Shoe Worthy

My mission yesterday was to try out Micky's golf shoes. We met up for cocktails on Thursday p.m. after I arrived home and I got my assignment. I got a pair of brown size 6 and this lime pair of 6.5 sized golf shoes.
I didn't even bother to try the brown ones on because the green fit and why try and get into something that I know will be too small? I left on my trampy red shoes to show you the difference in the wedge heel. I don't even have to put in my orthotic in the wedge because it props up my high arch enough that it feels fine. That in itself has a lot of merit. Also, it makes me appear taller and now that I am shrinking from 5'3" to barely visible, every millimeter counts.
Gore loves the color and wants a pair himself but I have advised him that he will have to trade his car in for a pimp mobile.

Linda Lovelace

The following is a letter I received from one of my most precious friends. This is the actual email that three of her most near and dear received. The only change I made was to put in dirty to clarify what she was watching and to change her beloved, not with us anymore husband Fred to Bob so none of you would know who I am talking about. Very very clever, wouldn't you say? Oh, and did I mention that this BFF is closer to eighty than seventy years of age? You are only as old as you feel. Having said that, and just completed 18.5 hours in the car, I can't even hazard a guess as to how old I am right now!!!!

I just finished watching an Oprah show on pornography and erotica. According to the show, one out of three women are into porn. I'm not, so I'm wondering which of you are. I'd like to know which sites you visit, so I can check them out and see what I'm missing. bob I'm so pissed at myself. I have watched a few dirty movies with Bob and always told him I could do a much better job of directing and producing. I probably could have done a better job of acting, too. Now I find out I probably missed a calling, since some of the most successful producers are women. I always knew they'd be better with a woman's touch. Why wasn't I smart enough to pursue that dream? Anyway, anything you have to offer on this subject will be appreciated. I just hate being out of the loop. This email is too precious for words.

What We Do On Road

This is just some of the stuff we googled today. I found out who got kicked off DWTS and who stayed. The finalists are Kelly Osborne, Donny Osmond and Mya. The loser is a model/playboy chick named Joanna. She is better than Kelly but not as popular. I am happy with the outcome.

While watching tv last night I saw that ABC is having a new reality show about finding your birth parents. It's a weird concept and somehow seems illegal. Oh well.

Also
we saw a advertisement for a microfridge and looked it up and there actually is one. You can figure out the concept.
We spent many minutes trying to remember Mondale's running mate for President. I could picture her in my brain but couldn't remember anything about her name. Can you remember?

Geraldine Ferraro.

Something else we looked up while talking about Cher and her daughter/son Chaz was what did the little toe head Elijah Blue Allman look like now. Here he is and he is a musician.
We (G and me) had questions about Eric Clapton and as to whether he had any other kids besides the little four year old Conor, that accidentally fell out of a skyscraper window when he was four. Eric is married. He and his wife, Melia, have three daughters - Julie Rose (b. June 2001), Ella Mae (b. January 2003) and Sophie (b. February 2005). The couple married on 1 January 2002.
Eric’s eldest child is his daughter, Ruth (b. January 1985).
His son, Conor (b. August 1986), died on 20 March 1991 when he fell from a window in his mother’s New York City apartment.

We heard this term used in regards to the current going's on within the cast of Grey's Anatomy.
Jumping the Shark is
a term to describe a moment when something that was once great has reached a point where it will now decline in quality and popularity.

Origin of this phrase comes from a Happy Days episode where the Fonz jumped a shark on water skis. Thus was labeled the lowest point of the show.

We also discussed Scientology, Sarah Palin, Fort Hood, whether to have Subway or Hardees for lunch and a constant on the road discussion of how Bella can go 12 hours or more on travel day and never take a squirt or attempt a number two. Lesser topics were armadillos, 2012 (the movie), how there are a lot more Michael Jackson songs on the radio now that he is dead, the unbelievable amount of cop cars on the road (we decided it was well over 30) and the fact that G has one friend on facebook. That is so sad. I told him I would ask him to be my friend but he felt that it would be a mercy play and everyone (and he said EVERYONE) would know I did it just to make my numbers look better. I didn't tell him that if he only has one friend, that there isn't anyone out there that is following him anyway. So sad.

Lobster Ravioli

I wasn't gonna blog this even tho' I wanted to because it was fantastic to the taste but my blogging skills with pictures and even following the recipe was clearly not accurate but then I thought, hell, if it works for me, it'll work for you.
All I had was lobster (two tails) and I was having six for dinner. What to do, I asked myself? So I googled epicurious, recipes, and food network and chose the Lobster Ravioli with Crabmeat Sauce from the food network.
I rolled out the pasta with my trusty homemade pasta maker, made the innards for the ravioli and
put the ravioli together and par boiled them, just short of al dente. Then the guests came and as I have my kitchen set up, the guests sit on chairs over the counter where I am at the stove. I didn't think this up; the footprint of the kitchen was there when we bought the place, It was just there and when we renovated, I didn't change the floor plan of the kitchen. So, I usually leave part of the cooking to do while my guests have a beverage and an appetizer while I struggle to finish my dish. I did so, but I forgot to get cognac and so I substituted sherry (that was okay) and then I felt like the sauce ( no picture - sorry) was too little so I added this and that of the ingredients (mostly cream and tomato sauce) to get more volume. It ended to be the bomb, a big hit and I even was thrilled with it. Next day I am looking in the refrig and see ricotta and think, what was that for? Then remembered that that was what the sauce was missing. I will try it again with the cheese but I am here to tell you, that lobster ravioli was a great recipe. I am still burping it up, which is a good sign, right?

