Paths That Cross

Walking Around Las Colinas

2012-02-01T06:47:00.000-06:00

Mallards

After driving to Dallas on an errand to drop off an old TV at the E-Waste Recycling Center, I delayed going home and drove through Irving and the area around Las Colinas. It's an interesting area. Las Colinas means "little hills" in Spanish, but I have yet to find the little hills. What you do find is an extensive planned community that started in the '80's and then developed over the years in fits and starts. A focal point was this man-made lake and canal around which corporate office towers, hotels, apartments and condos, and now a major convention center have sprung up.

I wanted to revisit the mustang sculpture at Williams Square but first took a walk around what I never knew before is called Lake Carolyn. It was the day after we got a much needed rainstorm that dumped 5" on our drought-stricken land. Sunny and one of those hopeful kind of days when I felt glad to be alive.

These are the three buildings that make up Williams Square from the lake side and across from where I had parked my car at the Hilton.

Williams Square

There it is off in the distance, the new Irving Convention Center. It's not in view, but farther off in the distance beyond the convention center is the giant corporate campus of Exxon Mobile.

Irving Convention Center

This was one of the first big glass towers built in Las Colinas. It's now called the Urban Tower, or something like that. Even though this is a very sterile, suburban environment. I was struck by how few people I saw on my walk around, at least any pedestrians.

Urban Tower

And, here are the Mustangs of Las Colinas. The sculptures were cast somewhere in Europe and then flown here for installation. There's a small museum inside one of the buildings with lots of photos and information about this great, well in my opinion, example of public art.

I was happy to see that DART is building it's light rail tracks out into this area. Public transportation comes to the sprawling suburb after who knows how much expenditure. I fear it may be too little, way too late. While I was on my walk I was dredging up a lot of memories. Kimmel worked at Seville in Las Colinas for a couple years in the '80s and I had a contract job at Quaker State in a building near the canal during the '90s. What do they say, the past is prologue? I wonder what the future holds in store.

Going to Dallas

2012-01-14T23:13:00.000-06:00

I needed an adventure to shake off some of the post holiday winter doldrums. I couldn't have picked a better remedy than to head for the Dallas Art Museum for the an exhibit of this incomparable designer's works. Standing in line to enter the exhibit we noticed several groups of school kids also waiting to go in. We commented about it being a good thing the kids were at the museum and that maybe they would actually see some things to make them think. Well, I can tell you that I saw very many things in the Gaultier exhibit that made me think. And I'm still thinking about many of these things 24 hours later. How he described finding his inspiration, the sheer perfection of his work, his achievements at a young age, how he grew and changed as he aged. I just found a weblog review, with great photos inside the exhibit, and more comprehensive than anything I can put down here at Glassfire.

While the Gaultier exhibit was the feature of my day, my tour around the arts district in Dallas was very much fun. Here is a row of trees next to the Nasher Museum across the street from the DMA. They are groomed to look like Christmas trees but look close and see they are magnolia trees. I think the high rise going up is residential housing , but not sure.

I had to go out to my car parked on the street to feed the parking meter. While walking around I noticed the Belo Mansion. That's a relative term compared to some of the McMansions I see now in Colleyville/Southlake out in my neck of the woods in NE Tarrant county. Isn't this a nice juxtaposition of the rising high-rise next to the mansion? The Belo Mansion now houses the Dallas Bar Assn. I can only imagine the shit that goes down here.

And just a block or two away, is the Catedral Santuario de Guadalupe. The photo is of the cornerstone and I'm impressed about the age of the church. 1898 is relatively young by some standards, but by Texas standards I suppose it's old. Dallas itself was found only about 50 years earlier by settlers. If you discount the American Indians who were here first.

The bell tower was ringing twelve o'clock noon as I walked by. I approached the door and saw that they hold daily mass at that time. It was just getting under way.

I entered this church for the first time and took a seat more than midway towards the front of the santuario. I sat and listened as the mass progressed. I'm fascinated by images of Guadalupe that are so prevalent in old Texas churches. This is the cathedral of the Dallas Catholic diocese. To see the Guadalupe image behind the altar (rather than Jesus on the crucifix) is very different. I felt real sneaky taking a pic of Guadalupe and the priest as I sat there.

This rotunda building is across the street from the Cathedral. The high rise is a bank building but I'm not sure what the rotunda building is. One of my themes in my photos is seeing bare trees with no leaves.

Taken from the steps of the Belo Mansion. There's another church off in the distance. It's the First UMC of Dallas. I had gone there also. While waiting for the DMA to open it's doors, I walked over to this church to check it out. The sad saga of Walker Railey has been on our radar recently. He pastored this church back in the late 1980's. His wife had been brutally attacked and left to rot in a coma. The news was that she had died just a few weeks ago. Walker Railey was tried and acquitted of her assault, even though many people thought that he was indeed the perpetrator. At the time he was a rising star in this denomination

And that was his church in this middle of this photo, in front of the glass high rise buildings. See also the pointy pyramid building on the right. It's the IM Pei designed Fountain Place.

And outside the Dallas Art Museum is sculpture by Mark Di Suvero in front of a backdrop of trees with no leaves.

And again, that rising high rise that looks awesome.

Driving away from downtown this building being constructed across the freeway caught my eye. With that odd slanted big glass piece going across the building. I think it's a science museum. It's exciting to see so much construction going on in the arts district.

I'll have to do some further research into the Calatrava Bridge across the Trinity River over into west Dallas. Until then . . .

Christmas Letter

2011-12-14T16:05:00.000-06:00

Dearest Friends and Family,

Seasons Greetings! Another year is history and I’m looking forward to 2012 with both anticipation and trepidation. It will be a milestone year for me in two ways ~ my 60^th birthday on March 5 and our 25^th wedding anniversary on July 24. To commemorate the big Six-Oh I plan to walk the Breast Cancer 3-Day again, possibly in DFW but I may strike out to another fun city like Washington DC or San Diego. My motto is Sixty Miles for Sixty Years! We don’t know yet how we’ll commemorate 25 years of wedded bliss. It may be a fancy trip to another continent or a Texas style backyard barbecue. However, the latter is unlikely during the heat of summer. Maybe it will be the purchase of a big diamond ring for me, something we’ve never gotten around to all these years, but definitely long overdue!

We’re at what we hope is the end of our Aneurysm Year. Many of you know that Kim was diagnosed with a Triple A in October 2010. His treatment culminated with emergency surgery to repair the ruptured aorta on October 7, 2011. It was the fourth, and most invasive of vascular surgeries to treat his condition. He survived like the champ he is and we are truly grateful for the gift of life. He continues to recover at a rate all the doctors say is remarkable. He has returned to work at Bell Helicopter, where coincidentally, he observed his 20^th anniversary of employment this year. We both feel as if things are getting back to normal and we can start to experience our empty nest and what the future holds in store.

