What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

I need to spend a bit of time this morning answering the comments. So many good comments!! Thanks so much - I appreciate them all! And I especially appreciate you following me along with my craziness! I don't write for you - I mostly write for myself. That sounds somewhat unusual, especially when it's published for everyone to see. 

But I write because it helps to clear my brain, which would explode if I didn't get some of this silliness, creativity, and knowledge out of my brain! I've also used it to follow up on things because, let ...

Oh my goodness — I love all the stories about typing class. I don't remember how many words per minute I ended up typing, but there are days when I wonder how I ever managed! That backspace key is so handy! And that IBM Selectric -- what a dream! 

As for retirement, someone mentioned that many retired people comment that they are so busy now that they don't know how they managed to work. Seriously? Do you want to jump from the frying pan into the fire? I guess if that is what you want to do, then it's ...

I love to teach - I think everyone knows that, and I seem to be a natural at it. Perhaps when I was a kid, I should have veered that way. But I'm happy things turned out the way they did. 

I lived a very isolated life as a kid, and the only job opportunities I saw were those of a teacher, a nurse, or a secretary. Can you believe that? But it was common, and that's why we have a lot of retired teachers and nurses who quilt. 

I learned to type in high school, either in Grade ...

I am on the home stretch of the craziness that was September. There are still a few days left, but come Friday, when I don't have to travel for a long time and only have one class to prep for this weekend, it's going to be heaven. 

I hope you realize that I typically have more than one class on the weekend, two of them back-to-back on Saturday. I intentionally did NOT start the jacket class this month because I knew it would be silly from a timing perspective. That one starts in October. Yeah me! See -- I ...

Only a few more days to get through this crazy schedule. It took quite a while to get the UFO presentations put together --- many group members were very busy over the summer, and we had a lot to see! 

Time was running out, and so I shortchanged the girls on their walk. They were not happy about it. I was about a half hour late in getting out of the house with them, and can you tell they were not happy? 

MOM -- we are waiting PATIENTLY!!!!

Does anyone believe me that my October is going to be quiet? Of course you don't - I've cried wolf way too many times! I know I'm tempting fate by saying that, so let's move on. Let's look at what happened yesterday. 

It was another long day, but I believe I have all the video equipment linked up. I'm fairly certain it's all working, although I had a minor scare this morning when I tested one of the cameras. It was flashing that the battery was dead. I dug out an extension cord for ...

I'm so glad you enjoyed those "through the ages" photos. It's hilarious to see how we age, especially under the harsh requirements of those pictures - no smiling! 

What a wild day yesterday. OK -- so it wasn't that wild, but I was married to those two embroidery machines. 

Two embroidery machines - hard at work

They are on opposite sides of those two work tables, and it seemed that I went around in circles all day as I fed them thread. Except for two broken needles, everything went as planned. 

ACK - -a broken needle

I have a funny feeling ...

 ACK --- no pressure on the "paper" dolls!!!! But I'm intrigued by several ideas that have come to mind, and I will need some time to play with them. That will come in October! That fabric did NOT get put away, but was left on the current project table. And yes, as Elle mentioned, that newfound ten+ hours from not teaching software should go to clearing those Current Project tables. There is so much I can do with those ten hours. It doesn't really matter what I do with them, but I want to be productive -- whether that is ...

Thanks to everyone for the well-wishes on my arrival home. I'm glad that you enjoyed my vacation along with me! I also love living vicariously through others' experiences because I certainly won't get everywhere myself. That's my favorite thing about social media. It's so easy to stay connected. I don't need or want to get disconnected -- while I don't mind being alone, I'm a social person at heart! 

Where would you like to go with me next year? I have a couple of places in mind, but nothing solid yet. 

And it was ...

I don't need reading glasses this morning to write the blog. I'm on my big computer with a big screen! I love my mini portable office, even though it's super small. It does the job and frankly, without me documenting the trip, I'd remember nothing, or at least not in the order things happened. 

I blogged from the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge in Frankfurt yesterday. Today I'm home! 

The Air Canada Lounge in Frankfurt

 Lots of questions today! 

