Cordova!

Sometimes, the universe just intervenes and throws wonderful “coincidences” in your path. Look hard, you might miss them --- and as some say, there IS no such thing as a coincidence!

I’ve often talked to people, friends, family, and even strangers who say things like “I know this happened for a reason.” And I am left to ponder on that. Being a rather “Free Thinking” person, I’d like to think that it is not the fact that things happen for a reason or not, but what WE choose that reason to be – what WE decide to do with it.

And that is as deep as my thoughts go. I watch in wonder as each day arrives wondering what kind of interesting things are going to unfold – Like turning the pages of a book and being surprised when twists and turns happen that I never saw coming.

This small diatribe might make you think that there was something really BIG going on in my life, but in fact, it was just a small series of events that brought me together with one of the Quiltie Gals here in Cordova, who was making this trip here so possible!

Terri started emailing me and plotting and planning with me over 2 years ago. It has taken this long for me to get here.

Last July, when emailing about details with her….we found out that we were BOTH going to be in Minneapolis at the same time. I was visiting my mom and aunt, she was there with some crazy Alaskan friends on the Minnesota Shop Hop! Small world, no?

Well, I wasn’t able to join them, even if I wanted to. You remember how short my time was? Meeting my Mom, Aunt and family about midnight at the airport on Tuesday for the big surprise, and then spending only Wednesday and Thursday with them and flying home Friday morning. It just wouldn’t fit.

But it made me wonder….could our paths have crossed before? Were we ever in Minnesota at the same time before and didn’t know it? Who knows!

Friday night, as I was going to sleep ((Trying to sleep early but failing miserably due to too much excitement!)) I got a phone call from Terri ---Turns out she was in South Dakota on a family issue, and was returning to Cordova the same day I was flying out! In fact --- We would be on the same flight from Seattle to Anchorage, and the same flight from Anchorage to Cordova!

The universe must have known that I was feeling a little jittery over the small plane flight into Cordova at night ---And suddenly, I had a companion to go with me!

See, it isn’t life altering, not every thing that happens, but I still love to look at life with eyes of wonder on how things just work out.

The pic you see above is out of my window on the small plane as we were leaving Anchorage. Night time was fast approaching, it was almost 7pm. I’d been awake for 20 hours at this point. It was about 11pm North Carolina time, and I'd been up since 3:15am North Carolina time.

This is the small plane! And it was raining….and it was VERY VERY Bumpy! Not just up and down kind of bumpy, but it felt like we were skating sideways at some points. I told myself….as I dealt with the hexagons in my lap ((It was now completely dark out and we were IN the clouds so there was nothing to se out the window!)) “Just keep stitching, just keep stitching!!))

And before I knew it, we were on the ground! We ran for the terminal building because the rain was pounding!

I knew I was in Alaska, and definitely far from home when I was greeted inside the terminal by this HUGE husky dog…..he was soaked with rain and just loved right up on me soaking my jeans clear through. Tried to get a picture, but the dang beast just would NOT hold still, and the picture came out extra blurry, but after 21 hours awake, this was a good indication of just how I felt! LOL!

This guy was MASSIVE!! But I loved the doggie welcome! The bags all made it, and I was whisked off to Val’s house……and straight off to bed.

In the morning…..this was the view from the living room window! OH MY!! Hello, Cordova! You are definitely a well kept secret!

And in usual “Bonnie Travel” fashion…I had to laugh when I opened my suitcase to find yet ANOTHER TSA slip sitting just there on top. I hope they enjoyed it as much as I did..at least there were no DIRTY clothes to paw through, but they did rearrange stuff into some weird order that I did NOT pack it in – and my shampoo leaked all over the bottom so that we had to do laundry to clean it all up again.

And NO, I don’t think THAT happened for a reason either, but it’s a perk to have a nice clean jacket to keep me warm while I’m here!

That Sunroom ---

Is DONE!

((Well Mostly!))

And you will notice that the two most important things have already found their place.

The desk and computer.

And the green putting mat/carpet. LOL!

Boy, has this been a LONG process! We started in MAY--((Yes, it’s really been that long..this is what happens when it’s a mostly do-it-yourself home renovation!))

While I was gone to Kansas, I’d get updates on how the floor installation was going.

It looks SO good! I really like the color we chose too. Not too light, not too dark..it’s a pergo called Yorkshire Oak.

