Yes, the clocks turned back one hour last night. This is probably the best place it could have happened because we need all the sleep we can get. However, I was wide awake at 4:15 or was that 5:15? My phone was providing only one time!
What does one do when they are wide awake and there are hours to kill and I'm not ready to get up? I got my handy notebook and wrote more copious notes of observations, got my shopping/networking list ready for the day and once my brain was empty, I could go back to sleep again. I must have fallen into a deep deep sleep because next thing I know, I was dreaming about having a wrap-up meeting and taking down the structure! Go figure!
Today is the last day of the show and while it's all been fun, I'm looking forward to getting home. It's been a long haul.
I did get to the convention centre early yesterday and they let me in at about 7:50 AM. I managed to zip up and down the remaining aisles of the show. Some of the booths are completely wrapped up and you are not going to see what's in there, but I've already so much on my plate that if I miss one or two things, that's OK.
Then it was off to visit the quilts. Now there are a LOT of quilt displays. I power walked through almost half of them. Yes, there are some beautiful works of art that I'm missing, but seriously - how many Log Cabin quilts or compass quilts do I need to see in one life time? I'm on the prowl for different things these days and so it made going through the displays a whole lot easier and faster. It's like speed reading - you get the story without reading all the detail. And technique? I'm not looking at technique or workmanship - I know all these quilts are well put together. I'm looking for ideas and inspiration and I won't get that from technique or workmanship.
Just so you can get a slight appreciation of the size of this place, the convention centre floor is split into two sections. One is for the vendors. There are 26 aisles.
 |
| The main aisle of the vendor section |
And then you have the other half of the centre which is where the quilts are displayed.
 |
| The main aisle of the quilt display |
This one starts at A and goes to - well I didn't see, but it pretty much spans the alphabet.
The most impressive display was the Cherrywood Lion King Challenge. There are no words to describe this challenge. The background of the display is black, the quilts were mostly yellows and golds and they were spectacular.
 |
| Cherrywood Lion King display |
As I was standing there taking it all in, who walks up by Alex Anderson. So we had a little chat about how breathtaking the quilts are. I'm sure she doesn't remember that I've accosted her for photos on several occasions, but doesn't matter. We're both quilters!
By the end of that power quilt tour, I was ready to get back to the booth. Got it all set up for the day and we were ready for the crowds. This was day Four (technically three, but with a five-hour preview night - it's day Four for me). I had been told by a number of people that day four is slower than the others which was right on the money. Today is going to be very slow and so we can get out a bit more.
We did shut down our prize wheel later in the afternoon which was good. I'd like to know how many times I said my little spiel. But people are zipping over to our secret website to get the pattern. Don't worry, I'm sure it will go up at some point on our regular page.
I did manage to get out and get a teeny bit of shopping done. I've accumulated 9 license plates on this trip. I know - crazy that I need more! I did get a couple of patterns and I signed up for the new Cherrywood challenge. Vincent Van Gogh!!! I have a few things on my list today - mostly to go back and check stuff out, not really to buy. I mean seriously - how much stuff do I need and there is only one fabric that I'll be buying and it has bicycles on it.
We had a bit of excitement at dinner last night. Four of us went to a local restaurant in the area and as we were sitting there, we saw a group of cyclists. Apparently, it's a thing to do - get on your bike and bar hop? I wasn't sure about that part of it. But the second time they went around, there was also a group of protestors and I think they got into a bit of an altercation. Next thing we knew, there were a few cops around. Then there were cops on horses! It took a bit of time to clear things up. We were sitting on an outdoor patio right beside the sidewalk and the protestors (with the cops on horses right beside them) walked past our table twice!!! In total, I counted EIGHT cops on horseback and there were at least 7 on foot. Yikes!!! Thank goodness, it was peaceful or relatively so.
 |
| Just a protest for our evening entertainment |
Ah - at last, it is time for breakfast and off to the convention centre for the final day. Only six hours, plus my two bonus hours so I need to make the best of it.
Have a super day!
Ciao!
No comments:
Post a Comment