Collecting stats - for them or us?

 OK -- this new computer is pretty cool and YES -- I have gone back to an English keyboard. Good grief -- that was painful to write! The little camera that recognizes me instantly is amazing! No more passwords! Well, the passwords are there, but it looks for my face first. I love it! 

However, we do have one slight issue, and right now, it's a big issue. After all the conversions, it appears my contact folder didn't get brought over properly. I'm not sure if anything came over or if it's using an older file, but my distribution lists are NOT THERE!!! This is a big problem, as I need to send emails to my groups this weekend. 

NO contact groups!!

And I attempted to start a new contact group, and it's different, and I wasn't sure how to make it work! Of course!!! 

I'll fire up the old computer to get the emails out, and then I'll have to search for the file. This is NOT the first time this has happened. Thankfully, I don't have many lists, but I don't have printouts of them, so I'll need to find a recent email and use it as a reference. Not ideal. 

And that darn contact list isn't shared among my computers, which is a real hassle. I'll have to see if I can find a solution to that because it sure would be handy to have the distribution lists available on both computers. At least, it seems to be only one glitch, so I can find a workaround, and then I want a fix for it. 

And I have to deactivate EQ8 on the old computer anyway, so I'll fire it up this morning and see what progress I can make. 

And the way pictures get downloaded from email is a bit weird. It happens on my laptop (Windows 11 thing), but I saved them one by one, which can be time-consuming. I think I might have it figured out - an extra step, but that's OK. I'll hopefully figure it out better as time goes on. The bottom line is that the email syncing process is almost instantaneous, which is so much better than the old computer! 

I'll bet in a couple of months (weeks maybe), I won't even remember how I did things with Windows 10. I hate it when they change things, especially when the old version is much easier and more logical than the new way. Alas, the saying "if it isn't broke, don't fix it" doesn't always apply to computer people who are trying to find NEW ways to do things when the old way was working just fine. I guess they have to justify people moving to new software! 

I feel like I got beaten up yesterday. I started by seeing Brooke at the gym, and we agreed that I need to do more strength training, which aligns with my 2026 goals. Lots of arms, legs, and I was somewhat tired after the workout. Then I had a massage in the afternoon. It was not planned that way; it just happened. My body was so tender, I thought I was going to die! But I survived, and I need to drink lots of water to get all the lactic acid out of my body! 

I measured my BMI on the machine at the gym, and it's higher than the one I get from the manual calculation. Depending on the chart you look at, I'm either at the top end of normal or considered overweight! Yep --- it's not necessarily about weight or size, it's the fat percentage, and mine is not good at this point in time. Too flipping much sugar! Well, I'm on track to make that change, so we'll see what happens. At least I have a goal, and that's what counts. 

Speaking of goals, it's that time of year when everything you belong to that tracks your stats has a recap. Here's my recap stats for Geocaching. Yes—I still do it from time to time, but obviously not every day! I like the fact that the day with the most finds was when I was on vacation, which is usually when I want to geocache. Three countries this year!! 

And my stats on books. Sixty-two books read - some of those are non-fiction, as I include them all in this list. Others may read more or less. Guess what? Who cares how many books you read? We all lead different lives and do different things for pleasure! Me? I've always loved books. And reading a bit more than one a week works for me. 

But I got a chuckle over this - the most shelved book. What exactly does that mean anyway? Almost 6 million others shelved Verity. Good lord, I can't even remember what that book was about! But guess what|? I remember 438 days. That is non-fiction, and it was wild!!! But not very wide read, although I read Verity near the beginning of the year, and 438 Days was recently published. 

While I was having my massage, Misty and I were chatting about what was going on in the world. She's in the process of buying a new dishwasher and is finding it extremely challenging to find one that isn't Wi-Fi enabled. Can you tell me why I would need my dishwasher to be Wi-Fi enabled? My dishwasher, which we've had for a while, has a delay start, so it's a no-brainer to run it overnight. There is no reason for the dishwasher to be Wi-Fi enabled, except for the manufacturer to collect data on us. The same way those two companies collect data on what we read and what we do for activities. 

