Post-Holiday Re-entry into Normal (whatever that is)

Yesterday I woke up too early–from something that happened in a dream, I think. I was immediately wide awake, feeling well-rested and happy and knew I had been dreaming about something, but couldn't grab hold of anything that would help me remember what it was.  It must have been a good one. I wandered into the kitchen, fed the cats and made my morning late, decided it was too early and too cold and crawled back into my warm bed.

Out of (a bad) habit, I grabbed the iPad on my nightstand and checked for email ... and ended up chatting a bit with someone who plans to suspend disbelief and jump into the Old MacDonald's Mystery Sampler and quilt along with me.  Her vote of confidence reinforced my inexplicable happy, optimistic mood.

I quickly filled up my morning pages (journal), then turned on the TV for some breakfast television–I know, TV in bed, another bad habit–enjoyed an interview with Lily Tomlin on Sunday Morning and the luxury of staying in bed a little longer than I should.  I picked up my knitting–more on that later–and wasn't really paying attention to the TV when Sunday Morning became Face the Nation with Donald Trump doing his thing and provoking us all (OK, mostly women and especially Hillary Clinton).  Thank you, Donald, for that push out of bed. 

When I returned to the kitchen to find breakfast, I glanced at the clock, saw that it was later than I thought and decided to make the effort to treat myself to brunch for one.

I had some cooked black-eyed peas left over from New Years day and some rarely-seen-in-my-house tortilla chips and bacon and decided to make the Homesick Texan's New Years Day Migas with Black-eyed Peas Salsa.

While the eggs were cooking, I was thinking how some recipes are like souvenirs from travels or experiences. I found the Homesick Texan's blog after my first trip to Quilt Festival in Houston. I had gone with a friend to Ninfa's for dinner and loved their "green sauce" so much that when I returned to Michigan, I went looking online for a recipe. I found it on the Homesick Texan, a blog written by a woman who was living in New York and recreating the foods she missed from home. I started following her blog, way back when.  I had never heard of migas (eggs scrambled with various things including strips of crispy tortilla strips) until I lived in Austin. She suggested this recipe for New Years brunch last year.

The calm of the day felt like a return to normal life after the holidays. As a bonus the sun was shining and the temperature had climbed to something above freezing.  I decided to run a quick couple of errands and come home and quilt.

I went to Santa Fe Quilting, looking for Michael Miller fabrics so I could make the next block in the Everything Old is New Again challenge for Modern Quilts Unlimited.

The traditional inspiration block this month is the Double Pinwheel.

I had a design idea I liked and walked into the quilt shop–the only one in town–planning to pick up Cotton Couture (solids) or some other Michael Miller fabric (a requirement for the challenge) in bright red, dark red and gold.

But, incredibly, there were hardly any Michael Miller fabrics in the shop. With the help of a friend from the guild who was working there, we went through the whole store, color by color, theme by theme and found a total of 8 to 10 bolts of ANY kind of Michael Miller fabric ... all but three–three that wouldn't play nicely with one another–were Fairy Frost. Those sparkly Fairy Frost fabrics just aren't me ... but since time I don't have enough time to order anything online or make the trek to Albuquerque or Las Vegas (NM) to continue the hunt, I will be making a glitzy, sparkly Double Pinwheel-inspired block for the challenge this month.

It all took so much longer than I thought it would to look through all those bolts and the result was disappointing, but that, too, was somehow a return to normal. For whatever reason, I rarely find what I am looking for at the only quilt shop in town.

I quickly made the trip to the Trader Joe's to pick up a couple odd things I needed for a recipe I wanted to try, but couldn't find at the nearby chain grocery: fennel, preserved lemon, dried apricots ... can you guess what they might become?

By the time I got home and put things away, I had run out of steam, probably because really, I didn't get enough sleep before I woke up feeling all happy and rested.  My plans for dinner were simplified. I didn't have the creative or physical energy to settle into a quilting project afterward, so my Sunday evening Slow Stitches were of the knit and purl variety.

