Houseguests for the Weekend

[scarlettina]

Once again, I had the pleasure of hosting kateyule and davidlevine here at Chez Scarlettina this weekend. The precipitating event was an Uncle Bonsai concert at the Phinney Ridge Community Center that we attended on Saturday night with KA and TW WANOLJ, but it provided us with an excuse for a laid-back couple of days.

Friday evening was dinner here and video-watching.

Saturday started with brunch at the 5 Spot with markbourne and e_bourne, and then continued with a stroll around Queen Anne, popping in and out of shops as the mood struck us. At Queen Anne Books, I picked up a copy of The Passage by Justin Cronin, which was shelved in science fiction but about which I've heard nothing in SF circles even though it's marked as a NY Times bestseller. The first couple of paragraphs were beautifully written and the premise was intriguing, so I picked it up. We also stopped at Blue Highways Games, where kateyule picked up a copy of Dixit Odyssey and I bought a Gloom deck which, after playing it twice with my guests, I can't wait to share with other friends. (I may need to buy an expansion or two, however, to play with a larger group. It ain't cheap, but it's well worth it. Clever, clever mechanics for a card game.)

Saturday night we had dinner before the concert at The Olive and Grape in Greenwood, a Turkish place which I fully intended to return to again. The food was delicious, and there were enough items on the menu unfamiliar to me that it merits further investigation. Highly recommended. The concert itself featured a number of brand new songs, some so new that the band didn't know them entirely yet. The show was good, funny, fun. In a delightful turn of events, I ran into lisagold there, and we caught up in happy haste before the concert and at the break. I gave her a lift home when it was all over. So good to see her.

My company departed this afternoon after lunch at Blue C Sushi. I look forward to seeing them again at Potlatch 21 next month. I came home, read for about an hour (Alison Weir's excellent biography of Elizabeth I, which is nevertheless taking me far too long to finish) and then passed out for two.

And so it's Sunday night. Busy, busy week ahead, and ponderables being pondered. I intend to write about my ponderings within the next day or so as time allows. Pleasant dreams, friends.

Comments

[shelly-rae.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a fine weekend indeed. Good people and good fun. Yup.
Anon

[skidspoppe.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a great weekend!

and Dixit is one of the best games ever!!!

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

Dixit's a lot of fun. And given that none of the cards or the board integrates language--only images--it translates to other languages easily. I didn't realize (though I should have understood) that the game has expansion sets available. Makes me want to check out the expansions and see what's new.

[joycemocha.livejournal.com]

I liked that Weir biography of Elizabeth I. I've read a lot of them and gotten rather picky about them over the years...but hers is good.

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

I've read other books of hers as well and have always been impressed by the detail and the research. And she always makes the material engaging, almost novelistic. Not that it wouldn't be anyway, but she makes history attractive and accessible in a way a lot of other writers just don't.

[e-bourne.livejournal.com]

I picked up "The Passage" last year and so far haven't finished it for reasons that would entail spoilers. I'll be curious to know what you make of it. And, yes, it's definitely SF, sold outward facing in airports everywhere which is where I picked it up.

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

Interesting. OK, well, I guess I'll see what's what, and will report.