Christmas 12-18-21

I have enjoyed this big guy and with beard and hat he is now complete.  I think.  

Notice KoKo at his feet - all 12 pounds of him! 

And a Christmas cartoon......

#   #   #

Friday Food 12-17-21

Yes, it is a glass of orange juice!   This evening about 6pm someone knocked at my door, not something that happens very often.  When I answered there was a young woman and two children greeting me.  The woman had this glass of orange juice in her hand.  She explained that she is a neighbor in the next cul de sac and she had squeezed a lot of oranges from their backyard tree and added a little honey.  She was just bringing it as a gift, would I like to have it?   I was speechless.  The little boy explained that they live in the house with the gingerbread couple and the most fantastic lights anywhere.  I recovered enough to say thank you and tried to remember if I had ever even seen this lady before.  She went on to say that KoKo and I walk by their house all the time, she lives next to Pam.  Ah-ha, now I knew who she is.  We talked for just a few minutes and she left with the children.  I'm not sure how gracious I was because I was so dumbfounded I couldn't think.  I will have to write a little note and maybe find a couple small gifts for the children.   

The orange juice is very good.  Kindness is alive and well in my neighborhood!

And my all time favorite Christmas cartoon.

#   #   #

California Weather 12-16-21

Tuesday was the member's showcase at Surfside Quilters Guild, which is my favorite meeting of the year.  This year our member Cathie Opila and her sister Sue Carroll (from Minnesota) shared the quilts they make for their family of eleven siblings and their offspring..  Cathie is a prolific and adventurous quiltmaker who collaborates with Sue across the country.  It was a good program and worth the trouble to get there.   It was the day that SCalifornia had the first major rainfall since last winter and it was a doozy.  I left early in the wind and rain and heavy morning rush hour traffic.  Sometimes I could hardly see out of the car, which rocked in the wind and the blow-by from the big trucks.  It took a little more than an hour and a half and I arrived just five minutes before the meeting started.  I am the official photographer and like to be there to take pictures before everyone gets settled.   It is so satisfying and "warm" to be back to meeting in person.  I have missed all the quilting ladies over the last almost two years.  Before I left to drive home I sat in the parking lot for about 20 minutes, watching the wind whip the trees and the wipers whip the heavy rain.  But the drive home was not so harrowing, although it rained a lot it wasn't as violent as earlier in the morning and there was less traffic. .  

I was going to add a video of the wind and rain, but can't figure out how to do it.  Another time, maybe.  Here is one of Cathie Opila's quilts that I especially admire. 

And I have missed doing the twelve days of Christmas cartoons, some of which are new this year, but I will try to post on each evening until the BIG day.  

#   #   #  

Wordless Wednesday 12-15-21

#   #   #

Birds in nest box 12-13-21

A friend who is not a bird watcher sent me this after I told her about Western Bluebirds using only boxes with a certain size entrance.  It is an amazing video, but very long - about 50 minutes. These are Japanese Tits which are about the size of the bluebirds or house finches.  There is sound by the narration is text. .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7S0j0qnsTg

#   #   #

Three quilts in TCQC 12-12-21

It is Sunday so I am posting quilts from the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection.  I previously posted this on July 29, 2018.  These little 12" square quilts are interesting to collect as they show so many of the techniques and design ideas currently popular in the quilting world.  There are about one hundred in the Collection, by dozens of diferent artists. All of the artists are listed individually in the right side bar. 

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

#   #   #