Bye, Bye Birdie - 12/30/114

Or - Ah, Yes, My Little Chickadee . . . 

It was such a beautiful, but cold, day and we just couldn't stay inside so I went to the Ol' Google Maps and looked for someplace new to go to. I wanted to look around the Bellevue area . . . it's still all new for us and it has lots of possibilities.

Fun Facts: My Little Chickadee (1940) was a comedy starring Mae West and W.C. Fields. West reportedly wrote the original screenplay, with Fields contributing one extended scene set in a bar. 

Universal decided to give the stars equal billing, to avoid the appearance of favoritism, but this really upset West, who wouldn't make any more pictures with Fields after this one.

My Little Chickadee was the most successful film of 1940 after Gone With the Wind, despite getting mediocre reviews from critics. It grossed around $20 million in the U.S., an outstanding amount at that time. Remember, this was the year that featured the release of such great films as, Pinnochio, The Great Dictator, The Grapes of Wrath, My Favorite Wife, The Philadelphia Story and that perennial blockbuster, Andy Hardy Meets Debutante.

My Little Chickadee was a catchphrase most associated with W.C. Fields. He first used it during a scene in If I had a Million (1932) to address co-star Alison Skipworth.

And so, we were off!!

Driving up Rainier Avenue towards the I-90 and then up the 405 to the 520 and we were there!!

You see, I found a park to go to. There are a number of them around the area and I found one that looked interesting, The Yarrow Bays Wetlands . . . at least on the Google Map site it did. 

The waterfront area encompassing Evergreen Point, Hunts Point and Yarrow Point on Lake Washington contains some of the most expensive estates in all of the Puget Sound Area. In the midst of this luxury and grandeur lies a Kirkland Park with 73.33 acres. It's called Yarrow Bay Wetlands and lies between Yarrow Point and the Lake view neighborhoods. Mostly it is just what it is named . . . a wetlands.

The best view, according to Seattle Times writer Peyton Whitely, is from the water side, paddling a kayak or canoe. There is a channel from the Lake Washington side where you can explore the wetlands for hundreds of feet. Most likely you will be the only person there, unless you bring a friend or two along.

We, however, explored it from the land side on this chilly December day. Access is very limited. We actually drove by it twice before finding the parking lot and the trail. From Lake Washington Boulevard in Kirkland, you head west on Northeast Points Drive. The confusing thing is that you have to turn right onto the 101st Way NE. All that is there is a large sign proclaiming this to be "The Point", a condominium development. Immediately to the left of the entrance to the housing area is a small parking lot. The mailboxes for "The Point" are along one side. We parked in front of a sign declaring this to be private property. An Interpretive Sign for a nature trail is the only sign that there is, indeed, a public trail here. 

To get to it you have to walk into the neighborhood, past two very obvious signs stating the limits of private property with warnings of "do not enter". Wow!! Talk about feeling all warm and fuzzy about the welcome.

You can also feel the warmth as the Interpretive sign has an ALL-CAPS and ITALICIZED part that clearly and emphatically states you must "STAY ON PATH".

Who loves ya, Baby!?!

Not them. Clearly, not them.

It's a small path and it takes about ten minutes to walk the whole thing and, unfortunately, there really isn't too much to see. You get a view of some of the trees and the reeds and grasses growing in the wetlands but you can't see too much from the path. 

And there's a nice wooden fence running all along the path to ensure you stay on the side you're supposed to be on. And I'm going to continue to believe they didn't plant all those thorny vines along the fence to keep out any unwanted intruders. They just sorta strategically grew along that fence.

But there was one bright spot.

Almost dead center of the walk one of the residents put out 4 bird feeders. Once we'd stopped walking and they got accustomed to our presence, they began coming back.

First were the Chickadees.

These guys are brassy little suckers and one of my favorites. Unfortunately, they land, stay just for a second to grab something to eat and, zoom off they go. Tough to get a picture of them.

We saw some Spotted Towhees and a hummingbird, too. I didn't get a picture of them though. 

Ratz.

But I got this guy. Several times.

It's a Purple Finch.

Then the guy that put up the bird feeders came out and got into an animated conversation with Carol. Seems just a couple days ago the Audubon Society came into the wetlands to count the birds for the 115th Christmas Bird Count. They saw a Virginia Rail just before it ducked into the brush.

Wanting to confirm their sighting, they pulled out their Smart Phone and plugged in an app that plays the calls of various birds. They picked out the call of a Virginia Rail and played it until the bird came out to see who was calling him.

BAM!! Confirmed!!

A Virginia Rail. 

Kinda looks like a Roadrunner don't it.

            Photo curtesy of South Dakota Birds and Birding.

Hahaha, Bird-Watchers are such wacky and fun people!!

We watched the Chickadees for a while, and there were plenty of those, when the man came back out and pointed out this woodpecker to us. 

Wow!! It was a Downy Woodpecker!! This is the female. The male came by just for a second. We could tell he was the dude because he had a bright red shock of hair on his head.

