Cherrywood Challenge

Oh gosh!!! Continuing yesterday's theme, another crazy thing happened so quickly that I barely had time to register it! 

Several days ago, we discussed the surround sound system in the family room. I hate it, as four speakers and the subwoofer are all on the floor. It's ugly and takes up visual space, and I wanted it gone years ago. Of course, now there are sound bars that do the same thing. They look neater, and well, I think we need one. 

Two days ago, we talked about a specific brand. Last night at dinner, DH forwarded me an email about that brand. Then he spoke of a different, more upscale brand, and he searched it; I did not. Within 30 minutes, I got IG ads for that upscale brand. 

Seriously??? How did that happen so quickly? And I didn't search on my phone! 

Yep -- if you have a cell phone, you are being monitored EVERY SINGLE minute of the day! Now it would be interesting to do some tests. What kind of things does it pick up? You could have a grand old time testing this! What obscure thing could you mention or search for and see how quickly it appears in your feed? 

It's a bit scary. I MUST remember to have fun with this. 

We had a training day yesterday on PFAFF machines. Oh my gosh—new stuff is coming—two new machines (embroidery and sewing) and changes to the mySewnet software! And if you are a current user, you are going to LOVE them, especially if you are a Silver-level subscriber! I believe the new version will be available next week (fingers crossed), so watch for that. 

FYI --- the new embroidery machines are NOT top-of-the-line. The creative icon 2.0 will still be the top-of-the-line! 

I decided to buy a new spool of that invisible thread rather than fight with the old one with the broken-down spool. I was going to pick it up today on my way home from the meeting, but then I decided that $20 for shipping was a price I was willing to pay to avoid traffic and out-of-my-way driving. I hope it arrives today. In the meantime, the quilt on the long arm will have to wait!

I took these pictures when I was in St. Hyacinthe. I went to Tim's, and some of the Tim's have local artwork. This was a toonie at center ice of some major hockey event. The writing is too small to read. I've seen these at several Tim's across Canada. 

Center ice toonie

This wooden sign is very cool! I wonder if a local artisan made it, or is it a mass-produced item? I've never seen one before. 

Wooden plaque for Tim's

And they had more local artwork in another corner. It makes the place seem a bit more personal!

More local artwork

Speaking of artwork, these are the posters from TWO of the Cherrywood Challenges. The pink one is Diana, and I had a piece in that exhibit. My quilt is along the right-hand side, third from the bottom. I know you can't see the details, but it's there! You can see it a bit better on the website. 

Cherrywood Challenge poster - Diana

This is the Bob Ross poster, and I also have a piece in this one. Mine is in the third complete row from the bottom and three to the left of the right-hand side. It's a bridge. 

Cherrywood Challenge Poster - Bob Ross

I also completed a piece for the Van Gogh exhibit, but it wasn't accepted. I started and am almost finished with the Prince challenge, but it's still sitting there. 

I am going to buy the latest kit with the Abyss theme. I see so many possibilities with that one—I'm trying to locate a kit in Canada so I can get started! I just checked the Stitch by Stitch (Kingston) website, and I don't see it yet, but I'm sure it's on order! Someone sent me an email about yesterday's post, and they mentioned something that made me think of an idea for this challenge! Inspiration comes from EVERYWHERE!!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Ours was pretty quiet, and I'm happy to let the dinner go when it's just the two of us. Why make a fuss? I know some people would say that we are worth the fuss, but I'm NOT a foodie, so I could easily have hamburgers (which I did), and I'm OK with that. All that prep work and no one appreciates it? And you overeat? Not for me! 

However, there is one thing that I cannot miss. Of course - it involves sugar, and that's the pumpkin pie! 

I like making my own whipped cream with icing sugar! I use my decades-old hand mixer—I don't need a new one when I barely use this one, and it still functions. 

Making the whipped cream

But look who comes running when they hear the box being opened. They are worse than two kids. Do you remember when, as a kid, your mother made something with the mixer, and you got to lick the beaters? That's my two kids! 

MOM - hurry up!!!

And so they got to lick the beaters! First Murphy. 

MOM - this is so delicious - we should have pie every day!

Lexi got the second one. Thank goodness our "third" dog stays in the forest. That's a reference to all the hair I've taken off Lexi, in case you happen upon this blog post and wonder why I'm leaving a dog in the forest. 

Mom - I could get used to this! I want more! 

And there it is—my pumpkin pie (store-bought and I'm perfectly Okay with that), but that homemade whipped cream? That's the best!

My Thanksgiving dinner!

I must confess that when I got home yesterday, it was almost 6 PM, and I was wiped. So after dinner, I just vegged out until bed. Remember, that's not a lot of time since I'm in bed quite early so I can get those eight hours of sleep. 

Speaking of keeping dogs in the forest, we had a frost warning last night, and I see the temperature is 2, but it felt like -1. So where was our Lexi? Outside! DH let her out before bed, which I keep telling him NOT to do. Put her on a leash because you know she will stay outside. 

She banged on the door at 6 a.m. to come in, then came in and jumped on the couch. Silly girl!! 

