Vintage Stars

September 16, we visited the Garden of Quilts at Thanksgiving Point with our middle son and his kids. There weren’t many other children there – not surprising, as they charged the full adult price for anyone 3 and over. (Yikes!) We had a lovely time feeding koi in Monet Lake. The kids pointed out quilts they liked, and we discussed how pieced quilts differ from applique. Then we headed to the waterfall amphitheater café for lunch. In years past, the thing I’ve enjoyed most is trying to find quilts I’ve made among the hundreds on display in the 50-acre park. This year, I hadn’t submitted any, so I wasn’t looking. Imagine my surprise and delight when we crested the hill and came face-to-face with the log cabin quilt I’d donated to Stitching Hearts Worldwide in November. I’d assumed it had gone to a refugee last winter, but they’d decided to sell it and use the proceeds to help refugees instead. 

Six-Inch Honeymoon

 

I’m currently working on a reverse bucket list – a record of things already accomplished. To create one is to look back over your life and catalog events that mean the most to you; that make you who you are. Mine’s by no means complete, but it looks something like this:

Fell in hopelessly in love with a guy who really annoys me. We’ve been annoying each other more than 45 years now. I’m up for at least another 45.

Conceived, carried and gave birth to four wonderful people. It’s been my daily privilege to watch them as they grow.

Seen some 23 thousand sunrises and sunsets – some in Alaska and some in Florida. Some were in Europe, and some at sea with no land in sight.

Lived in eight homes I called my own. Swept their floors, cooked in their kitchens, and slept in their beds. Loved them all, and I’m ready to start loving number nine.

Nine-Inch Honeymoon

 

I’ve shared so many ice cream recipes here, I can’t believe I never added this one. I make it ALL THE TIME. Just last weekend, I baked an apple pie for dessert after Sunday dinner. How can you serve apple pie without vanilla ice cream?

 

Simple Vanilla Ice Cream

 

1 cup whole milk (I use 2%, and it works just fine.)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

Just a pinch of salt

2 cups heavy cream

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract (This is important! Don’t substitute!)

 

Whisk all ingredients together until sugar is completely dissolved. If the mixture isn’t fresh-from-the-fridge cold, chill it for an hour or two until it is. Place it in your ice cream maker and process according to directions 20 to 25 minutes, or until thickened. If you like your ice cream soft, you can serve it immediately. Or, you can harden it in the freezer in about an hour.

Twelve-Inch Honeymoon

 

Bucket lists – inventories of the things we want to accomplish before we kick the bucket – are popular, and understandably so. They’re fun to construct and to pursue. But it might be more productive to create a tally of things we DON’T want to do during our lifetime – an anti-bucket list, if you will. Here’s mine so far:

Wear a tattoo. They’re painful, they’re practically permanent, and they don’t improve with age.

Take up smoking, or any other addictive substance. Seriously, how dumb would you have to be to start?

Have a divorce. Where there’s abuse, addiction or adultery, divorce may be the only recourse. But it sure doesn’t look like fun.

Get into credit card debt. I own a credit card, for emergencies. I use it VERY sparingly, and pay it off before interest is involved.

Go sky diving, hang-gliding, bungee jumping, skate boarding, or ice fishing. And I hope to never go snowmobiling ever again!

Six-Inch Bow Ties

 

One of my favorite desserts is German chocolate cake: a layered milk chocolate cake filled and topped with coconut-pecan frosting. (Have you ever noticed when people are asked about their favorite cake, they describe the frosting? Maybe cake, after all, is only a means to convey frosting.) I’d always assumed German chocolate cake is so named because it came from Germany. It’s actually from Dallas. In 1957, a homemaker named Mrs. George Clay crafted the recipe using a baker’s chocolate developed in 1853 by Samuel German. She called her cake “German’s Chocolate Cake.” Her creation appeared as the recipe of the day in the Dallas Morning News. General Foods, which owned the brand of chocolate in question, submitted the recipe to several other publications across the country, and sales of their baker’s chocolate rose by 73%. At some point, the apostrophe in German’s Chocolate Cake was lost. Maybe we should call it Texan Chocolate Cake.

