Squirrel!

Have you seen the movie "Up"?  Such as sweet movie and Dug the dog cracked me up. It is definitely a must-see movie for anyone of all ages.  If you haven't seen the movie, Dug has a "translation collar" so humans can understand dog barks.  In the movie, Dug is talking and all of a sudden he will get distracted and say "Squirrel!" and look off screen. It has become a joke in our house whenever someone (me) is talking and someone else (S.) is distracted or not listening and I'll say "Squirrel!" 

Well along with all my other quilting plans and goals for 2011, all of a sudden Anne of Bunny Hill Designs pops up in my email inbox with another great Block of the Month!
Squirrel! 

It really is a squirrel and a super cute one at that (and you were wondering where this post was going ;).  I *may* have to start this BOM also.  I have a stash of wool for the applique and I'm sure I can find some comparable fabric around here somewheres.

I have Anne's previous two years of BOMs printed out and saved although not started yet.  At least I'll print this one out every month too. This one is only 10 months long...
Squirrel!!!!

Weekend Wrap Up a Day Late

Well I meant to post this yesterday but didn't get a chance. It was a Thimbles weekend which means five hours of fun, inspiration, laughter, and more fun with the Silver Thimble Quilt club. See all the great show n' tell here at Pat's blog and more at Brenda's .

Sunday was Starbucks day and even though it was one of the most dreary, drizzly, damp, cold, miserable days ever, lots of people got out of bed and their cozy homes to visit SBux. Thanks, I think? Personally I would have stayed home and nothing would have gotten me to leave. I planned on sewing all afternoon when I finally got home and was mid-block, literally, sewing the middle part of a block, when E. had a boredom emergency and *had* to go to the movies right away. (BTW: the siren for a boredom emergency is waaaaaaahhhhh waaaaaahhhh). So I left the poor half-sewn block and S. and I dashed off to save E. from boredom. We saw the movie "2012" and it was a rather predictable end-of-the-planet disaster movie (think "Independence Day" but with earthquakes and tsunamis instead of aliens. The CGI effects were spectacular though and I really think the computer effects people should get top billing for this one because without the effects it would be a poor-storyline-with-overly-dramatic-acting movie.

Anyway I was thinking about the whole 2012-thing (the premise being that the world will self-destruct on December 21, 2012) and realized what a great excuse this could be for not doing housework. Start around the middle of 2011 and say "oh why do deep cleaning/reorganizing/ purging the attic/basement/whole house/pantry when the world is going to end as we know it in a year and a half." And spend all that extra time quilting. And when someone (most likely a man) says "why are you spending so much time quilting when the world is going to end in a year and a half and no one will need quilts?" Look at them blankly like that is the silliest thing you have ever heard of. Do you think this will work? Do you think that maybe the Mayans had it wrong and the planet won't self-destruct from earthquakes and tsunamis but by giant mutant dust bunnies? (remember you heard it here first)

Oh and to prepare, you need to start stocking up on more fabric now, before it's too late.

Silver Thimbles Report, BOMs, and Henry V

I'm watching Henry V. I love me some Shakespeare. I think if I were stranded on a deserted island and could only have one book, I would choose my copy of The Riverside Shakespeare.

Yesterday was our monthly Silver Thimble club meeting. Here is the super fabulous new pattern by Pat and a kit to make the quilt.
As you can see, mine is still sealed in the bag because I need to finish the projects I'm working on now before I dive into this one.

I forgot to bring my camera and take photos but Pat has some great ones on her blog.

My latest project is these wonderful elongated nine-patches made from Moda's "Wildflower Serenade". The pattern is by Heather Mulder Peterson.


I received both of my BOMs in the mail on Saturday and made them today.
Here is the September block from Little Quilts
and
block #4 from the Fat Quarter Shop's 2009 mystery BOM.

I can't believe the weekend is over with already. How did it go by so fast???!!!?? It will be a short week for me as I have another Furlough Friday....

Movie Review: Julie & Julia

S. surprised me yesterday by whisking me off (pun intended) to see Julie & Julia after work.
We both LOVED the movie. It was a funny, entertaining, all around great movie. A timeless kind of of movie that reminded me how fun movies can be (think of 1930s and 1940s movies).

Meryl Streep is amazing, beyond amazing. Just go ahead and give her the Oscar now.

Saturday with Harry

Harry Potter that is. I dragged S. to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince with me this afternoon. Two movies at the theater in two week--I'm livin' big, let me tell you! I had to see HP at the theater though on the big screen. (I have them all on DVD too.) HP & tHBP was another great movie in the series.

I also went to Melisa's in the morning. I saw Cindi there but missed Karin, who must have been waiting for Melisa to open the doors at 10AM. Bought a few things. I'll post a photo tomorrow. Now I'm off to cut up some fabric.