I am working on a sweater, made from yarn reclaimed from a commercial sweater I couldn't resist in the store a few years ago. It was on sale and I bought even though it was probably two sizes too large.  I did wear it for a while, but ultimately decided it was just TOO oversized and I unravelled it and put the yarn in my stash until the right project came along.  When I saw the Helga pullover sweater in the new patterns for winter on Knitty.com, I knew it was the one.  My gauge swatch was exactly what was needed for the pattern, so I jumped in.

I was on a roll, happily knitting the 3 inch ribbing at the bottom of the sweater, until I noticed this.

Eagle-eye knitters will spot that I have done that thing that you're always supposed to guard against when you are knitting in the round–twisting the stitches when you join them into a circle.  For the non-knitters, I found myself knitting a mobius, which can work if you're making a scarf (AKA infinity scarf), but not a sweater.

So I ripped it all out and CAREFULLY, started again one evening–wrapped in a cozy flannel quilt with the company of my ever-helpful, textile-loving cats.


I snapped this iPhone photo to capture the moment.

The new year prompts us to make resolutions, plan for the future and reflect on what aspects of our lives are worth bringing forward with us as we move forward in life and blogging and which things, people, habits are maybe best left behind.

A few months ago, I wasn't sure I would bring the Block Lotto forward with me in 2016–obviously, ultimately I decided it was worth it.

Last weekend, I knew I needed to get back to the practice of Slow Sunday Stitching ... the return of Downton Abby last night was a nice bit of synchronicity with that practice.

After my twisted start, things have been progressing quite quickly–or as quickly as a knit with all that cabling can ...  The front and back (knit together in the round) are done and I'm now working on the first sleeve, which I am also knitting in the round–more carefully joined to avoid the mobius affect.




I suppose this rambling, steam-of-consciousness post is also a sure sign of a return to normal (for me) after the holidays ;-)

If you have read this far ... I'm sorry.

The Next Day

There has been snow.  Here is an update of the view I shared yesterday.

 

And, later, some blue skies and sunshine ... which made going outside to shovel walks and dig out the car so much more pleasant than it might have been ...





I am going to play with knitting this afternoon–even if I don't get any further than knitting swatches and decided on a pattern for some yarn in my stash–and plan for a simple dinner later of French onion soup and some of the wonderful bread I picked up at the Farmer's market yesterday.

It's a perfectly lazy Sunday afternoon in Santa Fe.

Saturday Stuff

It was one of those gray, cold, windy mornings that make you want to stay under the covers a while longer ... which I did.  But eventually I did get up and about and out of the house, headed to the Farmer's Market at the Railyard.

It was still dry outside when I arrived, but the sky looked ominous.

I was surprised to see that there were still vendors outside.

Most of these booths were filled with natural holiday decorations–wreaths and swags made from evergreens and/or dried chiles, dried sage fashioned into animals, wreaths, smudge sticks ... and a ranch selling meat (with a barbecue going).   It was a bit more lively inside and soon after I arrived became as crowded as the Farmer's market outside is during harvest season.




My little sleep-in made me late enough to miss the shiitake mushrooms I planned to pick up from one of the mushroom vendors–I settled for some oyster mushrooms and now just need a plan for them–but it was otherwise a successful trip.

I walked back to my car in the rain.  As I drove across town, the rain turned to (tiny) hail and then to sleet.  Just as I was pulling into the driveway, there was snow coming down.


And then it was coming down harder. And it started sticking. Soon, the view from my desk looked like this.

I feel like I went through almost all the phases of Winter weather in about an hour ... except for the one where the sky is blue, the sun is shining and the air is crisp and calm.  If the forecasters are correct, the sun will be back in full force on Wednesday.

In the meantime, it might be a good time to try snow-dying ...

