Take a Deep Breath—One More Month

Us Seattlelites complain about the lack of warm, sunny weather in the city, but I don’t think we have the stamina to handle it for days on end. It’s been a lovely summer so far, and all the 80- and 90-degree days have been fabulous. But, I’m wearing out. It has been non stop go, go, go for me since May. I hadn’t stayed in one night this summer until this week. In addition to Happy Hours, rollerblading, walking Greenlake, bonfires, and drinking on Matt’s lawn couch during the week, I’ve had plans all day, every weekend. I’ve gone camping, barcycling, boating, festivaling, day drinking, concerting, swimming. The list goes on. I’ve barely had to time to take a breath, or recover from my bingers. And now it’s catching up to me. As soon as the weather turns cool and the sun goes away, I feel like the weight of my insanely busy summer comes crashing down. I’ve done nothing but sleep this week.

Perhaps it’s the lack of nice weather year-round that makes all of us Seattlelites a little manic in the summer. We don’t want to miss out on one iota of nice weather because we know it doesn’t last long. We have to squeeze six months of good-weather plans into two or three months, and it’s tiring. I’m losing steam, and I know a lot of my friends are too. The constant stream of plans are dwindling, the incessant phone calls or slowing, the partying is calming down. I think we all feel the need to take a breath.

I love summer. It’s what I live for all year long. But, as the weather has cooled down this week, and I’ve had more of a reason to watch a movie or read a book, the onset of fall has crossed my mind. Sure, we have at least a solid month of nice weather left, one that I plan on taking full advantage of. But, it’s the Seattlelite in me that is sort of looking forward to the leaves falling, snuggling on the couch with a good book without feeling guilty, wearing a sweater, sitting inside a coffee shop, Halloween…Thanksgiving…Christmas. I think it’s this craziness of wanting four seasons that makes us appreciate Seattle and what it has to offer. It makes it okay to sit through eight months of gray skys and drizzle because we know that when summer comes, we’re going to live nine months of fun and sun in three.

Which brings me back to what I still want to accomplish in this last month…I’ll push through 30 more busy and crazy days just because I know I can, and I’ll be ready to ease back into the lazy, cold days after I feel fullfilled. Remember my summer to-do list that I wrote clear back in April? I looked back on it today, and I realized that I’m not even half way done with it. I’ve done a lot of it, but I still have some pertinent things to accomplish before the cool breeze kicks in.

I better start making phone calls, solidifying plans, and curb that lazy feeling for one more month…

Here's what I have left:

1. Ride from Seattle to Redmond on the Burke-Gilman Trail
2. Take a ferryboat to the San Juan Islands
3. Play catch
4. Walk through the Aboretum’s beautiful gardens
5. Play Frisbee at least once, and learn to throw the damn thing right
6. Play tennis
7. Buy a kite and fly it
8. Take a mini road trip
9. Go to at least one outdoor summer movie
10. Play a Game of mini-golf at Interbay Golf Course
11. Drive to the Oregon or Washington coast
12. Spend a weekend in Portland
13. Go to hot springs (Another thing I’ve never done)
14. Picnic
15. Buy fresh flowers at the Market to put in my apartment
16. Sit on a dock, with my feet dangling in the water and feed the ducks
17. Float down a river in an inner tube
18. Tour wineries in Eastern Washington
19. Hot air balloon ride
20. Hit a bucket of balls at the driving range
21. Go to the fair
22. Swing on a swingset
23. Rent a paddle boat at Greenlake
24. Play horseshoes
25. Soak at night in a hot tub