Nine-Inch Bow Ties

 

“An incredible demonstration of the Savior’s love for God’s children is recorded in the Book of Mormon: ‘When Jesus had thus spoken, he cast his eyes round about on the multitude, and beheld they were in tears, and did look steadfastly upon him as if they would ask him to tarry a little longer.’ The Savior had already spent a full day ministering to the people. Yet He had more to do. He discerned the people desired for Him to tarry a little longer. Then, with the Savior’s heart full of compassion, one of the greatest miracles in the history of the world occurred: He stayed. He blessed them. He ministered to their children one by one. He prayed for them; He wept with them. And He healed them. His promise is eternal: He will heal us. To those who have strayed from the covenant path, please know there is always hope, there is always healing, and there is always a way back.” – Elder K. Brett Nattress

Ten-Inch Bow Ties

 

When I was a little girl, my grandma warned me never to use a phone during a thunderstorm. For years, I thought she was just being paranoid. Surely, phone lines are shielded from lightning strikes, right? I was wrong. Every year, a couple of people in this country die because they were talking on a land line during a thunderstorm. You’ll probably see that number decrease, not because land lines are becoming safer, but because they’re becoming so rare. You can, of course, talk on your cell phone during a storm – as long as it’s not currently charging. (Hah.) Other indoor activities that put you in danger during an electrical storm are bathing, washing dishes, or using any kind of electrical equipment. And here’s one I’d never have guessed: Don’t lie on concrete floors or lean against concrete wall when there’s thunder. Lightning can travel through any metal wires or bars, including the rebar in concrete.

Twelve-Inch Bow Ties

 

Barbara Sinatra told a story about the night she and her husband Frank attended a dinner party. Frank had slipped into a guest room to collect a pack of cigarettes from his overcoat when he surprised producer Arthur Hornblow on the phone. Arthur was talking to his mother, Susie, a Yankees fan who was in poor health, in Florida. Frank asked to speak with her. “Is this really Frank Sinatra?” she asked. “I love your voice.” "Well, I love your voice too, Susie," Frank replied. "Tell you what: I'm going to call you every Saturday night at six o'clock, and we'll chew over the Yankees' performance.” According to Barbara, he kept his promise, never missing a Saturday until the day Susie died. He even sent her flowers on Mother’s Day, along with all the other widowed mothers in her care center. Susie Hornblow was one of several lonely women Frank Sinatra called on a regular basis. 

Six-Inch Flashing Pinwheels

 

September 18, the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World had an unusual visitor: a female adult black bear. She was spotted late Monday morning, up a tree in the northwest quadrant of the park. To ensure the safety of guests and cast members, all nearby attractions were temporarily shut down: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, the Hall of Presidents, Liberty Square Riverboat, A Pirate’s Adventure, Tom Sawyer Island, and the Walt Disney World Railroad. By lunchtime the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission had matters well in hand. They sedated the wayward bear and relocated her in the nearby Ocala National Forest. The rangers said the bear was likely drawn to the area in search of food as she prepares for winter hibernation, but I’m not buying it. I think anyone who wears a thick fur coat in Florida is more likely to sleep through the summer than the winter. And she was probably there for the churros.

Nine-Inch Flashing Pinwheels

 

Have you ever used lemon juice as invisible ink? It isn’t hard. Squeeze juice from a lemon into a small bowl, add a few drops of water and stir. Dip a Q-tip into the juice and use it like a pen to write a message on clean, white paper. When the paper dries, the message should be invisible. All you have to do is hold it near a warm light bulb for the “ink” to reappear. In 1995, a man named McArthur Wheeler robbed two Pittsburgh banks in broad daylight, without a mask. He even smiled at security cameras as he did. He was arrested and charged later that same day. McArthur was dumbfounded when police showed him video evidence of his crimes. “But I wore the juice,” he said. McArthur believed rubbing lemon juice on his face would make him invisible, as long as he stayed away from heat sources. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Ten-Inch Flashing Pinwheels

 

