Use your imagination not to scare yourself to death but to inspire yourself to life. –Adele Brookman
I suppose it is just as well that I haven't blogged in several months because the cobwebs on the decor seem to fit nicely with the theme of the day.
I'd really like to dust off the old blog and get back to regular posting. It's been one wild and crazy adventure at Bug Cottage lately, and totally in a good way. I increased my work hours over the summer to close to full-time, which is counter-intuitive since the Not-So-Little Bugs are home more during the summer, but things all worked out. When school started, I took on some new responsibilities at work and so bumping up to full-time followed.
As time has gone by, I've been keeping a mental list of all the things that I want to blog about, but the list keeps increasing and it seems so daunting a task that I haven't had the nerve to start. I've done lots of fun sewing though, and I'm hoping to get in a few posts about that soon. In case you were curious, I did finish the Signature Quilt for the woman who turned 100 in September. The party was 11 days before her birthday so it was close, but I got it done in time.
As you can imagine, I've been spending a little more time than I used to at work. They are a really wild and crazy bunch. One of the programmers pulled the best prank ever today.
Halloween is my favorite. Dressing up is so much fun. There was a costume contest today {winners to be announced Monday} and my office mate and I decided that we were going to be Minions. We were nicknamed the AdMinions {Admin + Minions}. It was a great collaboration and I think we pulled it together nicely.
Bogart: /ˈboʊ gɑrt/ — Slang, Verb:
1. to take an unfair share of something; keep for oneself instead of sharing. Derived, presumably, from actor Humphrey Bogart's tendency to frequently hold a cigarette between his lips or in his hand, but never to actually smoke it.
Noun:
1. a person who hogs or monopolizes something.
2. a magical creature that takes the form of whatever you fear the most.
Once upon a time, P. made a fabulous String Ring Dresden quilt top {String Dresden Tutorial here}. P. does amazing things with fabric. I loved the colors she picked. I even sent her a few fabrics when she put out a call for more strings in those colors, and it was really fun to see them incorporated into her quilt top. So when she said she wasn't going to quilt it herself, but send it off on a fabulous quilting vacation—destination to be determined, I opened my big mouth and told her I had an idea for those fabulous Dresdens.
A few months later, a box arrived at my doorstep, which I resolutely ignored for a good three months. I was absolutely terrified that I would mess up her beautiful quilt top with my poor quilting skills. Eventually, I took a peek at her flimsy {she had it folded right sides together} and was completely amazed by it all over again. Photographs don't quite do quilts justice. From there, I started fleshing out the quilting plan details in the back of my mind, while still ignoring the quilt in its box for a few more months. Sometime around the five month mark, I knew it was time to get going or send the quilt back. I took a deep breath and started quilting. I stitched in the ditch to stabilize the quilt and then did ¼" echo quilting around all the Dresdens, diamonds and border.
Then I started adding some details. I'm not finished yet, but so far, not bad.
What P. doesn't know, is that when I'm finished with this quilt I'm keeping it. I even got her to send me the binding for it. I told her that I like to put the binding on part-way through the quilting process to keep lint from building up on the quilt top from the excess border of batting. It is true, but I told P. that as part of my evil plot to get possession of this super fabulous quilt. And now that it's here, there's pretty much nothing she can do to get it back .
What counts in making a happy marriage is not so much how compatible you are, but how you deal with incompatibility.
–George Levinger
The writers of romance would have you believe that marriage is the end of the story. But it's really just the beginning. We may all start out like Cinderella, but somewhere along the way, even the best couples have a Taming of the Shrew moment or two {the Shakespeare Retold version is amazing, BTW}.
Mr. Bug and I were married 16 years ago today. Sometimes it's about the romantic, mushy stuff. Sometimes it's about the everyday business of life; work and kids and mortgage payments. Sometimes it's about the dysfunctional stuff {and you know we all have it}. Today, I'm celebrating all of that.
Happy Anniversary, Mr. Bug!
I love you.
We belong together.
–Thriller
Performed by Michael Jackson and Vincent Price
Written by Rod Temperton
Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. It ranks right up there with Christmas as far as extensive and exhaustive preparations go. I love making costumes, although they always take way longer than I think they will. Some years I start early, and other years I decide I'm not going to make anything but end up rushing at the last minute to make something wonderful. No matter when I start, though, I usually have to pull an all-nighter to finish.
This year LadyBug is all about the capes. She wanted to be a vampire {just your everyday ordinary kind of vampire and not the sparkly kind} and since I have about a billion other things going on, I took her shopping and bought an inexpensive black cape. And of course, as I ironed it out, I thought to myself, why didn't I just make one?
I'm going as Hermoine Granger. I don't know what I did with my time turner. If I could find it, I would use it to go back and make LadyBug's cape. And then I'd use it to have a long, long nap. I was up until the week hours of the morning getting the Halloween Chili ready and putting together a Camp Jupiter t-shirt for Grasshopper. When will I ever learn?
In honor of the day, I've put together a little virtual trick-or-treating. Click on one or all and enjoy!
The Ghoulbert Report
Actor Tom Hanks shares easy and inexpensive Halloween costume ideas. Love it!
A Ghostly Phenomenon
I don't really buy into the paranormal. But hey, it's Halloween, right? So I thought I'd share this car advertisement from somewhere. When they finished filming, the ad the people who made it noticed something moving along the side of the car, like a ghostly white mist. About halfway through, you will see the white mist crossing in front of the car then following it along the road accompanied by an eerie sound that you can barely hear. You have to have the sound turned up to hear it. It is really faint but when the car rounds the second corner and looks like it's going through trees is when it starts.