We are going back up north for a family wedding and then the holidays. So, we have to say goodbye to beautiful weather and great new friends to spend equally wonderful times with northern family and friends. In Martha's words, it's a good thing.

Good Graces

The Blessing of the Animals took place on Sunday. It doesn't look like Bella is paying too much attention to Father and was a bit miffed when the holy water came out in more than a sprinkle. I even got doused for good measure. She is looking at G to rescue her. There was a banner turnout for this yearly event. There were lots and lots of dogs there as well as a bird that nipped the nose of a dog that got too close to the cage. There was a bit of a scuffle with some big dogs that were invading each others space.
I forgot to tell you about the knife situation. As we prepared to go home last spring, I decided to take my kitchen knives (all 17 of them) back up north to get them sharpened at my favorite cutlery place. I got them sharpened and put them in the trunk where they remained for five months until I took them out to pack up for my class at the Barn. I forgot to put them back when I got home and so they are in the garage up north. I had not one knife to use so I had to resort to purchasing one for the time being. Living in a one knife household is not an easy thing to do.

Citrus Sunday

I was so mad yesterday morning when I went to blog that I just couldn't do it. Somehow, which I don't think has ever happened before, I lost pictures on my camera. I specifically went out of my way to meet up with girlfriends for lunch and a hunt for a spotting of anything having to do with a Rockefeller girl getting ready to marry the son of the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius, later in the day. We were very lucky because when we went into a spa, to find the perfect polish for a toe touchup, there was the bride and her mother, getting their nuptial hair done. Then, as luck would have it once again, we stumbled onto the room where the happy couple were to get tied. It was a beautiful room, all white except for the flowers. The aisle arrangements as well as all the other flowers in the room were dark green with a tiny bit of white. It was lovely. You will have to take my word for all of this because, as I stated before, there were no pictures of this. Enough said.

So, onto my yard. I have a key lime tree, a meyer lemon, ruby red grapefruit and a naval orange tree. I decided to harvest some of the fruit. First off, key lime.
I never did learn whether you should harvest the little limes when green or yellow, but I have done both and they all taste the same to me.
I prepared them
and juiced them in my wonderful juicier that my girlfriends got me a couple years ago. It was time to make a pie.

Key Lime Pie

Prepare a graham cracker pie crust. I make my own but you can easily buy it pre made. This crust needs to then be baked in a 350º oven for 8 minutes. Then off to the refrig to cool.
I can't stand a skimpy pie so I double the pie mix to go to the top. This is my doubled recipe.
Beat 12 egg yolks.

Add 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk. Beat.

Add 2/3 cup key lime juice. Beat,

Sweeten to taste (the limes can be very tart). I use Splenda.

Pour into prepared crust.

Cook in a 350º for 30 minutes or until the center is set.

Cool and refrigerate.
This particular picture looks like the pie is in jail. It's my new oven and it is spotless.
At service time, prepare whipping cream to top it off and EAT!

I also juiced 9 meyer lemons to make fresh lemonade. There was a lot of pulp that I strained out. With the help of a dinner guest we concocted the potion. Adding water and Splenda in varying amounts we came up with a drink that tasted much more like fresh squeezed grapefruit. I had to check the tag on the tree to see that I did indeed make it with lemons. Hey, if nothing else, we have the makings of some mighty fine greyhounds. As the saying goes, when life gives you lemons, yadda, yadda, yadda.

Let's Go Clubbing

It seems like all we have done since we got to Florida is walk, and eat. There are always different restaurants from year to year. Either they change management, menu or everything. We feel it is our duty to scope out the bad and assess the new. So far, we have given the nod to a couple places. Tuesday we found a new italian restaurant that was definitely to my liking. I had veal marsala and the veal was NOT overcooked. I usually use calamari fritti as my parameter to see how the kitchen cooks; the norm is overdone. It wasn't on the menu, plus, I am kinda sick of it. And the people we were out with had clean plates so that's a good sign. Also, not wanting to weigh yourself come morning is also a sign. Last night we went to a golf club that is not regular in having it's dining room open. I guess this place has been operating as a golf course but the rumor is that the food service is sketchy if at all. All but one of us got a rib eye and it was the biggest one I ever saw. Needless to say, guys were all happy even if they had a little green fur on the top. (That was a what if; no green fur). Food rating? Just okay.

