Walk This Way

This:

..is the Sammamish River Regional Trail (try saying that three times fast) where I went walking this morning. So this: ..must by all rights be the Sammamish River (which it is). I love this trail and this river dearly, and not just because I can access them a mere 5 miles from my house. As you can see in the top picture, the trail is wide and paved and mostly easily travelled (the orange lines are outlining places where tree roots have buckled the pavement, and the city has thoughtfully marked them so that when you go flying over your bicycle handlebars, you can see exactly where the problem started). As you cannot see, the trail is also miles and miles and miles long, and offers very little change in grade making it absolutely perfect for biking, skating, running, etc. If today had been a sunny Saturday in June, I wouldn't have been able to take these pictures without being trampled; on those days, we're lucky if the bicyclists remember to shout "On your left!!" with a millisecond or so to hurl ourselves into the bushes bordering the trail before being flattened.

We shall not speak of the morning when I somehow mixed up my right and my left and nearly ran over 3 pedestrians before Mr. K helpfully noted "Honey, you've told 3 different people that you were passing on their right when you were really passing on the left. Are you TRYING to take out joggers?" We shall also not speak of the fact that I had "L" and "R" crayoned on my tap shoes when I was a child...and if I was still dancing, I probably still would.

Because it is a grayish Thursday in January, the trail was manageable although not empty; I probably saw 50 or more people on it this morning. You can see why:

Who could stay away?

For those who tire of the view (impossible to imagine, I think), there are assorted sculptures along the trail, too. For instance:

Yes, you are quite right--it is the mathematical symbol for pi. Every autumn I fight off a desperate urge to pile pumpkins up around it . You know, pumpkin pi? (I already KNOW I need to get out more, what do you think I was doing this morning?) There's also this one:

..oddly titled "Sitting Woman" and not "Stolen Chair" as I would have suggested, had the artist only taken a moment to ask me. Sometimes, I am amazed at the wealth of genius that they pass up by not asking me. There is also this charming little chair:

(Seems like it would only be kind to offer it to the poor "Sitting Woman", don't you think? ) And yep, that's a partial Jaywalker on the chair. Here it is with a bit more detail:

The Lorna's Laces finally shaped up and and started distributing its colors a bit more attractively, possibly because it heard me say I was going to make it into a pot scrubby if it didn't. I'd have done it, too.

I was going to post in my comments to answer some of YOUR wonderful comments...when it occurred to me that I do have a blog...and one could, conceivably write stuff on it...you know. Just a thought. (Occasionally the disconnect between my brain and the real world is truly concerning.) Anyway, I absolutely love getting your comments (seriously, I'm like a kid in December counting presents every time I check my comments) so here are some answers.

Marianne: Gussie sends her best but steadfastly refuses to pose. It is her nature to want absolutely NOTHING to do with any human who wants her attention for any reason. It's quite sad--the more I want her for something, the more suspicious she becomes until eventually she's hyperventilating behind the couch and I feel like some sort of weird cat stalker. I only get pics of her when I sneak up on her.

Monica: I can't believe you referenced Rincewind and The Luggage!! I LOVE The Luggage! For the uninitiated, these are characters from Terry Pratchett's discworld novels which are absolutely hysterical. The Luggage is made of sapient pearwood and so is essentially a big trunk with legs that walks around on its own. It is also somewhat vicious and regularly eats all manner of things including, once, a shark. And you know, I never thought of it until you said it, but the couch does look a bit like The Luggage, chowing down on Ed. Good thing I sit on the other side of the couch! Have you read "Good Omens" by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman? Incredibly funny book.

Jo: I do short-row heels and I double wrap the stitches to avoid the holes. I don't think I do anything special in terms of how I wrap them....just put the yarn on one side, slip the stitch, put the yarn back, slip the stitch back. I think it's the double wrap that does it. Wrap it once, go wrap on the other side, come back, wrap it again, go wrap the opposite one again, and only work it the third time I come to it, knitting or purling it together with both of its wraps. A friend taught me this, and it seems to take care of the holes pretty well.

Jill: So true about that "look" that cats get. How about the "pissed off bathing"? Do yours do that? Most of the cats I've ever had, if embarrassed, will follow up the fall or whatever by washing themselves in short, jerky, motions as if to say "Screw all of you. I'm going to take a bath." Cracks me up every time. Gracie is currently doing her "you're paying way more attention to the computer than to me....so I'm going to sit between the two of you." thing. If this is full of typos, it's because I can't see through her big tushie. (I have to blame things on the cats--I don't have children.)

Kitty Mommy: I only wish I had the excuse of children (see?). Sadly, I'm a slob all by myself. I actually have clothes that I will not wear while eating because I like them too much to subject them to the inevitable disaster that follows. I'm working on a way to blame the cats for that, too.

A happy Thursday to one and all. I'm off to keep that yarn on its best behavior.