Anyhoo... that's one reason the stitching hasn't been happening like it should.
Another reason is the hours and hours we spent this past weekend turning this:
(Click to embiggen!)
into this:
Whew! That pile of brush has been sitting out there for way too long! Those white posts you see are the remnants of a picket fence that used to run along the edge of that concrete slab. We took the fence out but haven't yet filled in the holes where the fence posts were, so Glenn just dropped the fence posts back into the holes so I absent-mindedly don't stumble into them. It happens all the time and he has gotten very good at making sure I'm aware of holes and dips in the ground! Filling those holes is on this weekend's agenda as the gardening centers are loading up with bags of soil we can use to level things out.
We also turned this:
into this:
Still have to get the grass out, but that will come. We're going to train the bougainvillea (those sticks along the wall) to grow horizontally along the wall and they should bloom well that way. This week is bulk trash pickup for our area of Phoenix and we needed to get it out and placed along the alley in nice neat piles, ready to be wisked away. There's still junk over there (including a strange built-in entertainment center that was in our bedroom when we moved in!) but it will have to wait till the next pick up. We're out of room... see? ;0)
I've been thinking about the February Take It Further Challenge, "What am I old enough to remember?" Hmmmm... my earliest memory is the clacking of Uncle Hans' false teeth as he ate dinner with us... I was maybe two or three. Not a very good subject for a quilt though, is it? ;0) I was a loner (still am) and spent most of my time buried in books or riding ponies but I did come up with a few memories.
- I remember the white shapes of winter trees covered in hoar frost. Their ghostly branches nearly met over top of the car as we drove from Hartstown, Pennesylvania to Youngstown, Ohio for Christmas. I was little so as I looked up out of the car window all I saw was those branches... they are etched into my mind even now.
- I remember the winter we spent in an old Colorado farmhouse with no heat except the wood stove in the kitchen. We would jump out of bed and go flying downstairs and huddle around the wood stove to stay warm. Brrrrr!
- I remember not being allowed to wear pants to school... girls were only allowed to wear dresses and it was sooooo cold in the winter!
- I remember the day John F. Kennedy was shot, Nov 22nd, 1963... I was in Mr. Kenagy's 6th grade class at Big Thompson school just outside of Loveland, Colorado. I can remember his face as he rushed in the door to let everyone know.
- I remember a cross country drive with my family where it seemed every other song played by the radio stations along the way was "That's Life" by Frank Sinatra. That song came out in 1966... we were probably making a flying trip to Ohio for Christmas.
- I remember my mother darning socks with a darning egg. She taught me how to do it and it was probably my first introduction to needlework.
- I remember learning to iron by ironing my fathers big white hankies.
- I remember watching Sky King, Cheyenne, Sugarfoot, Maverick, Wagon Train, The Rifleman (I had such a crush on Johnny Crawford!) and many more. Westerns were king and we loved them!!
- I remember when we got our first color TV. Such excitement!!!!! ;0)
There are several ideas for quilts in there, aren't there? Ghostly branches, Frank Sinatra and early TV westerns... quite an eclectic group! But I like the colors Sharon chose also.... decisions, decisions!!!
I should have progress on the Luna Moth and a decision about February's piece in a few days... see yaz!!
7 comments:
that's a very good list for ideas. . .I think you should go with your uncles false teeth! You could find all kinds of stuff to use-I bet!
Such a busy lady! Hope you post the bougainvillea in full flower later on. I loved reading your memories and as you say, so many ideas to pick from. I was into ponies too and also watched all those Westerns as a way of seeing horses! Seems like so long ago now.
We share A LOT of memories, Marty!
We used to watch the Rifleman with toy Winchester rifles and blam blam blam at the bad guys. That was so much fun....
Nice job on the yard, too!
Ditto what Allison said...we share a lot of memories. I took a road trip with my folks too, and I remember "How Much is That Doggie in the Window" playing on the radio, and "Que Sera Sera." And we wore color tights in the winter to keep our legs warm. And I remember leggings.
Oh, and the Outlander series--talk about being transported away!!
What great memory prompts! I loved the Outlander books. Waiting for the next one. I just finished the two new Lord John books, and they are good, too. That makes 3 of them to read while you wait for the next Outlander. =)
Do you read Anne Perry, too?
Good job on the cleaning! I periodically have to whack at the vegetation too...and it is usually an insane amount of debris. :-)
Oh, the hankies. That was my job. My sister ironed the pillowcases. We traded days for washing and drying dishes and in later years at home, I cleaned one bathroom my sister the other. Then my little sister got stuck with it all when we left home after getting married.
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