In 2001, Richard Batista’s wife Dawnell was suffering from kidney disease. She was one of 92,000 Americans waiting for a new kidney. Luckily for Dawnell, Richard was a tissue match. He was happy to donate one of his kidneys. The transplant was successful, and Dawnell’s health improved immensely. “And they lived happily ever after,” right? Not exactly. A few years later, the Batistas’ marriage deteriorated. Dawnell filed for divorce in 2005. Richard made an unusual demand: return his kidney, or pay $1.5 million. He argued that he’d agreed to the organ donation on the expectation of a lifetime of love and companionship which he was now being denied. It almost sounds reasonable, but the courts disagreed. It was ruled that organs (in the United States, at least) may not be bought or sold for any price, and donating one is considered a gift. Poor Richard ended up losing both his wife and his kidney.

Twelve-Inch Flashing Pinwheels

 

“The Lord Jesus Christ lives today. He can be an active, daily presence in our lives. He is the solution to our problems, but we must lift our eyes and raise our sights to see Him. He has said, ‘Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.’ As we focus on Him and our Father in Heaven, make and keep covenants with Them, and make Them the most important influence in our home and family, we will become the kind of people President Nelson envisioned: ‘A people who are able, ready, and worthy to receive the Lord when He comes again, a people who have already chosen Jesus Christ over this fallen world, a people who rejoice in their agency to live the higher, holier laws of Jesus Christ.’” - Milton Camargo

Summer Flower

 

“The Prophet Joseph had been teaching about baptism for the dead. This was indeed a glorious revelation that was received with great joy. When Church members first learned that they could be baptized for their deceased loved ones, they rejoiced. Wilford Woodruff said, ‘The moment I heard of it, my soul leaped for joy!’ Baptism for our deceased loved ones wasn’t the only truth the Lord would reveal and restore. There were a host of other gifts, or endowments, that God had been eager to bestow upon His sons and daughters. These other gifts included priesthood authority, covenants and ordinances, marriages that could last forever, the sealing of children to their parents within the family of God, and ultimately the blessing of returning home to the presence of God, our Heavenly Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ. All these blessings were made possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.” - Elder Kevin R. Duncan

Wheel of Fortune

 

If you’ve never travelled outside the U.S. – and if you’re American, chances are you haven’t – you have no idea how weird you are. You’ve no way of knowing how very LOUD you are in public places, whether you’re screaming at your kids in the park (while they scream back), or chatting boisterously with friends at a restaurant. You don’t know how odd it is to expect free public restrooms and free drink refills absolutely everywhere, or to assume tax and a tip will be added on top of every advertised price. You don’t realize everyone else in the civilized world removes their shoes when they enter a house (it isn’t just the Japanese, it’s everyone but YOU) and uses the metric system. You don’t know everyone else calls tomorrow 10/09/2023, and not 09/10/2023. And if you’re one of the more than two-thirds of Americans who don’t even own a passport, it’s likely you never will.

2023 State Fair Quilt Challenge

 

Heather and I (and Heather’s wheelchair) had several errands to run Thursday morning, but we managed to finish most of them by 10:30. We took the blue train downtown, grabbed a couple of salmon tacos for lunch, and hopped the green train to the state fair park. There were several people waiting to buy tickets at the gate, but the Internet connection in the ticket booth wasn’t working. We stood in full sun half an hour (most of us had clearly dressed for air conditioning) before the attendant realized she had a pen and several pieces of paper. She could take cash and write tickets! We made a beeline to the building where home arts are displayed, but it wasn’t open. A harried woman at the door said they’d “had issues” and likely wouldn’t open at all that day. I felt like sitting down and crying. Instead, I asked permission to dart inside and take a single photo.

Envelope Star

Today is “Neither Rain nor Snow Day,” a day to celebrate the opening of the New York City Post Office Labor Day, September 7, 1914. The name comes from an inscription chiseled in granite on that building: “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night, stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” The building on the corner of Eighth Avenue and 33d Street in Manhattan was later named for James A. Farley, postmaster general. The inscription – which is not actually the motto of the U.S. Postal Service – comes from a translation of The Persian Wars by Herodotus, praising Persian mounted postal couriers in 500-449 B.C. It’s not an apt description of our current letter carriers. We’ve missed our mail more than a week now, because a traffic cone made it impossible for the mailman to reach our mailbox without getting out of his vehicle.

