Our neighbor Vibeke called this morning to invite us on a bike ride. Debby was game to try our her new bike, so we borrowed a spare bike rack, hitched up the two bikes, and followed Vibeke to her husband Joe's work place where he joined us for a ride up North Creek Trail in Bothell.
The trail was obviously newly made; Joe said stimulus money was involved. A couple of new bridges across the creek were impressive, as were the floral plantings alongside the wide path. Levees along the sides were also recently constructed to prevent recurrence of flooding that Joe said had damaged the industrial park along the stream a couple of years ago.
The trail goes through ponds and wetlands that exhibit an abundance of birdlife. A family of ducks crossed the trail at one point, and a kingfisher dove into the water as I sat watching, just after a great blue heron had swooped over. Later we saw another great blue standing at the edge of another pond preening.
After the ride, we chatted in Joe's cafeteria while he made us espresso. Debby did very well for her first time out, and was feeling no twinges later in the day. She also liked how the espresso picked her up in the early afternoon. That may become a regular habit. I vowed to return to the ponds with my camera.
The trail goes through ponds and wetlands that exhibit an abundance of birdlife. A family of ducks crossed the trail at one point, and a kingfisher dove into the water as I sat watching, just after a great blue heron had swooped over. Later we saw another great blue standing at the edge of another pond preening.
After the ride, we chatted in Joe's cafeteria while he made us espresso. Debby did very well for her first time out, and was feeling no twinges later in the day. She also liked how the espresso picked her up in the early afternoon. That may become a regular habit. I vowed to return to the ponds with my camera.
Later in the afternoon, Dori and kids visited. Dori took a nap while Debby watched Emi and Nate, since she had been up with Emi during the nights recently. Then Richard joined us and we had a pot luck chicken and lamb BBQ dinner on the patio using our new grille. It was a fine day.
I write this entry while listening to the Brahms Violin Concerto. I think it should be retitled Double Concerto for Violin and Oboe. Hilary Hahn is my favorite artist for this piece. I'm perhaps not the only one; she won a Grammy for this 2001 recording. She gets Brahms, her technique is commanding, her tone is exquisite, the recorded sound is intimate, and the recording balance places her lovely violin way out in front, my preference. Thankfully she doesn't screw it all up with an oddball cadenza. Marriner provides a compatible background for the soloist, who through devotion to the beauty within the music and by the fluid, lyrical quality of the playing, eschewing any hint of performer-added drama, pulls off a performance that vaults clearly to the top of all I've heard (most all available). A special commendation is appropriate because she made this defining recording of the dissimilar Brahms and Stravinsky concertos at age 22, astounding musicianship for someone so young.
I write this entry while listening to the Brahms Violin Concerto. I think it should be retitled Double Concerto for Violin and Oboe. Hilary Hahn is my favorite artist for this piece. I'm perhaps not the only one; she won a Grammy for this 2001 recording. She gets Brahms, her technique is commanding, her tone is exquisite, the recorded sound is intimate, and the recording balance places her lovely violin way out in front, my preference. Thankfully she doesn't screw it all up with an oddball cadenza. Marriner provides a compatible background for the soloist, who through devotion to the beauty within the music and by the fluid, lyrical quality of the playing, eschewing any hint of performer-added drama, pulls off a performance that vaults clearly to the top of all I've heard (most all available). A special commendation is appropriate because she made this defining recording of the dissimilar Brahms and Stravinsky concertos at age 22, astounding musicianship for someone so young.
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