NO MASKS TODAY!

Not only did I not make any face mask today, I didn't work on anything that had a connection to Covid-19. That means I didn't work on my Covid quilt either.  I did sew though.  Went back to embroidery and made a cute little wall-hanging. I actually started it and finished it in one day.  For me that is impressive. The only thing not done in the hoop was the binding. Also adding the crystals.

THE OUTSIDE WORLD STILL EXISTS!

Today I escaped for about an hour.  It was wonderful!!!!!

I started the day after my tea and a shower with finishing up a few face masks requested by people.  For the moment I am caught up and done.  I made two for some neighbors here in the Villas.  When Kathy came to pick them up off the lanai she left me a gift.  It was wonderfully fun.  A roll of toilet paper and a Noni Biscotti. They are both appreciated.

I also made to special face masks for some long time Disney friends. Of course they were made up of Mickey and Minnie fabric.  Rich and Laurie live in what is called the Historic side of The Villages.  It's about 10 miles north of here.  I had to go to my mail box to pick up my mail.  I go one day a week. After getting my mail I headed north to deliver the masks. 

It was a beautiful afternoon.  Sunny but cool, which was a wonderful surprise as the day started out cloudy and slightly rainy. My drive was lovely.  It was both reassuring and sad to see how few people were out and about.  Usually on a day like today the cart paths and golf courses would be full of people enjoying the weather and outdoors.  There were some golfers I saw along the way, but not many.  Also there were a few walkers and joggers along the paths but very few.  The reassuring part of this is that people are taking the threat of this virus seriously, which they didn't seem to be doing early on.

Spanish Spring was a bit eerie.  The parking spaces were empty and obviously the stores were all closed.  No one was walking around and the only sign of life I saw was a lone person manning a carryout table at Gators Dockside. They seemed to even be the only restaurant open for carry out.

As empty as everywhere seemed to be it still was wonderful to be out in my car and seeing things different than the walls of my home. I am planning on taking a drive once a week, just to help with the cabin fever. Though it would seem that our esteemed Governor is getting ready to open the state back up for business.   Personally I don't think it is time yet, but I can only control my own behavior.  As lonely as I get at times these days, I will still remain at home till I am comfortable that by going out I will not be putting myself at risk.   

31 DAYS ALONE!

It's now been 31 days since I have been touched by another human being.  That is the hardest part of all this.  I can talk with people. I can even see people. But no touching allowed. I now have a better understanding why they say babies that are left alone in their cribs and never touched do not thrive and may even eventually just fade away and die. Touch is very important. Now I don't think I am at risk of dying from the lack of touch, but I don't relish another month or more without it.  Every day gets a bit harder.

I did get some sewing done today other than face masks.  I will have to get back to them tomorrow.  It still amazes me that as one of the richest countries in the world that so many have to rely on homemade face masks made by volunteers who ask nothing in return.  I may have made well over 150 masks to give away, but that is nothing I read and hear of people who have made over 500 and some over 1000.

So what did I sew on today? I started out with this pile of scraps.  Leftovers from all the masks I have made to date. Most of the scraps are strips or what some quilters call "strings".  Since I had mainly strings, I decided to make a string quilt.  I wanted it to be a bit different than the normal string quilt so decided to make it using rectangular blocks rather than square ones.  I remembered that one group I used to belong to suggested Sewing string quilts onto a foundation of used drier sheets.  That is what I did.  I think I may have mentioned this in an earlier post, but today I got serious about it.  One thing I can say is that it sure smells good when you press the block.

 After sewing the strips on the dryer sheet foundation using a sew and flip method I trimmed them down to a 9'" x 6" rectangle.  This will end up being a finished 8-1/2" x 5-1/2" rectangle. I don't what the quilt to be too big.  I'm thinking a lap quilt that I can throw over myself when sitting and reading a book or watching tv. That is if it ever gets cold in FL again. Other than a rare series of days, on and off, this winter it has been very warm.  Today and yesterday it was in the 90's already. I will probably make the quilt either 6 x 6 blocks or maybe only 4 x 6,  I need an even number of blocks in
each direction because of the design I have chosen to arrange the blocks.

This is my first panel made up of 8 blocks. So far I am liking it. I have another 5 blocks done, but have discovered I seem to favor one direction of placing the strips on the diagonal.  I need to remember to make them the two different ways. 

If there was anyone reading these posts I would ask what do you think.  Since no one does I will simply say I like it.

JUST ANOTHER DAY!

It's Tuesday....at least I'm pretty sure its Tuesday.  Everyday it seems to get harder to remember what day it is.  Thank goodness my phone not only gives me the date, but the day of the week. Everything with which I used to figure out what day it is, is gone.  No club gatherings, no work, no appointments, really nothing not even any church to prepare for.  Every day is just like every other day in this Covid-19 world we are living in. Even TV seems to be the same.....news stories about Covid-19 and more and more reruns as new production is ended.