Reminder:

If you are catching up on blogs this weekend and missed my post about my entry into the Everything Old is New Again block design challenge ... I would appreciate your vote (you must have a Facebook account to participate).  Here's the block and the link to take you to the challenge/voting page.



Vote here for your favorite

Another Visitor

My (indoor) cats often take me to the window and try to tell me about something that they can see, but I cannot.  Today, I spotted him (her?)



As both my cats and I looked through the (dirty) window, he stared back. Johnny stood up on his hind legs, scratching at the window with an urgent need for me to open the window for him.  (It didn't happen).  When I stepped outside to try to get a better photo and see if he had a color, he took off over the fence.

This was my first real look at what I think is the third cat that regularly visits my yard and sends my cats racing from one window to another around the house so as to keep an eye on them and intimidate them as much as an indoor cat can.

I wonder if he wishes he could come inside as much as Johnny and Grace would like to get outside to take care of him?

He is definitely curious about what's inside.  I regularly see his shadow on the window shade as he perches on the side of the house outside the bedroom which has become my home office.  He also regularly leaps from the top of the fence to my roof–I suspect the metal roof on this house becomes quite warm and cozy even on a cold day. The frequency with which I hear him (and his friends) on the roof makes me wonder if I should consider them more squatters than visitors.

He looks to be healthy and well-fed.  I hope he has a warm home to return to when the sun goes down and the storms arrive.

My Winter Sunrise

Yesterday, Hilda shared a spectacular sunrise photo–it's worth a click over to see.  It inspired me to take a moment this morning to take a moment and share one of my own.

Here's my sunrise over the fence.

Before I moved, I could literally watch the sunrise from bed each morning.  Now, my bedroom is on the west side of the house, so I no longer have that luxury and when I'm up and about on the east side of the house, I'm usually too preoccupied with making coffee and getting ready for the day.

Thanks, Hilda, for the reminder to take a moment and enjoy the beauty right outside my front door.

Signs of the Season

Yesterday, I enjoyed my first pumpkin spice latte of the season ... along with a flip through the recently arrived AQ.

I make mine by adding a heaping tablespoon of pumpkin crack butter, made from the recipe that I blogged about a couple years ago, here.

I also woke up looking for my slippers, feeling like oatmeal for breakfast ... and wondering if it was time to turn up the thermostat and find out how well this new-to-me house is heated. (The previous tenant intimated, it wasn't so good.)

Last night, I craved soup for dinner.  I tried this recipe for Curried Carrot Soup.  It was very easy and pretty tasty.

The photo from allrecipes.com

I am thinking about pulling out one of my flannel quilts for the bed.

I'm also planning to pull out some yarn from my stash to knit some socks–it is Sock-tober, after all.

It definitely feels like Fall at Sophie Junction.

Challenged by Challenges

I love challenges, but may have over-challenged myself a bit this year ... to give you an idea, here are some of the things on my plate.

I have previously participated in one of C&T Publishing's Creative Troupe challenges - to use their paper-based kraft•tex™  product in some new colors.  I received a sample of the new light gray called stone.  I wanted to take advantage of the leather-like stiff nature of the product and designed this cell phone wallet.

You can see all the other projects made on C&T's kraft•tex™ Pinterest Board. 

For me, it was fun, functional and I always intended to make another for myself adding some fabric for my version ... but procrastinated while I thought about buying a new phone.  I mention it because that experience led me to sign up for another Creative Troupe callout–to use their TAP (Transfer Artist Paper) product in an interesting way ... the deadline is approaching and I am still creatively stuck.

I know that sometimes I am a little frozen by fear.  I've blogged about my scaredy cat ways in the past and you would think that by now I would have just gotten over it.

Another example is the current round of the Cotton Robin (which I cannot share until after the round robin quilts are finished and home again).  I love the idea I have for the quilt at my house, but ... I am afraid that I will not be able to accomplish it. That deadline is also coming soon ... so I will be forced to face that particular fear soon.