Well, I'm off to get the day started. I'm back at the meeting for half a day, and then I need to take DH for a physio appointment. His shoulder is doing well, and he's taking the brace off daily to exercise his lower arm. Today, the physio gives him exercises for the shoulder. 

After the appointment, I had better get myself in gear to clean up some of that mess downstairs! I don't have a plan, but I better come up with one very quickly, or I better start packing boxes! 

On that note, have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

The brain works in mysterious ways!

Hopefully, some of you visited the Libby app to check if your local library has quilt magazines. We've had them for quite a while, but I like the paper copy. However, I'm going to change my mindset on that. Besides, Libby will alert me when a new issue comes up. It's all very civilized, but we all know that change is challenging, and I must let myself go with the flow! 

If Libby doesn't have them, check if your library has Hoopla. Often, magazines are also available from that app. Digital has many advantages, and it's time I moved into the 21st century! 

I finished reading the first publication and moved on to the next, and yes, it is also a quarterly publication now. It saves money, but it wouldn't surprise me if some publications go by the wayside! or they become digital only. So many things that we know are having to reinvent themselves. I shall chat about movies another day. 

As I put my list of $10 quilts into a spreadsheet - WAIT - I never told you how many were on the list. I thought about that after I logged off the blog, and no one guessed. Well, the number is SEVENTY!!!! Actually, it's 73, but some of those quilts were taught twice. That's an awful lot of quilts. Now, how many of the 70 are complete? Well, my finish rate is pretty low! I'm not going there at this time. 

But as I was putting the list together, I remembered all the students in the various classes. I've no idea how many people there were, but there have been loads in the classes over the years. I was trying to remember one person in particular, but her name escaped me. The face and which store were clearly in my head, but not her name. 

Last night, something EXTREMELY weird happened. I looked at Facebook, and her profile popped up on the screen. Now - we all say that our phones or our smart devices in the house are listening. And that's possible. EXCEPT - I never breathed a word about this person out loud! I never even vocalized that I was trying to remember her name. That's a voodoo moment, to be sure!

In looking at the current issue of these magazines, I spotted a new ruler brand and rotary cutter called TrueCut by The Grace Company. 

My Comfort Cutter

Not that I'm about to change, as I'm not good with change (LOL!), but I'm curious if people like these weird-looking rotary cutters? Has anyone tried the TrueCut rulers? Apparently, there is a groove along the ruler's side that the cutter fits into to prevent slipping. I don't know - just reading about it in the magazine. 

Now, here's something else extremely freaky. Remember a couple of weeks ago when I was "desperately" trying to find that little glass bowl with sequins? I looked everywhere, and it wasn't to be found. 

This morning, I walked over to the buffet in the office, and OH MY GOSH!!! The little dish was sitting right there. 

The little dish of sequins

It's in a plastic bag so the sequins don't spill, and there were other sequins with it. Can you tell me why that is sitting on the buffet? And it's on top of some books I had pulled a couple of months ago from the bookshelf. How many times have I walked past that and never noticed it? Why did it jump out at me this morning? 

Just beside it is a bag of used books I want to return to the used bookstore. I put two books in there yesterday and NEVER saw that little bag of sequins, but this morning, when I put a third book in the bag, the bowl of sequins jumped out! Can you tell me why that happened? 

To top it off, the other day, I wanted to buy a Trendtex Challenge kit from the Canadian Quilter's Association, but I found out my membership had lapsed. WHAT? I'm always on the ball for that. Well, it turns out that I got the renewal form but never followed up on it. Why? because it got thrown back onto the table in the office, and something got piled on top of it. 

That's the biggest pitfall here, and that's why excess paper is piled everywhere. I don't have time, or I need the room. Papers get shifted, and deadlines are missed. I found the paper while looking for the second half of that list of quilts! 

All is good - I renewed my membership and ordered the Trendtex Challenge kit. But seriously?? I need to get a bit more organized. I'm doing great, but stuff still needs to be done, mainly in this office. By the way - the Trendtex Challenge is currently only available to members. 

Yes, I had all kinds of intentions when I was away to go through my closets and the office. I'm struggling just to get some sewing done. I'm getting better, but this office needs some work! 

I still have THREE emails that I need to send out for classes. One got done yesterday. There isn't an immediate rush, as the classes don't start for a couple of weeks, but I know people get anxious, so I'd better do that soon. 

Now, I had better find a safe place for that little container of sequins so I can find it next time I need it. Sheesh—how could I miss seeing that container?

I had pulled out M's box of Christmas ornaments and was going to take pictures, as I thought they might like to have them now that they are in their apartment. Look what I found! An origami John Deere tractor. I have no idea where we bought that! 

Origami tractor

Now, here's a very frustrating thing about my child. When I was at her house, she was surveying her stuff and made a comment that irked me. When she left home, she packed her car full of stuff and drove across the country. She remarked that out of all the stuff that she had in the car, almost all of it was gone. She's sold or given it away. 

So why is she still so attached and unable to get rid of anything in the 20 boxes and closet full of clothes in our house? It's a control thing—I absolutely know that. 

She couldn't decide if she wanted the ornaments, so I put them all back in the box, which will go back in the closet. I was so close to getting rid of another box. 

It's just annoying and very frustrating. DH says I need to pitch it all, which I'd be happy to do, but I will give her ONE more chance, and then it will all go. 

