I CAN'T HELP BUT WONDER WHERE I'M BOUND

"I Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound"

I guess I've got the "too many changes and so tired of packing" blues.  This Tom Paxton folk song has been looping around in my mind for days - the  last verse has always resonated with me and seems even more personal right now:

If you see me passin' by and you sit and wonder why,
And you wish that you were a rambler too,
Nail your shoes to the kitchen floor, lace 'em up and bar the door,
And thank the stars for the roof that's over you.

My favorite cover by Nancy Griffith doesn't seem to be available on youtube, so, turn up your speakers, click on the link above and listen to an a capella version that's pretty good.

THE PASSING OF HOLLY BERRY - ONE YEAR AGO

Holly died so unexpectedly and the shock and grief of her passing rank right up there among the top couple of ghastly events in my life.  Everyone who knew her still talks about her, recalling her unique personality, her fearlessness, her devotion to her brother Bear and her total confidence that the world was her oyster.  I miss that kitty and I'm so sorry she didn't have a longer life and more peaceful transition.  Kisses across the galaxy to you, little girl!



SEWING BUDDIES FAREWELL JUNE 10, 2011

Once a month several friends get together to work on our sewing/quilting projects and have lunch together.  This hen party has traditionally been at my house, but since it was staged for sale, I had moved a lot of my sewing gear over to BFF Mags' house so we met there.  She has a great set up for working on any crafts you can imagine!

We have a sewing teacher/friend named Mary who has helped us all improve our techniques and learn new ones.  She is a fabulous "sewist" and always brings something beautiful that she's done or is working on and always has something to teach us.  Yesterday we had a farewell event that wasn't really farewell, since I will be back from time to time and am leaving a machine, fabric and other stuff with Mags.  Still, it did seem like the end of an era.  :~(

Here are some shots of everyone except me, as I was the fashion photographer and we forgot to take some with me in the scene.  I was there!

FROM LEFT MARY, MAGGIE AND MAGS

ONE OF MAGS' EXQUISITE  HANDSPUN,

HANDKNITTED PIECES

     CONFERENCE AT THE
         IRONING BOARD

                                                                              HAPPY QUILT!

BAILEY LOVES COMPANY!

(That's my just finished vegetable print and mesh grocery tote behind him.)

LAST BUT NOT LEAST - FOOD!

We had a delicious lunch of Maggie's tortilla soup with all the fixins, plus guacamole and chips and the best apple pie in the world from Julian.  As usual, I started to add hot, i.e., habanero, sauce to my soup when Maggie suggested I taste it first.  It was perfect!  No additions necessary.  Mary brought the pie and we all raved about it.  Nothing beats Julian pies!

 (SORRY, WE WERE HUNGRY AND I FORGOT TO TAKE PIX WHILE

 THE FOOD STILL LOOKED BEAUTIFUL!)

MY LAST FIELD TRIP TO LA WITH BFF MAGS - BOO HOO!

Yesterday, Mags and I went up to Buena Park to see Dr. Yoon, our accupuncturist.  I really needed it, as every muscle in my body is being taxed with the moving prep.  After that, we went on to west LA to go to Mood, a fabulous contemporary fabric store whose New York venue is featured on Project Runway on TV.  Check out Mood for more info.  Here are some shots Mags took which barely begin to capture the gimongous amount of fabric, notions and accessories in this universe of sewing regalia!  After exhausting ourselves at Mood, we went to Versailles for some great Cuban food.  Don't ask about the name of the restaurant - we didn't get it either!  Traffic sucked on the way home, but we chatted and passed the time pleasantly.

Mood is fabric heaven on earth!



Scale of human to fabric!

 



Fabric inundation!





Val scores buttons at Mood!



SAN DIEGO HOUSE IS SOLD!

How lucky could I be?  My house was on the market only 6 days when I got a good offer and with a tiny bit of back and forthing, we had a deal!  One by one the impediments to the Colorado move are falling away - I must give some credit to St. Joseph, whose statue is buried upside down facing the gate in my courtyard.  That and the fact my friend Sheri smudged the house a while back to rid it of all bad energy and memories helped a lot, but I have to say my real estate agent Nancy Beck was the biggest contributor.  The staging advisor, the great photos (see slide show at Val's SD house) and video, and the savvy advice on pricing were the major factors!  Many thanks to Nancy, winner of the Century 21 Centurion Producer Award for 2010 Individual Sale Production.  Find Nancy at  Nancy's link and meet a real pro and genuinely lovely person.

SISTERS!

We love to sew - here we are with our "Little Britches for Africa" that Terri taught us how to make.  These and "Little Dresses for Africa" get packaged up and mailed to needy villages where little ones have nothing to wear.

Speaking of sisters, here is a painting I commissioned a couple of years ago.  It's called "The Sisters' Reunion" and I just love it.  Guess which one is me?  Hint - look for the cat!

COLORADO!

This is yet another photo of my new house.   The difference is now it is really mine!  I closed escrow on 26 May 2011 and as you can see from the difference in the lawn, it's springtime in the Rockies.  The plantation shutters are ordered (thanks to sister Susie), washer and dryer being delivered today (thanks to brother Mike and brother in law Nick), and the a/c will be installed soon (thanks to Nick again).  My sister Terri is doing all the business stuff that needs to be done, is finding me an AWD SUV, and has been repeatedly coming to San Diego to help me get the move together on this end.  Thank goodness for family!

Here are sisters Susie and Terri, getting the food together for our celebration on closing day.  Friends and family came by to eat Terri's famous enchiladas, celebrate the recent birthdays of Stacie, Nancy and Mark and to toast the move!

This is a shot of Mike and Stacie at my closing  party.  The house is pretty bare, but will be full of  Valerie things soon!  Stacie's son Brandon has his back to the camera - he's a great kid and just moved from Windsor down to Denver while all my house buying process was coming together.

Jeff was my Colorado real estate agent and spent many afternoons driving the Miller girls around to look at potential houses for me.  He says we were fun, but that's a lot of crazy girl energy in one vehicle and he was very patient and mellow!  Sometimes Nick went with us and the men folk took the front while we rocked the back seat!