I am curiously drawn to the Modern Quilt Guild's fabric challenges ... probably because making a quilt from a single fabric line is not the way I usually work and it is challenging for me to do so. I can't resist trying ...

I missed the announcement about the spring challenge, but when Marie offered to send me a package of the fat eighths of the challenge fabrics, I said yes, please.

Unfortunately, when I went to my local quilt shop, they had none of the Riley Blake Cottage Garden fabrics, nor coordinating solids ... fortunately, I found a layer cake and some yardage at fabric.com. Part of the challenge is to try something new ... I am planning to include some sashiko stitching–something I've long wanted to try, but never have.

The deadline for this one isn't until July, but some quilters already have finished quilts and a lot of others are much further than gathering fabrics.  You can find photos on instagram with the hashtag #mqgfabricchallenge

You'd think I have enough on plate ... but I have also signed up for the Poster mini-group at the guild (you create a piece of 6 quilts based on posters, with deadlines every 6 weeks).  I am also committed for the H2H challenge and haven't made much progress on that front ... and when Bridget sent email out last month about a scrap bag challenge for the Chicken River Modern Quilters and I had a conflict for that day, I promptly turned around and suggested it to our local Modern-ish mini-group.   The challenge comes from Victoria Findley Wolf's 15 minutes of Play.  The basics are you fill a quart-size ziplock bag with scraps, swap them, then make a quilt using ALL the fabrics in the bag you receive.

Here are the fabrics I pulled from my scraps.

It's probably because I have packaged up and mailed fabrics, blocks and quilts so many times over the years, that I neatly pressed and stacked the fabrics in the ziplock I created.

It also helped me see the mix of fabrics that would be someone else's challenge.

The result was that my bag looked neat and flat (on the left) and most of the others looked like the one I received (on the right).

I came home Monday night with the idea of making some liberated basket blocks, probably because it's on my someday list, but woke up yesterday with a new idea.  I unpacked the fabrics, considered each one, pressed them, and lined them up on the table ... asking myself if they could work in a quilt now in my head.  So far, so good ... just have to meet a few other deadlines first so I can dive in.

Add to the pile a couple of personal challenges–I heard last week that the owners of the house I rent will be putting it on the market and terminating our lease early–which will mean a lot of downsizing (I'll never find a sewing space like this one) and packing and moving a lot earlier than I planned–and well,  I am definitely feeling challenged by challenges–in quilting and in life–right now.

I am joining the lists for WIP Wednesday and Ester's WOW ... even though most of the projects listed here are just barely in-progresss ... the good news is that I should have lots of progress to share going forward ;-)

Good morning SNOW!

The weather forcast said colder temps (warming up tomorrow), with the possibility of snow on the high mountains.  Santa Fe isn't that high ... but I woke up to this.

View of the Arroyo from the studio

I guess it was a little premature when I turned off the radiant heat system earlier this week ... this morning all the tile and concrete (in the studio) floors in the house feel like ice.  Good thing I haven't yet packed away all my winter clothes–it's a day for a sweaters, corduroys and Uggs. 

Spring Arrives in an Instant

It seems no matter where I have lived, when Spring arrives, it does so in an instant, like someone has flipped a switch somewhere and suddenly everything starts turning green and growing.  Despite my allergies to just about everything around here, I had to be outside in it–it was worth it ... though I am paying for it today (sniffle, sniffle, sneeze).

Yesterday, I enjoyed an afternoon coffee break on the roof deck ... and was surprised and a little startled when I noticed the snow-capped mountains in the distance ... apparently all that snow doesn't melt in an instant :-)

Approaching Normal

For those who wonder, I am still, surprisingly, hurting and am frustrated by the things that I still cannot do, but I continue to act as if things have returned to normal and make the effort.

Yesterday, I took advantage of the sale on holiday fabrics at Santa Fe Quilting and came home with these ... and an idea on how I want to use them.