Speaking of getting rid of stuff, our third dog is an outside dog and lives in the forest! OK -- so not a dog, but enough dog hair to make a third dog! I'm still getting three huge brushfuls of hair off Lexi every day! I would say that I've her looking somewhat spiffy, but it lasts about an hour, and then her hair starts clumping again. Sigh...

Our third "dog"

I wasn't happy about how some of that fusible tricot was sticking to the T-shirts, so I used my steam press. And guess what? That fusible tricot isn't going anywhere! It's on permanently now. Have I said how much I love that steam press? It's the best!! I used a press cloth (a piece of muslin) to protect the rubbery stuff on the T-shirts. It worked like a charm. 

Using the steam press

One more quilt was trimmed, and the binding was made for it. Now, there are four items that need the binding sewn on. I'd better get myself organized to do that, but not today, as I have a meeting. 

One more quilt to bind

I was working on a customer quilt yesterday, and I was almost done. The bobbin had run out with half a row to go. That's no problem to fix, but the top thread kept breaking. Now, why is that? I changed needles, turned the needle slightly, rethreaded the top and bobbin, and still, nothing. Of course, I was frustrated! 

Almost done and the bobbin runs out

The quilt design is a spider web, and I like to use invisible thread for that. I have this massive spool (it's about 12 inches tall). OH MY—look what happened!!!!!! 

My massive spool of invisible thread

I think the internal structure has disintegrated. After fixing the spool, I was able to fix the row. However, I'm using it on a second quilt, and I'm halfway through it and running into issues again. I rarely leave a quilt on the machine overnight, but I did last night. 

However, here is the first Halloween quilt for a customer. It's trimmed and will be dropped off this morning. 

Customer quilt

I'll deal with the second one tonight. 

And that's enough freaky stuff happening in my day! Yes -- I still think listing all the lost things in the house is a good idea. It would make me feel good that there should be fewer and fewer things on the list. 

Well, I'm off for the day. 

Have a super day! I hope that something you do today will trigger a memory or help you find a lost thing!

Ciao!!!

Two halves make a whole!

Thanks for the tips on magazines! And yes, while I love them, I rarely make anything from them. Not that I don't want to, but in the quilting circle of life, I do NOT need another project on my plate. I'll leave those for the newbies!

So, I downloaded the most recent Quick + Easy Quilts issue onto my iPad (through the Libby app) and browsed. OK—so I did NOT browse. If I'm going to read a magazine, I like to read it cover to cover. Don't ask me why, don't ask me to change. If I'm going to indulge in a magazine, I want to enjoy the entire thing! I even look at the ads and check if there is something interesting. 

Reading a magazine on my iPad

I learned two things, and I'm only a third of the way through this issue. First, the magazine is now a quarterly publication, not bimonthly. Hence, the extra pages and the extra cost. The second thing I learned was a tip. I'm sure some of you do this, but it never occurred to me in all my years of quilting. 

When you change your rotary cutter blade, mark the date on a piece of tape and stick it to the handle. Last night, I watched a video about the tools you need to get started. It's in French, so I'm listening to it—trying to get a better grasp of the lingo. They talked about changing the blade after every project, but that's a bit much. 

OH—remember how I said that I would love to live in Montreal for six months to improve my French? You should have seen DH's face when I said I could move into my ex's house (yes—I have an ex) while he and his current wife winter in Florida. Now, wouldn't that be a good solution? 

Back to the cutters. I know I don't change the blade often enough, and I currently have four rotary cutters on the cutting table. So I should do myself a favor later today and put two away, keeping the 60 mm cutter and one of the 45 mm cutters. Change the blades in both and mark the date. That would be a good deed!!

I'm not cutting like I used to—well, I haven't had a large project to cut in a while, but I also know that it's been a very long time since those blades were changed. 

Later today, I'll return to the iPad to finish reading this magazine. Since the price of all of them has increased, I suspect that those issues by that publisher have all gone quarterly. 

The other thing I "like" about a digital copy of a magazine that doesn't belong to me is that I can read it when it comes in and not have to deal with it many years later. 

This is where the larger iPad comes in handy. It's as large as the print page, so no pinching or expanding is required. In fact, it's easy to enlarge slightly to get a better view of some things. OK, so I'm hooked, but what is going to fill the spot of going to the store to check the magazines out in person? 

A very bad thing happened last night, and I am NOT to blame for it. I could NOT get to sleep, and it was all because a "friend" (she knows who she is) suggested an EXCELLENT idea to me earlier in the day. I could not get it out of my head—so much so that I had to get out of bed and work on the idea for a couple of hours. And it didn't help that she was sending me messages late as well! 

Who needs enemies when you have friends like that? Honestly, the idea is fabulous, and I want to see if I can bring it to fruition! 

You'll learn about it at some point, but it spurred me to do something that I've wanted to do for a long time. I might even put it out as a poll for you to vote on! This project could be developed in several directions, and I have to think about each one carefully before proceeding. 

I've meant to finish compiling the list of "$10" quilts I taught since 2003. In the beginning, there was only one quilt a year. Some years, I think there were five. I've never missed a year. Does anyone want to hazard a guess at how many there are in total? 

