A Golden Afternoon

This year's barbecue at Golden Gardens was, like last year, a small gathering. Still, we managed to light the charcoal grill without the use of lighter fluid or a chimney starter, and the evening bonfire provided a good opportunity for s'mores. All in all, it was a pleasant afternoon on the beach, but a sad reminder that summer will soon end.

Showing Off Seattle

I love playing tour guide. This, I suppose, is one reason why I actually am something of a guide in Real Life - an assistant tour guide, but that's close enough, right? So when two of my cousins, Audrey and Bethany, along with their friend Becca, asked if they could stay with us for the weekend for the purpose of hearing one of Audrey's favorite singers, AA Bondy, perform at the Tractor Tavern, my first thought was "Yes! I can play tour guide for the day and show them Seattle!"

OK, not really. That was not literally my first thought. In truth, I was more excited by the fact that some of my cousins were interested in coming up to visit, even if the visiting part was not their primary motivation. While most of my cousins, all of whom are younger than I, have moved into adulthood, I've spent little time with them since my own teen years, back when I was the babysitter or just the goofy older cousin. It's an interesting experience for me to get to know my cousins now as peers rather than cute (and sometimes mischievous - although I wouldn't really put Bethany or Audrey in that category) little kids, reading Ranger Rick magazines, eating peanut butter sandwiches, and playing dress-up with grandma's inherited costume jewelry collection.

But playing tour guide was a nice little perk (Seriously - I love showing people my town - take me up on that offer if you dare!). In Wallingford we tasted wines at Bella Cosa, ice cream at Molly Moon's, cupcakes at Trophy, and Bethany even bought a bottle of one of my favorite beers to take home from Bottleworks. We hit Gasworks, the samples at Theo Chocolates, and rummaged through the crazy (crazy ugly, in many cases) fashions of the past at the Fremont Vintage Mall. I discovered, not that it was a surprise, that visiting the locks on a February evening is pretty dull - there are no boats and no fish - and still managed a brief evening trip down the beach at Golden Gardens despite the fading light. Following dinner at Root Table in Ballard we headed to the Tractor, and I have to say that Audrey has pretty good taste in music. We were treated to some great performances to cap off the evening, and Audrey seemed more than please to report that AA Bondy was, "way better in person."

They've turned out pretty well, I think. At least they put up with all my random Seattle factoids and stories pretty well, so they're nothing if not polite. I think I need to stop referring to, "If it was summer..." in my Seattle guiding. But hey, maybe it will encourage people to come back!

Golden Gardens Fills Your Eyes

On Sunday my friend Amy V (I say this to differentiate her from my friend Amy G - heh, that rhymes) and I hosted our (almost) annual barbeque and bonfire at Golden Gardens park in Seattle. The day was gorgeous, and on a gorgeous day the views across Puget Sound are enough to keep you from thinking too much about how sooty your feet are getting from all that charcoal-blackened sand. After somewhat uneven and unpredictable weather this past summer, we ended up with one of the flat-out nicest days of the season - after Labor Day, no less!

We even managed to get the charcoal grill going without lighter fluid or any other fancy tricks other than some newspaper, a few slivers of "kindling" found on the beach, and Amy's special skill with extremely long matches. Guests had brought marinated chicken, beef and pepper kabobs, sausages, and hot dogs. Any of these items will, naturally, taste better when cooked over a hardwood charcoal grill on the beach rather than in the confines of your own kitchen over an electric burner.

The only unfortunate thing about the day was how few people were able to join us. While it was great getting to visit with the friends who came, I think we have to concede that this year's turn out was unusually low, so in the end it was more of a casual afternoon with a few friends rather than a real party. That's OK, but I can't deny I was hoping to see more people and enjoy a rip-roaring bonfire. As it was, we didn't even have a bonfire because we didn't get the wood we were expecting. All was not lost, however, as the few of us who were there in the evening snuck over to another fire pit that appeared to be abandoned, but still contained some glowing embers, so we could roast our marshmallows for s'mores. They're still delicious after all these years!