Summer's Finale

Summer has come and gone, and I write this cuddled up beneath a blanket with a cup of tea. The change of the season reminded me that I'm overdue on wrapping up my blog with summer shenanigans. It was a lot of enjoying the long nights and spending time with friends in the summer sun! 

One of the first weekends post PNW hiking trip was to Louisville to go to a music festival for the day with Elloree. We went to Forecastle Festival, which was along the Ohio River in Kentucky and it was SO hot, but a great day of seeing some of my favorites, with one of my favorites. We got to see Modest Mouse, my favorite band since I was 16ish, and it was sooooo wonderful! Seeing them always recharges me for a while, and it was great to dance to their jams! We also saw two of my favorite Swedish bands, First Aid Kit and the Tallest Man on Earth! A day well spent that also included brunch beforehand with Liz :-)

Trying to stay cool!

At least it's not snowing..

First Aid Kit

Modest Mouse!

Other events included Alex's going away party, which was an attempt at a sneaky surprise! We had a great day hiking at Fort Benjamin Harrison State Park, followed by a bonfire/party at our house in the evening. We made up for my lack of fireworks this Fourth of July by lighting off our fair share of bottle rockets, sparklers and Roman candles during the festivities and it was a great night. I don't know if Alex was necessarily surprised in the end, but it was fun all the same!

Ladies!

Sooo many sparklers!

They move and groove!

Last family portrait for a while.

The biggest highlight of late summer was Sara's visit home. As you can see from above, Sara was here, and gosh was it good to have her near for a few weeks. I am so happy for my friends all finding their places in this world, but it's hard going months, or even years, not seeing some of them, Sara especially. We made the most of Sara's return and even managed to squeeze in a trip to Brookville, Indiana for a night of camping. Brookville has become our spot as of a few years ago, and some combination of the four of us ladies (including Erin) always manage to make it down there every summer, and this was to be no exception. I've been the one to miss the past few summers and I was glad to be back, Cricket even got to go..! Kayaking down the river is the biggest adventure, and the highlight was easily Cricket falling in the water, coupled with cliff jumping from the corn fields.

We go way back.

Other highlights of the summer included FINALLY getting to see Trista and Brody's new place they bought this spring. I had to go to Milwaukee for work, and on the way home Claire (my co-worker) and I decided to stop off in Chicago for the weekend, as you have to drive right through to get to Indy anyways. I had a great weekend spending time with Trista, and her new pup, Riley! Riley is a Bernese Mountain dog, and dang is she cute! I've been plotting my kidnapping of her ever since, shh don't tell! In typical fashion, Trista also kicked my butt at a workout, brunch was had, and a trip to see Skyler at the Rainbo Club also ensued, as Alex happened to come to town as well. We also managed to squeeze breakfast in with our family, and it was a lovely trip to one of my favorite cities indeed.

Hi Riley!

Hi Trista!

Sibling love!

There were also a couple of birthdays to be had this summer, notably Julia's and Craig's. Shola, Julia, Mark and myself celebrated Julia's 30th birthday into the wee hours of the night, and it was a great day. Julia had all of her friends do yoga with her for her birthday, followed by dinner and then we were the core four that carried on into the night, winding up back at Julia's parents backyard, arguably the coziest backyard in the city. 

Craig's birthday is in the dead of summer, August, and that coincides with the Indiana State Fair, a spectacle I hadn't partaken in for quite some time. We thought we would dress the part for the fair and go on $2 night, Tuesday. We put on our best hillbilly looks and headed out for a night of carnival rides, barn animals and greasy food. A good time was had by all, and we were pretty psyched that we got Lucas onto the ferris wheel! 

Happy Birthday, Julia!

HBD, Craig!

Ferris Wheel views.

Indiana State Fair!

There were also some festivals to be enjoyed, like the Lantern festival, as well as the India festival. Indianapolis is really upping its game in events/festivals/activities and it's really great to see the diversity of things you can be a part of. Our neighborhood also hosted a block party!

The lantern festival ultimately turned into a watermelon seed spitting contest on the porch!

India Festival with Paula and George!

A Mormon temple opened in the Indianapolis area recently, and I've always had a curiosity about the Mormons, especially their temples. Fun fact, the Mormon temples can be visited by the general public for a few weeks prior to them being blessed, and so off I went. Sally accompanied me to the temple, and we had quite the time seeing what we were allowed to see, and pondering what was being kept from us. I will say, the Mormons have a way of ensuring that everything that represents them is polished and sparkles in a way that is certainly majestic looking.