If I remember, I'll tell you at the end. Let's just say that I started a list a few years ago—OK --- ten years ago. It was two pages because of different stores, and the pages got separated over time. I found one recently in the office, but I didn't have the second half. I might have found that on the computer since it was in a typed chart. 

Then, while teaching a machine quilting class a couple of weeks ago, I found the second half. Now, where the heck is the first page? I knew it wasn't far away in the office, so in the middle of the night, I was shuffling papers, and guess what? I FOUND IT! The two halves are reunited! 

Oh my gosh—what an amazing journey it's been over the years. Some of the people in those classes have come and gone in my life, but some are still very much a part of it. Many friendships, with me or amongst other members, blossomed and grew because of those quilts. 

I should mention that by $10, we took a somewhat daunting quilt and broke it into manageable pieces over one year. 

My blog helped me fill in the gaps. And then I went to bed and to sleep! I should have gotten up a lot earlier to do that. 

So here's a question: Did anyone take this style of quilt from me at Sew Sister's in Toronto? There is only one quilt that comes to mind and it was called Northern Lights by Marti Michele and used her templates. I taught other classes at that store, but I think there was only one year-long one. If I'm wrong, let me know. elainetheriault@gmail.com

It would be amazing to see how many of those quilts got quilted and bound! 

I might ask more questions about some of the other projects, and I'll certainly publish the complete list once it's in better shape. 

Oh, this might be hard to read, but it's all the quilt magazines that come up in our library's Libby when I type in the word "QUILT." There are twelve titles, and I suspect that a couple of them only contain back issues—like the Sampler Quilt. 

List of quilt-related magazines on Libby (at my library)

That is plenty of reading material, and I do NOT need to buy the ones on the list. OK—I'll confess, there are a couple of other titles that the library doesn't have, but I'll check it more thoroughly, as there is more than one resource, and see what I can come up with. 

I got all the fusible tricot onto the backs of the T-shirts, which are cut out. I LOVE this 20½" square ruler. It's the best thing ever. I don't use it every day, but when I need to cut large blocks, it's perfect. I sorted them into three columns and washed the flannel to go with the T-shirts. 

Cutting the T-shirt blocks

And there's the community project quilt. I'm a bit behind on that goal for the year, but there'll be loads of time between now and the end of the year to complete the ones on the list. 

Community projects quilt

I know that you are laughing when you read that statement above. I have a potential of four weeks of travel or being away from home before the end of the year. Two are guaranteed, and two are maybes. I just need to be productive with my time, and I'm back on track, so that's good. But now I've added this other project and need to work on a project for my Mom. It must be done! It's not just for her - it's for me. 

I chatted with my Dad for a long time, and he told me the story of two people who came to the museum where he "works" and asked for information about the Baljennie Cemetery. Well, one of them was a long-time manager at another branch of the museum, and the other was a complete stranger. My Dad, whose nickname used to be Roadrunner, hopped in his truck on two different occasions and drove the 30 miles to Baljennie and gave them the tour of their lifetime! So much has changed over the years, but my Dad knows where everyone lived even if the house is gone and the homestead is now in the middle of a field. 

When I return, I think it's time for one more road trip before it becomes impossible. The guy is 91! He is fiercely proud (and rightly so) of all that he has accomplished. He never talks about farming—I think he did that just because it was a way to earn a living. His accomplishments are his tinkering and making. And he makes a darn good tour guide! 

I don't even know how you would capture something like that to treasure - it's a memory that will live on in my head forever. 

OH -- and this is how strange things can get. The great-grandparents of the museum manager used to live in the area, and she wanted to see their graves, for which my dad made some markers. They ended up at my parents' apartment for lunch after the tour. My Mom had a small powder box that belonged to this woman's grandmother, and my mom gave it to her. Can you imagine how blown away this woman would be? My Mom had it because it was gifted to my grandmother when the lady died, and my mom got it. One less thing to deal with!

It's tough to see in this picture, but that guy in the white sweatshirt is "walking" his dog. 

How to walk a FAST dog

He's on a motorized skateboard with ONE WHEEL, called Onewheel, and he's moving! I've seen him on numerous occasions, and I keep my distance because I'm afraid of him failing off and hurting himself or the dog. He is moving at a pretty good clip! We've seen him in the forest and on the streets. Yikes—I can't imagine, but the dog seems happy and is well trained to follow along. The dog is on a leash, so that makes it even trickier!

I see my sleepless culprit is up as well! I'll have to bounce more ideas off her today. I'll also write the project out so that it will NOT keep me up tonight. I think a nap might be in order today. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

T-shirts quilt in progress

I finished listening to that supernatural audiobook this morning. OK, so it's a bit farfetched, but it's supernatural, so of course that's going to happen. I'm done, and I will choose the next book wisely!

I also finished the physical book I was reading, and although I vowed NOT to pick up another book, I have another audiobook due in several days, so while I putter in Studio B, I'll listen to that. And I picked from my shelves a Nonfiction book, which slows me down! So all is good! I NEED to have a book to read. 

