It has only been a couple of days since I returned from Seattle, and for some reason, I find myself restless at night. At first, I thought it might be due to the change in time zones. However, I adapted to that within a day of rest.

Maybe I am still too wound up from last Sunday’s Faculty Within Your Reach event at the Seattle Art Museum? After all, there were more than 70 people in attendance and as always, Patrick Allitt, Cahoon Family Professor of American History, gave an energizing and witty lecture on Picasso in Paris before touring the exhibit with our alumni group.
See the photos here.

Perhaps I’m still running on adrenaline from being at the top of the world-famous Seattle Space Needle. At 607 feet, the views of Seattle were absolutely breathtaking!

No, I didn’t receive an unsettling TSA pat down; although, my carry-on bag was taken to a different area for further inspection. I guess the three packages of smoked salmon that I bought at Totem Smokehouse and the souvenir Space Needle Lego set looked a little suspicious on the x-ray monitor.

I’ll tell you why I’ve been sleepless. Love has been keeping me up at night. It turns out that I found my one true love in Seattle last weekend. No, it’s not like an early 90’s romantic comedy, because this pain is real.

I fell in love with Beecher’s “World's Best Mac & Cheese,” and it was love at first bite. I grew up eating the familiar baked macaroni and cheese made with elbow pasta and creamy cheddar cheese, and I thought that my mom made the best in the world. However, mom’s baked macaroni and cheese does not compare to Beecher’s, which is served hot and bubbly in a small paper bowl.

I’m not sure if it’s the penne pasta combined with their award-winning Flagship cheese or the surprising flavors from the spices that make their recipe so memorable. Whatever their secret, I experienced a few moments of personal bliss while sitting on a metal milk-jug stool at Beecher’s Handmade Cheese at Pike Place Market. Although brief, my cheesy love affair with the “World's Best Mac & Cheese” will definitely be an affair to remember.

-- Michael Parker, coordinator, alumni programs, EAA