Happy Independence Day!

Seattle on July 4 from Kerry Park

There are few better places to be in the world than Seattle on a beautiful summer day - and so it was yesterday. Of course, only in Seattle would an 85-degree day be considered ridiculously, unconscionably hot.

We had the best of both worlds yesterday - it was a cloudless, brilliantly blue day made for spending time with friends, reconnecting with what's really important, and, for some, getting mind-numbingly intoxicated and blowing up a variety of military-grade fireworks.

We spent the morning with our new friends Chris and Kim, who were in town for a wedding, and had a terrific brunch with them at the Alki Cafe in West Seattle. Chris is not only impressively named, but he is a Sonics fan with whom I've chatted for several years and also enjoys Chevy muscle cars. Good man. Plus, he's built in such a way that he could tear me into four roughly separate but equal pieces, so I treated him with a great deal of respect.

That's me with Kim and Chris.

Following that, we ran over to have a barbecue with Kim, Chavi, and various other friends. As usual, those two decided at the last minute to stage an event, and they didn't disappoint. We all hid from the sun while dining on their succulent barbecued treats and wrapped it all up with homemade ice cream.

All in all, I hope others had as terrific a July 4. God Bless America.


Some of the kids at the barbecue had ... perhaps a bit too much sugar.