Last Saturday, it had been an amazing day of relaxation and hanging out around the house when I got the text from my friend that spurred me out the door.  She was staying in for the night but mentioned how fabulous it had been to get outside in the sun earlier.  That’s the way it is in Seattle.  When it’s sunny, there is a collective sense of urgency about going outside before it goes back to grey.  The parks fill up and everyone is smiling.  The pull to go outside when it’s nice out is so common that my work has an unwritten 85 degree policy – when it hits that temp it’s time to leave, no questions asked.

Hank is in the same boat since his favorite thing is to be warm.  On a sunny day, you can predict where he will be in the house depending on the time and the location of the sun spots, starting at the top of the stairs in the morning and finishing on the mat near the back door in the afternoon.  Later, when the lamp is on next to the bed, you’ll find him under it warming his ears.  He loves to go outside but doesn’t like to travel so going to a park is out of the question.   Instead, on a sleepy Saturday when there’s nothing but time, we take a long, slow walk around the neighborhood looking for something interesting but not really caring if we find it.