Home AGAIN!!!

I'm home!! But not for long. I'm off to do a guild talk tonight and a workshop tomorrow, and then I'll be home for a couple of weeks. While all the travel is "exciting," it's not! I have much that I want to get accomplished here. But all is good!

Here are a couple of pictures to catch up on. That Murphy!! She knows exactly where to lay down so I won't miss her. I was about to go on a Zoom call the other day, and my computer stand was on that table in the middle. So she plunks herself right where I would put my chair! 

MOM -- I NEED you to see me!!!!

And then, when I was done at the computer, she plunked herself right in the path between the tables so I wouldn't miss her. 

MOM --- can you see me??? 

Hopefully, now that the little guy is gone, she and Lexi can return to normal. 

I will admit that when I got home last night, the house seemed empty. He may be small, but his personality and attitude are BIG!!!

He's so funny. I slept on M's couch and was so tired that I never noticed that it wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep. The Little Guy sure knows he is home. He would NOT go on the pee pad, so I took him for a walk and found something to eat. Hmmm, his mom did NOT have his toys or his bed out!!! She had to dig it out of the closet! Poor guy --- where's the welcome mat? 

There are two elevators in the building, and he was standing at the door to one. But he heard the other elevator announce its arrival, and he scooted over there to get in! Yep—he might like the forest, but he's an urban boy at heart. 

Then, he began sniffing every square inch of that elevator floor to see what he had missed. 

Grandma -- my friends were here! 

The second he was outside, he did a quick business. Good boy for holding! His Mom will be so "happy" that he doesn't like pee pads! However, there's a pet-friendly area on one of the patios, so she doesn't even have to leave the building! He's a good boy!!! That dog is a people magnet, though!!! Everyone loves him and wants to pet him!

So Bear and I walked up to Tim's. And let's say there are a ton of dogs in the neighborhood. I don't live downtown, so I can't compare to here; Vancouver is a cool city and seems extremely open to cycling and other non-vehicular transportation. 

As we were walking, I spotted a guy coming down the street—and I mean DOWN the street (hill) —on a skateboard, with a backpack and a ceramic mug in his hand! Although he seemed to be putting on a show of almost falling off the skateboard, he was quite skilled! 

Walking in that area is certainly different than walking in the suburbs where I live, where NO ONE is on the street or barely!

We passed beautiful tulips that were already past their prime. 

Tulips are past their prime

Beautiful old heritage buildings are interspersed amongst the high-rises, and like everywhere, the amount of construction was insane!!!

Old heritage buildings with a high-rise behind

We walked down to Cole Harbor and sat in the sun briefly as I sipped my tea. That huge yacht belongs to Jimmy Pattison, one of Canada's richest people. 

Cole Harbor

You can't really see them, but there are the mountains north of Vancouver! 

Our morning view

Then we walked back to the apartment, and Bear proceeded to snuggle up on the sofa with me for the morning while M and I visited. What a cutie, and I will miss him. WAIT a minute—HIGH MAINTENANCE. Murphy will be jumping up and down because she gets to go for a walk first! 

Exhausted after his trip!

As I prepared to leave, the little guy jumped in his carrier. WAIT -- you would think he had enough of the carrier the previous day! But I gave him a couple of big hugs, and then I was gone. 

Grandma - can I come too?

I walked back to the train station and didn't take any wrong turns. I got my ticket, which cost half of what the ticket the day before cost. Time of day is a huge factor in all these ticket prices. 

Got my train ticket

Then, I took the SkyTrain back to the airport. Doesn't this remind you of a roller coaster ride? Thankfully, it was a gentle ride. 

The Sky Train back to the airport

I made a couple of rookie mistakes as I approached the security desk. Few people are around when you enter the security area from the train, and it's very convenient. As I walked towards the desk, I was on my phone texting DH about something at home and even stopped to finish the test. That was a RED FLAG, and the lady even asked why I stopped. So I explained everything to her as she swabbed EVERYTHING I had. 

Then, my small backpack was flagged as it went through the scanner. OH GOD -- I forgot I had a half-full water bottle in there. DUH!!!! I never do that. And when I went through the X-ray, I got the big one. 

Yep -- next time, PAY ATTENTION and do NOT draw attention to yourself like that. Totally rookie mistakes!!! But I had loads of time, and no harm was done. 

The wait was uneventful, and the plane was on time. I was close to getting an upgrade, but there are too many people with 50K status ahead of me and my 35K, so it's unlikely I'll ever be able to use those points, but you never know. DH says I need to buy a more expensive ticket to get further up the line. Seriously? Would I pay more money to potentially get upgraded? That's one of the reasons we don't vacation together. I'm happy in a tent, and he needs 5 stars! 

