The End of the Show Season

 This past weekend was the end of the show season for LeafLady Quilts. The United Maine Craftsmen Holiday show in Portland is always my last and this year's was a success, a sort of make up show for all the less than stellar shows I found myself at this past year. I started off strong and while it slowed at times business was steady and I find myself faced with having to make more runners and placemats in the coming year. They are my best sellers and I love making them...they are the perfect size to finish in a hurry and I can gang several runners or sets of placemats to maximize my time. But I will not even look at fabric choices until January, and at that time I'll be looking to restock some of the solids and blenders I use as well as batting and other materials. And I'll be revising my show schedule for 2023 as I have decided to cut back on a few shows...time to cut the "less than profitable" shows. Prime example is a show in late April that I have done for several years - I love the show and the people who run it are great. The venue is top notch as I can drive right to my space inside - but it's a one day affair and makes for a very long day as it is over an hour from home. By the time I drive there, unload the car, move the car and get back inside and set up I feel as if I have already done a full days work. And I don't get home until well after dinner. I have decided it has to drop off the schedule as I really do not make much money. And there are a couple of other one day affairs I tried for the first time this year that will also not make the cut. I'm leaning toward concentrating on shows in November and December only as they seem to be the most profitable for me. No one really wants to buy quilted things in the middle of the summer. With that in mind, I also will be investigating membership in another organization so that I can (hopefully) participate in one or more of their shows.

    So now I'm just taking it easy, decorating the house for the holidays and enjoying reading and napping. Happy Holidays to all!

Back at it!

 So, it's been a somewhat disappointing show season so far. It started in April and has continued through the Fall - underwhelming attendance at shows leading to somewhat sad sales numbers. I even added 2 shows to replace a cancelled one and that hasn't really made a difference. The one bright spot was a small show I returned to this year after several year's absence - Basically a 5 hour show on a Sunday afternoon, 10 minutes from my house. The fee is nominal which mens that it doesn't take many sales to break even, which I more than did. I'm now down to the last 3 shows of the year, all 2 day affairs, and last year they were my best shows. Fingers crossed for this year as well, but the economy and general lack of positivity as we head into Tuesday's elections. (More on that later!) I still have hope and that hope keeps me creating. But it's been harder this year as my duties as UMC membership committee coordinator have pulled me away from my creating time. So much time spent responding to inquiries about shows with so little result. Changes need to be made next year and I will admit to looking forward to relinquishing my cities at next year's elections.

    The elections - ah, just 3 more days of the relentless ads on tv - particularly odious this year due to all the PAC dollars being spent. DC needs to stay out of state elections! And the return of a couple of grievance candidates in Maine casts us in a particularly bad light. LePage and Poliquin have teamed up and are spending lies (not just misinformation but LIES) about their opponents. It's a constant back and forth with no time for any substantive debate. And I have serious doubts that either will accept the results should they (rightly) lose. Poliquin has a history of objecting to the ranked choice method he apparently agreed to run under and will likely object again. I just hope and pray the people of Maine can see through all the lies and recognize that the relative peace and safety we have enjoyed even during a pandemic should continue but will not if we change leadership.

    Horse racing's big celebration, the Breeders Cup, concluded yesterday. Amazing performance by Flightline - shades of Secretariat with the multiple-lengths win in the Classic and for one of the lesser known trainers in the game. Sadly, 2 injuries to high-profile horses, hopefully neither life-threatening. Domestic Spending was vanned off with an unknown injury that turned out to be a fractured pelvis. (Horse's first race after being off for over a year - wonder what Chad was thinking with this move?) And Epicenter was vanned off with what turned out to be a displaced lateral condylar fracture of a foreleg - surgery this morning. Suspect both might be career ending. 

    And finally, the Astros won the World Series last night, beating the Phillies 4 games to 2. Only on my radar because it means that Dusty Baker finally has a ring. I followed him from the Giants, to the Cubs and beyond. I didn't even realize he was the Houston manager until the series began. (In related Giants news, Bruce Bochy has signed to be the manager of the Texas Rangers.)

Too Many Guns!

 I grew up in a one gun household. One of my brothers hunted squirrels (fond memory of my mother making squirrel pot pie for him and the pile of buckshot left on the plate!). Wait, also my father had a BB pistol which we all would use for target practice. I was never interested in learning to shoot or hunt. So the statistic put forth this week that there are more guns in the United States than people (including children) set me back on my heels. I get that collectors feel the need to own more than one gun and that avid hunters might also feel that need. But the politicians who are defending their supporters' rights to own an AR15 to shoot prairie dogs and other varmints, to protect their families and property, well, that just seems wrong headed to me. AR15s are designed to kill people and are very effective. I don't even want to imagine what a woodchuck obliterated by one would look like. 

    It seems to me that with all the other guns available that at least one would serve the purpose to kill varmints or protect property. But I guess they would not make as much of a show on the family photo Christmas card, eh?

