Monday, August 29, 2022
Sumas – Bellingham – Custer, Washington
The month was moving fast, faster than I liked, and I could already feel that end-of-August pressure tapping me on the shoulder. Rent was somewhere in the back of my mind, the laundry wasn’t finished, and the day had the look of one that would not sit still.
I was up early, though, and that helped. I got some line work done, finished a couple of listings, and tried to get the practical stuff handled before the fun and chaos of the day started pulling at me. By the time we headed out, it already felt like I had lived half a day. That’s how this one unfolded.
Key Takeaways
- I started the day with work first, knocking out line work and listings before leaving home.
- A simple road setup, burgers for lunch, Starbucks, and water, made the day feel easy.
- Our stop at Lake Whatcom turned a workday into a late-summer memory.
- The delivery shift brought in $83 in about three and a half hours, even with construction and an awkward route.
- Target, groceries, pistachio ice cream, movies, and burritos gave the day a soft landing.
How I started the day before heading out on the road
Some mornings come in gently. This one came in with a clipboard. I got up pretty early because I knew that if I didn’t get a few things done first, the whole day would wobble. Home life doesn’t pause because I want a lake stop or a delivery shift. The laundry was still hanging over my head, and I already knew I wasn’t going to finish drying it before we left. So I did what most of us do: I made a mental note, promised myself I’d deal with it later, and kept moving. That was the mood of the morning: useful, slightly messy, and real.
Getting work done early so the rest of the day could happen
The first order of business was line work. I wanted to get into it before the house got louder and before the road started calling. There’s something satisfying about doing detail-heavy work when the day is still half asleep. My brain behaves better then. After that, I got a couple of listings finished. Nothing glamorous, but it mattered. Those are the kind of tasks that can sit around and sour the whole day if I let them. Getting them done early gave me room to breathe later, and room to say yes to the rest of the plan without feeling like I was sneaking away from my own responsibilities.
I don’t think every day needs to be perfectly balanced. That sounds nice on paper and ridiculous in actual life. What I do need is enough done that I can leave the house without that itchy feeling that something important is waiting for me on the kitchen table.
That little pocket of morning productivity made the rest of the day possible. It wasn’t dramatic. It was just me getting ahead of myself for once.
Packing up lunch, drinks, and a kid-friendly stop at Starbucks
Once the work piece was handled, the day shifted into road mode. Lunch was burgers, simple and filling, the kind of food that makes sense when you’re going to be in and out of the car and don’t want to think too hard about it later.
Cian and I packed up and headed out together, which always changes the texture of a day. Things get a little more animated. There are more questions, more opinions, and, in this case, a running stream of commentary about Treasure X robots. He had that subject fully alive in his mind, and once a kid locks onto a thing, that’s the weather for a while.
We stopped at Starbucks on the way, which felt like a small ceremonial beginning. I used some of his money to load his Starbucks card, one of those everyday little moments that somehow become part of the memory. He got a chai cream frappuccino. I got a mocha cookie crumble frappuccino. We also grabbed water because sugar and summer both ask a lot from a person.
It wasn’t some big family outing with a spreadsheet and matching snacks. It was looser than that. Burgers, frappuccinos, a kid talking about robot treasure, and a day still opening up in front of us. Good enough, honestly.
Our Lake Whatcom stop made the middle of the day feel like a real getaway
By the time we reached Lake Whatcom, the whole day loosened at the shoulders. That’s what water does. It has a way of interrupting whatever petty machinery is clanking around in my head.
We weren’t there for hours. It wasn’t a grand vacation scene. Still, late summer knows how to work with even a short visit, and the place had that bright, lived-in look that beaches get near the end of August.
The drive there felt worthwhile the minute the lake came into view.
Swimming at the beach and soaking in a quiet half hour by the lake
We hung out at the beach for about half an hour, maybe a little more if you count the slow part before leaving, where nobody is in a rush but everyone is also pretending they are. We swam, cooled off, and let the afternoon breathe for a minute.