I felt bad about leaving the store in a bit of a mess because I just couldn't push the bolts back in place on the shelf.

I have owned the Art to Heart Book, 12 Days of Christmas and the stand for the little quilts for a while and I love the idea of using these little quilts to count down to Christmas ... and perhaps, with these new fabrics in hand, I will be able to make it happen this year ... if I can get past the pain of applying pressure with a rotary cutter necessary to cut the fabrics.

I have also pulled out my orange scrap bin and the die cutter to make the blocks I need for one of my rainbow scraps challenge project (and goal for a lovely finish in December), but ... I am afraid the motions involved may not be possible for me to accomplish without pain ... yet.

I know that getting back to working with fabrics will be good for me, emotionally and creatively, though, so if I cannot work on these two December projects, I will find do-able others.

Although I missed the deadline for QuiltCon, I am still motivated to finish this quilt, from the Michael Miller challenge fabrics.

I had just finished arranging the randomly colored log cabin blocks and started sewing them together before the crazy life events of the last few weeks ... and left them on my design wall looking just like this for almost a month.  I am still excited about the quilt design I have in mind for this quilt and am motivated to finish.

Perhaps, the best choice for me would be some handwork ... I keep thinking about getting organized for some comfortable, restful, hand-quilting. I just have to get past the physicality of reaching, pulling, arranging involved in basting a quilt.   If I can make this last one happen, I am looking forward to a Slow Stitch Sunday evening of hand quilting and stress reduction.

A Different Kind of WIP Wednesday

Over the past couple days, the old cracked boiler has been removed and a new one, which didn't work, installed in it's place. Electricians were called, circuit boards were replaced and late this afternoon, someone called the manufacturer's tech support line and troubleshot the problem--there was a tiny little missing jumper wire.

So, the work in progress around my studio looked like this:





Because it's a radiant heat system and the house has become very cold over the past week, it's going to take a while for things to warm up ... but this is progress in the right direction.

Why me?

You'd think that being run down by the cell phone menace would be enough to bear ...

I woke up genuinely feeling thankful to be alive and even though my plans for the holiday weekend were anything but normal, I was prepared to make the best and enjoy it ...  and even try to work on a couple projects I had hoped to finish at the end of the month.

I really just wanted (and needed!) a couple days of rest at home.

I planned to cook a couple of my personal Thanksgiving favorites for a simple meal at home, including a black and blue berry crumble using this recipe

I knew that my real desert at the end of the day today is going to be this Mochacino Smoothie ... that is likely going to taste anything but good, but is a necessary preparation for a CT Scan tomorrow. 

While others are scurrying about shopping Black Friday sales or happily avoiding the rush and staying home and quilting or enjoying other pursuits, I will be likely sitting in another waiting room for what seems like forever until  ultimately getting scanned to make sure everything is OK inside.  Because, unfortunately,  it really doesn't feel like everything is OK and when I went to urgent care on Monday, they were concerned about my spleen. 

Still, I was looking forward to a restful weekend and enjoying the prospect of waking up slowly this morning–I still wake up too early–whenever the pain meds wear off which is usually 2 or 3AM, but I stayed in bed a while and slowly faced the challenge of getting out of bed.  I made coffee and was enjoying it upstairs while reading email and blogs and then ...

Beep beep beep beep ... I heard an alarm that I hoped was one of the smoke detectors downstairs telling me it needed a new battery, but kind of knew was the Carbon Monoxide alarm in the studio.

It was a familiar sound because I'd heard it about a month ago and the owner of house called the company that services the heating and plumbing who, a couple days later came out, replaced some parts and supposedly FIXED it.

I contacted the owner of the house, turned down all the thermostats and opened all the doors and windows to air things out.  Now it's freezing.