You know me, I am a sucker for decor, so right away I was enamored with this wreath of old golf clubs. Every single golf course should have one of these rather than the stupid basket of fake flowers and flowing fake fern. I swear, there is not a woman around when the decor of golf clubs is decided. Is it possible that there is a fake mallard duck in captivity that has not been designated to the hearth in a club?

These are very old as you can see but it would be equally impressive without the antique status. I just love the idea. Spread the word. I say no more.
I looked down to get my ipod (I have four) and was actually embarrassed by the sight of my need for entertainment. The white 30G ipod is barely there, being six years old. The gold is for music and can't hold a book on tape because of it's small capacity. One of the black ones are for books on tape (iPod Touch 32G) and the other is my iPhone. Both of those are a must have for filling idol time in a queue, in a waiting room or in a boring mass. Did I say that?

Tickled

Yeah, I know. This just happens to be the same picture that I posted yesterday. I just can't get
it out of my mind. My gal pal did this. Can I be any prouder of her? Maybe if she bowled a perfect game but otherwise, naw. There is now a black and white shoe but it wasn't finished before the 'photo shoot' of all the other girls.

Oh, and did I tell you that the shoe samples are almost all 6 1/2 which, with my orthotic in place, just happens to be the size I wear? A friend of ours, Laura, wore the shoe for 9 holes and shot her best round ever, with a witness to boot! She knocked off 5 strokes (whatever that means). But what was the surprise is how much better she putted, being more over the ball for a more exact direction.

One more thing, did you know that, to keep the double cheese on the dollar menu at Micky D's, they kept it the same but only have one slice of cheese. I rarely have had a double cheese because it just seems so deliciously wicked, but I can't imagine it with only one slice of cheese. I may have to do some research. Now, if I can only find a dollar.

TipTeeToe-In Technicolor

Do you remember, back in June when I posted about my BFF Micky was about to start manufacturing her new wedge footed golf shoe, TipTeeToe? Well, I am here to tell you that it's up and going. How cool is this postcard ad. Very professional.
It seems like it took forever, but now she has the colors and the prototypes and the shoe is off and running. Don't you just love all the colors she has picked? It makes you want to take up the sport, or if nothing else, get the hell going and shop for matching outfits. That's my plan anyway! Congrats Mick; I can't believe how you have persevered and made this a reality. As the Virginia Slims ad will tell you, you've come a long way baby!
While, in the mean time, I have been working on some color schemes myself!!!

Levi

Wow, I opened up my computer this morning and had forgotten the last thing that I googled. It was Levi Johnston. I know what you are thinking, 'this girl needs a life' and of course you are right but let me explain. I rarely have the tv on during the day when I am by myself in the studio. The reason is because it keeps me from being productive. I find myself just standing in front of it instead of doing what I am supposed to be doing. So, the nights that I am home and wanna watch my shows I turn on the tv just before the show comes on so in case I want to rewind, it's on my tivo. Last night, when I turned on the tv it was way earlier than I thought. I still get confused with time change and I have been down south for over a week. Anyway, on the tv, on a magazine show there was 18 or 19 year old Levi Johnston, with a realtor, looking for a house in Alaska for he and his son, Tripp (mother Bristol Palin). He was looking in the price range of almost half a million!!!! I couldn't believe it. He could barely put two cohesive sentences together. I went on line to see where the heck he gets his money but I should have figured out that every time they have an interview they get paid. Like people really care? I guess they do or my computer wouldn't have googled him, right?

Step It Up

Unfortunately, the stuff I am working on right now is either super secret or just boring monotonous repetition so I will show you something different instead.

A topic near and dear to my heart; my lively hood - STAIRS. These are not the typical stairs that keep me in fabric and probably would not pass some of the standards and codes that a typical fire escape stair would be held accountable for. These stairs are from some wild and crazy guys that have imaginations that create unique and magnificent works of art.
How about this stair that doesn't touch the floor.
And another.
This is a stair case with both the view from the top and the bottom.
You have to look closely and see that one side of these steps are anchored in the wall, or otherwise it looks like they are floating.
I wouldn't suggest going down these steps after a cocktail party!!!
I wouldn't venture on these stairs with even the idea of a cocktail party in my brain!!!!

Oh Baby!

This is the book by Amy Bradley who is the designer for the quilt I showed you yesterday. The wall hanging is the reason I bought the book to begin with but I have never found the energy to tackle it yet. It's a lot of work but then, fusible could be used to make it easier. Amy uses fusible in her quilts but I don't like to because it makes them harder. I applique without adding the fusible so it takes a little more time, mainly so the fabric doesn't shift and have little puckers.

Here is a very cute quilt for a girl, called Doll Babies, and you can find it at Quilt Soup.

The Blues

Here's Jack's baby quilt, almost finished.
His mom said that his colors are all the blues, mostly baby blue, so I tried to stick to that palette. It's all done except for half of the binding which I gave up finishing last night.

Is it just me or am are you getting tons of Facebook emails a day that are all bogus?

