I left the sunscreen at home this morning, since it was abundantly obvious that no one would be getting sunburned at the Fremont Solstice Parade today. It’s been one of the worst springs on record, and today, three days from the first day of summer, was rainy and cold. Actual puddles and everything.
We went anyway, of course. At this point, it’s a tradition to go, partly to mark the beginning of summer and the slow shifting back to the dark time of year, but also as part of Caitlyn’s birthday season. She’s older now and knows the parade doesn’t have anything to do with her birthday, but there was a while when she was sure it was all for her.
We arrive early, get good spots right up front, meet up with friends, have a picnic brunch: cheese and crackers, giant strawberries, sometimes bacon, orange juice with benefits, and a whole lot of muffins. I counted 72 muffins when we packed up this morning, which is officially Too Many. Next year, the upper limit will be 50, something someone is going to need to remind me of when the time comes, since I apparently can not be trusted to identify a Reasonable Quantity Of Muffins. I did slightly better with the confetti eggs, although it may only feel that way because they don’t weigh all that much when you are bringing the leftovers home again. There is, after all, a limited window of time for truly excellent confetti egg action, between the time they close the road and the time the bicyclists arrive.