My plans for a restful 4 days, with some healthy meals and a little time spent in the studio are dashed.  The owner of the house suggests I spend the next 4 days–or as long as it takes the Keystone Cops of plumbing and heating to show up–in a hotel.  Because of my allergies and sensitivity to chemicals, hotel stays are always hard for me. My plans–small as they were–are ruined, my hopes for a restful weekend are ruined and now I have to face the painful prospect of packing and collecting the cats (that I haven't even been able to pick up because of my injuries) and their paraphernalia and getting everyone settled into a hotel.  I don't know if I can do it.

I could scream ... but that would hurt too much.  (So, I suppose, I am whining on my blog instead :-)

Whatever the long weekend NOW holds in store for me, I AM thankful to be alive and thankful that there is a CO alarm ... to survive the cell phone menace and be killed by carbon monoxide would have just been too sad.

I hope your Thanksgiving is so much better than mine. 

Life Happens

Put a cup of coffee in that guy's hand and bundle him up in a winter coat and you have a visual of me, early Tuesday morning.

I got to work early, parked in the garage and decided to go pick up a breakfast burrito and a latté.  The coffee shop is across the street and around the corner from the office.  On my way back, even though there wasn't much traffic, I waited for the pedestrian signal to turn to WALK.  It didn't matter ... a young woman came zipping around the corner so fast that I didn't see her until just before her fender crashed into me. 

A man driving on the other side of the street stopped and helped me get up off the pavement–I was hurting so much, I wasn't sure I was going to be able to move.  I watched the driver who hit me start to leave the scene, then after the witness stopped to help me, decided to stop ... and plead with me not to call the police.  She said she was illegally in the country ... though later, I realized that probably isn't true, since she works for a large Santa Fe business. There's no doubt that she turned her big puppy dog eyes on the Santa Fe policeman who made the report and gave her a ticket for nothing more than something like, "distracted driving." 

As fate would happen, she works in the same office building as I do–for the company that manages the building.  I was too dazed and in pain to recognize her at first, but I see her every day. At work she is ALWAYS talking on her cell-phone. I really do mean ALWAYS.  When she is working (she cleans the public areas), she is ALWAYS loudly talking and laughing on her phone.  When she is supposed to be working, she is often sitting on the bench in the elevator lobby, still ALWAYS talking and laughing to someone on her cell phone–loud enough that you can hear her on the other side of the wall, behind closed doors. 

As the story of my accident spread through the office, I found she has had several near misses with others (in their cars) ... and she was ALWAYS ON HER CELLPHONE.  Even if I didn't see her face before she sent me flying, I have no doubt that it wasn't the sun in her eyes as she claimed, but that SHE WAS ON HER CELLPHONE when she didn't stop and turned on red and hit me.

I was not-exactly treated by EMTs on the scene--they said something submissive, like "if you have broken ribs, there's nothing that you can do about them, " stuck a piece of gauze on my now skinless knee (without even cleaning it!) and sent me on my way.  I wanted to believe they were right and I was only feeling muscle soreness, but my ribs are so tender now that I can feel every breath and I live in fear of a cough or a sneeze.  

Getting into and out of bed, a chair or the car is an excruciating experience ... I walk at a snail's pace, because it is as fast as I can go now. Everything from the neck down hurts ... and the cell-phone twit continues to happily laugh and talk on her cell phone, completely unaffected by the havoc she's caused in my life. 

Today I looked at the blocks on my design wall and realized that I cannot raise my arm high enough to take down the blocks in the top two rows, even if I thought I could sit down and sew them together.  On Monday, I brought home a quilt that has been long-arm quilted, but I haven't done anything with it, because I can't even pick it up and carry it into the studio.   I made some sample blocks for the December Block Lotto last weekend–the sneak peek should go out on Sunday–but I don't know if I can sit at the desk long enough to put together the block directions.   I had plans to go big with holiday decorations this year, but it seems unlikely that I will be able to make that happen. 