What Not To Wear

I never realized how politically correct People Magazine is. Out of all the literary outlets I could choose from (Washington Post, New York Times, Wall Street Journal) I ultimately choose People for all my worldly information therefore never realized that there was such a controversy out there as to Michelle Obama's wardrobe. They never mention anything that she wears. Had I known, I would have posted many many pictures of tacky clothing that she wears on a daily basis. Hell, this could be the entire basis for a blog, if I felt the need. Come to think of it, I am sure there are Michelle's attire bashing blogs out there as I type. If nothing else, it gives me a giggle to read the comments. I will leave that for someone else to tackle. Lord knows I could turn fifteen shades of red on some of the outfits I wear. Thankfully, I am not the First Lady.

Ahhh, the perfect segue into discussing another attire dilemma. I love my jeans and wanted a little variety so I went back to the store (Calvin Klein Outlet) and found that they have the exact same jeans I have in blue denim but the new ones are in black
but unfortunately, it has this eye popping stitchery on the derriere. Oh yeah, let's call more attention to it than the cellulite does. Then I got to thinking, I am going to Florida and I can dye these to camouflage the stitching. I did just that. Three times. Obviously the stitching has some man made product in it that will not take the fiber reactive dye. Oh well.
My other alternative was to go over all the garish stitching with a permanent magic marker and that is what I spent my evening doing, while watching Grey's and Flashforward. The top pair (one for Fl and one for IN) is not magic markered and the lower pair is. I can definitely live with the jeans now.
What I should have been doing was to start to tackle this washed and ready fabric that will end up being a quilt for my newest nephew, Jack. He is almost a month old and Aunt Tommy has not come through yet!!!!!

Tainted

I found out that I have a cataract on my right eye and that is why my vision is failing. The doctor said it is at level 1 (very young) but still damaging but he said that we should wait until next fall to have it removed and replaced with an artificial lens and repair my vision problem. That way it will be covered by insurance. So, as much as I like to think of myself as a not so middle aged or a senior, the signs are popping up all around me. It just may be time to stop shopping in the Junior department. That is so sad.

Now I will have to wear glasses. I figured because I had mono vision that wearing readers probably isn't good for my distance eye and being the inventive person I claim to be I thought I could work around that by taking out the lens on the distance side of the glasses and only use the closeup side. That's all well and good, except that I somehow confused myself (wow! how did that happen!) and smashed (with a meat mallet) the wrong lens. Fortunately I have two pair,
so this one will go into the trash, and the other one will have the left lens taken out. I did it and tried it on for feel and it was very odd and I felt much better wearing the glasses low on my nose like a granny as I have for the past three months.
And check this out that I just happened to walk by . G is working out but Bella has to be involved in everything, including being there during the seated row. Do ya think she gets enough attention?

What To Wear?

I don't care if you are a republican or a democrat or an independent or a zoo animal; you have an opinion. This is not a political statement because as I have said before, I don't know enough to voice any political knowledge. I do however, have a monochrome of taste.

Here we have the current and last First Lady. Gee, I can't quite figure out why all the fuss is made about Michelle's great clothing style. But then, that's just me.

The Eye's Have It

I will be very curious as to how my eye doctor appointment goes this morning. I had lasix about eight years ago; mono vision - one eye for reading and one for distance. Literally on the plane going to China I realized that I was having difficulty reading and kept borrowing Jayne's glasses. Since then I either wear readers to do anything close or I have a headache. My brother told me they can tweak the eye to make it 20/20 again. When I made the appointment a couple months ago, they called it Refreshing. Hopefully that can be done with a minimum of trips to the doctor. When I had it done initially, the doctor's office was five minutes away; now it's about 20 times that.

The initial procedure takes about thirty seconds of actual surgery (if that's what you want to call it) and ten hours of waiting and appointments. Those lasers are like the stealth bombers; you tell them where to go and you could be doing the Jive (influenced by last nights DWTS) and it would find it's spot.

Busy, Busy

So far I have unpacked two out of eighteen boxes. I have unpacked a duffel but I only took the stuff out and set it on the table. What I did do is hang some quilts that I purchased in the last couple years.
This one stands alone. Not only is it one of my favorites, but it's size came in way less than the recommended finished size for the SAQA 12" square auction. It's a good thing too, because my symmetry would not have worked without the happy mistake!!! It reminds me of another quilt I made for a show that was to be no more than 30" wide and mine grew and grew and no longer fit the parameters. We all do it.
My studio bathroom has a very large wall and I didn't know what to do with it until I started collecting the 12 incher's.
I could only get these shots because of the restrictions of my room and my camera.
My grand pal, Carol Soderlund, gave me the idea of hanging small quilts with old sewing machine needles. It would take me the rest of my life to come up with enough to hang these (64) so I chose another route. I went to Walmart and got ten needles for a couple bucks.

This bathroom is perfect for a gallery because it is located close to where all my quilter friends hang and the room is used very little,

especially the shower, so the climate control is perfect.