I was happy in the economy seats - the flight is only 4 1/2 hours, so it's no big deal. EXCEPT -- on the way out and the way back, the persons sitting behind me had a very annoying habit. They must empty their packs into the back of their seat pocket. Then they proceed to spend the entire flight digging in the seat pocket, which, of course, I can feel every time because the padding in that area is not great. I swear they are touching my butt the entire flight! 

But I survived! On the way home, I snagged a window seat and got a great view of the airport, which is ENTIRELY built on an island. 

Vancouver Airport is on an island

And there are the mountains! I hadn't seen them from the air in a long time, and they were as majestic as ever! 

The Rockies

It's great traveling light, and I was much lighter than usual, with only my backpack. If I didn't have to check my luggage, I'd never check my luggage again. What a hassle to check it in and then retrieve it, carry it, and take care of it. Nope—I'll go as light as I can. However, there will be times when I'll have to, and I'll just deal with it then. 

DH came to pick me up, and I swear the people coming to pick people up are as silly as ever. Why arrive at the curb if your party isn't there? The congestion was horrific, but I hopped in the car, and we were gone in seconds! 

The girls (no boy) were thrilled to see me. And they will be even happier this morning (and so will I) because the walk will be much shorter, so they can get fed earlier! We love you BEAR, but you are high maintenance!!!

Mom's HOME!!!! 

Of course, Lexi wanted out late at night, but that's not happening! She wouldn't come in, or if she did, it would be in the middle of the night. OK, so these girls are also high maintenance, but now there are only two!

I did not go to the gym this morning. I thought about it and then said no! I had some work that needed to be done this morning, and I think I'm good. I have LOADS of emails to respond to, so if you're waiting for an email from me, be patient. I hope to get most of it done this morning. Then I have to pack for the lecture tonight and the workshop tomorrow. 

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!

Bear's travel day

Oh dear—I see people are in this folder, which only has pictures. I'm in another time zone and should have gotten myself organized and written about it. I'm tired today, as yesterday was a long day. 

Thanks for the tips on the tech stuff. The SENT folder is the next one to investigate, as there are all those big files I've sent over the years. What I do not understand is that even after deleting many emails and attachments, the file size has increased, NOT decreased. What the heck is going on? Well, I hope to get to the bottom of that. 

And NO—I didn't have a chance to watch all the videos on the Gordie Howe International Bridge, and I missed the one on dogs and birds of prey. I shall go in and check that out. I find all this stuff fascinating. I know there are shows on TV or streaming services about "How did they do that?" or whatever, and I really do not need to find them since I'd spend all my time watching them. 

So yesterday was an adventure. Little Bear and I were off to the airport. I'll tell you part of that story, but first, here are some photos of Little Bear on his last day at our house. Remember -- the little guy is HIGH MAINTENANCE!!!

He went for a walk in the forest. He's gotten very used to the forest and loves to sniff every leaf and tree. Now that he's back in his urban environment, he sniffed every tree, lamp post, and blade of grass on our walk from the train to the apartment. 

I LOVE the forest

When he was dropped off back in January, his mom thought he needed a lot of stuff, but we didn't need much of it. He needed his sweater and one coat, and that was about it. He's a big boy and survived just fine at our house without all the extra stuff. 

I told him to pack up all his stuff, and he just looked at me. Fortunately, I was able to pack it all in my office backpack. 

MOM brought a lot of stuff for me!

Murphy will miss the little guy if for no other reason than she was the one who thoroughly licked his plate clean! Oh, Murphy!!! 

Murphy cleaning Bear's plate

Then we had some fun trying to get some pictures. That was not going to happen with Lexi, but Murphy, Bear, and I had fun at the dinner table as we tried to get a group shot. I was trying to stay out of the shot! It was not easy with those two. 

Murphy: I LOVE the little guy!

Oh, what fun times we had

Bear was able to explore the backyard one more time. He was so hesitant about it the first time he came to our house, and each time, he got braver. He loved it and often spent time climbing on the rocks. With the scare of the hawk, we never left him unattended in the backyard. Either one of the girls was out there to babysit him, but even then, I watched him all the time. Yes, HIGH MAINTENANCE is the way to describe Bear. We haven't seen the hawks in our backyard, but I can see them flying in the forest, so they are always around. 

