All posts by Sherry

Marianne & Leonard

Movies

I hadn’t been to a movie since February and this one was a good re-introduction to our weekly movie series.

I love everything “Leonard Cohen” but I have to admit I knew very little about his life. When Marianne was dying I remember the heartfelt message Leonard sent to her; he died just three months later. The story is told by their friends and there is lots of early footage of Cohen, as well as some of his later concerts which I was lucky enough to attend.

As soon as I got home I pulled the biography of Leonard Cohen from the shelf – so far I’m enjoying it.

The House by the River

Books

Author: Lena Manta

I don’t often read a book on my Kindle when I’m at home but none of the books on my shelf appealed to me at the time I needed a book. The list of titles I have on my Kindle is long; I generally read a Kindle book quicker than a “real” book and I’m behind on my Goodreads Challenge.

Five daughters can’t wait to leave their small village in Greece. As they leave, one after the other, their mother and grandmother are left alone. None keep in close contact after they leave but, eventually, they all return to the safety of The House by the River.

Goodreads Rating: * * *

Prepping

Journal

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

I have a lot to get done today, and most of what needs to be done is preparation for the next few days and the weekend. But before starting the prep work I got the recycling sorted, the laundry started, and some weeding done in the yard.

I need to do some prep work for my Guild class on Friday. My sewing machine needs to be cleaned and oiled and a new needle installed. I also have to put together a few quilting sandwiches to practice my ruler work on. Fortunately I have a few extra blocks from my Disappearing 9-Patch that I will use for that.

I also need to gather together everything I need for a weekend on Texada. Originally I thought I would drive over myself but Pat is going over tomorrow so I’ll do a walk-on Friday afternoon (and walk-off on Monday). I won’t be able to carry much with me so I need it ready to load into Pat’s truck first thing tomorrow morning. I keep a container handy that I throw things into that I think I’ll need; when I’m actually heading over I need to review what I’ll be doing and pack accordingly.

Friday afternoon, after my ruler class, I’m meeting the contractor for the Hall to sort out how the accounting needs to be done. I have a plan in mind but I think I need to do some spreadsheets for him to fill out. My understanding is that, beyond texting, he isn’t very computer-savvy.

So I’d better get to it. But first I need to swap my load of laundry and water a couple of plants on the deck.

We’re off to the movies tonight – the first one for me since February!

It’s a start

Journal

Monday, September 9, 2019

My friend Gail has been working on a fabric de-stashing sale for a few weeks. On Thursdays she is kind enough to let Jessie and I have a first look at what she has put out for sale. Tomorrow the sale will start for the general public but she said I could come over today and have a look at what she had.

I started thinking about what I could make that might require new fabric. The Guild challenge this year is a circus theme and I’ve already picked out an elephant appliqué that I will use. I only had one suitable fabric for the elephants (I want to use grey florals) so that went to the top of my list. Sadly I left the list in my purse so forgot all about this fabric; I’ll look again on Thursday when I’m there for sewing.

Next I thought of the Jen Kingwell pattern I plan to start when Stacia and Deloise and I go sewing in October. I dug out the pattern and it doesn’t give actual fabric colours but it mentions neutrals and small prints. I was able to pick up a number of lovely fat quarters and neutrals that will work.

And I’ve had my eye on some really nice blue fabric for quite awhile but never really had anything in mind for it. I decided I’d get enough for a 3-Yard quilt; I had a bit of trouble finding the patterns that Stacia and Deloise picked in Houston but eventually found them in my computer filing system. I picked up some red that will go with the blue and I’ll add a third colour from my own stash.

Once I was thinking about the October sewing trip I started thinking about all the prep work that is going to be required. I bought a quilt pattern at CQA in Vancouver that I need to cut the fabric for, and I have a Cake Recipe (a technique I’ve never used) that requires some neutral fabric to be cut. The Jen Kingwell pattern makes use of templates so there is a lot of work to be done before I can even think about colours and colour placement, but having some of the fabrics is a start.