We shared in a lot of family good times this year, too. We were with Kim’s mother Doris in Champaign for her 80^th birthday party in March. We attended my stepson, Loren’s graduation from college in Amery Wisconsin in May. Our youngest, Matt graduated from high school in May and started college at the University of North Texas in August. Our oldest, Casey is thriving at work in Austin and a job with benefits, as he gains experience in the world of work and contemplates his next move. All four of us traveled to Cleveland for the annual Thanksgiving gathering at the Meehans. And, no less, we attended the Ohio State-Michigan football watching gala at the Ieros in Copley. Best of all we had quality time with my mom Eileen, age 93, our beloved matriarch.

I keep on quilting to stay sane. Although, some of you might say it’s kind of insane to cut up fabric and sew it back together again. Whatever, we wish you peace and happiness now and in the coming year!

Mary and Kimmel

IQF in Houston 2011

2011-11-10T12:36:00.000-06:00

From the window of my bus I snapped photo after photo of the Houston skyline, excited to be getting there. I embarked Wednesday morning with the Happy Johns tour group from Arlington and my friend Kay Scheffer for the 37th annual International Quilt Festival, the granddaddy of them all. I have mixed feelings about Houston. There's lots to love (architecture, IQF, museums, the gulf-coastiness of it) and not love (hot, humid, ugly freeways, gridlock, sprawl). My first plane trip ever was in '66 with my family to Port Arthur Texas. I think we took a flight from Columbus to Houston and then a puddle jumper to Port Arthur. Every time I drive around Houston I think of the Spaghetti Bowl. Back then, this is how the convergence of all the interstates and highways was described in downtown Houston by our guide.

We arrived at our hotel out on the southwest freeway with enough time to spare to eat dinner at the Olive Garden before we headed over to the George Brown convention center for Preview Night.

There was an excellent display of portrait quilts:


Jane Goodall


Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Gall, Crow King, Two Moon, Spotted Eagle

Boy and Dog in Autumn

Woman's Many Phases of Life

There were so many beautiful flowers and plant quilts:

Flowering Artichoke

Tree of Life

Lillies

Zinnias

Mexican Hats

Fused Broderie Perse

There were some cityscapes that were so interesting:

Copley Square in Boston - Mirror Image


Portland Oregon along the river

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-02T05:09:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-26T10:17:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-19T19:55:00.000-05:00

Coming Back To Life

2011-10-18T22:55:00.002-05:00

I need to post about what will be known as The Aneurysm Year. On October 6, my husband Kimmel's 58th birthday, I gifted him with the Pink Floyd box set of remastered CDs of all their albums. It was an exciting gift in the middle of a traumatic time. Kimmel had been hospitalized the week before with excruciating abdominal pains. After a week in the hospital and multiple tests to determine the cause of the pain, he was sent home. The doctors were stumped but all signs pointed to his existing abdominal aortic aneurysm. We were celebrating his birthday all the while holding out for a very crucial doctor appointment with his vascular surgeon the following day, hoping and praying to get an answer.

We drove to the professional building at Baylor All Saints in Fort Worth at 9:00 a.m. Kim, the sonogram technican, expressed her concern about K being in the doctor's office again, so soon. Only 3 weeks previously, when following up about his second, and what we thought final, embolization to fix the endoleaks, victory had been declared. We felt that K was cured and on to a healthier life with a stable and functional endovascular stent graft implanted inside his aorta to fix his aneurysm.

Even though his vascular surgeon had been consulted several times, it was unclear that the aneurysm was indeed causing his pain because it seemed as if all was well, as far as the Triple A was concerned. We thought it could have been kidney or gall bladder, diverticulitis, prostatitis, G/I or colon illness, etc. At times I even thought K was having a nervous breakdown due to all the stress of the last year dealing with his 4 surgeries. It seemed reasonable, in the absence of any other explanation. It was so frustrating to keep hearing that the hospital couldn't find anything, all the while treating K, who had constant pain, with medication like he was in hospice.

To be continued . . . .

The Death Penalty

2011-09-22T00:32:00.001-05:00

Anna Marie Hahn
First Woman Executed in Ohio
12/7/38

I followed the Troy Davis story in Georgia all week. Now he is dead and I am feeling sick about the outcome of his case. My first response is why can't we get to the truth? My second thought is why do we still have a death penalty in the United States?

I have always been opposed to the death penalty. It's state-sponsored murder. Did you know that the cause of death is listed as homicide on the death certificates of those who are executed by the state of Texas? And don't say to me "wait until someone you love is murdered, you may change your mind about the death penalty." It's not going to happen and I say to them "wait until someone you love is convicted for a murder they didn't commit and is sentenced to die. How will you feel about the death penalty?"

I developed my opinion about this topic at a young age, going back to a story that my Dad told me several times.

Pat Kirwin was a young reporter for a Cincinnati newspaper. He had graduated from Ohio State in 1936 with a degree in journalism where he had served as editor of his college newspaper, The Lantern. He was given an assignment to go to Columbus to witness the execution of Anna Marie Hahn, the first woman ever put to death in the electric chair in Ohio. He was truly horrified by what he saw and he would describe the sights, sounds, and smells of being in the execution chamber that night. As a child, it made a huge impression on me to hear my Dad describe the inhumanity of this act. The fact that it was a woman seemed to make it as newsworthy as it was. When I look into the archives of prisoners executed during the 1930's in Ohio, it seems as if the death penalty was fairly commonplace for men.

In fact, there is a Wikipedia entry for this woman here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Marie_Hahn

There was another execution this evening. The state of Texas killed the first of three men convicted in the dragging death of James Byrd in Jasper in 1998. It was plain and simple a hate crime committed by white supremacists. This man was given a lethal injection. He showed no remorse for what he did. Some will argue that he deserved to die. I contend that this is nothing but exacting extreme revenge. There are no winners or losers. There is no closure or peace as more killing will not bring back James Byrd. I hope the Troy Davis case will force a momentum shift in the way we think about the death penalty, but I have my doubts.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-21T23:01:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-14T18:47:00.000-05:00

from the Austin American Statesman

9-11-11

2011-09-11T15:20:00.000-05:00

City of Euless Memorial

I just noticed the workers putting the final touches on this when I was at the post office last week. Today, after church I drove by to take some photos and saw that there were bleachers still set up for what was probably a dedication. To the right is some kind of iron beam that I presume came from the rubble of the World Trade Center towers in New York. It is now planted upright in the center of the memorial, which includes stone monument walls for both city fire and police departments to memorialize those killed in the line of duty. There is only one name inscribed ~ for Michael Williamson, a policeman killed in 1982.