We had two Zooms yesterday. It's time to get back to work on those projects with MANY blocks. I'm so slow on mine that that 365-day challenge quilt will be going to the grave as a UFO with me. NO—I must spend more time with it, as I really want to move on. 

And for those poor people in Machine Embroidery, I sent MANY emails as follow-ups to our session and gave them homework. Will anyone actually do it? 

Speaking of moving on, I started working on my UFO project, which is due this coming weekend. After getting those two Cabin in the Woods quilt tops done, I moved on to something a bit less challenging, but every UFO has its challenges, which is usually why it ends up as a UFO. 

I'm working on a T-shirt quilt. The front of the quilt is together, except that I will add a border to it. As is the case with many T-shirts, there are things on the back that I wanted to keep. So those were hastily chopped from the T-shirts and left in a pile. My goal is to get the quilt ready to be quilted. 

I don't know what I was thinking when I chopped out the backs, but I left very little room around some of the motifs, and there is ZERO chance of centering them. 

A hacked-up T-shirt

So I'll take what I can get from them. This morning, I finished putting the fusible tricot (knit interfacing) on the back of the dark ones using the black tricot. I trimmed them to a somewhat similar width. 

Trimming a T-shirt

There are five light-colored ones, and I'll use a white fusible tricot on the back of those. This is a Pellon product, and I buy it by the bolt. Why? Well, it's the same product I use to fuse my batting strips together. It is stretchy, like batting, so there is some give. If you use regular interfacing, there is no give, and that's not necessarily a good thing. 

The darker-colored T-shirts are interfaced and trimmed

I have a huge stack of T-shirts from my future son-in-law to make a T-shirt quilt, and I see that my white fusible tricot is running low. Time to buy another bolt! 

Two of the five light T-shirts already had the interfacing on the back, so that leaves three to do later today. Then I get to assemble the bits like a jigsaw puzzle. I'll have to add some fabric as there aren't enough squares to make the entire back. I'm good with that—I just want the darn thing done. The best part—I'll get to choose a new UFO to work on next month. This is exciting!! BUT ONLY after I get this one done!

And yes, the quilt will be heavy with T-shirts on the front and back, but it's only a lap quilt, and there is some cotton mixed on the front and back, so everything will be good. 

On my walk the other day, I ended up at Indigo. I still call it Chapters, but it's no longer a bookstore like it was when it opened. They sell a LOT of gifts and houseware items. 

For fun, I always check the craft section, which has been moved to a new location. Oh boy—that craft section has sure changed. It used to have a ton of books on scrapbooking, mixed media, and quilting, along with other crafts. Now, it's dominated by crochet! I see books on quilling and origami, along with papers. And I'm surprised that coloring books are still a hot thing! Who knew? 

They are still selling paper calendars! I don't have room to put one up, but I guess for a busy family, it's the way to go. And let's face it—some of those pictures are so pretty!!! 

However, my real purpose was to check out the magazines. It's an old habit, and I'm entitled to browse. 

So I spotted several new issues and browsed them. Here's Quick and Easy Quilts, which has a lot of great ideas for quilts, including interesting colorways and a few interesting articles. And don't forget to check out the ads—that's how we learn about new products! It's not always on the internet!

Quick + Easy Quilts

And then I browsed Quiltmaker. Again, some interesting articles and, of course, some great quilts. 

Quiltmaker

These two, along with Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting, are the publishers I've mainly dealt with in the US. They produce the Love of Quilting TV show. I did not notice at the time that I paid $16.99 for the current issue of Love of Quilting. I was so focused on getting ready for the taping that I missed that detail. 

I was tempted to buy these two issues. OK - I was going to buy them UNTIL I glanced at the price. 

Ouch!!

Double Ouch!

WOWSER --- I will NOT be buying them any longer, not at that price. I think we can get both of these titles on Hoopla through our local library. Hoopla is a great tool, but not every library has the same subscription level. Our city has an excellent subscription, and we have access to so much—it's almost too much. 

I'm going to have to train myself to visit Hoopla online instead of the bookstore. 

Both of those titles are from the same publisher. I checked another publisher. 

Quilter's World

And their prices are almost HALF that of the others. So which one would you buy? 

Still the same price

That's totally insane. I get that paper and shipping are expensive, but that is just encouraging people to use their local library subscriptions. 

Or you could go to Quilting Daily, the publisher's online presence. There is a ton of free stuff on the site, and you can get more with a subscription. I think that might be a better option than the magazines. 

By the way, the magazine's digital version is $4 cheaper than the print. By the way -- I did not buy anything that day!

Don't get me wrong—those magazines' prices are not a bad deal. I've seen basic quilt patterns at almost  $20 these days, and you get many patterns in magazines, along with some articles. The key here is to use the magazine (or the pattern). We can no longer just buy for the sake of buying! 

Oh, I was checking on the status of my classes at The Hobby Horse, and hey, there's a bus tour.  It's on November 9th. I'm stuck at home teaching all day. I NEVER have a free Saturday for fun things! But then I like teaching, so I guess I can't complain!! 

I feel well-rested today. My head is pretty clear, and while I'm not sure my energy is 100% back, I'm in good shape! My body just needs that full 8 hours of sleep, and then I don't need to nap during the day! 

