2020: Endless Worry and Chaos

 The Green Mountain Quilter, newsletter of our state quilt guild, is planning to print a couple more issues this year since we haven't been able to hold a meeting.  I contributed the following to the upcoming newsletter and thought I'd share it with you.  

        This has been a weird year.  Almost everyone I know is looking forward to 2021.  Society around the globe is in turmoil.  Many of us have experienced illness, anxiety, and even fear in our lives and those of our loved ones.  Calls, emails, and Zoom aren’t great substitutes for our usual closeness.   We are exhorted to believe “we’re all in this together,” but we can’t be together.

            Looking for ways to cope (besides quilting more than usual and cleaning closets), I’ve read a bit about the angst we are experiencing.  One of the best and most succinct things I’ve seen has been by author Marie Bostwick.   She recently posted 9 Things To Do To Stop Worrying on her blog (https://mariebostwick.com/9-things-to-do-to-stop-worrying/), and it is solid advice:

      1.      Unplug – the news, social media, etc.  As Marie says, “how many of us really need news 24 hours a day?”

2.      Phone a friend – maintain connections with those who can give you good advice and help you stop worrying.  My wacky brother helps, as do regular emails from my dear friend Cindy in California.

3.     Take a walk – fresh air and sunshine will do your body good so you can calm your mind.  And maybe you’ll be able to sleep better and recharge.  Paul and I try to take a couple of walks a day, around the neighborhood.

4.     Say a prayer – I’m not religious, but I look for the things I’m grateful for, with living in Vermont being close to the top.

5.     Read a book – escape to another world or time, read about someone else’s troubles and how s/he resolved them.  Marie's books are good for this.

6.     Have a laugh – watch a funny movie or TV show.  Our neighbors got together this summer for an outdoor Marx Brothers film which was so-so, but we really enjoyed social distancing… with BYO wine and snacks!

7.     Get a hobby – maybe quilting is enough for you, but if not, you could knit, try a new recipe, work on genealogy, write your memoirs, etc.  My bread machine has gotten a real workout in the last few months.

8.     Bust a move – Marie turns on the music and dances.  I do yoga instead.

9.     Make a list – when all else fails, Marie suggests writing an action plan to deal with the things you’re worrying about.  I haven't done this, but I do keep a list of UFOs and finished projects which makes me feel good.

             Wishing you all the best as this “annus horribilis,” as Queen Elizabeth called the year Princess Diana died, comes to an end! 

A bunch of blocks

An organizer of one of my quilt guilds - the Heart of Vermont guild - who worked at my local quilt shop is moving over the river into New Hampshire.  We will all miss Paula's cheerful encouragement, good ideas, and sense of humor, so we're making 9" friendship star blocks for her to remember us by.  We like sending her a UFO!  

I appliqued the guild logo block to go with the star blocks.  My hands won't allow me to do much fine applique these days so I embroidered the heart in the mountains instead.  I see that red heart doesn't show up very well - sorry!  My blocks for Paula are ready to go once we figure out her new address.

My online group has been swapping 6" blocks this year in the color of each recipient's choice.  I chose purples and so far have received about 25 blocks.  Some of the members of the swap have had personal troubles or problems mailing, so they are dribbling in a bit.  But most have arrived so I can start sashing in a log cabin fashion with purples and creams to make each block 12".  I'm even making some crumb blocks to fill in the centers.  I'll see how it looks and may make a few more 6" center blocks if I want it bigger.   This is my annual purple quilt - it's my favorite color.

It rained steadily all day yesterday so I wasn't able to take a picture of the red trellis quilt I finished Sunday.  Maybe we'll be able to today.

Happy Saturday!

It's been a good day so far.  I finished quilting this little red quilt in a very simple grid pattern and cut out and sewed the binding pieces together.  I'll sew the binding on tomorrow, probably.  I ran down to the post office for stamps, the bakery for cookies, and the little grocery store down the hill for scallops for tonight's dinner.  I like to cook something special on Saturday nights, especially now that we rarely go out to eat.

It was beautiful weather this morning, so Paul and I took a couple of walks around the neighborhood.  We met the new neighbor kitty corner from us who asked for directions to the post office.  A young man came and cleaned out our dryer vent.  I bet it had not been cleaned in 30 years, and from the before and after pictures he showed me, we really needed it.  

I had put a post up on our local e-bulletin board asking for recommendations.   Several people responded, including this young man who recommends cleaning dryer vents about every five years.  I've been meaning to do it for about a year.  My dryer has been taking longer and longer to dry things lately, so I knew it needed doing... or we need a new dryer.  I would rather spend my money on fun things like fabric!  I love the e-bulletin board - people are so helpful.

We're expecting thunderstorms this afternoon, and it feels like it, so I'll stay inside and applique.  A friend from guild is moving, so everyone who wishes to will be making a 9" friendship star block to send her in her new home.  I will make one of those and am also making a block with our guild logo on it.  I designed it nine or ten years ago when the Heart of Vermont guild was getting started.  It's a 10" take-off on Moon Over the Mountains, and I have made several over the years.  I don't seem to have a photo so I'll try to take one of this version when finished.  

