Time To Put The Headphones On!

I've been running again lately. Running had been a big part of my life routine since the 6th grade. It wasn't always a great part of my life. Running in college took away a lot of the childlike fun of it away from me. I finally took a break from it the past two years. It's taken awhile for running to be mine again. For it to be a place of strength and calm and not frustration and anger.

Even now that I'm "running again", it doesn't mean I love it everyday. I think it's a misunderstanding that "runners" alway love getting out there. I might have one great run every week, where I love every step. The other days are just training so I can run farther on that day I love. Seattle has some of the most beautiful running loops so I'd be lying if I denied enjoying it just a little everyday. At least by the end. I always see something I would have missed if I hadn't pushed myself out the door. It's such a big part of what I love about where I'm living that I think it needs a special place on One Rainy Day. Introducing "Things I Saw When I Was Running Today". I'll come up with something better.


Yesterday I went on one of my favorite loops. I can see the water almost the entire run, and even get to finish up on some trails in Schmidt Park. In the first neighborhood I run through there is a street on the edge of a cliff that overlooks the bay and it's crawling with stray cats. Every sunny day I run there I'm bound to see some collarless cat lounging in strip of grass between the road and sidewalk. Yesterday when I passed through a cat jumped out from behind a telephone poll. As if she'd been waiting for me. She ran beside me like a puppy. Of course I had to stop. After petting her I started to run again, sure enough she started to run next to me. I named her Sylvia in my head. And wondered if that made me some kind of suburban grizzly man (cat lady, I guess). The cats on this cliff are like wild animals. I can picture them making their escapes from the homes they came from. Dreaming of the cliff where cats run free. So if your cat has gone missing, you might want to check out Sunset Avenue in West Seattle. If you don't find yours I'm sure you'll find one you'll like to adopt.

After leaving Sylvia I ran down to the Alki trail. The crowds are thinning now that the days are cooler. In the evenings I usually see little seals swimming along the shore looking for dinner. Their sleek backs catching the sunlight as they dive down. It's wonderful how the same place can be so different every day. The same running loop is completely new each time I run it. Which, along with my ipod, is really the only motivation I need to get out there... even when I really don't want to.

Metropolitan Pumpkin Carvings

(more pictures)

Owen and I carved pumpkins on Sunday. We had wanted to go to a pumpkin patch to get our pumpkins... but the halftime of a Seahawks game doesn't really give you much time. So we went over to Metropolitan Market like the good Seattle yuppies we are. They have a nice display, that sorta feels like a pumpkin patch. At least more than Safeway, which is like picking out a pumpkin on the side of the road. I'm not that patient with projects like this, or more accurately I think that in 5 minutes I should be enough of a pro to whip up a pumpkin masterpiece. Owen has a different approach. He planned his out and sat in complete concentration carving his long after I was done. So I'm sure you can tell which one is mine and which one is Owen's.

I like knowing why these odd traditions start. I mean, why are we carving pumpkins every Halloween? The Legend of Stingy Jack! That's why. Basically Stingy Jack tricked the devil one too many times, and after he died wasn't allowed into Heaven and the devil wouldn't let him into Hell. Instead, the devil banished him to walk the earth with only a coal to light the way. Stingy Jack carved out a turnip and put the coal in it (of course).

Then once people made this story up, they wanted to keep Stingy Jack away. So they would carve beets, turnips and eventually, in America, pumpkins, then put them in their windows with candles lit inside to keep Stingy Jack out. This is why we call them Jack O'Lanterns. It seems to me that Jack O'Lanterns would entice Jack more than anything... but I guess logic isn't supposed to be a huge part of this story.

After reading this I hope that maybe our pumpkin carving will serve a purpose. See I'm convinced that our apartment is haunted. I hear tapping in the kitchen, and shuffling in the hallways. When I told Owen about these noises all he said was, "so you think these ghosts are making sandwiches?" I don't know. Maybe it's just the apartment settling into fall weather. I'd prefer to think that spirits are fixing themselves late night snacks. If the ghost I'm dealing with is Stingy Jack, or another ghost who dislikes gourds with candles inside, I may be able to keep them out of my kitchen for awhile. We'll see.

Metropolitan Market Pumpkins
Prices: It was $7.00 for our two big pumpkins.
Location and hours: Check out their site.