Daily Blog

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You've asked great questions and the students are answering many that I will post. However, let's start with: How's the food?

Justin and I have always put a huge emphasis on food at the retreats. La Veta is extremely limited on places to eat so we have the meals catered. We are blessed to have Sally and Karen, sisters, who live in La Veta and cater our lunches and dinners. The Sisters have owned a restaurant and a cooking school and taught cooking tours in France. Here is what some the retreaters currently here have to say about the food:

"the food is fabulous!" Mary

" I've had wonderful meals all over the world. The food here ranks close to the top - if not the best ever. Do not plan on losing weight here." Frank

" fantastic - better than 5 star..." - Pat

"..I'd expect to pay $30-$50 per plate- they are so incredible." -Kathy

So - tonight we had boneless ribs, cheesy mashed potatoes, grilled zucchini, mango/red onion/cabbage slaw served with garlic bread. Yes, there is dessert - tonight it was pumpkin pie with chocolate ganache topped with fresh whipped cream.

Now - get ready - Sally and Karen have offered to share the recipe for their Mango, and Red Cabbage Slaw. Click through to the comments on this blog for their recipe.

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We are starting day three of five at my first ever winter (January) La Veta Quilt Retreat. We are keeping logs on the fire and the snow is beautiful. As a matter of fact it snowed all day yesterday - very gently - adding to the amazing atmosphere here. The students are pursuing their own creative vision and the variety of projects amazes me every time.

Mary (from Tuscon) is working on a fantasy bouquet and has just a bit of satin stitching left to do before moving on to other things. Would you like to ask a question that the students can answer from their perspective?

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My family eats black-eyed peas. I've done this every new year's day of my life. They are meant to bring prosperity. A few years back I was in Canada on New Year's day for a quilt gig and my hostess (actually Susan Purney-Mark - see her in Episode 309 with Daphne Greig) managed to find a can of 'salad beans' in a Canadian supermarket and I picked out the black-eyed peas so I wouldn't break tradition. There must be plenty of other New Year's Day traditions in our world quilt community - so tell us about your traditions - especially let us hear from those of you outside of the US.

But did you know...

Black-eyed peas are traditionally eaten on New Year's Day in the American South and in some other parts of the U.S. In some areas, they are served as a starchy side dish, cooked with or without sidemeat, bacon, ham bones, fatback or another pork product and/or diced onion, and often served with a hot chili sauce or a pepper-flavored vinegar. In other areas, they are served in a traditional dish called "Hoppin' John" made of black-eyed peas cooked with rice, sometimes pork (such as hog jowls, ham hock, sidemeat or fatback), and seasonings.

The traditional meal also features collard or mustard greens or cabbage. This is supposed to bring good luck and financial enrichment. The peas stand for good luck, the greens symbolize paper money. Cornbread also often accompanies this meal.

The "good luck" traditions of eating black-eyed peas on New Year's Day are recorded in the Babylonian Talmud. This custom is followed by Sepharadi and Israeli Jews to this day. The first Sepharadi Jews arrived in Georgia (U.S.) in the 1730s and have lived there continuously since. The Jewish practice was apparently adopted by non-Jews around the time of the Civil War.

These "good luck" traditions date back to the U.S. Civil War. Union troops, especially in areas targeted by General William Tecumseh Sherman, would typically strip the countryside of all stored food, crops, and livestock and destroy whatever they couldn't carry away. At that time, Northerners considered "field peas" and corn suitable only for animal fodder, and as a result didn't steal or destroy these humble foods. Many Southerners survived as a result of this mistake.

Additional information provided from Wikipedia.

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Many of you are waiting to see the concert. Well, I have been working around the clock (literally) editing the video of the Christmas In a Small Town Concert. My goal was to have it posted this morning. However, I have two more songs to edit - so for those of you looking for it, my guess is that it will be posted later this evening (Christmas eve) or for certain on Christmas morning. Once the video is complete there are still several hours of formatting and uploading it so you can click to view it on our site. You won't want to miss it so check back soon. Barring any technical difficulties we'll be rockin' and rollin' in a few hours.

In the meantime, I've chosen not to include songs from this year's concert that were also presented last year. That is with the exception of Christmas in a Small Town. If you did NOT see last year's concert, it still lives in the Daily Blog archives. It would be worth looking at prior to viewing the new one I am working on. Here is the direct link to last year's concert posted on December 24, 2007.

