Collossal Prize at Lily's Quilts

For chances to win this COLOSSAL prize, here are your options:

1.   Sign up to the Pink Castle Fabrics newsletter and let me know that you have (or were already signed up) and you can sign up right here!  

Pink Castle Fabrics' Mailing List 

2.   For extra chances, retweet, regram, share, blog, google+ etc - one comment per social media share.

The winner will be picked a week from today.  

For info on this give away - to find out what the collossal give away is please go here: http://lilysquilts.blogspot.com/2014/05/cotton-steel-monthly-club-144-fq.html

Comments disabled on this entry since it's Lily's Quilts event, not mine!

Mother's Day

http://sethgodin.hugdug.com/mothers-and-daughters

I hope my son considers me Point B.

Book: Hardball by Chris Matthews

This isn't a review, it's too hot and I'm out of practice with reviewing. Well, even with reading something longer than a blog post...

Hardball by Chris Matthews is a book about politics.  In each chapter he discusses a method or technique and then follows up with personal observations of examples and non-examples. It's a very balanced book as it doesn't matter what party the examples and non-examples are.  We can tell he is democrat, but many of his examples are of successful republications.  He also has non-example democrats.  Some of the people mentioned I knew, and some I did not.  It would have been better to know them all, but even so I was able to get past that and to take peek into the thinking of a very intelligent person.  The book was about others, but in the writing I learned more about Chris Matthews and a life style that is very different from mine.  I would not want to be in the business of politics, but it sure would be fun to be the business of having such intelligent conversations!

I recommend the book and look forward to other books by Chris Matthews.  We were back in San Diego and missed a book talk he did on his newest book Tip and the Gipper: When Politics Worked at the Cambridge library.  To think I could have walked to this event earlier in the year.  Another reason to be back in Cambridge!

Part I   Alliances
1   It's not who you know; it's who you get to know
     -  Arrange life so you meet people (RR brushing teeth story)
2   All politics is local
3   It's better to receive than to give
     - People have more support/loyalty when they have contributed something - can't buy support.
4   Dance with the one that brung ya
     - Commit to the right person
     - What have you done for me lately?  Can't live on past experiences, have to keep things fresh.
     - Spread out support, keep yourself necessary

Part II  Enemies
5   Keep your enemies in front of you
6   Don't get mad; don't get even; get ahead
     - Keep your focus on what you want
7   Leave no shot unanswered

Part III   Deals
8   Only talk when it improves the silence
     - Story of Winston Churchill and how he became PM
9   Always concede on principle

Part IV   Reputations
10  Hang a lantern on your problem
11  Spin!
12  The press is the enemy
13  The reputation of power
14  Positioning

Fitbit: 50 floors in one day!

I'm really trying to up the time and intensity of my walking. Today I walked to the store, back, then to campus! I knew there were some hills and inclines to go up. However Fitbit measures things it was 50 floors today! 15,152 steps taken today. (I've done over 15K steps 36 times on the days I've worn the Fitbit.)

Fitbit = I've clocked in 15,152 steps, 6.33 miles, (lightly active 2:27, fairly active 1:46, very active 30 min (total 4.43 hours)), burned 2080 calories

With the phone Moves = I've clocked in 12,821 steps, 6.3 miles, 2:15 hours active, burned 508 calories.

So the difference is time without the phone and just differences in the two systems of measuring.  I'll try to keep the phone with me all day tomorrow just to see how the numbers go.

It's windy and hot.

Fitbit: Hot Air Balloon Badge

This is January 2013 thru August 2013, December 2013 and then March 2014.  I misplaced the fibit for several months and just have restarted trying to wear it every day.  Not in the habit again though - but this was a fun badge to receive.

I'm a winner: Modern Quilt Perspectives by Thomas Knauer from Kelly at Stitchy Quilt Stuff

Hi June!

You won the giveaway of a copy of "Modern Quilt Perspectives" by Thomas Knauer on my blog, Stitchy Quilt Stuff! Congratulations, and thanks for reading!

If you'll send me your address, I'll get your copy shipped out ASAP. You're going to love the book!