I am glad to be alive, but so frustrated by all the pain and all the limitations ... and the knowledge that the older I am the longer it takes to recover from any injury.

Good Morning

My cat Johnny insists it's not yet too cold to go out on the roof deck and surveil the neighborhood while the sun rises.   After he woke me up to remind me it was time to go out this morning, I joined him.

If weather forecasts are right, tomorrow morning, the mountains in the distance will be covered with snow and we may have a few inches here, too ... maybe enough for Johnny to decide he doesn't need to go outside in the morning? 

Do you remember your dreams?

I woke up this morning, an hour before the alarm, feeling really well rested–a good thing because some of my old fatigue issues are back and kicking my butt.

But a funny thing this morning happened as I was becoming fully awake.

I don't know what I dreamed about, but I'm guessing I didn't just dream it, I must have been acting it out, too:  my legs were sore, my back hurt and it felt like I had jammed a couple of my fingers on my left hand.

... and neither cat was sleeping at the foot of the bed or coming to wish me good morning (and bug me until I got up and let them out on the deck) as usual.

I usually don't remember my dreams, but my physical side effects make me wonder ... and reminds me of when I was married and talked in my sleep.  Back then, my husband could at least give me a clue about what I was dreaming/talking about.

Do you remember your dreams?  Talk in your sleep? Wake up with mystery aches and pains?

Squirrelly Visitor

It feels like nature week at Sophie Junction. This guy appeared just outside the glass sliding doors in the studio several times today ... as Johnny slept nearby, oblivious to the wild life on the other side of the glass.



A few times, though, Johnny WAS awake and aware and appeared ready to charge through the glass to chase away the animal in his territory.

Bizarrely, the squirrel wasn't afraid of the large cat charging at him and they spent a lot of time in a sort of stand-off, simply staring at one another through the glass door.

Small Wonders

They were easy to see in person as 6 of them buzzed about a lavender plant along the walk outside my studio.

But when I tried to capture them with the iPhone that happened to be in my pocket, the result was less obvious.  I first thought were some new-to-me variety of hummingbirds, traveling quickly in and out and around the lavender blooms and evading my efforts to capture their image.

I cropped this guy out of the photo above, edited the contrast and shadows and it is still hard to see him ... though he buzzed about in a typical hummingbird way, he didn't look like any hummingbird I'd ever seen and so I did some research ... and found the White Lined Sphinx Hummingbird Moth. They really seemed to enjoy lunching on my lavender.

I found a much more lovely photo of this interesting moth on the blog, Morning Bray Farm.

It's What's for Dinner

My injuries have slowed me down for the past couple of days.  Sitting at the sewing machine has been uncomfortable, so I haven't worked on any of the rainbow scraps challenge blocks and I've spent a bit of time stretched out and flipping through a couple Modern Quilting books.

In one, a successful blogger with many thousands of followers, suggests that a quilter's blogging should be restricted to quilting subjects only–because, "no one wants to know what you had for dinner."

In response, I offer what I had for lunch today, Barbecue Black-Eyed Peas Burgers, served in lettuce wraps with fresh Pico de Gallo and avocado slices, and I gently suggest that some readers like to get to know know more about the authors whose quilting (or any other) blogs they follow. I love it when someone I have come to know suggests a recipe or a knitting or craft project I'd like to try or a gardening tip or other recommendation.

I've tried a lot of veggie burgers and this recipe, from Susan's Fat Free Vegan blog has become one of a couple of my go-to favorites ... though, I confess, I don't always keep it vegan and sometimes make it for brunch and serve it topped with an egg.

In the other book, the author offered a guideline for adding borders to modern quilts. Her rule is to use borders that measure odd numbers in width.  She says, for example borders that are 3-inches wide are modern, those that are 2-inches or 4-inches wide are traditional. My guess is that she was once given this guideline for a specific project; she liked the result and has since remembered it, without any of the context that might make it meaningful (like block size or the size of the quilt before borders were added or other proportions).  I'm sure somewhere there is a guideline about PROPORTIONS which feel modern (and not) ... but that rule, as it was provided, seems meaningless for modern (or any other kind of) quilts to me.