We sacrifice our privacy for pretty pictures and lots of stats. If you are handy with an EXCEL spreadsheet, you can do all the data collecting yourself, and it's totally private! I know several people who are very handy with spreadsheets. I guess I'm lazy that way. 

But a dishwasher, or even a microwave, with Wi-Fi? Why? BTW - she said they found one without Wi-Fi, but it's more expensive - go figure! 

I'm going to have to move the packing materials from the computer soon. But that doesn't distract Murphy from sleeping in her bed. I do not know why she insists on sleeping in this small bed. It's obviously way too small for her, but she loves it! Removing the packaging is a job for later today. I can't even put it in our recycling cart because it's full and there's more in the garage to probably fill it again! 

The new computer packaging

I finally got my squash soup made. Do I follow a recipe? What's a recipe? I just grabbed some stuff from the fridge and added it. I tossed in an entire huge onion and a whole heart of celery. Cut it up and sauteed it, and that worked for me. I threw in the remaining sage and rosemary from the fridge, and it is yummy! 

Squash soup for lunch!

For some reason, it was a lazy day AGAIN!!! I need to get out of my funk, or I'm never going to get any homework done on time! The real deadlines are next weekend, so I feel like I can coast!!! Good grief—why do I need pressure to make myself work?

Anyway, the next quilt is loaded on the long arm, and the plan is to quilt it today. 

And then I went upstairs to work on the next jigsaw puzzle. This is a 300-piece puzzle, so it's not that challenging. 

It took no time to get all the pieces laid out - I can't seem to use those trays, but once I move onto the larger puzzles, I'm sure they'll come in handy. I separated the border while positioning the pieces. 

The border pieces are sorted

In no time at all, I had the border done. 

And before I went to bed last night, the puzzle was done! This was super easy because you could almost work in rows from the top down. It's missing one piece. I'll mark it on a note in the box and pass it along or donate it back to the thrift shop. 

Puzzle done! 

The next one is a 1000-piece puzzle, so that should stop me for a bit. While the shapes of this one were much more regular, some of them were still wonky, but not nearly as bad as the Santa puzzle. 

I even managed to get some sewing done, although not nearly as much as I would have liked, but I'm OK. I think the issue was that I didn't prep these pieces like I should have, and I wasn't looking forward to dealing with the bits. But I'm over the worst part now, and it shouldn't take long to finish and move on!!

I really like listening to an audiobook while sewing, and that helps me to focus. I'm listening to a Jack Reacher book, and I love how the author (now authors as his son is helping him write) describes the logic of everything! I love logic, and Jack Reacher is a very logical character! 

I spotted this quote on the internet, and I LOVE it. 

Even if we don't accomplish a lot in a day, it's OK. It's the accumulation of all the little things that add up, like reading a book. If you wait until the end of the year to do anything, you won't make it happen. But if you read 20 pages a day, then yes, you can read 30 books in a year or whatever else your goal is. That's how I look at life. I don't beat myself up if I can't accomplish my goal that day. I look at why, determine whether the goal was realistic, and make changes for the next goal-setting exercise! I don't always learn, but I try! 

And now for the QUILTsocial post. I drew inspiration from a small pack of buttons I spotted online. And this is what I came up with. Enjoy!!!! Remember: let your hands do the work and keep your head out of the process. Our brains tend to overthink everything, and that's not good! 

There's one more project that I'll share tomorrow. |But the best part of all those posts is that all the projects are complete!!! Yeah!!!!

And on that note, I'm out of here to try and find some distribution lists. 

Have a wonderful day!!!

Ciao!!!

From the chaos comes the calm

Even though I have a hectic week ahead of me, with many day-job presentations, some of which require considerable sample-making and five Zoom meetings on the weekend, I am calm. I am in control!

What happened? After yesterday's three Zoom calls, I looked at the chaos and said, "ENOUGH!" There were samples all over the floor, which Murphy thought was great to trod upon as she attempted to get some petting. Scissors, needles, thread, and hoops were strewn everywhere, and the situation was not working. The visual clutter alone made me—I don't know what's a good word—feel unsettled. 