The ad was never put on TV because of the unexplained ghostly phenomenon. ..... Spooky!
Re: Your Brains
It's a perfectly reasonable request. I just don't get why Tom won't cooperate. Heads Will Roll Michael Jackson's Thriller debuted at special theatrical screening in Los Angeles in 1983. It was shown in the theater before the re-release of Fantasia in order to qualify for an Academy Award and most people left after the video. I remember when it was first shown on MTV. It always has been and always will be one of my all-time favorite songs. The rap was written by Rod Temperton in a taxi cab on the way to the recording studio. He wrote three verses, but only the first and third were included in the song, which was voiced over by Vincent Price. I love this fun Mash-up of Thriller and Heads Will Roll performed in the first season of Glee.
You're through Soup Nazi. Pack it up. No more soup for you. Next!–Elaine, Seinfeld, season 7, episode 6
After 10 weeks of eating every kind of soup known to man, there will be no more soup for us {at least for a little while}. The new oven is being delivered this afternoon.
The Quilt is in the Wash
It is finished. The pinwheel sampler is done. I put the last stitches in it yesterday. Finally.
I finished the binding ages ago. I was really on a roll with the quilting before Grandma Week and only had a little bit left {relatively speaking} to do in the sashing {16 sections out of 40} when Grandma Week started. I knew that lugging Grace along to my mom's to finish the quilting wasn't really an option, so I put the binding on before we left and during our sit-around-and-visit adult time after the kids had gone to bed, I did the hand stitching on it. But when we got back, I kind of procrastinated finishing the quilting because I wasn't really sure where to go once it was done.
This quilt was originally intended for snuggling under to read, or watch TV, or whatever. I'd still like it to be a snuggle quilt, but it seems like it isn't quite suited for that anymore. When the plan for the quilting became more elaborate than straight-lines ¼" on either side of every seam, I wanted to put the quilt into a quilt show or two. But I didn't get it finished in time last year. Or this year. And now I'm hoping I'll have something else even better to put in next year, and this quilt won't even be a contender.
Whether the quilt is going to be displayed or used, I knew it definitely needed a good washing. The sticking spot was whether to block it {for quilt shows} after it was washed or throw it in the dryer and make it all soft and crinkly {for cuddling}.
I finished it last night with enough time to wash it before bedtime and then throw it in the dryer and let it do its thing while I slept, but I wasn't certain what I wanted to do. After much thought, I decided this afternoon that I really want this quilt to be soft and snuggly, so I threw it in the washer in clear water {the instructions for the Blue Line Eraser that I used to remove my markings recommends that you run it through clear water before using any kind of detergent on it to avoid any discoloration} and when I pulled it out to spot treat it {it got some schmutz on it from my machine} before the actual wash, I noticed that the quilt was really not square anymore. It finished up so nice and square {gold star for me}, and wet, it was sort of curly and wrinkly. I decided that square {and a little bit stiff} was more important than soft and cuddly.
The quilt is in the wash now. When it finishes, I'm going to block it. Tomorrow, after it has had time to dry, I will photograph it and post it for your viewing pleasure {"oohhhhs" and "aahhhs" requested but not required }.
In other related news, I got my Connecting Threads catalog in the mail yesterday. It was very timely as they've just released some cute little tags that say, This took FOREVER. I thought seriously about ordering some for this quilt.
The iOSes vs. The Kitchen Appliances: Revisited
I'm still at loose ends about whether to get an iPhone, an iPad or a new oven. I thought I had it all sorted out, but the iPhone 5 was announced {effectively making even the iPhone 4S users obsolete }, our shopping trip for a new oven was a bust, and instead we found a wide-by-side-fridge-with-a-pull-out-freezer-drawer that not only has all the whistles and bells, but is so palatial you could climb right up inside it and live in there. I'm honestly not sure why we didn't bring it home with us. Oh, wait. The fridge seems to be working for now and it's an oven that we need. That's right.
In the interest of being well-informed, I did a little research on the iPhone. My current carrier now offers service for the iPhone 4S. They do not require contracts but the trade-off for that is no discounts on a new phone or phone upgrade. You have to pay for the phone up front. Their least expensive service plan is $35.00, which includes 300 talk minutes, unlimited texting and unlimited data. It is as simple and straightforward as that. The cost of the iPhone {$650}, plus monthly service for a two-year period {no contract required} comes in at a hair under $1500, before tax. They are currently offering a $5 per month discount if you sign up for auto-pay, which shaves another $120 off the total cost.
I was only able to find plan pricing for iPhones on one of the two major carriers, which leads me to assume that at least one of them has prices so astronomical that they lock you into a two-year contract before they show you the bill. The other carrier had iPhones starting at $199 {with a two-year contract} and talk, text and data plans starting at $80 a month. This includes 450 talk minutes, unlimited texting and 300MB of data {which is small potatoes, people}. Over the course of two years, the cost is just over $2100. For their largest data plan {5GB}, we're talking $2800 for two years.
OK, so my happiness does not depend on having the newest toy. If it did, the day they announced the iPhone 5 would have been a dark day, indeed. But I'm saying, buying the iPhone outright is money ahead. As a matter of fact, you could buy two phones, if say, they release a new iPhone after a year, and still come out ahead.
While it would be seriously awesome to download all of the heavy, heavy books I lug to church every Sunday into a nifty new iOS {and as Pink suggested, store the heavy books in the empty, broken oven}, looking at the bigger picture, Mr. Bug and I are going shopping for ovens again. Perhaps we'll be able to find P.'s idea of the most practical multi-tasking hybrid oven, with wireless capabilities and a flat screen. Our favorite outlet center is offering an additional 10% off clearance prices this weekend, which means that we could get a $700 oven for $375. I like the sound of that, even if it doesn't surf the net. And maybe the fridge will come home with us too.
