It was warmer and sunnier in Seattle than in Louisville these past few days and that’s a sad state of affairs all around. I arrived in sunny Seattle late-ish on Thursday night after a bit of a dicey plane ride. I hate to fly anyway, and being sick only amplified my burning wreckage paranoia. I’d been battling a sinus infection/plague of biblical proportions for almost 2 weeks right before the trip, and the prospect of my brain exploding from the cabin pressure finally persuaded me to see a doctor on Thursday afternoon, right before I left for the airport. She prescribed some antibiotics and suggested some stuff to shoot up my nose right before takeoff to keep my brain from exploding. I’m fairly sure it worked, but there was still some disconcerting popping and fizzing coming from the bridge of my nose between my eyes. Anyway, the plane didn’t explode either, Dan picked me up at the airport, and we headed to his duplex, aka the Slanty. I changed out of my work clothes and we went to a pub for some lousy fish and chips and decent beer.

Friday we woke up and had breakfast at the Shanty (a couple blocks from the Slanty) and then Dan and Michael left for work. With map in hand, I set out to explore the city on my own. I brought my camera along, but only ended up taking about 5 pictures throughout the whole trip (why take pictures when you’ve got google maps?). I stopped by a record store on Mercer that Michael had recommended and could have spent all day there, flipping through the vinyl. They had a ridiculously huge used CD section, and it took all the willpower in the world to yank myself out of there. Walked around the Queen Anne neighborhood a bit more before heading down Harrison to the waterfront. I grabbed some coffee across from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer building and cut through the sculpture garden to the piers on Alaskan. There’s something hypnotic about water and I love to just sit and watch the waves. I spent several minutes doing my best Little Mermaid impression, gazing wistfully out to sea (sound). The mountains to the west were starting to come out and it was turning into a gorgeous day. I walked a bit further and stumbled across a pair of unmarked, unlocked gray doors at the end of a pier. I’m a firm believer in the path less traveled by, and that includes unmarked, unlocked entrances. Having more or less no idea where it would lead me, I opened the doors and walked through, finding myself about midway through the salmon ladder exhibit in the Seattle Aquarium. I just checked online, and it turns out this happy discovery saved me $16. My flexible morals and I spent the better part of the morning with our noses pressed to the thick glass of the Pacific Coral Reef exhibit, and watching the octopus being fed squid. It was awesome. After awhile, more out of a sense of punctuality than of guilt, I left the aquarium and headed back out to the street. Walked along the piers and cruise ship terminals some more, doing my best to look like a local amidst the tourists, and then UP THE HILL to pick up Dan for lunch. And merciful God, what a hill. Another month in Seattle, and you could bounce quarters off my ass. I felt like there should be a rope-pull like the bunny slopes; I was more than a little winded when I reached the top. I got there a teensy bit early, so headed into a café to rest my quads and settle into some hot tea and weekly newspapers.

After running some errands, Dan and I ate an epic lunch at a little Vietnamese place and I’m seriously considering looking into the possibility of trans-continental delivery. Delicious, delicious food. We walked around downtown a bit, and I got to see those guys sling the fish to one another. We hiked up and down hills, talked about life, and stopped in a greenhouse that was home to a living nurse log. Later that day we began the first of many Conversations On The Porch With Beer. The Slanty sits on a corner surrounded by some ugly apartment buildings but has a beautiful view of the Space Needle and the sound. You can watch the ferries (and the fairies) go by from the front porch and the yard boasts some charming woodpiles, an empty frappuccino bottle (only in Seattle would Starbucks merch replace beer cans), and a cat named Darwin. And a raccoon that doesn’t have a name. Porch thoroughly sat upon and COTPWB concluded, we hopped into the car and drove a bajillion miles away to a high school baseball/softball game. We (okay, mostly me) ogled the jailbait and Dan explained the finer points of pitching. Whatever teeny-bopper staff member Dan had hoped to impress by showing up never showed up and we ended up just being the creepster old folks that hang around high schools. We even brought beer, though ended up not drinking it; the legality of which we debated, but decided that neither being arrested nor escorted off high school property were things either of us were terribly excited about.

Back to the Slanty and eventually to Zeek’s for Thai pizza. We were supposed to meet Jocab at a bar later that night, but after a pitcher of beer split between us, neither of us felt particularly like driving. I called Jocab and we all decided to meet back at the Slanty for more beer (I’m starting to think the beer calories might counteract the hill-walking ass tightness) and FotC. Along the way we drunk-dialed/speaker-phoned Cliff and lamented the fact that it’s been 4 years (!) since that sweet picture (I’m the cute one in the middle).

Next day, Dan and I got up bright and early to man a booth at the YMCA’s Healthy Kids Day. It was another great day to be outside, and we hula hooped and enjoyed the sun until mid-afternoon. Another quick COTPWB and then to the shops for falafel makins. It took two separate trips to two separate grocery stores to get all we needed, but we had a really fun time doing it and ended up with quite a feast. We chopped and fried and sampled and had quite a spread ready by the time Dan’s friends, OtherDan and Laura, arrived. OtherDan and Laura actually live on a sailboat, which is ridiculously fucking cool. We had wine and sake, and a whole shit-ton of assorted toppings for our Mediterranean extravaganza. It was amazing. We retired to the parlor for a brief interlude before heading back out to meet some of OtherDan’s friends at a pub called Mulleady’s. Clever. Things pretty much devolved from there and after a bit, Dan and I stole a cab and headed back to the Slanty. The cabbie was former baker, used the word “fuck” a lot (more than me), and advised us on the best bagels in town.

Sunday consisted of several bouts of COTPWB, interspersed with trips to the airport (sidenote, Dan—I think you should start charging for your shuttle services). Michael drove Jenny and I around town and pointed out several parks, tourist attractions, and gorgeous scenic spots. Had I brought my camera, it would have been an excellent time to document views like this one. That smudge in the left, middle quadrant is a mountain, btw. Back to the Slanty to pick up Dan, and then we hiked up another goddamn hill to the 5-Spot. It was Austin night and there were significantly fewer vegetarian options than I’d been lead to believe. (All in all, the vegetarian lifestyle sort of fell by the wayside over the course of the weekend. Jenny introduced me to a useful term that I’ve started to employ). Still, the food was good and the company was awesome. After heading back down the hill and eventually to bed, it was only a few more hours before I was up again, too early, and back on the plane headed to cold, dreary KY.

It was a wonderful vacation and I had an amazing time. Seattle rocked my socks off, which isn’t too surprising. I’ve heard great things, obvi, and it seems just about right that I’d fall in love with another city just after committing at least 2 years of my life to school in this one.