My new GO Cutter

If you are a member of MQR then you already know that I have the best friends and that they.... as a group, collected money and bought me a GO! cutter as a "get well and keep quilting gift"!
Well I have been working a lot lately, 10 hrs a day with a 2 hour commute and that includes Sundays, but I had today off and planned to spend the day with my new toy!
Since I didn't have any plans for a new quilt I decided to just dig into my scrap drawer that was so stuffed full you couldn't get another scrap into it...and cut out half square triangles for a jewel box quilt. I can't believe it didn't make a dent in the drawer! It is still so full!
My friend, Cat, came over to play today. She prepped fabric for me by cutting them into strips just the right width to cut on the die.

Smile Cat!

Look at that nice pile of strips to cut!

With the smaller dies, a width of fabric folded twice is just the right size to cut and it is four layers..PERFECT!

I also discovered I can sit and use the GO! cutter. A huge bonus since I tire easily and can't stand a long time. It was easy too!

Just turn the crank and peel off the excess, it couldn't be easier!

Look at that stack of triangles waiting to be sewed, best part, they have the dog ears cut off so don't need to be trimmed, just sew and press..I LOVE IT!

My brother, my hero!

I know I haven't posted on my blog for a long time and I could go into a long story about all that has happened since I last wrote but since I figure most everyone who is here reading this knows me.....they already know all about the story. Let me tell you about my brother Bill. Bill is a year and a half younger than me. We were close growing up and I moved away from home when I was 18 and fresh out of high school and he went into the Air Force right after he graduated. For years, we never saw each other or heard from each other except on Thanksgiving day when I was stuffing my turkey he would call me..he was stuffing his turkey then too and we both used our mom's bread stuffing recipe....and we would talk for an hour or more...until the next Thanksgiving....many years have passed since and he lives here in Michigan again. I see him several times a year now and we always are together at Christmas and dad's birthday for sure.


For years now I have sort of mourned that we aren't "close" like were were growing up. After I got sick, I realised we still are, just in a different way. When I went in for surgery, he was at the hospital that day ...he was the first to come in and see me after the surgery and brought my dad, afterwards, he made himself available to come and get me and bring me home (it was stalled for days). He is the one who came and got me and brought me home. He also came back the next week and installed safety bars in my bathroom for me. It made all the difference for me!



I have been back to work now for a month and going to physical therapy twice a week and doing better. On Friday my work computer took a dump and just stopped working. Because it is mine I am resposible for it. I took it home and called the place I bought it from, they said it would be at least 7-8 days and first come first serve. I was distraught. My brother asked me to bring it to him and he would look at it. Long story short, Video card went bad, he fixed it and I am ready to go back to work tomorrow. He is my hero. He has helped me so much lately and he just takes it in stride and says, "no problem". I don't know what I would do without my brother!
I love you Billy, thank you so much!

Monday Nov. 23 and Thankful

I was laid off for over a year and was on an unemployment extension when I finally found a job. In the last extension they required you to post or mail 3 places per week that you applied for work in order to qualify for your check. Sounds fair enough. I didn't post for one week early on and got a letter telling me to (it was at the beginning and I didn't know I needed to and it was a mistake) send it in. I wrote a detailed letter explaining why I didn't send it that time. WELLLLLL....

almost 4 months later I get a judgement in the mail telling me I am disqualified and therefore have to pay back over $4000. GULP.

I called yesterday and talked to a woman who told me I need to write a letter explaining why I shouldn't have to pay it back and fill out the paper for the missing week and it should all be covered. I hope that is the end of it.

For that I am Thankful!

Thankful Nov 22nd

I am thankful today for my very supportive husband. We have been married for over 23 yrs. He is ALWAYS supportive of what I am doing. When it was wanting a tiny little Fiat Spyder convertable he said, "go ahead". When I wanted to go look at Long arms at a local convention, he not only went with me, he encouraged me to get the best one and start a business, something I had been wanting a long time. Every single time I have started a diet, (and there have been lots of them)....he has been supportive. Yesterday, there were two parties he attended. These were not family get togethers, these were football watching, beer guzzling, snack eating parties. He wanted me to go too. I begged off and he seemed hurt at first. This morning I started to explain and he stopped me and said he understood. I am really serious about losing weight and I know that if I go to a party with lots of food and beer (I'm a beer drinker) I would be weak and start eating or drinking or maybe I wouldn't but I didn't want to chance it. I am thinking about myself first for a change and he gets that. He supports my decision all the way. I love him so much and I can always count on him to support me in my decisions. I think that is pretty special and I am blessed.

