No...where's the space needle

No. I did not feel it. I sleep through EVERYTHING. And 5:30 am I am DEFINITELY sleeping so no I did not feel the earthquake. But I must say, from what folks are describing, if I WOULD have felt it, I would have just assumed my neighbors were washing clothes and it was getting windy again. Which, for the record, it was really windy last night.

It's rare that I hear anything laugh out loudable on the TMan show lately. But on my way in to work Friday morning, a girl called in. Now. There are times when people with serious issues call in. And I have to say that the morning crew is REALLY GOOD at picking up on that and not causing too much trauma to the little ones who wander in helplessly unaware of what they are getting into. Like the time the screenplay writer called in to talk about her missing daughter. Of 20 someodd years.

I digress.

Yesterday (Friday), this lady called in to say she didn't know what she was doing for her 30th birthday and no one planned anything and isn't that sad. We're sensing some dysfunction so they set her up to go clubbing with the VIPs. At Twilight. In Belltown.

Now.

There are times when I cannot remember how to spell the word "the". Because come on...the whole thee versus tha... pronounciation and sometimes, I get confused. Not seriously confused like spell it wrong confused, but just a bit concerned that "the" doesn't look right. Yes. Why yes I am an Ivy League graduate...genetics/science communication/special focus and all. And no I did NOT climb Everest...I rode a cart to base camp because I am THAT PITIFUL.

Back to Belltown. Now. I work in Bellevue. It has been a while since I've been back to downtown Seattle and I actually now have to ask people "do you mean Downtown Seattle or Downtown Bellevue?" when they ask me how long it takes to get downtown since our main office is also located "downtown" (not really...more like Queen Anne which is the edge of downtown, different from the other edge of downtown that is Belltown, but you get where this is going).

Belltown, depending on the hoods you frequent, could EASILY be a way for the hipper among us to be describing Bellevue. You know...Bellevue...Belltown? Okay right. But. And this is a big but. There is actually a neighborhood (northwardly end of downtown, waterfront, but not the stadium hood end of downtown...Seattle that is) where they hang signs from the lightposts that say "Belltown".

So for the record, Twilight is in Downtown Seattle Belltown. Not Bellevue.

But I was thrown for a loop because when they were teasing said VIP DJ about moving up from the southend (that would be Ttown or Tacoma...or whatever the heck those people call smelly city nowadays and its many many little neighborhoods that I also don't totally get), they said wow, you're moving on up to the eastside. And Bellevue is the eastside. I mean HECK. The Seattle Magazine (yes, there is such a thing and we actually have a subscription) just did a whole issue on how the Eastside is growing up and taking over. Of course...this was likely done BEFORE Microsoft fired half their staff (okay...5000 out of 100000 is not half, but I never proclaimed to be good at math).

But you can see how I was slightly confused right? They mentioned east side, I heard Twilight, it sounds trendy, that's so east side (the trendy part) so I made that connection to Belltown must now be what we are calling Bellevue.

But it isn't. And the 30 year old who called in, right before hanging up, she says (and I quote):

"But hold up. I've lived in Seattle all my life. Where Belltown at?"

To which we all chuckle and it easily becomes, what do you mean where's Belltown...that's like saying "I've lived in Seattle all my life...where's the space needle at again?"

I think that is a bit of a stretch. But then again. Probably not as big a stretch as being married to a New Yorker who was the biggest Yankee fan I'd ever seen but he had NEVER been to "the city" and couldn't tell you where the stadium was at. Limber. But also tragic.