I feel very sad today and find myself mourning for the world and what has become since 9-11-01. The monument says "Remember" and I do grieve again, year after year on this anniversary, for the innocent Americans who died that day. I remember the fear and uncertainty that consumed us for weeks after. I wonder though, where are the memorials for all the others? The soldiers who have died in the Afghan and Iraq wars that were spawned as part of our response. The tens or hundreds of thousand innocents who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan and all over the middle east. I mourn because we were not able to garner the good will that the rest of the world felt for the USA immediately after the attacks, to turn it into a positive response that could have bridged and repaired some of the hatred felt by the terrorists. Instead, here we are ten years later, in dread and on alert for another attack.

Today at church was very moving and inspiring. We sang beautiful music. Ronda played several pieces by Aaron Copeland. Rev. Jenn invoked the words of the poet Adrienne Rich:

My heart is moved by all I cannot save:
so much has been destroyed

I have to cast my lot with those
who age after age, perversely,

with no extraordinary power,
reconstitute the world.

Leave it to the poets to put it so succinctly. What else can we do?

Justice Ginsberg

2011-08-30T11:09:00.000-05:00

I went out last night to see our supreme court justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, at the Southern Methodist University in Dallas. She was invited to speak at the Louise B. Raggio Endowed Lecture Series. Juliet George brought this to my attention late last week and we decided to get tickets and go together. The two of us haven't spent any quality time together in years and it was a good chance to catch up with each other.

Louise Raggio was a Texas Trailblazer who worked hard during the sixties to overturn onerous marital property rights laws. Before then, when a woman married all her assets and money became the property of the husband. Or, as Louise would say "When you married you became one, and HE was the one." She was also an active Unitarian Universalist at First Church Dallas whom I met when she appeared at the first UU women's conference that I attended in 2000. Louise died this year at the age of 91 and her family created this lecture series in her honor. Justice Ginsburg is the inaugural speaker.

There was one glitch in the evening. We paraded around the campus in a line of cars trying to find parking. It was a bit of a walk, in the heat wave of 2011, to McFarlin Auditorium. About half way there, we were approached by security in shuttle carts who told us we couldn't take our purses or cell phones into the lecture. Something to do with Homeland Security. So we had to scramble back to the parking garage and drop off our purses. Fortunately, the security guys gave us rides and we made it to the Will Call for our tickets and got decent enough seating in the upper balcony before the program began.

Justice Ginsburg first spoke at the podium, pictured above, about her connections with Louise Raggio. I found this photo in the Houston Chronicle. Oddly enough, the Dallas Morning News didn't seem to find this newsworthy. The Chronicle must be a more liberal newspaper.

Then she sat down with the dean of the SMU law school for a question and answer interview. I thought she looked great but did appear somewhat feeble. She has been through bouts of both colon/rectal and pancreatic cancer. She had many interesting things to say.

She was the second woman appointed to the court, after Sandra Day O'Connor. Justice Ginsburg described her as a "big sister" when she arrived in 1993 who advised her to work hard and just get things done. When she had to go through chemo the first time, Justice O'Connor (who'd had breast cancer) said to take the chemo on Friday so she'd have the weekend to recover in time for work on Monday. That sounds to me like the kind of work ethic for those who achieve the highest positions, doesn't it? It's both mind blowing and inspirational.

When asked what was the hardest part of her job, she replied that without a doubt it was the death penalty cases. Whenever a stay of execution comes up (usually from Texas) the members of the court must respond without hesitation no matter where they are in the world.

One highlight for me was hearing her talk about "the ticking time bomb case." She was discussing how the court, when reviewing and writing decisions, does not consider how legal cases have been decided in other countries. Even though, other countries' courts will look to what has happened in the United States and take it into consideration for their decisions. The example she cited was the opinion of the chief justice of Israel in deciding the ticking time bomb case. If you have a person in custody who knows the location and time for the ticking time bomb to go off, is it ever justified to use torture to obtain the information? The Israeli judge would say absolutely not, something with which Justice Ginsburg obviously agrees. The audience clapped quite excitedly for this. I found it very interesting that this was taking place right in George W. Bush's back yard, on the very campus where his presidential library will soon be located.

She also talked at length about all the work she did as a young lawyer for the ACLU and noted that were she to be confirmed today, she probably wouldn't make it through. She said "you'll never be able to get me to bad mouth the ACLU." She also stated "I wish we could wave a magic wand and go back to the days when the process was bipartisan."

I was curious about something that was not asked of her. She's 78 years old and very close to retirement. I imagine justices time such an event so that the sitting president can have the opportunity to appoint their replacement. I wouldn't be surprised to see this happen before the end of President Obama's first term.

The Help

2011-08-27T21:58:00.002-05:00

In the spirit of let's go to the movies so we can absorb somebody's else's air conditioning, I met some girlfriends today to see The Help. There's a new hip area over near the cultural district in Fort Worth along 7th Street. I entered the front door and then took an escalator up 4 stories to the ticket counter and entrance to the theaters.

The Help, based on a popular book, is a good movie about extreme racism in the south in the years leading up to the early sixties and civil rights movement. The women referred to as "the help" are the black servants who commuted to white people's houses each day to do the shopping, cooking, serving, cleaning, and child raising. The help became emotionally and lovingly attached to the young white children, as did the young children to the help. The help did this work because that's what their mothers did before them, and their grandmothers did as slaves. They yearned to do something else with their lives, but could not because of institutionlized racism, domestic violence, and lack of education.

It was really fun to see my UU sisters, Julie, Jude, Mary Alice, and Elaine. I'm getting a good taste of the pleasures of the empty nest. I've been taking my camera everywhere. On the way to Fort Worth I stopped and snapped a photo of some mural art.

Can't you just feel the heat? This is the Stagecoach Ballroom in Haltom City. I've yet to enter the ballroom but I can only imagine the stories that have eminated from this place. I turned to the left a little bit and spotted the Fort Worth skyline off in the distance. And I wonder how the light pole got so crooked? Tornado winds?

I combined going to the movie with a trip to The Cabbage Rose quilt store. They've moved into a new, more expansive building across the street on Montgomery St. I picked up some new fabric, of course what else would I do there, you may wonder. Hehe. Heading over to the movie I spotted the new fabulous burger stand. You would think this was the best invention since . . . what . . . the wheel, sliced bread, a laser, or the microchip?

I've watched these building go up over the last couple year on the way to my quilters' guild meeting. The one on the left is called The Museum Place and is built on a triangle. I'm not sure what the larger building is. It's all a planned urban community designed to attract young 20 and 30 somethings. Notice how brown the grass is.