Charming Treasures

My blog is very late today because I have tried to stay out of the studio because I have so much putting away to do and I am just in a lazy mood. The stifling heat and humidity might be part of the reason but whatever, I am not accomplishing much today.I was sitting on the very large couch unit when I noticed a bit of a catastrophe that happened during our long absence from Florida. Somehow one of the lights died on the couch. It looked like it gave up after being too top heavy. We had some renovation going on in the kitchen and the family room so maybe the worker guys did something to it but whatever, it's dead. We have all new cabinets and the job of organizing the stuff in them is daunting right now to me. There is so much to do that I don't want to do anything. So that is just what I did. I picked up a coffee table book of mine and started to page through it. It has been a long time since I have checked out this book.

The book is 'Creating The Not So Big House' by Sarah Susanka. It has lots of great ideas but the ones I like the best are following.

I love this table lamp combo that swings around to the back of the couch and supplies storage (magazine type).
I love this zoomy stair railing made out of copper pipe. It looks great and is very inexpensive.
I love asymmetrical things like this shelf/fireplace. Even tho' it's very dissimilar. it still has balance to me.
Instead of using plain stone or brick for a chimney why not mix it up and give it it's own character. I just love this but probably would have never thought of it.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!! We will be spending the day on the road so I guess we are dressed as travelers..

I think the last time we dressed up was a couple years ago when we went with an already worn Captain Hook and Peter Pan. I reconstituted the outfits (got the cobwebs off and gave them a press) from the last time we went to a dress up Halloween party. I actually hot glued the moustache on G’. Let me think of other things we wore in the past. One year we were a cub scout and a brownie. I got the blue shirt and pants for G at Sears in the worker guy section and then got all the cub scout stuff at the same place I got my brownie dress; J.C. Penney. I borrowed a sash that already had tons of patches on it. I liked that outfit. One year we went to a party as John DeLorean and I was a bag of coke. We went as cowboy and cowgirl. I still have all the costumes in a couple big plastic containers. I keep thinking that they will come in handy someday.

We were thinking of the Halloween costumes that the kids wore when they were young. Peter’s first was the typical hobo with colored patches sewn on a flannel shirt, blue jeans and a stick with a stuffed bandana. He was seven months and never made it to a doorstep. The next year he was superman and went to a couple houses but just wanted to sit down on the doorstep and eat the candy. His diaper in a pair of tights come to mind. Maggie’s first was some sleeper that was an animal; I think a pig. She was three months old. For some reason I can’t remember Peter’s third year costume.

They were matching clowns one year. One side of the suit was black and one was white with red pompoms and pointed hats. There was the year that Peter was a football player and Maggie was a fifties chick. One year Maggie went as a ballerina and Peter was Robin Hood.

After a phone call to Maggie I can add a jogger (very clever) and Pippi Longstocking to her costume repertoire. After a phone call from Pete, I could add a jogger (again, very clever) to his list. Once they went as a monk and a nun. I made all the costumes but of course the kids would have much rather had the boxed costumes that came from the grocery store that were one piece and tied closed in the back, accompanied by a plastic face mask.

There’s no making those kids happy……. It reminds me that we always had homemade cookies in our lunches and all I dreamed of was store bought.. Go figure.

On The Road Again ( A Willy Nelson Song)

I am now in Dalton Georgia and we will be running out for a romantic meal soon. When we arrived at our motel, we immediately took Bella for a nice walk around the campus of Dalton State College. G actually tried his hand at a few of the circuit training stops.

Bella is such a good traveler, never making a fuss or anything. She has her own car seat and sits in it or lays in it for hours. Even tho' we stop to let her go do her 'busy' she never does on the road. She is never hungry and rarely thirsty.

Last night when I had my farewell cocktail and appetizer with Micky, she showed me this new fantastic app for our iPhone. It's called MyPantone. She actually used the Pantone palette to pick out the colors for her golf shoe prototypes. By the way, she received 9 pair of her patented golf shoe TipTeeToe (the wedge heeled golf shoe she designed) from China, this past week. Now she is planning on heading out for a trade show to get the marketing started.

For $9.99 you can get a paint palette which you can manipulate to group colors, have the app pick corresponding colors and lots of other fun stuff. There are other color apps like Palettes ($9.99), colorID, for ($.99), Colorstrology (free), Color Expert ($9.99), or ColorToy ($2.99). They are wonderful tools for choosing colors, either for quilts, decor, or clothing. Check these out; you will be very impressed. If I do get pantone, it will be the only app I have paid for except for Jeopardy ($4.99) which was SO WORTH IT!!! When I am waiting, it passes the time and it makes me feel smart, where as bowling makes me feel stupid.

Greening Up

Okay, so I am a liar, liar, pants on fire. I went to get my hair cut with the plan to see what my hair looked like under my 'natural blond'. I mentioned this to Tammy and she said that I should keep the color I have now, due to my ruddy complexion. She said something like I would completely turn grey, not only my hair. That painted a rather gruff picture and so I took a pass. I got my hair cut but just like I always do only maybe a little shorter. I may try anyway but just not right now.

