Seattle

When: July 12–15, 2007
Where: Seattle, WA
Words: Eighth circle, sort of.

FRIDAY

I got in late Thursday night and slept for 10 hours. It was glorious, unlike Alaska Airlines' on-time departure record.

My bro hauled himself to work the next morning, while I lazily abandoned my plans for a run (too drizzly) and waited for Dad, Ann, and Savta to come fetch me in their rented steed. We headed straight to Pike Place Market:


Raspberries and apricots and Rainier cherries, oh my!

We didn't stop at this place, but someday I will:


Then we wandered along the piers to find a boat tour of the harbor. Touristy, yeah, but also pretty great on a crisp, clear day. The sun came blazing out about halfway through the ride, and stayed that way the rest of the weekend.






I don't have an iron stomach or iron legs when it comes to boats, so I didn't stand up much to take pictures. Here's how my family looks from behind:




And from the side:


Let's hear it for my savta. Can this dame wear a hat, or what?




Don't forget the bare necessities when you travel, ladies: water, practical shoes, impractical purse.


After our watery adventure, we picked up some fresh deliciousness at the market and headed home to cook it.

grill maestro

the happiest i've ever seen a kid look about salad

hooray!

SATURDAY

On Saturday, our intrepid crew headed to Snoqualmie Falls. They don't make visitors work too hard—this beautiful view is about 100 yards from the parking lot.


But we were looking for a little more action, so we took a hike down toward the water and discovered the giant hydroelectric plant that harnesses the power of the falls through these here pipes:


We also passed the most attractively named port-a-johns ever.


Almost makes you want to try them out, doesn't it? Yet none of us did.

The pathway along the river had helpful signs:


I don't know these people, but they made for a neat postapocalyptic photo:


On the way back up the trail, we shot our Abbey Road tribute album cover.


After a good sweaty hike comes a diner, as everyone knows. This one starred in the Twin Peaks movie and has a killer Tweety Bird memorabilia collection. I love diners.

SUNDAY

After a long night's sleep and an early yoga class, we found brunch.

And there was much rejoicing.

Independence Day

When: July 4, 2007
Where: Shepherd Canyon Park
Words: Who needs 'em, when you have lemonade and sunshine?

Rodeo!

When: June 14, 2007
Where: Livermore, CA
Words: Don't look now, but there are some here.

What can I say? I grew up in a small New England town, and I've lived in some beautiful cities in some far-flung countries, and I've driven all the way across America twice and Texas once—but I'd never seen a rodeo before.

It was like discovering a fully inhabited planet in your backyard, full of people who all know each other and love the same things. Except you don't have any idea what those things are, even when they're right in front of you.

But I'm pretty sure that's a horse:

And I hear these are some tasty corn dogs:

And this is a big ol' plastic beer.

Luckily, I had a guide through the wilderness, a true horsewoman whose mad skills are equaled only by the coolness of her A&M belt.

Back in March, I met Alyssa and Ben and their crew in a bar. That same night, in a different bar, we watched a tiny Asian man with an enormous mullet sing some throat-scratching blues. He was fantastic. So are they.