Tick-Tock: Liststravaganza

Day two of list completion was fairly successful. For lunch, we tried out a new Mexican place in town, Los Amigos Taqueria. I tried a torta, which is basically a Mexican sandwich, that was pretty damn good. Kat even enjoyed her burrito, which means we'll be able to go back. It's always good to add another local eatery to our repertoire.

After lunch, our museum tour continued with the Seattle Art Museum. Neither one of us is much of an art museum person, but I figure you should hit up the museum in your city at least once, right? Get all cultured up?

The museum was ok as museums go. Most art doesn't evoke anything in me, so I tend to feel bored, stupid, or unimaginative. I did really enjoy the exhibit of photographic works by Imogen Cunningham, as well as the collection of paintings by Andrew Wyeth. I especially enjoy looking at antiquities of ancient civilizations at art museums, and I am also always glad to see works by masters, from Monet to Warhol.

I was not impressed with the main exhibit, "Target Practice." This show examined art as it evolved from classical paintings and sculptures into everything from performance art to a written description of what you should be picturing to a reproduction of Warhol paintings that were themselves reproductions of other images. So, yeah, not really my cup of tea. Am I an idiot, or is a video of a guy dragging himself through puddle of paint on a floor not artistic? I mean, I get it - the world is your canvas, the brush is what you make of it, think outside the frame - but dammit man, I like me purtty pitchurs.

I did appreciate the "interactive" work by Yoko Ono, where viewers are invited to hammer in nails wherever they want and leave behind their own scraps of whatever.

Not a bad trip, really. The only bummer with going to any art museum is that you have to plan on not caring about or for a good chunk of whatever they have on display.

When the museum closed, we walked down to Pioneer Square so that I could visit Utilikilts' flagship store and try on and ultimately purchase) a kilt.

Now, to clear up any confusion, Utilikilts are not traditional, old-fashioned, tartan kilts. They are modern kilts, made from modern materials, and are meant for casual, everyday wear.

It might sound odd to think of men just wearing kilts out to the store, down the street, or at work without there being a Renaissance Fair in town, but around here, it's quite common. The kilts are comfy, durable, and functional, and they certainly do make a statement. (Insert cross-dressing joke here.)

For my Seattle, Portland, and Lawrence peeps, this might not be very surprising. Virginia, Florida, and the rest of the Kansans, you need to get used to the fact that from now on, Robb comes with a kilt.

For dinner, I thought it appropriate to try Pike Place Ale's Kilt Lifter, a ruby ale with loads of flavor and a smooth finish. (I also had a Landshark Lager that was rolling around in the fridge. Meh.) I set myself up with a can of "Buddha Jumps Over the Wall," a seafood soup of unknown Asian origin. The soup consisted of shark, sea cucumber, scallops, mushrooms, bamboo, and various spices, herbs, and sauces. I cannot write a very detailed review, however, as my eyes, nose, and tongue pooled their collective powers to keep me from having more than two spoonfuls of this horrific dish. I don't remember the last time I tried something and couldn't at least choke down enough to form a truly informed opinion. That time has come. I think, in particular, that there was some spice that triggered all of this. Considering the ingredients listed only "spices" in English, for all I know it was powdered panda dong. Or, perhaps it was the translucent chunks of gelatinous echinoderm, or the bits that were not only unidentifiable, but whose very edibility to humans was in question. Campbell's, it wasn't. A grilled cheese sandwich was my dinner.

I did, however, enjoy shrimp crackers, which I want to try every time I see them in Asian stores. They seem to be a thing. They tasted like Cajun peel-and-eat shrimp, but crunchy and with carbs.