Saturday, after our Denny’s run for breakfast, and our Lowes run for more “STUFF”, it became a trim painting day. My job was to tape off the windows and start painting trim. Boy, this just does NOT look like the same room as it used to!

We turned the music up loud on the 70’s channel…

Here’s a funny little “Instagram” I took with my phone….

There are a couple things left to finish. The windows all need new plantation blinds. So does the door that leads to the storage room. I think in the top pic above you can see that it is an old metal blind that is all bent to heck. Haven’t been in a rush with that. It hides a multitude of junk that is IN that storage room!

Oh, and one thing we did….all the windows used to have that crossed window paning making it look like there were several panes of glass, you know what kind I’m talking about? We removed ALL those dividers and I can’t believe what a difference it made with actually being able to see OUT the window without lines of molding going across my field of vision. I like BIG VIEWS…not staring through small squares all divided, know what I mean?

All the windows and doors in the house used to have that small pane look. NO MORE! Open it up! We are also removing the divider things on the door to the storage room. It also sure makes the windows easier to clean when you don’t have a wipe down a bunch of smaller panes.

I'm even considering removing those divider thingies from the french doors that go from the dining room to the sunroom. Can they still be called french doors if they DON'T have those dividers? Well why not? Again, that would make it so much easier to clean!

Cleaning windows? What am I thinking?! I don’t do that, do I?

Which Airport?!

I spend a lot of time in airports. And they are usually really interesting places!

The picture you see to the left is of the infamous dinosaur skeleton at O’Hare. Usually I take a picture of it straight on, or looking up at its neck..but this time, I actually saw where the TAIL goes as I was walking through ---it extends into the security area! I’ve seen this guy so many times, I’ve almost named him. Does he have a name I don’t know about?

Last Saturday, Connie drove me from Holton to Kansas City, MO, where I would catch a plane to Chicago, and then another plane to Greensboro.

We had stopped back at Quilting on the Square to load up my quilt bags, and distribute the rest of what remained of the books between my bags so I didn't have to MAIL anything home.

Off we went through the morning drizzle over hilly green roads – this corner of Kansas is NOT like the flat lands we had driven through to get to Holton!

Of course as we followed the signs to Leavenworth, I said that I’d love to get a picture to send home…

We joked “What’s the fastest way to Leavenworth Prison?” “Commit a Federal Crime!” Really, the place looks like an old university from the front, or maybe a museum. Until you see the barbed wire and guard stations. CREEPY! But we drove in one entrance, took a quick pic, and got the heck out of Dodge Leavenworth ---

Welcome to Terminal A, Kansas City Airport! What’s weird about this place is that every cluster of gates has its own security check-point. Once you get through the security check-point you are IN the gate area….all the restaurants and book shops etc are on the OUTSIDE of the check-point! So take it from me and do not go through security any earlier than you need to!

((There is also not a single water fountain PAST the check-point so if you want to fill your own water bottle, it’s going to be warm tap-water from the bathroom sink. Of course, you could BUY bottled water inside the gate area, but come on!))

The one thing I DO like about Kansas City’s airport? It’s not carpeted! Which makes it really easy to roll your luggage along. And there are BEAUTIFUL mosaics in the floor. SO many of them remind me of quilt designs. And some, like the one that depicts Northwind blowing, are just amazing works of art. Below are just of a few of my favorites. They are ALL OVER the floor in that terminal!

		Kansas City Airport Art VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

My favorite thing to do? Stay OUT of security, plug in my ipod with the music up loud and just power walk the corridor. Most of it is uninhabited…I figure if I walk for an hour, I can do about 3 1/2 to 4 miles! I give myself just enough time to get through security and get on the plane.

I’m setting this post to go live while I’m on my journey from Greensboro, NC to Cordova Alaska today! I’ll keep my quilters eyes wide open and see if there is anything else inspirational to post. My route? I have a 6am flight from Greensboro to Newark to Seattle to Anchorage to Cordova, finally getting into Cordova at 7:50pm! That’s only 1am North Carolina time ---

Send Quilty thoughts for safe travel please!

Cordova, Here I come!

I’ve got 3 hours until I’m forcing myself to bed at 9pm.

I am so stinking excited I can barely stand it.

I fell in love with Alaska just over a month ago, and here I get to go again, to another corner, a place remote enough there are only two ways in. Either you fly – or you boat!