Furlough Friday #1

Today's furlough day is sponsored by Gov. Perdue. Hey gov, why aren't you taking a furlough day?????? What no shared sacrifice?
So in honor of not getting paid today, I went to the movies because that's what everyone did during the Great Depression. S., E., and I went to see Public Enemies. The last movie I saw at the theater was Defiance. So I was really looking forward to overpriced popcorn and Coke.
It was a GREAT movie. Although not entirely historically accurate, I highly recommend it. I may be biased though because I highly recommend all Johnny Depp movies. I also love gangster movies. Being so predisposed to liking it--I LOVED this movie. I can't wait for it to come out on DVD. Johnny Depp in 1930s clothes, driving 1930s cars, and toting big guns--what else can a girl want?

Daylight Savings Time...

is for the birds. Or owls or whatever is up at dark-thirty (as my friend Karin says) when I had to get up to go to Starbucks. That would be 4:15 AM the old time, the time my body thought it was, the time it still feels like, I can't just magically switch times can you? Anyway, since I "lost" an hour of sleep, I had to come home and take a 2 hour nap to make up for it. Nothing much else is going on here. After I woke up, I watched the movie "Body of Lies" (a Ridley Scott movie with Russell Crowe and Leonardo Di Caprio), which was really good. I am working on a wool BOM, which has become a block every 6 months I think, so I'm getting back on track with that project. Also, I need to prep blocks for the Bunny Hill "A Tisket A Tasket" BOM. I'm three months behind on that one--oh wait make that three months and an hour hahahaha! Photos tomorrow.

Signs and Silliness

Still not much going on here. I did sew most of the afternoon yesterday and hope to get another quilt top done by the end of next weekend. I started to watch the movie "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" but I guess I worked too much this past week and even Brad Pitt couldn't keep me awake and I fell asleep during the first 10 minutes. Has anyone seen this movie? Should I attempt to watch it again?

It was nice and rainy and cloudy earlier today which reminded me of...

can you guess...

Seattle!

I keep forgetting to post these funny signs for my friend & fellow Starbucks partner David. Every time I talk about moving to Seattle, David cautions me about the Big Tsunami that is supposed to hit Washington State sometime in the next billion years. I think David has watched Mega-Disasters about 20 too many times. Anyway I took this picture for David to show him that Washington State has the tsunami danger under control. If a tsunami comes, you do this:
I can't tell if you should run or climb...but the directions are clear.

There was this helpful sign on the ferry boat. In case you fall overboard or are swept out to sea by a tsunami, this is how you are rescued. By being grasped and pulled up by your neck and apparently only a small, short boat can help you. The boat on the sign looks nothing like the huge car ferry so I'm not sure what you do in that case....

Also, on the Pacific coastal beaches I saw this sign:
Wow! Beach logs kill! I had no idea there were vicious beach logs there. I used extra caution and stayed away from the logs and thankfully no beach logs sneaked up on me from behind. Click on the photo for a close up of the crazy-scary drawing on this sign. Love it!! Looks like 50s drive-in movie poster Killer Beach Logs!!!!! When Beach Logs Attack!!!!

A Waiting Wednesday

Well I am home today waiting to hear about Morticia. I took her in this AM for X-rays so the vet can determine why she has a large lump on the side of of her nose and will go pick her up this afternoon. Poor sweet Tish.

I have finished two books this week already: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, which is the selection for my book club, and Winding Ways Quilt, the latest Elm Creek Quilts book. I have three more books "on deck" from the library. Like my friend Becky, I was horrified reading about foot binding in Snow Flower. Made my feet hurt reading about it. Also makes you realize how horrible life was for women during much of China's history. The book was good, but didn't really delve into the historical events happening around the main characters as much as I would have liked. I thought Memoirs of a Geisha was much better at explaining the culture and history. Winding Ways was a nice light read, much like the other books. I always wonder why someone hasn't purchased a huge old mansion and turned it into a retreat like in the book. I would sign up in a heartbeat!

Next up in the reading list are some other light reads. I usually read a lot of nonfiction, history, and biographies. For one long spell I read Breach of Faith by Jed Horne, Fiasco by Thomas Ricks, The Greatest Story Ever Sold by Frank Rich, Blackwater by Jeremy Scahill, The One Percent Doctrine by Ron Suskind, and The Long Road Home by Martha Raddatz (I'm probably on some FBI list now LOL!). I think I am reading more fiction nowadays for the same reason screwball comedies were so popular during the 1930s and 1940s--the news/economy is just too bleak and I need some escapism. Hmm maybe some Cary Grant movies would be good for the weekend...

Speaking of Cary Grant, George Clooney (who has been called the Cary Grant of the present) was fabulous in the movie Michael Clayton. This was not a "light" movie but it had an original story, excellent cinematography, and great acting. I liked it so much, I watched it again with the director's commentary. After seeing this, I definitely think Tilda Swinton deserved her Oscar and the movie got so many nominations. One of the best films I've seen lately. I liked it better than No Country for Old Men. Also sort of watched Valley of Elah. Not a good movie in my opinion and the only saving grace was Tommy Lee Jones and Susan Sarandon.

