Kumquats & a Mayfly 03-21-09

This is citrus season in Orange County. There are very few commercial citrus groves here now - their place has been taken by what SCalifornia grows best, houses and shopping malls and freeways. But there are citrus trees of many kinds in back (and front) yards.

This is a very young kumquat tree, only about six feet tall, but it has a bumper crop of fruit. It grows in the front yard of a neighbor. I don't know if she uses the fruit, personally I don't find it appealing raw, but I love kumquat marmalade. I haven't made it for years though there are lots of kumquat trees around and the owners would share fruit. No incentive, I guess.

The fruit will fit comfortably in my cupped hand. Although I didn't notice until I downloaded the photos to my computer there is a mayfly on the leaf. Perhaps that will give you a good comparison for size.

Here is a blog with a post about kumquats that I found interesting:

http://tinyurl.com/c3q3rv

Coral tree blooming 03-20-09

So far this year I've seen a few Coral Trees in partial bloom, but this one is the most advanced I've seen. It is located in a parking lot off Hwy 101 (Pacific Coast Highway) and 2nd Street in Long Beach.

The Latin name is Erythrina x sykesii and it is one of over a hundred species of Erythrina found around the world. In our area the trees grow to 20-30 feet high and half again as wide. They are not very strong, so unless they are trimmed regularly the strong Santa Ana winds will damage them. The growth pattern is quite striking and has always appealed to me.

The flowers are adapted to be pollinated by passerines or hummingbirds.

This pictures shows the buds that have not yet opened.

And here are the leaves. They always remind me of the foliage of French lilacs or, perhaps, aspen leaves.

Below is a tiny URL for a site I dug up on Google that tells a lot about the trees. I was surprised that the different species have different colored flowers - especially those in Hawaii.

http://tinyurl.com/dhr445

Tomorrow - Camp Del 03-19-09

Yes, the Poodle Prince will be here for five nights starting tomorrow. I'll pick him up about noon and return him on Wednesday morning. Actually, I'll take him to the groomer on Wednesday and then take him to his house and his parents should be back by then. I need to vacuum a bit in the morning because the dust bothers him - it bothers me too, but my nose is further from the floor! And I need to take a few roses from my yard to the lady in the cul de sac who is in the final stages of cancer. Sweet lady, but we have never been able to get close because she smokes and one of my many 'sensitivities' is smoke. I'll take them a meat loaf dinner on Saturday - many family members will be there and I doubt that they will be much in the mood to cook.

Wordless Wednesday 03-18-09

Friends 03-17-09

These are my friends Mike and Nancy Ota with their little gal Suki. She came to live with them last November after the death of their dear little Calvin.

I've known Nancy since the mid 1980s, having met her at the Orange County Quilters Guild. We live at opposite ends of Orange County so we never have much time together. Lately Nancy has started organizing a daytime quilters quilt to meet in San Clemente where she lives and I have gotten involved. So, we will see each other more frequently.

Nancy and Mike have enjoyed traveling since he retired. She always beautifully organizes her photos and sends me an album. Just before Sukie came to them they had been to Europe for the first time and appreciated the many places they saw. This is one of the pictures she sent - I have no idea where this window is located, but I think it is just a super image.

Picture-less day 03-16-09

I was in a luncheon meeting today, stopping for errands afterward, and I didn't use my camera. It is amazing how digital technology has given so many people the chance to depict their world in ways never before possible. The TV ads showing children using pictures they have taken to make 'story boards' are an eye opener. The pictures I took in grade school with my little Brownie, all in black and white, were thrilling to me then, but less than nothing in this high tech world. I was mostly disappointed that what I could see by focusing my eye on a special detail was barely recognizable in the vastness of a printed photo. I spent a lot of the money I earned then for film and developing. I don't remember what either cost in that time, but I felt the 'pocket pain' with each photo disaster. Maybe every child needs a class, or at least a session, on 'how to see'. It would enrich their lives forever, adding details that just slip past most of us.

You had interesting comments on Pamela's quilt and my remarks about 'perfection'. I don't think I ever achieved perfection in anything, although for the first half of my years I strived for that. Then I decided I didn't want to make one perfect quilt or embroidery or...., but wanted the experience of just "doing" w/o the stress. However those previous years stayed with me and I have never been able to retrieve the naivete of childhood. As years pass, the stitches become more even and the corners more square until no thought is required. All of that will stay with me. But I would like to have the imagination I had when I was six or seven and the nonchalance of a teenager when I thought anything was possible. Ahh, yes! And the eyesight I had even ten or fifteen years ago. My only completely spontaneous quilt is one I made once when I was absolutely furious with someone. I grabbed a piece of fabric, slapped it on the cutting board, randomly cut a few pieces and slapped them on the design wall. Then another fabric, and then...... It is my favorite quilt of the "art" quilts I have made. Although it doesn't seem to put stars in any one's eyes it is important in mine. I would like to learn how to achieve that 'art' without losing my temper and I hope that studying with Pamela will help.

Pamela Allen quilt from TCQC 03-15-09

The Cherry Picker Pamela Allen 2005 20"W x 25"L

I purchased this quilt from the FFAC Reverse Auction, Virginia Spiegel's fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. Here is Pamela's excellent statement that accompanied the quilt.

I had explored the theme of cherries before and convinced myself it was only because cherries happened to be in season at the time. However, picking cherries also had a connection to my past and my Mother's cherry trees. The year 2005 was a terrible one for me. My Mother died suddenly and horribly, my sister was diagnosed with lymphoma and my stepdaughter died two weeks before Christmas after a grueling illness. In retrospect, I think that is why my cherry picker has a somewhat dark and melancholy look about her and certainly the reason she has no hair. She seems to be staring forlornly out from behind the beauty of the tree.

The quilt is made from recycled fabrics for the most part. I have a small fabric stash with much of it coming from thrift shops. I enjoy the idea that my fabrics come with their very own history connected to someone I don't even know! Fabric pieces are collaged and raw edge appliqued, eyes are drawn with markers then bubble jet set printed on the computer, the hand is a real glove, and the quilting is a sinuous vine snaking through the garment. Artificial cherries and leaves finish the image.

This is one of the most fascinating quilts in the TCQC. Although I have friends who cannot stand having the haunting eyes looking at them, they don't bother me a bit! This is the first embellished quilt I purchased for the Collection and I had not thought about the storage problem. It really should not be rolled, so, it lives flat in an archival box w/acid free tissue - along with a few others that I bought without thinking. Since this purchase I have acquired other Pamela Allen quilts and I am looking forward to taking her class at Empty Spools/Asilomar next month. Who knows? She may succeed in loosening me from my many years of traditional quilt making - I still care how the back of my quilts look and want the bindings to be perfect.

http://pamelart2.homestead.com/quiltythings.html

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACSFundraiser.html