Luminous rowing, SeaTac Airport

Hanging high in the Seattle airport, an artwork of some form of long rowing shell with luminous sea-life and an improbably high number of oars.

Snoqualmie Falls, Washington

Another iconic image of the Seattle area: Snoqualmie Falls plunges loudly down near the edge of the Cascades.

Leavenworth, WA

Despite any cheesiness, however, Leavenworth really does have a beautiful skyline in a beautiful location in the mountains, and I recommend a visit if you are in the area.

McDonalds Bavarian-Style, Leavenworth, WA

Even McDonalds cannot escape Bavarian styling in Leavenworth: this rather baroque wall-painting stands in place of the traditional soaring golden arches.

Starbucks Bavarian-Style, Leavenworth, WA

Leavenworth's stylistic requirements are clearly quite rigorously enforced: here, for example, is part of the drive-through for the town's Starbucks.

Mural, Leavenworth, WA

Many of the buildings in Leavenworth have murals on their sides, expounding on various Bavarian cultural themes.

Tourist Monks, Leavenworth, WA

The tourists of Leavenworth are a rather diverse mix, including a fair mix of international travelers and even these probably-Buddhist monks wandering the streets.

Fat German Bear, Leavenworth, WA

A piece of Leavenworth's over-the-top street decor: this merchant has apparently decided to part a giant fat stuffed bear in Bavarian costume outside their shop. I just can't get over its wonderfully grumpy expression, and imagine it yelling incomprehensibly at passersby.

Leavenworth, WA

On the Eastern side of Stevens Pass, one descends into the delightful incongruity of Leavenworth, a town that has essentially turned itself into a Bavarian theme park. On a hot summer day, it is jam-packed with tourists there to soak up the spectacle: it is all so ridiculously fake and over the top that it all becomes actually rather delightful.

Rockfall netting, Washington

Steel netting covers the cliffs by the side of the highway in Stevens Pass in the Cascades, to trap and mitigate rockfalls.

Root structure, Cascades, Washington

Polished and moss-hung surfaces on the tipped up roots of a long-ago fallen tree near Deception Falls in the Cascades.

Mossy trees, Cascades, Washington

Heavy moss coats the towering trees around Deception Falls, where the spray helps create a rain-forest-like environment despite the high altitude and cool.

Log bridge, Cascades, Washington

A nifty angled log bridge over a small side-stream of Deception Falls.

Rainbow waterfall, Cascades, Washington

At a lower stage of Deception Falls, a rainbow floats above the spray and the clear pure waters of the river.

Deception Falls, Cascades, Washington

Deception Falls feels to me like nearly the Platonic ideal of a rushing mountain stream, foaming down a sequence of drops in a pocket of unusually ancient trees that have been protected from fire by its damp spray.

Cascades freight, Washington

Northeast of Seattle, massive freight trains pass continually through the towering peaks of the Cascades, plunging through an eight-mile tunnel on their way beneath the highest portions of the pass. On the other side of the road, an older tunnel has been turned into hiking and biking trails through the thick green forests.

Lost whale, Seattle

This plush blue whale sat sad and forlorn on the edge of a derelict lot.

Musical building, Seattle

I don't know what the significance is of this audio waveform on the side of a building near the University of Washington, but I certainly enjoy its form.

Angular apartments, Seattle

Apartments (I think) with sharply angular windows, near the University of Washington.

Cooling tower rain, Seattle

One more angle on the cooling tower rain, showing an access catwalk and some sort of sheltering panel whose function I am not entirely clear on.

Cooling tower rain, Seattle

Continual heavy rain inside this building, coming from a cooling tower at the UW power plant. I just love cooling tower rain: the strong shushing waterfall sound, the inward bend, the sheer improbability of heavy indoor rainstorms on a bright and sunny day.  For context, I offer this second photo:

Staircase windows, University of Washington, Seattle

I think that this picture is vertically straight, but the conflicting textures of the building's surface and its stair windows make me feel like it is tilting over.

University of Washington Sundial, Seattle

A giant sundial of a peculiar design that I have never seen before stands across the Southern side of one of the buildings of the University of Washington.

University of Washington Quad, Seattle

Looking down the green and pleasant channel of the main quad of the University of Washington, you might think this is some sort of wooded campus. Much of the rest of it, however, is blocky modern buildings shouldering each other in a solid crowd---much like most other world-class scientific universities.

Well-stapled telephone pole, Seattle

Another shot of the well-stapled telephone pole, bringing out more of the textures.

Well-stapled telephone pole, Seattle

Many layers of staples and repaintings give this telephone pole an intriguing visual texture.

Windmill mural, Iowa City

I enjoy the way my oblique angle of shot interacts with the roundness and illusory depth of this mural.

Mall skylight, Iowa City

Hexagonal skylight and an accompanying collection of complex wire structures, suspending decorations above a children's playspace.

Today?, Cambridge, MA

Waxed right into the floor, a rather fundamental question: TODAY?

Kitty, Salt Lake City, UT

I just have so many questions about this single, isolated footprint in the concrete.