The squash that ate Barre

 Kabocha squash.  It looks a bit like buttercup but doesn't have the "turban" part.   It's also called Japanese pumpkin and is supposed to be very healthy.   Its size reminds me of the old song, The Eggplant that Ate Chicago.

Chris brought me one last year from his boss, and this year his boss harvested enough to fill a bucket loader.  Saturday, I was gifted with four of them.  After giving two away, I decided to work on one and leave the other in the garage for a while.  The result was a full Dutch oven of mashed squash, created by roasting first, then peeling and chopping, and finally boiling a while before mashing.  It felt like a full day's work!

Today I made some ginger squash soup to go along with bread baked in a wood-fired oven from the Rise Up Bakery.  It's delicious, and I'm sure I'll make more over the next few weeks.  I thought I'd try making a bread like pumpkin bread later this week, and Chris' boss recommends making a squash pie like pumpkin.  We'll see.   But we are definitely having squash with our Thanksgiving dinner this year.

It was a lovely fall day and perfect weather for putting flower beds to bed, doing a little reorganization of the garage, and taking the air conditioner out of the sewing room window.  Temperatures are in the 30s at night now, and leaves and pine needles are falling.   It's a beautiful time of year, but, as Vermonters say, "you know what's coming next!"

"Sisters" quilt along

Hope you are all enjoying this nice fall weekend.  We had a rainy day yesterday, and it's a bit gloomy today, but the colored leaves look fabulous against the gray sky.  

This is what I get for not printing the directions out.  I missed two small colored triangles across from the long sides of the big ones, and I also put the smaller set of triangles in an opposite direction.  This month's 12" and 6" blocks in the quilt along are "Old Maid's Puzzle."  My blocks remind me of butterflies and I'm not going to re-do them.  I actually kind of like them the way they are, and I sure like using up more blue scraps.  I have quite a few.

Today's project was making some Rainbow Scrappy Challenge blocks.  This month's color is yellow and I found some nice scraps for my two blocks.  I always cut the corners off when making the flying geese so have been making little bonus blocks with those.  This month's little blocks are 2.5" Broken Dishes, which is also the guild block of the month.

I'm reading Robert Galbraith's latest book, Troubled Blood, #5 in the Cormoran Strike series by the pseudonymous J. K. Rowling.  She can really put a complicated story together.  This book is nearly 1,000 pages and has been quite controversial.   Apparently transgendered people are up in arms about her portrayal of a male murderer who dresses as a woman to entice his prey.   But, so far, I'm really liking it as usual.  

That's what I'll be doing this afternoon before we go to the Grange Hall to pick up some items I "won" in an online auction (hankies and notecards).  I gave them a scrappy baby quilt for the auction, and it sold for $175!  After that, we'll head down to Sarducci's for dinner under a tent with a new heater with Pauline and Bob, old librarian friends.  

Lots going on, but no pictures

Early this week, I finished the October border on my Virtual Round Robin, a blue and white quilt that has now grown to about 72" x 72".  I have added 8" scrappy Jewel Box blocks all the way around to get to that size.  Then I cut out two plain borders and because they will be my last, I fully intended to take a picture before sewing them on.   But life's many choices got in the way.  I folded the top up and put it in the closet while I worked on a Christmas gift for a friend (no photos just in case she reads this) and some Halloween masks for my brother Axel.  He works parttime as a school bus monitor for kids K through 5th grade in Wisconsin.  I think these will be fun for him to wear in the next few weeks.   He is very popular with the kids and the bus company, and he loves his retirement job even though his health is not the best.  Guess I'll make him some Christmas masks, too.

I also wove in about 1,000 loose threads on the brown sweater I've been knitting for months and attached the sleeves.  It actually fits!  Paul said it looks professional, but I know where all the booboos are (and I'm not telling).  The knit in pockets were a bit bulgy, so I used a blanket stitch to get them to lie a little flatter.   I decided to put a zipper down the front rather than buttons, so now I have to wait for it to arrive.  Will post a photo after it's all done.  I started a little scarf because I wanted to try the Mosaic stitch using two contrasting skeins of yarn.  After that I'll knit Paul a hat and will try to stick to smaller projects in the future.  That sweater took eight months!

With the turn of the calendar, I used the random number generator online to determine the winner of the guild block lottery and mailed my block to lucky Cathy.  Then I posted October's block, maple leaf, and came up with November's block.  I'm making four blocks each month, one for the guild lottery, and three to add to the Dear Jen quilt I plan to work on in 2021.

Today I'll turn my attention to the "Sisters block of the month," Old Maid's Puzzle in 12" and 6" sizes.  Just two more months to go and this quilt along will be ready to put together.  I'm enjoying using all my blue scraps for it - and I just seem to accumulate more all the time.

Happy fall!

 

I grew and dried the hydrangeas myself!  :-)