Exploring the backyard

His favorite spot in the house was the bed in the front window. Thankfully, he learned how to climb up and down the stairs, so he was pretty independent. Otherwise - it would have been a nightmare! But he would spend hours up there watching the world go by. Now, the only thing he can watch out the window in his apartment are the birds. He could look at the mountains, but they don't move, so what's the fun of that? 

Checking out the neighborhood and sitting in the sun

And while it looks like he's adoringly looking up at DH, he just wanted food!! That little devil!!!

Where's the food?

Anyway, we were off to the airport yesterday morning. As I walked into the airport, I heard my phone ding, and I looked at it and CRAP -- the flight was delayed by 3 1/2 hours due to maintenance. What exactly does that mean? Well, it means my flight is delayed by 3 1/2 hours, and I have Bear with me. We checked in and through security, and my backpack got flagged. Oh -- that's his hairbrush!! 

I got a Tim's and a cookie and was going to find a spot to sit when I remembered that I had a lounge pass. This is the perfect time to have a lounge pass, so we walked there, and yes, we got access. We found a comfy chair to sit down, and I let him out of his carrier. He was pretty excited about that, and no one said a word. They frown on dogs being out of their carrier in the main terminal. He was NOT allowed to run around but stayed in the chair with me or was on his leash. 

I had something to eat. Bear got a few snacks, and everything was good. 

Then we got a notification that the flight was further delayed by one hour. Good grief!!! Finally, I wandered down to the gate because we had to stop by the pet relief area. At first, he was like, "What the heck is this?" Then he did his business, and we were off to the gate, where the flight was further delayed by half an hour. 

I was wiped by now. How can it be so exhausting to wait when I can do so much in a day and not be tired? 

It was a huge plane, and we were in row 55, which wasn't even the back of the plane. I was asleep before the plane started to taxi. It was almost 2:30 when we were waiting to take off on the runway. We should have been in Vancouver by the time we took off. I'm on a quick turnaround, which was a large part of my visiting time. Sigh...............

But all was good—I had an ebook, watched a movie, and slept. Bear was very good for the entire flight and mostly slept. Around 5 PM EST, I gave him the remainder of the snacks, and he went back to sleep. It took forever to get off the plane just because of the sheer number of people. 

Then we had to find the pet relief area—we had no idea where it was, so we went outside, and he did his business. Then, we took the Skytrain to get into Vancouver. The train was easy and super cool, and soon, we were off the train and walking to the apartment. Although Bear was very whiney on the train. He was tired of being in his carrier and probably hungry. I can't blame him!

OK -- so I might be good with the GPS in the car, but I SUCK at it when I'm walking. And after TWO false starts, I got in the right direction. Why is that? I had the same problem in Spain last year. I am just not good at it. 

But we finally arrived at the apartment after Bear slowly sniffed his way home. I don't know who was happier to see each other!! But they are reunited again! And I can leave knowing that he is in good hands. 

I have more to say about the day, but it's time to edit this rough draft and then get on with the day because I'll walk back to the train (much faster and lighter) and get ready to catch my flight home. Which hopefully will not be late. If it's late -- that's going to be a nightmare! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Green Tea and Sweet Beans is DONE!!

I am dangerous around a computer. I know enough to get around and potentially get into trouble, yet not enough to solve problems. 

My computer has gotten sluggish again, and yes, when I checked, my email had grown to 106 GB from 104 GB, and I'm down to less than 45 GB free on the C drive. How is this happening? 

On top of that, when I went to download a document the other day, it did silly things to my setup. It was not a virus, but it installed a different web browser, and I was struggling to do any searches as Google just wasn't doing what it was supposed to do. 

So last night, against my "will," I decided to tackle the issue. I deleted ALL the other web browsers off my computer. I only use one. Hopefully, the others will never reappear. I played around with a few other settings and decided to tackle the email issue. By the way, the computer is much more responsive this morning, and I now have the REAL Google web browser, and it's back to its fast self. 

What happened? I've no idea, but all is better. And, of course, Google being Google, that change that happened the other day was reflected across my devices, which I didn't want. 

It drives me crazy if I don't understand something, so I went onto Google to do some research. There is a folder in my email called IMPORTANT. It seems to contain every email I've received since the beginning of time. What exactly is this? And why do I need it? 

Granted, I have accessed emails from that folder that I needed because I deleted them or couldn't find them in my other folders. But I don't think I need that anymore, so I checked online to see what it is. It appears that Gmail will predict what messages are deemed important based on your habits. I don't think that was happening; it literally put every message in there, so the important folder is HUGE. 

