Today I spent the afternoon with the Seafair Pirates on Alki and man it really is a pirate’s life for me. Walking the beautiful beach with the stunning Olympic Mountains in the background, there really isn’t any place like it in Seattle. It is a beautiful day in the low 80s and the sky is crystal clear. The water is less so with an abundance of bright green seaweed. The temperature is just right though to cool off in.

A dozen scallywags from pirate paupers to foppish captains wander the shores giving out stickers and autographs. My girlfriend meets up with a salty sea dog who flirts a little before slapping an “I’ve been had!” sticker on the front of her shoulder. I get ignored. I guess I’m just not pretty enough for a sticker!

I do end up getting shoved playfully to the side as a particularly loud Seafair pirate storms up to the stage demanding a chance to be entered in the pirate look-a-like contest for kids. At this point we’re all at the Duck in a huge crowd watching about a dozen kids in various pirate incarnations (Jack Sparrow, Captain Hook, Stripey Socks Stocking Cap Pirate Guy) compete for prizes. The Jack Sparrow kid wins it, no real surprise there; People can’t get enough of the Sparrow.

After the contest we head over to the shops and I drool over brown leather tricorn hats and dueling gloves. If only I had a few hundred bucks to drop the world would be right. We look over the Seafair bead stand, which is awesome with a ton of different necklaces and decide I will never wear the thing again so we keep walking.

A couple of stands have a very SCA feel to them. I got the feeling these guys have pirate personas and are always in character at events. Cool though. I like it.

After a snow cone and some wandering we decide to wade in the water and cool down. We spend the rest of the afternoon sitting in sand and getting our feet wet. This time a Coke would be nice but rum would be nicer.