I got lots of work done this morning and even have a community project quilt loaded (after I had to piece the batting). It's ready to go later today. 

So -- it's time to get the day started -- there's a lot to accomplish!!!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

When men recover from surgery

I am still a slug! Every day is better, but that energy level is still missing. All that travel and carting stuff around took a toll on me. A few more days, I suspect, and I'll be as good as new. I'm much better than earlier in the week, so progress is going forward, which is a good sign. 

As for DH -- let's just say that he has a new appreciation for what surgery means. I swear he thought he would be incapacitated for the remainder of the day he had his surgery, and then he could start working the next day. 

That didn't happen! 

In fact, I think he made a couple of phone calls during the week, and that was the extent of his work! There were a few physical issues to work out, but why would you even consider asking me for advice or taking my advice because what do I know about men or surgery? 

What have I had to deal with?

Me: Why don't you prop your arm on a pillow to take the weight of the arm and the brace off your supporting shoulder.

DH: I can't do that. Nothing works. 

DH (later): My shoulder (the other one) is killing me, and I need you to loosen the brace. 

Me: Have you considered propping your arm on a pillow to take the weight of the arm and the brace off your supporting shoulder? 

Then I had to show him how to do it, as he couldn't figure it out. I noticed he's been propping his arm on the pillow ever since. But ONLY when he's 'on the couch. So many times, I see him without a prop—seriously? You deserve every bit of pain you feel in the supporting shoulder. 

The painkillers will mess with your intestines, and despite another pill to counteract that, he has had issues. 

Me: Do you want some Metamucil? 

DH: No. 

Later, after consulting his sister, who is a doctor, he asked for the Metamucil and glasses of warm water. Things are OK now. But sheesh—don't listen to my advice. Then you deserve to suffer!

As for the actual shoulder, most of the constant pain is dissipating, and he can extend the time between the strong painkillers, which is a good thing as there are only a few days left. He moved to the couch to sleep (my first suggestion), which was poopooed. He wasn't sleeping well in bed, so he moved to the couch. Sigh... 

He's just feeling some sharp pains occasionally, as he thinks he is trying to move the arm in his sleep. So all seems OK -- except that he doesn't take advice, which is nothing new around here!

I will be glad (and I imagine he will be as well) when that brace comes off. He'll still have to wear the shoulder sling, and the shoulder won't be able to be moved per se for a while, but at least it'll be easier to do things. I think we have a physio appointment at the end of next week. There is a follow-up with the surgeon the week after. 

As for me, I will NOT grab another book when I'm finished with the one I'm reading. I started an Anne Perry, and they are page-turners! This one was published in 1980 but written in the Victorian Times in London. Oh my --- let's say that those upper-class Brits were NOT nice. They had low regard for anyone other than their own class. Policemen were tradesmen and NOT liked. 

Here's one thing that I struggle with, and this is not just the Brits in Victorian Times, but it happened in slavery as well. The master and his family had no or little regard for the servants/slaves as people, but if the master needed relief (you know what I'm talking about), they had zero issues having a "good" time with a young servant girl or slave. Or it could be a servant boy as well. 

If the girls got pregnant, they were dismissed in disgrace or were forced to have illegal abortions. As a result, many of them died. It's shocking to see the double standards that existed, and you can see why, many, many years later, we still have issues with how women/girls are treated and how we struggle in today's society. 

I'm almost finished with the book and will NOT start reading another. The weather is beautiful, and I'm outside reading for most of the day! I'm perfectly OK with that. I told DH yesterday that I should sell off everything in Studio B since I spend little time there these days. 

Just kidding- I did get downstairs and made the backing for the next community project quilt. 

The backing for the next quilt

Then, I did some machine embroidery. I had to use the software to design my project. I was stitching the final part when I realized I should have changed the thread. It looked a mess, so I decided to remove the bad part. Of course, I tore two small holes in the fabric on the last part of ripping out, so I now have to restitch the darn thing. GR!!

Two holes! 

But look what happened upon my door yesterday!!!

The EXIT Game Advent Calendar!!!!

It's the 2024 EXIT Game Advent Calendar!!!!! Thanks for the delivery, Nancy!! Of course, DH looked at it and said, "Oh, it's a beginner level."  Good grief—the Advent Calendars are always beginner levels to pull people in. And we have NOT completed one Advent Calendar without looking at several of the clues. Sheesh!!!!

I have loads more to share, but I don't have time this morning. I have two presentations—both are mostly complete, but I have to walk the girls first. 

I'll leave you with this eye candy. Wally Dion is a Canadian artist who makes quilts with fabric and circuit boards. He also uses other mediums for other artworks. Some of these are beautiful, so be sure to check them out. 

On that note, I'm out of here. I hear it's supposed to rain today. OK -- that's a good thing as I need to stay inside! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

 

Choose the books you read wisely!

It's amazing how many spam comments I get on the blog, and I delete them once a day. Some days are worse than others, and it's amazing how the robots can pick up keywords in my posts and then provide rogue comments. It would be so nice if those robots could be put to good use rather than create more work for everyone. It's not that there are tons, but probably ten per week. I know -- not a big deal, but still one more unproductive thing to take care of. 

