Still struggling to finish a quilt 01-31-19

My helper is not being very helpful.  I finally convinced him to lay on his quilt which I folded up on a corner of the table - out of my way.  

We had heavy rain today and I was out to Physical Therapy and the dental hygienist, but oddly it was never raining when I was going to or from my car.  Just good weather mojo!   More rain is coming in the next few days, but we are hoping it is a gentle rain and not the downpour we had today.  After years of drought the rain feels good and everything sparkles in the sun. 

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Wordless Wednesday 01-30-19

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Traveling home from Los Osos 01-29-19

Liz and I stopped at Jeannine's in Montecito for a late lunch.  I'll try to show pictures on Friday Food, though I did photograph several meals on this trip.  I had a latte with my lunch and the heart shaped cookies were our dessert, although when our plates were served we discovered that a chocolate chip cookie was included with each.  All was very tasty.  I do like Jeannine's and always think I will try the one in Santa Barbara, but this one in Montecito is so comfortable and familiar.  I am a Starbuck's fan, but I think this latte was equal to any I have had at Starbuck's.  And the cup includes a little message inside. 

The drive today was a little longer because we made three lengthy stops.  One at the fabulous Ace hardware store in Los Osos where we could easily have spent hours, one at Creation Station in Buellton which has lovely fabrics, all kinds of clever patterns and doodads, and the best bathroom for miles around and finally the stop at Jeannine's.  

It was mostly cloudy and foggy, but the sun came out for short periods and there was no wind - lovely. 

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On the Road tonight 01-28-19

Liz and I are at the Sea Pines Golf Resort in Los Osos, CA.  We drove up today (5 hours) so I could give a program on the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection to the local guild Bear Valley Quilters.  It is a nice group and there were guests from Morro Bay and Arroyo Grande.  Many of them had seen my program at their guilds in the past.  I showed 40 quilts and was able to hang sever on stands so the audience could look at them up close and see the backs also.  It was a nice group and we felt very welcome.  

We will be off in the morning for the five hour drive home.  Hope to be able to post some pictures of something tomorrow night.  

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Running as fast as I can 01-26-19

Still struggling with my new laptop and all my millions of files.  No luck yet.  But it will have to wait until mid week as I will be up in Los Osos giving a program to their quilt guild on Monday evening.  Have the quilts all selected, but need to get everything else in the car tomorrow.  And I am still quilting on the quilt that has a rapidly approaching deadline.  Oh, why do I procrastinate and leave so many things to the last minute.  Stupid computer has done me in this time.

It is cyclamen time, they are so lovely. 

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Friday Food 01-25-19

Pastrami on rye with coleslaw at Katella Deli in Long Beach.  

Still no luck with the laptop.  I can't even figure out how to change the time, which is two hours later than Pacific time.  I did get out the hard drive sent by Carbonite and followed the instructions, but nothing happened.  So, I spend about an hour with their help department.  It seemed to be down/up loading, but there is no old files on my laptop.  So, I called back, but I waited too long and they were closed.   First thing tomorrow I will call them again.  This is so frustrating.  

I am trying to quilt the quilt, but there are so many interruptions I am not getting anywhere fast. KoKo seems happy sleeping on my feet as I have my foot on the pedal, so he isn't a bother.  I took him to the groomer this afternoon for a bath and a trim.  I always feel so guilty when I leave him as he shakes and struggles to stay in the car.  He doesn't enjoy the process, although the attendants seem very caring and careful with him.  He is just afraid.

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With all that is going on with laptop and sewing machines and physical therapy for my hips, I still have a quilt to finish for a deadline, which is fast approaching.  I suppose I was not thinking clearly when I decided to quilt the top part with "matchstick quilting", lines that are about 1/4" apart.  Now that I have my machine back and the walking foot engaged I am making some progress.  But there are all those other things to interrupt the flow!  I will have to apply myself seriously in the next couple days as I am going to be doing a program at Los Osos, CA, which is near San Luis Obispo, on Monday.  I find that my 80 year old body needs a day to recuperate after two days on the road.  So, I won't be back up to speed until Wednesday.  Oh, my, gosh!  Gotta get busy.  

FedEx delivered the hard drive from Carbonite, but I wasn't up to spending enough time to get things going today.  Something else to do tomorrow.  Too bad I don't have a 7 year old grandchild to take care of these computer things for me!

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