So, I took matters into my own hands, jumped in the car, and headed to Rona to buy five storage bins. I can always use them afterward for my samples, which will be more handy than they currently are. You can never have too many storage bins. 

What did I do with them? 

Organized at last! 

Three went under the table on one side of my filming area. Each tub has a category of items stored in it. I may not need all the items and will further cul over this week. I do not like storing tubs under tables, but this setup works for this scenario. Once the Zoom classes are over, the bins will be used elsewhere. 

On the other side of that area, it looks like this. 

The other side of the filming area

As I was madly walking around, I spotted this little cabinet of Diane's that had been claimed by someone but was still at my house. I commandeered it to store my scissors (by brand) and needles (by brand). Brilliant—I may not give it away!

A four-drawer cabinet to store supplies

It is now sitting on the corner out of camera view on the table where I've positioned the embroidery machine. 

The other side of the film area

I can now quickly access the most likely asked-about tools, supplies, and samples. There is more to put there, and since some of these categories will have fewer samples, I've got some large zippered bags that I'll put them in. but they will be handy if I need them, rather than saying - Oh - I have a sample, but it's at the other end of the room. This is my command station in Studio B. Why didn't I think of this before? Now, when I have a particular topic, I can put the tub and dump it on the empty table (which needs to remain empty), where I show things under the camera. I can sort it into order to show it, and voila - life is simple! 

Then, I ran around and did some more sorting and tidying. I just couldn't take it any longer. It still looks messy, but WOW --- it's amazing what you can do in less than one hour. I am determined to get this in order. There is a virtual retreat this weekend, and I will continue to tidy!

Studio B is looking a bit more like itself

I have an intense day today, but tomorrow will be much calmer with only one presentation, and it's already prepped, so I aim to finish tidying up that mess to focus and get some work done. I'm doing the happy dance for sure! There wasn't time last week, but now I'm organized, and I say - bring on the chaos - I can deal with anything! 

I must be mindful of the clock to avoid a time crunch the day before a class. So, I'll start working on the weekend presentations when I have time. They have to be done—do not leave them until the last minute. 

I left my serger in its new spot. I found a smaller basket to store the extra bits, and it's ready to go when I need to serge. 

The serger is ready to go

That cover goes over it when it's not used to protect it from all the dust and lint. I do NOT have carpet in the house, or the situation would be worse. I cannot understand how people can have carpets in their sewing spaces - or even their homes. It's so easy to use the Swifter to clean. OK - I confess, I'm a lazy housekeeper. And yes - I had my Swifter out, and it was doing double work as it cleaned debris from nooks and crannies. Then I got the cordless vac out to get the gritty bits! Oh yes -- I'm on a roll, and it feels good! 

Some of Diane's fabrics had been set out and needed to be dealt with. I measured them. Anything greater than 2 yards was labeled and went into the storage room to become backings for the quilts she made.

Fabric for quilt backings

Anything less went into the giveaway pile. I have several people to whom it will go. I will try going through the bags in the garage one at a time because I need to deal with it rather than let it sit there for months.

I got a chuckle when I went to Rona. Why are all the gazebos out? It is almost spring? Did they ever get put away from last year? 

Spring is close - the gazebos are for sale!

The upstairs hall looks like a cyclone went through. I now have smaller boxes, so it will be easy to sort the books to get the fashion-related books out of the house. Then, I can deal with the remainder of the stuff. Well, I'll sort each box as I go - but you know what I mean. Can I get it all done before DH comes home? 

The mess in the upstairs hallway

I'll share more about the boxes tomorrow. I'm off to spin class this morning and have reserved my bike. We can't be having bike wars first thing on Monday morning. 

I did not get out for a walk yesterday, which makes it three days in a row, which is NOT good. However, on Friday, I did over 15,000 steps; Saturday was almost 14,000, and yesterday was over 21,000 steps. I don't think I need to go for a walk. I can put on a lot of steps when I'm in a whirlwind cleaning mode. And it's all about moving - so if I don't get outside, I can survive for a day or two. I still get the morning walks with the girls. 

And if all that wasn't enough, I made soup for the week! I had to cook bacon for the potato soup, and it's ready for lunch today. 