I got the funniest email this morning from the gals in charge of my visit there…a list of questions:

Dear Bonnie,

We have a few questions as we prepare for your visit to our remote corner of the planet. ;-) Here goes:

• What is your shoe size?
• Is there any specific equipment you need for your lecture and trunk show?
  
• Do you mind having food in the same room as your quilts?
• Do you like seafood?

MY SHOE SIZE?!? Oh, this is going to be fun, I can tell! :cD I’m getting visions of being fitted for SNOW SHOES!

Whatever it is..I’m ready!

Do I mind food in the same room as the quilts? NOPE! Bring it on! Just bring napkins or paper towels too.

Do I LIKE seafood? That’s an understatement! I adore seafood!

And the pic you see above is of Cordova, Alaska. My new home for a week with a bunch of wonderful quilters. UBER EXCITED!

Just WHERE in the world IS Cordova? You can find it to the Southeast of Anchorage, just below Valdez. Small print. Small place. BIG ADVENTURE!

Off to finish packing, and off to bed early ((Do you think I can sleep?))

Oh. PS! We had a wonderful wonderful shout out on the Mary Jo’s Cloth Store blog! You guys are the reason they can’t keep bolts of solid cheddar in stock. I didn’t know they were writing this, but you can check the blog post HERE!

I’m all a dither!

Scenes from Holton!

What a busy week and weekend. I suppose it’s nothing new. This is the way we roll! I go go go go go and when night falls, I crash and sleep hard, and get up and do it all over again. Sure beats the alternative, doesn’t it?

We had a great visit with DH's cousin and her hubby, we chatted for 5 hours about EVERYTHING. Boy, don't we sound like a bunch of old fogies reminscing?! Wait --- I guess we ARE! Anne is also a long arm quilter, so we had lots in common to talk about. They were visiting from Washington state, visiting her son and his family in Charlotte, and will be heading back to Washington state in a few weeks.

The only quilting that got done last night was one section of binding with my feet up in the recliner in the evening before I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore and headed to bed. But even one section is progress, right?

This morning I was going through some of my pictures of my trip to Kansas last week…I never keep ALL the pics on my camera, I transfer them over to my big storage thing here, just in case I lose the camera, or it crashes, etc. Those memories are precious! I start each trip new with an empty camera.

I saw a bunch of street scene pics that I took as I walked around the courthouse square during my lunch break!

Welcome to Mayberry Holton Kansas! I just loved this little town. Unlike a lot of small towns, most of the businesses downtown HAVE businesses in them! Businesses of all variety. There was a yarn shop, and everything! One of the gas-station mini marts on the corner said it made it’s own fresh donuts daily --- I never got down there, I was side tracked by Marilyn’s cinnamon rolls, but I can imagine the “regulars” stopping in for coffee and donuts before starting their day.

The “OTHER” side of the square. See that center tan building? That’s where our workshop was! Here I’m standing on the lawn of the courthouse….Quilts on the Square is at the far right on the corner of the brick building.

This is the “END” of Quilts on the Square --- I love that old Levi’s logo! It used to be the Lutz department store. Do you see that brickwork?? It was like they had put quilters cables into the brick work….

This me shooting UP at it! I also think you can see the “flower” shaped bolts at the bottom of the picture. Those are the ones that Mary painted inside to actually LOOK like flowers in this post HERE.

This was the old State Bank of Holton!

Another view with wonderful brick work. I loved that bay window! What’s fun is all the cobblestone bricks that still line all the streets around the square.

See the cobbles? And you know about my love of old Post Offices! This is a GREAT one!

More street scene! I love those arched windows on the right. When I was a teen, it was my dream to go to college, and live in an apartment ABOVE a shop. That never happened, but if it had, THIS is the kind of building I would have loved to live!

Look at these beautiful windows! They just don’t build like this anymore, do they?

When I checked into my hotel on Thursday afternoon, I had a couple of hours before it was time to go to dinner. The drizzle rain had stopped, and I took my legs on a power walk around the neighborhood just off the square. I probably missed the BEST Victorian houses, but I still got an eye full.

Houses, Holton KS, Sept 2011 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Can you tell that small towns are where my heart is? We’ve lived in several. I still live in a small town. So small it doesn’t even HAVE a courthouse square…..but they just built a new city hall, and it is too big, too bright, too modern for my liking!

I also loved all the colors of the flowers everywhere you turned down town!

