Candle mat

While in Colorado I tried my hand at making a "penny rug," raw-edge applique using wool and embroidery floss. My Dear Jane Secret Pal sent me a kit, complete with pre-cut wool, floss, a glue stick, needle, and a small pair of scissors. It was really fun!

I haven't found out who my SP is this year, but I should soon. She has an incredible sense of humor and has known just exactly what I'd like each month. The Jane Stickle quilt has brought an incredible number of people together, all around the world.

Changes ahead

I got back from a quick trip to Colorado late last week. Mom needed some surgery which kept her overnight in the hospital. When she got home, my job was to see that she didn't over-do. Dad, of course, needed help getting around, getting in and out of bed, etc. I ran errands, did some driving around, and generally helped out. We had some snow twice while I was there, and I was surprised at how bad the roads were one day. I expected Coloradans to be as able to cope as Vermonters, but maybe it was a particularly icy storm. I also went to my favorite haunt - the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum in Golden - and bought a few fat quarters in the quilt shop across the street from it. Traveling in winter is always fraught with hang-ups, and so it was with this trip.

We have received an offer on our house and business! The prospective buyers want a closing date of January 19 - yikes! We've been looking at houses, and once all the signatures have been affixed and all the changes have been accepted on the Maplecroft offer, we will most likely make an offer on a house. I don't relish the thought of moving in winter, let alone moving twice, but if need be, we will move to Pat & Jay's house on the Barre-Mont. Rd. for a while. I have been cleaning out junk for quite a while, but the more I throw out, the more there seems to be.

Our Christmas tree is up and gifts have all been bought. If the sun ever shines, I'll post a photo. I've even done some holiday baking although that is dangerous considering the 25 lbs. I have lost. I made some fruit cake for the first time since the 1970's. Every year I wait for someone to give me some, and no one does. So I will enjoy this batch except for one loaf I took to Midstate.

All this talk of moving has made me loath to sew much. I made 5 Dear Jane(R) blocks while in Colorado and just finished a wool candle mat. I have 49 red and beige blocks to put together. I'll need to decide whether it needs a border soon because I hope to get it and another quilt to the long arm quilter's next week, so I can deal with them after we move. Wow - everything seems to be hinging on that all of a sudden!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The turkey breast is in the refrigerator and we just vaccuumed and washed the floors downstairs. I have 2 yds. of fall fabric draped over the tablecloth, and it looks festive. Tomorrow, Chris, Cindy, Vicki and Samantha will join us. It's a smaller crowd than in the past, but that is just fine. More for everyone! Fewer dishes for me!

I've spent the last few weeks Christmas shopping, sewing, and wrapping, and today we'll take the last of the packages to the post office. I plan to take my parents' and Jenny's presents with me to Colorado on Monday. I'm going to help Mom recouperate from surgery and Dad get along without her. She won't be able to drive for a week and shouldn't pick up anything either. Sometimes Dad needs to "kick start" to get out of bed in the mornings, so I'll do whatever I can.

It has been nice shopping and sewing so far in advance actually. Yesterday, walking in the mall with Cindy, I realized that I probably won't be back there until the week before Christmas. This will be good since I am already tired of the "music" they play there. I made five bathmats out of old, frayed bathmats or towels and "orphan" quilt blocks and scraps. I also made a bunch of potholders out of scraps. Here's one of the bathmats:

As a reward, I started working on a scrappy red and beige quilt. I need 49 blocks (or more, depending on how big I want it to be) so it will take a while. I have a batch of handsewing to take along to Colorado - mostly appliqued Dear Jane blocks, small projects to fit in here and there.

I'm currently reading "Growing Up" by Russell Baker, a sweet story set in the Depression. It is a little slow for me, probably because I've been reading so many mysteries lately. I'm tucking a batch of mysteries into my bags for Colorado, too. The trip will be long, with late arrivals at both ends.