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Photo by our good friend Judith Baker Montano

Good day to you all. As you can see by my posting that I have come out of the "production cave" and returned to the land of the living. Last night concluded the Christmas in a Small Town concert series - we did six concerts over three evenings. Those of you who have been around for a while will notice Kat Bowser once again came to sing - and she was wonderful as ever. However, for some of the songs our duo became a trio.Who might that be on the right in the photo above? Go ahead and guess, but don't look in the comments until you do. I've put the answer in the comments section.

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It snowed almost 20 inches in La Veta last night and today. Justin and I took a drive to capture the wintery scenes. This photo was taken just as the clouds left and the sun started shining. This photo almost looks like a painting, but I assure you it is not. It's not even Photoshop enhanced!

The winter inspiration reminded me of the Remember December challenge going on in our Challenge link. You've still got time to submit an quilt entry. Take a peek at what is already there - it's amazing!

Finally, I should say WOW! You are on the right track helping me with photos for my video. If your on a roll, don't hesitate to post as many as you like. If you think your photo looks like a Christmas card - post it here! If you are unsure about what this is all about - click here.

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David and Annie Enke restored this 1957 toy piano.

When I was 20 months old (1957) Santa brought me a rocking horse. Santa, however, brought my cousin Carolyn a toy piano. Needless to say I was MUCH more interested in her toy piano than I was my rocking horse.

Growing up I would always play that little piano when I would go to visit my cousin. Well, after my Christmas concert last year I decided to find out where that piano was. We found it in her garage. The cabinet had severe water damage, the tines were rusty, and several keys were broken - but I took it anyway and told her that finally, it was mine!

Our neighbors are music instrument gurus and I had David and Annie completely restore it. They totally rebuilt the cabinet (from solid rock maple), but it was the insides that needed a lot of re-fabricating. Also, I asked for the 'new' version to be red. So here it is. My new red toy piano - and yes, I'll be performing on it in concerts in the future.

By the way, the company still makes toy pianos, and I could have bought three new ones for what it cost to have this one restored. But this one is THE one. Does this story bring any thoughts about your childhood holiday memories?

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Hey gang! You probably already know I'm presenting the Christmas In A Small Town concerts December 18-20. For a couple of the songs I'm working on a music video. It dawned on me that YOU might be willing to provide me with some great holiday shots. Grab that camera and send me anything that screams "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas." How about your decorated trees, snow scenes at dusk, candles, holly, fireplaces with stockings, outdoor lights, and the list goes on. Landscape (horizontal) orientation is best for this project.

Closeups, shallow depth of field, and natural lighting will go a long way.

By submitting, you agree to allow me to use your image for the video. The deadline for submission will be on or before Dec 15 - the sooner the better for me. Post your high quality photos in the TQS Show and Tell link.

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At the top of Show 312 I demonstrate a few tricks with the double blanket stitch, a stitch I use a lot when doing raw edge fused applique. Fantasia is the block featured in that demo and the pattern is now available for free on our Projects link.

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Our Ricky Tims Super Quilt Seminar is over (it was great and we met MANY TQS members there) and we are now heading back to La Veta. We are taking the 'scenic' route home. I know many of those in the U.S. have been to the Southwest and seen the magnificent Saguaro Cactus, but for those who live in other parts of the world, or for those who not been to the Southwest, here is a photo showing a bit of what we saw on the drive this morning. (sorry, but my camera battery was dead so I took the photo with my laptop.)

The bloom of magnificent Saguaro Cactus is the state flower of Arizona. The plant has a tall, thick, fluted, columnar stem, 18 to 24 inches in diameter, often with several large branches (or "arms") curving upward in the most distinctive conformation of all Southwestern cacti.

The Saguaro grows very slowly - perhaps an inch a year - but will grow very tall - up to 50 feet! The largest plants, with more than 5 arms, are estimated to be 200 years old. An average old Saguaro would have 5 arms and be about 30 feet tall. Visit Charlotte Warr Andersen's webite and see her quilt featuring these magnificent plants.

What unique flora, fauna, or geological features are in your neck of the woods? Do you find inspirational from your surroundings (or from your travels) that influence your creative efforts the same way Charlotte was inspired by the Saguaro?