Gray & Dreary Day

Today was such a dark, dreary day. Heavy gray clouds that made it look like it could rain or snow any minute. It didn't, of course. We don't know what moisture is here in Nebraska anymore.  It was a really good day to just stay inside and work on quilts.

I've been working on the same two all year......Bonnie Hunter's Jamestown Landing and Orca Bay.  When you just work on units for so long it doesn't seem like you ever make much progress. Today I got these pressed.

 

These are the last small units I need to sew for Orca Bay. The next step is cutting some red, black & neutral squares and piecing blocks. 

Then I moved on to removing the paper from the back of these string-pieced units for the Jamestown Landing.

Once that's finished they can be sewn into pairs for the setting blocks. All the blue and neutral HSTs are finished and ready to sew into blocks.  Progress has been slow but soon there will be actual results.  

The brown handled tool laying on the mat is so handy for removing the paper from the blocks. Slip it in under the paper & loosen the paper from the seam then fold it back at the next seam & rip it off. Repeat, repeat and repeat some more.  I think the tool is from my ceramic making days way back in the mid-to-late 70s. It was used to scrape off the seams on the green-ware made by the molding process. Either that or it's the only surviving piece of an old manicure kit. It works great, that's all I care about.

Not that I was going to.......

Thanksgiving Wishes

Even though we had our family Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday evening I'll still fix a smaller Thanksgiving dinner just for the two of us. The pumpkin pie is already baked & I may just have a piece before bedtime.

I just got to thinking this afternoon that yesterday would have been my Mom's 98th birthday. And then I remembered that today is our anniversary...we won't even talk about how many years.  #2 granddaughter's 14th birthday was the 12th. It kind of feels to me that it got overlooked, but when they become teenagers that family birthday party just doesn't hold the same charm that it once did. I looked back through my pictures and #1 granddaughter's 14th birthday is the last one I have pictures of too.  They grow up too fast.

Daughter & #1 granddaughter are coming on Friday to work on a photo slide show for granddaughter's graduation.  I have the scanner & know-how. :)  So sometime tomorrow I suppose I'll have to do a little straightening up and housecleaning. I've been letting it slide & we wouldn't want them to think Grandma's a slob, now would we?!?

Hoarder???

I'm not there yet, but I do sometimes wonder how I will use it all up in my lifetime.

Fabric For Life

Nothing exciting going on here so I just want to ask if you've entered the "Fabric for Life" contest?  Enter here: http://ck.upickem.net/r/zWadc7FXJS?r=482528 
After all, who wouldn't want fabric for life?

And that about says it all.

Ahhh............

....it's over!!! Election 2012 is history. If I never got another political call or saw another campaign ad I would be a happy camper.

Yesterday was a LONG day. I'm one of the minimum-wage election workers who make it all happen. Before every election all of us make a trip to the county courthouse for election training. Before every election we're told how important we are, how they couldn't do it without us, etc. etc.  So what's up with the minimum wage?  Is that what all election workers all over the country get?  Or is our state/county just cheap?  I'm the messenger, so with the training, picking up the election materials and returning them to the courthouse, I rack up about 150 mi.  I'll have to figure it up to be sure, but I think I make more in mileage reimbursement than I do in wages.  However, on the bright side, now those political calls and ads will go away.  Now it will be the news media endlessly rehashing the whole thing.

So, yesterday I was gone all day and today I'm being a slug and/or catching up on things at home. Needless to say, I'm not getting any of  THIS done:

That was LAST Tues. & Wed.   Canned the chicken I got on sale a couple weeks ago, and all the good broth. It's a lot of work and takes a lot of time, but buying the little cans of chicken for like a $1.69 apiece when I want a chicken sandwich or some stir fry for my lunch is ridiculous.  I canned it in 1/2 pt. jars and each one has about as much meat as three of those little cans.  The amount of meat in the cans just keeps shrinking. Really, do the food processing companies think we're all stupid???