Guys, always showing off.

So I got a lot of pictures of the ones that would sit still long enough and I got plenty of them. That click, click, click, click, click, click, clickity thing.

Love it!!

Smile!!

Say Cheese!!

Here's the fence with the thorny bushes.

Welcome to our park!!

When are you leaving?

Don't touch!!

Still, we had a good time. And it was cold!! We were in the shade for most of the time on the trail and, y'know, that really makes a difference. I was glad we both bundled up.

Hahahaha, you can see Carol had a good time!!

Celebrate!!

We finally retreated to the Mini for some warmth and then, because we'd planned on eating our lunch at the park and you could see that wasn't going to happen here in Friendlyville, we decided to head on over to our park for some lunch.

When we got there, we saw, to the west, two eagles flying together, swooping and swirling and soaring. I'm not sure and I don't know if this is the time they usually do it, but it sure looked like they were doing a mating dance.

It was wild the way they were mixing and maneuvering together. Then, out of the blue, another eagle appeared in the sky. He didn't so much join them as much as just sailed with them just for a moment and then he flew away heading for the Eagle Tree. 

He didn't land in the Eagle Tree, though. But while he was flying away towards the northeast, the other two, still flying together, headed off towards the southwest.

Finally, the one, he landed in a tall fir tree along Rainier.

Just after we got there this guy came in for a landing.

(Imagine this sung in a high, falsetto voice . . .)

Hah!!  Nailed it!!

And, just because I could, I grabbed this quick shot of the waxing moon. It will be full on the 5th of January and, if the skies are clear, I'm gonna try and get a shot of the whole  thing.

Cuz I can.

And, bragging, this was a handheld shot and the zoom still could have gotten me closer.

POW!!

Trivia Question: What TV Character is called 'Moon Pie' by his Memaw?

We had our lunch and pretty much that was it. 

It were cold!!

Our fingers were numb and my Diet Coke was colder now than it was when I got it out of the cooler at the store!!

Brrrrrrr . . .

So we got in the warm and cozy mini and headed up Rainier looking for the eagle.

And Carol spotted him.

Believe me, I got more shots of the eagle than you can shake a fist at but, because I like you, I only chose three to show here.

You're welcome.

We waited around hoping that a: the other eagles would come back for some more aerial flirting or, b: this one would take off.

Hahahaha, he was better equipped to deal with the cold than we were. I wussed out after just a couple of minutes and so we left.

Ciao, Bambini!! Fino alla prossima volta.

What a good day. The wetlands was mostly a bust but, still, we got to see some birds and a new area. And we had a great lunch, tuna sandwiches and fudge-striped shortbread cookies for dessert. 

Mmmmmmm . . . 

What a treat it was to see those eagles dancing in the air. And then to see one in the tree again. How fortunate can you get, eh?

So as we wrap up this old year, we continue to enjoy our adventures. 

Tomorrow it's off to The Emerald City to celebrate the last day of 2014.

And, the answer to the Trivia Question - It's Sheldon Cooper from the TV Show, The Big Bang Theory.

Life is good!!

     Hooah!!     

Rockin' Red Robin - 12/29/14

Or - People In Glass Houses . . . 

I got a gift card from Michelle and Matt for Red Robin, Ummmmmm . . . and so today seemed the perfect day to burn that bad boy up.

We were off . . . and this time I headed north to the Red Robin in Bellevue rather than the one in Renton. Variety is, they say, the spice of life.

And, zoom, we were heading up Rainier Ave toward the I-90.

Hahaha, I have as little affection for tunnels as I do for bridges and it didn't help when Carol asked what if there were an earthquake as we were driving through this one.

I may have sped a wee bit after that comment.

But, obviously, we made it through and were heading for Mercer Island in no time at all. Hahaha, let's say I was motivated.

And in a blink of the eye, we were downtown Bellevue. It's across Lake Washington from Seattle and is, to their chagrin, Seattle's largest suburb. As of the 2010 census, there were 122, 363 people living there. It's the second largest city center in Washington. Based on per capita income, Bellevue is the 6th wealthiest of 522 communities in the state of Washington. We could tell they had some money when we went into the Bellevue Square Mall. In 2014, Bellevue, which is French for "beautiful view', was ranked as the 2d best place to live by USA Today.

Prior to 2008, the downtown area underwent rapid change with many high rise projects. There really isn't an old-time feel to the city . . . most of the buildings are new and made of glass it seems. It seems, now, that the city is undergoing another growth spurt given all the cranes we saw.

The city was founded in 1869 by William Meydenbauer. Prior to the opening of the Lake Washington Flating Bridge in 1940, Bellevue was a rural area. Once the Murrow Memorial Bridge opened, access from Seattle improved and the area gradually grew into a bedroom community.

Following the 1963 opening of a second bridge across the lake, the city began to grow more rapidly. It's since become one of the largest cities in Washington. 

