The Democratic National Covention started yesterday and I've either watching or listening to a lot of it. Even if you're not a Democrat, Clinton's speech yesterday was amazing. His skills as an orator are unmatched, he has an amazing ability to simplify complex ideas and to speak to every individual in an audience. Even if you disagree with what's he's saying, he does a superb job of saying it. Whereas with George W. Bush, it's painful to hear him speak as he just doesn't have the talent.
That said, I think we just heard the second best speaker this evening in Barack Obama. The networks did not cover the convention tonight so most of America missed the opportunity to see and hear the person who will probably be the first black president.
If you missed either speech, you can find them on C-SPAN.
I hosted my annual summer barbecue on Saturday evening. The weather wasn't looking good as the rain came pouring down that afternoon. I considered canceling the event however I decided that there weren't only about 45 people RSVP'd yes, I could move it indoors if necessary. It continued to sprinkle on and off for the first hour and a half but it cleared up as more people started to show up. Overall it turned into a great party and hopefully everyone had a fun time. I've been hosting these a few years now and this was the first time that I ran out of beer, usually I end up with lots of leftover beer. I guess I need to emphasize that it's bring a side dish AND beverage.
Since I wasn't expecting a huge turnout, I brought out the nice wine glasses. At the end of the night, 2 wine glasses came up missing as I was washing the dishes. I wondered if someone had broken them and hid the evidence. Luckily, it was my other suspicion that proved true. My neighbors walked home with them in hand as they were still working on their wine. So the glasses are all safe and I don't have to replace any. Next time, I'm sticking with the party glasses.
I spent the 4th of July weekend in Leavenworth (about 2 hours NE of Seattle) at Lynn and Bill's wedding. It was at a beautiful little resort there, Sleeping Lady. Overall it was a extremely relaxing wedding, I spent most of the time just reading. A creek went right by the resort and regretted not bringing my fly rod with me. It made me think about how I make time to do all these things I feel I have to do rather than what I want to do. I need to rethink my priorities.
This past weekend was Kirsten and Dave's reception, they were married the previous week in a private ceremony. It was hosted in the backyard of a house in West Seattle. All was set for a perfect day until it started pouring. Typically you can be that the weather will be nice in Seattle after the 4th of July. I guess the first sign that this wasn't a typically year was the fact that it was nice in Seattle on the 4th. Nevertheless, Kirsten and Dave made the most of the afternoon and it was still a fun time.