License to Kiss - Teatro Zinzanni, Seattle, WA

This year marks big birthdays. My mom turned 60, my aunt turned 59 and I am turning the big 40. I wanted our birthdays to be a big bunch of fun and do something for them that I don't think they would have done for themselves. Teatro Zinzanni.

This is a combination dinner theater meets Cirque de Soleil meets a Belgian circus tent from 1910 meets Chef Tom Douglas' menu. When we first walked into the venue, there is a little gift shop that I bought a new hair poof in. I offered to get them hair poofs too, but they declined. A hair poof is a littl tuft of feathers like you would find in a feather boa and it's attached to a roach clip to easily be put in the hair for some flair. I like flair!

Once we were seated, we were greeted by an antipasto dish with humus, tapenade, roasted red bell pepper and some bread to place all the yummy goodness upon. We were seated on the main floor between the center performing area and the stage. Right in the middle of all the action with fabulous views.

The cast mingles with the patrons prior to the show starting or you could consider that part of the show I suppose. We enjoyed our first course and I had a ball watching my aunt try to decipher what was going to happen next.

The show started with the host of the evening - Tobias Larsson - introducing the evening's diva - Sabine Hettlich. She sang her opening number which was fabulous. Tobias then introduced us to Mr. C - The Pastry Chef. The chocolate was now missing and Mr. C was on a mission with his team to find the chocolate.

Mitzy and Dik were the comedy act. Mitzy had this infectious voice and giggle. We cracked up everytime she spoke. Total cutie. Mr. C re-entered only this time, he was in a new costume. Drag costume #1. He found a 'willing' volunteer to come up on stage and assist him with his act -Then the second course made it's way out. Carrot and parsnip soup. It was just amazing. I wish I had the patience and kitchen tools to make a soup like that.

Back to the show for more of Mitzi and Dik, followed by rope aeralist Kari Podgorski of Seattle. Just stunning. I say with a wink and a grin. Another song from Sabine rounded out this portion of the show.

In coming - the entrees. There were 3 entrees to choose from and we had one of each. They were very accomodating to my mom who doesn't like her meat medium rare which is the standard cook. They brought hers out medium well done and she cleaned her plate of every bite tenderloin. My aunt being a vegetarian went with the mushroom strata. She's researching a recipe so she can recreate it. Myself, I had the halibut. It was amazing. Cooked perfectly. I wasn't sure what to think of the spatzl. I hadn't had the German pasta before. It was really dense.

More entertainment!! Yet another drag outfit. This one was THE most outrageous. I was crying before he said a word! He said thank you to all of his 'helpers' from earlier in the evening. The final acrobatic act was a duo that do a tango on a vertical pole that is about 25 feet long/high. The strength of this couple is amazing. Very easy to tell that they are truly in love as well - they are married in real life. The dessert was finally served. It was a cherry chocolate cake. Very rich, but very good.

I bought the picture of us together. They did a nice job, but Mike did a little editing when I arrived home. I love having a photographer/photo technician as a husband!  :)

I will continue to go to Teatro as long as it's around. I truly adore it.

My coffee table book....

Testing out a new widget for my coffee table book on Blurb.com

Please take a look.

Greece, Malta and Italy by Stephanie Raezer

2010 Honda Accord Crosstour - My next car?????

For those of you who know me well, you know two things about me and cars. 1st, I'm mainly a Honda snob but have had several other makes of vehicles including Ford, Toyota and Kia. Second, I'm not a fan of the sedan. I've been doing research on a couple of cars to replace my car in the next year or so.

I have an unexpected review today for the new Honda Accord Crosstour.

I had an appointment on Saturday to have my '07 Honda Fit serviced at South Tacoma Honda in Tacoma, WA. We dropped it off and headed out for the day. When we returned for my car, Mike turned into the wrong driveway and had to go through the sales lot to get to the Service department side of the lot.

He paused when we saw the Crosstours. I had only seen them on Honda's website, but I liked what I saw even then. We didn't get out of the car to look closer but I was every interested to see that the inside looked like.

