Also also Seattleites are just intent on seizing any opportunity to complain about something around here—it’s been nonstop kvetching since the hosting was announced. We get a bunch of excited people and some sprucing up of downtown and street art and celebration. Live a little!
Ok I am not a soccer person but after seeing locals gathered in uniforms for the Mexico match in PV, hearing the excited cheers with goals and a wine from USA in the SkyClub and seeing a bunch of Brasil jerseys today with a drum line infiltrating Pike Place Market I feel like the World Cup might be a grand unifying joy event.
Also when did the US in particular get SO into soccer?! I love it, I just remember when MLS was more of a niche sports interest.
Bellevue Homeowners Say Light Rail Noise on I-90 Ruining Area’s Peaceful Freeway Ambience: https://theneedling.com/2026/06/13/bellevue-homeowners-say-light-rail-noise-on-i-90-ruining-areas-peaceful-freeway-ambience/
#Libraries #Pride This is the fuck WHY.
(have tissues handy)
The most delightful part of the museum visit was seeing a solo exhibit by Samantha Yun Wall, who received her MFA in Visual Art from Pacific Northwest College of Art during my time working in the college’s Communications office. I was impressed by her work then and blown away by it (and her success) now, especially because she explores identity and transcultural heritage. Immediately reminded me of Kara Walker’s silhouettes. Also this is pigment and conté crayon with a pointillistic style 🤯
Today was a Very Good Art Day! @dan had the brilliant suggestion to head down to Seattle Art Museum and it was fantastic. The current exhibit “Beyond Mysticism: The Modern Northwest” was so wonderful I bought the catalogue for my small-but-growing art book collection.
We also ate chowder, popped into cute shops, and got vegan ice cream in this gorgeous summery weather.
Me: feeling so trim and proud of myself for not excessively snacking during a week in Mexico
My scale: +1.3 pounds, perra
I should have clocked myself, but I think I made it from deplane in SLC to bag pickup to passport control to bag transfer to domestic security to skyclub in 15-20 min
And the last leg, all aboard!
DL 2016
SLC–SEA
💺 05C
✈️ A321
What a week in Puerto Vallarta! But it’s time to go home.
DL 1838
PVR–SLC
💺 12D
✈️ B738
Sometimes I am reminded, like this week, that I am a fairly experienced and savvy traveler, and that some people are not. I’m at least glad I can be the savvy group member and help others but it can also be quite taxing from an energy standpoint.
Anyway I’m on my way to the PV airport to make my way back to Seattle and spend the next week hosting @dan !
Make a fresh bowl of popcorn, crack a beverage open, and pull up a comfy chair because this saga about a consigned Lego Star Wars collection worth up to $200k and a shuttered Bricks & Minifigs reseller in Oregon is so wild I almost can’t believe it. https://lebronwire.usatoday.com/story/news/local/2026/06/04/bricks-minifigs-closes-keizer-oregon-store-viral-lego-dispute/90408754007/
You know what’s cool? Subscribing to my local newspaper outlet and trying to click a link to read an article while I’m traveling and being blocked with a 403 error because, presumably, I’m out of the country at the moment.
It’s kind of fun to witness the sudden absence of white tourists as you hit a Monday in a place like Puerto Vallarta during its shoulder season. I took a stroll down the beach this afternoon once I finished work and certainly felt the odd, tall gringo out. But I also really appreciated seeing locals and presumed Mexican national visitors, mostly families, enjoying the beach when it would otherwise be crowded with international folk and gays of all types. Bonus pics: last night’s sunset
I realllllllly need to stop grazing on snacks all day long when I’m at home. I rarely snack like that when I travel and I feel like I have such a better relationship with food. I eat when I need to, not when my comfortable idle brain thinks that’s what I should do
One of the practices I picked up from my ex-husband when traveling is capturing audio recordings of live music and ambient sounds around a bar or restaurant environment. I took several recordings last night at the speakeasy.
They make for really interesting souvenirs and I find they take you back to an ambient environment in your memories in a way that photos and videos are a little too prescriptive. More vibes-based? And you get the din of conversation, glasses clinking, etc.
Then another singer joined the trio for a few more songs. It was so much fun and such a vibe that I wasn’t expecting! More locals than tourists from what I could tell.
Jason then got serenaded and presented with a cake! He was not pleased by the attention but it was honestly a perfect moment. He works in advertising and apparently his agency partner was trying to butter him up to keep their contract rolling forward…
My friend Jason was told to go there by an agency partner of his but we didn’t realize this was going to be a whole birthday experience for him! They had a table reserved for us, balloons and streamers put up, and then we were told our drinks would be comped. The band got rolling about 30 minutes after we arriving, playing some jazz standards. Then one singer with an incredible voice sang Lullaby of Birdland, followed by Amy Winehouse’s Love is a Losing Game.
I did not have “go to a speakeasy and drink craft cocktails while listening to a jazz trio” on my Puerto Vallarta bingo card this trip but hey, I have no complaints! The Social Club is a very cute upstairs couple of rooms with attentive staff and a blend of classic prohibition era and newer mixology items on their menu.
These pics are from when we just arriving before patrons trickled in and the band set up.