What I need to do is be brave and EMPTY that folder. And that is what I'm doing. ACK!!!!!! But even if I deleted the message in my inbox, it wouldn't delete from this IMPORTANT folder. 

I tried two other things first. There's a setting in the web version of Gmail that you can turn off to prevent emails from going into that folder. That's important because it will stop the flow of emails into that folder. I checked this morning, and the few emails that came in since I switched the notification did NOT flow into the important folder. YEAH—we're on the right path. 

Then, last night, I tried some other function to get rid of duplicate emails. Well, a lot of what's in that folder was already deleted from the main inbox, so it's not duplication. 

The IMPORTANT folder

There were many more emails than 5744 in there, and I think that number only reflects the ones that were unread. I'm not sure about that. 

As it started that task, it started moving duplicate emails into the trash, but stopped at 262. That can't be right. 

Reducing redundancy

Oh that task was called "cleaning up important," and while it was important, it wasn't what needed to be done. 

Trying to clean up the emails

Seriously??? I just checked my computer storage, and nothing changed! However, I believe one other step needs to be done to remove files from the computer. I checked the Recycle Bin, and it's empty. But there's another place, and for the life of me this morning, I can't remember. And I might need to reboot my computer to make any changes. But even after deleting all those messages, the space used by my email is still 106 GB. SIGH...

OK—if you are a tech nerd like me and want to see how that darn Gordie Howe International Bridge is being put together, you should go to the videos on this page. It's absolutely fascinating. They talk about the bridge deck completion and how much care is being taken to ensure the two ends meet. Check out the video called "Closing in on Bridge Deck Construction." 

The lead engineer walks through the process, and what they are doing is amazing!!! 

We had our show and tell yesterday, so now I can show you what I completed. I'm supposed to be working on a different quilt, but that just isn't happening. But I managed to get the top of my Green Beans and Sweet Tea quilt done!! 

Green Tea and Sweet Beans quilt top is DONE

I did not like the original border on the quilt as I felt it was too wimpy. 

The original

I took the motifs from the border (oval flower with a center and the leaf) and brought them into mySewnet embroidery software, which I then digitized as machine embroidery applique. 

The vine was stitched down in sewing mode. The shapes were precut! 

Then, after 32 hoopings, the quilt top was complete! It took some time, and what a learning curve—I am thrilled with the process. 

But I almost ruined the entire top last night. It was sitting on a stool beside the cutting table, and I came trotting downstairs with a HOT CHOCOLATE. Yep -- it started to slosh, and as I neared the cutting table, I realized the danger, and I managed to avoid the top - almost. 

ACK!!!!

Good grief—how did that happen? A quick trip to the sink to give it a rinse, and all is good! Phew!!!

Now, I need to make the binding and backing and move it to the "to be quilted" pile. That pile is getting a bit on the unruly side—I must start tackling it!

While I have loads of stuff to prepare, I needed some downtime, and I needed time to unpack all the stuff I had used last week and put it back. 

Cleaning up the mess from last week

I emptied bag by bag on the cutting table and slowly worked my way through to ensure all the bits for each accessory were back in the correct box. The finished samples went in one spot, and the unfinished samples went in another. Most everything is back in place! 

This is good because I need to repack those suitcases for later this week when I'm doing a guild talk (modern quilts) and a workshop (curved pieced) at the Georgian Bay Quilt Guild. 

I received this as a gift the other day. It was very thoughtful of the giver and notice it's in my favorite color! It's a notebook cover and there's a small notebook on the inside which is perfect for taking notes and making lists!!!

A notebook

I also received this as a gift. It's a multi-connection gadget for charging devices with various connectors. This is perfect and it's also what I happened to use the other day to charge my phone. The PERFECT thing to carry along with a block! I LOVE it! I think there are four different connectors on it and all in one place! 

A multi-connection device

When I was fabric shopping the other day, I spotted these needles. You'll remember that I purchased a set a while back, but one of the needles was missing. So I bought the full set. 

Darning needles

The big question of the day is what the heck did I do with the other set? I wanted to put the two of them together and I can't find it. I suspect it's with my other bodkins which are upstairs and I must check that to see that everything is in the right place because what's the sense of having homes, if you can't remember where they are? 

I have to chuckle at myself sometimes. I seem to go from one small calamity to another! Whether it's tech related or mssing items, there's always something that seems to go awry in my world. 

Well, I'm off on another adventure today. While adventures are fun, they sure eat into your sewing time!

Have a super day!!

Ciao!!!

