I have spent the past week in Seattle, and it’s been a really lovely stay. On Tuesday, I went for a walk along a lake in the city’s arboretum, and then had dinner and games with two good friends. They gifted me with a lovely mandolin, which I have since started to learn. On Wednesday I met one of my favorite writers, which I still haven’t quite wrapped my head around yet. Earlier in my visit to Seattle, I attended the Fremont Fair, with its fantastic parade (including naked, painted bicyclists!) and had a stupendous tour of downtown Seattle, with a focus on art. But despite all these fantastic adventures, the most fun part of my visit was getting to know the folks at whose house I stayed.
Let me first tell you a little about the house and how I came to stay there. It’s three stories, and painted a light shade of purple. It’s on the edge of the lovely Green Lake neighborhood north of the city, one block from the interstate highway. There are five people who live in the house, plus another who mostly lives elsewhere but has a bed nonetheless. I met two of the regular residents plus that occasional resident at Youth Dance Weekend last fall, and they were happy to take me in when I was looking for places to stay in Seattle. So I was very grateful to these three for offering me space.
But I barely saw the three of them my whole week in the city! They were off doing their own thing, and I spent most of my time with the other people in the house. Two of those studied planning during college at U-Dub, and the third bikes everywhere and is pursuing a career around energy efficiency for existing buildings (another great interest of mine). In fact, it turns out that several members of the house were among the naked bicyclists I observed during the Fremont Fair parade. They all entertain guests a fair amount. They are wonderful people, and I have greatly enjoyed getting to know them. I aspire to many aspects of their personalities for when I am living with people in the future.
Today I travel to Portland, Oregon. I hear from several reputable sources that Portland is the paragon of city planning. I’m excited!
