Friday, August 3, 2018

I’m thoroughly enjoying my time on Texada. It feels like being on holiday and at the same time it feels like staying home with no interruptions. The weather has been great – a few really hot days, a couple of cool days but no rain, and a couple of days that were perfect temperature-wise.

I have a couple of projects to work on. I’m making good progress on my Princess cross stitch and very slow progress on my Farmer’s Daughter Blocks. For the most part the cross stitching is easy, but there have been a few times where I’ve needed to do some ripping out. I’m unsure about the other project; the blocks don’t necessarily fit together properly and I really can’t imagine that the individual blocks will go together any easier or better. I’m in too deep to quit though so I’ll carry on.

I spent one day back in Powell River – the plants needed water badly and I had some Cranberry Hall work to do. I got some laundry done while I was there but there are still many reminders of our recent company, including lots of sand and footprints on the floor.

We’ve had some outings on Texada during our stay. Last weekend was the Art Studio Tour. We saw lots of lovely work and were able to go through a lot of studios – my nosy gene loves that. I bought a couple of art cards and a few Christmas gifts. I went to the Trivia Meat Draw at the Legion and managed to answer one of the questions right; neither Pat nor I won anything though. Last night we went to a Renaissance lute concert put on by a local woman who is fund raising for her next year of training. It was interesting but not as much fun as the Renaissance dinner we went to in Italy.

Tomorrow and Sunday we’ll both be working at the Roots and Blues festival here. I’ll be hoping to sell tickets to the House Concerts that we’ll be doing this year both in Powell River and on Texada. We hung curtains on my sewing room door so we can provide some privacy should our performers need to spend a night on Texada. I still need to find bedding for the pull-out couch but that will be the next thing.

Now it’s time for a bit more stitching before I switch to some reading.

Monday, July 30, 2018

It took awhile but I think I’ve returned to “normal” after our flurry of company. It was wonderful to have Elizabeth and Kathryn here and Higgins Inn is a great spot to stay at. Next time I hope we can all stay out there; it is just a short walk to the beach and it is great to have food and washrooms so close. The times for the tide weren’t the best and they only had a few hours of full sandy beach each day. We found out that the phases of the moon make a big difference to the tides so we’ll know to time things a bit better next time.

As soon as our last company left Pat and I headed over to Texada. This past weekend was the Artist’s Studio Tour; although the art was lovely I was more interested in seeing their homes and studios. Pat has been getting together with many of the artists at their monthly meetings; I purchased a few art cards from a couple of spots, as well as picking up a few things as Christmas gifts.

The first night here I was in bed at 7:30, but yesterday I managed to stay up a bit later. We finished off the last few studios on the tour yesterday after dropping in at the Farmer’s Market. Late yesterday afternoon we went to the Legion for their trivia meat draw; neither of us won anything but I was pleased that I was able to answer at least one question correctly!

After supper last night I set the hammock up and stayed outside reading until almost dark. I knew I was caught up on my sleep when I managed to stay awake out there!

We’ll be here for almost two weeks but I’ll head back home at least once to water plants and check on the house. Next weekend is the Roots and Blues Festival and both Pat and I are working at it. The following weekend is the Sand Castle Festival; Pat is working that but I’ll be free to enjoy the sculptures.

Thursday, July 19, 2018

It was a little cooler today with a good breeze so I got a load of laundry out on the line first thing. I was able to bring it in and put a second load out before I left for sewing.

Pat got the all-clear from the doctor today so I didn’t have to go out to Lund this afternoon as his roadie. I was back at sewing and working on my Betsy Bag. I mainly worked on the lining today; I think the next step is putting the pieces together, although I still have some straps and the cording that haven’t yet found a spot on the bag. Gail helped me add an extra inside pocket so now it is a new and improved bag. Jessie wasn’t with us today and I will miss the next couple of weeks. No doubt they will be done by the time I get back to it.

I did some grocery shopping this afternoon, I’m making up beds tonight and we’re ready for company tomorrow!

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

I’ve been working at it for a few days, but I finally finished cleaning up my sewing areas. I’ve hidden away a few things (Emma doesn’t like dolls in her room) but I’m going to be VERY selective about putting things back in that second room. Every time I clean I am reminded of all the projects I’ve got started and several that need to have a quick finish (like three quilts sandwiched and waiting and another half-dozen waiting to be sandwiched). I wish there was some hope that I could keep it this tidy when I’m working. Aside from my group sewing tomorrow, I don’t expect to be back at my machine for about three weeks so at least I have awhile to enjoy it.

At some point soon I hope to eliminate one of my book cases. I have several quilting magazines that I need to go through, scan the patterns I really want, and then pass the magazines on. As I’ve cleaned I’ve collected a bag of stuff for the thrift shop. I recently read a blog online about seriously going through your projects to see if they still “speak” to you. I know I have several calling from bins that are hidden under a table but I only had two (that were within easy reach) that were shouting to be let loose – an iPad cover and a coiled coaster (or two) to match the coil bowl I made in a Guild class several years ago.

But I started my day in the complaint department. I sent a parcel to Stacia for her birthday in plenty of time for it to arrive before her big day. Because I thought they might be at the lake I paid to have it delivered with a signature. When I checked with Stacia this morning the package was (fortunately) sitting on her step minus any sort of signature. So I called Canada Post to complain. After waiting ten minutes in the queue it took half an hour to lodge my complaint and now it will be up to a week before anyone gets back to me. I questioned why they didn’t ask me for the address the parcel was going to but apparently that is somewhere in the next step. So annoying!

And then Canadian Tire sent me an e-mail asking about my recent experience with a purchase. We ordered a blow up mattress online and said we would pick it up at the store; it was on sale and we didn’t want to miss out on the price. I stopped in after quilting yesterday afternoon and waited and waited and finally gave up. When we went back later in the evening it was all ready and sitting behind the counter. So I let Canadian Tire know I wasn’t pleased.

I’m pretty much ready for company now. I have to do some clean up in the basement but that will go quickly and, with the heat of the day and the coolness of the basement, that is a job I almost look forward to.