This is really a cool end of town with world class museums. The most prominent is the Kimbell Art Museum, building designed by the great Louis Kahn. Here is some pampas grass. It's distressed but still alive. I think we'll all need to be planting more of this type of xeriscape plant.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-24T13:21:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-10T11:35:00.000-05:00

Dog Day Afternoon - Number 36

2011-08-06T17:50:00.000-05:00


Waltz Across Texas by Barbara Watson

Kay emailed and said come to Carol's first Saturday workshop at Cabbage Rose. It's been many moons since I've attended and I so needed to go out and do my thing, for a change. I've had a lot on my mind with Mom's failing health, K's endoleaks and recent surgery, Matt going to college in two more weeks, Stacee in South Dakota needing long distance crisis management advice and money. And all during chaotic economic times for the country and a god-awful blistering drought and heat wave in Texas. When Kay said we're going out to lunch and then to a quilt show after the workshop, my arm didn't need any twisting.

After all the fun quilting stuff and lunch I drove through River Legacy Park just a few miles from home to see what the heat and no rain has done to the landscape. This is a dried up marsh where, in more verdant times, one can see ducks, egrets, heron coming in for a drink. Now they fly a ways over in the distance to the Trinity River to find some water.

Back to the quilt show, it was a treat to see all the quilts. I won't be able to credit each quilt with the name of the quilter. I wish I could but I'm not that organized today. Normally, I probably wouldn't pick a blazing hot background for this bluebonnet quilt. But, given our current heat wave this looked so right!

This Baltimore Album style quilt caught my eye because of the block in the top center row. The quilter made it as a memory quilt for her son. The block is the Joides Resolution research ship.

My friend Julie Pollard, a middle school science teacher, spent time on this ship as a teacher-scientist and I believe it might have been the same voyage depicted in this quilt.

This one uses a different kind of star block pieced with diamond shapes and parallelograms. It's also got different sizes of squares, some 2" some 1", running through the chains plus a cool secondary block.

This was in honor and memory of the breast cancer people:

A quilt made from all kinds of Boy Scouts clothing, regalia, ornamentation:

This is a memory quilt in honor of her parents. Mom was Cherokee and Dad was Irish. She used the triple Irish chain style with lots of photo transfers of old family photos. The center medallion depicts the Cherokee creation myth. Very cool.

Here is Karen who was attending her quilt as the white glove lady. People always ask how long it takes to make quilts and she said this was a two year project. She used paper piecing and fussy cutting techniques, and because the paper pieces are very tiny little, decided to name it Insanity. The blue ribbon is much deserved and she was rightfully proud of her piece.

I liked this one because of it's nice size and seafoam blue and green batiks, although the pic doesn't show colors very well.

This is made from handkerchiefs. I've seen one other handkerchief quilt and it too was butterflies. It must have been a fad at some time.

I was dreaming of October weather and Halloween when I took this photo.

And I always like to include what the judges have selected for Best of Show. This quilt was made by Barbara Watson, who I know to be an expert applique artist and hand quilter. Barbara also made the Waltz Across Texas quilt at the beginning of this post.

That's about all folks. I'll leave you with a flower struggling to survive on the dusty Texas trail. Adíos Amigos!

The Bunny's Back

2011-07-17T20:58:00.001-05:00

I've seen the bunny off and on a few times this summer but wasn't able to get close enough until now for the photo. It's a wonder the critters aren't dying from the heat. They probably are and we just don't see the poor little corpses. Despite the drought, my lawn grass is doing pretty good. I can attribute that to not putting any weed control chemicals on it and watering deeply about once a week. But, if it doesn't rain soon I don't think any of the plants or grass have much chance. And who knows about the trees.

Rosey surprised me the other day by taking a ten minute sun bath even though it was the hottest time of the day and temperature was close to 105°F. I guess even dogs realize when they need to get their vitamin D. Rosey sure would like to get her paws on the bunny. It's not for lack of trying.

And the weather forecast remains the same. We've endured 13 days in a row of triple digit high temps and tomorrow will probably be number 14. Last month the electric bill was $335 and the a/c runs practically non-stop.

Damn It's Hot

2011-07-14T22:22:00.002-05:00

I'm about to go outside and sit in the back yard for awhile to enjoy tonight's full moon. How I love the cycles of the sun and the moon. Maybe this time I'll set my lawn chair right under the sprinkler that needs to be run to water and save the plants and grass that I obsess about, being the lame gardener that I am. Damn it, this heat and drought is downright biblical, I tell you. Every year I go through the same rant. Global warming is real and the planet is going to crash and burn if we don't radically change. Yesterday. Now. The extreme weather this year is, well, awesome. With all the genius of our collective brain power, why can't we solve this problem? Why is the leadership of our government focused on all the wrong problems? What more can I do? How many petitions do I have to sign? How many phone calls and emails do I have to send? How depressed will I get worrying about the future? And stop caring about changing anything?

I clearly have more questions than answers.

UNT

2011-06-24T04:15:00.000-05:00

Here's the clock tower at the University of North Texas where Matt will be going starting August 25. We just spent 2.5 days going over everything. I'm real excited for Matt because he is excited, too. He got accepted to the School of Journalism but decided at registration to declare that he's still undecided. Okay by me. The thing is he can take a class, for credit, that helps him explore his undecided status even more. Haha, that's funny now that I read it over. The bottom line is the school encourages you to get focused quickly. You can't stay undecided for too long. But you can get take the "undecided major" class and sample some areas and help get you focused on what you want to do. If he goes for journalism, at a minimum he will learn how to write and how to speak in front of people. Those are both very valuable skills. Matt is one great kid who is so well-adjusted and mature. I think he's going to find his way pretty quickly.

A few pics from around the campus. One needs a decent water feature at UNT and the fountain looked refreshing on a day when the high temperature was in the triple digits, on the first official day of summer.

A large eagle in flight to represent, you guessed it, the school mascot:

The mean green eagles athletic department and boosters just built a new football stadium. The first game here is on September 10. Not long after I took this shot, those storm clouds turned into a big thunderstorm that did a fair amount of damage not too far away from here. I think the extreme weather is something we're all going to have to get used to in the future.

A student fashion designer was showing her clothes at a special exhibit in the student union.

And, here is the entrance to the dorm where Matt will be living during his freshman year. It's right in the thick of things in the center of campus. It's a great location and he managed to put together a schedule of 15 credit hours and no class that starts any earlier than 9:30 a.m.

Sorry I didn't take any people pics. Matt was walking around full of confidence like he owned the place.

Going Deep in the Heart of Texas

2011-06-14T16:34:00.000-05:00


Water Tower in Downtown Gruene Texas

We were invited by good friends to join them on their trip to Wimberley for a bed and breakfast weekend at Chez Drobeck, i.e. other good UU friends who retired to the hill country a few years ago. I am so grateful for the friendship and hospitality of all concerned. It was the ultimate spa treatment, bed and breakfast experience.

