Comfort quilt

A young cousin in our family is going through cancer treatment in Southern California. We’ve been sending him cards, but Cousin Sylvia thought a quilt would be a comfort.

Sylvia sent out an e-mail to family women in Northern California and invited them to her house to help piece a quilt with love. Catherine, Patsy, Lisa, and Cindy gathered there on a Saturday and worked very hard. I was unable to come.

Sylvia bought appropriate flannels for a guy. She said there were mainly pinks and blues and children’s prints for sale so she had to go to several fabric stores to find just the right ones for him. She came up with the pattern for his quilt and cut all the fabric for the blocks. Catherine designed the ocean wave, surfboard and sun block because he loves the ocean and surfing.

My daughter-in-law, Toni, quilted the top on her long-arm machine. It looks so cozy.

Dreams come true

I saw this ad on the internet.
And I had a dream about a luxurious hot bubble bath.

The little water heater was available for quick shipping on Amazon.com. I ordered it early last week and it arrived quickly. My son, Davis, hired a plumber. Pretty soon my dream will become a reality. The Eccotemp FVI12 is up on the wall replacing the 28 year old Rinnai. As soon as the vent pipe is secured, I can pour a bath.

Not what I had in mind

When I chose “give” as my 2011 word (see post on January 13) I didn’t mean give to the plumber, give to the carpenter, and give to the insulator.

Warning – ugly pictures ahead

The back stairway rotted away earlier this month. So a carpenter is scheduled to put in a new beam and new stair treads.

While they were inspecting the stair damage and taking measurements, they had to go under the house. In the crawlspace the torn and failing insulation was found. I’ve been calling around trying to get bids for replacing the insulation and re-wrapping the ducts.

And today, my dear little tankless water heater gave me a loud scary signal that it was about to give up. It has been working faithfully since December 1983. That’s a pretty good life for a water heater. Click here.

I’ve been searching for a replacement all day. It seems they don’t make them this small anymore. I know I don’t need more than 76,000 BTUs because the old Rinnai was only 65,800. The new ones are all over 100,000 and that requires replacing the ½ inch gas pipe with a larger one. Big expense!

I think I’ve found one that will work The Eccotemp FVI12LP indoor power vent tankless water heater is available at Sears.

I found my word for 2011

The word is give.

I pondered all the suggestions you gave me as comments. Thank you. While I was feeling blue and lonely they were encouraging. About a week ago, the thought came to me that to get going I must start giving to others, not waiting for something from outside to perk me up. Ah ha!

I looked on the internet for the meaning of the word give. It has many, many meanings. One struck me: “To contribute generously, fully, and freely.” Others were:

To yield to force or pressure, to relax, to become less rigid; as, the earth gives under the feet.
To become soft or moist. To move; to recede. To shed tears, to weep .To open, to lead. Dedicate; “give thought to” “give priority to” “pay attention to.”
Here is a link to read more definitions: http://ardictionary.com/Give/2066

What a multi-faceted word give is. I think I can give a little something each day. I can give a smile to my irritating neighbor. I can give encouragement to someone who appears unhappy. I can create some patterns and give them away on my blog. I can give to a charity that I admire.

Once I found my word I wanted to make a banner for the wall above my computer. I searched the internet for images representing give.

Most of them looked like begging hands. Then I thought of the old quilters’ symbol – Heart in Hand. I even had a heart in hand pattern from long ago. See it here.

Now I have my new banner up on the wall next to last year’s. (I’ll try to be good this year, too.)

What’s the word?

I’m looking for a word for this new year. Last year I chose “Good” and made a little banner to hang above my computer. See it here.

This year I need a word that will mean something all year.

I’ve thought of:
Spirit
Get off your duff
Stop inertia
Go
Move

Those words or phrases are not right. I need something to inspire me. I have been in a resting phase since October 2010. It was as if all the air had suddenly gone out of my balloon. Right after Robert died in May, I plunged into some community work and kept on trucking. However at the six month marker the doldrums hit. I am cozy and comfortable and content, but not motivated to get going on something interesting.

Any suggestions are welcome.