Firebolt
These people obviously have too much time on their hands.
*Note: click on the "CC" button to turn the captions on/off. It is funnier if you play it with the captions on.
Also, the taxidermied animal in the glass case at 2:24 is a liger. Her name is Shasta, and she was born in 1948 at Utah's own Hogle Zoo. At her death in 1972, the beloved animal was displayed in the cat house until they deemed that she would be more appropriately kept at the Bean Museum on BYU Campus.
Remember happiness doesn't depend upon who you are or what you have; it depends solely on what you think.–Dale Carnegie
40 Before 40
Somehow, somewhere, my name got on a 55-and-over-crowd mailing list. At first, I got postcards for those little retirement villages. Then I stared getting adverts for hearing aids. Today, I got a special invitation in the mail for dinner at the Sizzler at 4:30 pm, a week from Tuesday, to discuss safeguarding retirement plans. That really doesn't have much to do with anything, except it is a reminder that I am getting older. Still, I have fifteen years before I'm old enough to live in one of those senior communities, and I'd kind of like to get off that mailing list.
The big four-oh is creeping up for me. I'm not sure how I feel about it, but I decided I might as well celebrate it rather than fight it and write out a list of 40 things I want to do before I turn 40. I got the idea from Pink over at PinkSuedeShoe. She's turning the big three-oh next year and has made a 30 Before 30 list. She had her list ready to go right when she turned 29. I only have about half of a list and I only have 10 months to finish my 40 things, so I'm kind of at a disadvantage. But it's a start and I wanted to share my partial list anyway. Hopefully it will remind me to finish my list of 40 things before I turn 40 .
Finish eight Ph.D quilts.
Turn out all the drawers & closets.
Go see an opera, live.
Make homemade raspberry ice cream.
Put bark around the trees in the plot I cleared in the back yard 3½ years ago.
Enter at least one quilt in the Annual Springville Museum of Art Quilt Show.
Get new everyday dishes.
Jilly Bean's Book Club
My super cute sister is hosting an on-line book club. She'll be doing The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. I'm hoping to cheat and find it on audio, because I like to multi-task. If not, I'm going to hit the library and try to finish it before she does her review so that I can participate. If you love to read, check it out.
Monday Music Spot: Somewhere Over the Rainbow / Simple Gifts
I'm a little bit infatuated. I've always been a music lover. But I am absolutely amazed with every new release from ThePianoGuys. Each one is better than the last and I can't wait to see what they'll do next. I love how they weave melodies in and out and around each other to make simply beautiful music. I listen to their songs over and over and have downloaded them all so I can carry them around in my pocket.
The music speaks for itself, but I always love the back story. From ThePianoGuys ...
Story behind the song: Jon Schmidt and Steven Sharp Nelson were booked for a Piano Guys show in Hawaii. How could we resist filming our next video in the land of Aloha — beautiful beaches, green mountains, and fresh pineapple?? We went to our Founders and Facebook fans to ask what song they wanted us to play there. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" was the nearly-unanimous response. But you know how we are ... we couldn't "just" do this tune by itself ... so in the studio we found a made-in-heaven matchup in the timeless melody from the Shaker Hymn "Simple Gifts" written in the 1800's (also used by Aaron Copland in his Ballet "Appalachian Spring"). We feel it's an especially appropriate mash-up because of our profound love and respect for the Hawaiian culture — a people who are so good at finding happiness in simplicity. As you probably could hear we borrowed a lot of ideas from Iz's version which has become the stuff of legend. This arrangement is, in part, a tribute to him.
Getting a piano onto a sandy beach and then onto a big hill in a famous ranch within the SAME day (we only had 8 hours to film) was no small feat. The only thing harder would be to be predict Hawaiian weather, which ended up being our biggest challenge.
"We had a little extra help on this one. My mother, Lynne Sanders Nelson -- a main source of my inspiration for pursuing music — passed away early in life from the effects of a brain tumor. She was an incredibly-gifted musician and taught me to play music passionately rather than just playing 'notes' on a page. 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow' was one of her favorite songs. We finished this arrangement on what would have been her 70th birthday. Somehow she helped. I miss her so very much, but when I play songs like this I feel like I get to be with her again. This song is dedicated to her." -Steven Sharp Nelson
Thank you so much to the Kualoa Ranch who bent over backwards last-minute for us and provided us such a beautiful place to shoot. Visit their site — when you visit Hawaii be sure to stop by and take a tour — its where dozens of huge blockbluster movies/tv shows have been filmed.
This song is dedicated to Lynne Sanders Nelson, The Hill Family, J. Mueller, & the people of Hawaii
Filming locations: Beach Scene: Pounders Beach, North Shore, Oahu Hawaii Finale: Kualoa Ranch, North Shore, Oahu Hawaii
Credits: Over the Rainbow music written by Harold E. Arlen in 1939 for the movie "Wizard of Oz" -- originally performed by Judy Garland Published by EMI Feist Catalog, Inc. Inspired, in part, by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's cover Simple Gifts written by Joseph Brackett in 1848 Arrangement produced by Al van der Beek & Steven Sharp Nelson Arrangement written by Jon Schmidt, Al van der Beek & Steven Sharp Nelson Video produced by Paul Anderson and Tel Stewart Piano: Jon Schmidt Electric/Acoustic Cellos: Steven Sharp Nelson Vocals: Al van der Beek Percussion: Steven Sharp Nelson & Al van der Beek Recorded, mixed & mastered by Al van der Beek at TPG Studio
If you put your happiness in temporary things, your happiness will only be temporary.–Steven A. Cramer
A Week of Giveaways Directory
I am so happy with the huge response to my week of giveaways! Thanks to each and every one of you who entered. I have so enjoyed reading your comments and hope to squeeze in a little time to reply to each of you before the giveaways close. You can enter through 10:00 pm on Thursday, January 19th and the winners will be announced on the 21st. If you haven't already, check them out.