We set out Friday after work and traveled the country roads south to our destination near Wimberley. We had gridlock in Fort Worth until we got to Burleson, and then we headed west towards Cleburne and Glen Rose. We picked up Route 281 near Hico Texas and continued south to Johnson City. It was really pretty until it got dark. I was soaking up the Texas countryside and trying not to think much about how conservative, right-wing, Governor Perry loving ideology was immersed all about me.

Hico Texas is a place I'd love to go explore some more. It looked like one of those small towns that rolls up it's sidewalks at night but with lots of interesting little shops to visit. We continued through Hamilton where we dined at the DQ. Every small Texas town has a Dairy Queen. Then on through Lampasas, Marble Falls, and Johnson City. On into Dripping Springs and finally Wimberley. K and I bickered back and forth about using the GPS directions versus what Sharon had told us to do. Big sigh about the bickering. It's draining.

Above you see the cabana building and swimming pool that Bruce and Sharon just built at their hill country homestead. Complete with a big sky vista. We arrived about 11:00 p.m. and walked out to this wonderful view and a star-studded sky. Heaven!

Another view of the cabana and pool. You can see the big screened in porch.

Bruce and Sharon's house to the left of the cabana and pool. It was so comfortable. K and I slept upstairs in the Presidential Suite. Dan and Julie were downstairs in the guest bedroom. Picture taken from afar, back near the gorge that slopes downward.

We toured Wimberley and all the shops. Hill country chic was all around us! Here are Julie and Sharon at the most cool store. We wandered back off the street to a courtyard filled with wood and iron metal art sculptures. They had roadrunners, owls, longhorn steers, deer, quilt shop bird houses. The business was for sale, see below. See the cool limestone building below.

We also went to a kitchen store Kiss The Cook where I picked up a couple Texas shaped cookie cutters. There was another store where I bought a piece of vintage harlequin fiestaware (a sugar bowl) and a metal sculpture lime-green painted turtle. Ahhh, souvenirs.

Gift shop with lots of chi-chi items.

Above, Julie bought a cool metal sculpture donkey near here for her poolside.

Back to the pool for a swim. It was about 95 or 100 in the shade. Bruce and Sharon picked a very cool design for the pool. There is a bridge in the middle with three lounge chairs. You don't even need a towel to dry off, just lay on the chair and let the breeze air condition you while you dry your swimsuit. Heaven!

And the pool finish is a dark pebble, stone glaze that blends into the landscape. As you can see above. Behind the lounge chairs you see the little wading pool. And note the back porch of the house above. That's where we sat up late and talked story into the night, You can see the porch columns from tree trunks holding up the roof. Temp got down low at night time. It was very temperate .The stars at night are big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas, Reminds me of the one I love . . . . .

Our beloved menfolk above, Bruce, Dan, Kimmel. Taking a break from the rigors of being on the Pro-Leisure Circuit. And it was indeed, very leisurely. Bruce and Sharon hosted us like we were royalty. I didn't spend a dime except for the things I bought in Wimberley. On Sunday during brunch, we were still speaking as if we weren't finished yet. We all were so happy to be together and sharing all our stories. We could have gone on another day or two. Oh, to have such good friends to cherish.

The deer came by around dusk to see if there was any deer corn scattered.

And then we watched a Hill Country sunset. Like we said, it doesn't get any better than this.

Contemplating The Empty Nest

2011-06-07T22:08:00.000-05:00

I came across this little quiltlet that I made in 2004 ~ 7 years ago but seems like yesterday. I've slowly been cleaning out my nest room by room. With Casey living in Austin and Matt about to start college in Denton, it's a big realization that Kimmel and I will be empty nesters. After raising kids for the past 24 years, and faced with the reality that they'll be coming around so less frequently, I think I'm starting to understand what all the fuss is about having an empty nest. And it's actually a little intimidating.

It's intimidating to think that I'll be 60 next year. I've got a lot of newfound urgency about how to spend my time doing what I want and love to do. I think about money and will I have enough of it to get me through. I've seen Kimmel coping with major surgeries and now a chronic condition and more and more of my friends and peers being diagnosed with some serious stuff. While my own health has generally been very good most of my life, sometimes I get anxious worrying about what could happen, realizing of course that it does no good to worry like that. Maybe I'm experiencing some kind of mid life crisis. So, I keep telling myself to live in the moment and enjoy whatever it is.

I ran across Desiderata recently and remembered how profound I thought it was back in the college days in the 70's. It was really popular at the time ~ words to live by. I think it still holds up and seems like a good friend to help guide me into the empty nest years. Maybe a little corny, but I do find it comforting. I'm posting it below.

Desiderata (by Max Ehrmann)

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,

and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible without surrender

be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly

and listen to others,

even the dull and the ignorant;

they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,

they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,

you may become vain and bitter;

for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;

it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs;

for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;

many persons strive for high ideals;

and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.

Especially, do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love;

for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment

it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,

be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,

no less than the trees and the stars;

you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,

no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,

whatever you conceive Him to be,

and whatever your labors and aspirations,

in the noisy confusion of life

keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,

it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful.

Strive to be happy.

Blogiversary

2010-11-27T10:00:00.000-06:00


KC, Casey, Doug, Matt

Yesterday was Black Friday and also my 3rd blogiversary. Rusty as I am with Blogger, I need to do some soul searching about my blogging future. It's nice to have the archival blog posts to look back on and I have featured Thanksgiving the last two years so I'll stick with that message for today. Yes, turkey day is one of my favorite holidays. The traditional meal is so tasty. Yum Yum Yum. We were very informal, like we often are. I just put it all out on the kitchen counter and everyone fixed a plate. It was really nice to have my family with me, including the BIL who came here from Champaign to spend time with Kim before and after the Triple A surgery.

This is the second year since Casey and Matt abandoned their vegan lifestyles. As a cook, I can't think of anything better to be thankful for on Thanksgiving!

Something else I'm thankful for is the handyman/fixer-upper qualities that Doug possesses. In spades. And he's showing the boys how to do things and they are actually loving it.

I'm also thankful for major medical insurance and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. We got to re-enroll Casey on our plan and he can be covered regardless of his student status until age 26. I'm completely flummoxed by those who say "repeal Obamacare." It makes me crazy and ungrateful. So I better get off that topic. One thing about my blogging style is that, despite my best intentions, I always veer off into politics and partisanship. Bleck.

I am thankful for the greatest college football rivalry of all time. Today Ohio State plays Michigan. What more to say on that topic? Except of course: MUCK Fichigan!!

I do have a very long post dying to get out about Kimmel getting his by a car and subsequently being diagnosed with an abdominal aortic aneurysm. He undergoes lifesaving surgery on November 29. It's probably going to be a more of a sort story or maybe even my magnum opus of blog posts. Ha! Bet you can't wait for that!

