I just got back from a quick trip to Seattle, Washington. In four years of traveling, I’ve never made it up to the Pacific Northwest. So I’d been looking forward to this trip for a while.

I spoke at a church rally in a half hour outside of Seattle in a town called Snoqualmie. Before the event, the youth minister took me to their teen center. It was an old freezer warehouse converted into a coffee shop and concert venue. It was slick.

The event itself was at the base a tall emerald-colored mountain called Mount Si. I could’ve spent all day just exploring the mountains with my eyes. To get things started, Boarders for Christ set up a skateboard demo on some small ramps. It was exciting to see really good skateboarders. They seem weightless.

A hardcore band named Brick opened up the event. They had a lot of energy and really enjoyed playing. I usually don’t enjoy hardcore bands, but these guys were really good. I loved feeling the music pulse through my chest.

I saw a storm sliding in over our field, so I made my talk quick and to the point. I know now that Seattle always looks like that and there was no reason to hurry. In Arizona, those clouds mean there’s going a monsoon ready to wash us all away. But in Seattle, you can have a picnic in the rain. Oh well.

We headed into downtown Seattle to eat at a place on the water. Seattle is a hip town and with lots of cool things to see. The storefronts were packed with hip furniture. We drove right past the Mariner’s stadium just as they made a big play. The crowd roared so loud I jumped in my car seat. We slowed down and peaked in to see the place packed with crazy fans. Not many stadiums are wedged so intimately into downtown.

I had fun imagining the ‘Real World Seattle’ kids running through the streets. I was still in high school when their season aired, and I only caught a few episodes. But after getting to know some of the cast I feel like I’ve seen the show.

I woke up at dawn this morning to catch the plane. After I settled in my seat, I wrapped the little blue blanket around my eyes like a misplaced turban. I am sure I looked stupid, but inside it was dark and quiet. I fell asleep and woke up in sunny Arizona.

Now I am here at Candyce’s coffee shop enjoying our last day together before she leaves for the summer.