Thirty-six Pinwheels

 

So many of my well-meaning friends have tried to share with me lists of local businesses I should support because they’re run by Asians or blacks or women. I know they’re trying to be helpful, but it seems a bit demeaning to me. It feels like there’s an unspoken message here; that these businesses have no hope of succeeding without my charity. I’d far rather have a list of companies striving for excellence: contractors who show up on time and actually get the job done; mechanics who charge what they said they would; and clean restaurants with better cooking than my own. Those are the establishments I want to support. If it just so happens their owners have ancestors from Singapore, or their skin has a bit more melanin than mine, or they have two X chromosomes, fine. Choosing to do business with someone because of their ethnicity or gender feels just as wrong as choosing not to.

Snowball Flower

 

I haven’t done tons of curved piecing. My first attempt was a Turkey Foot block in 2011. It wouldn’t lie flat, and deserved its place in the rubbish bin. There was a small Winding Ways quilt I finished in 2012. In 2016 my state fair challenge quilt had curved piecing. I liked it a lot more than the judges did. Last September I did a block called “Walking in Circles.” It turned out well, but never made it into the finished quilt. Today’s block was named “Snowball Flower” by a pattern distributor called Old Chelsea Station, very likely during the 1930’s. It came to me in an Australian quilt pattern by Sue Daley: “Freshly Picked.” Most of the prints I’m using are from her line, “Paper Daisies” for Riley Blake, which is very, very local. This attempt is a bit wonky. It was designed to be hand-pieced, but I’m determined to use my machine. Maybe I’ll improve with practice.

Where to Go?

 About two months after the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized, they held their first conference: June 9, 1830. Joseph Smith wrote, “Our numbers were about thirty, besides whom many assembled with us, either believers or anxious to learn. Having opened by singing and prayer, we partook of the emblems of the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. We proceeded to confirm several who had been baptized, after which we ordained several to various offices of the Priesthood. Much exhortation and instruction were given, and the Holy Ghost was poured out upon us.” The church still holds conference twice a year, in early April and October. The sacrament is no longer part of these gatherings (in fact, GATHERING hasn’t been part of the gatherings since autumn, 2019), but they are still rich in exhortation, instruction and the influence of the Holy Spirit. I eagerly await next week’s messages of hope and peace.

Four Dozen Churn Dash Blocks

 

You’ve probably never heard of Amanda Bagley. Even in Murray, Utah, there are no streets or libraries or parks named for her. But if you grew up in the Salt Lake valley, there’s a really good chance that you or your parents or grandparents owe her a debt of gratitude. A century ago, much of this valley was small farming or mining towns. Most mothers gave birth at home, not because they chose to, but because they had no other option. As president of the Cottonwood Stake Relief Society, Amanda witnessed first-hand the tragedy of mothers and babies lost when access to the proper care could have saved them. She and her counsellors went to the presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to ask for support for a maternity home. Hundreds of people were born at the Cottonwood Maternity Hospital between 1924 and 1963.

Windmill

James Doohan was Star Trek’s second-oldest cast member. (DeForest Kelley beat him by five weeks.) When he auditioned for the Enterprise’s engineer, he tried several accents. Gene Roddenberry asked him which accent he preferred, and Doohan replied, “In my experience the best engineers are Scotsmen.” So, he became Montgomery Scott, named for Doohan’s grandfather. “Scotty” inspired countless fans to become engineers, including Astronaut Neil Armstrong. He once received a letter from a fan, confessing she was suicidal. He called her and said, “I'm doing a convention in Indianapolis, and I want to see you there.” He arranged to meet her at every convention for the next three or four years – maybe 18 conventions. Eight years later he received another letter from her: “I want to thank you so much for what you did for me. I just got my master's degree in electronic engineering!” Doohan always said it was the best thing he ever did.

Starburst

 

At twenty-three, Tina Fey was working at the YMCA. Oprah was fired at twenty-three from her first reporting job. At twenty-four, Stephen King was a janitor living in a trailer. At twenty-eight, J.K. Rowling was a single parent on welfare. At thirty, Harrison Ford was a carpenter and Martha Stewart was a stockbroker. Julia Child released her first cookbook at thirty-nine and got her own cooking show at fifty-one. Vera Wang failed to make the Olympic figure skating team, didn’t achieve Editor-in-Chief at Vogue, and designed her first dress at forty. Stan Lee didn’t release his first big comic book until age forty. Alan Rickman gave up his graphic design career to pursue acting at forty-two. Samuel L. Jackson got his first movie role at forty-six. Morgan Freeman landed his first major role at fifty-two. Whatever your dream is, if you’re still breathing, it isn’t too late to achieve it. You aren’t a failure just because you haven’t succeeded yet.

Twenty-five Pinwheels

 

It’s been three weeks since Dr. Seuss’ birthday. I’ve had plenty of time to read Dr. Seuss Enterprises’ statement announcing the six books it has ceased printing: And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937), McElligot's Pool (1947), If I Ran the Zoo (1950), Scrambled Eggs Super! (1953), On Beyond Zebra (1955), and The Cat’s Quizzer (1976). I’ve also re-examined all six, and come to my own conclusions. For the other four, I think the publisher made the right decision; no one will miss them. But McElligot’s Pool and If I Ran the Zoo were Caldecott honor books. The American Library Association declared their excellence when they were first published. Caldecott books are generally published FOREVER. If I Ran the Zoo has one offensive illustration, and I can find nothing insensitive about McElligot’s Pool. Wouldn’t it have been better to print these two with a disclaimer like the one Disney uses for Dumbo and Peter Pan?