Back at It

HAZY DIAMOND: Monday night we bravely (or not so smartly?) ventured out into the smoke to attend a baseball game. We did wear our masks while walking to and from the stadium, however, and we purposely bought tickets for seats that are walled off from the open air stadium.

Despite the unhealthy air, we went to the ballpark because it wasn't just an 'ordinary' game. It was an Alice in Chains game. 

In what sounds like an odd cross-promotion, the Mariners had a special event involving a local, longtime grunge band, Alice in Chains.  I'll have CJ tell you a bit more about the experience.

To promote the release of their new album Rainier Fog, veteran Seattle grunge band Alice in Chains held an album listening party in Safeco Field, before the start of the 20 August game. The listening party was held in the Terrace Club Patio, and was over-capacity. The party started at 5:30 P.M, during which various goodies were given away (a Rainier Fog CD and an Alice in Chains t-shirt.)

During the party, I got to experience what Rainier Fog is like:
First off, Rainier Fog is a very self-indulgent album. If I recall correctly, some of the songs stretched to over 10 minutes long, much of which was spent jamming or yelling from band vocalists William DuVall and Jerry Cantrell. Some of the songs are brain-numbingly slow, taking after a so-called "sludge metal" style. The album is noticeably heavier than the band's previous output. Nevertheless, it will please Alice in Chains fans, including myself.

After the listening party ended, Alice in Chains showed up on a small stage on the patio. I couldn't really see them, being buried behind middle-aged fans who may or may not have seen them back in their 1990s heyday. In addition, during the actual baseball game, a fan in the Terrace Club was quizzed as to the band's name (he obviously guessed correctly). After doing so, the members of Alice in Chains went over to him, after which they started walking to what I presume to be their private viewing area. I attempted to get a high-five from DuVall while he was walking back. Instead, I got a stinkeye.

So there you have it. CJ's brush with fame, ha ha.

I would be remiss if I didn't give props to Alice in Chains’ guitarist Jerry Cantrell for throwing a  perfect strike first pitch.


GLOSSY: On Monday afternoon, Annabelle and I headed downhill to the Learning Ex toy store in Renton Landing for a D-I-Y lipgloss lesson.

When we arrived, we saw these materials set out for the process.

I'll have Annabelle tell you how it went down. ... It was a super quick and simple process.

To make a simple DIY lip balm, take equal parts coconut oil and Vaseline and melt it, stirring until thoroughly mixed. Place 4 teaspoons of the mixture into your container of choice and add 1 teaspoon of any flavor of Jell-O for color and flavoring. Close the container and let sit overnight until the mixture thickens. Be careful – it will still be very soft, so consider putting it in a flat container as opposed to a lipstick tube.

She found a link to a tutorial, if you're interested: DIY Jell-O lip gloss

UP AND AWAY: This afternoon, we tuned in just in time to watch an Arianespace Vega rocket  launch the European Space Agency's Aeolus satellite. The satellite will study Earth's winds from space. 

     IMAGE: ESA
The rocket lifted off from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, at 2:20 p.m. Seattle time. 

"Aeolus will use revolutionary laser technology to measure winds around the globe," ESA officials said in a mission description. "These near-realtime observations will improve the accuracy of numerical weather and climate prediction and advance our understanding of tropical dynamics and processes relevant to climate variability."