In front of the Brown Exhibition Hall in Houston, stands a garden. There is currently a display of globes that are decorated to reflect various aspects of 'Greening Up'. They represent all different ways that we can do our part to make our lives more sustainable and green.
Turning trash into art.
Wind power.
Turning trash into art and green architecture.
Wind power.
Eating green.
Plant based diet.
Urban greening.
Trash into art.
Wind Power (again).
Greening your home.

Residential recycling.

These were done by various local artists and sponsored by local establishments.

TidBits

How could it possibly take this long to let my Google account know that I have paid? It's insane. It has even affected my bowling average. I didn't even break 100 on any of my three games. Do you know how pathetic it looks to have me on the alley with my own new ball and new bowling shoes and bowl like that? The others, oh, they try to be supportive but after awhile they even give up the effort. I can see it in their face. Sad, poor Tommy. Yet, for some reason, unknown to me, we won three games so my teammates are not at all unhappy with me. I just don't get it.

I am off for an early morning hair cut and I think I am gonna go shorter today. It might be the weather change, or bodily change (because the hair products remain the same) but my hair isn't doing what it used to so it's time for a change. I even thought I might see what my grey looks like this winter because we don't have much in the way of pressing social engagements. I figure starting short would be better for that. That's not to say that I will carry through with this or that if I do I will remain au - natural. There is grey I like and grey I don't. My family has the don't kind so I am not holding out much hope that I will like mine. Okay, that was officially boring.

I cried at the end of Biggest Loser last night. That Abby is a sweetheart. I told G, it was the tearing up factor that goes along with the winding down of a little cold. It didn't matter tho', about the lie, cauz' he has his earphones on and just gave me that oh so pleasant nod of his.

Sadly, we had windows broken out of two cars in the middle of the night and discovered them mid morning yesterday. What a pain in the ass that is. Insurance, police, cleanup, new phone (G's), service, loaner. Yuck. My car is always safe and sound in the garage, locked up to keep safe my thirty eight reusable grocery bags that have completely taken over the car. We have had a little crime lately (other smashed windows and bashed in mail boxes) and on a positive note, the coppers did find the mail box abusers and are rigorous in their pursuit of the smash and grabbers. It's desperate times we're havin'.

Hollywood Squares

These are fantastic and I thought I would share.

Hollywood Squares:

These great questions and answers are from the days when ' Hollywood Squares' game show responses were spontaneous, not scripted, as they are now. Peter Marshall was the host asking the questions, of course..


Q.. Paul, what is a good reason for pounding meat?
A. Paul Lynde: Loneliness!
(The audience laughed so long and so hard it took up almost 15 minutes of the show!)

Q. Do female frogs croak?
A. Paul Lynde: If you hold their little heads under water long enough.

Q. If you're going to make a parachute jump, at least how high should you be
A. Charley Weaver: Three days of steady drinking should do it.

Q. True or False, a pea can last as long as 5,000 years...
A. George Gobel: Boy, it sure seems that way sometimes.

Q. You've been having trouble going to sleep. Are you probably a man or a woman?
A. Don Knotts: That's what's been keeping me awake.

Q. According to Cosmopolitan, if you meet a stranger at a party and you think that he is attractive, is it okay to come out and ask him if he's married?
A.. Rose Marie: No wait until morning.

Q. Which of your five senses tends to diminish as you get older?
A. Charley Weaver: My sense of decency..

Q. In Hawaiian, does it take more than three words to say 'I Love You'?
A. Vincent Price: No, you can say it with a pineapple and a twenty..

Q. What are 'Do It,' 'I Can Help,' and 'I Can't Get Enough'?
A. George Gobel: I don't know, but it's coming from the next apartment.

Q. As you grow older, do you tend to gesture more or less with your hands while talking?
A. Rose Marie: You ask me one more growing old question Peter, and I'll give you a gesture you'll never forget.

Q. Paul, why do Hell's Angels wear leather?
A. Paul Lynde: Because chiffon wrinkles too easily.

Q. Charley, you've just decided to grow strawberries. Are you going to get any during the first year?
A.. Charley Weaver: Of course not, I'm too busy growing strawberries.

Q. In bowling, what's a perfect score?
A. Rose Marie: Ralph, the pin boy.

Q. It is considered in bad taste to discuss two subjects at nudist camps. One is politics, what is the other?
A. Paul Lynde: Tape measures..

Q. During a tornado, are you safer in the bedroom or in the closet?
A. Rose Marie: Unfortunately Peter, I'm always safe in the bedroom.

Q. Can boys join the Camp Fire Girls?
A. Marty Allen: Only after lights out.

Q. When you pat a dog on its head he will wag his tail. What will a goose do?
A. Paul Lynde: Make him bark?

Q. If you were pregnant for two years, what would you give birth to?
A. Paul Lynde: Whatever it is, it would never be afraid of the dark..

