tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205526962024-03-11T00:45:42.490-05:00Giraffe Dreamsin which I write about quilts, dreams, everyday life, and almost nothing about giraffesCarol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.comBlogger2251125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-46626859518537969412022-08-26T20:37:00.004-05:002022-08-26T20:37:46.383-05:00A Book *Don't Cry For Me* by Daniel BlackA father writes a letter to his son. The father is dying and wants to communicate life events and feelings that he had been unable to express while raising his son.Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-25500494039232443342022-08-15T13:24:00.024-05:002022-08-15T13:31:44.908-05:00Two More Books Maus I: a Survivor's Tale; My Father Bleeds History by Art SpiegelmanA grown son questions his father about the father's past years in Poland and in Auschwitz. He records it all and writes this graphic novel about his father's experiences; mostly it focuses on the father's work to survive during a terrible time. It's captivating and a quick read. I rarely read graphic novels, but this was Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-70956578317149873732022-08-10T14:51:00.000-05:002022-08-10T14:51:01.583-05:00An Unusual Turn of Events During the Covid shutdown, I found I could not concentrate on reading. How odd! I love to read, and extended time at home seems like the perfect opportunity. Instead, I spent hours and hours sewing.As time has passed, I find that I have very little interest in sewing! How truly odd! I have gradually come out of my reading funk and am enjoying books once again. This is what I have read so Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-72616233860055070912022-05-30T10:24:00.002-05:002022-05-30T10:49:56.859-05:00Hands To Help Quilt Challenge Completed I participated in the 2022 Hands to Help Quilt Challenge. These are the three quilts I made and sent. It's the first year where I branched out and gave quilts to two projects which were not officially part of the project.The one went to Tree of Life Agency at Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota.This one went to Jeremiah Project which sent it on to Ukraine.This one went to one of the Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-36973228305287217852022-05-11T12:08:00.000-05:002022-05-11T12:08:18.990-05:00Quilts Delivered in Ukraine A quilt shop in Florida announced that it would accept donations of finished quilts for Ukraine. The shop is owned by twins; one twin in Florida runs the shop (it's really a warehouse, not a store front). The other twin lives in Poland, not too far from the Ukraine border.The twin in Poland has been buying loads and loads of food, diapers, hygiene supplies, etc... things that people in Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-48159767929765848082022-04-06T01:18:00.004-05:002022-04-06T01:18:48.017-05:00Book: The Lincoln Highway The Lincoln Highway by Amor TowlesThe writing is superb. The characters are diverse and real. I wasn't completely enamored with the story line, but the great writing made up for that. The last 50 pages really wowed me. Like I said, superb writing.benches in BulgariaCarol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-6362376080321671542022-03-22T17:48:00.010-05:002022-03-22T18:28:51.412-05:00SAHRRI finished my Stay at Home Round Robin top. Six rounds were suggested..i skipped one of them. I am glad to finally put that middle block to use after it waited for years. Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-32973748519850534362022-02-25T01:26:00.000-06:002022-02-25T01:26:13.925-06:00Book Review and Stories I listened to two more short stories read by Levar Burton on his podcast.Open House on Haunted Hill by John Wiswell (one thing I really liked was the secret room that was once someone's sewing room) -- five starsThe Final Performance of the Amazing Ralphie by Pat Cadigan -- three stars***and I finished a book: The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall. Relationships, families, faith, Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-1231980049254781052022-02-05T11:46:00.001-06:002022-02-05T11:46:10.122-06:00Another Short StoryYou Perfect, Broken Thing by C.L. Clark, read by Levar Burton at his podcast, "Levar Burton Reads."3 starsCarol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-30716750400435685732022-02-03T23:48:00.000-06:002022-02-03T23:48:14.090-06:00SAHRR Round 3 - Stars This round was stars, especially wonky stars. I think I prefer regular stars over wonky ones. But I'm OK with the quilt so far... waiting to see what Round 4 will dictate.Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-13276121892534027422022-01-29T23:42:00.003-06:002022-01-29T23:47:53.175-06:00Stay at Home Round RobinThis year I am participating in a Stay at Home Round Robin (SAHRR). It gets rounds added, but unlike a usual robin, it doesn't travel. It stays at my house, and I do all the rounds myself. The theme for each round is chosen by various bloggers.First I chose a center block. This is one I made using a special ruler. I made it years ago, and later had a friend add to it. She did the orange rays in Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-27100499706571297042022-01-28T01:09:00.001-06:002022-01-28T01:09:20.827-06:00Short Stories"Levar Burton Reads" is a podcast that I subscribe to, however, I haven't listened to much of it. Recently I decided to take time to listen to short stories read by Levar Burton. (The podcast consists of him reading only short stories.) I am happy to report, he is helping me emerge from my pandemic reading funk, finally! Hooray!Here are the short stories I have listened to recently, along with myCarol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-11357616413941707502022-01-07T15:05:00.027-06:002022-01-11T23:13:54.172-06:00Quilts Delivered to Comfort Cases (Parts 1 and 2) Sunshine Quilt Guild is an online group whose members make quilts for kids in need around the world. One of our current initiatives is for kids going into foster care. We send our quilts to Quilts Beyond Borders which has an arrangement to provide quilts to a program called Comfort Cases. Comfort Cases gives kids a backpack with a blanket (or quilt), book, pajamas, and a few other things Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-57979686264436240782021-12-15T01:23:00.001-06:002021-12-15T01:23:38.194-06:00Book Review: Anxious People Anxious People by Fredrik BackmanAn odd bunch of people get thrown together for an extended period of time when they become hostages of a bank robber. I am amazed at how Backman's brain works. He comes up with so many quirky people and situations! It reveals his keen observation of humanity and how we interact. One has to admit, we do have all those eccentricities that he creates in his Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-25960530331057749762021-11-18T20:52:00.000-06:002021-11-18T20:52:06.792-06:00Two Book ReviewsThe Best We Could Do by Thi BuiThi Bui has written a masterful
