We went to downtown Seattle today. Even though it was a Saturday, traffic was stunningly bad both coming and going on I5 to the point where I had trouble contemplating what rush hour must be like. Sandy was kind enough to pull up grunge related sites but when it came down to it a lot of them were a good distance away. We did see the market and space needle. I was kind of surprised at how many people were there but then again it was a Saturday and it was a tourist spot. Riding in Pearl Jam was playing and it took me back to 1991/2/3 or so when ’10’ was released. It was in heavy rotation when I was roommates with Bill Adams. It was particularly poignant when ‘Alive’ was playing as he is not. Died of a brain tumor several years ago. Part of the song goes:

Is something wrong, she said
Well of course there is
You’re still alive, she said
Oh, and do I deserve to be
Is that the question
And if so…if so…who answers…who answers…

It got me thinking of why I’m still here and he’s not. But it’s best to not dwell on questions that really have no answer.

The only grunge related site we saw was the ‘Sound Garden’ where Soundgarden named itself after a wind-channeling pipe sculpture, which was called: A Sound Garden. The installation was featured on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration property at 7600 Sand Point Way in Seattle, next to the popular Magnuson Dog Park.