I wiped away the weeds & foam. / I fetched my sea-born treasures home... Ralph Waldo Emerson







Friday, February 8, 2013

Winter Storm Watch






Hi! I hope everyone is home safe and warm tonight. I can't believe we are preparing for yet another ''monster storm''. There is a surreal quality to the planning---didn't we just do this?





And more than just a hint of ''blizzard, what blizzard?''. The temps are hovering in the thirties here, at times we have rain, at times some frozen, uh, crap? No snow. 30 mph winds, no storm surge.




I did all the usual stuff: Feed the ferall kitties; secure loose stuff on my deck. Dither over the still-broken back storm door...no glass in places.
Made food that does not need refrigeration or heating. Got out batteries and candles.


 



Winter storms are, alas, a big part of winter at the beach. And before H. Sandy, no big deal. Sure---we'd lose power for a day, maybe two; it'd get cold indoors. But now we worry...what if the power goes out again...for weeks or months? Can we bear it, the cold and dark returning?









After I do what I can, I turn to  my quilting. I have lots of hand sewing, on the Porch quilt and bindings of finished quilts/ repaired quilts.
(The view from my swing table windows....below)



 


And I have my Fall Project to work on, a project that somehow never gets worked upon during the Fall. There is always something, isn't there. I thought last weekend I got a lot done, but now, as I look...well, darn. The fancy mixed borders still need a LOT of work and fudging-to-fit!




These are blocks I have made or collected over many years.



The Tulips [one on right] are the first quilt thing I bought when I moved to NYC after college. They came from a famous folk art dealer on Madison Avenue and were the only thing I could possibly afford.



Various stars and Sailboats are flea market finds and gifts from a quilt dealer friend. I made the Tall Ships from a Bicentennial pattern I found at flea market.They were intended to be a quilt for my parents' Cape Cod home---but were not acceptable, my mom hated the red-white-and-blue-ness, the Ye Olde New Englande look. My dad loved and studied antique ships, made intricate ship models, so I had thought they'd like the idea. But no. (Mother hated the ''subtly luxurious'' Hunter's Star silk quilt I tried next too. I did not try again.)



It's odd and ironic, the quilter's impulse to make gift quilts. All that  thought, care, effort---money. And love we put into our work, and wish to share, to give. Rarely if ever are the results wanted or treasured. Now I try hard to remember: make what I like, for the artistry, for the pleasure. No Gifts!



lol.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach.........





PS Blogger still does not have the enlarged pix function working. Click to see supersized storm photos; the beach is out there but far away.....

5 comments:

  1. Mr Wilson's great uncle George made us a quilt for our wedding 30 years ago. i treasured it then, still have it and carefully use it. he passed later that year, so i feel honored to be gifted with it. still have afghan his aunt made us too.
    love the pic's
    was wondering how u were finding Nemo...
    as long as he doesn't wash up to your porch, then all is good, right?
    v

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  2. Brr, it looks cold even in the photos! I hope you don't lose power, or at least not for long. Sometimes having a modern home is not a good thing! Fireplaces and a wood pile would come in very handy sometimes! Take care!

    ~Melody

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  3. Oh my! I hope you are okay. And I hope you don't lose power. Keeping you in my thoughts and I have my fingers crossed. Kit

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  4. Hi Lizzy. Pics are great. Hope you are all ok. We were lucky again here. Just a winter snow storm, nothing monsterous. Love your ships in the quilt and the quilt in general. I wish I had your patience.

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  5. You do an amazing job on your lovely quilts and all of your handcrafted items. Your delightful personalitiy shows through them - very talented! Hope you have come thru the storm okay.

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