Travel much? Checking back from Seattle.

I spent last Thursday through Sunday night in Seattle, Washington, taking in the Emerald City for the first time in my life with my beautiful wonderful woman, Jasmine. It was the first time I'd ever been there; she and I had been planning this trip together for several months. The purpose of the trip, I'll admit, was single-minded: P-L-E-A-S-U-R-E. We came to Seattle to get out of midwest, get on a plane and go somewhere, and take in what a new town had to offer.

My hero, Bill Hicks, the greatest comedian of his generation or any other, once made fun of taking trips, and going on vacation. He referred to various "t shirt Nirvanas" as places that tourists go to in order to do other things than: "enjoying their lives." I love Bill Hicks, who is the greatest comedian of his generation or any other. But I've often taken issue with this statement. Why's my man got to dis on traveling? I enjoy getting around the country a little and trying new environs out. (World travel interests me too. But over the past few years, I've been mostly going around the USofA.)

To wit: Jasmine and I flew out to Seattle this weekend, knowing not that much about the town, except that I have a historical, sports-related affinity for the city. To put it mildly, we had the time of our lives!! Seattle is an incredible town spread out across steep foothills, with lots of fabulous little neighborhoods, fun bars, and a truly fantastic public market.

We did Pike's Public Market every day, which was awesome. Great fish. Great produce. Great street art. Great little shops. Great history. Great just . . . great. Beyond that, we also checked out several local bars including Six Arms downtown, and Norm's in the Fremont area, and enjoyed the Sushi bar right by Pike's Public Market down there several times. Then we'd retire back to our spot for some home-made fresh fish and fresh veggies from Pike's Public Market.

In the evening, we went to a production of Richard Greenburg's Three Days of Rain on Friday, went to the Can-Can, a well-established cabaret under the Public Market on Saturday. We also checked out a minor league hockey game - the Thunderbirds vs. Portland Winter Hawks. 'Portland sucks!!'

Bill Hicks, who is the greatest comedian of his generation or any other, was a brilliant guy. But I would like to take issue with his view of traveling for fun. Sorry buddy, I love you, but as a well-regarded, internationally-traveled comedian, I'm sure the hotels & airports routine has probably worn you down. I'm sure 16 years of crackerjack towns, shitty hotels and airports in various crap towns all over the country didn't really pre-dispose you to the travel bug. But if you're a grad student or teacher living year round in the upper midwest, getting the fuck out of Dodge really does feel nice.

Seattle's awesome. Go there!