MQX West – First Half of Day 1

I’ve had my first class at MQX West 2011, the first time this machine quilting expo has been held on the west coast.  My class was called Lions and Tigers and Templates, Oh, My! taught by Kimmy Brunner.

First let me say, Kim Brunner is a really good teacher, and I would encourage anyone to take a class from her.  She is patient and clearly repeats her information when she’s asked and I liked her very much.  The class is very well organized and the flow of information worked really well.  Kim obviously enjoys teaching.  I’ve been reading her column in Machine Quilting Unlimited, and she touched on the subject of using templates in that article, so I was familiar with some of what she covered, but it was good to have that reinforced, and then hear new materialo in conjunction with it.

The room, though, was not  setup properly for this presentation.  There were 2 rows of tables for students, holding approximately 12 people, but there were at least 60 people in the class.  That meant that everyone else had to try to work on the drawing handouts on their lap, using the notepad that they were supposed to bring to class.  To say the least, this was not a good first impression for the organization of the show.

The Awards Ceremony and “sneak peak” of the vendor mall will be tonight.  I’m a little disappointed that the vendor mall isn’t open during the day because I was planning on using this time to go shopping, especially since my friends are taking classes. 

So, while I was waiting to take my first hands-on class since I first touched a longarm, I went to a local burger place, Burgerville, for lunch.  Blackberry shake was absolutely wonderful, the half salad, while flavorful, was too small, and so I had to order a sandwich to complete my meal.  I got the crispy chicken sandwich and ended up taking off the breading (I didn’t realize it came with that) which included a smattering of barbeque sauce….which also needed removing.  I think I’ve experienced all that Burgerville has to offer me.

I’m really looking forward to the hands on class…Exploding Texture and Background Fill, with Judy Woodworth.  I really want to expand my free motion repertoire and think this class will help.  I’ll let you know!

Quilt video–Awesome!

This is well worth the 6 minutes, sit down with a cuppa Joe and enjoy!

http://media1.nfb.ca/medias/flash/ONFflvplayer-gama.swf

Reflections on Family

I’ve been thinking about “family” quilt a lot lately, and the life cycles each of us experience.

Weddings, anniversaries and retirements.  My family has been caught up in all of those things in the last month.

Our family is far flung, with my husband’s family in the Seattle area, my mom in Montana, and my brother in New Hampshire.  I have more cousins than most, and they are all over the place; I can’t even keep track, especially since they are having their own kids now!

My husband and I flew to Seattle to attend the wedding of his youngest daughter a couple of weeks ago.  Even though it was a short trip, I was glad to get back home.  We couldn’t pick up the dogs (my kids!) until late on Sunday and the house sure was quiet without them.

Our wedding anniversary is today.  We spent the weekend together, going out on Saturday night, talking and re-connecting.

I spoke with my mom yesterday afternoon.  She’s getting ready to retire and one of her biggest disappointments is not getting to be near her grandkids, who range in age from 7 to 12.   I suggested that maybe she consider moving near them; they will change drastically over the next 10 years, and this is a time that can’t be lived via video chat.  While there would be some challenges to address, I think she would regret not taking advantage of the opportunity.

Obviously, there has to be personally compelling reason to move across the country than to do it for someone else.  My mother is highly intelligent, well educated, loves gardening and being outside so it’s not like she’s ready to sit back in a rocker waiting for someone to visit.  I’m hoping she would write the novel she’s always wanted to write, incorporating the local history into that story or become a visiting professor in a local college.

She was concerned that I not feel left behind.  I know my mother cares about me, but re-connecting with her grandkids is something that she needs and wants, and that is most important to me.  As I told her, it’s just as expensive to fly from Montana to Boise as it is from Boise to New Hampshire!  And I am OK with video chats!

We mark milestones with celebration and quilts and I’m recognizing those events cycling through my life.  The year is already speeding by, and I want to slow it down to enjoy it to its fullest.