polar Bear, one asking if I was a member of the Polar Bear Club (I’m not) and the other offered that she “won’t even ask”.

Slow, rain, broken.

Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:00:00 +0000

“Gus wants to go on the ‘big boat’. He hasn’t been in a long time.” And so Gus spent a slow, rainy, start-of-winter day with me. I like Gus and I wanted him to have a good time but nothing much exciting happened. Sorry buddy.

gus in the rain

Gus waits patiently just out of the rain.

walking off the boat

About the only interesting event was the overhead walkway on the Island side failed so all the passengers (bikes, cars, motorcycles, walk-ons) departed via the car deck. Not exciting, but different.

Summit, sunset, Pierre.

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

My silence of late is attributable to having spent the better part of last week at eBay attending the Next-Generation Distributed Systems Summit. I was fortunate, in time and invitation, to attend, meet some really amazing technologists and learn a Tremendous amount (thanks Little Bear). I’m still consolidating my final notes and thoughts on the Summit so expect another post soon.

In the interim, enjoy some sunset photos from my travels with Pierre.

Sunset, trauma, pig.

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

When it rains, it pours – literally and figuratively. I left the house today in a pretty steady rain, managed to get about a mile from home and then stopped. My rear tire, fine on Friday and over the weekend, went flat! After a quick cyclocross run home, Pig and I made the next boat. Ugh.

pig waiting in the morning

Pig and I never made it out of the office today, sorry Pig, you get a raincheck.

Cycling, puncture, hippo.

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Today was rough – I punctured – I will never forgive the hippo.

I don’t puncture; I’m the envy of my cycling friends. It’s not that I don’t ride either, in a good year I routinely put in a couple thousand miles and knock out a half-dozen centuries.

climbing alpe d'huez

I can even climb Alpe d’Huez faster than Cheryl Crow (64 minutes; I’m in yellow).

Sunrise, Mickey, Minnie, PII.

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Sometimes an animal journeys with me with whom I have less history, today was one of those days. The reason in this particular case stems from a PII incident which I can’t divulge. Nonetheless, we still ventured out.

t overlooking eagle harbor

I’ve seen this a couple times now, the low-hanging, dark clouds with the brilliant red sunrise peeking through.

Boats, trains, ark, sheep.

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I look to my left at a fellow cyclist stretching along the railing as I pull the sheep from my bag and secure them for the shot.

“Ok,” he says, smiling and walking toward me, “what are you doing?”

“Everyday my daughter gives me some animals to take on the boat. I’ve been all over the city for the last couple of weeks taking photos, it’s our little game.”

“That’s cool,” he says, laughing. “How old is she?”

Sunrise, falafel, turtle, bunny.

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

The animals arrive pre-packaged now, nestled in their stuff sack, so I wasn’t exactly sure who made the trip this morning.

sunrise

Puget Sound, sunrise, skyline, ferry – I’ve yet to grow tired of the view though my fellow BIGeeks assure me I might.

waiting to depart

ferry through the sides

Say “hi” to Honey Bunny and Turtle as they await the departure of the boat; through the railing you can see a passing ferry on its way to Bremerton.

Sunrise, lounging, polar bear.

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

“There’s the polar bear. The polar bear is on the big boat. The polar bear is eating.”

Every night when I bring the photos home from the day’s adventure, my daughter, wife and I lay on our bellies while my daughter flips through the photos offering her own play-by-play.

sunrise

seattle skyline

polar bar on side of boat

Damn we have some fine sunrises.

Sun, water, old buildings, goat.

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Billy the Goat, fittingly (let’s see: the Badgers lost twice in a row with leads in the fourth quarter and the Cubs and White Sox got bounced from the playoffs (go Red Sox!)), traveled today on the big boat.

morning sun

After yesterday’s driving rain, the blazing sun this morning was quite enjoyable.

goat in eagle harbor

Billy doesn’t weigh much, so because of the wind I had to string his little arms into the railing to get the shot of the sailboats bouncing in Eagle Harbor.

Zebras, football, espresso.

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I was pretty excited today when my daughter presented both ZoZo and Amélie for a trip on the big boat. I’m pretty fond of the letter Z and zebras, less so the animal and more so the football official, my dad having officiated football throughout most of my childhood and the memories I have thereof. I knew just where I was going.

qwest field

The zebras outside Qwest Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks – notice the football pig in the background, a Rachel likeness.

Water, books, Miriam.

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

My daughter took no chances on forgetting this morning, booking down the hallway before I even opened the door to the garage. So while Gus & Balsmic, Bernard, Baby Ralph, Curious George and Pierre stayed at home I was joined by Miriam, my wife’s favorite of the animals.

grey skies

Where to go in this edition of take-your-daughter’s-animal-to-work day? Well, with the start of a new “water year” (and thick cloud cover) as harbinger of winter, my thoughts turned to books and reading. Did you know Seattle is one of the most literate cities in the US?

Bikes, pigs, Pierre.

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Of all my daughter’s animals, I’m most fond of Pierre. He’s quiet, cute and small enough to fit in my backpack, important because I opted to ride my road bike today on what might be one of the last warm, dry days of the year. Because I had limited space, this was the first time I interfered with my daughter’s wishes, choosing not to take Gus – maybe tomorrow buddy.

Espresso, mountains, skyline, monkey.

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

No animals were harmed in the making of this Art – but it was close.

Ironically, my daughter offered some advice this morning she had never before proffered: “Daddy, be safe on the big boat!”

Down the driveway and up to the road I pedaled with Curious George tucked safely away to cheers of “Bye, bye Curious George!” He spent most of the day in my bag but his opportunity for further fame arrived on my daily walk for an afternoon espresso at my favorite local coffeehouse, Zeitgeist.

Baby, Ralph's, turn.

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Today Baby Ralph traveled on the big boat to be photographed from our office’s rooftop deck.

baby ralph

Baby Ralph is so named because of his resemblance to the other Ralph.

ralph

I find these photos amusing – if you don’t, my apologies. I’ll move on eventually.

One, more, animal.

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

“Daddy, daddy, wait!” Away runs my daughter to arrive seconds later with yet another animal, Bernard.

bernard

I haven’t been cycling with my regular camera (these have all been iPhone shots) but I’d better start. The skies this week have been incredible shades of blue, orange and pink. Sometimes Rainier and its flanks are glowing and I spend the entire ride enjoying the majesty surrounding where I live: mountains, trees, water, boats, harbors, skyline – it’s beautiful.

Animals, boats, ideas.

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

My daughter greeted me twice last week as I was readying to leave on my bike with an “idea”. “Daddy, wait” she said as she ran back into the house, appearing moments later with one of her animals. She wanted them to experience the joy of the morning commute on the “big boat” – into the Ortliebs each went.

gus

balsamic

I think Gus got the better deal of the two, enjoying the sunrise over Seattle, while Balsamic suffered through watching me work at my desk.