Today's Good and Bad Mail

Usually I don't get much of anything; advertisements and the like. Catalogs usually get tossed immediately. THE GOOD: from an online quilter, I got a lovely Halloween card and a FQ of fabric featuring Maxine of Hallmark Cards. The personal note was so lovely and much appreciated. THE BAD: from unemployment. I've hit the perfect storm of employers here in Maine. One place I worked (a doctor's office) had a stupid psychiatrist who came in once a week. He went to my boss one day and told a big fat out and out lie about me, for which I was seriously chastised. Of course, they believed him and not me since I was new. I applied for unemployment but they lied, of course, and I lost out. The second was also a doctor's office. I worked 2 days a week doing typing and data entry and some special projects for the office manager. I was out sick for 4 days, which did encompass 2 weeks, but again it was only 4 days, with a serious illness. While I was out sick, they outsourced my job fabricating a bunch of ludicrous untruths. My hours and income went way down, I had to give up my studio at the beach that was close to school and go back to commuting 1+ hours each way every day. I again applied for unemployment and again these horrid people lied about me, and again I lost out on what should have rightfully been mine. Now, it seems, Anthem is doing the same. The common thread with these 3 crooks is the University of New England, a medical school for osteopaths in Biddeford. The first clinic job was at a UNE Clinic. The second job was for UNE-trained osteopaths and Anthem's medical director was also medical director at the UNE Clinic. These are DO, doctor of osteopathy, not even real MD doctors. What they really do best, though, is lie through their over-educated teeth.

my biggest book

this was a gift from DD some time ago. if you know me, you know i don't make contemporary or 'art' quilts. however, this book is for anyone who likes/loves quilts, color, design and style. interestingly, the editors of this book credit the amish quilt as being the birth of art quilts because of their geometric design. this is a super book and contains luscious color photos on nearly every page from every quilter, known and unknown, who makes art quilts. i had never seen this before it was gifted to me and never since until i visited the New England Quilt Museum and they also had copies of this book for sale. it's a real treasure to me for many reasons, not the least of which is because my very own child gave it to me, which makes it even more special.

UFO Finish

yesterday i finished this tablerunner made from sandy gervais' charms line, "merry and bright." i love these fabrics but i confess, i don't really like charm packs because i always want more yardage of each of the fabrics! they just tempt me into buying more fabric, which is not always a good thing. ***** today i hope to finish up another UFO, which would be terrific. then i have a mini Amish log cabin to quilt and bind. once these 2 are finished, it's back to the winter tote to finish AND start quilting the wedding quilt. i hope to have that done before the end of the year, which would make 3 hand quilted quilts completed this year. once i cross off more UFOs from 2010, then I can start a couple of my WHIMMs and use up more stash.

a finish

just this evening i finished a hexagon tablerunner, christmas, using a packet of charms i got in a swap a couple of years ago. the charms are from sandy gervais' line called "merry and bright," and i am thrilled i used this packet up AND i knocked a UFO off my list. with 2011 just around the corner, i still have way too many on my list for my liking AND i've done the horrible deed of starting almost as many new projects besides. i am thinking of tying 2 of the UFOs in january and donating them, which will give me a good start in the new year. i'll post a photo of the tablerunner tomorrow when i take the picture.

The Pledge

I, Grace Thorne, pledge to talk more about my (quilting) processes even when I can't quite put them in words or be sure I'm being totally clear. I'm going to put my thinking and my gut feelings out there.

Being an English major, I am never at a loss for words, either spoken or written. I have always been a pretty transparent person that way. I am, however, endeavoring to make this blog more quilt related and less personal ranting and raving. I used to have a sister-in-law who said our family had "no filters," meaning we pretty much had our feelings and thoughts in the open when dealing with one another, and often with those outside the family as well. If that is why I have no friends, then so be it. She, on the other hand, was so secretive and deceptive about her true feelings and self. We came to realize what a disturbed person she really was.

Brrrrr

cooling down significantly here in maine and tonight might be our killing frost. many mainers dread the coming of winter and i am at the top of the list. i had hoped to be out of maine before snow flies, and there's still a chance, but just as likely not. a new parka is on my list this fall, so hoping the unemployment checks start arriving soon.

every quilter....

should have a pair of patchwork socks don't you think? no, these aren't home made. i got them in Amish country, Bird-in-Hand, at a t-shirt shop while on vacation. they are soooo comfy, colorful and splashy! i love my hand-knit socks but I love these too. they look super with my touristy t-shirt I got there as well. ***** if you're "into" baltimore album quilts, peek at these on amy's blog. simply gorgeous, but i know i don't have the expertise or time to make one. i might do some squares, though, for fun.

back to quilting

doesn't look like much at the moment, but this is going to be a winter-themed tote bag for a swap. i didn't have to buy any fabric for this at all, shopped entirely from stash which is a VERY good thing! this was from a commercial pattern as i have NO design talent whatsoever. machine sewing is much easier for me right now than hand quilting, though i have done a bit of that this week for short periods of time. yesterday i spent doing some odd sewing including this piece, plus trying to get organized as to what to do next. i tend to work on several projects, meaning 3-4, at a time and with limited space that is not really practical. today i'll make a list so i can put away anything not currently needed and keep the small room from getting cluttered.....clutter drives me nuts! ***** have put the job situation at the back of my mind for now. have resigned to not getting my unemployment, which is very wrong, but it's something i cannot change. just waiting for november so i can close out my retirement account and have some cash for living expenses. until then, only moths in my wallet but the immediate bills are paid, so it's tolerable. ***** plenty of good sleep last night under my comfy quilts, which makes a HUGE difference in how i handle these situations. the glass is definitely half full today for that reason.

bureaucratic limbo

according to the unemployment office, they are waiting for information from anthem. now if anthem provides that info as quickly as they pay claims, it could be spring before they ever respond. hardly anything has gone right since i moved to this despicable pine tree wasteland. life here has been just pure crap from day one. and since the other two maine employers that back-stabbed me lied to avoid unemployment, my guess is anthem will do the same. isn't anyone honest anymore? i simply cannot figure out why these potato heads continue to screw me over when i am simply trying to work.

if it's tuesday....

that means "dancing with the stars" was on last night. I am in no way a reality TV show devotee, but after taking ballroom lessons myself, I am more than enamored with dancing. I don't currently dance as hippos rarely do, but when I did it was pure heaven. The absolute most fun I have ever had in my life. ***** I did manage to quilt a tad last night also. Having my arm better is sooo great but will be entirely at ease when it's 100%. ***** No jobs have materialized yet, but I didn't expect one so soon. I am trying not to think about how my life got so convoluted over a piece of damn property or some busybody, but it did. I am overwhelmingly sad about a big chunk of my life being downright awful. I am going to do everything I can to make it right and get to enjoy the rest of my life if at all possible. **** A fairly new tenant is a UPS worker. He spent the summer lying around the yard in his chair baring as much flesh as possible. He was bragging about his salary at UPS, so I'm not sure if he is trying to recruit me or make me jealous. Either way it isn't working. **** Went to my checkbook the other day and found 3 checks missing. They could have been taken at work as my manager never followed through with a desk lock. Nobody really comes into the apartment except family, at least when we are here. Another nuisance that is going to cost me money to rectify.