Monster mash

Someone mentioned that the navigation system works well because it uses Android Car Play. YES --- that is exactly the reason. My other car was a 2019 model, and it only had Apple Car Play, which was useless to me. The system that Toyota devised for navigation was also useless, and in five years, I think I was able to connect it twice. 

The whole process now is seamless. And we have two drivers—who knows what DH does when he's in the car! I do have to touch a few buttons after he's been driving by himself, but thanks to a blog reader (whose husband has the same car), I know how to make that happen. 

I can reply to texts, listen to audiobooks, and ask for directions. I LOVE ASKING for directions; typing in an address is unnecessary. That's OLD SCHOOL!

I would still like to know how speed traps, stop signs, construction zones, and many other things pop up. OH -- I found an article about speed traps. I haven't read it thoroughly, but check it out. And did you know that WAZE was also owned by Google? There is so much technology out there and ways to help us. How the heck does anyone keep up? Apparently, with the speed trap thing -- it's a feature you can turn on in Google Maps. OK -- I'll check that out later. 

So yes, Android Car Play is the way to go (or Apple if that is your choice of device). Car companies should just give up on their proprietary navigation systems. 

I was a bit disappointed when I left the hotel in the morning. There I was, right along the river edge, and I didn't take advantage of it for a walk. I was tired, and sleeping or resting in bed was more important. Imagine that! 

There are several huge Canadian flags along the riverfront. Hmm—surprisingly, I didn't see any huge American ones on the other side. The way the wind was blowing, it was the perfect opportunity for someone to video the flag flapping in the wind. Those two white dots? They are NOT UFOs; they are reflections on the window, as I was inside the hotel when I took the picture. 

Oh, Canada!

A new bridge is under construction—the Gordie Howe International Bridge. There has been a lot of progress since the last time I was in Windsor. I see the bridge has celebrated its 2000th day of construction. 

It's quite an engineering feat as they have started construction on both sides of the river. YES --- that means everything better be EXACTLY right, or the two edges will NOT join in the middle. I didn't have time to stop and take pictures, but it's pretty cool to see both ends suspended in midair!!! Let's hope no one made a slight calculation error on the day when the sides meet. How the heck do they make stuff like that happen? How do they build something so huge and permanent that both sides will meet up? And the quilters amongst us are worried about a point being off! We might be fired from the job!

I don't know when the two sides will meet, but they are close. That means it's probably another year! 

But it was another busy and long day. I managed to find a connection where I could charge my phone, so that was good. 

Here are the monsters that the group made. It's hilarious to see what the finished project looks like. And those faces!!!!!

The monsters!!!

Then, it was time to pack up and head home. I never look forward to a long drive. The humming of the car just puts me to sleep. On the way down, I needed to stop for 15 minutes about one hour into the drive. I was about 1 hour from home when I needed to pull over. I literally take a 15-minute nap. Yep -- deep into sleep, the whole bit. I set my alarm; otherwise, I'd still be sleeping. But it's a 3 1/2 hour drive, and if you're not used to driving? Well, it's better to pull over and nap than have an accident. I've tried audiobooks, snacks, and something to drink, but I often need to stop for a nap. Let's just say that driving a truck for a living is NOT in the career path. 

When I left Windsor, traffic was light, but the closer you get to Toronto, the more traffic. But all was good, and I had no issues. 

The girls and the boy? They were beyond excited when I got home. Girls and boy, I've only been gone for ONE NIGHT!!! You would think I had been gone forever. Who was the worst of the lot? It was a tie between Murphy and Bear. Lexi said hello and stuck around but left to do her own thing. 

Little Bear has limited time with us now. REMEMBER -- he is HIGH MAINTENANCE!! And how much time you will regain once he is gone!! YES -- HIGH - maintenance. I'm still going to miss the little guy!!!

I don't think I ever got a nice picture of the three together. It's hard enough to get my two to sit, let alone all three. 

I managed this picture last night. 

Mom's home -- wait -- squirrel in the backyard! 

They are all in the picture, but they are not looking at the camera and are not even close to each other!

My apologies to anyone who has sent emails; I completely ignored them these last two days. I have UFO Club this morning, and everything is ready to go. 

It will be challenging to stay on top of email this coming week, so I'll try this afternoon to tackle some of it! I did a fair bit this morning. 

And on that note, I'm out of here! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

A road trip

I'm going back to QUILTsocial for a minute. In addition to searching for articles about the machine, the links at the top provide free projects, tutorials, etc. 

