An evening at the Museum of Fine Arts

Yesterday, I took the 2:00pm bus to Boston yesterday so that I could see the Quilts and Color: The Pilgrim / Roy Collection at the Museum of Fine Arts.  I had planned on going after work on Wednesday, but by the afternoon, it was 92 degrees, humid and thunderstorms on the horizon.  I opted stay home in front of the A/C instead.  But I had to go this week, as the exhibit ends on Sunday. I made the right decision as yesterday was dry, in the upper 70's and just a gorgeous day to be out and about.

I think the last time I rode the T, the rate was 60 cents per token.  Now the tokens are gone, you buy tickets, and each ride is $2.65.  Times have changed.  I was happy to find that I still remembered the difference between in bound and out bound and that I had no trouble figuring out which train to get on.  It took me about 35 minutes to go from South Station to the MFA stop on the Green Line.

I loved the exhibit.  My favorite part of quilting is gazing at fabric -- so what could be better than rooms and rooms of beautiful quilts to look at?  I liked that these were functional quilts first and foremost.  They were made to keep people warm and be used.  It looked like some were made from old clothes, and there were blends of silk, wool, and cotton.  There were plaids, stripes, dots, solids, floral, all mixed and matched.  I didn't buy the program book as it was hard cover and heavy and I didn't want to be walking around with it; but if I had, I could better remember the statement underneath one of the quilts in the description plaque, somebody had said that the ladies that made these quilts would be so surprised to see their work in the museum because they weren't made to be art.  The exhibit was inspirational for me in that way.  These were regular people, making beautiful objects for real world use and we can appreciate them on so many levels.

I stayed in the exhibit for a long time.  A few things still linger in my mind and one is that I want to learn how to hand quilt.  I've always assumed that I wouldn't have the patience for it.  But maybe I have sold myself short.  I really liked the quilts that mixed solid fabrics with pattern and had intricate quilting stitches in the solid/empty spaces.  All my quilts have been machine quilted and there is a beauty there was well.  But to see how the quilt can change due to the quilting stitches was a revelation to me.

And all the Amish quilts reminded me of Grammy Louise and Aunt Mary.  I don't know what year it was the we went to Eli and Lizzy's farm.  My only memory was waking up early and finding out that I was the only one still abed.  Everybody else was out doing chores.  I think it was after that trip that I got a quilt.  It is a Log Cabin, with red centers.  Many of the Log Cabin quilts in the exhibit had red center squares.  I felt that connection.

There were many variations on the Log Cabin.  One was clearly a featured quilt -- big and bold with a lot of black.  It didn't appeal to me.  I didn't really like the heaviness of the black and I didn't plan on looking at it for long.  But as I walked closer, I saw that each center square had beautiful hand embroidered flowers on the inside.  I don't think any center square was exactly the same as any other. And then I couldn't walk away.  It so intriguing for me, like discovering hidden jewels.  There is a life lesson for me there that there can be hidden depths and treasure under an exterior that I don't find very pleasing.  At this particular moment in time, that was an interesting and beautiful way to be reminded of a stronger message, for me.

The other thing that I felt after the exhibit was that I think I have a pretty good sense of color.  I think I have a nice way of combining color and pattern for a very pleasing overall feel.  I think I might experiment with a little more plaid.  For some reason, I really liked the liberal use of very patterned fabrics, like stripes and plaid.  Going forward, that is something for me to keep in mind.

After the quilts, I wandered abound a bit.  I went into the American Wing.  I love how they have set up various rooms that are actual replicas of old colonial homes.  I like how paintings and furniture is set against wall paper and fabric draped walls, not just a solid paint color.  And of course, I had to take a picture of the big doors.

I wandered some more and found a corridor of Islamic Art.  Someday I'll have a house that has an archway inside.

It wasn't until I went through to the other side that I realized that the carving on the other side is what most people would be taking a picture of, not the back side that I liked so much.

I smiled when I went in to a gift shop and heard two couples speaking Turkish.  I couldn't understand most of what they said, but I think one of the ladies was speaking about the Turkish class that they have for kids at MIT on the weekends.  That is what I am extrapolating from being able to pick out a few words.  Selim and I need to get serious about learning the language.

