Still sorting 08-04-18

On July 25th I picked up two carloads of sewing "stuff" from my friend Toni who is moving with her husband into retirement housing.  I don't have excess room in my garage which is full of my own "stuff", mostly junk that I just need to haul away, so there is still some of Toni's things in my car.  I have been trying to sort and fill boxes for a number of different organizations and people who will be able to use things.  But the heat gets to me quickly and I have to cool off and rest a bit.   I can't sort in the garage since it is about 120F in there, so I move some boxes into the family room and sort through them, putting different things in different boxes.  Toni has definitely lost her organizational skills in the last few years as everything is just mixed together in a pattern I don't recognize.  I wish I had been more diligent at the sorting this last few weeks as I have only two days left and I haven't gotten through half of it.  I am driving to San Diego on Tuesday to take some full boxes to the Visions Veranda Sale, which is one of their best fundraisers each year.  Guess I will just have to take what I have ready.  There are lots of different fund raisers by quilt guilds and groups so I know I can find a home for everything.  Some things will go into raffle baskets for SQG, I know that the baskets of thread I have donated in the past have sold well and there will be another one this year at November Fest.  And I think I will put together some of the gently used items for another basket, maybe for a somewhat beginning quilter.  Anyway, I have to hustle the next few days.  In fact, I have to hustle tonight to move things out of the way so I can walk through the family room to get to bed!  

But it all makes me think that I, and almost everyone I know, need to go through our own "stuff" before leaving it for someone else to sort through.  How 'bout it, eh?  

And KoKo hasn't made this easier.  He demands his normal walks and play time and he wants to look in every box in case there is something he can't live without.  What a pest he can be. 

By the way, this is my 3333 blog post.  Wow! 

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Friday Food 08-04-18

I don't think I can sustain Friday Food for long, I may have to alternate with Friday Flowers!  I suppose I'll be forced to go out to eat more and take more pictures.   Tonight specializes in salad. 

Beet salad - Lunch at Solare - San Diego  02-01-13

 Pear/Gorgonzola salad - Lunch at Solare - San Diego  02-01-13 

 Machego compressed salad at Tanaga @ Bower's Museum  02-23-13

And a homemade salad, rather pale, but oh-so good on a hot day.  

Roasted chicken with avocado and mayo "sandwich" on romaine leaves.  Ground pepper. 

At home 07-26-11

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Too much fabric! 08-02-18

It is possible to have too much fabric!  I have a huge fabric library collected over about 50 years of sewing.  The vast majority are cotton prints for quilts.  Although I still have a cupboard full of rayon, silk, linen, and cotton fabric from waaaay back when I made clothing.  The library has crept into almost every room in the house.  I know there are others out there who have the same experience.  I haven't been making quilts for about 18 months due to ....well, a number of conditions.  And now that I have started one project the problem is that I can't find the right fabric.  I stopped sorting for storage about three years ago, so everything I have purchased is all mixed together in no order, other than the time span when it was purchased.  But, since I can't remember when I purchased it, I can't find it.  Woe is I!

The reason I am telling you this is a warning to not let it happen to you!   Here is a selection from pictures in my photo files of different fabric buying experiences - only seven of many.   

From what I can see here and remember, I believe I have used parts of six of these fabrics.  I guess I am a fabric collector rather than a quilt maker.  

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Wordless Wednesday 08-01-18

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Reading 07-31-18

I have been a life-long reader and have talked about it in previous posts.  Check the right sidebar for the label "Reading".   There are so many books that I haven't read that it makes me sad sometimes, I'm running out of time.  I write down lists of books from reviews, suggestions from friends, posts on the Internet, and anywhere else I see book titles/authors.  There are also books traded with friends, or just given by friends, or the box in the doctor's office to exchange books, or ... wherever.  I buy books from the local second hand book store, from Barnes & Noble, and from Amazon.   I have bookcases full and piles in almost every room.  I am addicted to books!  I THANK everyone who posts reviews or just titles/authors online. 

Recently I have read:

"Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk"   Kathleen Rooney   Loved it, recommend it. 

James E. Ziskin's series about "girl reporter" Ellie Stone.   The time is early 1960's and Ellie is a "girl reporter" for a small NY state newspaper who solves crimes to get the stories.  One thing that strikes me is the absence of cell phones!  How completely they have integrated themselves into our lives, it is sometimes hard to remember how it was before! 

"The Punishment She Deserves"  Elizabeth George   Another Inspector Lynley tale, this may be the longest yet.  But I do love the characters and the suspense.  

"Messenger of Truth"  Jacqueline Winspear    Somehow I missed this 2006 volume, though I am up to date with all the others in the series.  Maisie Dobbs is an interesting character and the timeline starting with The Great War provides insights into what life was like in England during the wars.  

"Little Fires Everywhere" Celeste Ng  What a tale of dysfunctional families with an astounding ending.     

One book that I have near the top of my "to read" list is "The Affliction" Beth Gutcheon. 

Beth was a quilter in the 70s and wrote two classic books on the subject.  One of her quilts is one of my favorites, but I can't find a picture of it right now.  I'll keep looking.  I have enjoyed some of her other books and believe I will enjoy this latest tome.  

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Monday Browsing 07-30-18

Where did July go?  Summers used to be so much longer, maybe because I was younger.  My little grandmother Ella as she aged said that it seemed that she went to bed on New Year's Day and the next morning was Christmas again.  I know I have told you this before, but I am amazed at how much I feel the same way.  

Not much browsing lately.  It is just too hot for sitting and browsing, I guess.  Here is some trivia I have collected.

Using the word photocopying is incorrect because photography didn't come around until later.   I've always wondered if he used something like carbon paper. 

This would be a real treasure since royalty does not sign autographs. 

Mr. Matalik was a candidate of the United Nations Party.

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Quilts by Catherine Kleeman

These three quilts by Catherine Kleeman of Maryland were all purchased from the online SAQA auction, in different years.   They are all 12X12 and, I believe made with all cotton fabrics and all machine pieced and quilted.   They have some hand embellishment. 

I like to hang them together like this as they perfectly fit a space in my family room. 

"No Way Out" - Catherine Kleeman - Maryland  2011

Scribble 18  Catherine Kleeman - Maryland  2013 

 Round the Bend  Catherine Kleeman - Maryland   2014

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