In Seattle, you know that summer has finally arrived when the temperature skyrockets into the upper 60′s and the sun shines for several hours at a time, causing thousands to strap on their Chacos (as opposed to formal sandals, like Birkenstocks, that make appearances at more upscale events like weddings or the ballet) and hit the outdoors, ready to make the most of the 100 days of sun that grace our fair city each year.
And, on brilliantly sunny 61˚ Friday afternoons such as this, I of course remain true to Seattle form, throwing on shorts and Tevas and heading on bike into Ballard, ‘enjoying’ the sunshine by sitting near the open door at Caffé Fiore. Now, most of the way through my iced double tall americano, I reflect on the best parts of summers past, and kick off summer 2010 with a small bucket list.
- The BEST things about Seattle in the summertime (order does not indicate importance and/or awesomeness):
-sunset watching from many vantage points, like Carkeek Park
-FOURTH. OF. JULY.
-iced coffee
-going out to dinner and eating on the restaurant’s patio like a fancy person
-WATERMELON!
-fantasizing about rad hiking and backpacking opportunities but realistically only doing it once or twice
-watching movies outdoors, like the Neill Family Film Festival, which happens, obviously
-sunglasses
-swimming in lakes
PAUSE: A 4 year old just walked by me in this coffee shop and stated “That’s what she said!” HAHAHAHAHA
-sunlight until like 9:30pm
-being able to go biking without bringing along a rain jacket “just in case”
-lots of colors, specifically green and blue, which replace the gray
- In lieu of the best parts of summers in the past, I feel inspired to name a few of my goals for Summer 2010:
-Go to a drive-in movie in Renton, or several. This, clearly, requiring a pickup truck jammed with chairs and blankets and sleeping bags in the bed.
-Spend an entire day on a speedboat on Lake Washington, with cheap beer consumption starting at precisely 10am
-Float a river (probably also involving cheap beer…pattern developing?)
-SUNSETS
-learn to be responsible enough with money that by the end of August I can afford to pay rent every month
-FOURTH. OF. JULY.
-show my friends visiting from Europe (Larissa & Charlotte) that we know how to party in the Pacific NW!
-probably at some point a road trip to California, let’s be honest
My mother is right…you should be a writer.
Can I please “Yee-haw” the following from your bucket list:
1) Road trip to California. I have lots of room, lots of cheap beer, and I am less than a mile from the ocean.
2) Boat ride on Lake Washington. Can we make that happen next weekend?
FOURTH.OF.JULY. Check.
PS: Yes, I am stalking you via your blog. Deal with it.