However, you can also search. The search button is on the extreme right at the top, and you can type in topics. Let's say you want to know about blog posts I've written on piping. Search for piping and add my name, Elaine Theriault, and posts will come up! 

The amount of information in those posts will blow you away. I would love to have a website that cross-references my blog posts. Wouldn't that be super handy? I have several handouts that I've compiled on some of the topics—so there's one for all the posts on binding quilts, one for machine quilting, etc. 

I'm in the process of compiling a couple more - one on accessories, and I think I may have already done a list on machine embroidery. 

At this point, I can't remember!!! Again, if I were smart, I would put those compiled lists on my blog at the top under one of the tabs. I'll see what I can do about that. Once I have that done, I'll let you know that it's there. But in the meantime, you can search QUILTsocial for information. 

That's one of the issues with the internet - it's too big!!! And everyone wants to share their version of everything with you. As I learned yesterday (well, I already knew it), just because you can share information on the internet DOES NOT make it the correct information. 

Someone may have an entirely different slant on a product or technique. If they don't like the technique or product, they won't give it a good (and sometimes fair) review. However, the next person might rave about that technique or product, and the review will be quite different. 

That's why you should NEVER look at only one resource. Look at different ones to see what possibilities exist and what different viewpoints there are. Then, most importantly, you need to do your samples and make your own opinion about that technique or product!!

Yesterday, in the pouring rain, I had to drive down to Windsor. Thankfully, the traffic behaved itself and wasn't too heavy, so that was good. About halfway down, the skies lightened, and then the sun came out, and the day ended beautifully. 

It was a very long day with the drive and then two 3-hour lectures, so I was happy when we finished at 9 PM. By the time I got into bed, it was 10 PM, and let's say that I was glad to "sleep in" this morning. I was going to go for a walk, but I was too lazy to get out of bed. I'm back at the store this morning for a hands-on event - we're making more monsters!!!

I need a shower, something to eat, and get my butt on the road. This is my view from the hotel room, and NO, I'm not in Detroit, but it's right across the river on the other side of the hotel. 

The view from my room

That would be beautiful with the bridges and the skyline, but I'm assuming that would have cost a lot more, so I got the Windsor city view!!!

I only have that one photo to share for several reasons. I forgot to bring my phone charger, so I'm hoping someone at the store today will have one. I could have gone downstairs and asked at the desk, as this is the one thing many people leave behind, but I was too tired to go back down once I realized. I can charge the phone in the car on the way home. 

Speaking of the car, I LOVE the navigation system, the screen, or Android Car Play—whatever you want to call it. I listened to my audiobook, which was right there on the screen, so it was easy to manipulate the controls. My map was always on the screen, which is handy even if you know where you are going. 

You can see the distance, expected arrival time, traffic, etc. I just love it. I don't understand how it knows that there is a speed trap ahead, and exactly where it said there was one, there was a car. At one point, I was told there was a stalled car on the road, and yes, there it was, although it was a truck. So how does it know that? If people put that information in, how are they doing that while driving? 

The two events yesterday were a complete success!!! I just threw tons of samples in the car because I could—big quilts that I can't travel with, little quilts, samples of techniques and tools, and so much more. In a way, it was a bad thing because, as a teacher, I want to share my information, and while I've done great things on Zoom, perhaps I should be doing some teaching in person? In the machine embroidery world? I need to take some time and contemplate what is happening in the fall and then go from there!

I also have some live Facebook events coming up in the next six weeks, so I'll be madly prepping for them. 

There is so much to do and so little time, but I wouldn't have it any other way!!!!

Have a great day

Ciao!!!

Bear gets a haircut!

Oh, what a tangled web I weave in the technology world. Yesterday, I attempted to download some documents, and somehow, I downloaded another web browser, and then BitDefender got in the way. So I managed to delete the web browser, and I thought I had solved the BitDefender issue, but apparently not. I'll deal with that later. In the meantime, things work, just different from how they used to!

I've alerted the website that caused the issue, and hopefully, they can fix it!

I had a reasonably productive day, but I'm not ready to share it with you, so you must wait! I have other stuff to share! 

As you know, DH and I have gotten hooked on these EXIT Games. We've been working on the Advent Calendars from past years, of which I think there are three. We've solved two of them and are now working on the third. 

We are trying to solve one a day, but only when we're both home for dinner. At the rate we're going, we might finish it in time to start the 2024 Advent Calendar on December 1. 

We started this one on April 1 and are on day 8! That's sad, considering it's the 19th today!

