A couple weeks ago, my brother contacted me with the surprise that he would be coming to the Pacific Northwest for the last weekend of April, and could he please visit? Wonderful news! We wish we could have had Linda too, but she stayed down in Portland to visit an elderly uncle. We’ll see her when we go to her coast in August. Jes and Deena happened to be visiting the same weekend so it was a real family affair. Here we are at the Ballard Locks (Dale is behind the camera).
On Saturday, we had to go get Jordan from Spring Reign (the regional ultimate tournament), so we schlepped up to the Skagit Valley and watched them play for a while. The team members all wore silly accessories (Jordan had a blue and white polka dot tie, other kids had cat ears or silly hats or whatever). Michael tried on someone’s hilarious hat-with-hair: instant 80s rock star!
The next day we spent sampling Seattle delights including the Ballard farmer’s market, Theo chocolate, multiple coffee places, and sushi for dinner. What a day! Michael loved everything. The Ballard farmer’s market blew his mind; he’s been to the markets in Montreal, and says this is better. Fun to see things through his eyes.
It was also completely entertaining to see him work the market. My brother is incredibly warm and charming and loves nothing more than participating in a community, especially if there’s good food involved. Every vendor that he was interested in, he introduced himself (“Hi, I’m here from the east coast, my name is Mike!”), shook hands, and found some way to connect to that person. With the mushroom guy he said, “These are just gorgeous! I used to pick these kinds of mushrooms in the woods behind my house,” and the guy would explain that these are all farmed mushrooms and why he is so strongly against foraging. Fascinating! With the tuna lady, he said, “I’m a diver,” and they were off and running talking about what he collects where he lives and how that compares to the Pacific offerings. The tea guy, Ivan, was equally happy to talk about coffee, and told us all about his favorite “deconstructed latte” at a place up the street. The potter asked what Michael did for a living, and when he explained that he is a retired police officer, thanked him for his service and gave him a sweet little mug as a gift (which Michael promptly gave to me). It was a really good time, just watching him in action.
Later, we all enjoyed a ridiculously bountiful sushi dinner.
Jordan was away at Spring Reign most of the weekend, so he’ll have to wait until August to get to know Michael better, but Aaron is already all in. What’s not to love?? Michael is super affectionate, tells funny stories, gives fun spontaneous gifts like a giant tubular bag of fresh kettle corn, and is just an all around good time. After he left, Jordan spotted a deck of cards that he thought Michael had left behind; it wasn’t Michael’s, but Aaron said, “I wish it was his so that maybe he would come back and get it.” Awwww!
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