Music Venues -- Q Cafe

In addition to being Real Estate professionals, Larry and I are also musicians--yes, we spend 24/6.5 together! We met at an open mic sponsored by Victory Music, which is now hosted at the Q cafe every Tuesday night. You might even catch us performing there once in awhile!

Victory has open mics and concerts in other locations, Tacoma, Lynnwood and at Crossroads Mall in Bellevue and there are many other open mic opportunities around town, to play and also to go listen. We will write more about music and listening opportunities from time to time.

Q Cafe
3223 15th Ave W, Seattle 98119
(just south of the Ballard Bridge at Dravus St. exit) • (206) 352-2525 • www.qcafe.org
Sign up: 5:45 - 6:15 pm Music: 6:30 - 9:00 pm
Cover charge: $3 general public, $2 members. Performers don't pay!
Wonderful large venue, very family friendly. Coffee, tea, soft drinks and pastries available.

Lynette Hensley
Associate Broker

Tour of the Washington State Ferries

One of the most wonderful things about living in the Seattle area is that we are surrounded by water, trees and mountains. Trees all around, mountains to the East and West, and big ones to the North (Mt Baker) and to the South (Mt. Rainier). Driving around the area, views will open up to reveal all these beautiful features around us.

To fully enjoy the water, it's best to use a boat--and if you don't have your own you may like to take a ferry to locations around the sound, far or near. Larry and I love to take a ferry from Anacortes in the summer to the San Juan islands. Our favorite is probably Orcas Island where there is an indie music festival sometime in mid July called Woodsong. Two days of almost constant indie music....it's worth checking out--ask us for more info--we've been to the festival a couple of times and just love it! But that's actually another blog post!

Here's a little photo tour of our ride to and from Port Orchard yesterday where we went to take a BuyerTour of a historic building for sale, an old grange hall that has a dance floor, stage, and a loft as well as a kitchen and meeting space. Zoned residential, it was to be renovated into a residence, but now it's for sale.

The Washington State Ferry site is comprehensive, with good access to schedules and fares, and they also have a mobile version if you need to access it by mobile internet.

Lynette Hensley
Associate Broker

Investor Alert! Great value in fully furnished waterfront view condo! $289,950

You won't find another place like this for this price...this is truly a steal. Located right on the point in Alki, one of Seattle's most desirable waterfront communities, this one bed/one bath condo has the whole 10 yards for only $289,950!



This unit offers a fabulous view of the Sound and mountains, French doors to a Juliette balcony facing the back at a nicely landscaped (by nature of course) foresty bluff, new electrical, a brand new titanium Asko washer and dryer, granite countertops, new dishwasher, stainless steel appliances, and...not to mention...it comes FULLY FURNISHED. There is tons of storage, as she had custom made furniture put in the living room and the bedroom. Buy it and get your tenant in here asap; at this price the rent will almost pay for the mortgage, especially with the super low interest rates!

Oh, not to mention I have a super motivated seller. She needs this GONE!! If someone can close on this by January somebody can get a FANTASTIC deal. See the virtual tour!

Contact me for a private showing:

Amy Kizaki
206.384.7169 direct
amy@seattlepowersearch.com

West Seattle Best Coffehouse...It's Hotwire Again!

Here is the Hotwire Online Coffeehouse Announcement which was sent to me...wow, I love this place, I guess I'm not alone!!

Hotwire West Seattle Voted the Best Coffeehouse for the Second Year!
Seattle, Washington - October 3rd, 2008 - It's official, Hotwire Online Coffeehouse was voted best coffee in West Seattle by the local community.

News hit the streets late yesterday via the West Seattle Herald; the community in West Seattle voted Hotwire Coffee into the top spot for the best coffeehouse in the area! This is the second year in a row Hotwire was voted the best coffeehouse in West Seattle.

Not only was Hotwire voted the best coffeehouse two years running but they also received runner-up awards in best customer service both years.

It's a huge accomplishment to receive the award once but to be voted the best for two years, well that is just amazing. All of the staff at Hotwire take a great deal of pride in their beverages and are always working towards making the best coffee in Seattle.

The staff are also known for their quirky but friendly demeanor. There is a lot to be said for the way they welcome new and current customers into the tiny coffeeshop. You will never get the robotic 'How may I help you' question at Hotwire, each barista has their own unique personality. It could be Kerry with the bright red hair and reader of many books, Blayne the superstar fashion designer, Mia the super nanny and lover of the party or Jessica the quiet but driven college student. Heck, you may even find Lora there, the owner of Hotwire.

It's great to know even though Hotwire is one of many choices in West Seattle for coffee the community continues to support this little Internet cafe who has been in business for the past six years. Hotwire has just finished their month-long anniversary celebration that included an interesting word challenge (read on for more....) that included customers too. In October they have another interesting event, website confessionals click here for the Hotwire Halloween page and here for the confessional blog.

The three tier basis of Hotwire's philosophy was community involvement, creating a nice place that serves a great coffee and a coffeehouse that makes you feel welcome. In addition to the welcoming atmosphere (some call it like meeting good friends) Hotwire continues to follow that philosophy by running community events such as the outdoor movies Movies on the Wall, the West Seattle art walk, West Seattle rummage sale, supporting Furry Faces Foundation, being on the West Seattle Junction Association Board of Directors and supporting other local events.

Hotwire Online Coffeehouse West Seattle4410 California Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98116
206.935.1510

Edy Kizaki
Realtor, Team Leader

www.SeattlePowerSearch.com

Cloudy with Silver Skies

Today I spent the entire day in West Seattle. We started with cupcakes and coffee at Cupcake Royale at Alaska Junction...that's the large and strollable intersection of Alaska and California. There are 2 rival cupcake and coffee bakery/cafes there, both seem to have wifi and filled with people intent on some vital inner thought... of course it is impossible to know what is on their mind, but everyone I looked at seemed to have intent expressions...a man in a t shirt with a laptop in front of him, a young woman sitting quite still looking out the window, two cupcakes under plastic domes on the round table in front of her... Within only a few steps is a great used bookstore, an antique store, a bread bakery...

Sitting there a few minutes, we absorbed the West Seattle ambiance, then met Krista (she's looking for a house), sat down and had cupcakes (mine was lemon frosted, yum) and really good coffee, and planned our ittenary from a selection of homes I'd printed out and brought along that fit within her criteria. Then we all piled into Jim's Jeep and commenced to zig zag West Seattle in search of the perfect 3 bedroom home...saw some very nice ones in fact! There were also a couple that were priced as great investments but needed quite a bit of work, which was not what we wanted on this day. However, we found that one particular neighborhood had a lot of houses that really might work. In particular one with 1800 square feet and a really great remodeled kitchen was pleasing. It was built in 1912 and retained the solid character, great moldings, and nooks and interesting spaces, but had been redone and really would be easy and rewarding to live in. Great day.

Edy Kizaki
Realtor, Team Leader
206.331.0152 (cell)