Tea notes: May edition
Lake season, farmers markets, and want to get coffee or be my neighbor?
Hi friends,
In spite of what the snowcapped mountains might suggest, lake season is officially on.
We’ve been spending several of the last few weekends up at the cabin, getting things ready for summer: deep cleaning the whole place, doing an inventory of linens, installing our docks (or rather, supervising the neighbor’s kid as he installs the docks), etc.
After two seasons of not having proper outdoor seating, I finally ordered what might have been a mortgage payment’s worth of Polywood furniture for the deck… nothing else really survives Colorado mountain weather. Though we’ve had the place for nearly two years, it feels like we’re only now getting properly settled into it and learning things like how to prevent ice dams on the roof or keep bats out of your attic.
Last weekend, we popped over to two different friends’ places in Grand Lake for semi-impromptu hangs—something that feels unachievable in the city, where a zillion other competing people and priorities often take precedence. (Also, lol at myself for calling Denver being “in the city.”) I love that up here, things move at a slower pace. Everyone lives five minutes apart and you can kind of drop in on each other to do absolutely nothing.
I have big dreams of being a standup paddle-with-my-dogs-boarder this summer. I’m still taking paddleboard and wetsuit recs if you have them, because I’m a huge baby, and I don’t like being cold.
Feels like an appropriate time to say… HAGS!
P.S. Our next-door lake neighbor is putting his house up for sale this month—anyone want to be neighbs? We can wave at each other from our respective decks while writing our newsletters in pajamas… the dream!
May highlights
Farmers markets are in full swing in Colorado—a favorite Saturday morning ritual this time of year. Question: What do we call non-baby arugula… full-size arugula? And why is it impossible to find full-size arugula outside of a farmers market?
Had a few girlfriends over for a The Idea of You movie night, complete with all the popcorn. The most fun! I have since watched it two more times and am un-ironically listening to August Moon.
Made a long-overdue visit back to California—soaking up Sea Ranch, Sonoma, and San Francisco over the course of a week. You can book my friends’ peaceful Sea Ranch retreat that I got to stay at here!
Pulling up to one of the little islands by our cabin. We put our newly purchased secondhand pontoon boat in the water last weekend. To our relief—it was a questionable Facebook Marketplace handshake deal—it is exceeding our expectations and has proved to be an ideal vessel for friend hanging, dog snuggling, fishing, and sunset cruising.
I played my first round of golf for the year yesterday and made contact at least 70% of the time. Which is about 20% more than usual. I’m chalking it up to a win.
I had a coffee date in the neighborhood with a new reader and am meeting another next week! Are you in Denver? Reply to this letter to send me a note—I’d love to get together for iced lattes.
Favorite finds
I’ve had the saddest Home Depot utility mat in my entryway for years because I just couldn’t find anything that would fit our space and also handle the dog dirt / snow boots / etc. These custom size rugs started following me around the internet, and I’m happy to report that they are an incredibly chic and functional entryway option. I got the Marci Salt indoor-outdoor in flax, but you can order rug samples to test colors—the cost of which is applied to your order.
Currently all about this Dragon Diffusion bag* as my bag of summer. Fits a surprising amount, goes with everything, gives intrecciato vibes, can transition through the seasons. This version* is also a cutie and on sale in three colors.