Fox and Geese

In 1989 two movies showed police detectives battling crime with difficult dogs: K9 and Turner and Hooch. In 1995 we were treated to Babe and Gordy, featuring cute talking piglets who try to save their bacon. Two years later everyone ignored volcanologists' warnings in Dante’s Peak and Volcano. All life on Earth was threatened by huge asteroids in Armageddon and Deep Impact in 1998. That same year misfit ants tried to win the affection of their princesses in Antz and A Bug’s Life. Red Planet and Mission to Mars showed manned Mars landings going horribly wrong in 2000. In 2005 we saw animated zoo animals breaking free in Madagascar and The Wild. 2006, with Happy Feet and Surf’s Up, was clearly the year of the penguin. 2012 gave us two versions of the same fairy tale: Mirror, Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman. It seems to me that Hollywood works harder at imitation than innovation.

Four Double X Blocks

“Everyone can have a prayer in his or her heart while walking the dog, driving to work, waiting in a doctor’s office, standing in line at the theatre, or lying in bed trying to fall asleep. One of the best ways for a person’s heart to be drawn to God continually is to spend time identifying those things for which one is grateful. While walking the dog, one is grateful for the ability to walk or the beauty of local surroundings. While driving to work, one is thankful for the physical ability to judge distances. In the doctor’s office, one can express gratitude for the progress of medical science. In line at the theatre one can appreciate his or her uniqueness as a child of God among the billions of His children. While struggling to fall asleep, one can be grateful that the mattress is soft and that there is safety and security inside a warm house.” – Jeffrey R. Young

Cut the Corners

Maybe you’ve never heard the term before, but I guarantee you’ve seen it. You may have even done it yourself. Manspreading is a new word, having been added to the Oxford Dictionary only last week. It’s what happens when a guy sits with splayed legs or stretched arms (occasionally all four limbs are involved) in a crowded area like an airport terminal or a passenger train, effectively hogging space that could accommodate three or four people. It’s a sort of passive-resistant misogyny, whether deliberate or unconscious. It’s the first word that came to mind when I read about the 17-year-old transgender student in Missouri who has “identified as a female” since age 13. The school tried to accommodate his needs with a gender-neutral restroom, but he insists on using the girls’ bathrooms and dressing rooms. It seems to me that he could have found no more effective way of proving to the world just how male he really is. 

Sage Bud

Today’s block is a classic from the 1870's. I stumble across the design all the time in quilt shops and antique stores, and in books about quilts or quilters. It comes in a pieced version with straight lines (like the one pictured here) and in an appliqued version with curved lines (I actually tried to make one once with horrifying results). Like most traditional blocks, it has many names: Turkey Tracks, Turkey Foot, Wandering Foot, Bird of Paradise, Rosebud and Bible Tulip are just a few. I’m usually quite fond of old-fashioned blocks, but this one isn’t my favorite. Something about it seems somehow awkward and inelegant. I’ve made this block several times with different colors and values, but I’m never quite satisfied. I’m beginning to think it’s just a matter of proportion. If the center square was smaller than it is, and the four “feet” in the corners were larger, I think I’d like it better. Back to the drawing board!

Everybody Wants to Be a Cat

This is the ninth year I’ve participated in the Utah State Fair Quilt Challenge. The rules are simple: Use at least half of the fat quarter provided (18x22”) in the front of a 24x36” (or smaller) wall hanging. Provide a hanging sleeve and dowel, and a label with my name, the quilt’s name and year. Every bit of the quilt – from the original design to the final stitch in the binding – must be my own work. This last little detail makes the challenge both difficult and rewarding. Ten years ago I’d never designed, quilted, bound or labeled a single quilt. I smile when I look back on my first few entries and think how far I’ve come. Perhaps the most difficult part of the challenge is that the quilt must be turned in ON TIME. I’ll probably be riding Trax to the fairgrounds today, so I can add the last few stitches in transit.

Next Door Neighbor

Guests at the lodges in Yellowstone National Park are offered a form that says, “We strive to do everything possible to make your stay enjoyable. If for any reason this room or cabin needs the attention of our maintenance or housekeeping departments, we’d like to know so we can work towards correcting it.” A recent guest left the following comment: “Our visit was wonderful but we never saw any bears. Please train your bears to be where guests can see them. This was an expensive trip to not get to see bears.” It’s a shame the guest declined to include a name or any contact information. I’d like to suggest a different venue for their next vacation. There are at least 700 grizzlies in Yellowstone, and all of them prefer to keep their distance from tourists. There are only 18 bears at the Country Bear Jamboree in the Magic Kingdom. But none of them are camera shy.

Tiny Double X

Last week we took a four day trip to Disneyland. Three of those four days my favorite ride, the Mad Tea Party, was down for what cast members called “long overdue maintenance.” The one day it was up and running we made a beeline for the spinning teacups. Noon was still a few hours away, but it was already 98 degrees in the shade. So we were more than a little startled to see the ride’s operator was wearing one of the long Fantasyland overcoats normally reserved for January or February. We asked him about it, and he smiled and said, “No sun on me!” At the time I’d thought that he was either simple minded or just plain crazy. But that evening, as I was spreading aloe vera gel on my bright red neck and arms, I began to wonder if we hadn’t witnessed pure genius.