I got back from the wedding and went down to the solstice party that the brewery I was staying at was throwing. (Yes, I stayed above the brewery, and it was awesome.) Solstice eve in Alaska: it would never get darker than dusk. If that isn't a solstice worth celebrating, I don't know what is.
I went without changing--dress shirt, slacks, tie--though I felt I could only properly express the spirit of the occasion by throwing on my moose hat as well.
Many of the kids there didn't know quite what to make of me. (Healy, AK, is just outside Denali National Park, and is full of kids in their early 20s there for seasonal work.) "He's different from us! He's older, and he's in a necktie!" was the vibe I was getting.
But eventually the smiles got wider and the conversations sillier. "Love the hat," they said.
Fun is contagious.