Humor me

So what is it about Seattle/Washington that's so different from any other place? I'm hopefully going to put that into exact words throughout this blog. Its just a special place. And as cheesy as that sounds, its so true. Ask any outsider who's visited. First, they get over the initial shock that its not raining (that's right, it doesn't rain as much as you hear). On sunny days, its the most beautiful place in the world. My favorite places in Washington are when you can see the mountains framing a piece of water. Spectacular. That's not very hard to find either since Seattle is nestled in between the Olympic and Cascade Mt. ranges. On these days, you can also see Mount Rainier. Its, and I'm not kidding you, breathtaking. The first time my boyfriend saw it, he couldn't believe that it was a mountain and not clouds. On my last trip to WA, we flew right over Mt. Rainier:

Crazy big right??

Anyways, Mountains+ water=beautiful.

So what else sets us apart? Well, I think that's enough right there.


Let's talk food next. I'm no chef, but I do pretty well for myself. That's because a) my mom is a lousy cook and for the survival of my dad and brother, I learned how to make some dishes in high school, and b) Seattle makes it easy. I really think that in the next couple of years, Seattle cuisine is going to be the next food trend. Mainly because organic and local farming is so popular, but also because its really amazing food.

My favorite chef in all the world is Tom Douglas. He has 5 restaurants in Seattle, and hands down, serves the best breakfast at his one restaurant, Lola. Whenever we visit my family, we visit Lola. They also serve great Greek food for lunch and dinner. Try it. Put a Tom Douglas restaurant on one of your things to do before you die.

The Seattle palate is clean. Its refreshing. Its creative. We use what we have, but that's not hard because we have a lot. Our produce and seafood make the meal. One of my favorite things to do when I was living in my studio apartment in Seattle was to get a pound of clams, a crusty loaf of bread, and a crisp white wine (Chateau St. Michelle), and there's your meal. Excellent.

And finally, what makes Washington, Washington is the love for everything outdoors. I'm not talking green living and environmentalism, which we have plenty of that. I mean camping. Hiking. Kayaking. Canoeing. Backpacking. Outdoor sports. White water rafting. Hell, even just taking a stroll outside. We do these things because we have nature in our backyard. And the weather doesn't suck. I miss this the most. PA's weather is pretty harsh compared to Washington. The joke is they have 3 seasons here: summer, winter, and construction season. Winters are bitter and summers are humid. Plus, there's ticks. AH.

But, these things are important to me. Its a central part of me. Hiking isn't just exercise. Its a stress reliever. With the start of this blog, I'm going to start recording my hiking excursions. Pennsylvania is a beautiful state, and there are trails here too! So I'm going to hike and write.

And I hope you read along. Are you out there? Let me know!! I'll write anyways though.

Intros and such

I think this is silly too, but oh well, I'm going to try it anyways. Maybe its because I just got back from a two week vacation to the Pacific Northwest. Or, maybe its because I'm reading that Julie/Julia Project book and she started a blog, and I'm witty too, though less with the f-bombs. Either way, I want more Seattle in my life, and there's no better way to get yourself to do something nowadays than with a record for everyone to see. And besides, I need something else to do online other than Facebook.

So here's the backstory, which I'm going to try to keep anonymous as possible for safety reasons. I'm 24, living in Central PA for nearly 2 whole years. I was born and raised in the Seattle area, outside of the city. My boyfriend is the reason I moved to PA. He bought me a Labrador puppy to make up for it, so its all good. I'm also a nurse, but that has nothing to do with this blog. (Maybe that's why I'm writing? Nursing isn't getting my rocks off).


My goal is to just bring the things I loved back into my life. I'm positive that this is going to help me in many ways.


Plus, less interesting people have blogs, so I'm entitled.