these good days make us wealthy beyond measuring

We are two* days into vacation and I am already brainstorming ways to become independently wealthy so that we can do this all the time. We win at recreation.

*(Three for me, since I took Friday off, as well. Sal had to work but it was an end-of-semester day, which meant he didn't have to go in until 10 and was home by 4. So half a day for him, really.)

Taking advantage of Sal actually being home on a Friday night, and the newly-arrived nice weather, we headed to the new HUB Bikebar. (Note, that's a bike bar, not a biker bar. As in, bi-, not motor-.) It's nice having a Hopworks closer to the house (especially on Williams, since that area is just awesome anyway) and this one has a more neighborhood feel than restaurant feel. We snagged a seat on the patio and talked about the last few weeks while we ate.

Sal headed to the Organic Brewers' Festival yesterday over at Overlook, while I spent the day in the studio, working on two new art journal spreads. In the evening, we went to Amnesia Brewing so we could again sit outside and enjoy a casual dinner in another one of our favorite neighborhoods. And even though they didn't offer lemonade, the bartender concocted one for me on the spot. And a damn tasty one at that.

Then we decided we wanted to finally try Salt & Straw (in yet another neighborhood we love) after talking about it forever; unfortunately, we didn't have much cash with us so we had to share a cup instead of each getting our own. Sal, ever the gentleman, allowed me to pick the flavor. I of course went with the salted caramel.

There are some new shops and restaurants since we were there last, so we wandered as we took turns eating our ice cream. And managed to withstand the temptation of Collage as we sauntered by, if only because they were closed. We did not, however, withstand the temptation of Petite Provence. We emerged laden with a sophisticated bakery box of tarts and treats.

Today was the Sunday Parkways, in which the city closes down a bunch of streets in a part of town for the whole day, and people can take over the spaces for neighborhood parties and bike riding and impromptu basketball games and whatever else they want to do without having to worry about cars. It was North Portland's turn this month, and the network of streets that were closed connected a bunch of neighborhood parks, all of which had activities going on to make the most of the day. Combined with the aforementioned newly-arrived nice weather, it meant there were A LOT of people out (ETA: it was officially the largest turnout since the Parkways began), and it was just generally all the best things about Portland on a sunny June day.

So vacation has started off with a bang, and will continue into awesomeness. Tonight we did a bit of cooking and baking in preparation for a few days at Oceanside. (NOTE TO POTENTIAL THIEVES AND/OR BURGLARS: We have a housesitter and very alert neighbors so don't even bother.) We cleaned out New Seasons of basically every good thing to eat in stock -- INCLUDING OMG AN ENTIRE FLAT OF HOODS OMG SRSLY DELAYED STRAWBERRY SEASON HAS COINCIDED NICELY WITH OUR VACATION Y/Y? -- so we will not be in danger of starving. It's a real worry, you know.

Anyway, we'll get up to our usual shenanigans at the coast and then we'll see what other trouble we can get ourselves into when we get back. And I might just come up with a way to make every day a vacation day....

Comments

[Tammy]

Sounds like a lovely start to your vacation. I hope every minute of it is simply wonderful for both of you! Let me know what you figure out for making every day a vacation day....

[Bitty]

I will share my secret formula with you as soon as I come up with it. I know I can trust you to keep it close. It will be important and valuable information, so we will have to guard it very carefully.

[Tammy]

You know it! I'm actually working on a plan for making my work feel more like play, which is a step closer. Will have to talk when you get a chance!