Making soup for the week

Much more happened, but I've run out of time. I cannot express how amazing and in control I feel because of the hour I spent tidying up yesterday. I needed to get some order from the chaos, and those five tubs ($60) made a huge difference. Since these presentations continue until the end of March, I needed to get things under control or I was going to go mad! 

I have some urgent computer work (emails, of course!), but it won't be complete until tomorrow. I have high hopes for what I can achieve tomorrow, so I must manage my time wisely. 

On that happy note - I'm off to spin class. I had my energy bar laced with protein and caffeine. I feel a good workout coming on! Oh my gosh -- I'm so fired up; I could run a marathon right now! It's only 5 AM! 

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!

It's a good day!

It was a busy day, but it was a GOOD day! I decided to get off my butt and start putting some of this stuff away. Some things in Studio B have languished on the tables since September! Seriously? I know better. So I made HUGE leaps and bounds to get things back in order, and you know what? I feel so much better. I can see open spaces. And I'm much calmer and happier. 

Maybe all those quotes are helping me to see the light! 

Since my decision to change the coloring for Dear Jen, I could put all the blacks and whites back in their spot in the stash room. 

Black and white fabric back on the shelf

All the solids were returned to their usual spot. 

The solids back in their spot

This basket of Kansas Troubles also went back to the stash room. This month, I showed the class (Chatsworth) how to cut ALL the print fabric efficiently, so hopefully, everyone learned how to do that. However, it was nice to get this out of the working space. 

Kansas Troubles back in the stash room

And now, back to Dear Jen. Here are the blocks that I just can't live with. They are not horrible, but I'm not a fan of them. They are bundled in a bag with the book and the new background. All that is now corralled in a container, so it's not strewn everywhere. I'll start back at the blocks for October and try to catch up by next month. 

Out with the old

While we were chatting during Monday Sewing, I was putting things away. When I got bored with that, I finished the applique for Dear Jen for this month. I still have to machine-stitch the applique blocks, but everything is ready. 

In with the new

I still have some paper-pieced blocks to make and one more to sew—there are ten blocks this month—but I like these so much better. I had told myself I would try to use each colored fabric only once, but I see I used the same pink in the center blocks. Oh well—it is what it is. The second animal in the middle on the bottom row is dark. It would be easy enough to remake that block and follow my rules. I'll see. 

Then, I found many strips of this striped fabric in my scrap box of brights, and it may become the sashing for this quilt. 

Hmm -- what about this for sashing?

I like that. Now, I just need to keep using the bright colors in that fabric to connect all those blocks. This fabric is also in a bag and in the same basket as the rest of the project. 

Look what came to my door yesterday? A package with this pretty label on it! 

The packaging

When I opened it, I saw my ABYSS CherryWood Challenge. Yeah!!! I had waited a long time for it, as the fabric bundles were in, but not the box of floss. Now, I need to refine my idea and start working. 

My new Cherrywood Challenge kit

After getting Dear Jen organized, the cutting table was completely empty! I know!! It didn't take much. So, to keep up the momentum, I did this.

More crap to put away 

Yes - I refilled the space with more stuff that needs to be put away. It looks much better this morning, and I will keep at it today. February and March are extremely full of SVP events, and I need to get this tidied up. Nothing like a deadline to get my butt in gear. 

I decided to make some soup around dinner time. The soup was for my lunches this week. I've started cooking the meat and onions and realize I need a can of tomatoes and some celery. I had not gone for a walk yesterday, so I went to the grocery store! I took the shortcut through the forest. There was plenty of light with the snow on the ground to see. All was good, and it was a beautiful evening. 

On my way there, I decided to get another container of laundry soap. I cannot deal with the smell of the Original. Now we have his and hers laundry detergent., 

His and hers laundry detergent

And here's my soup! I've started using Mitchell's Soup Company and LOVE the soups. DH loves them, so he's stealing my lunches! It makes a huge batch, so there's plenty for two. 

