I wrote a quick guide for the kosher traveler to Seattle, Washington for Yeah, That’s Kosher!, a kosher travel blog. The article is now up and you can go read it.
“Seattle seduces,” our friend Patricia said no more than three hours after we had landed at Sea/Tac Airport and had driven through the city on our way to a coffee shop in Queen Anne Hill. From this high vantage point, Seattle spread out in organized chaos, contained only by the shores of Elliot Bay and Lake Washington to the east and west respectively. The Space Needle pierced the sky, an unmoving sentinel guarding the northern end of the city, while to the south, snow-capped Mt. Rainier played peek-a-boo with its ward 70 miles away. “I could certainly get used to this,” was what I said, taking in this view, that prompted Patricia to speak her prophetic words.
[...] we found [in Seattle] a remarkable city with an abundance of personality, a multitude of activities for all kinds of visitors, and a very appealing destination for the kosher traveler.
Elation over my article aside, I love this website because it is dedicated to helping the kosher-observing Jew travel to more places beyond the New York/Miami worn-out route. I have a couple more ideas for articles, including Orlando, FL and even Miami (with a different twist), so expect to see more announcements like this from me.
I wasn’t sure what to expect out of this book, aside from a humorous tour of the Bible. I was pleasantly surprised to find an honest, if at times irreverent, attempt by Jacobs to not only follow the Bible as literally as possible (something we discover quite early on is not necessarily as plausible an option), but also to get into the mindset of someone who does follow the Bible out of conviction. Being Jewish, Jacobs spends more time on the “Old Testament” section, grappling, much like his Biblical namesake did, with the divine and the heritage of his ancestors, whether the few generations in recent memory or the Biblical forefathers.
His quest is a bizarre one at times, but while he draws humor out of the whole project, it also showcases what it is to deal with the idea of Divine instructions for living, something I was able to identify with extremely well given the road I traveled on my way to my conversion to Judaism. I also very much appreciate that Jacobs never mocks, even when dealing with ideas that simply do not match the furthest lengths he is willing to stretch his mind; that respect is what makes this book and saves it from the disaster it could have been. Jacobs’ journey shows that you cannot grapple with the Divine and come out unchanged, but it also shows that we each have our own path to take when it comes to our relationship to the Divine and that each path is a valid one.
Though I mentioned it on Twitter, I never did so here: last fall, I applied to a Senior Editor position at Wizards of the Coast. I’m looking to move to Seattle, and hey, is there a better place for a gamer looking to settle in the Emerald City?
Over the last couple months I’ve answered a few questions here and there, and I’ve made it through some rounds of elimination, which makes me feel pretty good about my resume and experience. On Thursday, January 15, I had my phone interview, part of one of the last rounds of interviews from what I was able to gather, done by Chris Perkins. He was very nice, polite and made me feel good during the interview, which was very welcomed seeing how a phone interview can be a bit impersonal. He asked me questions about my editing experience and I answered as well as I could.
Then he says he has a question that may put me a bit on the defensive, which immediately does, of course, though I sought to downplay it. He asks about something I said in a blog post I made back in June, 2008 (D&D 4e GSL), specifically, “Wizards of the Coast continues to become a company that I more and more do not want to support with my dollars.” I answered that yes, at the time I did feel that way due to the circumstances I mentioned in the post, though I had certainly changed my mind, evidenced by my purchase of the 4e core books and my stated desire to play 4e.
We spoke a bit more, the interview finished and we hung up. I felt OK about it (not great, but OK) and now it’s just a matter of waiting.
I found it interesting, and a bit creepy (an opinion shared by an ex-WotC employee I contacted for tips before the interview – no names now), that they went digging around my blog for mentions of WotC/Wizards of the Coast. I understand it, and it makes me wonder how widespread is this practice. I don’t know that my comment from 6 months ago hurt me now, and I make no apologies for being honest on my own blog and standing by my opinions as stated at any given time, based on the information I had at the time. But it does make me very much more aware of what I write now, because now I know, for sure, it can come back to the forefront in the future.
There’s a lesson there for all RPG bloggers: write what you may, but be ready to defend words you wrote if you seek to translate your gaming blogging into anything within the RPG industry.
And for the record, I didn’t get the Senior Editor job.
Yesterday was the third edition of Bike Miami and I think it was the best one to date. Yes, the first one was really popular, but it had the newness of it to draw people, and the second one had to contend with the holidays for attendance, though even with that it was a cool event. This one, though, this Bike Miami, proved beyond a doubt that the institution is here to stay and that people are now going to expect it and reply in kind.
