Hangin' in the 'Ham.

Living as I do in Wickersham, it's easy to forget that the rest of the world exists. We have everything here: wilderness adventures, lifetime friendships, homegrown food, endless hours and days of food and fun and family and the never-ending call to improve our one green acre.

When I do venture out, however, its to be reminded that we live in a wonderful region. Working in Bellingham one day per week doesn't serve to refresh my memory correctly; my employer is in an industrial and commercial neighborhood, full of shipping plants and big box stores. A downtown springtime Saturday, however, is another matter.

Even in the rain, Bellingham is beautiful. Gentrification has crept in, but with a unique Northwest-sustainable/hip vibe. The Farmers' Market, pictured above, bustles even in the grey drizzle of our February-in-May (with which we are apparently paying for the May-in-February that we enjoyed this winter!), and the festivities around our annual Ski to Sea race satisfy despite the weather.

We followed the parade with lunch at the never-disappointing Old Town Cafe, courtesy of a birthday gift certificate from my parents-in-law, and then proceeded to a Grow Northwest launch party at Boundary Bay (whose parade entry—the only light horse hitch in the procession—is pictured above). Good times were had by all, and our children remarkably managed to stay awake, happy, and compliant for the entirety of our eight hour outing.

I think we'll do it again.