Off to get something accomplished and more waiting.

Post-Easter post

Missed posting yesterday so I hope everyone had a great Easter. I worked at Starbucks all day. We were really busy (not busy like the infamous Easter which is forever known as "Die Bunny Die day" by those who worked that day but busy nonetheless). Guess everyone wanted coffee to go with their Easter candy. Holidays always make me think of holiday dinners at grandma's house. I can tell you what all my relatives in the North were having--ham, homemade rolls, my aunt's jello salad, mashed potatoes or maybe sweet potato casserole with mini-marshmallows, green bean casserole or corn casserole or both, and at least 2 homemade desserts. I had (get ready for this) EASTER PASTA! It was all that was in the pantry. Definitely NOT the same...

Did not finish borders on the quilt I was working on Friday. Did some wool applique though while watching movies. Saw 2 movies this weekend--"No Country for Old Men" and "The Painted Veil". Really liked "No Country" because A) it was a Coen brothers movie and B) the acting was great and C) it captured Cormac McCarthy's storytelling--bleak, stark Western landscapes, ambiguous, no happy ending for anyone. "The Painted Veil" was mostly a disappointment even though it starred Edward Norton and Naomi Watts. It was overly long, could have used some heavy editing, and was predictable in my opinion. I also have been watching "John Adams" on HBO. It's a good series. I especially like Abigail Adams' character played by Laura Linney.

Finished reading Stephen King's latest book Duma Key. Loved it! It was one of his better books that he has written lately. I have read nearly every book he has written (I think he is up to 40 or something). I'm behind on the Dark Tower series but may start over with those. Anyway the theme of Duma Key is exploring the source of art and inspiration with a Stephen King twist. I am now reading a novel called Serpent's Tale about a medieval woman who studies forensics (!) Rather far fetched but readable.

Movie reviews

Due to the cold weather, I have spent more time than usual curled up on the couch with quilts and various cats watching movies. Some good and some not so good and one great.

Good:
"3:10 to Yuma" --I really liked this movie. It was much better than some of the reviews I read. Of course you can't go wrong with Russell Crowe.

"Casino Royale"--I had my doubts but Daniel Craig was a good choice. (Connery is still the best). I am really glad they are going for a more serious tone. Kind of a darker movie--suits the times. Has anyone read the books? I remember reading the whole series by Ian Fleming as a kid.

Not so good:
"War" --With Jason Statham and Jet Li, I thought this was going to be good or at least a fun action movie. Unfortunately it was really a waste of time--bad acting, plot, everything.

Great (although not for the faint of heart):
"Shoot 'Em Up" --With Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti. My new favorite movie--it is just too cool(I really need to get this on DVD & watch it again). If you like John Woo movies, you will love this. Clive Owen's character reminds me of his role in "Sin City". If you don't like movie violence, pass this up because about 50-11 people get shot in the first few minutes.

Happy Holidays

Sorry for the couple days without a post. WOW have I been busy busy busy. Here's what's been going on:

Saturday--a day off so hung out at home and watched the movie "Stardust" with S and E. Great movie. See it when you need a little mood lift. Sweet and funny and a great story similar to
"The Princess Bride." Based on the book by my favorite author Neil Gaiman.

Later on Saturday, I went with the SBux gang to see "Sweeney Todd." I don't even like musicals and I loved this movie. It's very grim and dark. It was fabulous. Can't wait to get the DVD and see it again.

Sunday--went by in a blur. Worked at SBux all day and we were busy. One of our regular customers gave us a $100 tip. Wow! Some people are so very nice and generous and probably will never know how much that extra money will help all the baristas. Came home exhausted and slept most of the rest of the day and went to bed early. I think I could sleep for a week straight....

Monday, Christmas Eve--Worked a very loooooong shift at SBux. We were crazy busy--seriously crazy busy. No breaks, nothing to eat, crazy crazy day.

Number of quad venti organic carmel macchiatos = THREE! (that's 12 shots of espresso and a fair amount of sugar--gotta keep going somehow)

Glad we closed early but still took forever to get the store cleaned up and closed. Got home late. Ate some soup at 9:30, watched part of "A Christmas Story" (I don't know if I've ever seen the whole movie even though it's on a zillion times each year....) So tired but couldn't sleep (imagine that!)

And here we are at Tuesday, Christmas-- drinking coffee, the cats have opened and played with their presents and are now asleep. I have a little while before I go to SBux for another loooooong shift. I hope things aren't quite as busy today and am soooooo glad we are closing at 6:00 pm. I'll call the family when I get home. Merry Christmas everyone!