Christmas Eve eve in Seattle

My day began with a trip to Harborview Medical Center to finally get my stitches out and put an end to this year-long ordeal.

I’ve decided that cute young interns (preferably with long eyelashes) should perform all simple procedures from now on (not that I’ll need any, I must point out!) because they are so very carrrreful and very, very empathetic. 

Yeah, I know – that’s probably fear and nervousness speaking, but I found it very reassuring. 

Once that 3-minute procedure was over I drove down the hill to Pike Place Market, where Elisabeth met me for lunch and some last-minute shopping.  My original goal was to stop at the Bavarian Meat Market to get weisswurst for tomorrow’s attempt at Mom’s Bavarian Christmas Eve (I’ll never get it just right… probably because SHE is missing…), but it turns out that that part of the day was very quick – probably because the place was way crowded today and not the cozy, relaxed friendly place I’m accustomed to.  (I even forgot to take a picture!)

The majority of the afternoon was actually spent in deep conversation with Elisabeth at a window table at Cutter’s Bayhouse (yes, the same place Tom and I went for our 25th anniversary).  It was one of those long, deep, important conversations and I reminded myself that this mature, insightful, polite young lady is the same person who, not so long ago, went out of her way to defy me on a regular basis and who I referred to when I asked my mother whether I had ever royally pissed her off quite this much.  How much can change in ten years!

But we did finally get out to the market and beyond.  It was a beautiful day in Seattle today (as opposed to last year at this time!).  We even had a BLUE sky!

The Market was, of course, teeming with fresh seafood…

… and there’s a new restaurant that I’m determined to explore one of these days…

It was crowded, but there’s something really nice about a lot of people in the Christmas spirit in downtown Seattle!

The line at the Piroshky store went around the corner and all the way down the block.  The way they were all chatting, you’d swear they were all good friends… but I think they were just strangers of the Seattle variety.

The original Starbuck’s store always has 1.) a line all the way outside the store and 2.) street musicians to entertain the people in the line all the way outside the store.

Of course, once the sun started setting, I just had to take a few more pictures.  How could I not?!

(Yeah, I know… talk about product placement, eh?!)

On days like today (and, actually, just about every day), I am so happy and still just a little amazed to be living in such a beautiful city in the gorgeous upper left-hand corner of America!