• Embroidery Gift Pack
• Backyard Baby Fat Quarter Bundle
• $50 Long-Arm Machine Quilting Gift Certificate
• Polka-Dot Quilt
• Machine Quilting Gift Pack
My Kingdom for a Butter Dish
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away . . . wait. That's not right. Different story. Let's try again. Sometime last summer, I'm not exactly sure when, but I think it was about the middle of June, Mr. Bug knocked the butter dish {the everyday one, not the fancy one that matches my china} off the end of the counter. It was an accident, but our tile floors are not the least bit forgiving and anything that falls on them breaks. So it was with the butter dish.
I put “butter dish” on my grocery list and the next time I went shopping at the big blue box store, I looked for one. The shelf was empty. The was a little price sticker saying that butter dishes were $3.97, but there were no butter dishes. I circled “butter dish” on my list, as I do with things I can't find or they are out of, so I'll remember to put them on the next list. A week {or maybe two—I'm foggy on the details at this point} later I went shopping at the big blue box store. “Butter dish” was on the top of my list, but the shelf was still empty. There happened to be an associate on the aisle and she asked me if I needed help finding something. I told her I was looking for a butter dish, but there were none there. She kindly scanned the price sticker on the shelf and told me that they had six in stock, but perhaps they hadn't been brought out from the back yet. I thanked her and circled “butter dish” on my list. Again. I have been repeating this little ritual three or four times a month since then, and the spot where the butter dishes are supposed to be is always empty.
I am a creature of habits. As much as I hate the big blue box store, I still shop there because I mostly know where everything is and I can buy jeans for the kids, oil for the car, fabric and groceries all in one stop. I really hate running all over the place to get everything I need, so the convenience of having it all in one place supersedes the several annoyances that come with a large and spacious building that sells anything you could need. Also, I really hate driving anywhere that takes more than 10 minutes to get to. The nearest locale which may have a butter dish is between 20 and 25 minutes away, depending on traffic. I don't like to drive across town. Even for fabric. But I'm beginning to think that we'll never have another butter dish unless I shop somewhere else.
Or maybe I can hold out just until they do inventory and they find out that they in fact do not have six butter dishes in stock and order some more in.
Magic Starch
I'm big on washing fabrics before I use them. Because most of what I buy is 100% cotton, that means it needs a good pressing before I use it. I like to use a little starch, which makes exact cutting easier and the blocks press out better as you put them together. It also keeps the fraying down. My friend, Angie, gave me this recipe a long time ago. I never got around to trying it because procuring the necessary ingredients required driving all over town, which, as you might know, I'm not a big fan of. So Angie sent me some. She actually made some up, put it in a recycled 1-liter bottle and mailed it pretty much across the entire country to me. And I love it! The stuff is liquid gold! Fabric presses up like new. I've been using it carefully, because when I've used up the stuff she sent, I'm going to have to drive all over town so I can make my own. I'm sharing the recipe with you. Try it. You'll thank me later.
Magic Starch
2 cups distilled water
2 oz vodka
10-15 drops pure essential oil of lavender
⅛-¼ cup liquid Sta-Flo® liquid starch{ironically, available at Wal-Mart}
• Combine all ingredients. Put in a fine misting spray bottle and spray on fabrics before pressing.
Notes:
• Recommended for cotton fabrics. Synthetic fabrics may stain due to the oil in the mix.
• Shake before each use to make sure the ingredients are mixed well.
• Use the cheapest not-really-fit-for-human-consumption vodka you can find with the highest proof available.
• Vodka is an emulsifier for the oils as well as a preservative which will help keep the starch fresh over time.
• Vodka is recommended because it has no additives and dries quickly. Rubbing alcohol can be substituted, but some recommend against it because of its toxicity.
• You can mix other oils, such as peppermint, jasmine, chamomile, bergamot or sage to enhance the smell, but make sure to only use clear oils so you don't stain your fabrics.
• Tap water contains chlorine which will destroy the essential oils, so do not use it.
• If you leave out the starch it makes a great linen water to use in your iron.
Monday Music Spot: Total Eclipse of the Heart
A little something funny, especially if you lived through the ‘80s.
From a commercial point of view, if Christmas did not exist it would be necessary to invent it. –Katharine Whitehorn
Undecided
I'm not sure how long ago I started this little table runner, but I pulled it out to add to my pool of table runners for the gift exchange parties I'm going to. I used a Moda Bakeshop "recipe" called Sunday Squares by Charlie Scott. I won the charm pack at shop hop a year or so before I started the runner and thought this would be the perfect project to use it in, only there weren't enough squares in the charm pack to make the whole quilt, so I decided to make a table runner. I had probably a half a yard of the background fabric in my stash, which wasn't enough to finish the top. By the time I got some more and got it washed, I'd either lost interest, needed to move on to something else more pressing or was kind of stuck on how to proceed. I'm thinking it was a combination of all those things, with being stuck the major factor.
I think I couldn't decide if I wanted to do a white border between the center and the sawtooth border . . .