While the game is rated BEGINNER, I still think we're pretty clever for figuring out the puzzles without looking at the clues. We looked at one clue AFTER we solved the puzzle because we didn't understand the logic. Nothing is random, and we just missed the logic. I don't consider that "cheating." Instead, that's learning! 

Here are some of the clues so you can appreciate the "skills" involved. This one involved a bell, a list of Christmas carols (three of which I had never heard of), three rows of bells and dashes, and some kind of code in the box for that day. We did not get this one the first day. 

A clue to the EXIT Game

Sometimes, by the time we get to the puzzle, it's late, and my brain is tired. So the next day, while having lunch, I worked it out! Oh -- it's so easy when you know what you're doing. I think I was thinking about the clues when out walking the dogs. 

The next day, this is what the clues looked like. It involved cutting out all those clues and "pinning" them to the memo board. Then, with three additional pieces of information in the box for the day, that was enough to solve the code. Each day, we're looking for a three-digit code. Again, on the first try, my brain just wasn't functioning. But while I had lunch, I worked it out. 

An EXIT Game clue

The next day, all we had for clues was a riddle on two cards. And we managed to solve that one last night! 

Another clue

Because of our travel schedules, I'm not sure how much we'll get done in the next month, but when we're together for dinner, we'll give the next clue a whirl. 

So, with the new car and navigation system, previous trips pop up. I know it checks out your Google calendar, and for some reason, these SEWING stores popped up the other day. I was going to a quilt store, but none of these!!!

We picked up the car at the end of November and just crossed the 4,000 KM threshold. There is no need for us to have two cars! 

Little Bear looked scruffy, and it was time to head to the groomer. He did not want me to leave him there, but look at him! What a mess! His mother was a bit appalled at his condition! He looked like the Shaggy Dog!

Grandma -- I'm FINE

When I picked him up, he looked like a brand-new dog! He was pretty happy to see me! Now, if he could just stay somewhat clean before he goes home. 

Grandma -- I'm clean, but NOT happy

He even got a little bandana with his name on it! How cute!!! Of course, Lexi and Murphy were all over him when he got in the house. Demanding to know where he had been and why he smelled of other dogs on him. Everyone settled down quickly, and the house was back to normal if there could be a normal situation with three dogs. 

My new bandana!!!

Oh my gosh- he is adorable, and I have to say that we've bonded, so it's going to be equally difficult for him to give up. I keep reminding myself that he is HIGH-MAINTENANCE and how much I will get done daily without him! Yes -- I'll gain at least an hour! He's a very slow walker!

Just look at that sass and attitude as he walked all over my vinyl that I'm waiting to cut! 

Mr. Tough Guy

I was buzzing around getting things organized last night, and I needed something in the bobbin drawer. YES -- how can one have so many bobbin-related things? There are many pre-wound bobbins in that drawer, bobbins for sewing, bobbin thread to wind my own bobbins for embroidery, and, well, there's just a lot of bobbin stuff! 

The bobbin drawer

I have everything packed and ready to put in the car this morning. I should have gotten a third suitcase out, but I packed the stuff into bags instead, and it'll be fine! I'm going to need to make minis of some of these quilts. I'm driving to my events in Windsor (Thimble Quilts and Sewing), but if I were flying? That would be a whole different story! 

Ready to pack the car,

Last night, I searched my quilt tops for a particular quilt. I couldn't find it. Then, when I was about to go to sleep, I remembered that the quilt was quilted, so it was in a different pile. As a matter of fact, that quilt was about three feet from where I was sleeping! It's now packed!

On that note, I'm out of here!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Reflections on QUILTsocial

I had a super fun day yesterday at Sew Productive. We made MONSTERS, which you'll see in a moment. 

I presented a couple of lectures on Husqvarna Viking accessories. I will give one more on Friday and a lecture on quilting at Thimble Quilts and Sewing in Lasalle, Ontario. 

I have written so much about Husqvarna Viking sewing and embroidery machines and almost all the accessories, and you have access to all that information. 

Where do you find it? Well, on QUILTsocial.com, of course. 

So here's the deal: I can't provide links to all the posts. But here are a couple of them and where you can find some of the other information.  

I started writing in June 2014, using the Husqvarna Viking H | Class 100Q. Here's the VERY FIRST blog post from QUILTsocial on June 2, 2014. 

Oh, what we didn't know when Carla asked me to write blog posts for her! And how the blog and I have evolved over the years. If my counting skills are on track this morning, I've reviewed 24 different HV machines. I've reviewed sergers, sewing machines, embroidery machines, and sit-down quilting machines. The machines have ranged from the basic machines like the H | Class 100Q to the top-of-the-line machines as they have been introduced! 

