Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Checking In

I was going to put aside the scrappy string rings and work on the Iron Work quilt over the weekend, but I'm this close to having all the string rings done.  So I just kept on creating the string strata, cutting wedges, and sewing them together.  It has been my happy place this past week.

Having mounds of strings all over is a good kind of mess.  It reminds me of playing in a pile of leaves.  You know you've got to rake them up eventually, but you're having too much fun to stop just yet.

Other than that, it's been life as usual lately.  That doesn't make for riveting blog fodder, but here are a few snippets of randomness, in no particular order.

Tonight's rainbow over the neighborhood.
I spotted a bumper sticker the other day on a Ford Windstar which read, "Vans are tangible evidence of evil."  That had me smiling for blocks.  I like a driver with a sense of humor.

Anybody watching Dancing With The Stars?  There is some great competition this year, but I have to give props to Donald Driver.  And not just because I'm a Packer fan, but the guy is really doing well! 

I enjoyed all the threesomes last night (wait, that sounds bad).  Well, what did they call them?  Dance trios or something.  Anyway, Driver's three-way jive was truly "fun, fun, fun," as judge Len put it.  Now give the man a 10 already, would you?


I had a great conversation with a 93-year-old man while waiting for Norm at physical therapy.  He was a World War II veteran, having served at Okinawa.  He had some interesting stories and related them like it was yesterday.  Sharp guy.  Said he was only one of two surviving members of his unit.  I never did get his name, but it was a pleasure to spend a few minutes talking  to a member of the "Greatest Generation."

In a moment of radio roulette the other night, I spun the dial until I landed on something completely different—the polka station!  You cannot listen to polka music and feel bad.  It's like a natural law or something.  Corny jokes and oompa music was a welcome change of pace—for about a half hour, anyway.

"All the signs of a bleeding heart" (No Way Down, The Shins)
I'm also enjoying the music of Tab Benoit, thanks to a tip from Sandi at Piecemeal Quilts.  Good call! 

And I think it's safe to say that I am fairly obsessed with The Shins new album, Port of Morrow.  Here's this week's favorite song.

10 comments:

Pokey said...

Good to see you checking in-I need to do that. Oh, the string rings are way too cool, I would've been hard pressed to lay those aside, too.

Love the rainbow view...glad for your visit with a true "gentleman", it kinda tugs at your heart to talk with a bit of history...hope that therapy is helping your honey, still living as a nurse's aid, huh?

Hope you continue to have those happy moments of accomplished creativity!
:-}pokey

Karen said...

Good fodder for sure :)

Vicki @ DottyJane said...

Thanks for the rainbow pictures:)

Yes, give the man a 10! That was great!

Very cool that you got a few minutes to talk to the veteran...I imagine he has some spectacular stories.

Did you get your polka on? :)

piecemealquilts said...

Glad you're enjoying the music of Tab Benoit! Your bumper sticker story reminded me of a vanity license plate I saw on a minivan: PB4WEGO.

Elizabeth said...

I don't know where to start. So much fun stuff! I guess I'll start with your music spot. I'm only a minute in and I really like it. A lot. I'll be checking out the rest of the album.

Also, how clever to put some bleeding hearts in a vase! Are those white ones . . . dang . . . I can't remember what I want to call them. They're a shade plant, though.

OK, so Donald Driver really got his groove on in the dance trio! I loved all of them! DWTS is getting good. I haven't watched Tuesday's elimination yet, so I hope Donald made it through.

The polka channel? Too funny.

That rainbow is really amazing! So vivid.

Loved the bumper sticker. I saw one yesterday that said "Going crazy. Want to come?" I was like, "I'm already on my way."

Also, look at you with the scrappy string rings. Three words: A-MA-ZING. Emphasis on the zing. That is going to be some quilt! How many rings do you have? What size will it be? Also loved the "pile of leaves" analogy for the piles of strings.

I finished listening to The Shin's song and clicked over to Tab Benoit. Definitely worth further investigation.

Let's see. Did I cover everything? Pretty much, except to say that I'm glad you checked in. I was starting to worry.

xo -E

greelyrita said...

Ha ha! Love that: "riveting blog fodder"!! Your string rings look like pies, don't they? Both are yummy too!!

Cherie said...

Love the string blocks! What a great way to use them up!
Ooo a rainbow! =D

Shay said...

Those strings are simply delighting my eyes. I get all happy every time I see them.

It's about time we valued our living history more. Glad you got a chance to do that!

Sarah Craig said...

Your posts are always interesting reading! And I love love love those string rings!!! Now if I only had a clone so I could make some of those and still get everything else done!!

MomWaldsPlace said...

Your scrappy blog came together just like a scrappy quilt!