. . . or if I wanted to do green. I still can't decide. I put the white border on last night and was all set on it. But when I got up this morning and looked at it again, I kind of like the green. While I was taking pictures, I was pretty set on sticking with the white. But after looking at the pictures, I'm pondering the green again. Opinions, please. Tell me what you think.
A Little Christmas Silliness
Christmas is in 13 days. Thirteen. Days. People. The pressure is on to get everything ready. If you're feeling stressed, here's a little something to make you laugh. There are some really great lines in here.
15 Yards
of 100% cotton fabric washed, pressed, cut and assembled into thirteen pillowcase kits. I got all my fabric on sale for at least 50% off and didn't pay more than $3.49 a yard for any one piece. I think there was even one piece that was $1.99 a yard. My favorites in this bunch are the Quilter's Showcase fabrics from JoAnn's. The fabric is a really nice weight/quality and it washes and presses really nicely, but the best thing about them is that they were on sale for $2.49 a yard, with an additional 10% off!
Glad of Heart
This is another table runner in progress. The top is finished and it is basted and ready for quilting. The fabric is Sanibel and I just love it. I know it is a little bit busy, but I think/hope that the quilting will help with that.
A very kind friend sent me five fat quarters of this fabric line at Christmas last year. I made a couple of Hexie Art Journals with it and had roughly a fat eighth left over of each fabric. This summer, I went to a fabric shop I don't visit often and they had one of those bins where everything you can cram into a gallon-size ziplock from the bin is $10. I was immediately drawn to the bright plaid. It was a big piece, just over 2 yards, and I thought it would be great for a table runner. When I saw Sanibel on the selvage, I knew it was meant to be. And just a few weeks ago I found a couple of different prints from this line on clearance at the quilt shop near my work. I was really glad to find them and I can't wait to start quilting on this.
Focus on Free-Motion Quilting
Vickie at Sew Inspired is hosting a little quilt-along during the month of January and I'm playing along because I am ready and anxious to learn as much as I can about free-motion quilting. Pop on over and have a gander.
Monday Music Spot: Santa's Got A Brand New Bag
I love this sassy Christmas song by SHeDAISY. It's just what I need to motivate me to do a little Christmas sewing, even though I'd rather go to bed.
Sometimes it's harder to attain inner silence than outer silence. The dog stopped barking and the kids have gone to bed, but your mind has a log to talk about and it knows you can't pretend you're not at home. –Linda Solegato
The “What If?” Game
When we were kids, my sister and I used to play the “What If?” Game. It would start with a question that stemmed from a variation on the everyday like, “what if the cat could talk?” or “what if we lived in the elementary school?” We'd imagine all kinds of things as we answered our own questions. My dad didn't like that game too much. But I still love to play it. As a matter of fact, I was playing it the other day.
Several times on my way to and from work in the last week or two, I've seen a Harley Davidson Fat Boy parked at the side of the road with a for sale sign on it. One the way home from work last week, I passed it again and thought, “what if I bought that bike?” That thought led to other thoughts. “I wonder if I could find a cool helmet to match,” and, “oh, and a smokin' kevlar riding jacket.” It would be so much fun to ride! Then I wondered if I'm too old to learn to ride a motorcycle. But, hey. If Willam H. Macy can do it, so can I. Right?
Dear Dad,
Please come down from the ceiling. The “What If?” Game is still just a game. I'm not going to buy a Harley. There are too many hazards out there on the road.
xo -Elizabeth
P.S. LadyBug loves the “What If?” Game too.
Virtual Reality
Earlier this month, I got to meet some of my favorite virtual friends in real life. Amy {of amylouwho} was in Utah and arranged a Sew & Tell live. It was SO much fun. Pink {of pinksuedeshoe} hosted the party at her house and provided the most yummy treats {you have to try her Lime Pie Cakes. They are to die for!} Besides getting to meet my favorite bloggers in person, there were some girls there I haven't met yet in the blogging world, so I made some new friends and found some great new blogs to peruse. We laughed, ate, shared quilting stories and life stories and had a really fun time! Thanks girls for an awesome evening!
Just a few days later, my sweet friend and fellow TwiQuilter, Wanda, was in town and she and her husband took me and my little family out to lunch. We ate at one my favorite local restaurants, The Art City Trolley. Wanda is one of the sweetest people I know. It was so fun to catch up and get to meet her daughter, Liz and granddaughter, Emilia.
Sudoku Quilt Group
If you haven't seen enough pictures of me today then you're in luck because I've got one more. I'm teaching a quilting class. And by teaching, I mean volunteering as a teacher. It is for the ladies who are in my ward {LDS-speak for parish or congregation}, but also for anyone in the neighborhood who wants to come. I've divided the quilt up into six steps and we work on one step each month. Our first month we cut our fabrics and this month we sewed them into blocks. This is the Saturday morning class {we also have a Thursday night class so people can attend whichever is more convenient} with our blocks.
Back {l to r}: Barbara, Elizabeth, Jennifer, Julie
Front {l to r}: Bev, Christina, Sherri, Courtney
Monday Music Spot: Howlin' For You
I don't know if I'm particularly original in my music tastes, but I'm definitely all over the place. It was a toss-up today between Marc Anthony & Pitbull or The Black Keys. I went with the more funky beat.
What this world needs is a new kind of army — the army of the kind. –Cleveland Amory
Another Rainy Monday Music Spot: Rhythm of the Rain
I think I finally put my finger on why I love rain so much. Utah is a desert state and it doesn't rain much here so I see every single drop of rain as a miracle. Since miracles don't happen every day, it is nice to have a front row seat when they do. Today is another lovely rainy Monday. Actually, it's been raining since yesterday afternoon and I've been really enjoying everything about it. Here's another of my favorite songs about rain.
