Running and knitting and bears, oh my!

I ran last night. No, really. Honestly, I ran. It seems so strange that this is the first weekday run since Portland. I'm glad Pam is back since I was starting to feel sluggish. More than usual. I have big problems canceling my regular runs with Pam although apparently I feel free to cancel the runs with Olivia. What's up with that?? Maybe because I've thought of the Olivia runs as "extras" and the Pam runs as "necessities." So I'm glad that we did our regular short short run. It's gone from being dark at the end of our run to completely dark for the entire run in the short break we took. It felt like fall. A warm fall, but fall. I felt really good after running and remembered why I do this.

My heart goes out to all the Southern Californians beset by the raging fires. My mom lives in La Jolla and can't go outside because of the thick smoke everywhere. She's away from the fires now but more are breaking out daily. [Yeah, she's just living where the roads collapse and water mains break.] It's horrifying to think that SoCal has two seasons: landslide and fire. We have those too but we also have a bit of the usual seasons. Even though we had a bunch of early rain last week apparently the Diablo winds (our version of the Santa Anas they get down south) have dried out all the vegetation again. Let's hope our little heatwave that we're having doesn't turn into our own inferno.

In an awkward segue, this weekend I took my car into service and got another key and fob. Remember when I lost mine, inside the car? I've never found it despite furious periodic searches. The service writer at Saturn got a huge chuckle when I told him it was lost somewhere inside the car. That little loss set me back just over $100. When I got the new key I had to try it in all the locks and realized that this car only has one door lock, on the driver's door. The passenger door and trunk must be unlocked from either inside the car or with the remote. The amusing thing is I hadn't ever noticed that before and I've had the car for ten month.

While I was waiting for my car I finished the latest (and possibly last) Point Lobos Hat. It's another Malabrigo one, in (I think) Violetas. I did this one on the size 8 needles again and with the patterned number of repeats. I'm still loving this pattern but how many hats do I need?

I'm trying to decide on my travel project for New York and I think I'm going to take one of my older UFO's. This is the Opera Scarf that I started at least a year ago, probably longer. I don't know why I put it aside since I love the yarn (Lorna's Laces) and the pattern is a simple repeat. Wait a minute. I just looked at the pattern online and I don't think it's the same as the one I have; I'm certain that mine is a 2 row repeat, not a 1 row repeat. Odd. Whatever, it's a very simple, pretty project so I think it'll be what I take.

I'm much closer to talking myself into buying the Sweetheart Bear from the Vermont Teddy Bear Company that I've been coveting. I even went as far as to rearrange my bears at home to find a place for her. And yes, I do have a perfect place, between my (almost) 50 year old dolly and little Frosty. What do you think, will I make it through the week without welcoming her to my house?

Heh. I should have a "Name the New Bear Contest." If I break down and get her, that is. Winner would get, um, hmmm, well. Maybe a Point Lobos Hat. In their favorite Malabrigo color that I have in my stash. It would be a hard contest since I'm running out of good bear names! Yes, I already have a Sweetie. And an SB. Geesh. Maybe I do have too many bears ...