Cross Roads

Stitching Corner in South Orem is a block from the apartments we managed when John was at Brigham Young University. I believe when we were there the building housed a Kawasaki dealership. I wish it had been a quilt shop back then. I might have become a quilter years ago. The book they chose was The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. This shop had a lot for Heather to do. There was a fishing game where she won a pack of fancy buttons. In the back room she helped herself to three of her favorite treats: fresh popcorn, chocolate chip cookies and a green snow cone. Since she was occupied, I had some time to shop. I bought fabric to make a Buggy Barn quilt called Barn Raising. I’m pretty sure I’ve got the pattern at home. Even if I don’t, I’m sure I can use this fabric to make something fun.

All Aboard

Thimbles and Threads is the nearest quilt shop to my Draper home. When we lived there, I could walk the dog to Thimbles and Threads and leave him waiting patiently at the gate while I ran in for a pack of needles or a spool of thread. He knew he’d get a treat from The Dog’s Meow next door before we headed home. The book they chose was Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express. Their store was decorated with old suitcases, as if we were all about to take an exotic trip. Downstairs there was a large locked suitcase and a bowl of keys. If you chose the right key and opened the suitcase, you could take home one of the prizes inside. The lock looked very small to me, so I picked the tiniest key. It fit! I won a small package of fat quarters!

Queenie Beanie's Scraps

The book Village Dry Goods chose for the shop hop was The Persian Pickle Club by Sandra Dallas. I read this book about six years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. The story is about a circle of quilters in Kansas during the depression. The ladies called themselves Persian Pickle quilters after another name for a paisley print. I found the book to be a nice combination of humor, pathos and suspense. Village Dry Goods is on Main Street in Brigham City, just north of the almost-finished LDS temple. When we were there the front spire had been completed and work was being done on the back spire. This temple, the fourteenth in Utah, was announced in October General Conference the first year we were in England. A ground breaking ceremony was held last July. I’m not sure when the Brigham City temple will open, but it doesn't look far away.

Oh the Places You'll Go

June 15 through 18 was the Wasatch Front Quilt Shop Hop. I was sorry to miss the shop hop the last two years, so this year we timed our home leave so we could participate. If you visit all the shops during the four-day event, you can have your “passport” stamped at each one. Then you turn in your stamped passport to be eligible for a drawing to win some fun prizes. This year the shop hop theme was “The Greatest Quilt I Ever Read.” Each of the shops involved chose a favorite book and designed a block and a quilt to go with it. Whimsy Cottage chose Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss. They named their block “Oh the Places You’ll Go” after another Dr. Seuss book. The last time I visited Whimsy Cottage, they were at 23rd East and Phylden Drive. They’ve since moved north of the hole that used to be Cottonwood Mall.

Log Cabin

Yes, I did post a log cabin block back in March, but I couldn’t resist posting another on Log Cabin Day. Besides, this technically isn’t a log cabin block. It’s four log cabin blocks. On June 25, 1986 Virginia Handy of Michigan founded the Log Cabin Society. Her goal was to preserve existing log cabins and to promote awareness and education about the lifestyle they represent. A few hundred years ago, life in a log cabin was a very back-to-basics experience. An open fireplace provided heat and cooked meals. You could cool and ventilate the one-room or two-room space by opening doors and windows. Plumbing was a nearby stream and an outhouse in back. It’s a simpler way of life, but it’s not for me. I’m far too fond of modern conveniences like indoor plumbing and electrical lighting.

Flying Squares

I’m deep in jet lag today. The thing I hate is that it comes and goes. I’ll think, “I’m getting better now. The worst is over.” Then it sneaks up and hits me in the back of the head with a 2x4. I’ve tried everything I’ve heard will work. I try to adjust my internal clock a day or two before leaving. After I arrive I force myself to stay awake until it’s bedtime where I am. I drink a lot of water, because dehydration supposedly makes jet lag worse. As far as I can see, nothing really works. I’m still groggy and stupid. I wake up starving in the middle of the night and have no appetite at mealtimes. I can’t fall asleep at bedtime, but the moment I sit down I’m out like a light. If this post is a little incoherent, I apologize. I’m sure I’ll be myself again in another day or two. Or three.

Traveler's Star

When I was little, I used to watch horrible cartoons. I liked Mr. Peabody, Commander McBragg, Snaggle Puss, Dastardly and Muttley, Beanie and Cecil, The Flintstones and The Jetsons. You can catch most of them on YouTube today...if you really want to. The animation was pathetic and the puns were even worse. There was one cartoon with a turtle; I can’t remember its name. The turtle had a serious wanderlust, and he’d go to a wizard to be sent on one magical journey after another. Inevitably the dim-witted turtle got himself into a terrible predicament and shout, “Help me, Mr. Wizard!” The wizard would bring him back saying, “Twizzle, twazzle, twuzzle twome. Time for this one to come home.” Yes, it’s lame. But it rhymes. I could use a spell like that today. It would be much faster and simpler than two long airplane flights and a taxi ride. Not to mention cheaper.