Potpourri

 According to Miriam, the definition of potpourri is as follows: 

1. a mixture of flowers, herbs and spices that is usually kept in a jar for a scent. 

2. a miscellaneous collection

This post refers to #2 as there is no real theme to this blog post. Oh wait? Is there ever?

Let us begin with something curious that I've noticed during the pandemic. Check out the difference between these two eggs in the same carton.

If memory serves me, something always suspect coming from me, I've yet to have encountered two such wildly different sized eggs before. And although I've no photographic evidence of such, several times in the last few months, the sliced bread I purchase has been, ahem, unevenly sliced. What is going on here? To answer yet another pandemic mystery, I've discovered one of the reasons that the shelves have been bare of Claussen pickles following a little sleuthing on David's part after I mentioned it to him. Whereas it has not come to one of the posters laments, "the struggle is real", we did learn that it is not just me who has missed those cold, crunchy delights. Oh no my friends, there is plenty of online discussion on the topic. Aside from growing conditions, one of the main reasons is a "glass shortage." Not to be confused with the 2020 coin shortage which is explained in an interesting manner on this podcast. Now you may be wondering, as David was, how come there are other products, seemingly not in short supply, packaged in glass bottles or jars. Well, I think I've figured it out---those products were packaged and in warehouses long before the pandemic, whereas Claussens needs to buy them now as their product is fresh. Just saying....

Now that you have learned about some pandemic issues, let's go back to the kitchen and my tip about cooking pasta. Perhaps my explanation was not very clear so here's exactly what I meant.

I've not the foggiest notion of why it works, but it does. The peaches from Clemons this year have been absolutely scrumptious. Sadly the season is nearing the end, so we have them whenever possible for breakfast, and in this instance, with some yummy blueberry bread.

Do you peel your peaches? Even though they have bred much of the fuzziness out of peach skin, I still can't stand it. 

Let's move to the dining room table where my latest finished puzzle is still on display. Ann so generously loaned us the two of them, and both were just challenging enough. 

I admit that Bruce had to come to the rescue as far as the bottom frame is concerned because I was just plain lost!

Here's something else, Blogger continues to make my life difficult and my internet connection is giving me fits. Technology is fantastic until it is not. Those are minor problems for sure, nothing like the struggle it will be for Cris to get back on his feet. Not to mention that there are probably some amongst readers of this blog who are struggling with one thing or another, so take what I said with a grain of salt!

The main thrust of this post is that the quilt has been quilted, however, not without one thing that was amiss and that was my backing. Judi called to say that the back was out of square, plus uneven, and would not go on the longarm frame properly. Are you wondering what the heck a longarm looks like? Wonder no more! A longarm costs $20K which is why it cost a bit to have something quilted. 

The first step is to load the backing, mine of which was in sad shape, so rather than pay an extra $30,  I picked it back up and enlisted Bruce's help. We spread it all out on the floor and it did not take long to see what was wrong. That would be that humped up area near Bruce's foot.

Together we ran a chalk line after determining how far off I was using a string.

Using the straight chalk line as a cutting line, I lopped off the whole bottom part just above the horizontal seam and stitched it back together once everything was straight. Fortunately she lives only about four miles away! Because the top is so busy, she suggested nothing fancy other than a meandering stitch to keep all three parts together and this afternoon I picked it up from the sewing studio she has set up in her garage. 

 

What a blessing to find that she had cut all the edges square for me in preparation for the binding! 

Get this...she has FOURTEEN machines for sewing and embroidery!

Lets just say this is a woman who knows her way around a sewing machine! And this is what the quilting looks like:

The backing fabric with the clustered blue flowers is some I bought ages ago at an estate sale labeled that it was purchased in the 60's. You know how I love blending the old with the new! As to the top, there are fabrics from loads of things I've made for others, along with fabric given to me by Matt, some Liberty from London, and some from a trip they made to Japan. Looking at the photograph I also see some I purchased in Vancouver, so let's call it my International quilt, shall we?

On my first trip over there I noticed a sign to a place called La Costa wetlands, so today I drove in there to see what it was all about. Between the extreme 95 degree heat, and a knee that knows I've been playing pickleball every day, I did not stay too long.

It was far larger than I'd first imagined and the crazy thing is that it is just off SR 436 right in town. I suspect, once the migration season begins, it will be a wonderful place to see birds. 

And what, pray tell would a Camera Crazy post be without a bird photograph? Dull, that's what!

My friend Candy posted some amazing photographs of two Iguanas in the trees bordering Lake Cherokee and I went looking for them with my only success being that I saw the traps set for them.

Disappointed, I returned home and went out back to see if there was anything of interest when what to my surprise, as it was 11 in the morning, was that pretty owl flying up into the tree overhead. Well, what was a girl supposed to do?

While at Lake Cherokee I did see one of the young swans looking way big.

Don't you just love the water tension under his front as he makes his way across the lake. Probably not, only a bird/photography nut like myself notices that kind of stuff. :)

August 25 already. Where have the months gone? Nowhere actually. What does this tell us about the passage of time? Any thoughts on the subject?

your friend,

Gail