Reasons I love living in the Seattle Area/The PNW

     I have lived in the Seattle area and the Pacific Northwest my entire life.  I'd love to live here for the rest of my life as well.  Besides the familiarity, there are a lot of reasons why I hope that will be the case, and I'm going to share them with you.  
    First, we have (I think) the best weather in the country.  Sure, there's southern California and Florida and Arizona, but they can have unbearably hot summers and not enough cool days in the year.  We have one or two unbearably hot days all year.  Our winters can be cold for those who aren't used to it, but once you've lived here a while, they become extremely mild and tolerable.  It's why winter is my favorite season.  Oddly, we get a lot of precipitation in the winter months but not that much snow.  But on the rare times that we do get snow, it's beautiful.  I don't know if I'd change a single thing about our climate.  I wouldn't even change the rain, which helps make our area so green.  And you can't beat our springs and falls, both beautiful in different ways.
    Another thing I love is our sports teams.  The Mariners ended their playoff drought and are and have been a very likable team for years.  The Seahawks are among the Top 10 NFL franchises regarding ownership, success, stadium, and fans.  We also have a few other teams that I enjoy following, including the Sounders, Kraken, Storm, and Huskies, all of whom have had at least a modicum of recent success in various sports.  Not one of our franchises is unlikable.  The only negative thing is we are still without an NBA team, something that hopefully changes soon.  Once we have the Sonics back, our sports scene will be one of the best in the country.  Our stadiums are consistently ranked in the top half of stadiums in their league, and there's no bad place to catch a sports game in the Seattle area.
    As I've gotten older, I've realized that I'd much prefer to live in a blue state and a Democratic market.  Fortunately, that's the case now.  That's the reason I wouldn't be happy in Florida or Texas.  Washington is one of the bluest states in the country.  Unfortunately, we have that weird cousin we call Eastern Washington that leans more right, but hopefully, over time, that'll at least become purple-ish (mix red and blue).  I enjoy being on the left, where women have control over their bodies and everyone has equal rights.  Imagine living in a red state where they try to restrict what kids learn because they think they will be "indoctrinated".  
    One thing I love about our area is how many people and companies have ties to the Pacific Northwest.  We're home to Starbucks, Microsoft, and Amazon, and Nintendo of America.  We have been the home to Chris Pratt, Rainn Wilson, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Kenny G.  Outside of perhaps Silicon Valley, the Seattle area is arguably the largest tech center in the world.  So many video game companies (outside of Microsoft and Nintendo) have been located around here, including Bungie and Humongous Entertainment.  I love hearing about ties to our area, knowing virtually every other city pales in comparison.
    We have great food options as well, with most national chains having plenty of locations here to choose from.  In the past decade or so, we got Chick-Fil-A.  Perhaps someday we will get In-N-Out, but we have our own version, "Dicks Drive-In".  Not to mention there are tons of locally owned and operated restaurants that are among some of the best in the nation.  A lot of southern chains have not made their way up here, which is a bit of a shame.  The thing the Seattle food scene is lacking is good southern options.  But we're one of the best in the country in selections for steak, seafood, Asian cuisines, and in my opinion, Hispanic foods.  
    The biggest downside to living around here is the housing market and how costly it is.  We have one of the highest costs of living in the country and about the fewest amount of on-the-market homes available.  A lot of people, myself and my family included, keep moving further and further away from Seattle/Bellevue.  But I still can't imagine living in another state.  I could maybe see myself in Oregon, but that would be only if a job or opportunity presented itself there.  
    If anyone was thinking of moving here, I would highly recommend it.  Granted, I am biased, but I think we have one of the "homiest" places in the country.  You'll want to live here, start a family, and enjoy everything Washington has to offer.  I know I want to.  

Top Ten Food and Drink Combinations

I thought I'd do a different type of blog post and talk about food.  Who doesn't love eating food?  Who also doesn't love drinking some of their favorite drinks?  I'm going to rank the top 10 food and drink combinations.  Some food and drinks just go so well together, like peanut butter and jelly.  I'm not going to include food items more than once (with a different drink), but I will include a drink more than once.  Also, these are my preference, and they are ranked by how well they pair together.

10. Protein Bar and Energy Drink
This one isn't so much for the taste combination as it is the effects of the combination of the food and drink.  But they do typically taste well together.  If you're working hard through the day, there's not really a combination that'll pick you up better than this combination.  The protein bar will fuel your muscles and give you the carbs and calories needed, and the energy drink will give you the energy you need from the caffeine.  Generally, if you have this around early-midday, it'll last you until the end of the day.  I don't recommend having this every day, but if you're feeling completely devoid of energy, it should be all right to have this combination every once in a while.  I used to have it fairly often on my first break when I worked retail, and boy did it help.

9. Barbecue and Iced Tea
This one isn't higher mainly because the "Barbecue" moniker is vague and some barbecue items don't pair as well as others with iced tea, but it's still hard to go wrong with having iced tea and any barbecue item.  Whether it be ribs, hotdog/hamburger, or chicken, it's hard to go wrong with a good ice cold iced tea.  And of course, this combination works best (some would say only) in the summer.

