Coming home, I knew that I immediately had to see all of my friends that had just come back from college too. Here, Christie, a RIT student and my best friend since I was 3 years old, and I are delving into some Starbucks at the local outdoor mall.

For Memorial Day Weekend, my family went on a boat with another family (by the way, a shoutout to Gale and Jamee Parker and Patrick Redmond, thanks for the invite!) sailing from Anacortes, WA to Deer Harbor, a marina in Orcas Island, part of the San Juan Islands (click for a map). I had a blast living on a boat for three days and having friends and family, including one of my two dogs, Fanny, along.

Fanny just being Fanny, ambling along the boat’s deck like there is no tomorrow.

I’m gazing oh so soulfully over the waters. It was fun just to roll over waves and waves, making for a very serene feel.

One of the places that we went to on Orcas Island was the summit of Mt. Constitution (click for a picture) and the view was unbelievable. You could see the entire San Juan Islands as well as the mainland plus the Canadian mountain coast.

Such a place screams for a DeShaw family picture.

Next up on my agenda was to go to the annual Fremont Fair and the Summer Solstice parade (click for more info). The Fremont Fair has always been a highlight at the beginning of the summer for me because it’s always a great opportunity to meet up with friends and go watch the wild parade and have scrumptious food at the fair with various street performers for entertainment, booths for browsing, and music to listen to and feel.

At the parade’s beginning, it’s always tradition for bicyclists in their birthday suits to take a roll down the parade route. Usually, they’re always in bodypaint, all decked out in creative designs. For example I saw a guy in blue and red paint, looking fine in an impeccable Spiderman costume. This tradition is just a way for the participants to feel comfortable in their own skin, and to show there are much more things that occur in the world to worry about than just baring skin.

After the parade was finished, everybody went over to the street fair where it was bustling with booths and food as well as street performers. photo credit: Erik Nordlof

Look at this carefully: this is the aftermath of a solid concrete brick being smashed by a sledgehammer onto a brave guy’s chest while he’s lying on a bed of needles. Ouch. Other feats that I saw included stapling dollar bills onto a man’s torso, knife-juggling, and stepping into a pile of shredded glass, among other shenanigans. photo credit: Erik Nordlof

I couldn’t resist indulging my sweet tooth by digging into an elephant ear, a doughy concoction with butter, cinnamon, and sugar. It was delicious, and I’m sure my friend Mikale agrees. photo credit: Erik Nordlof

I can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer has in store for me. Keep looking for updates, and as always, thanks for reading!

con amistad, tyler