I will leaf you with some fall color from my backyard. It's a cottonwood tree that emerged from the compost pile by the chain link fence a lot of years ago. It has brilliant red leaves whose shapes remind me of the quaking aspen.

Stop The Insanity

2010-10-22T00:00:00.000-05:00

The Election. It's very discouraging to see what is going on in my country, state, and district. Mostly, I don't know what to say. My representatives never represent me and very rarely does my vote ever count to elect an official who supports my ideals. Regardless, I will continue to vote my conscious and speak out. As fruitless as it seems.

Virtual Quilting Retreat Day Two

2010-10-13T22:39:00.000-05:00

I really like the idea of this virtual quilt retreat. If only I could actually feel like I'm on a retreat.
But I've definitely been motivated to work on a couple projects that have been languishing. Above is the Ella/Ellen quilt made from 1800's reproduction fabrics using Judy Martin's block design called Country Life. I've been deliberating about the border and have decided to add a pieced sawtooth border. Before I sew the border, I need to add 1.5" spacer strips to make the sawtooth border fit all around and I did get that partially completed today.

This is a smaller UFO also made from the civil war era fabrics. Like the quilt above, all this one needs is a border, too. The green border print that I'm auditioning is what I'm using for the spacer strips mentioned before. Now that I look at this, don't think I'll use it for this quilt.

Instead, maybe the large scale red print above. Or not. Maybe inspiration will come in the light of day. Now I'm going to go visit the other blogs to see what everyone else is doing. And maybe tomorrow get to that machine quilting that I was talking about yesterday.

Virtual Quilting Retreat

2010-10-12T21:36:00.000-05:00

Susan organized a virtual quilting retreat to start today. The idea is that we do some quilt making and talk about it on our blogs. Susan's blog is here: http://blackberrycreek.typepad.com/

Let me say that it's now about 9:00 p.m. and rather than having a lot of quilt making to talk about, I'm sitting here watching the Texas Rangers play the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for a division championship. So far, the good guys are up 2-1 in the top of the 5th. What you do see above is a child's quilt from Ami Simms' twisted sister block and I hope to work on the machine quilting tomorrow.

Instead I spent a good part of the day at the Japanese Gardens in Fort Worth - a truly glorious day. It's hard to describe how absolutely refreshing it is to enjoy mild temperatures and sunny skies after a Texas summer. This year, both the months of June and August were scorchers with July being only a little less hot. Above the reddish small tree is a Japanese maple, of which there are many in the park and the yellow is a gingko tree.

Below a pagoda.

Part of the zen meditation garden ~

Above a multitude of trees and plants and below the Koi (or carp) that proliferate in the ponds and streams.

One of the scenic bridges~

Another Japanese Maple~ I'd like to return in a couple weeks when the maples will be at peak color. Notice the reflections in the water.

One of several magnificent magnolia trees~

Encore Azaleas in bloom~ now I know why they're called encores.

A Mikoshi ~ a gift to Fort Worth from Sister City Nagaoka, Japan as explained by our guide, Candy.

I first discovered the Japanese Gardens when I moved here in 1984. I consider this to be one of my all time favorite places in DFW. Now I have a goal to see the Japanese Gardens after a snowfall. That might be a hard one! I hope all you virtual quilters enjoyed my "retreat" to the gardens today. I'll be back tomorrow with some quilting.

Quilt for Baby Tatiana

2010-09-20T19:04:00.000-05:00

What a nice day I had sewing.

I finished piecing the top and back of my latest creation. All of the fabrics were from my stash and I'm finding it's a great way to create, that is to just work with the supplies you have on hand of which I have enough for awhile. I find stuff regularly that I forgot I have.

Baby Tatiana is the daughter of my friend Stacee Pleasant. Even though I have not yet met Stacee in person, we have been connected for the last ten years in an Adopt A Child program called Circle of Children. Stacee was ten years old when we first got connected. Now she is twenty and has a child of her own. Tatiana was born on August 18, 2010 in a hospital on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation in South Dakota. They have since moved to Rapid City, or Rapid as Stacee says.


Twisted Sisters Block Designed by Ami Simms

On the left is the top of the quilt and on the right is the back of the quilt. And to the right of the back of the quilt is RAGWEED. And possibly some fire ant nests hidden away in those doggone flower beds. It may be notable to some of you that the blue outer border of the quilt top is remnants from the church banner we made for First Jefferson back in 2005. I wanted to use more pink in Tatiana's quilt but guess what, there is definitely a dearth of pink fabrics in my stash. I will machine quilt this on my sewing machine using Aurifil thread because I am now enamored of Alex Veronelli☺ There's nothing like wavy grid lines to get the job done quickly. Children's quilts get used up, softened up, pooped on, dragged around, loved over time and then start to crumble. So why quilt the heck out of it?

College Graduation

2010-09-08T08:28:00.000-05:00

Several months ago on May 22 Casey graduated from the University of Texas in Austin. He finished at the top of his huge class. UT is either the largest, or second largest, undergraduate state university in the nation. He had straight A's, was tapped for Phi Beta Kappa, and got two degrees (or two pieces of paper as he likes to say) -- a B.A. in Economics and a B.S. in Mathematics. Not bad, huh?
So to commemorate the happy day here are a few photos. Casey and Matt arrive on the scene and meet us by the Gregory Gym where Casey will walk for his Economics degree.

Grandma Doris Jones traveled from Champaign Illinois to watch her favorite grandchild. Some may dispute the favorite status, however I know it is true. He's decked out in his gown and regalia. Matt looks pretty mysterious on the bench. It was early, about 8:00 a.m. and we were all still trying to wake up.

The empty chairs waiting for all the graduates to procession in. I love the pomp and circumstance. The musicians are playing before the processional.

Kimmel and Doris happy to be there. Notice the kid in the black shirt and sunglasses behind them?

The esteemed professors awaiting their protegee. The Economics department graduation speaker was very cool. He had just returned from a teaching gig in Singapore and had good stories about the microeconomics of that country.

Casey outside afterwards. I asked him if he could hear our cheering section as he walked across the stage to get his diploma. He said "no I was concentrating so hard on just making it across without tripping that I didn't hear anything." Funny.

I really like this one of Kim, Casey and Matt.

Later that day we attended Chelsie's ceremony where she received her Bachelor of Social Work degree, with high honors. Chelsie also completed her undergrad career with a double major in Geography, quite appropriate for such an international girl. Here she stands with her mother Linda and brother Curtis. It was truly a very exciting and happy day for both our families. College graduation is such a huge milestone.

Words To Live By: Creating a Personal Credo

2010-05-18T23:33:00.000-05:00

So, after a long while using Facebook to hold forth I've decided now is the time to return to the blog. One reason is the impending arrival of my MIL tomorrow who will be with us until the end of June. I think my blog will be a good place to which to turn for my pronouncements, diary, and rantings☺While cleaning up the computer room and preparing it as a guest room I uncovered the following gem. It was written by Matt during his Coming of Age class at the UU church, circa 2007. I've transcribed some of the kids' writings before. I say to all the parents: write it down. You will be glad you did come the apocalypse. Or is that the Spillapocalypse?

