Having Un-industrial Fun in the Industrial District

I was in a hurry to schedule a scenic plane ride because our Groupon was going to expire in January and the weather will continue to be gray and rainy through the winter so there's no point in waiting for a sunny weekend. I normally wouldn't purchase a scenic plane ride since Mike already knows how to fly, but I figured this would be a good way to introduce Mike to the flying conditions in Seattle and to orient us to the area.

We took off from one of Boeing Field's fixed based operators south of the Industrial District. Because of the weather, we did not have visibility of Mount Rainer or the beautiful blue, green, and white colors of the natural surroundings that you can otherwise see on a sunny day. Instead, we saw an industry-focused side of the city, which actually gave us a better understanding of the city. We learned that Harbor Island just west of downtown Seattle is a man-made island used for commercial and industrial activities.

Harbor Island

It was fun seeing the different well-known buildings and picking out Mike's office. Beyond downtown, we flew by Bill Gate's house on Mercer Island and flew over downtown Bellevue.

 

Downtown

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Mike's Office (Red Brick Buildings)

Hopefully we'll save up enough in the near future for Mike to fly again. It would be great to catch a sunnier view!

After our morning flight, we met up with my friend, Paul, and had lunch at Blazing Bagels before heading to a lesser known point of interest - Living Computer Museum. Lunch was extremely satisfying! The large selection of deli ingredients and bagel flavors mean that I have to come back multiple times to try various combinations! Mike always has to get a Reuben at a sandwich shop and Blazing Bagels met his standards - no frills and plenty of meat. I made my own bagel sandwich and loved the combination - Turkey and Salami with Jalapeno Cream Cheese on a Bacon, Cheddar, and Chive Bagel!

Blazing Bagels Create-Your-Own Sandwich Menu or Order from the Blue Menu

Reuben and Potato Salad

Create-Your-Own: Turkey and Salami with Jalapeno Cream Cheese on a

Bacon, Cheddar, and Chive Bagel

Although the Industrial District is relatively far from our neighborhood up north, Blazing Bagels' proximity to the Living Computer Museum is another great excuse to come back! The Living Computer Museum was founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen to tell the history of information technology through computers from different times that the public can actually tinker with! How fun is that? After all, he and Bill ended up doing great things from tinkering with old technology.

I admit, I was initially attracted to the museum because of the promise that I can play Oregon Trail on the Apple IIe. However, there's so much more to the museum than the nostalgia it brings. Many of the technologies that Mike and I grew up with are foreign to kids today. To them, the Apple IIe is almost as obscure as the DEC PDP-7 from the 1960s is to us! It's fascinating to see how computers got smaller, lighter, faster, and more integrated into our everyday lives.

DEC PDP-7

I tried my hand at a completely text-based Oregon Trail and died of pneumonia. You hunt by typing words that the computer prompts, like "Wham". I had a good chuckle when the prompt came up!

An Older Generation of Oregon Trail - Completely Text-Based

Vintage Computers and Games at Your Disposal!

Oregon Trail on the Apple IIe

Paul and Mike Playing Checkers on the Microsoft Pixelsense

The museum tickets are a great deal because general admission is only $6.00, and the ticket also gets you into the Flying Heritage Collection Museum for free within 7 days of your visit and $5.00 off the EMP Museum. The Living Computer Museum also hosts free movie nights with purchase of museum admission on the day of the showing. Mike and I plan to be regular visitors, so we went ahead and got memberships to the EMP Museum, which gets you into the Living Computer Museum, Flying Heritage Collection Museum, and EMP Museum free year-round! It's definitely worth supporting the Living Computer Museum, and I hope it continues to get steady traffic!