Change Is Bitter-Sweet
I mentioned yesterday that I was released from my calling in the Primary Presidency in our ward. We kind of have our own vocabulary , so if you're wondering exactly what that means {or even if you're not}, this is the scoop. All service in our church is voluntary, from the top on down. Unlike most volunteer jobs, you don't get to choose what you do. I guess you could say that we volunteer by assignment. Each assignment is called a calling, and just as you don't get to pick what you do, you also don't get to pick for how long. I've been in Primary {the children's organization} for about three years now, first as a classroom teacher and then as a member of the presidency {leadership organization}. And I have grown to love it so much. I've worked in Primary before; twice as a teacher, which was hard for me because I didn't have kids of my own yet and didn't know all the tricks that you get to know when you live with little people. I was also the pianist for the Primary in the ward we live in now for a couple of years after we moved here. I really enjoyed that, but this last three years in the Primary have been the best. I am really going to miss the children and the wonderful feeling that accompanies them.
It is sad to say goodbye to something that has been such a big part of my life for the last three years; a service that has been a pleasure to me and more of a blessing than a sacrifice. I feel kind of like a cast-off. Yes. I will miss Primary. Knowing how I felt, and not being able to be with me much after I found out {they let me know a few days in advance} because our work schedules are opposite, Mr. Bug had the most beautiful roses I have ever seen delivered to me on Saturday afternoon. I'm going to pretend I didn't see how much they cost. The note said, Happy Mother's Day! Congrats for "graduating" Primary. I love you. Mr. Bug always knows how to put things into perspective.
Is One of These Things Not Like The Others?
Last week I showed you my list of current projects. The list only covers projects I'd like to finish by June 30th{which keeps creeping closer and closer}. That is probably why I didn't include the Sudoku quilt I'm working on. It is a longer-term project but sill something I'm working on right now. It is pretty much the only crafty thing I've worked on in the last two weeks. Work has been really overwhelming the last few weeks and I haven't had much time at all for anything creative. I did some {more} sorting of the polka-dot fabrics, and I got all nine of my fabrics cut to their 4½" squares for the Sudoku quilt. I'm going to be teaching a class on it for a group of women at my church. I'm really looking forward to it.
I asked Mr. Bug what he thought and he said they go together pretty well. Then he said that the flowers on yellow {thanks, P.} kind of made him think, one of these things is not like the others. I think it is the two prints on either side of it that make it not quite fit in. Admittedly, this quilt did not go in the direction I was planning. I was thinking more mellow-and-yellow to set off that beautiful floral print, but I like this color combination really well. The modern-ish prints on the turquoise and green fabrics contrast with the vintage feel of the florals. I still think it works pretty well, so I don't think I will go stash diving again .
I {still}♥ Tulips
This is what is blooming in my yard today. Most of the buds are closed because of the rain, but they are still exceedingly beautiful. {Right} click on the photo for a closer view.
The End of the Tunnel
I'm starting to get Carpal Tunnel. The heels of my hands had been bothering me for a week or so, and so last week after being woken up and not being able to go back to sleep because they ached so much, I went to the source of all knowledge {the internet} to see if my symptoms matched Carpal Tunnel. Sure enough, they did. It must be all that texting I'm doing lately . I'll be getting new keyboards for work and home {probably those funky, split, ergonomic kind}. And I've started doing exercises to hopefully prevent further damage. I do them while I'm eating breakfast. I do them sitting at stop lights on my way to and from work. I do them while I'm laying in bed at night trying to go to sleep. They seem to be helping a bit.
I'm thinking it kind of sucks when the old equipment starts wearing out. I've been putting off going to see the optometrist for eight or nine months because I can't read small print anymore — yeah, it's time for bifocals . The really hilarious thing is that somebody out there has got me on a 55-and-older list because I keep getting flyers and postcards in the mail for retirement communities. There's nothing like being told you're past your prime when retirement is a good 30 years off into the future.
Much Ado About The Doctor's Socks
David Tennant, my all time favorite Doctor was on a British talk-show promoting his latest Shakespeare performance. Along with him was his Doctor co-star, Catherine Tate, who is also performing in Much Ado About Nothing with David. They got onto the subject of little OCD things that you have to do and I could totally relate to David's OCD tendency towards matching socks. But what was absolutely brilliant was his solution. Catherine's is a bit weird but she's first, so if you want to skip to David, go 36 seconds into the clip.
Q: Why do blondes drive VW's?A: Because they can't spell Porsche.
You may or may not know that I have a soft spot for the Volkswagen Bug. So when this segement came on Top Gear, pitting a 1970{ish} Volkswagen Beetle {top speed: 80ish MPH} against a Porsche 911 Turbo {top speed: 196 MPH} in a drag race, it was with more than a little interest that I watched. It was awesome . And so I'm sharing.
I realize this is a 10-minute clip. But I think even the non-car enthusiast will get a kick out of it. So just watch it. You'll thank me later.
If you want to live and thrive, let the spider run alive. –American Quaker Saying
Word of my career as a spider mercenary has gotten out.
It was 11:45 pm on an ordinary Thursday night. Mr. Bug was in bed reading a book with his back to me. I was spooned up next to him and had been contentedly sleeping for about 45 minutes. The serenity suddenly became chaos as something painful woke me up. I reached down to the source of the discomfort and pulled an oddly crunchy ball from the back of my leg, just above the crease of the knee. What the!?! is all I could manage in my sleep induced stupor, my sluggish brain two steps behind my reflexes. I pulled my arm out from under the covers and dropped the strange object pinched between my thumb and forefinger into the bed in front of me. Mr. Bug turned around and found me fumbling around stupidly in the covers. Realization of what had happened dawned on me and I told Mr. Bug, I got bit by a spider! There's a spider in the bed!