It's a Q&A that Matt filled out in his chicken-scratch-penciled-in-handwriting that only a mother could read. It's a paper on developing his beliefs and values. To wit:

Take 10-15 min. to list the qualities you most appreciate in the following people:

1. Your mother and father or primary caregivers.
Mom-constant care, handles everything that the rest of us dont, which is almost everything.
Dad-he's always full of jokes and fun, he isn't to strict and he is always open to conversation.

2. Your ideal life partner.
the basics, smart, funny, carefree, and of course good looks, any one who loves me would be alright.
3. The friend you most admire.
he's responsible but still fun, whenever any of the other guys or myself think some dumb thing is a good Idea he's always there as the voice of reason.
4. The public figure or role model you most admire.
Casey Jones-when he was down this chistmas we had the best time, Casey is fun like my dad, responsible like my mom, and he has a 4.0 at UT. he's my favorite person in the world.
5. The historical figure you most admire.
Captain Davy Jones - he was a Pirate his last name was Jones, oh and the dude from Underworld played him in the pirate movie.
6. The religious leader you most admire.
Dave Chapelle's mom, she was a UU minister, and She raised Dave Chapelle.

List the core values or beliefs that have the most meaning to you, from the following sources:

Your own faith tradition. I am a proud Aiethiest, humanist, scientoloigist (Just Kidding) I believe wasting time on how we came into existance wastes our existance and we should help others and work for a better world.

Another faith tradition that you admire. Chistmas, even though its a corprate holyday and it has nothing to do with religion but it feels great to build some one something or - even to buy some one something.

Can you notice any patterns from doing this exercise, certain qualities and/or values that keep coming up? Well on the first page there weren't many because I hang out with a diverse group of people. I find it's better for my personal character, but everyone I know have at least openmindness, and to some extent compassion.

.

The Story of the First Jefferson Quilters

2010-01-21T11:52:00.000-06:00

Our story began fifteen years ago when Rosemary Fitch made a Flaming Chalice quilt to present to Rev. Craig Roshaven in honor of his 5th anniversary as our minister. The quilt included the signatures of church members written with permanent ink pens. I was a relative newcomer to First Jefferson at that time, but already an avid quilter and soon Rosemary and I joined forces and made a quilt entitled “Poppy Star Field.” We sold raffle tickets at the 1999 Service Auction for this large Lone Star quilt and the lucky winner was Craig! Over the years he kept both of his quilts at the church and they were frequently hanging on display. When Craig moved away to Pennsylvania last year, he made sure to pack and take these two quilts with him, especially I think for all the sentimental value they contain.

If you are so inclined, quiltmaking is the type of activity that draws like-minded people together and soon we had a fledging group here at church. We set a goal to make a large quilt that would be raffled at the Service Auction to raise money for our operating budget. We picked a design we all liked and went out together one Saturday morning to Quilt Country in Lewisville to do what quilters love – that is shop for fabric. Our group consisted of me, Rosemary, Susan Douglas, Erica Blake, Laurie Robeson, and Pat Weed. What fun we had together that day. I’m happy to report that we reached consensus on a multitude of colors and patterns in a most egalitarian way using the best democratic principles of our UU tradition! I like to think that a true covenant group was born that day.

The first big quilt that resulted from those early beginnings was called “Jefferson Stars.” It was quite an undertaking for us as some were novice quilters and the scope of the project was pretty grand. But we persevered. We started to meet weekly so that we could sit together in the Parlor around the conference table with our hand quilting and in the process shared the joys and concerns of our lives. We were thrilled when we sold almost $1,000 in raffle tickets that so many of you generously purchased. The lucky winner that time was (fill in her name) who is one of the Swing Dance leaders – the group that meets here every other Friday night.

So we continued on. We welcomed new members to our group – Peggy Portman, Thea Chambers, Julie Tribble, Sue Lowry, Nan Terry, Sunny Scarborough, Karen Burkett, Carolyn Gaines. We made quilts for the SW UU Women’s conference. One in particular was the infamous “Bra Quilt” that was raffled by SWUUW at the 2005 General Assembly in Fort Worth where it garnered about $3,000 in raffle ticket sales.

We made more raffle quilts for the Service Auction, including “Jefferson Gardens” won by Beverly Fogelman,

“Jefferson Pinwheels” won by Sharon Drobeck, and “Untitled” won by Robert Scarborough. We made a large bed quilt in Mardi Gras colors and presented it to Queentynia Scott, whose family we “adopted” after they evacuated from New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. We designed a Flaming Chalice quilt called “Many Flames, One Fire.” This too was a SWUUW quilt that was raffled at GA. We tried our best here at First Jefferson to buy enough tickets so that we could keep it. The bad news is that we didn’t win, but the good news is that Maria Schmidt of Westside UU Church did win. So the quilt stayed here in Fort Worth and we can go visit it anytime at Westside.

Over the years, it was with bittersweet feelings that we watched some of our friends move on and move away. We created a friendship signature quilt first for Rosemary and Tom Fitch in 2007 to celebrate their move to Hawaii.

And later in 2008 we made what turned out to be twin friendship quilts. First for Pat and Frank Weed who retired and moved to the mountains of Colorado. And then for Rev. Phil and Susan Douglas upon their departure to Corpus Christi when Phil was called to serve the UU church there.

However, before they all departed we had already begun work on The Big One that is here before you today. I have heard a quilt described as the perfect existential object. A quilt soothes the pain of existence in more than one way. You pass the time constructively while you make it. It beautifies the world when it is finished. And it warms you against the coldness of the universe. We wanted something to work on that would continue to draw us together in community each week. We wanted the comfort of sitting together in the warmth of our friendship and stitching by hand while we told each other our stories. Even though we had lost several stalwart members of our group we resolved to complete this king size quilt – measuring 110” square (or over 9 feet square). Our task was even more arduous because we were sewing all the quilting stitches in by hand. When we got to the outer borders we decided to sew outline stitches of all our handprints and in doing so came up with the title “Hands All Around.”

There were times when we doubted it would be done but we kept moving forward and today it is finished. We had also decided early on that this next big project would NOT be a raffle but rather a Keeper for you – to remain here as the Quilters’ Gift to First Jefferson Church.

