Saturday, November 14, 2015

Saturday Stories Number One 11-14-15


This will be a periodic posting about my life and/or the lives of people I have known.
After spending the WWII years with their paternal grandparents in Los Angeles, the girls’ mother remarried and they returned to Portland, Oregon, with a new stepfather and a working mother. The younger girl was about seven and her sister about ten.  When they left for California they were too young to have made friends in the neighborhood, so they were at loose ends for things to do.  At that time kids roamed their worlds without fear, but it wasn’t any fun alone.  The house behind theirs on the cross street had new owners, the Lyons, who hailed from Kansas and who loved to garden, both produce and wonderful flowers.  The ten year old was of an age that a seven year old was beneath her attention so she was lonesome for company.

She had been looking at the Lyons garden and enjoying their flowers but had not met anyone.  One day, at desperate loose ends for something to do, she quietly went up on the porch and peered over the windowsill to see a man working inside.  She ducked down and then popped up again.  This time the man saw her and opened the door.  “Hello, who are you?” he asked.  “I am Diane Spencer,” she replied, “and I live next door.  Do you have any little girls I can play with?”   “ We do have a girl, but she is eleven years old.” Elmer replied.   “My sister is almost eleven, maybe they could play together.”   “Charlotte has gone shopping with her mother, but you could bring your sister over this afternoon.”   “Okay,” said Diane as she ran down the steps and headed home to find her sister, Marie. 

Ever after Elmer told about looking up at the window and seeing a head with pigtails tied up in loops on either side of her head and bright brown eyes.  Then she was gone and then she was there again; like a Jumping Jennie.   Marie and Charlotte became best friends and did everything together, including trying to get away from Diane.   Sometimes Elmer and Lucille, Charlotte and Marie and tag-a-long Diane would go to the beach and stay in a little tourist cabin where Elmer taught them all how to play poker using burnt matchsticks for money.   The girls would be gone most of the day – sliding down the dunes, wading in the surf and building things with driftwood decorated with shells and sea weed.  When the older girls were in high school Charlotte was diagnosed with leukemia.  There was no treatment for the disease and Charlotte died within a few months.  Marie never completely recovered from the loss and never had a best friend again in all her long life.  Diane remained a solitary figure with many friends but never a tight bond like Marie and Charlotte.                      

Friday, November 13, 2015

Friday Feet 11-13-15

I may be well, or almost; still coughing some, especially at night.  These sleeping feet are much younger than mine and not so horny and weird.  But they represent my three weeks of sickness - hope it is over.  I was out to dinner last evening and returned KoKo to his mommy.  He was glad to see her.  I had him in the doggy stroller and he was a very good boy.  This is only his third time in the stroller, so he doesn't have it down pat.  He jumped out twice, but he had his lease on and I held it tightly all the time.  So, no harm done and he will continue to learn.  We are still working on "Drop it"!

  
Don't forget the Alliance for American Quilts auction, now underway.  In two parts, the first section ends on Monday, November 16 at  6pm Pacific Time,  They are all animal quilts, 16 inches square, and there are some real beauties.  Auction price starts at $65.
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Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Quilts found 11-11-15

I don't know how widely the information has been disseminated so I thought I would post it here.  The eight exhibits that were missing at the Mancuso Oasis QuiltFest in Palm Springs were found, but  not in time for them to appear at PIQF in Santa Clara.   That is all I know about the matter, except that Jamie Fingal, who chaired one of the exhibits, is looking for venues to show it.  Contact Jamie at Jamie.Fingal@gmail.com. 
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Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Here's that KoKo again. 11-10-15

Can you stand one more doggy picture?  Probably not the last ever.  Today was November Fest at Surfside Quilters Guild, our big fund raiser for the guild.  We did pretty good on the live auction and on the 72 raffle baskets.  I was afraid we would be there calling numbers until evening, but the organizers and the number caller did a good job and it moved along quickly.  Liz went with me and she won two baskets to my one, but we are happy with our treasures.   When we got home to my house we dumped everything out and chose what we wanted, leaving me with a box of goodies to donate to another fund raiser - for SQG or some other guild.  Of course we had fabric in our baskets, but lots of other treasures, including marking pencils, seam ripper (with a flat handle!), books, patterns, threads, stickers, and candy.  There is much more, but it is late and KoKo wants to go to bed.
 
He is here for just two more nights while Nancy is doing a program for a guild and then a workshop the next day. As his participation in the treasures he ran off with this bouquet of silk flowers that adorned one of the baskets.  I forced him to give it back, flowers of any kind are not for doggies.
 
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Monday Browsing 11-09-15


One would think we all knew this by now.
http://www.luckyshops.com/article/how-to-find-the-right-bra-size?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl21%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D1764813211

 For those non-candid shots:
http://www.aol.com/article/2015/05/08/look-in-amazing-in-any-photo-with-these-10-easy-tricks/20526034/?swp=1

I rather like this traditional quilt from Mary McGuire.  This is the last installment from her blog – work your way backwards.
http://www.marymcguiredesign.blogspot.com/2015/10/final-sew-along-post-and-give-away.html
Or check out the pattern on the RJR website:
http://rjrfabrics.com/free-patterns/view/point-of-view/

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Sunday, November 8, 2015

Diane Wright quilt added to TCQC 11-08-15

This is the second of the four quilts I purchased at the SAQA 2015 online auction.
 
"Everyone Loves a Party"  Diane Wright - Guilford, CT 2015  12"X12"
Reverse applique,  twin needle free motion quilting, hand stitches.
Re-purposed sample from Quilting Arts magazine article, July 2014.
 
The head is actually black like the rest of the body and the body is black with tiny grey squares.  Love the beak with bits of silver metallic. 

Neat feet - worthy of Ruth McDowell!

The other quilt by Diane in TCQC also has a hand print as the label. 
 
 
I'm hoping you can read this as it gives the info about her techniques.
 
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