Mr. Bug swung into action. He is nearly blind without his contacts or glasses, except he can see better to read without them and usually takes them off when he reads at night. This was the case tonight, but his nearsightedness was not a factor and his aim was accurate as he grabbed the top sheet and squished Mr. Hairier and Scarier into the bed. He then grabbed a wet wipe, cleaning up the crime scene before he went to dispose of the remains. He was gone kind of a long time, and when he got back into bed, I asked him what he had been doing. He said he'd been looking at the spider. You see, after my last spider bite, he'd done a good amount of research on Hobo Spiders and how to identify them. This was just another baby spider, without many identifying markings. He was a bit bigger than the other fellow, and a little bit darker. But really, it was hard to tell what kind of spider it was.
Still in bed, I closed my eyes, thinking of nothing but drifting back into blissful oblivion, but disjointed images started flashing in my mind. Drunk with sleep, the whole thing suddenly became hilarious. I staggered to the kitchen to get my camera and then dug the spider corpse out of the trash and posed him for a photo shoot. Laughing hysterically, I twisted myself like a contortionist to get a photo of the spot on the back of my leg where he bit me. It was just like the last one — a raised white welt and the skin around it was red and blotchy. In the sober light of day, I've opted not to post that photo. You're welcome.
After the photo op, Mr. Bug asked, what next? Snacks? TV? Both were very appealing, but owing to the late hour and work in the morning, I declined and climbed back into bed. And immediately climbed back out again. What if there was a whole colony of spiders lurking in there, out to avenge their brothers who had died at my hands? We pulled back the covers and shook them out. Mr. Bug made a careful inspection of the area between the headboard and the mattress for any signs of spiders or their webs. The coast was clear. And so I warily climbed back into bed. My mind was racing but after some prodding from my inner mother, I finally went back to sleep. In the morning, Mr. Bug informed me that he was itchy with a hundred imaginary spider bites.
This latest attack is rather alarming. Am I marked woman? Has my reputation as a mercenary put a target on me? I can't say for sure that they're Hobo Spiders {although one's imagination does go straight there}, but they certainly are an aggressive clan of house spiders. Biting someone while they're casually browsing blogs is a fairly hostile act. Biting someone while they're sleeping takes it to a whole new level. It is time to call in the big guns.
You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm. –Colette
It's like I've been walking around with a big piece of broccoli stuck between my front teeth. And nobody told me. For like eight months.
Have you ever clicked on the Operation Pop-Up Window Pirate button so prominently placed at the top of my sidebar, and promising to show you how to make commenting faster and easier for your readers? And then after you clicked on it wondered why you were still at my homepage ? Well, that happened to me the other day . When I discovered that the button didn't work right, I sifted through my posts to fix the link and found the post it was supposed to link to clear back in June of last year. I was so embarrassed. And it explained a few things .
Yeah. I'm a dork .
My motto is Go Big or Go Home, and now seems like an opportune time to revisit the subjet. A while back, I launched a campaign to convert all of blog-kind to Pop-Up Window Pirates, because I like to browse blogs and leave a little comment for the blog owner. The Pop-Up Window is by far the fastest of the three comment options that Blogger offers. I even made a cool bloggy button for it. Which now works like it is supposed to.
And here are the step-by-step instructions for changing your comment settings. They were specially designed with all types of learners in mind {for those who follow verbal instructions best, read them out loud to yourself} and they will help you to quickly and easily become a Pop-up Window Pirate.
• From your Dashboard, click on the Settings option.
• Under the settings tab, click on the fourth option: Comments.
• In the third heading labeled Comment Form Placement, select Pop Up Window.
• Save your changes {scroll to the bottom of the page} and you're done. You're now officially a Pop-Up Window Pirate. Welcome to the crew, matey.
After God created the world, He made man and woman. Then, to keep the whole thing from collapsing, He invented humor. –Bill Kelly, "Mordillo"
I'm not entirely sure that this post won't fall flat on its face. I don't know if I can convey this in a way that anybody but me will get. My post is clumsy and awkward, and not at all like the favourite thing I want to share, but here goes anyway . I like good humor. I love a good pun, an inside joke, a reference to pop culture, or witty, clever banter. I like well thought-out comedy. I thought I'd share a bit of what tickles my funny bone.
I'll start off with Fred & George Wesley. You never know what you'll get with those two. For this one, I'll point you to a collection of clips{the embedding feature was disabled} over at YouTube.
The TV show Psych is always good for a laugh. The dialog is pretty funny and they do tons of inside jokes and references to pop culture. This is one of my favorite funny references {feel free to stop the video after Gus, a.k.a. Jazz Hands, says his line, at about :35}
For witty banter, nothing can compete with Gilmore Girls. The entire cast is amazing. It is hard to convey the funniness of this show out of context; it is kind of one you have to see. All the same, I hope you'll enjoy this collection of funny moments. My favorite is 'the yellow stick road.'
It is a shame that Dharma & Greg was cancelled, because it just so much fun. I love to catch it on re-runs. Don't tell anyone , but I kind of have a girl crush on Dharma.
The spider's touch, how exquisitely fine!