Speaking of productivity, I was at the grocery store again and always use the self-checkout line. It's relatively fast, and I leave the three lines with an actual cashier for people with big carts of groceries. 

Some people in the self-checkout will have one or two items, perhaps a small basket of items, and occasionally, you see someone with a small shopping cart. But yesterday, a woman had a full large cart, which she had parked behind her. I'm not judging her, as she is allowed to do whatever makes her happy in the store. 

What was annoying was her behavior. She turned around to the cart behind her and took ONE item at a time, scanning it and carefully putting it in her boxes. Then she turned and got one more item. It must have taken a LONG time for her to get through the line. 

Meanwhile, I am pretty speedy through the line, although I never have many items at one time. However, the young store employee must have been beside himself as he supervised this area. One step on the opening screen is annoying, and I always try to bypass it. He was over at my kiosk and had touched that button before I could even register that the screen was up! I didn't mind, but he must have wanted to vent some of his frustration at her. 

The other lines were NOT busy, so the slow bagger could have gone to one of them, and they could have checked her out much quicker! 

I must still be fighting something in my body, as while I'm up and about, I don't have the same energy levels as before. Patience—it'll all come back, but in the meantime, I'm getting lots of downtime, which is what I need. I'm not worried. 

I did make it to Studio B, and I completed the machine embroidery that I wanted to get done by tomorrow. So that was a bonus. I managed to sort out some of the crap on the cutting table, and I'll put it away this morning. 

The best news is that I completed loads of paperwork. All that pending stuff was just building up, and most of it required just a few minutes to verify a date, payment, or whatever. And now there is another pile of paperwork that I must look at today. I just can't seem to get on top of this stuff. How the heck does it build up so fast? 

Part of the problem in the office is that the paperwork that never gets attended to is sitting in boxes, and I must deal with it. I'll eventually figure out a system to see what can be done. I try to deal with it as it comes in, but it has built up with being away and procrastinating in the past! In the meantime, I'll keep chipping away at it! 

In the afternoon, I went to the Oakville Fiber Art Show. Oh my --- I've been to the last several shows, and it's good. There are lots of great ideas, and it's the sort of thing I'd like to give a try, but it's not on my radar screen at the moment. 

On my way home, I stopped at Indigo to check out any new stuff. My first stop was the magazine section. Then I decided to check out other stuff, and OH MY --- who ever thought we'd see this in a store again? 

Vinyl!!!

The next thing you know, we're going to spot CDs, or how about an 8-track? Or a cassette? It's amazing how those media didn't make the cut, but vinyl, yes! 

It was another beautiful day, and honestly, I can't bear to be inside when it's so gorgeous outside. So I sat behind my tree on the front patio. It's amazing how this small tree provides a lot of privacy and will provide more as it grows. 

My privacy tree

I don't mind if people see me or if I see them, but the tree provides just enough privacy so that I don't feel like I'm in a fishbowl. 

So, I have a Halloween quilt on the bed, but I dug out my machine-embroidered one as well. It's hanging on a wall upstairs. It took me so long to finish that I'd better get it out and enjoy it! 

My Halloween wall quilt

However, there is one thing about these heavily machine-embroidered quilts—they do not fold well. So I have a tube from a batting roll covered in muslin. The quilt is rolled onto the tube and stored in a closet. It works for me, and the quilt lies perfectly flat on the wall. 

My storage tube for the quilt

So, the audiobook I'm reading right now is not my favorite genre, and I'm not sure how the heck I downloaded it. Oh -- I know -- I was starting my drive in the mountains a couple of weeks ago, and I wanted something to listen to. I did NOT pay attention to the genre, and this one was downloaded. It's a supernatural/horror. I used to like that stuff, but it's no longer my favorite. I'm over half done, so I'll persevere until the end. Next time -- be sure to check the genre!

I recently finished another e-book about someone's journey on the Camino. While I genuinely appreciate that everyone's journey will be 100% different from the next, this one was a bit much. The author is a best-selling author; she has a PhD in something, is a life coach, a spiritual healer, and much more than she claims on her website. 

I also get that many people may be extroverted but are really introverts and put on that happy face on the outside. So she is out there "healing" the world while she's falling apart inside. 

OK -- so she starts The Camino in a total mess. Every day, something spiritual happens to her. If you genuinely believe in the spiritual world, then that could happen. 

But what bothered me was her reference to various locations on The Camino. They were FALSE! She talks about arriving in Santiago and seeing the massive cathedral from miles away. That is false. Because of the lay of the land, you do not see that cathedral until you arrive at it. When you come to Leon, you can see that cathedral from miles away.

There were other instances as well, and I think she just embellished the story and mixed up the locations to make it look like the most spiritual event that could ever happen. This is wrong, in my opinion. If someone walks The Camino and doesn't feel anything, they are going to feel cheated if they think it's going to be like her walk! Or some of us are less in tune than this person. Also, she said she walked an average of 29 KM a day, when in each chapter, she put her mileage, and her average was 22 KM a day. Just lots of inconsistencies. Not a fan of the book. After reading the reviews, I found that many others were in agreement! 

I finished the book, but I was disappointed that she messed up the locations to suit her story. But each to their own! 

Well, it's time to start the day, and the girls are waiting. 

