The 1541 is Here

In between rain showers yesterday, I dug some plants out of the old herb garden, mostly lavenders and one columbine that I particularly liked. The husband now has free rein to go in there and tear things up. I also swept out the old garage and made a space for the 1541.

All 64 blocks for the quilt are done. After lunch, I organized them into groups of four and started sewing huge four-patch blocks together. I’ve done 8 of 16 so far. I’ll have to get a backing for the quilt—probably a wideback so I don’t have to mess with piecing one—and I’ve started thinking about how I want to quilt it. This top might be a good candidate for the Amanda Murphy Baptist Fan ruler set. I want a certain density to the stitching but I don’t want the quilt to stand up by itself.

Around 2:30 pm, the freight company truck pulled into the driveway and the driver unloaded my machine:

We still have a bit of work to do before I can sew on it. After dinner, I got as far as taking off the shrink wrap and putting casters on two of the table legs. The store I purchased from has some great YouTube videos on putting the machine together. The oil pan has to be attached to the table and a few other pieces have to be assembled. I could do it, but it will go faster with the husband helping.

I got an e-mail yesterday that Sew Expo has opened submissions for class proposals for next year’s event. Proposals have to be submitted before September 15, 2023. I’m going to make a list of at least half a dozen classes I could teach and start working on those. I will concentrate mostly on knitting classes. For all that I haven’t knitted much in the past 10 years, I’ve got a solid background in that area. (Yes, it’s called Sew Expo but they offer classes in other textile arts, too.) We’ll see. I might be able to come up with some sewing/serging classes.

[Tera, you have been warned. We’re going to Sew Expo again next March.]

It feels good to be settling into the summer routine—gardening in the morning and sewing in the afternoon.

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We lost a friend of ours on the fire department this week. Billy was always quick with a smile or a hug—the first time he saw me after my week-long vacation in the ICU, he said to me, “Hey, I came to see you in the hospital, do you remember?” and I laughed and said, “No, Billy, I was unconscious.” And he said, “Well, you look a lot better now than you did then.” (Our EMS friends were able to get into the ICU so several of them stopped by my room.) In addition to being a volunteer firefighter, Billy worked with Dream Adaptive, a local organization that provides recreation opportunities to people with disabilities. He was one of the kindest people I’ve ever met. I last saw him at the Auction in April when he sat and visited with Amanda and me for a bit in the equipment sale trailer. He will be missed.

I have another friend—one I only know from online, but she is also a special human being—who has just been diagnosed with leukemia. Her doctors want her to have an autologous stem cell transplant. The bone marrow harvest was scheduled for yesterday but then postponed. This poor woman has had a run of hideous bad luck not of her making, and this diagnosis was just the icing on the cake. I do wonder, sometimes, why the universe decides to throw certain people into the meat grinder. For fun? If you would, please spare a few moments and send good thoughts to Jenni.