And lastly, I like taking pictures of sculpture.

 There were two bronze dogs in the courtyard that caught my eye when I went out for a bit of fresh air.

As well as a lively blue jay that perched for me.

There is a large piece at the entrance that also had dogs.

I left the museum feeling satisfied, full, inspired, and happy.  A great way to spend a few hours.

Boat quilts

I started making two boat quilts for Nedim over the long Thanksgiving weekend.  I finished binding the second one today.  That is a pretty good turn around for me -- less than a year, start to finish.  I was going to make one, but it turns out that I had so much leftover fabric, that I ended up making two.

My mission today -- take half-way decent photographs of them so that Nedim could take them to the boat.  I have been reading on line about the best way to photograph quilts and came across a way that I thought might work.  I took two clothes hangars and Nedim found a ladder, and we used the gutters as the hanging place.  If I had better hangars, it would have been easier.  But we did manage to have them stay up long enough for me to take a few shots.

I think for the bigger, queen size quilts, I may look into having a professional photographer take some pictures.  I would love to have a record of good quality for the bed quilts that I have made, before they get too well loved.

I was in Portsmouth Fabric on Friday afternoon, buying binding fabric for the quilt that originated out of a fabric square that I found in Kew Gardens in the summer of 2011 when I was working in London.  I bought yardage for either a green or blue binding.  I was too tired to make a confident decision so I purchased both colors.  I also have leftover pink in two shades.  I'll have to put the quilt on a bed and drape the fabric yardage around to help me figure it out.  I set up the blocks so that the color moves from blue to red on the diagonal.  There are blocks also have green, yellow, and purple, in varying amounts.  The boarder fabric has blue, red, pink, and green.  For me, I can't decide which color binds the whole thing together the best.  I'm sure it will come to me.

It is odd, but after I bind that quilt, I only have one other going.  I often have a couple in various stages of completion or have bought fabric to start the next project.  And now, I have my sunset colors in the birdbath pattern, and that is it.  I don't even have my next project picked out or have an idea for another.  It feels odd not to have multiple projects in the pipeline.

Garden, shoes, and the wardrobe

We've put in a great garden this year.  I hope the plants thrive and produce for us.  We have put in several kinds of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, kale, carrots, lettuce, basil, parsley, chives, and rosemary.  This year, more than others, I have felt a connection with my relatives through the plants.  I have gardeners on all sides of the family and as I was planting, I was thinking about them.  I remember Grammy Louise's garden in Vernon.  Dad always has beautiful tomatoes.  Robert gave me the kale plants that he started from seeds.  Heather took the torch and made me realize that it wasn't just for our parents.  Mom is all about fresh herbs and flowers. How many times would we run down the porch stairs to the garden to pick fresh chives to sprinkle on tacos or snip some parsley for the salad?  I enjoy seeing the pictures and hearing the gardening stories from others.  My family gardens and I love it.

Two weekends ago Selim and I bought seeds and plants from a nursery in Dover.  While we didn't plant everything all in one day, eventually, we got them all in.  After just a week or so in the ground, I think the tomato plants are sturdier and the peppers are taller.

The raised beds, prior to weeding and planting.

This year I dug out some of the lemon verbena that had spread along the retaining wall and put in herbs and a kale.

Next year we will reclaim the former strawberry patch and incorporate it into the regular garden.

I hope we have better luck with the carrots this year.  I put them in a different raised bed and added compost from our bin.  Maybe that will help.

And now to the shoes.  I bought these on sale during the Memorial Day weekend.

Fabulous, right?  I didn't know when I would wear them, but I "had" to have them.  Yesterday, I had the perfect opportunity.  I were co-facilitated the monthly Adjudication training.  I had a vested interest in the success of the training since I came up with the theme, had the vision for how it should be presented, researched the material, set the schedule so that we could meet the deadline, and got the buy in from my co-workers and Manager. Then I turned it over to David so that he could work his magic and create the actual technical presentation.  He did a great job.  On Tuesday we had three training sessions, two for first shift and one for second and I wanted to look professional and be comfortable at the same time.  The shoes were the perfect compliment to my favorite sleeveless suit-type dress.  (It wasn't wrinkled yesterday.)

