Harlot Wrap-Up & Scavenger Fun

WOW.

Besides the stitch I still have in my side, and the screaming muscle pain in my hip and back, yesterday was pretty fabulous.

Let's go back to Saturday though.

This is... well ok, I didn't get her name. She was volunteering at the Cully Neighborhood Cleanup, though, and I got her to hold my sock. She got a kick out of what I was doing.

So, yesterday. Turned out my dad had the morning off, so he was nice enough to drive me out to Scappoose and back to get my "At the Scappoose Post Office held by a postal employee" picture.

Apparently I was the first person to get out there because she was really confused at first. But I warned her of the approaching hoards. The weirdest thing about the SPO is that the building appears to also hold the offices of a psychiatrist. Not sure if that's for the benefit of the postal employees, or just a unique use of federal building space. Hmmmmmmmmm.

When Dad and I got back into town, he drove me around to a few of the non-downtown pictures I needed to get. First, East County Recycling, which is apparently now known as Environmentally Concious Recycling.

Seems a bit redundant, but good on them for getting the point across.

Next was this Horse Ring Project shot.

There were three right in a row on this street, but this one had the prettiest attachment to the street.

Finally the Joan of Ark statue which, contrary to what was on the Scavenger Hunt checklist, is NOT in Laurelhurst Park. It's down the street. But you get the idea.

The statue is at the center of a very busy roundabout, and rather than risk getting struck by inattentive motorists, I stuck to my own side of the street.

Oh he also brought me by work where my sock got to visit our photocopier and "My Boss" (who is actually my boss' boss, because MY boss was in a meeting.

I did get a photocopy of my sock as well, but alas no scanner to show you with.

So we headed back to my house where I picked up my friends/roommates Shylent and Linda, and we began our adventure by taking the Max to Lloyd Center. I stopped to get "In any of Portland's many parks with visible signage."

Although Holladay Park is not one of the most senic, it was on the way. I should have also used the opportunity to get "At the bottom of any large tree" but I intended to get that one Downtown in the Park Blocks.

This is the Made in Oregon Store at Lloyd Center, and one of the employees. She gave me a funny look, but she was a good sport.

I also got a sign in multiple languages back at the Max station.

Next it was down to the Convention Center to get the MLK statue and a building mural.

And we timed it well because another Max came as soon as we got the building mural.

Next stop was Skidmore Fountain where I got the fountain and a Benson Bubbler in one stop.

Then we walked up to Voodoo Donuts for what was by far the dirtiest-in-a-good-way picture I got.

Much Donut Awesomeness.

We walked up the street to get the Chinatown Gate

Then hopped on a bus to get lunch and more pictures.

At a red light I got the bus driver - very puzzled - to pose for me

Lunch was at Ringlers

And if you've never had a McMenamins Ruby Ale, you're seriously missing out.

So, at lunch, I thought I'd take the opportunity to count up my pictures and points so far, and re-evaluate what we had left to do. I opened up my purse to get out the ziploc bag with my checklist and My First Sock (which I brought to show the Harlot) and it was gone. I had everything else - current sock-in-progress, camera, wallet, pen, etc - but no First Sock and no checklist. 'Scuse me, another beer please!

So the next stop was to find a Kinkos so I could print out a new checklist. My sock was gone, but I'd have to try not to dwell on that. We headed back to central downtown, stopping at a Stumptown to get the Stumptown Rooster (you can see it, barely, up at the top center in the dark)

and I realized - it was 2:37 already! I was supposed to meet with Phil Margolin at 3, and I didn't even have half of my pictures yet! And did I mention that it started to rain right after lunch? So here I am in this swanky author/lawyer's office, a drowned rat, face red as a radish from all the walking. He, too, was a good sport though :)

Outside his building was another multi-language sign

On the way to Kinkos to get my checklist, Linda and Shylent wanted to stop and we had passed Buffalo Wild Wings so I left them there, got my list, and then joined them. The bartender was a (very nice looking) non-knitter so I introduced her to my sock.

She didn't charge me for my iced tea either. And I made Shylent, also a non-knitter, hold my sock for that point.

We walked back up to Pioneer Square and on the way shot the Animals in Pools fountains

And then three in one place, the Weather Machine, the Allow Me statue (love how Shylent posed) and a street vendor.

Those Mexican guys backed away slowly once they saw I had my camera out!

We caught the Max one stop up to the parking structure at 10th & Yamhill and took the elevator to what we thought was the top floor. Turns out there's a very top floor that you can only get to via stairs, so I made Shylent go up and get that picture.

Across the street we got the Windup Toy Station at Finnegan's and the nice guy that was in charge back there.

By that time, Shylent and Linda were ready to head home. So was I, actually, but I wasn't going to give up! Walking back to the Max I ran into my friend Ken, founder of HomePDX. Hadn't seen him for a long time, so it was a pleasant surprise. While waiting for the train I saw some folks with handmade-looking felted bags and wondered to myself if they were headed the same place I was. Sure enough! So I got points for "On the Max on your way to the signing with fellow knitters."

When I thought about my day, I forgot that it would be rush hour time on the train, standing room only. Ugh. Enough standing. Srsly. Then when I got to the Washington Park/Zoo/World Forestry Center station, go figure, the elevator at the WFC-end of the station wasn't working. More walking. In the rain. Uphill. Did I mention the rain?

Finally got to the WFC, bought my book and my one skein of Socks that Rock in the Knitters Without Borders colorway, and got settled.

Ahh, seated, relaxing, knitting time. I got into The Zone and when I finally looked around this is what I saw.

Knitters. Everywhere. I'll bet there weren't more than 20 people in the whole place that weren't knitting. It was awesome. Much yarn fondeling, project comparing, etc. Lovely-ness.

*And yes, that woman on the left is the same woman who held my sock on the train

The first thing they did was points for the Scavenger Hunt. Everyone around me was rooting for me, but I ended up being the last person who DIDN'T get a prize. The cutoff was 65 and I had 62, thanks to all the time it took to hunt down a new checklist.

I took some really bad, blurry, unflattering pictures of Stephanie, but you don't get to see those. But you do get to see Duffy

singing "My Travelin' Sock" to the tune of "Little Deuce Coupe" - ROCK ON!

I stuck around to have my book signed and was one of the last people in line. When I got up to her, I told her about my Sad Sock Story and that I would have had probably 70 points if I hadn't had to track down a new checklist, and everyone felt sorry for me and they let me pick a skein from the prize bucket anyway :)

Socks that Rock medium weight in Titania

I was so ready to go home. I laughed so hard and my body was so worn out that I barely made it out to the car when Ben picked me up. Oh Thank God for Ben!

This was the best part. "I'll hold yours if you hold mine!"

I gotta say, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee is one fabulous woman/writer/knitter/human being.