So, I decided to head off to the Wallingford neighborhood yesterday. A sunny Saturday afternoon seemed like a good time to check out the water-based sorbetto at Fainting Goat Gelato and the new Archie McPhee location.
Wallingford is the next neighborhood over from the U District, so I just started walking. I ended up crossing over on 50th, then heading south on Meridian, where I discovered this portal.
It turned out to be the entrance for Meridian Park, and I had to go in and check it out. They had a large, grassy area, with a lot of trees, and a playground, then as I walked around the large building, trying to figure out what it was, I came across Seattle Tilith’s Children’s Garden. Then I walked around to the front of the building which was the Meridian School, an independent school in the “historic Good Shepherd Center” according to their website. They were having a Summer Quest, and I came upon a wheel barrow race on the other side of the school.
I continued on my own quest (for something resembling ice cream I actually may be able to still eat), walking around the park past fallen crab apples and squirrels and heading down Meridian Ave. I walked by the Wallingford Neighborhood Office, with Wallingford memorabilia, including buttons saying “The Hood that Could.” I could see the Rusty Pelican parking lot from there, so I knew I was coming up to 45th.
So, I proceeded to look for Fainting Goat Gelato from the address I wrote down when I saw their ad with the upside down goat in a red circle logo. I was almost there. It was just past Not a Number Cards & Gifts (Disturbing the Comfortable, Comforting the Disturbed) on 45th.
I saw a lot of people enjoying tasty treats outside, and I knew I was in the right place. It’s a small restaurant, and kind of warm in the summer, with an incredible selection of gelato, and it turned out 4 flavors of sorbetto (which I had to ask about because they weren’t labeled). I tried a spoonful of each – mango, mirtillo, limone and pomegranate; before deciding on a scoop of mango this time. It’s a bit pricey, $3 a scoop, and I even sprung an extra $1 for a waffle cone.
It was delicious! In fact, too creamy and tasty. Even though the gelato lady assured me the sorbetto was water & sugar based (no dairy or soy), I still worried. I’m still a little uncertain, as I had a little problem today. I do have trouble with too much sweets or carbs, so it looks like that’s likely the case (it was a big scoop); whereas things like dairy or soy hit me immediately and badly. It’s no fun having a gut problem. I’ll go carefully with the sorbetto, and see how it goes. I have missed ice cream. . .
Definitely recommended for people without my weird health problems (and let me know how the gelato tastes)!
Next it was off to Archie McPhee, home of rubber chickens, punching nun puppets, yodeling pickles and assorted weirdness. I was just a few blocks from their new location. I walked by Molly Moons, which had a long line for ice cream (hey, this is Seattle, if it’s even close to 80 we’re hot. . .).
Just past Alphabet Soup Children’s Books I came across a penguin with a water dish. Ah, global warming! Poor thing. I soon found he was not alone.
Next I walked by the Boys & Girls Club in Wallingford, which had a beautiful fence.
Then, there it was, in bright yellow so no one can miss it – Archie McPhee!
Also with a giant eye signboard on the street. You can get bandages like this inside (so people will stop staring at your scrapes & bruises)!
There was a penguin lounging outside Archie McPhee as well. Coincidence? Hmm. . .
So, what did I buy at Archie McPhee? Jumping, yodeling lederhosen? Zombie mints? The Cold War Unicorn Play Set? A ninja clock? Monkey groan ball? Crazy Cat Lady Action Figure? Bacon soap? Uh, oh, don’t tell PETA. Devil duckies? Love rats?
I’m almost embarrassed to say – a Space Needle Snow Globe (with little hoops to try to land on the Space Needle) and a small purple bendy puppet man with flexible limbs (I can see him moshing to Mudhoney).
Never fear. I’ll be back for more silliness another day.
Heading back home down 45th, I came upon yet another penguin. It’s an invasion!!!
OK. He looks harmless enough, but what are they all doing here? I checked the base. They’re Penguins on the March! Siixty-two penguins decorated by Seattle artists to celebrate Woodland Park Zoo’s new Humboldt penguin exhibit. According to the zoo website:
Penguins on the March will begin migrating into Ballard, Fremont and Greenwood-Phinney, where you will find individual penguins prominently featured in front of neighborhood businesses in July, August and September.
Here’s a link to more at the Woodland Park Zoo blog.
You never know what public art is going to pop up in Seattle next – pigs, nutcrackers, penguins. . .
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