I'm The Better Speller

Dexter and I took the weekend to Seattle. If I had known that Monday was a school holiday, I might have opted to not have him miss Friday. Someone pointed out to me that missing a day of school would probably make the trip a good one before we even begin. Son, let's begin a good trip.

Wow- an easy check in at Virgin Airlines and a short flight, less than 2 hours, and we land in Seattle. The forecast calls for rain and the ground is wet, sky gray and yet, the sky clears as we play tourist for we do so in grand sun. Our hotel (Silver Cloud Stadium) is directly across the street from the Mariners (icons Ichiro and Griffey Jr. on prominent display) and with comfy beds, a refrigerator, coffee machine and rooftop pool (not too high- 9 floors) , this is a nice place for us to park ourselves. Anyway, a brief rest and then a shuttle hop, a monorail glide, and a lengthy walk back just in time to get ready for Braves-Giants, game 2. I was pleasantly surprised that Pikes Place has a wide range of stores beyond fish and souvenirs, the space planners getting an appreciative nod from this court. Also Dexter and I had a good time at the Science Fiction Museum with visits with pulp history, television, Gort (the Day the Earth Stood Still), Robby the Robot (Forbidden Planet) , and especially Robot from Lost in Space. Robot had a lot to say, my favorite mechanical mush of pathos.

Dinner at a little Italian restaurant on 1st street, Mario's where the waves of the transistor radio informs of the Giants late inning meltdown. Torture. Giants baseball is torturous because they do not win easily, and sometimes play well enough to just barely lose. It feels as if you're holding your breath for an endless time and by the time you accept air, are too exhausted to celebrate. And yet, the investment is rewarded with a team whose effort never ends and at the very least, this year, Giant fans have baseball in October.

Saturday we spend with Sarah and Drew. Free Ballard! They have a nice set up where they've chosen to live. A quiet street across a church, a block from a busy intersection which seems not anywhere as close as it turns out to be. Their place is one unit of two, three floors they have made very comfortable. Waffles and lasagna, raspberry crisp, fruit and beverages, a stop for ice cream at Molly Moon's (salted caramel for me, chocolate for Dexter) and good coffee at Fuel takes care of all food desires. Drew, who seems to be able to adjust to any social interaction with good humor and ease is certainly up to the task of verbal jousting with his partner, Sarah, who is very funny, communicates well, speaks a lot, and listens better than most humans. Their dynamic is such that they will find themselves in awkward silly situations because they are open to awkward silly situations.

We introduce them to MilleBornes. They introduce us to how dominoes are actually played (Dexter purchases a set when we return to San Francisco) and a completely new game to us, the Settlers of Catan. As for how the games turn out, here's the scores; Dexter, 2. Drew, 1, Sarah, 1. Better Speller, better speller. If nothing else, I can spell better than the boy. Dexter has a knack and he shows it, dominating dominoes. After getting thrashed, I welcomed the role of amused spectator. Good seats too. Dexter usually is not this giddy except sometimes late in the evening but he was enjoying the games, and enjoying the company.

Later that night, as I shut out the light in our room at the hotel, Dexter asked me about my favorite part of the day, and then he said this:

"Sarah and Drew are real funny....they're good together. They make a good couple".
I enjoy how, unsolicited, he showed his knack for observation, and making the call, correctly.