Aren’t these colors just vibrant? Reds, greens, pinks, oranges, white ---

And what is Kansas with out a bit of sunflower yellow!

It’s a packing day. I’ve got to swap out a few quilts from the trunkshow bags and replace them with the workshop quilts we are doing in Cordova Alaska this week! I’ll be off in the morning! I’m checking the temps, and what is crazy is that the temps aren’t going to be much different than what I’ve had at the tail end of Kansas, and here in NC over the past couple days. Mid 50s. I can do that! I’m ready for that! Bring on the snuggly hoodie weather!

Happy Monday!

Football Night!

While I was in Kansas I was “informed” that there was an employee football party for DH’s work and we would be going to the Wake Forest vs Gardner Webb game on Saturday night!

More than that – they went all out and rented us a box suite, and we had hotdogs and burgers catered, drinks, etc!

I’ve been to Wake Forest basketball games, and the home team support is HUGE in this area. As we drove to the stadium, there were cars and trucks and vans all with WF flags a’flyin!

Last night was beyond just chilly. It was down right cold and windy --- but I came prepared with my jacket with hood, also waterproof in case of rain, and my scarf.

And can you tell in the pic above that I’m wearing a pair of cute little fingerless gloves that Randy made me for my birthday a few years ago? I love these gloves! ((Yes, and they will be sure to go to Alaska with me on Tuesday!))

My first time to the football stadium, I had to stop and take a picture!

Pretty nice, huh? But what’s that I see at the top of the steps? Another photo opportunity! And yes, I had to twist DH’s arm to indulge my photo whim. I have a thing for statues, don’t you know? :cD

When I first moved here and started to become acquainted with local tradition, I have to admit that I thought a “Deamon Deacon” was a mighty strange mascot, when everyone else is having Bears and Tigers, and Panthers, etc.

I had to do some searching, but this is what I found via Wiki:

Wake Forest was founded as a Baptist college in 1834.

In 1923, the Wake Forest football team defeated rival Trinity (later renamed Duke University). In the following issue of the school newspaper, the editor of the paper, Mayon Parker (1924 Wake Forest graduate), first referred to the team as "Demon Deacons," in recognition of what he called their "devilish" play and fighting spirit. Henry Belk, Wake Forest's news director, and Garrity liked the title and used it often, so the popularity of the term grew.

The actual mascot made its first appearance in 1941. As the "Demon Deacon" terminology became more popular, Jack Baldwin (1943 Wake Forest graduate) took the first step and became the first in the long line of Deacon mascots.

"Some of my fraternity brothers and I were just sitting around one evening," Baldwin recalls, "and came to the agreement that what Wake Forest needed was someone dressed like a deacon -- top hat, tails, a black umbrella and all that. We wanted him to be more dignified than other mascots, sort of like an old Baptist Deacon would dress"

Baldwin found an old tuxedo and a top hat, and on the following Saturday, he led the Wake Forest football team onto the field, riding the North Carolina ram. Two years later, when Baldwin graduated, many interested students were willing to continue dressing up as the mascot. Initially, the responsibility to pick new Demon Deacons fell on Baldwin's fraternity, but later it broadened to include all students. Today, special tryouts are held annually for new Deacons, but the competition is very intense.

At the beginning of the game, the Demon Deacon rode out onto the field on his motorcycle!

This is a shot from where our group was…we had great seats and great eats and lots of fun company!

The marching band is just coming out to take their places, so is the dance team and flag squad!

On the side lines, even old Grandma and Grandpa Deacon get into the act….this was a hoot, they were all over the place, in the crowd, down the sidelines…so funny!

TOUCH DOWN!! This flag is HUGE, and with the wind, this guy was having a hard time dealing with it. It took several shots before I got one where the flag was full out and legible!

And the Deacon himself, in our box suite…what a fun night!

Great night for the Deacons too – Wake Forest wins 48-5! We headed home to warm our hands around giant mugs of hot cocoa and talk about the evening while enjoying a long soak in the hot tub.

Today? Well….I’ve still not been to the grocery store. DH’s cousins are stopping by for a visit on their way through town. We haven’t seen them in years! Laundry is going, some house upkeep has started…but hopefully they are coming to see US and NOT the house…

I think the only thing I’ll be making for lunch is RESERVATIONS!

I hope you are enjoying your weekend! Anything quilty going on?? Post what you are working on in the comments below!