It's October 1st...

October 02, 2012

…and I find myself expecting every day to be warm and drenched in sunshine.

Sun Star

This can only end badly. Winter is coming, but we’ve gotten soft here in the Northwest. When the months of perpetual gloom return, nobody will be ready. I predict dire shortages of full-spectrum lamps.

On the positive side: We’re enjoying our time outdoors. Sunday, we trekked over to the Ballard Locks. I don’t think I’ve taken the kids there in two years, and I’ve never taken them during salmon season. It was the tail end of the run. When we went down to the fish ladder observation room, I first thought it was going to be like every other trip I’ve had to the locks: A whole lot of nothing. Luckily, the kids lingered, climbing on the rails. After a few minutes, we saw the one, lone salmon trying to make the run up the ladder. She made about three attempts to make it up the final spillway, and each time the rushing water pushed her back into the gloom. We completely lost her at the end, so I hope she finally made it.

Patrick Sees a Salmon