Central Vermont Quilt Show

Plans are moving ahead for the first Central Vermont Quilt Show, set for May 8 and 9, 2009, at Barre's historic Old Labor Hall. Our featured quilter is Christine Fries-Ureel, a Barre resident who has won many awards for her art quilts. Years ago, we both attended a class called "Fractured Landscapes," and her class project was gorgeous. It has been fun to watch her work develop. We will also have about 50 quilts of all sizes by local quilters and several vendors. Our first vendor check came in this week, so I'll be opening a checking account for the fledgling show soon!

I've been attending monthly meetings of a new quilt guild in the area, the Heart of Vermont Quilters, which meets on Tuesday nights. Now that I'm retired, I can also find time to attend Saturday afternoon meetings of the Calico County Quilters now and then. When we have B&B guests, I sometimes can't come but am looking forward to some winter meetings.

The Duhks and a coupla quilts

We had a little respite from guests last week, so I took over the dining room to quilt a few tops that were hiding in the closet. The baby-sized quilt is based on a pattern by Bonnie Hunter (http://www.quiltville.com/) called Happy Scrappy Houses. It was a lot of fun to do, and didn't take too long. The larger quilt came from a pattern in BHG's American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine early this year. I had the pink floral pattern for a long time before I found just the right use for it. I'll put up some photos as soon as it gets sunny enough to take some.

Friday, Halloween, we were visited by The Duhks, a Canadian band (the paper called them "neo-traditional") which played at the Opera House on Saturday. It was like having a houseful of 20-something nieces and nephews. They slept late, worked on their computers at the dining room table, did laundry, drove a bio-diesel van, and really had a relaxed attitude toward their show, leaving home after we did. It was a good show - they are great musicians - and we enjoyed their visit.

Snow!

Yesterday, we had a chilly rain most of the day, and this morning, it was dark as I drove to the gym. I noticed a car with about an inch of snow on top in the parking lot, and all day it has been spitting snow. We just walked downtown, I in my new, water-resistant jacket with some light-weight thermo.... material. I dug out a pair of stretchy gloves, too. It was cold but bearable.

We did a little leaf raking over the weekend, and the next nice day, I plan to bring in planters and put away outdoor furniture. I need to knit faster on the sweater I've been working on since August. Winter is on its way!

What would Dad have done?

I really don't think it happened because we have had full houses nearly every night for two weeks and are losing our enthusiasm for guests. In the past eight years, we've had only a small number of needy, messy, inconsiderate people. Most of our guests have been wonderful, caring, interesting ones we would definitely like to see again. When people ask if we ever have "bad" guests, I used to reply, "only one," a distant relation on Paul's side who was extremely rude to us and other guests. Even Paul's mother agreed that the relative in question should be encouraged not to return.

I was really surprised to encounter the guest we had recently, an ordinary, garden variety bigot who was proud of it. Over breakfast, he decided to instruct some foreign guests in what he believes are at the root of America's problems. I could not believe my ears - and these foreigners listened in rapt attention - as he noted that African Americans have caused all of our problems. And he did use the term "African American," but rather one that went out of fashion in the 1960's. He said that they abuse "the system" by expecting a free ride on government benefits. He went on to describe Sherman's march to the sea, noting that it did not focus on the right target. I was so upset that I fled the dining room and busied myself with linens, dishes, and whatever else I could find.

But his diatribe did not end at breakfast. The foreigners wanted to take photos of us all and of the house. As they finally left, Mr. Racist told them to remember the root of all of our problems as they continued on their travels. With that, he plopped down in the livingroom to wait for his wife to get ready to leave. I went up to our room to sew until they left. I kept thinking about what my father would have done in that situation. I didn't want to make the foreign guests uncomfortable or cause a scene. I considered following them out to their car and explaining that not all Americans feel the same way, but I was not sure they would understand even though their English was fairly good.

I know my father would have exploded with anger at the breakfast table. He most likely would have told the man to leave immediately. But of course, such a person would never have been invited to my parents' house or, for that matter, my own. Businesspeople must sometimes put up with despicable customers in order to make a living. I continue to wish I had done more in this situation, and look forward to talking with Dad about it.