This Bike Miami featured a slightly different route than previous ones: Bayfront Park was not included due to an event there the night before, but the Flagler St. corridor was extended all the way to the Miami Riverfront and to Lummus Landing, an area I simply had no idea was back there (the southbound corridor ending at Mary Brickell Village remained the same). Road signs and water stations made a welcomed comeback, and the support of the Downtown Miami merchants was palpable and evident, energizing the streets and the riders in turn.
There was a steady stream of bikers throughout the length of the route during all hours of the event, even way into its final few minutes. Attendants included everything from families with multiple children, to casual/slow bikers, and lycra-clad cycling packs, everyone enjoying themselves, everyone showing their support for a more bicycle-friendly city of Miami.
As usual by now, we rode our bikes to Downtown, leaving the Beach at around 11:00 AM. The ride through the North Beach area was actually pretty uneventful this time around, thankfully. The one thing I did observe was the significant number of people riding their bikes around this area of the Beach, just going about their business. It was a very welcomed sight; it made me feel like a part of something greater, a movement that is slowly expanding, growing every single day.
Knowing we’d have to face the dreaded Dade Blvd, I decided every bit of it we could skip was a welcomed respite, so we went from Prairie Dr. to N Meridian Ave, which borders the edge of the Miami Beach Golf Club and saved us a whole block of Dade Blvd. Once on Dade, we rode on the sidewalk until we could cross Alton Rd and join the Venetian Cswy. bike lane.
Upon entering the Venetian Isles area (a very ethereal boundary that, to me, is signalled by the sudden appereance of the bike lane at Dade Blvd and N Bay Rd. (see map), even though this is still mainland Miami Beach), we were very pleasantly surprised to see a Bike Miami info kiosk and water station at the corner of Gibb Park. The folks there were talking to as many of the cyclists (and pedestrians) riding up and down the causeway as they could, giving out flyers for the event and brochures on cycling education, asking riders as they passed by, “Are you headed to Bike Miami?” I keep up with all the info coming out of the Mayor’s office on this event, and I had no idea this kiosk would be here. Whoever thought of it and put it into action, thank you, it was a great idea; I hope it had the desired effect. Frankly, I’d love to see more support for Bike Miami like this from the neighboring cities.
Our time riding around Downtown was just great. The route extension into Lummus Landing was a welcomed addition and frankly, a perfect example of what this sort of event can achieve, exposing participants to an area of the city many did not know about, myself included (I mean, we had a Public Fish Market by the river? Really? Why is it closed!). It’s too bad Ft. Dallas was closed for renovations, but it was cool just learning that it was there. We also saw the Scottish Rite temple (we have Masons in Miami?!) and the City of Miami Mounted Police stables, having a chance to pet the horses. There was a rally at Lummus Landing at 10:30 AM that we missed (we’re gonna have to leave the Beach really early to able to make it on time for one of these) and other events there and at Mary Brickell Village. There were also sponsors at Lummus Landing, including the now-ubiquitous Florida Bicycle Association, and stores like Mack Cycles, showing off the new Electra Townie Holiday bike that has me salivating.
We managed to see various of the friends we’ve been making over the past Bike Miami events and everyone was excited about the turnout for this one. The weather was once again gorgeous; we are getting spoiled, we know, but we’re going to enjoy it while it lasts. I mean, this was the weather on Sunday!
We decided to head back relatively early so we would not get caught riding in the dark. Heading down Venetian Cswy with a bunch other riders was a neat experience, actually. We decided to stop at Publix on Bay Rd. and 20th Street, and after that, deciding we really did not want to take Dade Blvd. again we vacilated with using Alton Rd, since it has a bike lane (another one of those that simply pops up out on nothingness), but instead we decided to use a backroad suggested by Neil from Urban Bike - South Florida, take N Bay Rd. And that we did, taking it from 20th Street all the way down to Chase Ave. That saved us from Dade Blvd completely, and Chase drops you at 41st Street in no time, from where we can catch our established route. We’re definitely going to be using N Bay Rd from now on to head Downtown. And a bonus, we got to see a starfruit tree!
We made it home while still daylight (for a change) and chilled out for the rest of the evening. We had a fantastic day of bike riding, and many thanks go out again to all the volunteers who work so hard to make Bike Miami such an awesome event.
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