I started wondering if I have learned and passed any information to others that, out of context, is just as non-sensical and meaningless.  If you ever notice me making a sweeping generalization like these, please call me on it ... honestly, I feel embarrassed for these two experts and hope I never end up walking in those particular shoes of theirs.

Another Sunrise

I work up so early this morning that you could almost call it last night, but felt so well-rested and refreshed, there was no going back to sleep. I know I'll probably start fading soon after dinner, but it's nice to be up and about before it's fully light.

As the sun started its daily ascent, I let the cats out on the roof deck, then went downstairs, made a latté, grabbed my camera and joined them.

I failed to get a good picture of Grace Hopper, bug hunter, in action, but it was entertaining to watch her chase down any insect that happened to be crawling or flying over the roof.  Johnny mostly just watched, being a bird man, until she had downed one of her prey ... then he went over to have a look and give it a swat himself.

This morning, I gained a little insight into why Grace usually comes inside and curls up on the quilt folded on a corner of the desk in my bedroom or on one of the wing chairs in the den and sleeps through the morning.  The little girl (cat) insect hunter really gets a good morning workout out on the roof.

Johnny, on the other hand, usually comes in side, suggests that the food bowls be topped of and then insists he needs more outside time.

Speaking of sunrises ... Last night I stitched along with Longmire and finished another hand-pieced sunrise block for the Block Lotto.

The background of the block is a white-on-white print ... the sun isn't up enough for good natural light in the studio.

One of the differences between hand-piecing and sewing it on the machine is that you don't need to press after every seam and so instead of the familiar rhythm of sew a seam, hop over to the iron and press it, go back to the machine and sew another seam, you can sit, relax and sew.



The more I play with color/fabric placement in the June lotto blocks, the more difficult it is becoming to make a decision about what I want to do in my mod-mod-sampler blocks. It's probably time to pull the blocks I have made out, put them on the wall and decide what will play nicely with the rest.

1000th Post Giveaway Winners and Playing Catch-up

I thought I would have a  new finish to share today, but last Friday,  I strained my back moving a heavier-than-expected box that was delivered when I was away.  It put me out of commission for a few days and has slowed me down for the past week.

But I did manage to choose three winners for my 1000th post giveaway and contact them.  

(I found I couldn't pick just one, so I generated three numbers.)

I completely forgot to share the results here until this morning.  

And the winners are: 

I will be pulling fabrics and making your prizes soon.  Also vying for my attention in the near future are the usual end-of-the-month/beginning-of-the-month rush of activities for the Block Lotto and finishing up the last quilt for the Cotton Robin ... I keep meaning to double check the deadline for the Cotton Robin quilts, but never get around to it–a sure sign of what denial looks like on me ;-) 

As the Block Lotto sneak peekers know, I sent out the most tardy, most sketchy block pattern ever for the June block.  This one could use a tutorial (or two or three) about some of the techniques involved and June is only two days away ...

Finally joining the local guild SEEMED like a no-brainer, good idea, but I realized this morning that this guild has no speakers, just business meetings with monthly deadlines for things that they want from me, followed by Show & Tell.  Now that my Proto-Kitty is almost done–I have one more small tweak in mind–I'll be making a few more for the guild's gift shop/booth and some ribbon toppers.  At least I am meeting some local quilters.  And at the next meeting, we're making placemats/napkins–all for a good cause, but ... I'd love to see an occasional speaker or two and have a chance to learn something new in a workshop.

... And I really want to get back to my Feather Bed quilt! I thought that it might be my goal for a Lovely Finish in June–this quilt is for me and it would really put a smile on my face to finish  it and put it on my bed soon ... but I am going to have to play catch-up pretty quickly to make it happen.