Saturday, January 24, 2009

car batteries

Sara, remember my wonderful car battery that started at 34 below? Well, a couple of days later it gave up. DH says it was 6 years old so it's not surprising, but what surprised me was that it started when it was so terribly cold and waited until "warmer" temps to die. Poor thing gave its all for me.

We're supposed to get more of the deep freeze this weekend. Saturday, Sunday, and Monday nights are all supposed to get to around 20 below. YUCK. At least it's not 34 below, but still! The weatherman says it's been 15 years since we were 34 below. I hope after this we can go 15 more. I am looking forward to summer!

Now, off to do some more painting at the house we are helping DS renovate. SIGH. I'll be glad when this is finished too!

Jean in VT

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

RTC

Jill, there was a time when I made an annual pilgrimage to RTC. That began when I discovered that my daughter's home in Glendora is within an easy drive so I combined trips. I always came home with another UFO and a load of new fabric. I found that the types of fabric tend to vary from one part of the country to another and I love those Asian prints. I have yet to make anything with it but it's still in the pipe line. I had a very difficult run in with the lady who runs the show and I haven't been back since. She later apologized but it's still very hard for me to set it aside. In case anyone is curious, it was in 2003. I had brought the memorial quilt I made while Al was dying which I didn't get finished until several months after he died. It is full of photo transfers of him and his hunting pals both two legged and four legged. One of them was a picture of him at the age of ten showing off the bullfrog he'd shot in his grandfather's cow pond with a .22 .He had specially prepared frogs legs for dinner that evening. On the back I'd made some blocks with some wonderful Makower spaniel fabric. It still hangs in my hallway. During that show and tell at RTC a quilt was introduced by her as one that had been juried into the show. It was made by the quilter commissioned by a friend whose husband had died and she wanted quilts made of his shirts for the children. It was understandably a very emotional incident and there was hardly a dry eye in the house. A few quilts later I mounted the little stage with the hunting quilt. As I explained the origin she interrupted with "Is that your new husband?" I was dumbfounded and said "Huh?" She then pointed to the back of the quilt and one of the spaniel blocks and asked if that was my new hairy husband. I left in tears and I'm still mystified. I couldn't sleep that night and finally wrote her a nasty gram which I delivered to one of her minions the next day. I got a note some weeks later claiming she certainly didn't mean to hurt me. The following year I was told by Judy in Arizona who used to be active on the BB, that she made a public statement to the effect that she wanted to break up the somber mood. Yeah, right. Belittling a widow's grief will work every time.

I'm making slow progress on the very simple baby quilt and plan to get in there in the next few minutes. The light is great today. It was 8*F when I got up this AM. Ankle hurts like fury and had to resort to serious pain pill for the first time in quite a while. Temps will stay in low 30s today. Home health PT just left after putting me through my exercises. She said the road leading out to my home was rather like a skating rink. Salt trucks usually get out here a lot sooner than this.

Good day to you all both northern and southern hemispheres.
Jane in frigid mountains of beautiful NC

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

take me back to Palm Springs!

The sun came back with us but not the 80 degree temps :(
It is very cold & windy here in Portland. We see the sun so seldom
in the winter that it is kind of nice.
The quilts at Road To California were breathtaking. I am always in
awe of the talent.
I got to say hi to Alex Anderson, she's so personable & friendly, sure miss
her show. Even my BFF loved the quilts & she doesn't know one from another.
I behaved very well & only bought a few small things, unfortunately some was
jewelry!
So sorry about your little doggy Doris. It's so very difficult to lose part of our
heart. Our Dyna has dementia too, we like to call her the worlds oldest living Pit Bull (15)
My best to everyone, quilt on! Jill
hopefully this is a link to my RTC pictures
http://good-times.webshots.com/album/569702567CUqQBW

Monday, January 19, 2009

WINTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

NC was certainly part of the confederacy and still considers itself deep south which it is geographically and culturally true in many respects, here in the west we get some but not much winter storms. Trouble is the various governing agencies have neither clue nor the equipment to deal with 2 inches of snow and ice. Worse yet, the drivers are totally incompetent in wintry weather. Consequently yesterdays 1” of very wet snow which was mostly gone by noon caused every church in the county to cancel services. If it were not for MLK day today, the schools would be closed. We have had a few nights with a low of 7*F (-14*C) and there was probably some real suffering among old folks living in ancestral homes with no central heat. Many have wood stoves however but ol’ Granny’s log splitting days are over. The Dept. Aging has a firewood program and many churches do too. This morning however snow is predicted for the whole day today and to get to the hand surgeon appointment in Asheville my neighbor and I would have to go over a pass that’s probably close to 5000’ in elevation and that means serious ice if there was any melting up there last night. I’m sure I won’t be the only one canceling today.

I actually decided yesterday that if I put off sewing until after I have the mess under control I will never sew another stitch so I spent a bit of time yesterday working on the baby quilt for a baby born 8 months ago. Now I can’t find the fabric I’m using for sashing. Well, I’ll start the archeological dig again this morning and either find it or rip out what I’ve already done or, this just came to me, use a different color to add “interest” to the design which is very plain. Good idea Jane. Get busy on it right now.

A footnote to Marti: I have another surgery on the hand and one on the knee to repair the damage done to that joint incurred from the months of being in the wheel chair and having to pivot on the brand new replacement (last January). I hope to say on the anniversary of the big splash on 3/11 that it is finally all over.

Jane

felt like summer today (LOL)

Greetings all..... After our low of 3° F the other morning, we woke up to 37° F and it felt like summer. It's all relative, ya know. I dread the heat bill we will get for last week. Our DS received his first big winter heat bill (newlyweds, first winter in their house) and he is in shock. Uh... welcome to the real world, son! For the past 3 1/2 years, he lived in a small 1-Bdrm apartment sandwiched between an upper and lower floor, and is accustomed to rather low heat bills.

DH is headed to Florida later this week on a golf trip with his buddies, so he'll have some nice warm weather. Weather man says we'll reach a balmy 52 later this week.

Laura in AL - schools were canceled here on Friday due to the cold weather.

Hugs, y'all!

Doris

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Sunday Morning

Good Morning. Today it is 18* above zero. Yesterday it was --12* so things are looking up LOL> We also got more snow last night. It is really pretty out except I have to clean off the car to get to church. Guess thats all part of living in NE Penna. Gives me more time with my quilting. Enjoy your day everyone. Marge