Best,

Kelly

Nicole at Home: Tutorial: Round scalloped edged table cover

Nicole has the cutest ideas for sewing projects. Usually she is making clothes, but I found this cute little tutorial for making a Round scalloped edged table cover using that oilcloth that I've been noticing in stores.

The way she marks the scallops would work for a quilt too. Much better than making a template!

http://www.nicoleathome.com/2011/06/tutorial-round-scalloped-edged-table.html

Coloring Outside the Lines: Fractured Reality

I'm getting emails when the author of Coloring Outside the Lines posts something new.

She has been working with freshening up quilts that no longer excite her.  She is in some cases slicing the block or the quilt, inserting a strip or two of fabric and maybe slicing up again.

Here is her latest project:
http://quiltingismything.wordpress.com/2014/03/24/zen-my-ass/

And here is a search showing all her posts coded with "fractured reality series".
http://quiltingismything.wordpress.com/category/fractured-reality-series/

So daring to slice up and change things up.  I admire her for forging ahead to finished her projects.  She made a list of projects in January (along with photos) showing the projects she wants to finish during 2014.

So it happens that earlier today I made a list of my quilting projects.  I have so few finishes that I also included them in my list.  I'll work on the photos and will be posting my lists soon!  I've been so weighted down that I haven't made a bucket list of new projects to work on at all - but that would be a good thing to work on too.

I so enjoy sewing and quilting, but finding the time to do more than read about projects has been hard for me.  We are almost done with the bookkeeping for the taxes, I'm done with the conference and resigned from the board, now I can really start doing the things I've been pushing back or doing just barely enough to be satisfied.

Taking Care of Buffy

This past weekend our son went to another event so we got to take care of Buffy - the little dog his friend got at the pound a few years ago.

This is the first dog my husband or I have had around.  This is the third time she has stayed with us.  When he left the first time I had our son leave the harness on as I was afraid Buffy would never let me touch her - but by the second day she was sitting next to me or on my lap so everything was fine.

She is allergic to something though so always scratching herself.  Poor baby.  Last time we got some shampoo and gave her a bath several times and that seemed to help for a while at least.  Now the vet has her on a prescription shampoo that we had to lather and then leave the soap on for ten minutes.  My husband came up with the idea to wrap her in a towel and sit with her for that time, then to return to rinse her off.  Much better than having her stand in the sink all that time!

So by the time our son came to get her she had had three shampoos, 8 walks and lots of time on my lap.  It was a fun time, but I hope the shampoo and meds will do the trick for her so she can enjoy herself more.

She also likes going in between the folds of the sleeping bag - in the photo I exposed her.  She opened her eyes wider asking me why I was doing that.

I haven't made the official bed for her yet, but she is happy with the sleeping bag for now!

I'm linking to Lily Pad Quilting - who is hosting a sponsored give away.  Please go to this link to enter and to see the linky to all the stories people are sharing about their rescue pets.  Such generous people and such lucky fur friends.

Exciting Enhanced ePub From Alex Anderson … And A Great Giveaway!

http://www.ctpubblog.com/2014/03/14/exciting-enhanced-epub-from-alex-anderson-and-a-great-giveaway/

I posted my entry:

My best advice is to make your first few quilts for a charity. Small lap sized projects are easier to finish, to free motion and bind. Any errors won’t be noticed by the person who receives it. I have photos to remember the projects. It’s a win-win. This new e-book sounds great. Thanks for the chance!

I wish I had written 
My best advice is to make your first few quilts for a charity. Small lap sized projects are easier to finish, to free motion and bind. Any errors probably won’t be noticed by the person who receives it. 

(My quilts have gone to Quilts for Kids who tell me no hand stitching allowed as they can't have things that will get tangled with IVs and other medical devices.  So I figured they did not feel well and would not be taking the time to critique my work...)

I have photos to remember the projects. It’s a win-win. 

This new e-book sounds great. Thanks for the chance!

_________

I'm not sure when the deadline is for this drawing, but the link to enter is:
http://www.ctpubblog.com/2014/03/14/exciting-enhanced-epub-from-alex-anderson-and-a-great-giveaway/