AQS Show Winning Quilts -- Just Posted

The Paducah version of the American Quilters Society show is starting up...and the winners have been announced.

Here's BEST OF SHOW -- from a familiar name:  Marilyn Badger from St. George, UT.
     Her quilt: Arandano



Look at the detail on this piece -- wow.
(Notice that cool 'inset' look between borders? Using slightly-darker fabrics on the outside edge of the inside border -- i.e., the spikes -- helps. Nice.) 

Another beauty -- It's the Cowboy Way by Karlyn Bue Lohrenz of Billings, MT
    This took Best Wall Award (Moda).  This one has great detail, too...I would not have imagined using a closeup like this for such an effective quilt. But she did...and it is.
     Double wow.




The show winners are listed here, along with other photos.  Congratulations!

A Tractor Quilt

Taxes are done...now to find the table under all that paperwork. 

Meanwhile, thought I'd mention a tractor quilt stitched by the Mama's (and my) friend, Anne Heath. Anne made it for her farmer partner. Here's the basic block:





And the finished quilt. Simple, but effective.

My only complaint: it's in J[ohn] D[eere] green.

My dad worked for a Case dealer, so we were not allowed to mention That Name. It was considered swearing. 

Ahem, Anne.   (And good job!)

Monday Stuff On the Way to Other Stuff: Taxes, AARRGHGHGHGHGGH

It's been interesting around here.

We ended up with more than two feet of snow on the ground this weekend -- about 2 1/2 feet, I'd guess. (Daughter #2, who lives up in the mountains, got closer to 3-4 feet. And her partner spent both nights plowing and shoveling, poor guy.) Church was cancelled today -- which was wonderful, since we were supposed to start practicing at 7:30 a.m. Church was cancelled today -- which was frustrating, because the Brick (and others on Worship Team, we found out) had to get up extra early to shovel out the sidewalk and the car. 
     The Elders didn't cancel until nearly 7 a.m....which meant we all had to be up and around anyways, in case they didn't. 
     No sleeping in. 
    The Brick stamped in, all snowy from shoveling, and wanted breakfast. Some French toast, a cup of coffee...then we went back to bed for a blissful couple hours. Ha.

     It made a nice change from wrestling with taxes, especially because TurboTax and other tax prep software don't know what to make of a business like mine. It puzzles the heck out of them; they are forever asking odd questions. Being the engineer type (obsessive and primary attention to detail -- you NEVER leave anything unanswered), the Brick then demands answers to those strange questions! And THAT leads to the tendency for mutual snarling at each other. 
     Bits of paper with scribbled lists and totals -- things we have to double-check online (thank God the power never went out) -- every receipt and notice we could find for last year. And they're all piled higgledy-piggledy on the table, with both laptops going full blast. (Him typing, me fuming.)
     Surely we can't be the only ones struggling with this. And if you multiply our frustration by umpteen bazillion Americans... I wouldn't be surprised at all if the murder rate skyrockets during times like this. 

I love the Brick dearly, but right now, he's driving me NUTS. The bad part: I suspect he feels the same way. It's 2:30 a.m., and he is sighing and throwing himself back in his chair.
      Thank God this is almost over. 





Five stupid mistakes well-meaning (hopefully) charities made. (From Cracked.com)

VERY cool wedding ideas. Frugal -- but they don't look it!  (From Apartment Therapy)
     P.S. These would be great for dinner parties and barbecues, too.

How to look even better in photos -- thanks to how you hold your jaw, and squinching! (From photographer Peter Hurley, and Petapixel.)

The best pizza dough ever...according to 101 Cookbooks. It's a little complicated, but worth trying.

Would-be burglars get a remote message from the homeowner watching them... and take off! (Unfortunately, the large dogs in the home sniff them and walk away -- Charley would probably have invited them in for a beer.)

From the DBBF (dusty blog back files):  A dozen frugal cookbooks you've never heard of (or not much) -- plus two.  From yours truly.

Low-cost, easy to keep up with flowerbeds: how to make them, how to maintain them. (From Funky Junk Interiors)

13 ways to use ground beef.  Tasty -- yes. Unusual -- no. (They're billing them as unusual...but I don't think so. From Betty Crocker)



Phenomenal Gems just celebrated its second birthday. This Etsy shop is owned by Daughter #2, who has done beautifully. And it has beautiful stones! Go take a look...

Eleven frightening toys from way back. Including my own favorite, Chatty Cathy. I begged and pleaded for her -- but she ended up stuck in a haybale in the barn. By the time I found her again, her face was stained, and she'd rusted. (ewww)

Thirty tips for traveling cheaper in Europe. And elsewhere, for that matter. (From Have Blog Will Travel)

Per diem rates for business travel, listed by state. At least in the government's opinion -- I don't usually get this much, based on what they're stating for my area.

Need bookcases...and a bed? Get space for both!  (From IKEA Hackers)



When you're cutting back, don't give away the store. (From Surviving and Thriving)

A large Caravaggio painting (they think) found in an attic...all because the French homeowners had a leaky roof and needed to fix it. Estimated value:  about $100 million.