Between yesterday and today I made another 15 face masks.  I had planned on rejoining the quilt guild here in The Villages.  Kind of glad I didn't get a chance to before all this craziness started.  I just heard a rumor that they received a request for   2000 face masks. YIKES!  Don't get me wrong I've been glad I've had the ability and the means to make the masks I have, but like I've said before I really don't do well with repetitive sewing. It becomes a real chore.

So what else did I do today???? Well I'm working a lot of Sudoku puzzles and even venturing out into the world of other more challenging (for me) puzzles using a grocery store puzzle book. Some a am fairly good at others I find totally frustrating.  One thing I discovered is it is good to hold on to things even when not regularly using them.  It's been a while since I have done anything with this booklet. Check out the date.
Yes, I've had this for awhile.  I remember cleaning out the magazine rack several times
over the years, thinking I should through it out.  I guess I now know why I never did.  Something must just have been whispering in my ear...."one day you may need to work with this again!"  Well that day has now arrived.  This is why I just can't go along with the decluttering thought of if you haven't used it in a year, get rid of it.  One never knows and it's not like I could just run out an buy another puzzle book at this time.


So what else did I do today?  Well, I decided it was time to fix myself a real meal. Not just a sandwich or a chicken breast but nothing else or not even just cheese and crackers.  I cooked! I roasted some fresh asparagus, sautéed some mushrooms, and broiled a steak. It was good. So was the red wine I enjoyed with it, however I have to say I don't make a steak as well as a steakhouse does.  I am really looking forward to a good meal out when this is all over.

Tomorrow will be another day.  Since I've already determined to day is Tuesday, tomorrow will be Wednesday. I will venture out in my car.  I will stay socially distanced and I guess I will wear a mask.  I need to go get my mail.  This is the new world order.....going to get mail is an exciting event because it takes you out into the world.

DAY 28!

Simply HAPPY EASTER!

IT'S ANOTHER DAY LIKE PRETTY MUCH ALL THE OTHER DAYS.

Saturday, April  11: First let me say Happy Birthday Dad!  I miss you but am glad you are at peace and not living through this mess.  Though truth be told mom could probably use you by her side  right about now.  If you can reach out and give her a supportive hug. She's one amazing woman, but I know she's lonely right now.

Among other things today I began to work on my CoVid-19 lap quilt. It will be made up from scraps left over from all the face masks I've made.
This is just a small sample of the scraps I'm working with.  I've decided that I will just do a strip quilt or what some call a string quilt. The goal is to get it done and have it as a memory of this time.

I have been saving used drier sheets to be used as a foundation.  The strips will be sewn on to a sheet.  One nice side effect is when pressing the sewn pieces it sure smells good. I am putting the strips on an angle and because of the size of the drier sheet they will be a rectangular block rather than a square one which is usual.

 This is what the blocks look like after they are sewn and before they are trimmed. So far I think I have 8 blocks completed.  They pretty fast and are pretty mindless to make. I figure that I need 30 or 35 blocks to make a lap size quilt that has a small boarder around the main blocks so I still have a way to go.  Hopefully I have enough scraps left from the masks.  If not I guess that will give me another reason to make more masks. On the right here are what the blocks are like after they have been trimmed to 6" x 9". 

Tomorrow is Easter, but obviously I can't go anywhere. I will watch church via Facebook.  Different but glad we have the technology to do this. There are several community events planned during the day that we can take part in from our yards as a sign of solidarity. I'll see how they go. Other than that I will do more sewing on my quilt. I also will be praying for Jeremy as tomorrow he begins shadowing and learning how to be part of the ICU team.  He is concerned about this and so am I.

DONE??????

I thought I was done. I hoped I was done, but requests for masks keep coming in.  A Baptist church approached a club I am part of and asked if we could make 100 masks for their volunteers at the church run food bank. I really don't want to make anymore but how do I say no?  I can't!  I will though say I can't start making them till Monday.  That will give me a break.

God help me for my thoughts asking why as the richest country in the world we can't produce enough face masks to fill the need.  Also why can't we produce and process the tests needed to know how bad this really is. In my dark heart I fear the answer to the question of testing is that our president does not want confirmation of how bad things really are.  He seems to be living in his own little alternate universe of things are rapidly getting better and we will be back to business in a couple of weeks. I wish!

So what did I do today since I didn't sew masks? Pretty much nothing.  Well that;s not really true.  I did empty, reload and run the dishwasher.  I also did my first online grocery shopping complete with delivery.  It worked well but it is real easy to spend too much. My only consolation after spending $200 is that it should be the only shopping I need to do for another month. This is a very interesting experience to say the least.