We were pleasantly surprised by the Christmas decorations they put up on the streets. They really did a nice job. 

     Red Robin Reflected Window Selfie!!     

Hahahah, we got a twofer!! There's two of us in this picture plus we got one of those Toy Soldiers to pose with us too.

Here's the real deal. They really did a swell job decorating their streets. I'm guessing they've got a good tax base for the local government. A lot of tech companies work out of Bellevue.

And, POW, there we were, at Red Robin, Ummmmm!!

We had to wait just a bit for a table and I got this picture of the Statue of Hamburgery.

Nice looking, but what I really like about the Red Robins I've been in are the pictures along the wall. The only problem is that some folks get a bit antsy when I come by their table and stand and look at the pictures along the wall behind them.

I really don't know why.

And, we got our table and had a good view of the room . . . the better view was to the right where I could watch Oklahoma lose, spectacularly, to Clemson, 40-6.

Hey, at least it wasn't a shut-out!!

And then we had fun taking each other's picture.

Hahaha, not my best work but wait until you see her efforts . . . 

I'm taking a picture on the left and I don't know what on the right.

Gooooooo, 'Hawks!!

So, Carol surprised me and got a . . . Classic Cheeseburger.

Hahahaha, so predictable.

As for me, I fought temptation, tradition and a terrible hankering for a Patty Melt and got myself . . . 

The sky's the limit for this winner of the 2014 South Beach Wine & Food Festival. Inspired by his hometown of Billings, Montana, Chef Brad Halsten created a 1/2-pound Black Angus patty with blackened seasoning, topped with crispy bacon, an onion ring drizzled in Sriracha, creamy goat cheese crumbles, arugula and roasted garlic aioli all on a toasted ciabatta bun.

This Big Sky, twarn't bad, pod-nawrh!!

After we both ate too much, we took a short walk to ease some of the strain.

And it were cold, y'all!!

Brisk!!

But the downtown area is really nice . . . and clean. Unlike The Emerald City, we didn't see any Valued Homeless. None. Zero. Nada. Zilch!!

Quite odd.

But we stumbled onto a beautiful sunset. Unfortunately, we were only able to see it reflected in the buildings downtown. Fortunately, we were able to see it reflected in the buildings downtown.

Like this one.

Hahaha, reminds me of me when I was in the Army.

Stout fellow, what!!

Then, across the street we saw this building . . . you can't really see it, but they had water running down the windows on the left-hand side of the building. You can just see some of the distortion caused by the water as it drizzles down the glass.

Oh, and they had some Chihuly Glass, too.

Here's a close-up of it. 

I know it's big stuff but Chihuly Glass leaves me cold. It just looks like a mess . . . to me it looks like something a high school kid would knock out in an art class for a C+ grade.

What do you think?

Hahahaha, 

Goooooo, 'Hawks!!

Even the lights are done in Seahawks colors.

But what caught my attention was the clouds reflecting the setting sun. Can you see it? The clouds were painted a soft pink.

Just a bit further on, we saw the sunset again in these windows.

And this one, just a bit closer. Pretty cool, eh?

Again, I'm not a fan of glass buildings but . . . sometimes they're worth the effort.

Then we popped into the Mall to get warm. As I said, it was cold outside.

And, Ooh, La, Lah!!

Tres Ritzy!!

They really know how to do up a Christmas Tree in this Mall.

This Mall first opened in 1946 with the first suburban department store opened by Marshall Field & Co. JCPenny opened a store in 1955. Sadly, Penny's has closed it store now. Nordstrom, then a local shoe store, opened here in 1958.

Bellevue Square continues to be owned by Kemper Freeman Jr. and his family, one of the few shopping centers in the United States that have not been purchased by a real estate investment trust.

Hey, Mickey!!

Hahaha, I didn't know these things still existed!! It's a Disney Store.

I love these things!! Can't afford them but I still love them!!

And I'm sure they've still got a couple Frozen dolls for sale.

Advertising an Optometrist Store.

Don't ask.

I don't know.

And from that to this.

I really enjoyed the Christmas Trees.

Here's the part of the Mall leading to the now defunct Penny's.

We finally warmed up enough to brave the elements again and set out to find the mini . . . and get some more pictures.

POW!!

Some of these glass shacks were impressive.

All these were handheld and, surprisingly, pretty stable considering I was shaking with the cold. Hahahaha, it wasn't that cold. 

Still, not bad for some snap shots on the run.

Hahaha, even in Bellevue they have the cranes. We saw several throughout the city as we drove around. It's seems like a Northwest thing . . . always growing, I guess.

Hahaha, it was a fun evening. We've been in Bellevue once before but just for a short visit. I think I've been to that Red Robin once when Amy still worked in Bellevue way back when.

It's fun getting out and seeing new things. It's even more fun to dine out when someone else is treating. 

Hahaha, works for me.

Thanks, M&M!!

Life is good.

Really, really good.

     Hooah!!