Lots of tax-related goodies -- including scams and misrepresentations -- on the rich and famous.
In keeping with that:

Some interesting celebrity quotes about money. My favorite, from Paris Hilton:
     "What's Wal-Mart? Do they, like, sell wall stuff?" 

By the way, don't miss out on tax day discounts -- plenty of good stuff available today. That includes a free Blooming Onion from Outback today (Mon) only -- just tell your server "Blooming Monday." Some good taxtime freebies and discounts at the end of this post.

Brunch ideas for Mother's Day. A lot of these center on pancakes and baked goodies, but also include winner like the Bellinis pictured here.   (From Who Needs A Cape)





The master hack list -- 100 ways to customize IKEA products for your needs. (From Apartment Therapy)

Consider - you might meet failure on the path to success.  What are you going to do, if that happens?  (From Money Beagle)

And finally, from the "Boy, That's Weird" Department:
A sailor is found mummified on a 'ghost ship' sailing under its own steam for years. Shades of  the Mary Celeste -- and others.  (Sorry, no photos -- this was just too creepy.)


Have a great week -- smooch the ones you love.

How Does Two Feet Sound to You?

That's how much snow we've gotten in the past 24 hours, I'm guessing. Miss Abby and Charley are forced to leap around in it, to get anywhere. The snow comes way above Abs' back; Charley's got more leverage, being bigger.

And it's still coming down. See here, if you're curious.

What our trees look like right now - poor babies

Now you know why I sneer at the East Coast getting a foot of snow (or less), and panicking. The Brick remembers a few inches of snow while growing up in North Carolina...and everything shut down.

Thankfully, the power's still on. We've got the fireplace going, bluegrass playing, and are trying not to snarl too much at each other. (Darn taxes, anyways.)

I'm betting the grocery stores are still dealing with empty shelves. This storm isn't supposed to let up until tomorrow sometime.

At least we're snug, warm...and stuck in it together. 

Stay warm this weekend...and if you're sweating through taxes too, you have my sympathy.

What it will look like out here - once the sun comes out. But not yet.

Snowed Under -- But Making Progress

While I'm working on taxes with the Brick (and waiting for the snow to REALLY kick in), I can't help thinking of this:

There...does that inspire you, too?

UPDATE, AS OF 1 a.m. SATURDAY MORNING:  Just stopped into our local King Soopers for extra milk -- and there is none. Only a few gallons of 1%, and we don't usually drink that. The meat shelves are nearly empty, except for a bumper crop of ribeye steak. Chicken shelves are pretty much stripped, as are the bread and egg areas. Clerks were restocking, but items like paper towels and canned goods.

      It looks very much like it did when we had storm after storm one winter...and getting your hands on fresh stuff was nearly impossible. But the snow just started this afternoon (in the mountains) and tonight (here). Did people go nuts stocking up? More probably, the trucks aren't getting through.
     This gives an uneasy feeling -- but it's why our freezer has lots of food. Our cupboards are ample right now, too. I keep dried milk, dried eggs, flour and plenty of butter on hand at all times. But if this storm hangs around for a while, or we lose power, things could get weird -- fast.

     Maybe I should have bought the 1% milk, after all...

An Engineer's Look At Cats

Not this...(which is actually quite funny)

This.  (I know whereof I speak -- the Brick was an engineer for a couple of decades or so.)




But if the cat was doing this post, I'm sure it would be:

Ted Cruz 'Stole' Colorado's Votes?

Naaahhhhh.

According to Donald Trump, there's a reason why he didn't earn a single delegate in Colorado. It was all crooked -- Ted Cruz stole his delegates!

Well, the truth is, Mr. Trump...

You never bothered to show up, in the first place.   (Ted Cruz did.)

Your staff apparently didn't check the guidelines Colorado Republicans use to appoint delegates. Guidelines that have been in place since last fall.
(Something they forgot to do in a few other states as well, where you lost delegates. C'mon, are they really that stupid?!?)

The representative you sent thought he could get away with platitudes, instead of dealing with the issues. (Did you think we wouldn't notice your absence? Do you think we're that stupid?!? )

Somebody on your staff is saying you were cheated, because Colorado didn't even hold any caucuses.
(They did, Mr. Trump -- either you or your staffers were on 'ignore' to have missed them. Like you pretty much treat Colorado, anyways.)

The Brick not only went to the first two caucuses, but was at the state assembly Saturday, as well. Sure, he wishes all the speakers would deal with the issues up-front, instead of trotting out the flag and rah-rah statements. (Some did, some didn't.) As the Brick is fond of saying, we do NOT live in a democracy -- we live in a representative republic.  (Because we must elect representatives to vote on our behalf. And in that sense, at least, I think he's right.)

Ted Cruz isn't perfect. But at least he thought it important to try and personally win Colorado's delegate votes.

Pack up your mean, petty accusations, Mr. Trump --
                  it's time to grow up, stop acting like a whiny jerk, and get down to business. 
You'll be much more interesting if you admit you made mistakes here...and start actually listening to what's important to Colorado voters.

Not to mention the other states you've been neglecting. We don't all live in New York...