13 Coins

Last night, my husband and I went and had dinner at 13 Coins across from the airport. My husband has grown up in Seattle and yet had never eaten there. I decided it was time to remedy that and we wanted to celebrate a little victory. So early evening found us being ushered to the counter and tucked into the big comfy chairs you see in the picture to have some dinner.

13 Coins has been around longer than I have, since 1967 according to their website. They are open 24 hours a day, famous for their Eggs Benedict and their "open" kitchen. Living in the city, you find quite a few restaurants that are open very late and a few that are continually open. For twelve years in my twenties and early thirties, I lived up on Capitol Hill in Seattle. I had moved back to the city from a small town on the Olympic Peninsula where I had never felt at home. Now, living in the neighborhood where my grandparents lived for almost as long as I could remember, I had come back to my native heath.

For the eight years I had been away, I would hear radio ads for the opera, the symphony, Broadway shows, festivals and sporting events that were going on in Seattle. I promised myself that one day, I would move back to the city and I would enjoy all the things I was missing out on by living away from it. My chance finally came and at 21, after finding a suitable job with opportunities for promotion, I came home. Little by little I kept my promise. At first, I could only afford the occasional show or hockey game but, as I rose in my company, I began to truly live the life I had envisioned for myself. Soon, I had season tickets to the Seattle Thunderbirds and the Seattle Opera. If something or someone came to town that I wanted to see, I went. I got to see Mikhail Baryshnikov dance, see Dr. John perform live, go to Les Miserables and Phantom of the Opera, see The Nutcracker, go to Bumbershoot and so much more. It was during this time that I made some of the best friends I've ever had.

Eating out after a show or a game became standard practice because often I would not have time between work and an event to do more than shower, get dressed and go. I've stood at Dick's Drive-In in a full length gown on my way home from the opera devouring a Dick's Deluxe, fries and a shake with transvestites and homeless guys. I've eaten with friends at 3 in the morning at the IHOP off Broadway. Finally, one night after the ballet, my friend, Angela, took me to have dinner at 13 Coins in downtown Seattle. We sat in captain's chairs at the counter, flirted with the staff and had dinner. I love Eggs Benedict so that was the natural choice for me. I think Ange had pasta or a steak and we ordered dessert. It was one of the most memorable dining experiences I have ever had.

Since that time I have eaten at 13 Coins many times but the memory that comes back to me is always that meal with Angela. I think we got to the restaurant about 10:30 or 11 and we didn't leave until after 1 a.m. I remember thinking as we walked out to the car that it was for evenings and experiences like this one that I moved back to the city.

John had their prime rib special last night and I had a shrimp louis. Afterwards, we split one of their massive creme brulees. It was relaxing to sit and watch the salad/dessert prep cook do his work. I watched him make my salad and my husband's eyes just about came out of his head when the guy lit up the blow torch to caramelize the sugar on our creme brulee. We got a kick out of banter that went on among the staff and were waited on most attentively. It was another great experience.

"The "13 Coins" name is of Peruvian origin. The story goes that a poor young man loved and wished to marry a wealthy girl. Her father asked what he had to offer for his daughter's hand in marriage. The young man reached into his pocket. He had only 13 coins, but assured the father he could pledge undying love, care and concern. The father was so touched, he gave his daughter's hand and "13 Coins" has come to symbolize unyielding love, care and concern."

John Denver & Friends

"Friends, I will remember you, think of you, pray for you and when another day is through, I'll still remember you."


I've been thinking about my friends a lot lately. My father once told me that I had the gift of friendship. He told me that he admired how well I kept track of my friends and it inspired him to be better about doing the same. It is one of the nicest things my dad has ever said to me which is really saying something because he says a lot of nice things. I hope that I live up to those kind words.


I will say, I have a lot of close friends and a lot of other friends too. At my wedding shower, someone commented when I introduced everyone that I also said something about each of them and they all fell into some group or other. I had friends from my current job, friends from my former job (like the group pictured), friends from church, friends from book group, friends from Curves, friends that are family and so on and so forth.


Now what, may you ask, does John Denver have to do with all this? I am a huge fan of John Denver's music. I know this will leave me open to ridicule but so be it. A lot of his songs have to do with friendship including the lyrics that begin this post. In Poems, Prayers and Promises and This Old Guitar and several other of his songs he sings about the importance of his friends in his life. I really relate to that.


One of the most difficult things that has ever happened to me is damage to a long standing friendship. I don't lose friends. I have drifted apart from friends due to distance or changing interests but I don't lose them. In fact, I have often gone to great lengths to maintain friendships and to keep communication flowing with a friend even when we disagree. I am loud and opinionated and so I do disagree with my friends on occasion but I don't end friendships over foolish things like that. For the first time since I was a child, I had what I believe to be a nearly irreparable break with a friend this past year. A few people really close to me know about it but I haven't generally talked about it. It has been painful.


I won't describe or go into detail here about what happened. The bottom line is I wouldn't give in to something a friend wanted me to do for her and, instead of respecting my decision, she whined, complained and let loose a steady stream emotional blackmail and abuse that has continued for months. It has grieved me as much as if this person had died. It is now to the point that even if she does eventually apologize and we move back into friendship, I will not trust her again and our friendship has been forever changed. (She is not in the picture above by the way. )


Yet with all that, I still think of her as "friend" and so:


"Friends, I will remember you, think of you, pray for you and when another day is through, I'll still remember you."

Funny Girl

I have been considering starting a blog for a little while. However, having read the blogs of others, I hesitated to get caught up in the great blogging whatsit. Some are very, very good and therefore, intimidating; some of them are incredibly boring and therefore, cautionary. I think I can strike a happy medium and so have decided to give it a try.

On April 26, 2008, I married my best friend much to my surprise. I had always enjoyed being single. I knew John when we were children. I was his Sunday School teacher when he was a teenager and I was in my twenties. We lost touch for a few years and then we got back in touch in August, 2006. It was at a time when he needed a friend. So we started doing friend things together. After six months or so, he wanted more but I didn't so he waited patiently for two months until I did. By October, 2007 we were engaged. We've been married six months now.

Part of my hesitancy to get married was the prospect of having someone else around all the time for the rest of my life. But, since it is John, I am okay with it. As schmaltzy as it may sound, I am a better me with him. We love each other very much.

The title of my blog comes from the movie Funny Girl. The day after John and I were engaged, I went to my friend, Muriel, and said "I am going to be a Sadie." She immediately sang out "SADIE, SADIE MARRIED LADY!" bless her. I have moved from being a happy singleton to being a happy Sadie.