Once I paid for my service, I drove my car up to the Sales area. I saw that my salesman was working so it was time to get a closer look at the Crosstour. The main thing that I loved about the Crosstour was that it was a hatchback! I am not a sedan person. It is also offered as a front wheel or all-wheel drive model.

The trunk area was massive! It even had a hidden compartment for valuables to be completely hidden. The rear seats can be let down from the rear with handles that were within my reach. I'm a shorty so it was nice to have things easily accessible for me.

To accommodate the hidden compartment meant that the spare tire is now underneath the car like a truck. I'm not a big fan of that, but I guess I'd just make sure I had a towel in the car for me to kneel on and not get dirty myself.

I sat in the car... Comfy!!! I sat in both the driver and passenger seats. Lots of interior bells and whistles. Can you say MOONROOF!?! I've lived without one for entirely too long now. There are heated seats for the leather interior EX-L. The volume controls are on the steering wheel. There is also two types of hook ups for iPods or MP3 players.

I did decline a test drive for now. I want Mike to be there when we are more ready to buy. There is a second competitor in the mix for me though. I'm also interested in the Mini Clubman. I need to sit in one the same as I did the Crosstour. I've liked what I've researched and peeked into in a parking lot. The price is similar. So it's gonna come down to which one I truly fall for.

-S

Rock Out ALS - The Crying Spell - Underride

Friday, March 5th 2010 was the night of the most recent Rock Out ALS event at Club Motor in Seattle, WA. ROALS (as it is known in short) is an organization that raises awareness and puts on charity events to help find a cure for ALS - Lou Gehrig's disease.

"Mad Mike" Miller is the main organizer and he plans around 4 events per year. The event on the 5th had 5 bands including: Tsavo, Alpha Hero, High, The Crying Spell and Underride. By the time Mike got off work and picked me up, we had time to see 2 of the 5 bands.

Music: The Crying Spell
Musically and lyrically, this is one of my favorite local bands. Len Hotrum has and amazing look and voice. Some are already aware of Len's voice as he is also the front man for Point One. He is joined by fellow Point One man Chase Culp on the drums and the original guitar player Eric Snyder. Dane Brooks plays rhythm guitar and new bass player Jason Phraner adds rounds out their cohesive look. This was my first time seeing Jason with the band. I liked what I saw. Not only did he have the bass lines down, he has an appealing look and moves around the stage interacting with the other guys. Their sound this night, as always, proves they belong on the road opening and headlining mid-sized venues. This sound needs to be shared.

ALS videos:
In between bands, there were ALS awareness videos that were very touching. Being a music event, the organizers made it clear that ALS can touch anyone. Sorry, I couldn't recall the first musician's name by the time I got home. But his story was compelling and full of hope with the love and support he got from his family and musical community. Software was developed that allowed him to continue creating music using his eyes to control the computer screen. His compositions, his mind, his music! Sadly, he has since passed away.

The second musician was Jason Becker. His story is amazing. Diagnozed with ALS at the age of 19, Jason Becker has been living with ALS for 20 years. His family worked with him to devise a way of communicating that works with how he positions his eyes. Family and friends interpret his eye movements for interviews and everyday communication. He is now stable, and ALS has not robbed him of his mind. Jason continues to compose with the aid of a software program.

Music: Underride - If you like this band - Stop reading!
I do have to preface this review with the fact that I took 3 full days to relax and think about what I saw, felt and currently feel about this band. It's not good. There is ONE single bright spot about this band and it's guitar player Lord Balsley.
I started off liking the first few songs, but it was the actions of one of it's members that turned me off to the point that I was ready to go right then and there. Unfortunately, my husband still had rounds to make and pictures to take.

I'll start with a description of there the band went right visually and where they went wrong. My assumption is that they are working toward a Glam look. Two of the members had it right: Lord Balsley and El Barto. Yes, they have pet names and one actually calls himself (yes, himself) Princess. El Barto is the bass player and had the best look of them all. He had a great presence and attitude which drew my attention toward him from the beginning. AKA Aaron Balsley, Lord Balsley had the hair and the outfit worked out fantastically. His guitar stills are just and added bonus.

