What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

OH MY --- someone mentioned in the comments about Mary Ellen's book -- "It's OK if you sit on my quilt." Indeed, there were NO quilt police for her! Mary Ellen was quite the spitfire - I heard that from the shop owner where I used to hang out. And definitely, there were no quilt police in Mary Ellen's life. It's a great book. All three of her books that I have (well, technically, now two) are amazing. The amount of detail, flexibility, and freedom she gives is refreshing. 

We need NEW books like that. Books that give you ...

Should I say "be careful what you wish for?" We went from winter to high summer overnight! Yesterday was a blistering hot day with lots of sun! What a change, and I think we have heat today and tomorrow, and then back to mid-teens! That's OK -- it's nice to walk around in shorts and sweat!

It was an interesting day, and for some reason, I decided it was important to spend time gardening, which was NOT on my to-do list. But that's OK. It's stuff that needed to be done. 

First, let me give you an ...

Let's start with the puzzle stores - actually, there are many sources of puzzles, but here are the main ones that I know of. 

Puzzles Canada - Georgetown. A warehouse of puzzles that is open to the public, and they sell MANY brands, sizes, and offer free shipping over a certain amount. You also get 10% back in reward points, which you can apply to any future purchase. They also sell The Occurrence puzzles, which are made in Merrickville, Ontario. HIGHLY recommend visiting the store or the website. Check the website for hours as they do NOT open until NOON. 

Puzzle ...

What an insane day yesterday was! I started the day with Brooke, and we focused on the upper body to avoid further knee issues. I took shorter and slower walks with the girls (they were NOT impressed), and Murphy hung around the front door for a good part of the day, hoping to go for another walk. Then it was off to the dentist. I did walk there, but not before icing the knee to keep things under control. It's not that far, and if I walk slowly, I'm OK. 

Can you believe I got a reasonably good ...

I'm so glad to hear that I am not alone in getting books. And Sharon mentioned something extremely important yesterday. So many books are no longer relevant because technology has changed, and the information in the books is so outdated that no one wants it. The only thing to do is to put it in the recycling bin. And that is hard. I have a few things around here that should go in the recycling bin, but I'm not there yet, either. 

However, I spent quite a bit of time in Studio B yesterday, and I learned a ...

I had several cat naps yesterday and slept in a bit this morning, so I think I'm all caught up and good to get back to serious business today! 

I don't know about you, but this Artemis 2 space mission is just amazing. I know it's over, but hearing all the back stories about the astronauts and what it took to get them there is incredible. It should also teach us, our children, and their children that if you want something, it doesn't come easily. Those four people are the most humble people I've seen ...

I received some shocking news yesterday while I was at the gym, and big changes are coming for me! OK -- I'm exaggerating, but for me, it will be a big change. I will not be like my parents -- I will embrace the change, although it's very upsetting. What happened? 

I learned that Joseph, the most amazing spin class instructor, was LET GO!!! No one seems to know why, and I don't have his contact information, but I'm going to try to find it so I can reach out to him. I'm also going to write ...

 Oh, Elle — yes — a 24-hour backup would be pretty nice about now. However, I am still able to access the data on the FATAL error hard drive, but it's sometimes slow going. I'm not sure, but it appears there are some corrupt cells on the hard disk, and if a file happens to be in one of those cells, it's not available. Other times, it just takes a long time to open. Well, I have time, but more importantly, I have patience. I will not be a victim of this again. Twice is enough!!

So yes --- if ...

Not to throw anyone into a panic, but there are a couple of things to mention. 

YES—there is a virtual retreat this weekend. I keep forgetting to mention it. The links will be at the end of today's post, much to Zoom's dismay. Posting links in a public place is a no-no in the security world.  

Second -- I'm almost finished reading The Brain At Rest, by Dr. Joseph Jebelli, PhD, and OH MY GOSH!!! Did you know how much exercise can make your brain bigger? And a bigger brain means that if you have a stroke ...

I love how we all have similar interests!!! And we have no end to the creativity and fun we have while doing those. I got a picture from Lynn, and she used the orange collage fabric in her butterfly quilt! It was probably used near the bottom in that orange bit? But maybe also on the border. 

Another use of the collage fabric

Either way --- it's a fun fabric, but I won't be searching for more. I have my fat quarter of orange, and that's good enough for me. 

As for doing puzzles on the computer -- that ...