Sally, Moroni and myself

Some work related happenings included neat meetings at different locations, like the below pocket park in Haughville. I will say, that the highlight of this job has been exploring both parts of Indiana I'd never been to prior, as well as discovering the hidden gems of Indianapolis I had never thought to explore. Indianapolis, as I alluded to earlier with my comments about the festivals, is trying really hard to turn itself around and become a city that people are proud to be a part of. I was already proud to be a Hoosier from Indy, but now even more so.

Haughville pocket park!

Trips to Kokomo, Indiana

Also on the work front, my co-worker Claire left our team to pursue an opportunity in Maryland. I couldn't be happier for Claire to start this next chapter/adventure, but was definitely sad to see her go because she was such an integral part of my work family. Our boss treated us to a nice bon voyage celebration for Claire with a paddle boat ride at Eagle Creek and dinner at Rick's Cafe Boatyard, a great send off indeed! I hope to see Claire next time I make my way back to the D.C. area.

Cheers to Claire!

I also spent an evening with my co-workers fishing. While fishing isn't exactly my forte, it was really fun spending an evening with them out in western Hendricks County (where I grew up), soaking up the hillbilly vibes. We had a lovely barbecue followed by putting our poles in the water for hours. It was a great summer evening down by the lake. I've been ever so lucky to have co-workers whom I both enjoy, but also have become friends with, as these people are my saving grace when days are stressful.

Gorgeous midwestern views

Thank god I didn't catch anything!

Labor Day weekend was spent with Liz and her family down on Nolin Lake in Kentucky! Katherine and I hadn't spent real time with Liz since her wedding at the end of May, so it was great to get to join them at her sister's lake house for the weekend. Liz, Gabe, Liz's mom (Joy), Liz's sister (Emily), her husband (Trey) and their two children Livy and Max were the crew for the lake house. Katherine and I arrived on Saturday evening to the lake, and Joy, Liz, Katherine and I spent the warm summer evening on the back porch chatting away. Liz and Ryan had recently moved to Nashville, Tennessee so it was great to hear how they were settling in there. Sunday we woke up bright and early ready for a day of boating around the lake. We had so much fun swimming with the kids and the pup and soaking in the rays. It was too bad we had to go home, honestly, but it was nice to have all of Monday to recover from the sun exposure. Yay for Labor Day weekend!

Gal pals!

Gabe, Cricket and Livy swim!

I'm a natural with the kiddies :)

Besties.

Summer was rounded out nicely with a visit from Dave. We were able to spend a weekend in Brookville, where Sara, Katherine and I went earlier in the summer. We camped for two nights and got to kayak down the river as well, and it was great to finally show him this spot I've talked his ear off about for years. We got to have a picnic in the apple orchard, my ultimate happy place in Indiana. There was also a trip to Bloomington, finally, to see one of Dave's favorite bands and also a stellar meal at a Korean restaurant was had. There were games of Banangrams played, a trip to Broad Ripple, and then it seemed as if far too quickly Dave had to leave to head back to California :-( Time flies way too damn fast in this life, that's really what it boils down to.

David!!!

I win!

Orchard views :)

Raspberry pickin'

Raspberry smashin'

Hiiiiiiii!!!

The last tidbits of summer that I can share with you are that we managed to make it to the drive-in once this summer, thankfully! The drive-in theatre is always an event, and this time proved to be no exception. We brought snacks, friends and blankets to see the double header of The Visit and Straight Outta Compton, good times! 

Drive-in

And lastly, there was a concert, go figure. Alt-J was coming through Indianapolis, and we managed to get quite a crew to attend. Elloree, Erin, Katherine and Katherine's sister Isabella and her pal were the crew in tow for this concert at White River Gardens, a venue I'd always wanted to check out. We vibed on the openers, San Fermin and Best Coast and then danced like mad to Alt-J! I love live music, especially when outside with good friends.

Gal pals!

Alt-J, Bell was stoked! :)

And so concludes my summer. Autumn has really sunk its teeth in, and I am doing my best to maintain a good mindset. I'm training for another half marathon, and as I know I've said previously, running really is my saving grace. I'll update on autumn at its conclusion, but in the meantime excuse me while I go curl up under my blanket with a glass of vino.

My heart belongs in the Northwest

It's not that the Northwest is best, but it is kind of the best. A couple of years ago now I probably had the best year of my life while living in Portland. I was SO heartbroken when I had to leave it behind, but I knew I had to leave to pursue other big adventures. I never knew when I left if I'd go back, I mean I always knew I would be able to visit, but not whether or not I'd ever live there again. I obviously still don't live there, but extended stays have consoled that need to run right back. It's just simply a perfect storm for me, the combination of sea and mountains fills my heart with joy. Not to mention the music scene, the food scene, the liberal politics, and I could go on and on. 

