Pet-a-Harlot!

It's been a week of driving for me, and yesterday was no different. I had debated going to the Petaluma Yarn Harlot book signing/talk, but every time, I was like, "Petaluma? Ehh…"

After driving to Livermore for wine and spinning and San Francisco for stand-up comedy, Petaluma (at an estimated hour and a half drive) didn't seem so far. Mom and I decided at the last minute that we were going to go.

Alison and I had been e-mailing back and forth about spinning dog hair (Alison was the recipient of Elphie's puppy coat from her first brushing), and she mentioned that she and Nancy were going. She also mentioned that she had conned her non-knitting son into chauffeuring them to Peta-freakin'-luma.

It's enough that he was going to shuttle them for a 3-hour round-trip, but after discussion with some incredibly trustworthy sources, this turned into an 11-hour day. Leave at noon, drive up and have dinner there, and miss the SF traffic. This is a lot to ask of someone who is not only a non-knitter- and when there is nothing for a non-knitter to do around the venue. (I would have felt less sorry if this was in SF, or ANYWHERE more interesting. No offense intended, Petaluma-ians.)

"I have two seats in my car that are open," I offer, "Tell the kid he's off the hook."

They took me up on the offer, and we made plans for the next day. Mom flaked, last minute, but that was ok. We got up to SF in less than 45 minutes, where we took a scenic drive through the Marina district before getting back on the road.

(You know you're having a good time when you've been in the car for two hours and upon arrival a passenger says, "We're here already?" I swear, Alison said that.)

We met Patricia there, who had been dutifully holding the first spot in line since 9:30. (By the way, Patricia is the BOMB. Read her blog, join the fan club. I have.) We decided to leave one person holding a place in line and Patricia and I took Alison to eat. (She can't do sun, so eating in line was a definite no-go.)

They are attractive people, don't let the poor photography fool you.

Anyhow, there was waiting in line, chatting with other knitters (join Leslie's project), and then, there she was. Stephanie was waiting in the wings while the manager hyped us up. (Unnecessary, but appreciated.)

I sat in the second row, behind Alison. You can see me in BOTH of the Harlot's pictures. (Ahem, second row, bright pink sweater.)

[Pictures "borrowed" from Stephanie's blog.]

We got our books signed, and I got yet ANOTHER celebrity sock photo:

See? She's holding my sock, and I'm holding hers.

Also, I told her that I was her "biggest fan" last year. I hadn't seen "Misery" yet, so I didn't realize how scary that could have come across. In an attempt to appear sane, I did not take the "No Parking" sign that I liberated after her Los Altos signing for her to sign.

It lives in my work cube. (Sssh… don't tell her.)

Patricia took us to an Ehh yarn store (so Ehh that I bought NOTHING), and we had a great time. We hit the road at 10, and I was home just before midnight.

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