I'm a Winner

2009-12-19T09:13:00.000-06:00

That's right a double entrende for a title. Yesterday at our guild meeting my name was picked in a drawing for this quilt top. Last year Jay organized the guild to make a log cabin donation quilt for the show. Jay is a master quilter and her piecing is impeccable. She made this from leftover scraps and held the drawing at our gala x-mas party. I'm so happy. Also, my friend Susan gifted me with this little quilt that she made from some funky fabric found after the election. Susan and I have bonded through quilting over the years but last year especially because of our mutual love for Obama ☺

We quietly hook up during our meeting time and share our uncommon (it seems for the group we're part of) liberal outlooks on life. It's kind of like being a closeted Unitarian Universalist come to think of it. Susan was a big winner at the quilt show. Her fabulous quilt "Thinking Inside the Box" won a judge's choice award. Voilá:

I'm getting a little flummoxed by this blog editor. I need to use it more often, right? One more pic of what I've been up to sewing-wise and then I turn my attention to party food for tonight and watching the big game on TV later this pm. I made a clerical stole for Sue who is graduating today with her Masters of Divinity. Nan purchased the silk fabrics last month while she was on vacation in India. I used some seminole patchwork strip techniques, with limited success IMHO but overall the effect is okay. Seminole patchwork turns out better when using cotton and unfortunately I was in a bit of a hurry. Need to slow down and take it easy more often. That sounds like a good new year's resolution, doesn't it?

Because The Night

2009-12-05T04:18:00.000-06:00

I start with the title of the song that Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith and U2 performed together at the HBO Special Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary concert in NYC. If you get a chance to see the show on HBO do it! We watched it on Sunday and sat there transfixed for the full 3 hours.

It's also the middle of the night as I write this. I woke up fully awake at about 3 a.m. and immediately began to run through my list of things to do. I feel myself fighting off the blues like I normally do during the holidays. I've learned that being busy keeps the blues at bay and this weekend will be very full. I'm going to church for the choir rehearsal of the J.S. Bach Cantata Wachet Auf! (Wake Up!). At the same time, the Alternative Holiday Bazaar will be going on there and I already baked the brownies for the RE Bake Sale. I will do some shopping as I always like to support the Colores del Pueblo and a host of other vendors. Later this afternoon I hope to grab Matt and head over to Fort Worth for the Jingle Bell 5K Walk for Juvenile Arthritis in support of Megan H. and her family. And hell the exercise won't kill me either. Let's just say I overindulged on Thanksgiving and haven't slowed down since. Food can be very comforting. Tomorrow we perform the Bach piece and then we jump into the car for the 200 mile drive south to Austin. Casey was tapped for Phi Beta Kappa and we want to support him at the induction ceremony. He didn't realize how momentuous this honor is and I decided not to miss it even though it means we have to turn around and drive home the same evening. Here we are together goofing around on campus last month. He remarked that day about how fleeting the college experience has been. That felt like another reminder how important it is to live in the moment and enjoy each day.

When Black Friday Comes.......

2009-11-27T08:47:00.000-06:00

That means it's my Blogiversary- 2 years - and I'd much rather be writing than shopping. Our Turkey Day was just how I like it - very laid back and stress free. Being a creature of habit, I watched the Macy's parade on tv while I cooked the feast and all I could think was how commercial the parade has become. I may have to retire that custom. The boys have been real sweet and praising (as they should☻) the taste of all the food I've been putting on the table. Someone raided the fridge after I went to bed and finished off the leftover mashed potatoes. And thanks to football I vegged out watching both Cowboys and Longhorn victories. I love an activity like that to totally take my mind off all the scary stuff going on in the world even if for just a little while. Here's the lasagna we devoured Wednesday:

Here's the stuffed turkey out of the oven. Do those pop up roasting timers ever work? I think they're a scam. See the roasting rack underneath the bird. It belonged to Grandma Dwyer and there's something very comforting to me about having her roasting rack besides the obvious that it's the best way to wrestle the turkey into and out of the pan. I also got my middle name Agatha from Grandma Dwyer.

Here they are about to eat. I really had my act together and we ate before 2:00 pm. My age is showing in that I can whip up a thanksgiving dinner without consulting a cookbook in no time flat. One more thing I was grateful for yesterday is my Fiestaware collection. Sorry Kim for not including you in the pic.

Oh wait, here's one of Casey and Kim. I was in a rush to eat the contents on the red plate. It was all delicious and the gravy was perfection:

Heavenly chocolate pie, in honor of Casey. Casey sat in that same spot at the table the day before and dutifully worked on solving proofs for his Real Analysis math class. It was quite heartwarming to see.

And I'll sign off with a Texas Hill Country sunset. This is the Pedernales River near the LBJ home outside of Johnson City taken on 11/14. That was a great day.

Really Support The Troops

2009-11-11T12:57:00.000-06:00

I have been closely following the story of the shootings last week at Fort Hood. And for some time now I've been watching and waiting to hear the President's decision about sending more troops to Afghanistan. The withdrawal of all our troops from Iraq and Afghanistan is long overdue and I've advertised my feelings about this with my curbside address for over two years now. I feel strongly that the Fort Hood deaths should be counted among the war dead. The shootings would never have happened had it not been for the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Isn't it time to stop the wars and really support the troops and bring them home?

I feel a deep sadness on this Veteran's Day. It's all so senseless.

Queen Magnolia Blossom, Revisited

2009-11-07T04:49:00.000-06:00

After a couple months of frustration with some layout issues at Queen Magnolia Blossom I decided to resume blogging here at a new site. I really really wanted to fix the problems at the old site and maybe I still will. And it looks like I can import my old blog to this new one. But careful, what got me in trouble before was just a little bit too much knowledge about editing the html. The other thing that has kept me away from the blog was my new addiction with Facebook and I found that I could post status updates and photos there as a way of staying in touch and maintaining a diary. But for now it's fun enough to play around with a new layout and post some more entries to what I've always intended to be a journal of my daily life.

Paths That Cross is the title of a Patti Smith song from her great album Dream of Life from the '80s. The banner photo of the indestructible pink oleander was taken in my back yard last summer. I do hope that our paths will cross from time to time on my blog here and that you'll feel free to join in on my rantings and ravings or just to say Hi.

Tonight's the annual church gala service auction and like I have done in the past, I've donated some of my artful handiwork. I really dig my Instant Karma wall quilt:

I began this quilt by playing around with printing text onto fabric using my cheapo inkjet printer and if you zoom in you can see some quotes from John Lennon lyrics and the Instant Karma book around the piano keys borders. But one the back, what you can't see is a quote from the late UU minister Rev. Forrest Church:
"Want What You Have, Do What You Can, Be Who You Are"

And, I'm getting ready to go to my first Saturday workshop this a.m. and will show this Nine Patch Triangles doll quilt before I donate it to the auction. It's made with 1880's reproduction fabrics and these traditional styles are starting to grow on me, although I don't think that I'll ever be a strictly traditional quilter.

I hope both these quilts go to good homes and that I'll get to go visit them from time to time in the future *smile*