Q. According to Ann Landers, is there anything wrong with getting into the habit of kissing a lot of people?
A. Charley Weaver: It got me out of the army.

Q. It is the most abused and neglected part of your body, what is it?
A. Paul Lynde: Mine may be abused, but it certainly isn't neglected.

Q. Back in the old days, when Great Grandpa put horseradish on his head, what was he trying to do?
A. George Gobel: Get it in his mouth.

Q. Who stays pregnant for a longer period of time, your wife or your elephant?
A. Paul Lynde: Who told you about my elephant?

Q. When a couple have a baby, who is responsible for its sex?
A. Charley Weaver: I'll lend him the car, the rest is up to him

Q. Jackie Gleason recently revealed that he firmly believes in them and has actually seen them on at least two occasions. What are they?
A. Charley Weaver: His feet.

Q. According to Ann Landers, what are two things you should never do in bed?
A. Paul Lynde: Point and laugh

Posting With No Photos Is A Drag

Thanks for all your comments yesterday. It's just that I never heard about that 1GB limit before. And I don't know if it matters but I haven't used Picasa in a long time. I use iPhoto since I switched to the MacBook. Anyway, I bit the bullet and paid my $20. I was then given a warning that it could take up to a few days to take effect and as per usual with me, I blew that off thinking that's the worst case scenario. It's true. It's been almost 24 hours and I still can't post photos.

I belong to a guild but have never been one for meetings of any type so I pretty much just get involved in the quilt show that they have every other year. I neglected to rejoin the guild this summer (I am a subscription member because I rarely cross the state line for a guild meeting) and now I find myself having to re-up and register all the quilts that could be in the show before we take off for Florida. What a pain in the neck. I usually come back from Florida for the show but I have decided not to this time. I will have to rely on my friends to submit my quilts at the appropriate time to get into the show and then to get the quilts back after the show. Oh, and I forgot- there is one quilt that isn't even sewn together yet. Oh dear.

It is difficult to post when I know I can't use anything visual. So what am I up to? I am trying to organize and make kits for a new car project. I have spent the last two years of car travel working on my baby bear quilts and now find that in four days I will need to start on something new. That is what I plan on doing today. I also am going to wash and shrink wool sweaters from The Salvation Army for another project that may work well as a Christmas gift. The studio needs major cleaning from having lots of work completed by my pals this past weekend. Factor in the fact that it's bowling day, and I have my work cut out for me. I had better get goin'.

Blogger Bull

Wow, I was uploading images in today's blog and got this notice from Blogger that I was over my limit.

We're sorry, but you have exceeded your photo upload quota. For more information, check out this Blogger help page.

The blogger help page says this:

Free storage space is specific to each product. Picasa Web Albums offers 1 GB of storage for photos and videos only. Gmail provides 7.3 GB (and counting) which is reserved just for Gmail messages. Free storage from one product cannot be used by or transferred to another product.

All photos posted to Blogger are included in the 1 GB of free storage allotted to Picasa Web Albums.
Paid Storage

When you run out of free storage for any product, you can purchase additional storage that is shared between products. This shared storage can be used for Picasa Web Albums uploads, Gmail messages or a mix of both - it will be used by any product that's over its free storage quota on a first-come, first-served basis. Choose from the following storage plans:

10GB - $20/yr
40GB - $75/yr
150GB - $250/yr
400GB - $500/yr

This the first I have ever heard about this. Has anyone else out there had experience with this? I am quite confident that I have not posted more than I normally do. I am confused and have to deliberate about this today before I take any action and may like to hear from others that know about this.

So the pictures you don't get to see are from this weekend. I neglected to blog over the weekend because Thursday I came down with a cold and because I had company for the weekend, I took Benedryl at bedtime to help with the drip down my throat. I normally get up before the company does, which gives me blogging time but under the influence of drugs I slept later than normal and the days started a bit differently than normal. Anyway, what started out with four for the weekend ended up being two, due to other plans and illness. I still have a cold but thankfully, it never got any worse than a little cough and the drip drip drip which makes me crazy. My sister Mike got the flu.

I have to take Bella in to get her hair done.

They Are Making It Pretty Easy For Us

One of the things that got purged yesterday,in one closet, was wine. I have collected so much wine over the years that I would have to go to Napa Valley to see as much. I keep the good stuff in a cool location on it's side but frankly, I don't care how good the stuff is, if I don't like the kind, I won't drink it.
This trunk full of bottles constitute about one third of the stuff I have on hand. I boxed it (or bucketed it) and put it in my trunk with the idea in mind that I could not come home until I got rid of it. Some of the bottles date back to the eighties, without sediment of any kind lurking in the bottom. I first thought of leaving it at the community center where we have a library that you can add to or take from, no money or signatures needed. I thought I'd put the wine there and say on a sign, 'free for the tasting!' before I pictured the preschool class in the same location helping themselves and the look on the parents face when a four year old came home with a bottle of Pouilly Fuisse. Then, a call to a friend with a business and employees and voila! I had a taker. It ended up being earmarked for baskets of goodies for an auction that is coming up next month. I was elated; so much so that I stopped by my local library to see what I couldn't live without.
It ended up being a Playaway. Ever heard of this? It was new to me and I go to the library at least twice a week. These are complete unabridged recordings of a single book that is housed in a secured old vcr case,

padded on one side and directions on the other. You take it up to the checkout desk and they unlock the case, open it up, place a AAA battery in it, give you a free strap for your neck (that you get to keep),
bid you good day, letting you have up to five of these for three weeks. It's smaller than my palm, about the size of a tic tac container. It's as if they are TRYING to get us to read (or a facsimile of reading). This just might work. What will they think of next.