It's 4:30 AM, and I see Brooke sent me a note last night (I was asleep) saying she is unwell. I'm up and dressed, so I'm going to the gym on my own this morning. Look at me - a gym geek!

Thanks to everyone who watched the presentation live yesterday! It means a lot to me for all your support and the feedback you gave. When I'm going to do something, I try to do it to the best of my ability. What's that quote? If you can't do it right the first ...

OH - I love the fact that puzzles helped calm someone down. I can see that. I find it extremely relaxing to sit and work on a jigsaw puzzle. I am going to try to always have one on the go since I have learned how to tackle my addiction to them. 

MOVE OVER MOM!!!! 

Hello everyone, this is Murphy and Lexi, and we have something to say. 

It's the girls -- Murphy and Lexi!!!

We love our Mom, and she is very good to us, although we do NOT get nearly as many treats as we need. We are starving ...

Wow -- it's the start of another week. While I'm thoroughly enjoying each and every day, it just seems that Monday comes along very quickly!

We have no snow left. We had two days of temperatures in the low teens, and you could almost see the snow melt. It was crazy because I was thinking it was going to take forever for all this snow to melt, and then poof — it was gone. I did more cleaning up in the backyard and hope to finish this afternoon. Then we need a nice, gentle rain to clean things up. But ...

Someone asked for a side-by-side comparison of the Visual To Do list --- January 1 and now. Let's wait until the end of this month, and then I'll share it with you! That list watches me, and I watch it!! A few things on the list are almost done and just waiting for a label or a phone call, so I'm going to wait to share them with you! But all is good!!!

Something extremely unusual happened yesterday, and it was absolutely wild and pure luck. A bag of items was on the Pony Express, and it was ...

Despite this newfound focus, it seems challenging to move ahead. WAIT --- I know that I'm getting things done, but the progress seems slow. I know it's not, when you consider how many hours I actually sew each day. I make the most of the time I spend in Studio B and call it a day. There is NO RUSH to get these things done!

Oh my gosh --- what am I complaining about - I still accomplished a LOT. The abbreviated "Dear Jen" is now quilted. I was hoping to get it trimmed, but that didn't happen. A job ...

THANK YOU -- I didn't get a chance to cut up those photos, but I will today! I needed that wee push — I shouldn't even have needed that, with all my newfound philosophy on decluttering and getting rid of things, but sometimes — you just need a push. 

It's Monday Sewing today, and I have a LOT of tidy-up jobs to do, which is perfect to do while chatting. I have quilts to trim and bind, photos to cut up, and I might even be able to remove several items from the Visual To Do list. 

BUT let's ...

I swear this winter is hanging on as long as it possibly can. We had a cool, but sunny day yesterday, and things were melting like mad. There is still some snow on the small pathway that leads to our backyard, and I was so tempted to help it melt by shoveling what's left, but I didn't. What will the neighbors think!!!!

And I spotted a house on the next street over that is the same house as ours, but with a metal roof. It faces the same direction as our house, although perhaps not quite the exact ...

Creative block!!! Where do I start this morning? 

Just kidding! All I need to do is write one word, and then the rest just follows. I have more to write about The Artist's Way, but I'm leaving that until tomorrow. 

Lots of things happened yesterday, and they were very exciting. Let's take a look. I recently went through my pending folder, which was exploding, and I did quite a bit of checking things off the list yesterday morning. So that was a positive way to get some paperwork done. There are a few more papers on the ...

I had a thought when I was out walking yesterday, and Tammy confirmed it with her comment. If you were a doctor and you wanted to help your patient, wouldn't it be great to see their sleep history? Or see their heart rate history? And other trends? 

I totally get that different brands track things differently. That was evident when I had the Galaxy Watch for a while, and I hated how it tracked steps slightly differently from the Fitbit. But it's all relative if you only look at your data! 

Speaking of data, I did NOT get ...

I'm not even sure where to start. I was downstairs this morning, playing the radio through my speaker, and all was fine. I came upstairs to send two emails and start the blog, and POOF!! NOTHING! The internet is dead. I then tried to open the app to see what the problem was. Yep -- you guessed it --- password issues. I swear that passwords are going to be the death of me! 

One day, you'll find me holding my phone in my hand with a big sign flashing - PASSWORD INCORRECT!!!! I can't stand the madness. So I reset ...