January in Rainy City
It is still raining endlessly here in Seattle, but at least we’re not getting buried by mudslides like parts of California! Speaking of the Golden State, we’re headed down to Los Angeles in late January for a one-day Religion Newswriters Association meeting at USC and for a Media Project meeting to discuss the GetReligion blog I write for. It’s the first time since I’ve worked there that we’re all going to meet together, so am looking forward to that. So if anyone Down There wants to see us, we’re in town the last week of January. Disneyland is certainly on the itinerary one of those days and we may take a look at Knotts Berry Farm, which I’ve never seen.
Christmas, by the way, was very quiet. We spent time with my mother and sister-in-law Susan. Just before that, Veeka and I did an overnight to Victoria, doing a walk-on to the ferry and seeing the Christmas lights at Butchart Gardens. We had a lovely time visiting bookstores in Victoria and Chinatown. Unfortunately it rained the whole time! But it was lovely seeing the Parliament building outlined in Christmas lights. Planning continues for my visit to Iceland and the sponsors ran an interview with me here.. I snagged a ticket that my Alaska Airlines miles paid for, so that’s one huge expense I don’t have to bear. I’m putting together a list of all I want to do there, so am reading delicious articles like this one on Reykjavik bakeries. (Who knew?It’s a slow time of year; a good thing that allows me to catch up on things. I’m waiting for reviews of my book to come out and thus far, only the Nashville Tennessean has written it up. However, the book’s release came a month late, so it’s no wonder reception has been slow.A few more things: Did you know that it costs a minimum of $76,000, according to this article, to live in Seattle? .Believe me, most of the people I know are making a lot less than that. House prices in Seattle have risen 53 percent in the past four years. The country’s fastest-growing housing markets are Portland, Seattle and Denver. This article says Seattle/Portland home prices have risen at twice the national rate. I think the rest of the country has finally realized they want to live somewhere that’s beautiful so they’re all heading to Washington, Oregon or Colorado. Whenever I have neighbors over for dinner, house prices is about all we talk about and how impossible it will be for any of us to buy within 50 miles of Seattle. See this piece for what rents are expected to be east of Seattle (where I live) for 2018. It is still stupendous. So we won't be buying any time soon unless we win the lottery!