Lake Whatcom had that calm surface that always looks easy from shore and a little sharper once you’re in it. The water woke me up in the best way. Cian had a good swim too, and we spent some time by the docks, taking in that peculiar end-of-season mood.
The lifeguards were gone from the docks, which made the place feel different right away. Not unsafe, exactly, just quieter, a little more stripped down. Summer was still there, but it had started packing its bags.
That detail stayed with me. Some places announce the season change with leaves. Others do it by leaving an empty chair where the lifeguard used to sit.
A simple family outing that felt worth the detour
What I liked most about that stop was how ordinary it was. No tickets, no timeline, no big production. We got out, swam, enjoyed the beach, and let the day widen for a minute.
That half hour did more than a longer, fussier outing sometimes can. It broke up the workday. It gave Cian something fun in the middle of errands and deliveries. It gave me a chance to stop feeling like every task was standing in a line waiting for me.
Some days don’t need a huge event, they just need water, a little sun, and enough time to remember you’re alive.
There were also the small details that made it feel fuller, the beach air, the chatter after getting out of the water, and that particular late-summer laziness that settles over everything. We even had time around the swings before moving on, which rounded out the stop in that kid-approved way that matters more than most adult planning.
It was short, yes, but it was worth the detour. Maybe because it wasn’t trying so hard to be memorable.
Finishing the delivery shift, shopping, and winding down at home
After the lake stop, we got back to the part of the day that paid. The mood stayed light, but the schedule tightened again. That’s often how these mixed days go. You borrow a little ease, then return to business.
We finished out the delivery shift, kept moving, and let the road decide some of the tone. Not every mile was charming. Some of it was construction, waiting, and the usual low-level irritation that comes with trying to get somewhere efficiently when the road has other ideas.
Still, the numbers came out well enough to make it feel worthwhile.
Why the delivery run felt like a win
The shift brought in $83 over about three and a half hours, which I was happy with. I’ve had worse runs, and I’ve had runs that felt longer than they paid. This one landed in the solid column.
Part of what helped was that we didn’t burn through money while we were out. That always changes how I look at a day. Earning is one thing. Keeping it is another. Aside from our earlier stop, the day didn’t turn into a slow leak of little purchases.
The less convenient part came on the drive back. We hit construction on Badger Road, which wasn’t ideal, but our last delivery had been out in Custer, so there wasn’t much choice in the route anyway. Sometimes the road picks for you, and all you can do is keep the car moving and not get too dramatic about it.
I counted the shift as a win because it did what it needed to do. It paid, it fit around the rest of the day, and it didn’t drag the whole mood down. That’s success in plain clothes.
The little joys that wrapped up the day, from ice cream to movies
After the shift, we stopped at Target. Cian picked out a Treasure X robot, which still made me laugh a little because I wasn’t fully sure how “robot” fit under “treasure,” but he liked it, and that was that. Kid logic doesn’t need my approval to function.
We also wandered through the grocery aisle and picked up food and ice cream. I grabbed Magnum pistachio bars, which are still my favorite, and tried another ice cream bar that didn’t impress me much. Not every frozen dessert is destined for greatness. Some are just cold and forgettable.
Once we got home, the day thinned out nicely. I handled a bit of client work, dealt with the laundry I hadn’t finished earlier, and let the house settle around me. Dinner was burritos, easy and satisfying. After that, we watched movies and finally went to bed with that particular end-of-day feeling, tired but not annoyed, full but not overstuffed, spent decently.
That’s a pretty good measure for a day, I think. Not perfection, not fireworks, just enough work done, enough fun tucked in, and enough comfort waiting at home.
Where the day landed
What stays with me from that late August day isn’t one big moment. It’s the mix of it, the early work, the Starbucks stop, the swim at Lake Whatcom, the delivery run that paid off, and the quiet evening afterward.
I like days that hold more than one life inside them. This one did. It had chores and road miles, kid chatter and beach water, pistachio ice cream and a movie before bed.
The month was still moving fast, and the bills were still real, but the day felt full in a good way. That’s enough for me, and on some days it’s more than enough.
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