Twin Sisters

A week or two ago I read about the Playboy bunny who thought it would be witty to post a photo of an unsuspecting woman showering at the gym so she could publicly ridicule the woman’s not-quite-Playboy body. And I’ve been reading some of the vitriolic responses to her adolescent behavior. I’m not going to add to that here. I don’t really wish her ill. In fact, I wish her a long and eventful life; long enough for her to experience laugh lines and stretch marks, crow's feet and cellulite, sagging breasts and varicose veins, “love handles” and a muffin top, thick ankles and a double chin, a bit of facial hair and a well-placed surgical scar or two. And maybe – just maybe – a little compassion.

Classic

This is the twelfth and last Moda Frivol quilt. Or rather what I made with the contents of the tin. I’ve been looking forward to this one for months, ever since I saw it was going to be BLUE. I forced myself to finish the other eleven tops before starting it. I must confess to some disappointment when I finally did open the last tin. I’d assumed I could use the Quilt-in-a-Day method to make the flying geese that form the eight points of each little star. At the very least I expected to trim the flying geese with one of my many templates. The pattern (pictured below) calls for twenty-one 5” stars, which means 84 1.25x2.5” finished geese. I could have used my 1x2” template (144 times!) and made thirty-six 4” stars. Instead I used the 1.5x3” template and made fifteen 6” stars. I’m really happy with the result, and it only took a few afternoons.

Guam Block

George Rodriguez was working as a butcher at Tony’s Meat Market on Culebra Road in San Antonio when he met Ora Lee. After he served in the Marine Corps, George came home to San Antonio to marry his sweetheart. George and Ora Lee raised three daughters together. On June first they celebrated their fifty-eighth wedding anniversary. July 5th George passed away peacefully in his sleep. Three hours later his bride joined him. If this sounds familiar, it may be because I’ve written here before about couples who seem to depart mortality together. It’s a phenomenon that fascinates me. Stories like George and Ora Lee’s remind me of a quote from one of my favorite movies, Notting Hill: “Some people do spend their whole lives together.”

Federal Star

There’s a Waffle House on Beckley Avenue in DeSoto, Texas. Because people don’t just want waffles for breakfast, this place serves them all day and pretty much all night. And because the Waffle House wants its patrons to eat in peace, there’s a sign outside that says it’s a gun-free zone. After all, who wants to worry about gun-toting bad guys while eating waffles? But bad guys tend to ignore those signs. In fact, some actually choose gun-free zones so their bad behavior won’t get themselves shot. At 2:30 a.m. July 7, this sort of fellow walked in the Waffle House on Beckley. He waved his gun around and took money from the restaurant and from the waffle eaters. He must have felt pretty confident that he was the only one there ignoring the gun-free zone sign, but he wasn’t. He’s still on life support. The patron with the concealed carry permit wasn’t arrested. Because Texas.

Rolling Nine-Patch

Musician Fernando Llanos came up with the idea which was later adopted by Colombian architect Oscar Mendez. After several years of research Mendez managed to create building bricks out of discarded rubber and plastic. Like a life-size version of Lego bricks, Mendez’ creations are far greater than the sum of their parts. He uses the recycled bricks to make homes for the thousands of homeless men, women and children. Ravaged by years of civil war and by organized crime, Colombia has a serious poverty problem. Millions there are living in extreme want. Waste management is also an enormous issue there. “In Bogota alone,” Mendez says, “6,300 tons of waste is thrown into the landfill annually of which approximately 12% are plastics. Only 100 tons a year are recycled. We are recycling more of them to build hundreds of houses for displaced people.”

Americana Sampler

“Many voices in the world today marginalize the importance of having children or suggest delaying or limiting children in a family. My daughters recently referred me to a blog written by a Christian mother (not of our faith) with five children. She commented: ‘Growing up in this culture, it is very hard to get a biblical perspective on motherhood. Children rank way below college. Below world travel for sure. Below the ability to go out at night at your leisure. Below honing your body at the gym. Below any job you may have or hope to get.’ She then adds: ‘Motherhood is not a hobby, it is a calling. You do not collect children because you find them cuter than stamps. It is not something to do if you can squeeze the time in. It is what God gave you time for.’ - Elder Neil L. Andersen