Bargello Quilt Number One

I bought this quilt kit in Colorado and pulled it out while I was visiting Val.  I was able to sew all the strips together after cutting them all.

The leftovers I left for Val so she could use the remainder.  I brought it all home to finish and it languished for a while as I didn't quite know how to follow the instructions.

It seems this pattern comes from Cozy Quilts in San Diego and when I searched on Youtube, I was able to find an instructional video.

I cut the stripes according to the pattern and then set about putting it together. It was a bit tedious but the result was pretty cool.  After quilting and binding, the quilt went to Amy.

Saori Loom

Awhile back, I saw a Saori loom in person and I thought it was pretty cool.  However, I already had some looms and didn't need another one.  After a few years, and some unloading, I got one of these looms and it has been a joy to weave on.  I can use up all of my leftovers and have no idea how things are going to turn out.

I ended up going up to Los Angeles and Laura's studio to test one out.  She had a little class where I got to weave some on a loom.

I ended up bringing one home which Laura was nice enough to have dressed already so all I needed to do was to weave on it.

The test cloth was worked on for quite a while and I was finally able to finish it.

It took me a while to get the next warp on and it was super challenging as I didn't quite know what to do.  I had to buy the book after redoing it multiple times and ending up with excess length even though it is a pre-wound warp.

I believe it is ready to go now.

New Restaurants in PB

Jon and Karen took me to a new place called Tacos Mimi in Pacific Beach for some street tacos.  I ordered an asada and a fish taco and then we went right next door and got some detroit pizza from Square Pizza.

There is negligible seating area but we were in luck as we were really the only ones seated at Square Pizza and the tacos were delivered to our table there too.

The pizza was super thick and I'm not a huge fan of deep dish so I wasn't too sure but since the pieces are square and the edges are crispy, it was super good as the consistency of the dough was very similar to french bread.  Very airy and light and very tasty.

The tacos were bite size but perfect for a lighter meal.

Not too expensive as each was $2.50.  There are two sauces (red and green) but both were hot so I just had the tacos with the lime.  Delicious.  I definitely will be back for more.  Parking is pretty challenging here though but there are paid lots around.

Friendsgiving

It is always great to get together with friends for thanksgiving.  Everyone brings food to share and then we all share in the food.

This year was a smaller group but the food was just as good.

No turkey this year, just honey baked ham.  Rolls of course.

Toni's family mac n cheese and Shiela's sweet potatoes with marshmallows and Eric's longganisa.

Jon's famous Brussels sprout salad.

Only one plate for me with no seconds, but I was totally full.

Of course, Karen had pumpkin pie with spiced whipped cream.  Missed taking a photo of the whole pie and before I knew it, it was all consumed.

Great dinner with great friends.  Thanks for another year.

Thankful

It is time to reflect and be thankful for so much.  I have so much in comparison to so many.  Most important being health.  Even though I am working through some challenges, it makes me take a breath to appreciate each moment that goes by.  I am able to get out of bed and eat breakfast; I can sit at home working most of the day without any of the bother of office politics; I can take my dogs out for a walk in great weather and safety; clean water comes out of the faucet that I drink; neighbors are always looking out; friends are dear and fun; family is strong and supportive; money is plentiful; in a nutshell - life is great.

Most of the time, I take all the above for granted.  I exist day to day at times complaining about all sorts of things that don't go my way.  I don't stop to smell the flowers even though they are still blooming (at least the ones I haven't killed).  And we all should.

Life can change in an instant.  A friend of mine is going through pretty tough times now with her son having major medical issues from a fluke fall while on a trip.  He now is mostly bedridden and needs all kinds of assistance and the worst part is that I bet he thought he was on top of the world and he nothing to worry about.  He is in his late 20s and has his whole life ahead of him.  He had just moved out on his own and was starting a brand new job.  Now he is back living with his mom and will probably not work for quite a while if ever.

I had my own little spell a few months back that I'm still trying to recover from. I'm in the investigative stage now trying to figure out what is going on and how it might impact my job.  All I can do is take one day at a time and I'm super lucky that I have a core group of peeps around me helping me along the way.  Hopefully by the end of the year, I will have some answers and a direction to take.

My family is not close by so I'll be celebrating T-day with a group of friends.  It is a potluck and I'm bringing rolls that were a secret hit last year (after the dinner) so better late than never.

For now - humble gratitude and positive thoughts for us all.

A Long Absence

It has been almost a year since I posted on this blog.  Life kind of got in the way and I wasn't in a good frame of mind to post.  

Since Thanksgiving is here, I decided I should restart my blog again as a way to combat all the negativity that goes on each and every day.  I am a bit disillusioned to see what is happening in this country and around the world.  Trying times indeed to navigate.

This past year's highlights - 
- welcoming the year of the Rat with friends near and far,
- a short Mexican cruise for rest and relaxation,
- classes for sewing and embroidery and some new equipment,
- finished up some languishing projects in the craft room,
- a European trip that was very enlightening and a good way to revisit history and get a little bit of a perspective away from home,
- annual weaving retreat at Salt Spring Island,
- visits with friends and lots of food, and
- a Vegas weekend to see Celine Dion.

I'll post details about some of these in the coming weeks, but wanted to just get going.

Mei Mei Update

Mei Mei is fitting right into the household.  I made her some toys which she carries everywhere.

She has co-opted Bailey's small bed.

And she like to sit on my lap while I'm working occasionally.

Weaving Progress

In my resolution to always have a dressed loom, I was able to finish a set of black, gray, and tan towels.

I had a bit of space left over and I used up various bobbins of thread.  This was a little tricky as I had to alternate colors in each pass and I had to perfect my technique a bit to make sure I caught all the edges.

Next up on the loom are the purple, green and white towels.

This yarn is from Webs that I bought quite a long time ago.  I find that it is a bit thinner than the brassard yarn I get from Jane.  It will be interesting to see what the finished towels feel like.

I also wound a few more warps to be in the queue.  Cottolin for a gift set.

And scarves to use up the silk yarn.

Cher in Las Vegas

Three of us went to see Cher in Las Vegas and stayed at a Wyndham property.  We drove out in the evening and slept late in the morning and then went to brunch at the Bellagio.

Shopping came next and we ended up wandering around to the Forum shops too.

That evening, we went to the show and it was awesome even though it started late.

Very entertaining and on the walk back to the car, we passed the arcade and I saw a giant pacman game.

We hit dim sum before driving home.

Facing East

Tried out a new restaurant with a variety pack of xiao long bao.  Not as good a Din Tai Fung.

Also order a few other things.

The fried tofu was pretty good.  Also had a poke bowl.  The interesting thing about this place are the desserts.  We were too full to try and we went for lunch so too heavy of a meal.  Next time, we should only order dessert.

San Diego Field Work

I schedule a local trip with my co-worker coming out from Texas.  Since he is foodie, we tried out a bunch of places.

Ethiopian, Thai, seafood, pizza, and sushi to name a few.

We also saw this giant luxury boat that came into the bay.

The work went pretty well as we hit up a bunch of confirmations of addresses.

And Then There Was a Mei Mei

Bailey has been an only dog for a while since Pepper crossed the rainbow bridge in 2015.  He has been doing pretty well and really enjoys hanging with his friends.

Yaling rescued a puppy who seems to really get along with Bailey so we decided to have her hang at the house with him.

It seems to go really well once she relaxed enough.

I guess he has picked his little sister.