I made three really good friends while in Portland, one being my co-worker Sunrise, whom I love so much. The other being my dear friend Jessica, who is also from Indiana, but we only ever truly connected in Portland. The last being my lady love Caitlin. Sometimes you meet people in this world that just get you, and you get them, and it's a beautiful connection; Caitlin is one of these friends. I met Caitlin through AmeriCorps, as all of the AmeriCorps in the Vancouver area were encouraged to befriend one another, and so we did. Caitlin was working for the Clark County Public Health office, and admittedly the first few months we didn't spend much time together, largely because I think we were both a bit shy about getting to know anyone in the group, and also because Caitlin is from Vancouver so she also had her friends from home. To cut a long story short, we became great friends after the new year, spent a whole heap of time together during the spring/early summer, and then I was so sad to part ways with her. 

Life took Caitlin and I different places, me to Finland, and Caitlin to California for med school. This summer, however, Caitlin was to go home for her summer break from school and would be in the PNW for the fourth of July holiday. This combination was too great to pass up, as I had been both wanting to visit Portland/the PNW and also visit Caitlin, so I booked my ticket. Caitlin asked if I would also be interested in going backpacking while I visited, and I was so glad she asked because it had been months since I'd been on a good hiking trip, let alone amongst the northwest forests!

I flew to Portland on a Wednesday after work, and was so excited for the less than 24 hours I would be spending in Portland! I got in around 1am and we went straight to Caitlin's parents and got some sleep. I woke up bright and early to have breakfast with my old boss and his wife. Mike and Doris picked me up for breakfast in Vancouver, and it was so lovely to catch up with them as they were like parents while I was there, always looking after me. They also took me out to their property they are rehabbing in east Vancouver and that was so cool to see the progress they've made. They were too kind to also leave me with a bottle of homemade plum wine to accompany me on my trip. Barely an hour later I had a lunch date with Sunrise. Sunrise and I are shockingly similar and it's always so great to catch up with her because we can relate on many of life's little nuances. Sunrise is a role model of mine in more ways than I can count and it's always refreshing to see her. After our lunch at one of my favorite spots in Portland I headed to Powell's in southeast, mostly because I wanted an excuse to drive through the city, but also because I wanted to buy a ton of postcards at Powell's as it is such a classic! After my brief rendezvous in Portland it was time to get our gear together and head north! 

Carpet game not as strong, PDX.

Crappy views of Mount Hood from the car window, but all that matters is that I saw her!

Me and my Slivovitz back home - Thanks Mike and Doris!

The camping trip was to be four of us girls - Caitlin and myself, as well as two of Caitlin's friends, Amanda and Mady. I had met Amanda during my year in Portland and I always really enjoyed spending time with her as she's such a fun, lively lady! Mady I had never met, but all three of those gals went to college together at Puget Sound, and so I knew Mady would obviously be super cool as well :-) Anywho, Mady's parents live on the eastern side of the park, closer to Tacoma in Poulsbo, and that was our destination on Thursday after Mady and Amanda got off work. We arrived to Poulsbo and crashed as we had an early start ahead of us on Friday. 

Before leaving Caitlin's parents - me, Mady, Amanda and Caitlin

We awoke on Friday morning, and realizing that we should have camped on the western side of the park, we had quite a drive ahead of us to our trailhead, neremind! At any rate, we made the drive around the park, as there isn't a road that goes through, and a couple of hours later we found ourselves ready to go! We were to hike the East Fork of the Quinault River to wind up in the Enchanted Valley. We started our hike off and a mere 5ish hours later we were at the valley, twas a nice 13 mile jaunt! It was an absolutely stunning hike and a day I'll never forget. Pictures will do the sights we saw more justice. But we set up camp, made dinner, and called it a night. 

Subaru loaded up and ready to go!

Amigas!

Quinault River at dusk - "our spot"

Saturday we woke up at our leisure, made breakfast down by the river and relaxed for a bit enjoying America's splendor on Independence Day. Mady and I decided that we wanted to try and get closer to Anderson Glacier, but Amanda and Caitlin decided they would rather sit this hike out. So Mady and I took off towards Anderson Pass, and had a really great hike. I eventually reached a point during the hike that I realized I wanted to turn around, as I didn't want the hike back on Sunday to be too miserable, as I was out of shape compared to Mady. It was kind of peaceful to hike back by myself, and Mady echoed the same sentiments when we met back up later. That was probably another 6 miles for me on Saturday, and when I returned we enjoyed a good crossword and waited for Mady to return. When Mady got back we ate dinner and drank some wine to celebrate 'merica! Honestly, despite the lack of fireworks (my absolute favorite thing about summer) this was the most beautiful Fourth of July I've had yet, so I wasn't sad about missing any firework parties because I was with great friends under a brilliant night sky. Cheers to another year, America!