Now for the blah - Drummer Double A - He did nothing for an onstage presence to even match the other two. No make-up, no outfit, nothing. Just BLAH! Closely followed by the singer - Rev. Rev had on a couple lines of make up, but the all black and poorly selected necklace was all that the lead singer brought to the event. His guitar player and bass player should not be the ones that command the looks from the underage girls in the front row - He should! I'll get back to those underage girls in a little bit.

Finally, we have the one who didn't know when to say NO when it came to his look. Princess. Skinny black jeans with white pinstripes and a black T with some faded looking graphics. Had he stopped near here, he would have been OK. Then we add a black vest with wider pinstripes - Still OK at this point. Then add a red skinny tie but put it on backwards. A little silly, but still OK. Here's where I really wanted to do an intervention. The white fedora, the earring that was about 6 inches long and fed through his ear to be 3 inches dangling from the front and back of the lobe to the most ridiculous gold necklace that looked like a pair of folded up sunglasses. Oh! I forgot the makeup. Some strange green glob around the eye that looked like an attempt at the Phantom of the Opera's mask. It was tooooo much. Know when to say when!!! You had it until the accessories and makeup.

It wasn't the visual aspect of the band or even their music that made me want to leave. It was the bass player. He carried that attitude too far and got gross. At one point he sprayed spit on all those little underage girls in the front. Then he decided it would be a good idea to spit into the air and catch it in his mouth again. That did it. I left the stage area and waited for Mike at the back of the venue. I was done. It's a flippin' all ages charity event! Grow some balls and have some class!

To say that I hated this band by the time they were done would be just about right. This is me holding back on my review of Underride as best as I can.

Rock Out ALS has another event coming up on May 15th. This show will include Post Modern Heroes, Dryver, Lucid Spiral, Ninthgate and Dreaded Knuckles. This is a show that I can't wait to attend!!

Please help by attending a Rock Out ALS or Rockabilly Out ALS event near you. They can be found on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rock-Out-ALS/166051959008?ref=ts

-S

Chivalry - Doormant, Dead or Dying?

I define chivalry as courtesy towards women, seniors and the disabled.

Recently, I've been witness to some chivalrous acts on the light rail and some extreme acts  of rudeness. Yesterday, I saw a man offer his seat to another man with a child. He said no thank you since he was getting off at the next stop but appreciated the offer. Just moments later though, I saw an able man sitting in the disabled section of which there are 2. An elderly disabled man in a motorized wheelchair came onto the train. He asked the man to move out of the disabled section. Instead of getting up and moving to the other section - which would have been easier for an able-bodied man to do, he told the man to motor over there himself. This meant he had to squeeze through a couple of rows. He did it, but the point is he shouldn't have had to.

How has our society fallen so far in the past 40 years? Where is the respect and kindness the West is supposed to be known for. I was able to help a lady move her luggage to the seat she wanted to be in. The suitcase was nearly as tall as she was.

It really doesn't take much to be kind and reap the benefits of that kindness. Being kind and chivalrous doesn't take as much effort as one would think. It's mainly just not being selfish. This of others more and yourself less. Try it sometime. I think you'll like that warm and fuzzy feeling you'll get inside by doing the right thing. If they don't need the kindness or chivalry at this time, they will let you know. They'll appreciate your offer and you'll know you tried to do the right thing.

Slight rant - Major annoyance

I'm wondering how doctors offices have not become more efficient. It's what they do for a living. Or do they live to annoy?

I was the first patient this morning with the doctor that I've been seeing for the past 15 years. So why is it that I still had to wait 10 minutes for the nurse to see me and then 15 minutes for the doctor after the nurse completed her vitals exam? Not to mention the line when I got to the lab for my blood work.

No matter what time of day I have my appointment, I wait. I'm thinking they should offer free wi-fi. At least then I could have gotten some work done while I was waiting!

-The S of S&M