Parlez-vous francais?

I started out this morning just going to put something away in a downstairs closet and now, six hours later, I have torn apart several closets, moving, pitching, weeding, and just pretty much a general closet reconnoiter. I am now exhausted and need a nap.

I was clearing out my inbox in my email and forgot that Regina sent me pictures of my teen angel ,
Miss Kelly, as she was leaving for France to teach school. Isn't she precious? Although she is no longer a teen but a college graduate, she will always remain my teen angel.
She marked her suitcases boldly because she has never traveled anywhere without losing her luggage. The signage must have worked because she arrived in Lyon, France, intact, with all her luggage.

Pole Dancer

I completed my strip piece last night. In honor of the construction process, I have decided to name it 'Pole Dancer'. It measures 44' x 65'. I was at a loss as to how to quilt it so I just went
with the most obvious and did straight lines.

Has anyone done any online 'call for entry' in a show? I did it for the Art Quilt Elements 2010 at the Wayne Art Center in Wayne, PA, and somehow got registered for a show called CraftForms2009. I got a notification that my quilt, 'Skyview' got in and I was just about to put the email in my junk folder and thought twice and actually opened it. I must have pushed the wrong key and now am in a show for six weeks that I have never heard of!!!
Anyway, here it is.

and a close up of it.

Tuesday Morning

Today, let's go back to the Barn. I am finishing up the final work that I did there and will have it faced and finished, hopefully tomorrow. I am also finishing up odds and ends to do before my quilting friends come for the weekend and then G and B and I take off for the south next week.
I wanted to show you this piece of fabric I made. It was by far my favorite and it is comprised of three strips of 1/4", 3/8",1/2",5/8" and 3/4". I could have started at 1/8" but I am not very good at the very small seams so I didn't. When you look at this piece up close, it looks like velvet. I had an idea while I was in that just waking up twilight of making massive amounts of this fabric and then doing one of my Tune quilts out of it. I think that it would be grand.
I would like to share Mary's work with you from the barn. She was there on independent study and did her own thing while sharing the community of ideas and gab. I had the pleasure of using the cutting table right next to her work space and so got to know her a bit.

There she is, on the far right of her space, talking about how she made several like designs, tackling some color choices she wouldn't normally choose and then cut them and rearranged them to make another piece. It was very interesting to see her work. I think she said she was gonna be at the barn for three weeks. That means she's still there!

On another note, my niece, just had a baby boy, John Patrick and they are gonna call him Jack. She is the sister of the bride to be I had the shower for last week. At that time she said that the doctor thought she would be having the baby in a month or so. He was so wrong. Mother and baby are just fine and now no one will miss the family wedding!!!!

Lovely Quilts

This is the only detail I have taken of 'Say Cheese' and it's still in Houston so that's all I can give you. I took the detail to show that the quilt has 'holes'. You can click on the original picture (mine) and get more detail.
This quilt, hanging in Houston was done for a water theme exhibition in Canada where Martha Brown, the artist, lives and did her work on 'Tap Dance Finale'. I love the name. Very clever Martha!!
This kinda reminds me of my quilt. It is called 'Stepping Out In St John, New Brunswick' by Judy Morningstar. She noticed the architecture was slightly off kilter while teaching quilting workshops there.
Here is a close up. Just remember, these photos were all taken on an iPhone. I am amazed by the good quality.
I should have straightened this quilt photo but now I have wasted way too much time this morning so it ain't gonna happen. This is called 'Incommunicado' by Esterita Austin, from New York, and shows the woman busying herself with her mirror and lipstick and the man on the cell phone, playing or texting. It is a perfect reflection of life with all the technology taking over regular conversation.
Desiree Habicht, from Riverside, California, did this quilt 'Glass Beach'. Being a collector of beach glass myself, I can relate to the appeal of the rounded and no longer threatening pieces of glass that the surf and sand have worked together to round off the sharp edges.

Talk about lighting!!!

When I was sent this picture of my quilt, 'Say Cheese' from the IQA, I thought they may have soaked it in paraffin before hanging it!!! It has a very eerie look to it. That just goes to show you what lighting and the difference in camera's can make.
This is a photo of it that I took on my design wall with no enhancement. It was taken with a flash and natural light but when I look at this photo, I feel like it looks like the quilt. Big difference.