After two months of trying all the things to no avail, I finally succumbed to the embarrassment of begging My APQS master tech and Intelliquilter guru Patty Butcher at Katidids.net for a slot on her fully packed travel/installation schedule.
I contacted her about a full "spa" treatment for my Millie, which includes changing out worn parts like thread guides and old bobbin hook, cleaning, detailing, repacking gears with new grease - the Full Monty.
I explained to Hubster Dave that it was akin to getting a new transmission in his truck. Truly. She is running marvelously now!
And while she was here we added on trouble shooting what was going on with the connection issues between the tablet and the motors on the Intelliquilter side of things.
As for me, I didn't have to do much of anything but watch, and enjoy the conversation and the company for the space of 2 days.
She got the retreat house all to herself, and that was a wonderful break for her also. Win/win!
And while she worked, I sewed! I'm somewhere around 270 little cracker blocks made so far. Yep. Closing in on the 300 mark, and there is more to go.
I've barely made a dent in the gifted small hunks and chunks I sorted out of the abundant gifted bags and boxes of scraps. And I hope when I am done that folks will recognize the fabric they entrusted to my use fed into my scrap addiction.
Now while all of this was going on - behind the scenes Hubster Dave was having yet another surgery on his wrist to remove scar tissue from the March surgery and some other issues with his hand.
When Patty said that she had December 11th available, Dave said we could get Jeff to come drive him to the surgery because he knew this was the best opportunity for me to get the long arm back up and running.
Jeff came to spend Wednesday night, and Thursday morning due to all of the snow and ice we ALL three left the cabin before 6am taking the 4wd pickup with chains to the bottom of the drive where the other vehicles were parked due to the snow.
Jeff and I drove the van to my work while Dave followed in the Subaru.
They left me and the van at the QPO studio while they went to the surgery and I awaited Patty's arrival.
Remember this scenario. Pickup with chains is the shuttle, van and subie are the main vehicles.
Patty arrived and began to work her magic - in the evening I went home, parked at the bottom, and was shuttled up the drive by the pickup with chains.
Hubster Dave was resting, but couldn't feel his arm at all due to a nerve block. That would take 24-36 hours to go away.
Yesterday morning, after things had partly thawed, refrozen and things were once again snowed upon:
It's going to be a long winter.
As per what I said in the video - I strapped the YakTrax to my boots and we just hoofed it down to the "downstairs" vehicles to get me to work. Tula and Flash were ticked that their breakfast was late. LOL!
By afternoon the menfolk had gotten the truck out of the snow-packed ditch and back up top. The decision was made that when things were this icy it was best to stick with the RZR with chains on all four tires as shuttle until things thaw a bit more.
Guess what? Today we are hitting 50!!! But it will be back down to 23 tonight and the drive is on the shady side of the mountain so all it will do is make things more slick until it freezes over again.
How long is winter??
At any rate - this is now happening:
It wasn't without some pain and frustration, but Intelliquilter seems to be communicating to itself once again.
One thing I was happy about - It did all of the errors for Patty that it was giving to me so I felt vindicated that I was not, indeed, losing my freaking mind.
It did, however, stump her to the point that she ended up changing out some cables and resetting the tablet a bit more securely so that USB connector stays tight.
We ended up slowing my machine speed down a bit and adjusted the stitch length accordingly to minimize vibration.
It's such a touchy thing....
But I will tell you what - there is only so much a person with limited knowledge (Me! And usually just enough to get myself into trouble) can do, and then it's time to bring in the pros.
If you are having trouble with a machine you've invested so much in, make an appointment. Get your long arm a spa day and add on a troubleshooting session and get that baby fixed. Stuff happens. Don't let it steal your joy!
I hope to finish the quilting on my Four Patch Fun Leader & Ender quilt over the weekend.
I want to have binding on so I can put my feet up in front of a cozy fire and start to enjoy this holiday time off that is before me.
Lola - 14 years ago today!
In my FB memories this morning - This was baby kitty Lola and since it's Caturday I thought I'd include a photo of where she spent last evening:
Such a good girl who loves lap time and snuggles.
This morning past sunrise -
The ice on the rain chain is likely to be on the ground by the time I get home this evening.
Yes, the RZR will be there to meet me, and I'll shuttle to the top, but I'll just put on my best Laura Ingalls impersonation and just trudge through it.
We are tougher than we think we are, and even this ice and snow is temporary.
Quiltville Quote of the Day -
I dare you to say this with an Italian accent and not giggle.
Bonus points if you throw in some hand gestures.
I will never say pinecone any other way from now on!
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
Oh--that's a good one, and will be added to my Alternate Pronunciations list immediately! Two more favorites are "Eh-SKAH-pay (escape)" [courtesy of Disney's Finding Nemo] and "Frah-JEE-lay (fragile)" [courtesy of the leg lamp package in A Christmas Story]. We have a friend who grew up pronouncing that nasty biting insect as "mah-see-KWAH-tow", so that's in our permanent family lingo.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn
Giggled before you said to try not to :)
ReplyDeleteSew glad Patty visited and fixed your Machine troubles. My dealer retired. I had it going good yesterday. It's great when it works and Magic happens. I wondered what needed the 'frosting' in your Quilty space. 12 days until Christmas. Sending you a package.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your snow, we have none!
At one point in time, we had a Ford truck, four wheel drive, etc. We had a similar thing happen and the friend who helped us said we needed weight in the bed of the truck, ie cement blocks, etc. Did that and no further problems. Just a suggestion. Happy your Millie is up and running once again.
ReplyDeleteJust remember every day is one day closer to spring!
ReplyDeleteMy mom enjoyed making up words - my favorite (which we still use) is roast beast (for beef) and feh-chu-ttini, from a cousin who never did pronounce fettucine correctly! Marilyn McCann (my family name is Locati! so lots of Itaianisms!)
ReplyDeleteOh! Taylor Swift and Lola and Dick Van Dyke all have the same birthday. Happy Birthday Lola. You are lovely.
ReplyDeleteSnow is beautiful but not ice. Glad all the travels were done safely. I tried saying pinecone Italian style before I finished reading the paragraph! Date made and accepted and you win! I did laugh out loud! Thanks for sharing! Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteWhat sweet pictures of Lola. She’s a good lap warmer. And sew glad that Millie got the full treatment! She earned it. My Janome M8 and 3160 machines went to the spa while I was on vaca. I’d forgotten how quietly the M8 was supposed to run. She’s a dream to use now.
ReplyDeleteOh, what a happy day when things go back to working properly. I do love those colors on that leader project. It is such a happy quilt. My Christmas wish for you is that things settle down just a bit so you can recharge and rest. I am going crazy at work and just trying to survive until our Winter Break, 4 days. UGH.... But, I did get the paint chips yesterday for the mystery quilt so I will see about doing it in the actual colors as well. (I'm doing it in Christmas colors right now.) Happy quilting (and resting!) P.S. Happy Birthday to Miss Lola who makes me smile every time I see her on the blog! :-)
ReplyDelete