It's Hot!

 Julia was with us Fathers’ Day weekend and it was a wonderful visit.  The only problem:  an AC that decided to go on the blink during…

 

My new hero is the AC guy who came out Monday and quickly had it back in working order. 

 Also on Monday evening, we experienced a rare weather phenomenon called a heat burst.  By 8:30 our outside temperature was down to the mid-90s.  Suddenly we were being pummeled by ferocious winds and the temperature jumped back up to 106 degrees.  We lost several sizable limbs, but fortunately the experience was quickly over.  I don’t know what the wind speed was, but I’m certain some of the gusts would have knocked me off my feet.  Heat bursts, I learned, usually happen in the evening or nighttime as thunder storms decay.  This week is predicted to be even hotter.  Good weather to stay in and stitch.

 

Part of my sewing time last week was spent prepping little applique circles for the group project.  They certainly aren’t perfect, but I’m calling them done.  After they are stitched down I go back and use a moist cotton swab to get rid of the excess starch. This is the last bit to do before handing it over to a kind friend who agreed to embroider the stems.  It’s been decades since I embroidered.

 

Now that log cabin blocks are off my design wall, I was able to pin it up.  It’s a long way from done, but I’m really liking it.

 

Another turtle rescue happened last week.  It’s as big as the first one, but I don’t think it was the same turtle.

This and That

Whenever possible, I spend my Tuesdays sewing with a group of friends.  I joined the group in 2007 when a local quilt shop let us meet there.  Since then, the quilt shop has closed and we continue to meet in spaces we rent.  By our estimate we moved into this space in August 2015.  The group has lost and gained members over the years.  Some of our members are winter Texans.  Our Christmas gathering usually has about 12 in attendance. This Tuesday I wore a t-shirt that makes a statement and worked on a group applique project.

I’m closing in on a finish.  Just a few tiny circles and some embroideries are left.  I can probably foist the embroidery part onto a friend, but no one is interested in doing the tiny circles for me.  I really, really want to finish this so I can spend more time on my own projects!

Today is Flag Day.  I purchased this pre-planted arrangement at the garden center and have it positioned by our front door.  When the flag has faded, I will be able to replace it with something else.

Every year turtles manage to trap themselves inside our fence.  The dogs alerted me to his presence this morning and I was able to rescue him.  I don’t know enough about turtles to say whether this is a “him” looking for love or a “her” seeking a place to deposit her eggs.  I only know our yard with its two dogs is not a place for either.

 

A Small Finish

It took far more effort than I expected, but my foundation pieced block assignment for the guild’s donation quilt is finally finished.  I already had my workstation set up for paper piecing and expected to make short work of this.  I had forgotten, however, how challenging paper piecing triangle shapes are for me.  I finally had it done and up on the design wall for a picture….

 

…Wait, that’s not right!  The only comfort was, the mistake was in the instructions and not my work.  Fortunately it was where I could get to it and correct it.

  

…much better.  The block is called Crown of Thorns and we were instructed to leave the paper in and not to do the final trim.

 Our thermometer registered 102 degrees yesterday and despite what the graphic below shows, will probably reach 100 degrees again today.  At 1:30 we are already at 97.9 degrees.  The rest of the week looks pretty hot too.

We are expecting company for Father’s Day, so I am in house-cleaning mode this week.