    In other news, coming up on my second show of the year, the first outside show, in Belfast in a couple of weeks. Lovely setting right on Belfast Bay. Level ground. Good people and several of my friends will be there. I'm looking forward to it. I have another new quilted throw completed - it will be on the website as soon as the weather clears enough for outside photography. Also a few new wall hangings, mostly music-oriented, as the New England Music Camp show is back on my schedule as they have returned it to the mid-July date. Sadly, however, United Maine Craftsmen had to cancel the Flaherty Farm show due to lack of participation. I suspect a change of location may be in the future as that site had several challenges even in the best of weather.

 

Another of those "I thought we were done with this" moments!

    

I've let the leak from the Supreme Court regarding Roe v. Wade marinate in my brain and emotions for a day. I can't let it ruin my life alone any longer. To say I am disappointed would make me sound too much like Susan Collins to let me continue to claim my Democrat allegiance. So I will declare I am outraged at: 

1) The audacity of Mitch McConnell to deny then President Obama the right to choose a Supreme Court Justice with his sham reason that it was too close to an election. 

2) The same audacity from the same man who allowed a never in any way qualified to be President man to nominate and get 3 conservative justices whose only reason for being appointed was to overturn Roe.

3) The absolute blind stupidity of all of the people out there who thought that a never in any way qualified to be President man would make a good president. This (and too many other things to be listed here) is on all of you.

4) The smarminess of anyone in the GOP who thinks it is a good idea to limit a woman's choice, especially those women who find themselves pregnant because of rape, incest, domestic violence or simply a momentary lapse in judgement. What is the GOP plan to deal with the thousands of children who would now be born into homes who do not want them, can't afford to feed them, will abuse them? Ah, I see there is no plan because the social safety nets are the Democrats responsibility. I tell you all now, the Democrats are sick and tired of having to clean up the messes the GOP creates with their patriotic, Christian legislation, especially when they have to fight tooth and nail for the funding to do the cleaning.

    I can only add that while I personally am of an age where I will never have to consider what my limited options might be in the future with regard to abortion, I am fearful that this is just the first step down a road to limit everyone's choices with regard to their personal lives, and that makes me very angry, especially as it seems to be targeting women and women alone. News flash for the GOP and all the Bible clutching conservatives: Women are people, equal to men and we are not backing down from this fight or any other one that threatens our rights. You and your poster boys (Trump, Putin et al) may think we are the weaker sex but we are not. If men had to bear children, you bet abortion would be legal!

Show Time Again!

 This past Saturday was the first show of the year at USM Gorham. As I said before, I love this show - really terrific people who run the show and great venue - the ease of set up is a plus, the crunch to pack up and leave not so much. All that said, I made the difficult decision on the drive home Saturday to not return next year. Spring is probably the worst time for a craft show, especially in Maine. It can be terrible weather which keeps people home or it can be the first really warm day which keeps people home and working in their yards. The ones who do come out are just not in the mood to spend money. So there you have it.

    On a good note, I did finish Luna by Starlight:

    If I had it to do over, I would have made this with more of a horizontal block for the luna fabric as it just seems too chopped up to me now. But what's done is done and can't be undone so on to the next lap quilt. I have 2 months to finish (well, start and finish) that one. And make some runners as I did sell 4 this Saturday. And more wall hangings for the summer shows. But first I have a bit of studio maintenance on my schedule. A new fabric storage system to keep the work surface clear of "already used but can't stop to put it away" fabric. Fingers crossed this will improve my productivity. And the entire room needs a good vacuuming as it seems to create it's own dust. 

    We took a drive to Bangor yesterday to view the pandemic quilt exhibit at the Bangor Public Library. Some interesting pieces and some inspired quilting. We also had lunch at Bagel Central, fondly remembered from my days on the contract negotiations team while working at UMA. And we finished with a visit to a friend who works the Spring season at Wiswell Farm in Orrington. Touring the greenhouse and seeing living things growing was a boost on a cloudy threatening day. 

Quilt Shop Closings...sigh

 The end of last year, the best quilt shop in Maine, the Fabric Garden in Madison, closed their doors after 43 years in business. It is a real loss for the state and central Maine in particular. They had the BEST selection of quality fabrics, were always helpful and it was so much fun to visit and see what treasures I could find to spark my creative juices. 

 And in just a week, another fine quilt shop will close its doors - Mainely Sewing in Nobleboro. Their home was an iconic yellow two-story older home set on a hill overlooking Route 1 along the coast. They had, without a doubt, the best sale room in the state - I always found many fabrics there that just couldn't wait to come home with me. They also are very nice people.

  Just this morning, I discovered that another of my more infrequent fabric haunts has disappeared - J Madeline's in Rochester, New York. I only visited there twice but was impressed with their selection and service. My last visit I stocked up on several colors of my favorite "blender" fabrics - Maywood Studios Shadow Play line and I'm happy I did. But where to find them going forward? The search is on!

  One bit of happy news is that the former Fabric Garden location has been taken over by another concern and they are holding their grand opening this weekend. They are continuing that location's tradition of carrying Janome sewing machines and are getting in some fabric as well. I think I'll wait a bit for more stock to arrive - fabric stores are not immune to the supply chain issues plaguing all businesses right now. 

