This week, the CHS Crow made the rounds at three Pike/Pine roasters and met a neighbor wholly devoted to the written word, a techie-turned-coffee-pro in town for an industry expo and a proudly-non-trad biochem major who puts an existentialist spin on things. Say hi.

Curricular: BA, English; Master’s, Library and Information Science Extracurricular: reading, writing Has lived on the Hill: 9 years Moved here: from Richland, Wash., via the Bay Area, for school.

I _______?, therefore I am.
I read. Reading saves me. It’s just something that I love to do, and it takes my mind off of my own problems, I think. And also, reading helps me solve my own problems — it gives me a lot of perspective, and lets me learn about other people and other places. Continue reading →

This week, the CHS Crow met a future physician with a penchant for paradox, and retired seafarer who has presumably been in the same room as Alex Trebek at least twice. Say hello.

Curriculars: First-year medical student .Lives in: North Seattle Moved from: Virginia Is considering a move to: Capitol Hill

Life would be meaningless without _______ ?
Passion. I was going to say love but I wanted to pick something that was more all-encompassing than that. And I feel like having passions in life, ideally for people or things, I feel like as a complete picture, that’s what makes life meaningful. Continue reading →

This week, the CHS Crow met a barista-guitarist with a flair for flamenco; a retired library administrator with side gigs in theater, writing and political activism who says she and her friend Daniel Nicoletta, the Harvey Milk photographer, might be too polite to tell each other they ‘look old’; and an astronomer and NASA Sagan Fellow who describes and discovers previously-unknown planets. These three neighbors shared some poignant stories and hopeful thoughts, and taught the Crow a new thing or two about good music, LGBT and other histories, not-our-star-revolving planets, and life. For real though.

Age: 21 Day job: Barista Extracurriculars: Guitar Hometown: Monroe, Wash. Has lived on Hill: “About eight months.” Came here: ‘To start life over again in the city.’

What’s the scariest thing that’s ever happened to you?
Almost losing my sister, I would say. She was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she when 10, and she could have fallen in to a coma and lost her vision, because her pancreas pretty much died on her. I would say she’s the closest person to me, easily, and anything happening to her is the scariest thing that could happen.

Is she older than you?
No, she’s just 18-months younger. We’re basically twin brother and sister.

What’s the greatest thing that’s ever happened to you?
Being born, that’s the obvious one. I guess it’s one of the greatest things, even though my mom wasn’t really up to doing the whole raising part of me — was pretty much like, ‘Whatever,’ when I hit three, four. But at least I was born. At least I have a step-mom and a loving father and I have friends, and I like being myself and I feel comfortable in my skin. Continue reading →

Spring is kind of springing up now, and Capitol Hill seemed in good spirits as the CHS Crow scuffle-hopped around the neighborhood once again for the most recent round of conversations. There was some Hill talk, some shop talk, and some life-and-other-meaningful-stuff talk, as we dipped into some deeper territory here and there with thoughtful neighbors, all of whom happened to be artists of some sort or another this time around.

What was the biggest challenge for you, good or bad, over the last winter?
Patience. I would say the biggest challenge was — I am transitioning from the current job that I have right now to working at Molly Moon’s — so I would say the patience of trying to find the right next step and not just jumping on anything that was out there. So definitely being patient through the cold, rainy, months. And also realizing that — you know at least, hoping that — there was something better out there for me. Patience with the career, and patience with working hard and there being outcomes.

What, to you personally, is the most important accomplishment of your life so far?
Well, I definitely hope to top it, but, I went to the Culinary Institute of America for baking and pastry Arts, and I did really well there; I was a really big part of the community. There’s a competition called Bocuse d’Or — it is a national competition where some of the best chef’s compete. I was not a part of the competition, but I was chosen, as well as seven other students with the school, to sit down and have a dinner with Thomas Keller and Danielle Boulud and Jérôme Bocuse.