graphic (illustrated) memoir. She was born in Viet Nam, and when she was very
young (and her mother was 8 months pregnant), they escaped and eventually made
it to the USA. Apparently she struggled to write this book over many years. It
finally came to fruition when she decided to make it an illustrated version. I
loved her drawings, Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-33841870808535425412021-11-15T12:50:00.003-06:002021-11-15T12:50:54.327-06:00Hike, Sew, Sleep, Repeat I did not make this ducky quilt. I purchased it from a quilt shopwhile on one of my road trips. All other quilts pictured here were made by me.Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-42378674524263438492021-10-05T01:15:00.003-05:002021-10-12T18:19:40.729-05:00Swede Hollow is Real! OK, I knew Swede Hollow was a real place. Please see my previous post in which I review the book called Swede Hollow by Ola Larsmo . I knew Swede Hollow was a real place and had been a neighborhood for several groups of immigrants when they were new to St. Paul, including Italians and Irish and Swedes and possibly others. I had been to Swede Hollow Café a number of times in the past, but I Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-44234860803586954272021-09-28T23:03:00.000-05:002021-09-28T23:03:35.208-05:00Book Reviews: Three Books "This is a good one, Mom."1. The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi CoatesRead this for a book club. I liked the book but was a little disappointed in the character development. I didn't feel particularly attached to any of the characters. That said, it's a book about slavery, something I need to try to understand more fully. Each time I read a book such as this, I learn more and am reminded of justCarol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-47640347248129117622021-08-28T19:14:00.000-05:002021-08-28T19:14:47.069-05:00Show Pins Quilt Several years ago I found this long, narrow, already-quilted piece on a Free Table at a guild meeting. I don't know who made it. I took it, not sure what I would do with it. Eventually I decided to turn it into a quilt on which to display my pins: quilt show pins, pins from work, school, church functions, and pins from my various travels.Today I put on a binding, a hanging sleeve, and now Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-6841995284415128752021-08-16T15:43:00.000-05:002021-08-16T15:43:00.752-05:00Unscientific Assessment I recently went on a very long road trip, and listened to a lot of radio. I decided to concentrate on Country Western music, even though it's not something I like very much. My assessment goal was to pay attention to the words and see what they say about life.Most of the songs were about relationships. These are the stereotypes I came away with from country music:A woman is small, beautifulCarol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-88783223376103629432021-08-06T00:12:00.003-05:002021-08-15T11:04:19.198-05:00Hiking, Baby! I have caught the hiking bug! A while back, mostly out of curiosity, I joined a Facebook group called Women Who Hike Minnesota. Women Who Hike is a national group, and each state has their own local Facebook group. So.. I watched various women from Minnesota hike around the state in all kinds of weather. They exchanged ideas on good places to go, information about equipment, how to dress Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-26207551827986515212021-07-27T19:26:00.002-05:002021-07-27T19:26:51.612-05:00Quilts on the Horizon My online group, Sunshine, had a sew-along day where we all made the same pattern: Horizon from this blog -- klein meisje quilts . It was designed by that blog creator, Lynn. We chose it because it is a quick and easy block and perfect for a big group project, requiring very few directions.Here are the quilts we made on our sew-along day and a few days after (20 of them so far). Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-87614617152812956632021-07-25T13:03:00.000-05:002021-07-25T13:03:43.511-05:00Too Hot for Outside We are having a very hot and dry summer. We are trying to establish a new lawn this year, which is virtually impossible during a raging drought. But at least we are not in a fire zone (knock on wood). We just see hazy skies from fires in Canada. I hope everyone near the fires will be safe.I am tired of the heat and mostly stay inside. I have been working on this for the last couple of days:Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-30650763518766350772021-07-22T13:39:00.011-05:002021-07-22T13:46:08.487-05:00George Floyd Square I live in a St. Paul suburb and don't get to Minneapolis very often. Today while running errands I realized I was not far from George Floyd Square. I had never been there, so I decided to pay a visit. Cars can now drive through, but slowly, because there are still many tributes set up in the street along the sidewalk by Cup Foods and on the spot where George died. People still visit and Carol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20552696.post-60091008570470598282021-07-21T00:15:00.001-05:002021-07-22T13:40:25.868-05:00Book Review: The Midnight Library The Midnight Library by Matt HaigRead this one for my book club. We like to try to read different genres. This is of a type that I rarely read.. not sure how it is officially classified, but I would say maybe science fiction? It was based on an interesting idea: what happens when we die? Suppose there are parallel universes? What are those like?I got tired of it after a while, but it was atCarol E.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02741550863747328734noreply@blogger.com2