Quinault River by day.

We pumped a loooot of water.

Perfection.

My happy place.

So much green, I could die.

Receding glaciers.

Cheers to you, America!

Sunday we got up with the early morning light and hit the trail nice and early. Caitlin and I were more tired than Mady and Amanda, and so we eventually broke off in pairs. Caitlin and I had a really great hike back just talking for hours. Hiking is wonderful because you are left with nothing but conversation and good views, and the conversation always goes far and wide, especially when you have about 5 hours together. We all met up for lunch and then broke off again and met back up at the car maybe only 20 minutes behind the other gals. We enjoyed a leisurely drive back to Mady's parents, with the windows down and the music up and a stop in Aberdeen for a pub lunch. When we got back to Mady's we all showered and then parted ways. Caitlin and I headed to Seattle and Mady and Amanda went back to Portland. This was certainly a trip for the books, and we were joking that it should become an annual trip, but gosh wouldn't that be great if it did?!

We tried to get a photo with the lodge, but the photographer we commissioned didn't quite get that..

So instead we opted for a scenic photo.

Love!

There's our enchanted valley, and the chalet in the distance :-)

Hikes back home.

Celebratory ciders

Caitlin and I got to Seattle quite late on Sunday evening, and we stayed at her friend Courtney's place - Courtney and Caitlin went to high school together. At any rate, when we got there we went to bed as we were all exhausted. We woke up on Monday morning well past when Courtney had gone to work, and had a nice breakfast on the balcony soaking up the Puget Sound air. We finally got motivated to go exploring, and Courtney's roommate (Susan), who works from home, offered to take us around. We headed over to the Ballard neighborhood to look at all the cute, kitchy shops, and had fun wandering about looking at all the expensive things. We then went more towards the Fremont neighborhood, where Courtney works, so that we could meet her for lunch. After lunch we went to see the infamous Seattle troll, and wandered some more around Fremont seeing the Lenin statue amongst other oddities before heading back to the apartment. Caitlin and I decided that we would take a yoga class that evening before going out for the night and so we got ready for that and had a nice time sweating it out together. Caitlin has become a certified yoga teacher while at school and so she really enjoys checking out other studios. We came back home, had a really yummy salad for dinner and then went out dancing for the night. We went out in Capitol Hill and had fun shaking it off!

Buenas dias, Seattle!

We be trollin' around Seattle.

Namaste

Rainbow crosswalks with these lovelies!

Pretty friend!

I was sadly to fly home on Tuesday, but not til the evening, so we started exploring around Green Lake, where Courtney and Susan live. Wow, I would love to live in Green Lake if I ever wound up in Seattle because what a great recreational spot. After our long walk, where we wound up in Phinney Ridge for lunch, we came back to drive over and meet Courtney after she got off work. We all got our nails done and then it was time for me to head to the airport. The girls dropped me off downtown at the light rail station and it was bon voyage :-( Goodbyes are always hard, but I know I'll be back to the Pacific Northwest soon enough!

Word of the week, thanks Seattle!

Cool street art.

One of my favorite PNW things are the drain stencils that are everywhere.

At last I was on my plane back home and reflecting a lot about life and all of it, all while I getting epic views of Mount Rainier from the plane window, and I was in love. I know my heart yearns for the Pacific Northwest, but I also know that Indiana is where I had to be for this year. I just also hate that I leave pieces of my heart in so many corners of the globe because it was really hard to say goodbye to Caitlin. Yet when I refocus my energy I know I'm lucky to have so many wonderful friends all over the place and that I will find my way back to the northwest over time if that's truly what I want! In the meantime visits with friends and visits to the PNW will suffice :-)

Mount Rainier!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh and P.S. on my flight from Denver to Indianapolis, I was sitting in my seat, minding my own business, and next thing I know I see Katie get on the flight and I was so stoked! This kind of stuff never happens to me, but then it did! Katie and I spent 3 hours talking and not sleeping, and it was so great to have that time to catch up with her as we haven't been the best about staying in touch ever since she moved to San Diego. Talk about having your heart in pieces all over the world! 

KTU!