My pot of soup

So, a bad thing happened while walking in the morning. Murphy and I are merrily walking along a busy street on the multi-purpose trail. Out of nowhere, a retriever appeared and attacked Murphy! Don't worry - she is fine! But it scared me. A chain link fence separates the path from the houses.  

We've walked past this house many times, and occasionally, this guy has his dog in the front yard, and the dog rushes the fence. But that dog went right under the fence this time, as the bottom support wire was gone! Obviously, this is NOT the first time this dog has done that. First time for us, but the dog and the owner knew the condition of the fence. 

ACK. Murphy went down on her side like a ton of bricks. Many thoughts went through my mind, and I was ready to hurt that other dog. Yes - even though I'm a dog lover, this was wrong! I yelled, and thankfully, the owner called his dog, and the dog left. The owner merely lifted another section of the fence, and the dog went back under. Obviously, this has happened before! 

I didn't say anything because I was a bit shaken, but I should have yelled. It's one thing for this dog to approach the fence and bark its head off, but it's another when it comes under the fence to attack a dog outside. Next time I see him, I shall have a word with him. 

I checked Murphy over, and she had a couple of wet spots where the dog mouthed her, but there were no punctures. I suspect the dog isn't vicious, but it sounded and acted like one. But it didn't bite! Still, the behavior is NOT acceptable. 

She seemed slightly shaken, as she had been pretty subdued for most of the day. I hope she realizes how lucky she was. It could have been much worse - it takes mere milliseconds for a dog to bite, and I know how painful it can be. 

But as I opened the breathing hole in the pond and plugged in the heater, she unearthed one of her frozen teddy bears and was happy to be outside. 

MOM - my frozen bear!

There's a lot on the agenda today, and I need to get rid of some of these boxes before they drive me mad! 

Have a super day!!

Ciao!!!!

Trendtex Challenge

Stand up - sit down! Do that ten times an hour, and WOW!!! That makes a difference. It gets easier! If you can't do ten times - try ONCE an hour! Your quads will thank you! I won't say that my leg feels better because of this, but with all the extra stretching, it's so much better than it was. I have my moments, and they are really dependent on how I sit. So, I'm learning to live with it until I get some answers. 

Now, I need to catch up on other things that have happened over the last few days. Yesterday, I did not declutter, as it was a Virtual Retreat in the afternoon and writing in the morning. 

Here's a thought on the writing. We had a big discussion about AI and Chat-GPT yesterday. While they are NOT mutually exclusive, I think they are two different things, or one is a subset of the other. If you look at using computers to do research, that is NOT new. If you call that AI, so be it. I call that the power of a processor to grind through data. 

If you feed the computer enough data, it can predict things. To me, that is data crunching, not AI. AI is when the computer generates ideas, pictures, etc., although the computer can only generate from what it has in its databases. It does not (not yet, anyway) have the power to write independently. 

And that's where I have an issue with Chat-GPT. I think it's wrong to tell the computer the outline of your paragraph, essay, or book and let the computer generate the text. And if you decide to do that because writing isn't your thing, then be prepared to EDIT the darn result! 

Using an existing document as a basis for a new one is much harder than writing from scratch. Yesterday, I faced that challenge. I revamped a document I had written several years ago, which took much more time than if I had started from scratch. 

As I've mentioned, I use Grammarly to edit my blog posts, and it's becoming increasingly involved in the process. Some words and phrases suggested are NOT my style at all. Sometimes, I let the suggestion go; sometimes, I don't. It takes as long, if not longer, to edit these posts than to write them! The worst offender that Grammarly does is to change the meaning of the sentence. It likes to do that a lot, and that's NOT what I'm trying to say. I've put examples up for you in the past. 

OH -- As I was researching some information on the internet yesterday, I came across a passage that was generated by AI. That was mentioned at the beginning and end of the four paragraphs. Hmmm -- decent enough information, except that what it said in paragraph two was contradicted in paragraph three!! All it did was search for this topic online and create a decent enough article, but it wasn't correct! Does anyone check the facts? I don't think so!

I accomplished something major yesterday, but I can't share it with you. 

I ordered the Trendtex challenge from the Canadian Qulter's Association in October. This is their annual challenge - it's been going on for many years. Trendtex is their sponsor and provides five somewhat coordinated fabrics in the challenge kit. I purchased one kit, and these are the five fabrics. 