Not only have I chatted about the machines and their amazing capabilities, but I've also used many accessories in my blog posts and provided numerous tutorials. 

I can't even remember the frequency at the beginning, but I'm currently writing one set of 5 blog posts every two months, for a total of 30 blog posts per year. So let's take 9 full years at 30 posts per year - that's 270 blog posts. Then add in the ten I've already done this year, plus the ones from 2014, and some years, I wrote posts in back-to-back months, so I'm safe to say that I've written over 300 blog posts for QUILTsocial!!

Wow --- that's a wealth of information. It's like taking a brain dump and handing it off to you! And I must confess that I love to put in lots of pictures, and my posts are wordy! I hope they are not too wordy! 

All of the information is still valid today! How do you access the posts? Go to QUILTsocial.com and find this menu bar. 

Click on the MACHINES tab, and you'll find a list of all the Husqvarna Viking machines that I've reviewed. You'll also find a list of PFAFF machines that have been reviewed by other people (OH—I think I did the reviews on the sit-down quilter for PFAFF as well), and you'll find some machines by Brother. 

So, if you have a Husqvarna Viking serger, sewing or embroidery machine, or the sit-down quilter, click on the machine, and that'll take you to a list of five posts published in the same week. Sometimes, I've done multiple weeks on the same machine, so check out the "load more posts" at the bottom. Clicking on each post will bring it up, and the posts for that week should be linked to each other at the bottom. Monday will link to Tuesday, etc. However, the separate weeks do not link to each other if they involve the same machine. 

If you find that some posts within a specific week are not linked to each other, let me know, and I'll pass the information along. 

There are also tutorials written by myself and the other bloggers. Here are a couple of my tutorials for making quick gifts. You should never have to purchase a pattern for these essential projects, and you can embellish them however you wish! 

 Journal cover tutorial (follow the links at the bottom of that post to follow posts on more journal cover ideas)

Cushion Cover Tutorial (Part 1)

Cushion cover tutorial (Part 2)

Project Bag Tutorial (Part 1) Follow the links at the bottom to move to the next steps.

Tote Bag Tutorial  (I wrote this one when I was vacationing in PEI for a month in 2015!)

I tend to provide a lot of technical how-to rather than tutorials, so I'm sure I have more tutorials, but those four come to mind. 

Here's some of the technical stuff I write about. 

What's the perfect stitch length, and why? You would be surprised at how many people don't know this. Check the date on this! 

OH MY GOSH  --- You'll love the first picture in this post, which also reviews applique. I was sewing in the gazebo!!!! Oh my --- those ground cover bushes over the pond have grown significantly because the orange frog is still there, but he is now hidden, and I thought the other day about moving him. I'll get a picture today so you can see the difference.

And YES ---I harped about reading the User's Guide even way back then!

In the summer of 2015, I wrote a series of fun posts on what to do while on summer vacation. Here's the first of those! They were all quilt-related, and the pictures came from various trips that summer! 

Oh my --- I just led you down a rabbit hole, and I'm sorry! OK—I'm not! I definitely will go back and reread that series—the posts are short! It was so much fun! 

WAIT -- before I go, here's the picture of the monsters created yesterday. 

The monsters!

The ladies in the class had a blast making them, and part of the fun was choosing their eyes, nose, body shape, and mouth! There were loads of giggles, but it gave them an excellent opportunity to test out the Husqvarna Viking Designer Ruby 90 and the Husqvarna Viking Designer Sapphire 85. So thanks to you all for hosting and attending! And if you want to find out more about either of those two machines, you can simply click on the links, and it'll take you to some QUILTsocial posts I wrote. You can also contact your local Husqvarna Viking Dealer for more information. 

Well, that was a fun trip down memory lane and not what I intended to write about. Sometimes, my hands do not follow what my head says, but it was fun!

I would love a way to capture all the posts I've written. They are too huge to compile into a book, but perhaps I could come up with the best of them? I don't know, but it's loads of fun to check out the older posts. The information in even the first week is still valuable, as you can see if you check out the one with the stitch length information!

On that note, I'm out of here!! I have a "free" day today, during which I can answer some emails, do some embroidery, do more writing, and prepare for the next two days!

If you like ANY of those posts on QUILTsocial, share them with your friends, put the links in guild newsletters, or copy them to your blogs or other social media venues. We need to spread the word about the information in QUILTsocial. It's a hidden gem! 

Have a super day!!

Ciao!!!