The first session started at 10:30.  By 10:20 I had gotten several compliments on my outfit as people came into the room and that made me smile.  I was confident in front of the microphone and even though the first group wasn't very energetic to start, I didn't let that get to me.  By the end, they were into it and we had the give and take that makes a training session interesting and gratifying.  The last session of the day was the easiest.  We had our second shift group and everybody was more relaxed.  They were fun and we had a great time.

When I got back to my office, one of my former team mates came up to me and said, "I saw you up there and I thought to myself, Bethany is still all about the shoes."  I laughed.  And it is true.

I am grateful that I have a wardrobe that works in a professional setting and for the gathering that I went to on Sunday.  I have a collection of dresses that can be worn with strappy sandals or heals; can be dressed up with a suit jacket or made more casual with a little sweater.  It is nice to have a collection of outfits that if I have to travel for work, or attend a gathering with a social set out of my league, that I can feel comfortable in what I am wearing.

Busy, busy

Friday, all three of the town's third grade classes met for Immigration Day.  I knew that my Lovey Lamb was nervous, but I didn't get how so until Mom said on Wednesday that he was scared.  After hearing that, we spent the next day and a half reassuring him that he would be fine and that the event might actually be fun.  Earlier in the year, he has studied Turkey for his Country Report.  For Immigration Day, he chose to honor one of my sides of the family and pretend he was coming from Ireland.  I am well aware of the differences between Ireland and Northern Ireland, but I wasn't going to quibble when a friend gave him the hat.

Friday morning, he was dressed and ready to go.  In his pillow case "ruck sack" he carried a book, photo of his family, a rock from the backyard, and a penny whistle.  I gave him big hugs at the bus and told him that I was proud of him overcoming his anxiety.

All morning I thought of him.  I did my own form of prayer.  My mind focused on him and I couldn't nap.  When the clock passed noon, I exhaled, knowing that the even had ended.  I went to work and tried concentrating on the tasks at hand.  At 4:00, I called home and heard the most excited and relieved voice.  He had had a great time and all was well in his world.

Saturday we gardened.  We planted lettuce and carrots from seeds.  He put in the ground the rest of the herbs and kale.  And then we watered and watered.  And played with the hose.

Sunday I managed to wake up when the alarm went off at 5:00am and went in to the office at 6:00 for 3 hours of OT.  Energized when I got home, I tackled putting away winter clothes and organizing summer ones.  I have a big bag for Goodwill.  I had wanted to stay at home and work on more cleaning, but I had to put in a command performance at a gathering in North Hampton.  Nedim was giving an orientation to some people who are going to Turkey in August and he wanted me to be there.

We drove separately and I got there a few minutes after my guys.  The house was a gorgeous old New England home.  Looking at the house, I couldn't figure out which door I should try.  The big door at the front didn't look well used.  The path to the left ended by a rock wall.  The path that boarded the driveway led to another entrance and a side building.  I stood there in the driveway and started to cry.  It felt like the worst thing ever.  Not only do I hate walking in to a room where I don't know anybody, but to enter through the wrong door would be socially so awkward.  I had cake in one had and my cell phone in the other, only to find that I couldn't get any service.  I was going to call Nedim and tell him to meet me and bring me inside.  No luck.  I opted for the pathway by the driveway, took a deep breath, and knocked.

I chose the right one.  Everybody was very friendly and in no time I had been offered a drink and food.  Selim was eager to test the pool water and the lure of the hot tub could not keep him out of the back yard.  I went out to the back with him and spent the next two hours taking pictures of the gorgeous flowers that lined the pool and the fun garden sculptures.

And of course, Selim.

By the end of the afternoon, Selim was executing flips off the diving board and having the best time.

At 5:30, I dragged him away, knowing that I still had laundry to fold and a kitchen to clean before bed.  All in all, it was a busy, busy couple of days.  Oh, and Nedim's presentation went well.