Belltown Bent

The shadow of depiction

The reeds and eddies which characterize our shoreline became an important element in Laura Haddad's, of Haddad|/Drugan, Undercurrents, the artist-designed plaza at the marine outfall of diverted stormwater, in Myrtle Edwards Park.

This shadow, cast on the concrete wall of the pump building, is cast by a gate sculpted from stainless steel pipe, introducing the element of light into the juxtaposition of nature and technology central to her overall concept.

The project, funded by the King County Cultural Development Authority, (not a very artistic title) was installed in 2003. When the Olympic Sculpture Park opens later this year it will become part of a contiguous environment of site-specific installations along the shores of Belltown's front yard. But, there's no need to wait until then. It's a fine place to cast your own shadow right now.

High risk health food

After finishing another perfect salmon burger, at the excellent Salmon Bay eatery, Chinook's, the Bent paused to pay our respects to some of the men and women who lost their lives putting brain food on our plates.

Established in 1988, the Fisherman's Memorial honors more than 500 local fishermen and women who lost their lives pursuing their livelihood, and our food, since the turn of the 20th century. Commercial fishing, according the the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, is the third most dangerous profession, just behind logging and piloting an airplane, which are tied for first.

Next time we light up the Bent grill, or cozy up to one of our favorite seafood counters, we'll toast to the health of the folks at sea who risk so much to bring the good stuff back to Belltown, and beyond.

House of the rising sun...

Temperature  72 - 80°, very low humidity, arid climate. Not the way you would describe Seattle in March.

But if you were to design an environment to accommodate succulents - descendants of plants which adapted to dry, hot conditions when the earth began to warm up after the last Ice Age - that would be the ticket.

Spring is a spectacular time to visit the desert. If you live in Belltown, nine days prior to spring's official start is a great time to visit the Conservatory in Volunteer Park. Why wait. Since it's founding in 1912, the Conservatory has evolved into five houses. You'll find the cacti in the warm and dry one. If you can't make it, check out a few more here.

Destination dining

When two guys are this happy, while working hard delivering a great dining experience to a comfortably buzzing full-house on a Saturday night, you know something good is going on.

The Bent blew out of Belltown on the 5:35 to Bainbridge Island for a 6:30 reso at madoka, the new offering from co-owners chef Alvin Binuya and manager José Gonzales. Just a few minutes and one left turn after docking, we were sipping our cocktails and gazing longingly at every item on Binuya's pan-Pacific menu, wondering how many we could possibly sample before catching the 8:55 back to Pier 52.

Alvin, whose culinary skills are highly regarded in Belltown and beyond, and José, long respected for his front-of-the-house mastery, go way back. One year ago they decided to partner up and launch madoka, Japanese for "perfect circle", and they've been making people happy ever since. We're happy to have found the perfect circle route to fine food. See you on the ferry.

Hidden treasure

Has anybody seen Lizz Wright? Not just in performance, but walking around town? We can't say if it's just an urban legend, but rumor has it she is based in Seattle. Wow.

This remarkable young singer, seen here soaking up the music and    love in the Century Ballroom, easily blurs the boundaries between jazz, pop, folks, and blues. Her song selection is eclectic, and includes her own as well as beautifully interpreted covers, and her voice is luscious - spot on.

If you spot Lizz in Seattle, on the street, or a marquee, or at the end of some rainbow, make a point of getting more familiar with her.

Nothing to carp about

Just minutes away from Belltown (but seemingly oh-so-far away), nestled into the southern tip of the Washington Park Arboretum, is a beautiful Japanese Garden. It opens again, officially, on the 28th of this month. But, if you're itching to get out, plan on attending the opening ceremony a few days earlier.

I'm betting these guys can hardly wait for rain-free days when visitors can "rain" some food pellets on them. Koi, better known in Japan as Nishikigoi, are bred from common carp, but they don't know that. It's recommended they feed only once or twice a day, but they don't want you to know that.

Clearly, an exception to the rule

Rain rules this time of year. That's just the way it is, the way it should be. But once in a while, there is an exception to the rule.

Yesterday, what an exception it was. Blue, nearly cloudless sky. Crisp, make that cold, clean air. And visibility that didn't need to be measured.

Days like this remind us how close the Cascades lie to Belltown - as seen here from our vantage point at the Don Armeni Boat Ramp in West Seattle - an exceptionally clear backdrop to the Bent's two towers and our neighborhood landmark. 

It's always setting

While we haven't been able to see it for several days, the sun does set every night. And, lucky for us, here at the Bent, it's setting later and later each evening. In this particular instance, at about 4:26 PM PST.

But, what if you wanted to see the sun setting at 4:57 PM CET, in Genoa, Italy? Or, say, the same time but different place. Oslo, Norway, for instance. No matter what the weather is like at home.

Glad I asked. To satisfy that yearning, the Bent created "Tonight's Sunset" - a group on Flickr - where folks all over the place post their sunset shots before the day is done. Like tonight, in La Jolla.

In case you missed it

Wednesday morning, for a few fleeting moments, the clouds between Belltown and the Olympic Mountains parted just long enough to cast some light on new snow.

Even though it hides the few remaining remnants of the Fraser Glaciation visible from the Bent, the fresh white snow-covered profile is a welcome sight, and a sure sign that winter is staking it's claim to the coming months.

Those with a view to the east may catch a glimpse of the same trend across the Cascades. Ski resorts up and down the range are forecasting early openings, and hold high hopes of making up for last year's rocky season. Take a look at current conditions at Crystal, Steven's Pass, Snoqualmie's summit, and Whistler Blackcomb.

Hammering out the future

Standing 48' tall, the Hammering Man, by the prolific Jonathon Borofsky, pounds out a steady cadence for progress on the forthcoming Seattle Art Museum expansion.

The "Man's" similarly sized sibling (44') swings a hammer in Basel, Switzerland, along with big brothers in Frankfurt, Germany (70') and Seoul, Korea (72'). Oddly enough, the shortest outdoor sib (24') is in, of all places, Dallas, TX.

Over the next 20 years, SAM, not the "Man", will eventually occupy 12 stories of the new building, in vertically organized space rising 155' above street level. This will triple the museum's current 150,000 sq/ft of space to an expansive 450,000. Learn more.

Look down on all of this from the WAMU-SAM webcam - and see all the way up First Avenue to Belltown.