More Broken Promises

 

I’m sure you’ve heard of Betsy Ross, the woman credited with stitching the first official U.S. flag. (Most historians dismiss her story as an American myth, but it’s still fun to tell.) But do you know who designed the flag we fly today? His name was Robert (Bob) G. Heft. In 1959, when Bob was only seventeen, he designed a 50-star, 13-stripe flag as part of a high school project. Bob’s teacher gave him a B-. There are unsubstantiated rumors claiming his grade was changed to an A when Dwight D. Eisenhower selected his design out of 1,500 choices. Bob also designed a 51-star flag, for use if and when another state was added to the union. After college, Bob became a high school teacher and then a college professor. He was mayor of Napoleon, Ohio for 28 years. Bob lived with diabetes for many years. In 2009, he suffered a heart attack and died at the age of 67.

Sixteen Nine-Patch Blocks

 

In Sioux Falls there is a 45-acre zoological park. The Great Plains Zoo opened in 1963, and boasts a children's zoo, the penguin rookery, an aviary, a primate complex, and a 10-acre plains exhibit. In 1984, the Delbridge Museum of Natural History was added. Until last month, you could view more than 150 taxidermy animals there, including 38 from “vanishing species.” The animals had been collected from six continents and mounted in the mid-1900’s by a local businessman. Though the chemicals used to preserve animal skins before the 1980’s (arsenic is one) have long been known to be dangerous to humans, “do not touch” signs were always assumed to be enough protection. But as the specimens age, they’ve been releasing these chemicals into the air in dangerous quantities. The museum was closed in August, to protect employees and visitors alike. I can’t help but wonder how many other taxidermy displays should follow suit.

Washington Pavement

 

“In God’s perfect plan, suffering with faith in Christ is linked to our becoming perfected in Christ. Jesus did not speak of the possibility of rain and flood and wind in our lives; He spoke of the certainty that storms will arise. The variable in this parable is not whether storms will come but how we have responded to His loving invitation to both hear and do what He has taught. There is no other way to survive. When we have built our houses on the foundation of a covenantal relationship with Christ, we are trusting the doctrine of Christ, and as we come unto Him, we have His promise of eternal life. People who trust the doctrine of Christ press forward with steadfastness in Christ and endure to the end. There is no other way to be saved in the kingdom of heaven.” – Elder Evan A. Schmutz

Broken Promises

 

Black Bean Chili

 

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons chili powder

2 to 3 cans black beans, plus 1 cup of their liquid

1 (14-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes

1 (4-ounce) can green chiles, no need to drain

1 teaspoon maple syrup

Pepper to taste

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1/4 teaspoon cayenne, optional

 

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, 5 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and chili powder and cook, stirring, about one minute. Add the beans, bean liquid, tomatoes, green chiles, maple syrup, and a few grinds of pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chili has thickened. Stir in the lime juice and serve with lime wedges and desired toppings: chopped avocado, sour cream, tortilla chips, etc.

Fun with Dr. Seuss

 

The theme for this year’s Utah State Fair Quilt Challenge is “Whoopsy-Daisy.” The fabric all the contestants had to use is called Daisy Fields by Beverly McCullough for Riley Blake – little white daisies and tiny gold dots on a field of denim blue. It’s probably been out of print for over a year; at least I’ve found it devilishly hard to come by. I figured with a theme like, “Whoopsy-Daisy,” this quilt should include a deliberate mistake. So, I designed one. It shouldn’t be too hard to spot. I’d originally planned to stitch together a dozen or so of my favorite books by different authors. But this year, I was asked to play in the orchestra for Seussical the Musical. So, nearly all summer long, I had Horton the Elephant, Green Eggs and Ham, Gertrude McFuzz and the Cat in the Hat playing non-stop in my head. There really was no other way to go.