It wasn’t necessarily the amazing experience of sitting down and being able to have dinner with them — I mean it was amazing to meet them — but it was more the fact of being one of the top eight students chosen by the dean and chosen by the teachers and chefs there; to be one of those students — I was the youngest one, I was only twenty and every one else was significantly older than me. Continue reading →

CHS Crow has been on sabbatical but is back with a few conversations from the streets around Capitol Hill. More to come.

How long have you had Annie Oakley? And, how did you come up with her name?I’ve had her for seven-and-a-half years. She’s actually a rescue dog, and her name was Raggedy Anne, because she came from a puppy mill and they cut her ear off. And I thought she was too beautiful to be called Raggedy Anne, and I thought she was kind of kick-ass, so I named her Annie Oakley. Continue reading →

This week, the crow learned it’s hard to write the same story twice. What did you learn?

What are you up to tonight?
I’m hanging out with a myriad of people—my leather community, my fur community, my “fet” community… I identify as a cat. Also, it’s “boots and buzz-cuts” night.

You’re giving buzz-cuts at a club?
I’m not personally doing cuts, but I happen to be the secretary for Seattle Men in Leather, and members of my club are doing buzz-cuts and straight-razor shaves. I’m having a great time.

So, is there a “Men in Pleather” or “Men in Leatherette” for any vegan leather daddies?
I don’t think there are a lot of vegans in the leather community. Personally, I don’t tend to eat a lot of meat—I’m more of a pescatarian. For most of the vegan people I know, it’s about the ingestion of meat, and not the wearing of it.

Do you have a favorite kind of cat?
I like black panthers, mostly. Continue reading →

OK, so no on the Tasmanian Devil tattoo — but how about a CHS Crow?

Is Lucky the name on your driver’s license?
No, it’s a nickname that was given to me in my early 20s for having the world’s worst luck.

Your luck has changed, I hope?
It has. My life has changed dramatically since I earned the nickname.

What do you do for a living?
I’m a tattoo artist here [at Artful Dodger Tattoo & Comics on Olive Way].

How long have you been a tattoo artist?
It was 15 years in July.

What drew you to this line of work?
I wanted to be a comic book artist as a kid, and I ended up getting a job at a place called Bud Plant Comic Art, and two guys came in and saw me doodling, and asked if I wanted to apprentice as a tattoo artist and help them build their shop. It was a crazy ride, and I fell in love with it. Now, I don’t know how to do anything else.

How many tattoos do you do per day?
Two or three. I stay booked out about two or three months in advance. I’m at the point in my career when I don’t do a lot of tattoos any more that I don’t want to do.

So, if I come in and want a Tasmanian Devil tattoo, you’re not the artist for me?
You will get your Tasmanian Devil, but it probably won’t be from me.

Continue reading →

This week, the crow learned anyone who tells a lie has not a pure heart, and cannot make a good soup. What did you learn?

What line of work are you in?
I make video games for a living.

Do you like what you do?
It’s basically my dream job.

I know this is an evil question to ask gamers, but if you had to pick your favorite video game of all time…?
Picking a favorite is difficult. I’d have to say that Planescape: Torment is still one of my favorites.

What kind of game is that?
It’s an old RPG (role-playing game) based on a Dungeons & Dragons campaign environment, and one of the first that made really good use of storytelling. It used death as a mechanic; there were certain times when your character had to die to advance the storyline.

If you pick up and could go anywhere tomorrow, where would you go?
I would love to go to Bora Bora. Continue reading →

This week, the crow learned that there’s still time for vacation. What did you learn?

What are you up to this evening?
I’m sweating my tits off behind the bar (at Tin Table). There’s this thing called “swamp ass,” and I have a case of “swamp boobs.” I think I’m gonna lose a cup size tonight!

What was the hardest order you had tonight?
Two mojitos.

Do those take a long time to make?
Only because I’m a perfectionist, so I like to do them right. It takes a while to crush the ice, and pick out the best leaves of mint to make it look good.

What do you think is the sexiest drink?
Whatever drink you’re having with a friend.

Continue reading →