Trendtex Challenge 2025

The theme is Blooming. So, what does one do with that? I got an idea pretty much as soon as I looked at the fabric, and I used EQ8 to help with the design. I had taken it to the in-person retreat but didn't have time to work on it, which was probably good. The other day, I cut the fabric and started to sew it. It was a great project to sew during the virtual retreat. 

I will be able to finish piecing the top today. However, as I worked, I had some concerns that I wouldn't have enough black fabric, so I had to do some creative piecing to get enough to complete the design. This piece is 1" by 4" with a seam down the center! Phew—I just made it!

My final piece

This is all that is left of that fat quarter of black. This piece is about 8 inches long. 

All that remains of the black

Thankfully, I did NOT even bother to measure before I started the piece, or I would have been discouraged. I just winged it, and it worked! 

When the piece is complete, I won't have much of the five fat quarters left! Sheesh -- it took a lot of fabric to make a small piece. 

Anyway, it's not done - it needs some quilting, embellishments, labels, hanging sleeve, etc., but at least I've started and must keep going. I'm good at buying the challenges and never doing anything with them. This year will be different!

We had turkey for Christmas. We don't buy turkeys because—well, we just don't. So we bought a thigh and a breast. I cleaned off the carcass and saved the bones to make turkey stock. I know—me? That's what I said, but it seemed a shame to throw the bones out without using them to their fullest. 

That's why I went to the grocery store on Boxing Day but had to wait until the next day to get some carrots, celery, and an onion. 

Making turkey stock

When I went into my nicely organized spice drawer, it was still neat and tidy, but there was a huge mess in the back where the bags of excess spice are stored. So, while the stock boiled, I had to clean that up. DH does not see the messes he makes in the kitchen. Spills on the floor? Nope—he doesn't see those either. But he cooks, and I can follow behind and clean up the spills. 

The spice drawer

After the stock had boiled and cooled, I cleaned everything off the bones, removed the ugly bits of turkey, added more turkey, cut up more veggies, and made the soup, which I had for lunch yesterday. It was pretty tasty and a nice break from my usual soup, which comes in a can. 

I really should start making my soups as they are easy and mostly require some veggie chopping, which isn't hard. 

Oh, here's my UFO, which I'm working on. All the pieces are prepped and ready for the final sewing stage, which is a huge accomplishment! 

The state of my current UFO

Here are three interesting items I found in the storage/organization magazines that I think are ridiculous! 

See how they added this slim cabinet in the corner? Yes - it looks like such a great idea; however, what about the big white vase filled with flowers. Doesn't it seem like it's in the way? OK - that can be moved. What about the light fixture above? Did they just cram this thing in the corner for the photo? This reminds me of an AI-generated picture. It doesn't make sense. Does no one edit this stuff?

Cabinet squeezed into the corner

With all the AI-generated photos, we must teach people how to tell reality from fake. I won't say more about that today, but I have much to say! And what about pictures on IG that are so staged that they're ridiculous? 

OK - here's another example of storage in the bathroom. It looks pretty, and it looks neat. But seriously? Who wants to bend down and pick up those three baskets every time you clean the floor? That would NOT happen in my house! It might have happened before, but it's not happening now! 

Would you pick up those baskets to clean?

And here's one more. The labels on these drawers are done with chalk. How long will that stay that way in a child's room? One press against the drawer with the body or hands to close it, and POOF - the chalk label is gone! It's pretty and cute but not practical. 

Chalk labels in a kid's room?

If nothing else, the storage/organization magazines are great entertainment on what NOT to do in the storage world! 

We had a white Christmas, but except for a tiny pile of snow beside the driveway, which is fast disappearing in the above zero (Celsius temperatures) and the wind and the rain, the ground is bare! 

Don't forget throughout the day - do your stand-up/sit-down routine. Although I haven't been doing it that long, my legs already feel a difference. Do yourself a favor and PROTECT your mobility!! And protect your balance! Both are equally important to remaining independent as we age. Don't screw it up! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!