As always, I sleep in on a Saturday morning ’til about 11:30, take a quick shower, then walk up Roy St. from my apartment on Summit Ave. for a leisurely lunch with Tim Cook at Siam on Broadway. Once the customary ten-star Thai cuisine has been consumed, we briefly duck into Orpheum Records to hassle our pals Jordana Heller, Paul Masters, and Katie Carr, then stroll over to Steve’s Broadway News to browse and buy a few magazines.
Tim departs, while I drop by Fall Out Records to check on the latest 7-inches and ‘zines, before I poke my head into The Pike St. Cinema en route to Piecora’s Pizzeria. I quickly say hello to Dennis Nyback, so I can pick up his latest calendar, and finally head over to meet friends at Piecora’s for dinner, which has been hastily arranged by my sister, Laurie Kipp.
Afterward, I catch a ride with Tim Midyett and Vickie Hunter, so I can briefly stop back home to drop off my earlier haul and change, before driving down to see two co-workers from General Record Service (aka The Kind) play an early show at The Ditto Tavern. Tom Smith, Steven Smith, Jaims Hill, and Andy Nelson also make the scene.
I later backtrack to Rckcndy to meet up with Howard Todd Brown, Mike Calkins, Boz, Leslie Woodward, Tracy Wilson, Christine Scharrer, Chris Martin, Elizabeth DeNoma, Ricky, Daniel Housman, Noelia Santos, Robert Mercer, and Joel RL Phelps, where we see a dream bill featuring Silkworm, Engine Kid, and Jessamine (who’re all opening for Pavement).
Once I’ve helped with load-out, Dawn Smithson, Rex Ritter, Greg Na, Andrew Cohen, Timmy, Vick, and both Michael and Stuart Dahlquist join me for burgers at Caffe Minnie’s, though this time we opt for the location at 1st & Denny (rather than the one across from Siam, near my place), so we can drop off Mikey’s drums at his apartment around the corner, before holding court for several hours at the two biggest tables they can slide together.
Once everyone else finally heads off to bed, I find a parking spot near home (never easy at 4:30am!), then drop in on the weekly Saturday night/Sunday morning (midnight to 8am) 25% off sale at the flagship Broadway & John branch of Twice Sold Tales, presided over by my pajama-clad pal, Biff. Once my pre-sale tally reaches $100, I settle up. Mercifully, Biff finds me a crappy cardboard box so I can lug away my seventeen used books, before I trudge homeward with said treasures through the early glimmerings of another splendid Seattle sunrise, then collapse into bed.
By the by, while I never had a day that PRECISELY included EVERY element of the above account, I came pretty close on several occasions. And those may as well have been Perfect Seattle Days!
I’m just sorry they can never be repeated….not by ANYONE.
’90s Seattle (and especially Capitol Hill): RIP
– Tom Kipp