First, Lexi and Muprhy have a babysitter to keep them company. I'm afraid I'm going to come home to find them with many new bad habits! But that's OK. They will get short walks, so they won't be totally wild when I return. I HOPE! 

How will DH cope? I'm not sure, but one thing -- he will NOT be climbing the mountain. He is doing his thing for the days I'll be in high altitude. It wasn't even up for discussion! 

The portable office? Well, the only reason I ...

The countdown is on for this trip, and I'm pretty much organized. I packed my small backpack yesterday - the important one with my protein bars, all the medication, and a few other things, like three pairs of glasses! I have a few other small things to pack, but it should easily be under 10 lbs. 

I got a chuckle as we've heard many times about small planes that you need to get from one destination to another, which we have to take for parts of this trip. I believe the maximum weight per passenger is 20 KG, and ...

I WAS going to say Rose of Sharon!! I am quite confused about plants, but I believe you are correct! It's hard to believe that my paternal grandfather and mother had green thumbs, yet I struggle to name even a few plants in my garden. 

But I was attempting to use my pale green thumbs as I puttered in the garden in the morning. More in a second. 

It was another fun day at the Virtual Retreat. Our new hours are 3 PM to approximately 9 PM EST, in case you'd like to join us in the future ...

Oh my goodness — everyone was in such a chatty mood last night, it was hard to get a word in edgewise! But that is great! We had some fantastic discussions, and I always learn a great deal from them. Remember, the Virtual Retreat starts today at 3 PM. Pushing back that start time is another way for me to recover some time for myself! I can always open the call earlier if people want, but I won't be there until three. 

I'm getting back into the swing of things, only to have my schedule turned upside down again ...

Thankfully, my arms are feeling much better. I have learned that I should have moved my arms around after the injections and during the day to help with discomfort. The doctor should have mentioned it, but while he gave me all kinds of advice, that was not one of them! I'll survive. 

I'll see what I can do about getting the Hep A & B and typhoid shots before I leave. It will be tight as there isn't a lot of time, and I have other things on the go! I know - my health is more important; it ...

And just like that -- I'm back into my routine! 

I spent the morning visiting a friend, and it was great to catch up with them. I hope to be able to do that more often in the future, but who knows! Then it was back home and to work! I'm so looking forward to a less "controlled" schedule. I won't be sitting around eating bon-bons, but I won't have so many time commitments. 

It wasn't one of the most productive days, but I knew I had to get those suitcases unpacked and work on the ...

 AHA -- another great idea about getting rid of the SCRAPBOOK stamps is to check with retirement homes! I need to make a few enquiries over the next couple of months and then see what I can do. It would be great to empty that closet --- I know she will fill it up again, but as long as she is not buying new stuff, I'm OK with moving things in there so it's less messy! 

I dropped off the bag of scrapbook stamps that I had sold (Facebook Marketplace) on my way to the airport, so that was good ...

Whoever said that traveling is fun - well, think again! The prep for travel is insane. I had to pack two suitcases of samples, and that was after I finished making some of them. And there is one jacket that I'd like to take, but do you think I can find it? Nope! I've checked everywhere, except that's a lie since I couldn't find it; I haven't checked the one place it is. Oh well --- I'll talk about it. But where the heck could it be? I swear I had two jackets set aside because ...

WOW --- I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one with crazy insect bites! And YES, I believe these are more than mosquito bites. The one on my leg seems calm for the moment, but the itchiness can flare up once I get walking outside. I may look into that other product someone mentioned. 

As for the tattoo? Oh -- I keep forgetting that not all of you have seen it. I'll see what I can do about getting a good picture of it. It's a bit challenging! Can anyone guess what it's a picture of ...

YES to the towel on the ironing board! I love it. I was pressing under the edges of some hexagons using a cardboard template, and they didn't shift! And yesterday, I accidentally put a bit of fusible on the towel, and that's easy enough to get rid of. Well, it's still there, but I can wash that towel, and any crap, dirt, and stains are gone! Why didn't someone tell me this earlier? 

While I accomplished a fair amount yesterday, I'm not sharing it yet. Some of it is for a writing assignment, which should ...