Some like it ice cold

It strikes me as strange when Seattlites complain about the rain. I mean, you choose to live here, right? And this region is rather damp, no? In general, I just zip up my waterproof jacket and shoulder the weather. It doesn't always rain here, but there are many grey days, and these days have a certain chill. By early June, we Seattleites shuffle along feeling sorry for our soggy selves while our New England, Sun Belt, Rust Belt, and Corn Belt brethren bask in the early joys of summer. Okay so the midwest had horrific tornadoes rip through a few weeks ago. I'm sure the storms ripped the clouds out of the sky to expose some sun.

In Seattle's defense, on sunny summer days it stays light ridiculously long. I'm talking 5:30 a.m. and the sun is shining with such vigor that I jump out of bed fearing I missed the bus. Conversely, two hours after dinner's cleaned up, the sun is burning so brightly I wonder if I should go for a run or maybe learn how to garden. Then I see that it's 9:30pm, and I look down at my slippers and think better of it.

The other day I took Edie to the baby clothes store and picked up some sweet summer duds on sale. Prior to our outting, she had one pair of shorts that were gathering dust. How will she deal with the heat and humidity? What about me and Dave? I'm thinking lots of lemonade, some lakeside swimming, and minimal A/C. We'll see if I'm so fond of the New Enland summer in a few weeks.

On a parting note, summer in Seattle is one of the Northwest's best kept secrets. It starts the week after 4th of July. Long, hot, dry days with painfully gorgeous sunsets. Why are we moving the end of June again?