Summer in Seattle

I regularly tell anyone who will listen that the best season, anywhere in the world, is summer is Seattle. The gray skies are gone for three months, and the whole city glows like nobody's business. It is like one big outdoor party, and I took full advantage this weekend.

Cinema on the Lawn
On Friday night, Jana and I went to South Lake Union for the Cinema on the Lawn. The movie was Heathers, the well-loved dark comedy set in the unreal world of 1980's high school. It was fun to sit outside on a perfect night and watch the movie with the rest of the city. And it was great to see the Space Needle shining in its yellow Sub Pop glory as we made our way out of the park.

Biking to Redhook
On Saturday we went for a bike ride with friends. We took the Burke-Gilman and Sammamish River trails north to the Redhook brewery in Woodinville. The ride was spectacular -- tree-lined trails, views of Mount Rainier, and incredible weather.

At the brewery, we enjoyed lunch and a pitcher of their summer seasonal outside on the deck. We also joined a tour for more beer drinking, a bit of history, and a brief brewing lesson. I learned that Redhook's "new" Long Hammer IPA is really just their Ballard Bitter (Ya Sure, Ya Betcha) with a more marketable name. I also learned that people love to bike to the brewery. I'd estimate that we saw 300 bikes on the racks in front of the Alehouse. Impressive.

Concert at Sunset Tavern
After a long ride most people would be tired, but instead of going to bed I stayed up late for a concert at the Sunset Tavern in Ballard. It being a perfect Seattle weekend, two of my favorite local bands were playing: Tullycraft and BOAT (along with the best ever indie pop band in Denton -- Fishboy).

The show was intimate and friendly. When Tullycraft introduced a sing-along, they started by asking how many people had seem them before. Half the crowd raised their hands, which made me nod my head and think, yeah, it's like playing for friends. It was that way for all the bands, with the groups in the audience leading the cheers and dancing along.

The opening band, Fishboy was an absolute revelation. They blasted through their nasally, nerdy songs, sounding like a poppier and more twee mixture of They Might Be Giants, Neutral Milk Hotel, and the Mountain Goats. (Yeah, you read that right. Check them out.) They had the crowd won with just their music, but the hyper trumpet playing, break dancing, and stereo smashing put them over the top. Great sweaty show.

Tullycraft, the band that I most wanted to see, were next. Now that Death Cab are anything but local, Tullycraft have stepped up to the honor of my favorite local band on the strength of their two most recent albums. Despite their great albums, Tullycraft are incredibly self-deprecating (they probably said that they sucked a few too many times during the show) and friendly. The downside of Tullycraft's local feel is that the show felt a bit small-time. The setlist was too short and the sound was too mediocre to meet all my expectations, but it was still damn fun. I sang along and bobbed my head, smiling up at the stage as the whole of Tullycraft smiled back at the crowd. Good times.

BOAT had the anchor leg, which surprised me after seeing them open for Blitzen Trapper and Menomena. They seemed like a promising little band in that show. This time they were kicking off their West Coast tour, and they were a different band -- a band getting ready to take a stab at being known. Their stage banter was poor but their stage presence and sound were big. They played new songs from their Topps EP and some of the best tracks off their two previous albums. The choruses were as loud and energetic as they were catchy, and the new material was stellar. They closed the show by asking some of the crowd and the opening bands to come on stage and shake percussion instruments. The crowd framed D. Crane and his guitar, and the dude looked like a real rock and roll hero. Cool stuff. I hope they make it.

Kayaking on Lake Union
On Sunday morning I got up early (at least early for the morning after a show) and went for a run at Dahl Playfield. Dahl Playfield is just down the street from our new house, and it has a nice running trail around the perimeter. I did eight laps, upping my pace each time.

After cleaning up around home, gardening, and preparing dinner, Jana and I headed to Agua Verde to kayak with friends. We paddled to Gasworks Park and toward the southern end of Lake Union before heading back. It was another amazing day, and half of Seattle was out cruising on the water. It felt great to be out on the water and right in the middle of the city at the same time. As we dipped our paddles in the water and took in the sights, I couldn't help but smile and think to myself: there's no better season in the world than summer in Seattle.

After kayaking we had dinner with friends on our backyard deck, enjoying an another incredible evening. After dinner we played ping pong in the basement and ate our home made ice cream. It was quite possibly the perfect Seattle weekend.