This week, the crow learned that Girl Scouts stop selling cookies on March 17th. What did you learn?

MARINA, 18 & RANNY, 16

Based on the uniforms and the table full of cookies, I’m gonna guess you’re selling Girl Scout cookies. How’s it going?
Ranny: It’s going good, we’re
just trying to sell out the last boxes we have.

Marina: I’m the cookie queen. I always sell a bunch. Our troop just got back from New York City. We saw a bunch of things, and it was amazing.

And selling cookies helped you earn the money for the trip?

Marina: Yes, it was all through cookie sales.

I sold cookies when I was a Girl Scout, and I think it prepared me for most of the jobs I’ve had as an adult (all unrelated to cookies). What do you think you’ve learned from this experience?
Ranny: The money
management. At school I get to sell cookies and deliver cookies to students and teachers, and it’s taught me a lot about managing supply and money.

Marina: I feel more open. Now I can talk to people I don’t know and not be shy, but it was hard at first.

Do you have any favorite Girl Scout cookies?

Ranny: Thin Mints.

Marina: They discontinued my favorite, the Thank U Berry Munch. My second favorite would be the Tagalongs.

What are the most popular kinds?

Ranny: Thin Mints and Samoas. They always sell really well.

Do you guys go to school or live on the Hill?
Marina: No, we go to Evergreen High School.

Why did you pick this neighborhood for cookie sales?
Ranny: We go here every year. We have good digit sales here, so we always come back.

“Good digit sales”–you’re thinking like a salesperson! Do either of you know what you want to do after school?
Ranny: No, I don’t, but I want to go to a four-year university.
Marina: I also want to go to a four-year university, probably U. W., and go into pediatrics.

Any last thoughts on the life, Capitol Hill, or Girl Scout Cookies?
Marina: We love selling cookies, especially here — everybody’s so nice. We enjoy it.

JOHN, 51 & CRAIG, 60

What are you up to today?
John: I just had brunch at Coastal Kitchen.

What did you have?
John: I had the New Orleans French toast.

Do you have any favorite brunch spots on the Hill?

John: This is my favorite brunch spot on all of Capitol Hill. The other place I go to, although a lot of people don’t like it, is Charlie’s.
I like Charlie’s, but a lot of people hate on it.

John: It’s a great stand-by, easy to order, good old American, easy to order, you can hear yourself talk… But my husband doesn’t like it.

Have you ever had their beermosas? It’s PBR and orange juice.

John: I don’t drink so I haven’t. But even if I did drink, that doesn’t sound very good.

It’s not nearly as gross as it sounds, if anyone wants to put that in quotes in the Zagat Guide. Any other places you would recommend for a weekend morning/afternoon?

John: I also like that place that’s over by Piecora’s…it starts with an “S.”

[Craig, John’s husband, emerges from the restaurant.]

John: Give me a minute… (to Craig) What is the name of that place on 14th and Union?
Craig: Oh, for God’s sakes, what’s it called? [Ed. Note: It’s Skillet.]

John: I’ll think of it as I’m walking away. My other favorite in the whole wide world, although it’s gone now, is the B&O. They had the best corned beef hash. Whenever I see it on a menu, I always order it, and theirs was the best.
Craig: When it comes to brunch, you want a place that’s quiet enough that you can relax and hear yourself talk, and take your time.

John: Which is why I like Charlie’s.
Craig: I don’t like it.

Do you guys live in the neighborhood?
Craig: Yes, about four or five blocks from here.

How long have you been married?
John: We got legally married two years ago, but we’ve been together for 11 years.
Craig: We have four grandkids and two sons and two beautiful daughter-in laws. I’m one of the pastors at First Baptist Church, and we’ve been marrying same-sex couples there since 1979.

So, I grew up in the South, so I think of the Baptist tradition as being one that is—to put it delicately — somewhat less than enthused about same-sex marriage.

Craig: That’s a myth. We have Buddhists, Christians, Jews…it’s a very ecclectic spiritual community.

(To John) Are you also a man of the cloth by profession?
John: No, I’m a Buddhist and I work in IT.

ERIN, 27

What brings you out today?
Brunch!

Do you live on the Hill?
Yes, I do.

What are some of your favorite places other than here [Americana on Broadway]?
The Sun Liquor Distillery.

They have brunch?
The have brunch! They have a fantastic biscuits and gravy and sausage. And all their juice is fresh. And
it’s always empty, because I don’t think a lot of people know that they have brunch.

How long have you been waiting today?
20 minutes.

That seems like a long time to wait for anything. What here is worth a 20+ minute wait?
We come here a lot. They have a French toast of the day, which is usually pretty good. Their Irish oatmeal is also good. And the East Coast, which is lox and eggs.

Are you a Seattle native?
No, I’m from Wisconsin, but I’ve been here for six years now.

What brought you out here?
Work. I came out here to work at Boeing.

Are you an engineer?
Yep.

Is it a challenge to be a woman in what is statistically a pretty male-dominated field?
No, it’s been a lot of fun. Most of the engineers 50-something white men, and they’re like, “Oh, it’s a girl engineer!” But it’s fun; I really like it.

Do you have any favorite spots on the Hill?
This QFC [on Broadway] has everything. From fuses to AB computer cords, to exotic fruits.

I’m pretty sure that if you want, say, a live pygmy giraffe, you can find one at that QFC
Yeah, somewhere in the back…Other than cavernous grocery stores, any other places you especially like?
We go to Dick’s if we’re feeling cheap, or Molly Moon’s if we have guests in town. The Annex Theater on first Fridays, they have a really cool variety show for like ten bucks.

Who are you here with today?
I’m here with my boyfriend, Aaron.

Wait… you’re Erin and he’s Aaron?
Does that cause a lot of confusion among your friends and family?
If we’re with his family, he’s Aaron. If we’re with my family, I’m Erin, and he’s Double A.

Like the battery?
Or the training bra.

More CHS Crow:

• Alliedean, Michael & Marty — ‘It’s the closest real city to Boise’
• Rina, Terry & Tania — ‘I just want to live a good life’
• Emily, Neil & Kory — ‘Why not? It’s the Sapphire by the Sea’
• More…

 Sun Liquor and Coastal Kitchen are CHS advertisers!