Have a great day!!!

Ciao!!!!

Clean up in Studio B!

I went to bed at my usual time, and I did not take any cold meds. Guess what? I got up at my usual time, so that's all sorted out, and I feel fine. I'm probably a bit tired and dehydrated, but I'm trying to fix both. Travel is a big culprit in messing with your health! At least for me. And I mean travel for work, not for vacation. 

But the dreams I had? Oh boy!!! You would think the world is coming to an end, with alien ships traversing the sky and spying on people and, well, all kinds of nasty things. Now, where did that come from? 

It must have been the remnants of a book I finished the other day called Argylle, which is a spy novel. It was a random e-book that I got through Libby. Here's the weird bit about this book - it was released in early 2024, and then there was a movie released in 2024, but it wasn't really about the book. It was about the author writing the book (or a series of books). It's a very convoluted story; you can get all the details at this link. If you read the comments on Goodreads, I don't think anyone liked the book; many believe it was a prop for the movie. 

Did I enjoy the book? Well, it was a bit far-fetched, which is probably where my dreams came from. Yes, it had excitement and intrigue (The Amber Room), but it just seemed a bit over the top. 

Here's the trailer if you want to check out the film. I think the movie might be better than the book. It's long gone from theaters, so I must wait for it to come to Air Canada and watch it on the plane!

There were some rumors that TS (you know who she is!) wrote the novel because of the cat in the movie. But all was revealed in that first link I gave you!

I have another book to tell you about, but not today. I must get on with the rest of the story. 

Yes, I have started to tidy up Studio B, not that I did any of the tidying up yesterday. I had to take MIL to her appointment (2 hours), the dentist for me (1 hour), and walk for groceries, and I managed to get my 12 km in, so that was good. I sat outside on the front patio because it was such a glorious day, and I wasn't wasting any of it. 

It's front patio time!

Yes, I LOVE our front patio. At this time of year, the backyard is in the shade in the afternoon, which is cool, but the sun is the right temperature. Murphy sat with me for a bit, and I read and enjoyed my afternoon tea since I didn't get a chance for tea in the morning. 

Oh boy -- it sucks to get old, and the only thing you can focus on is your health. I'm sure that's the case with my MIL, and she seems to get her fair share of appointments and follow-ups. Yesterday was a follow-up, and everything is OK. But the amount of scent she had was enough to give me a headache in the car. I think that is part of her problem -- too much scent is NOT good for your respiratory system, but she didn't seem to think so. 

We had to go to the One Heart Care Clinic, which is a big place devoted to heart health care. I suspect I might be seeing more of that building in the near future, and it is NOT for me. 

I spotted this car in the parking lot. How many quilters bought it? Do you have the reference? 

KONA car

When I was at the grocery store, I noticed the giant pumpkin on display. Well, I suppose you could buy it if you wanted. I put my shopping bag on top so you could reference the size. I will NOT be bringing that pumpkin home—at least not on my walk! That watermelon the other time was much smaller and almost killed me! 

Big pumpkin! 

While listening to an audiobook this morning, I got the "to be quilted" area back in shape. There are some piles of batting waiting to be assembled for upcoming community project quilts, but otherwise, everything looks perfect! It's nice and neat, and I have a few customer quilts to get started on next week. Also, I'm "behind" on my goal of twenty community project quilts by the end of the year, so I hope to get one loaded later today. 

The "to be quilted" pile is back in order

Then, I cleaned up the two work tables for my sewing machines. It felt very good to get that done. I hope to finish one machine embroidery project today, as I need it for our machine embroidery class on Sunday. Well, I would like to have it done by Sunday. 

The sewing machine tables are in order

My computer desk is also clear, so that's another bonus. 

The computer desk is clear!

The ironing board is a mess with some small projects that I want to tidy up, and the cutting table is a total disaster. I hope to peck away at them this weekend as I plan on attending a fiber art show this afternoon. It closes in a week, so if I don't go now, I'll never get there. The show is in Oakville and called Hanging by a Thread, in case you want to go. It closes on October 18. 

I haven't touched my "pending" folder in months, and a lot of paperwork requires follow-up, so I pulled all that this morning. Yeah!!! It's something that has to be done, or I get way behind, but hopefully, it won't take too long to make that all happen. A lot of it is just looking up an email, marking it complete, and then filing it. Well, I'm adding it to the pile that needs to be filed! 

So, I think I'm back on track, which is great! I have lots of sewing to do and a few samples to tidy up, which I'm going to start later today. I've got three short audiobooks that need to be listened to in the next week, so it's all good!

I can't believe how dark it's getting outside these days. It's 7 AM, and it's DARK! Even the girls are not anxious to go outside. 

OH—before I go, here's an article about Thimbles and Things' 25th anniversary. It's rare that a quilt store lasts that long, and this one, which changed ownership, is still going strong. 

Speaking of which -- for anyone in Spice Market, Dear Jen, and the Saturday Sampler (the later two at Thimbles and Things), I hope to get all confirmations out this weekend. So sorry for the delay. There is NOTHING that anyone needs for the first class except the pattern. 

On that note, I'm out of here! Got to get the girls walked and then downstairs to get some work done. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!