8. Pasta (Spaghetti) and White Wine
This is one of my girlfriend's favorite combinations, and I'd have to agree.  There's just something about the sauce and meat paired with the sweet crispness of a glass of white wine.  You have to be careful, though, because you can't use the wine as a hydration source from eating pasta as you'll get tipsy very quickly.  I'd recommend adding some water (sparkling, possibly).

7. Sandwich & Chips and Soda
The all-American lunch, I call it.  You get a sandwich, preferably with your choice of deli meat and other fixings, some chips, and a soda of your choice.  It just reminds me of when I would have that for lunch as a kid (especially camping).  There's also a reason this is the most popular meal at Subway.  Nothing better washes down a sandwich and chips than soda.  

6. Breakfast Foods and Coffee or OJ
If you're having a combination of any of bacon, eggs, potatoes, toast, pancakes/waffles for breakfast, both coffee and orange juice pair extremely well with those food items.  It seems weird since the tastes of coffee and orange juice are so different, but both complement the saltiness and savoriness of the aforementioned foods very well.  

5. Steak and Red Wine
Now if you want to feel classy, have a steak dinner with a nice glass of red wine.  For maximum effect, however, you have to pair the right cut of steak with the right wine.  Most winemakers will have pairing suggestions, whether it be on their bottle or website.  Sometimes a good bottle of wine goes better with a nice pork loin or seafood, but whatever it is, if you pair it up correctly, you're definitely in for a great food/drink combination.

4. Tacos and Margaritas (Or lemonade)
If you're having a taco night with friends and they consume alcohol, you've gotta make margaritas.  They're both part of Mexican-American cuisine, and for good reason.  The citrus pairs well against the spices and savoriness of tacos.  For those who don't drink, I recommend lemonade, which pairs very well with Mexican food/tacos as well.

3. Baked Good(s) and (Iced) Coffee
These baked goods could be a muffin, croissant, danish, donut, cinnamon roll, you name it.  Any of those pair so well with a good cup of coffee, whether it be hot or iced, although I prefer iced.  There's a reason a lot of us choose to start off our day this way.  Although it may not be the healthiest, the caffeine from the coffee paired with the sugar rush from the baked good is enough to get most people going.  For the Europeans or people who don't like coffee, tea works almost as well.  

2. Pizza and Beer/Soda
I couldn't decide between beer or soda, so I decided on both.  For a casual night or even a chill party, you can't go wrong with pizza and soda.  And honestly, after a long day of work, not much beets a pizza and beer.  The pizza satisfies your comfort while the beer takes the edge off.

1. Cookies and Milk
The classic, how can you beat it?  The answer is, you can't.  Milk cuts away with the sweetness of the chocolate and sugar so well; it's just hard to explain.  Obviously, the best cookie to have with milk is either a chocolate chip or an Oreo (depending on your preference), but even sugar cookies work well, too.  I'd also recommend brownies and even graham crackers with milk.  

My Thoughts on Checking/Cashiering at Safeway

I have now been checking/cashiering at Safeway for over two months. Many people have asked me what I think of it and if it is better than being a courtesy clerk.

First off, overall, yes it is better than being a courtesy clerk. For one thing, you get more respect from people that know you. For example, instead of someone you know seeing you as a bagger and thinking you are stuck in a minimum wage job, they see you as a checker and see you have more responsibility and assume you make more than the minimum wage. Fact is, however, I don’t. At least not yet. I haven’t worked at Safeway long enough.

Secondly, it seems like time goes faster as a checker, especially when it is busy. As a courtesy clerk, my carts hours (obviously an hour of my work day I would do nothing but retrieve carts) went by really slowly, especially if the weather was bad. Which is another reason why being a checker is better: you never have to cope with the elements. You get to stay inside all the time. You never have to dress according to the weather.

Of course, there are a few downsides to checking. You have to stay in the same spot 90% of the time, which doesn’t allow you to burn as many calories as being a courtesy clerk. Secondly, you are doing the same thing over and over. Scan item, scan item, enter PLU code, scan item, etc. It is very repetitive. But I’d prefer scanning items repeatedly over getting carts repeatedly.

One last downside is that you have to deal with problem customers. There are just certain people who are either having bad days or are mean people naturally that will go through your line and give you problems. Now, I haven’t actually gotten yelled at, but I’ve had people get very upset. It really kind of deflates you. As a courtesy clerk, you can choose to walk away from those situations, but as a checker, you gotta stand there and take it. Myself, if I encounter one of these people, I just try to shrug it off and move on to the next customer.

However, I still think being a checker/cashier is better than being a courtesy clerk. I don’t have to deal with cleanups anymore, no more carts, no more taking care of the garbage, and no more getting up at 6 am. *Shudders* However, checking alone can get kind of dull. That’s why I wish sometimes I was just a backup checker, who works in a different department. That way, instead of checking being the only thing you do, it can be a break from what you normally do. Perhaps someday I will make the switch to a department that needs me.

Finally, I just wanted to say cashiering is not as bad as it seems. If you generally have nice customers, work can actually make your day better. Plus, the pay goes up quite fast the longer you work there. And the coworkers are all really nice and fun to talk to. They make work a lot more fun and more enjoyable. This is my job for the foreseeable future, and overall, I do enjoy it.