33 days until Christmas

Yikes! I better get busy!

Thankfulness (is that a word?)

I haven't posted in a while mostly because I have been busy and haven't felt like it. I hate to post something negative so I don't. Let me explain.

I have had an awakening of sorts in the last month or so. I have had three funerals to attend in the last two months. All men in the prime of their lives. Not related deaths, btw. The first was a manager at my last job. He was sick with esophagal cancer and was fighting it. The last time I saw him was when I was laid off. He seemed well then and I had emailed with him a few times since and talked a couple times on the phone. I was sad to hear he lost his fight with cancer.

The second one really hit me hard. This fellow and I were colleages. We had worked together for many years. He always was a "higher up" than I but he was a friend. He pretty much got me in at my last job where he was the general manager at the time. He said he didn't do anything but give HR my resume, but that was enough. He was promoted to VP of welding over a year ago and I hardly saw him, but we had mutual friends and even had a group of us that would have lunch together whenever we could all manage it. He was a dynamic man. Everyone I know liked him. He was smart and so friendly and engaging. He always brightened a room when he came in. He made everyone feel special. He was one of a kind. He also was only 39 yrs old. (I think) He had a beautiful wife and two small children and he was very involved in their sports and such. Being a coach for his daughters soccer team, etc. He was in great shape and very attractive to boot. He had an injury that lead to his hobbling around and then developed a blood clot. They knew about it. The doctor told him to take aspirin to break it up. One Friday evening he was out to dinner with his family and took his 6 yr old son to the bathroom and collapsed right in front of his son and died. The blood clot broke loose and went to his heart and killed him instantly. It was sudden and unexpected. I miss him so much and I always will. I can't get him out of my thoughts.

The third was a friend and our mechanic to boot. He died last week in a freak motorcycle accident. It was dark and the road curved and he missed the curve and slid on some gravel. He was only 38.

I have had an awakening in my own life and my own mortality because of the last month. I am feeling extremely vulnerable and aware of my shortcomings. I am extremely aware of the importance of making every day count.

I am in terrible shape. I am the heaviest in my life and I feel very uncomfortable in my body. I asked myself...Do I want to live like this for the rest of my life? The answer was no. I decided then to take action now. No more excuses or waiting for another day to make a change. I drew the line in the sand and made a plan and started.
I started my diet on Monday Nov. 9, 2009. I have lost 9 lbs so far. I am determined to do what I need to to make my life better.
Other than the diet, I am planning several other changes.
Some of them are:

• Exercising on a regular basis to improve my body and my heart.
• Making contact with several people who I have lost contact with.
• Cleaning out my house and getting rid of the excess STUFF.
• Taking online classes to educate for a possible job change in future.
• Take stock of my quilting business and either make a better business plan or sell it.

Tomorrow, I start my thankful posts

I know....I KNOW!

I've been MIA....but I can explain...sorta.

First off I got a job about A month ago and if you know me you know that is a very big deal! I had to provide my own computer and it is only a contract job but still...I am working and that is a very good thing! I love the job, nuff said!

I have 4 quilts for others here in the house and I haven't been quilting at all. BAD GIRL! I am changing that this week for sure. I have so much I want to get done in the next month, it is crazy.
I have been sick for a week. Kind of a bronchitis type thing. How sick you ask? Sich enough that I missed 3 days of work and cancelled my trip to Quilting with Machines that I was totally looking forward to and had already paid for all my classes. Hopefully some of my classes sold so I can get back a little of my money. At any rate, I've spent 5 days in the spare room on the pull out sofa and it isn't comfortable. Slept in my own bed last night and it felt great! I am definately better now and will be going to work tomorrow. I spent the day yesterday, changing sheets and doing laundry and cleaning up the house. I just bought all new pillows, sheets and towels at Kohl's a few weeks ago. Everything 50% off! I love Kohl's! So I am washing my old pillows today and Mark will bring a couple up to the motor home next time he goes. They washed up a lot better than I thought they would (feather and down).
So I had big quilting plans for today and I WILL quilt some later. Right now I am cleaning out my closet and making a big bag for Purple Heart pick-up. I am tired of having so many clothes stuffed in my closet and still have nothing to wear.
My list of things to do today is:

• press and cut strips for strip exchange
• finish washing pillows
• clean and mop kitchen
• make cole slaw for dinnner
• finish cleaning out closet
• quilt at least 2 hrs