Busy Week
Bruce has posted about our rousing trip up to Vancouver, BC on Tuesday. Since Pramas couldn't join us, I decided not to gloat too much over it, but now that the silence has been broken by someone else, I will say that Tojo's remained excellent as ever, and the Canadian sablefish as sweet/buttery/succulent as ever. Tojo's baked oysters, tuna tataki, suntan tuna (tuna rolled in nori without rice and tempura-fried so the outermost edges are cooked while the center remains red, cold, and delicious), sweet shrimp cakes with two sauces, a selection of maki and nigiri...it was fantastic. I risked insulting the chef by requesting a Golden Roll be added before dessert because it's a Tojo's original, and just so good (creamy scallops, crab, avocado and sushi rice rolled in a thin, sweet egg crepe instead of nori). Dessert was coconut ice cream, with fruit, a bit of fruit sauce and yogurt topping. The bill wasn't even too outrageous as we were driving back to Seattle immediately and so skipped the sake. Usually much sake is consumed on any given trip to Tojo's as well. I've been going to Tojo's for 12 years now and it's always failed to disappoint. I'm glad Bruce got to enjoy it before his move to San Diego!
Today was Kate's first day of Zookids. We found out Tuesday night that parents were expected to stay for the day of orientation today. Surprise! Good thing I have a flexible schedule and an understanding boss. She's beyond excited and part of a very sweet group of kids. She bonded with another girl, also named Kate (so our Kate will be Katherine for the program). When the introductions were going around and the other Kate said "Hi, I'm Kate. I love big cats, especially snow leopards..." my Kate's jaw dropped and it took about half an hour for the two of them to decide they were "fraternal twins" and spend the rest of the day walking around the zoo with their arms around each other. All the Zookids are really great, fun, and funny. Paulson came with his brothers, and spent some time talking to the Kenyan storyteller we listened to in the African hut because their family is also from Kenya. Safaa wears a head scarf, but I couldn't place the style; it reminds me a bit of the Russian Jews I've seen, wearing long sleeves and head scarves. Safaa's favorite animal is the comb crested jacana. Logan catches bugs and snakes whenever he can. Evan, the youngest of the group, is a sweet boy who has a great memory and excellent presence for a six-year-old. He likes sharks. Olivia plays soccer and was hard pressed to choose a favorite animal. Deanna is a vegetarian and she thinks it is cruel to kill animals.
There are two more orientation/training sessions (all on Thursdays, which means Kate will miss at least two days of Aquarium Camp in Vancouver) and then the kids are expected at their first big event, the Zoofari membership appreciation day the weekend before Labor Day. A group of former Disney Imagineers are among the people creating the Zoomazium, and the zoo wasn't kidding when they said they want our kids to be hands on and very involved in the planning of this kid-space. One of the training sessions includes a tour of the former Disney guys' new company and a discussion about the kinds of things the zoo will be building. If the slide show is anything to go by, it's going to be a VERY cool project.
Today was Kate's first day of Zookids. We found out Tuesday night that parents were expected to stay for the day of orientation today. Surprise! Good thing I have a flexible schedule and an understanding boss. She's beyond excited and part of a very sweet group of kids. She bonded with another girl, also named Kate (so our Kate will be Katherine for the program). When the introductions were going around and the other Kate said "Hi, I'm Kate. I love big cats, especially snow leopards..." my Kate's jaw dropped and it took about half an hour for the two of them to decide they were "fraternal twins" and spend the rest of the day walking around the zoo with their arms around each other. All the Zookids are really great, fun, and funny. Paulson came with his brothers, and spent some time talking to the Kenyan storyteller we listened to in the African hut because their family is also from Kenya. Safaa wears a head scarf, but I couldn't place the style; it reminds me a bit of the Russian Jews I've seen, wearing long sleeves and head scarves. Safaa's favorite animal is the comb crested jacana. Logan catches bugs and snakes whenever he can. Evan, the youngest of the group, is a sweet boy who has a great memory and excellent presence for a six-year-old. He likes sharks. Olivia plays soccer and was hard pressed to choose a favorite animal. Deanna is a vegetarian and she thinks it is cruel to kill animals.
There are two more orientation/training sessions (all on Thursdays, which means Kate will miss at least two days of Aquarium Camp in Vancouver) and then the kids are expected at their first big event, the Zoofari membership appreciation day the weekend before Labor Day. A group of former Disney Imagineers are among the people creating the Zoomazium, and the zoo wasn't kidding when they said they want our kids to be hands on and very involved in the planning of this kid-space. One of the training sessions includes a tour of the former Disney guys' new company and a discussion about the kinds of things the zoo will be building. If the slide show is anything to go by, it's going to be a VERY cool project.
I don't think you mean "never fails to disappoint".