Feels at each thread, and lives along the line. –Alexander Pope
There I was, casually catching up on blogs, when I felt a little pin-prick on the knuckle of my right hand. My view of the area was obstructed by some overhanging papers and I couldn't see any cause for it, so I assumed that it was a mis-fire, a phantom pain.
{Crime Scene Recreation}
I massaged the knuckle absently while I read Laundry Hurts My Feelings. When I moved on to That Man Quilts?, I noticed that the pin-prick still stung and my knuckle felt a little bit tingly, almost anesthetized. So I took a closer look. There was a round, white welt where I'd felt the pin-prick and the skin around it was blotchy and red. So I started searching for the cause. I saw a hint of movement in my shuffle of papers, but the source eluded me. So I moved on to reading what AmyLouWho is up to today. It was then that I caught another whisper of movement amongst the clutter on my desk. This time there was no escape. You see, I have a hard-and-fast rule about spiders. When I'm in their house {outside} I let them be {unless it is a Black Widow, in which case the policy is, I do not deal with terrorists, and there is an immediate, terror-filled squishing}.
But a spider in my house is a different story. And this one made a very foolish mistake. He could have easily lived out his life without notice, concealed in the mess on my desk. But he drew unnecessary attention to himself and sealed his doom. Because when a spider comes into my house, the squishing is inevitable.
I must admit, that at first I was a little panicked about a spider bite. I hear that awful things happen if it is a Hobo Spider{also called Aggressive House Spiders}. I wondered what provoked this tiny white spider {presumably a baby} to bite me? I wasn't all up in his grill. I was minding my own business. That sounds like a pretty aggressive spider to me. But it is five hours later and I'm fine. Then again, symptoms of a Hobo Spider bite don't become serious for 24 hours. I should start feeling sick about the time Primary starts tomorrow.
In the interim, however, I have pondered the point of spiders. Why are there spiders? To keep the insect population in check, right? But their bad reputation precedes them. They are so skittery and I'm always afraid that one is going to jump on my hand as I try to squish it and it will have been a very poisonous spider and the bite will lead to my slow, agonizing death. None of the spiders around here are really that deadly. They'll just make you pretty sick. But when you hear about spiders in other parts of the world that can kill you with a glance, you tend to overreact. It helps to put things in perspective when I compared my close encounter of the minute size to recentrun-insMarg had with spiders of gigantic proportion. I think I'd pack up shop and move somewhere less dangerous. Because big or small, spiders are intimidating {to say the least} to nearly everyone. So if their sole purpose is to keep the insect population under control, then perhaps if there were no insects, then there would be no need for spiders. There. I've solved the problem in a matter of minutes. You're welcome, world. Now let's get on it.
We are not to judge thrift solely by the test of saving or spending. If one spends what he should prudently save, that certainly is to be deplored. But if one saves what he should prudently spend, that is not necessarily to be commended. A wise balance between the two is the desired end. –Owen Young
Late Saturday night {so late in fact that it was actually very early Sunday morning}my iron quit working in the middle of a project. My new iron. The iron I bought on August 17, 2010. The iron that had a lovely green inset that matched my adorable double-sided ironing board cover. The iron I'd spent an inordinate amount of time picking out while the Little Bugs milled around me teasing each other waiting ever-so-patiently to go pick out new shirts for school. The iron that wasn't really in the budget. The iron that was a step down from my old, broken iron because I was economizing. The iron I picked out, in large part, because it was marked down to $17.97. The iron that rang up at regular price {$19.97}, but I didn't notice until I was looking over my receipt at home. The iron for which I never went back to get a refund for the difference in price {I so want my two dollars!}. The iron whose box, warranty card and receipt I unceremoniously threw out while cleaning the mess from under my sewing table. The iron that is now trash.
This iron was a compromise between what I really wanted and what I could afford; it was what I could live with. And now I'm back to square one and just a little bit peeved with Black & Decker. If a new iron wasn't in the budget two months ago, it is even less in the budget now {backstory: Mr. Bug's job was eliminated at the beginning of April. Since then he's started his own company, but it is slow going and the budget is really tight which is why I'm completely obsessing over my iron breaking. Again.}. I'm back to using a travel iron that after four days with it when my last iron broke I was ready to commit harry carry because it scorches everything, including the light side of my adorable reversible ironing board cover. I'm going to have to look into cooking with two-minute noodles so I can afford a new new iron. I hear you can really cut back on your food bill and they're not too bad if you prepare them correctly.
I have to wonder if my creative appliances are conspiring against me? First Grace and now two irons. Admittedly, the first iron had served a long and useful life. But this second iron? I think it was out to get me the minute it didn't ring up on sale. And I'm almost scared to get another iron because what if I choose the wrong one again and I'm back in the same boat in two months? Who knew that choosing an iron would have the weight of choosing the True Grail from among the many False Grails.
You saw what happened to the guy who chose poorly . I feel a little bit like that right now. So before I commit to cash {again}, I'm going to do a little research. I want to make an informed decision so that I can choose wisely. What iron do you have, how long have you had it, where did you get it, how much was it and and why do you love it?
Oh, and this time, I'm going to mail in the warranty card and save the box and receipt. Those crafty appliances are not going to get the best of me .
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. The really hilarious thing is that somebody out there has got me on a 55-and-older list because I keep getting flyers and postcards in the mail for retirement communities. There's nothing like being told you're past your prime when retirement is a good 30 years off into the future. 
. And so I'm sharing.
? Well, that happened to me the other day 
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because what if I choose the wrong one again and I'm back in the same boat in two months? Who knew that choosing an iron would have the weight of choosing the True Grail from among the many False Grails.
. I feel a little bit like that right now. So before I commit to cash 