  I'm continuing on the placemat journey, hoping to build up my reserve to eliminate that end of season rush to fill in for the next show with only 2 weeks to do so. It was a bit hairy there last year! And my schedule of shows is set for 2022, starting off once again with the USM Athletics Show the end of April. I love this show because of the ease of setting up in their fieldhouse - we can drive right inside and if I have my usual spot, I can park 3 feet away! Can't get any easier than that! (There was a bit of a kerfuffle with my acceptance notification but thanks to a fellow UMC member who is also doing that show alerting me she had received her acceptance, I was able to contact the USM folks and get my invoice which I promptly payed. Another show returning to my scheduled is the New England Music Camp show - it's only a Sunday afternoon but it's 5 minutes from my house and they have returned it to its former spot between the 2 sessions they hold so I no longer have a conflict with the Flaherty show.

  Time to get the Pfaff serviced and I have an appointment later this month for that. Once it's back in top running order, I'll quilt Luna by Starlight so she can go to Gorham with me. I sold a lap quilt there several years ago so I have my fingers crossed. 

February Update

 Six sets of placemats completed plus one wall hanging. One lap quilt top and tops for six more sets of placemats completed and ready for layering later today. Five more show applications submitted, which takes care of my schedule for the year. Still waiting on confirmations from all.

Luna by Starlight lap quilt

  All this creating takes me away from the dire news out of Ukraine. The last time I payed any attention to Russia was when I was in early childhood and the Cold War was in the news. I do not trust a word that comes out of Putin's mouth. He's a master manipulator, which is why Trump was so protective of him. Anyone who has read Seth Abramson's books knows what the plan is for both of these sociopaths. (I find it the height of irony the the social network Trump introduced yesterday is called "Truth" - I'm certain the content will be anything but the truth. More conspiracy theories, lies and trash talking.)

  I recently joined the 21st century with the purchase a a smart phone. So far, I have limited myself in the Internet usage on it but I can see how people become distracted from everyday life with these mini computers in their hands. I just don't want to become one of them!

 Still waiting on our second estimate on replacing the garage doors and openers. This is a phenomenon we first encountered in Maine - tradespeople either never responding to a first inquiry or not getting back to us with estimates. I realize that the past 2 years have resulted in many people leaving their trades, and others who remain not able to secure parts and materials to do jobs. But in 20+ years here, we've a long history of non-communication from people - plumbers, landscapers, counter installers - the list is endless. Anyway, on my To Do list for the day is following up with the door guy. 

 And, finally, just announced yesterday, the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority has disqualified Medina Spirit from the win in the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Bob Baffert and his attorneys will appeal (of course) but for the time being, Mandaloun is the winner. Baffert is also suspended for 90 days but (of course) due to appeal he will be allowed to continue to train. Sadly, Medina Spirit is no longer with us - he died after a workout in December. Necropsy was inconclusive (no surprise as it was conducted in California and no one in out there seems to have the integrity to hold Baffert accountable for anything that happens to his horses.) So, stay tuned. Still, we will not see Baffert at this year's Derby as Churchill Downs Inc. has banned him through 2023. And that is separate from the KHRA suspension. 

Bombogenesis

 ...at least I think that's how you spell it. We are in the beginning hours of a predicted major snowstorm and for once, all snow. Blizzard conditions later in the day into the night. At least it's so cold that it will all be snow and light powder at that. If I were still an alpine skier, I'd be rejoicing but for now I'll just wish all of them well and "Happy stash hunting in the coming days!

    Been working on placemats and one wall hanging and cogitating on new lap quilts. I think I have designs worked out for both but there's always that fear of cutting into a treasured fabric the first time and "what if I made a measuring mistake?" and "what if the fabric combinations aren't working?" and...you get the idea. I usually just plunge ahead and it usually works out. My dear SO yesterday was relaying a conversation he had with his beer brewing group about the maddening proliferation of fruity and strange IPAs that is plaguing the Maine microbrew scene these days. One person's take was that people are attempting to brew a standard IPA (which I love!) and it doesn't finish quite right so they toss in a bunch of hops and fruit, give it a marketable name and move on. Small batch cachet achieved! It took me a bit to catch onto the fact that not all IPAs are created equal these days so I've learned to ask what the extra ingredients are if they are not advertised. My favorite, discovered last year, is In the Horns IPA from Tumbledown Brewing in Farmington. They would donate an amount from every can to the ski patrol at Saddleback. However, it appears it was a limited run as it's no longer listed on their website. So, I'll save my remaining can for a special occasion and start the search for a replacement. 

    Have applied to 3 earlier in the season shows this month - April in Gorham, June in Belfast and July at the New England Music Camp. All are shows I've done in the past and I'm happy the Music Camp has returned their show to July so I no longer have a conflict. The United Maine Craftsmen shows are all later in the year and I expect those applications to hit my mailbox this coming month. Lots of work to do in the studio.