Even though he's a native of Washington state, Adrian had never been up to the observation deck of the Space Needle. We had intended to go over the summer, but time got away from us and here it is just two days before the end of the year.
This afternoon, we made up for that omission, and then some, by eating at the revolving restaurant as well. The Space Needle, originally sketched by Edward E. Wilson on a coffee house place mat, was refined by architect, John Graham. The first design was of a tethered balloon, but Graham altered it to be a flying saucer on a pedestal. Built in 1962, it opened just in time for the World's Fair. The foundation of the Space Needle weighs nearly as much as the rest of it so that the center of gravity rests just above the ground. That is so cool. It's kind of like a Weeble. They wobble, but they don't fall down.
We managed to squeeze into the elevator with eleven other people and I pushed Adrian up to the front so that when we cleared the walls, he took a deep breath in as everything seemed to fall away from us. I didn't mind the few minutes it took them to seat us once we made it to the top. I've been to the Space Needle restaurant at least a half a dozen times, but I still love standing with one foot on in the center waiting area and another on the revolving part. The movement is slow but persistent and is powered by a single horsepower motor. The first time we went, I absentmindedly put my purse down between the wall and my chair and it rotated around a bit with the outside wall before I realized what had happened. It never occurred to me that the floor might move, but the walls were still. It truly is an elegant design.
These days, kids and some adults put questions on notes on the railing on the outside wall and as it goes around, people pick up the notes and write answers to the questions. Nick asked 'What is your name?' Adrian asked 'What is your favorite color?' Mike didn't ask a question because he was worried about bothering the other patrons. We didn't have an outside seat and the boys needed to go between some chairs to put their notes on the rail. I asked 'Where are you from?' When we approached a space between two tables, the people there encouraged us to prop up our notes.
Lunch itself was pretty ordinary for the boys, who ordered hamburgers and french fries. I got a rare Ahi salad for $27 but most of the entrees were about the same price except what was on the kids menu. You don't eat at the Space Needle to cut costs. Even though it was a drizzly day, the views were wonderful, snow in the Olympics, ferries going in and out of Elliot Bay, and gasworks park. At one point, we looked East and wondered if we could be looking at Mt. Si from where we were.
Near the end of the meal, we came around to our starting spot and we looked for our notes. No notes. Then, a family came in and sat down by the railing, kids from Nick and Adrian's school! Just then, two of our notes came back. Nick's friend signed them and gave them back to us. Then as the check came, the straggling note came back, Adrian's question, with important answers: purple, purple, purple, red, blue, aqua, and green.
Maybe I should have asked 'What is the meaning of life?' Who knows what kind of answers I might have received?
Thank you for listening, jb
This afternoon, we made up for that omission, and then some, by eating at the revolving restaurant as well. The Space Needle, originally sketched by Edward E. Wilson on a coffee house place mat, was refined by architect, John Graham. The first design was of a tethered balloon, but Graham altered it to be a flying saucer on a pedestal. Built in 1962, it opened just in time for the World's Fair. The foundation of the Space Needle weighs nearly as much as the rest of it so that the center of gravity rests just above the ground. That is so cool. It's kind of like a Weeble. They wobble, but they don't fall down.
We managed to squeeze into the elevator with eleven other people and I pushed Adrian up to the front so that when we cleared the walls, he took a deep breath in as everything seemed to fall away from us. I didn't mind the few minutes it took them to seat us once we made it to the top. I've been to the Space Needle restaurant at least a half a dozen times, but I still love standing with one foot on in the center waiting area and another on the revolving part. The movement is slow but persistent and is powered by a single horsepower motor. The first time we went, I absentmindedly put my purse down between the wall and my chair and it rotated around a bit with the outside wall before I realized what had happened. It never occurred to me that the floor might move, but the walls were still. It truly is an elegant design.
These days, kids and some adults put questions on notes on the railing on the outside wall and as it goes around, people pick up the notes and write answers to the questions. Nick asked 'What is your name?' Adrian asked 'What is your favorite color?' Mike didn't ask a question because he was worried about bothering the other patrons. We didn't have an outside seat and the boys needed to go between some chairs to put their notes on the rail. I asked 'Where are you from?' When we approached a space between two tables, the people there encouraged us to prop up our notes.
Lunch itself was pretty ordinary for the boys, who ordered hamburgers and french fries. I got a rare Ahi salad for $27 but most of the entrees were about the same price except what was on the kids menu. You don't eat at the Space Needle to cut costs. Even though it was a drizzly day, the views were wonderful, snow in the Olympics, ferries going in and out of Elliot Bay, and gasworks park. At one point, we looked East and wondered if we could be looking at Mt. Si from where we were.
Near the end of the meal, we came around to our starting spot and we looked for our notes. No notes. Then, a family came in and sat down by the railing, kids from Nick and Adrian's school! Just then, two of our notes came back. Nick's friend signed them and gave them back to us. Then as the check came, the straggling note came back, Adrian's question, with important answers: purple, purple, purple, red, blue, aqua, and green.
Maybe I should have asked 'What is the meaning of life?' Who knows what kind of answers I might have received?
Thank you for listening, jb
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