Wednesday, May 20, 2009

I filled out my calendar for the summer and fall the other day. I know that the summer will fly by and the annual conference will be here in no time. One of the things I need to prepare for is public speaking! As president of UCDA this year, I'll have to get up on that stage often. Designers by nature tend to be introverted personalities, and I am definitely in that group. Many surveys reveal that the number one fear people have is public speaking. Number three on that list is death. Well I think my number one fear is death by public speaking! Come October, you'll be the judge of how well I do, but forgive me if I seem to be drinking a lot of Merlot that week.

I'm not totally obsessed with the stage-fright thing. Breakfast food has been on my mind too. When we went to scope out Seattle for the conference last year, Tadson and I went for a morning meeting at The Crumpet Shop. It's on 1st avenue up above the fish market, and you must check it out. When Tadson suggested it, I initially thought..."a restaurant selling nothing but english muffins?... are you kidding me?...  OMG. An english "crumpet" is sort of like an english muffin, but these are made fresh—you can see the crumpet guy pouring batter on a steaming griddle through the window. I had one topped with butter and pure maple syrup. It was so good I dream of it still. Go early in the morning and sit outside, where you'll hear fog horns in the bay and seagulls calling. They serve great latte too. 

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Seattle Named City of the Year

Fast Company magazine has named Seattle its 2009 City of the Year in recognition of the city's creativity. Seattle has ranked America's most literate city three of the last five years and in the economic downturn of 2008 it took the unusual step of boosting its municipal art budget. The city has long been center for technological innovation and as an eco-leader its municipal utility, City Light, was the first carbon-neutral utility in the nation.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Man versus Food

The rest of my family has gotten addicted to the show Man v. Food, which is basically a show that celebrates gluttony. (Obviously, I'm a bit more leery of it all.) It is a pretty funny show and he does visit some interesting restaurants. This weekend, lo and behold, he went to SEATTLE! That one I watched a bit more carefully than the others. I probably want to visit the Crab Pot. I'll pass on the burgers at Red Mill (even if it's one of the 20 burgers I should eat before I die) and I definitely will pass on the 12 egg omelet at Beth's Cafe! Even Adam couldn't finish that monstrosity of an omelet, packed with chili, sour cream, salsa and cheese. It was at least 5 pounds! See all the places he showed on the episode.

So in addition to the great programming, you have plenty of spots to go out and network with other UCDAers.