In with the New

As I'm soon to no longer be a resident of the School, I leave this blog in the able hands of Theresa, lover of kittens. If you want to see what I'm up to, you can now find my updates and rants at my new blog, I've Lost My Super Powers.

lovelove,
Michela

The Perfect Storm

I'm sometimes amazed at what pops up as autofill options when I start to type things into various fields. People have clearly been doing very weird thing with this laptop while I'm asleep. Anyway, I know it's been a while. I dropped out of life for a few weeks. I don't feel too bad, since it appears that everyone else is taking a beginning-of-the-summer break as well. There's been an absolute drought of blog and lj posts.

This week I went to the grocery store for the first time in two months. The break was the result of travel combined with an unwillingness/inability to provide myself with the necessities of life. It felt pretty amazing to finally step into a Publix and buy produce. There are beautiful fresh flowers all over the house and everyone is getting their stuff settled and arranged. The combo of exams, shifting roommates, and multiple vacations left the School looking like a bit of a wreck for a while. I think it created a negative feedback loop with my life. We're finally ready to let people back into the house, though, so we're having a house re-warming party on Friday. It'll be nice to have a house full of half-drunk, happy friends again.

The weather is nice and hot now, and my little garden is growing fast. My trips to Maine, North Carolina, and Florida were all super rad, if exhausting. My only really complaint is that my heart is like gasoline and I've encountered too many matches in my travels. Portland is definitely my favorite of the places I visited, in terms of the actual city. It was so awesome and super important to see Maggie after such a stressful few weeks at the end of April. West Palm Beach was lovely and lazy. North Carolina was emotional and amazing. I've seen so many people that I care about...Maggie, Keith, Chris, Tim, Kaylan, Faith, Lis, Devender, Sarah, Kenny, Adam, Ty, Greg. It's overwhelming in the most wikkid of ways. I'm back in town for at least a little while, though, and glad to be slightly more settled.

Summer school has started and my Indian cinema class is rad so far. The first movie we watched, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham was totally epic, fascinating, hilarious, etc. A serious, all-out Bollywood blockbuster. It seems like the summer term will be chill and fun. I need to kick things into gear with Napoleon, though. I've been distracted of late and spend most of my time putting off the things on my to do list rather than getting things done as usual. Things are turning around, though, and I'm sure I'll settle into something more calm soon. In the meantime, though, I'm having fun feeling like at an extended slumber party.

Holy Cow! I'm Famous! (but not really)

I've been really needing some good news, to put it lightly, and it looks like today was the day. Lunch with Evan in the park, which was really nice, and got me in a much better mood. Then when I got home I had a letter from the chair of the department notifying me of a sweet little scholarship. Joy came over and we went to group meditation. It was so good to see her, especially since I've been in a state of utter despair for the last little bit, and really have hardly wanted to leave my bed. But the absolute best news has to be that Napoleon was featured on Apartment Therapy!!!!!! I am so totally stoked and can't even believe it!

I have a lot of things to get done this week before I spend a whole bunch of time out of town. I'm finishing up the binding on Mark's quilt, so I'll have photos of that soon. I'm trying to crank out some Pillow Monsters to take to Tuscaloosa before I leave, as well. Friday evening I'm headed to Atlanta from whence I'll fly to Palm Beach on Saturday. Back to Birmingham via Atlanta on Tuesday, and then I head to NC on Thursday for a visit with my friends and family.

Greg went back to New Orleans yesterday morning after a long weekend visit. We got a private yoga session from Jasper on Friday afternoon, and spent all day Saturday at the last day of my class at the Shambhala Center. Greg was pumped about both activities, which is rad, and a little unexpected, honestly. The all-day session was good for me, too, though it was sometimes frustrating and definitely left me drained. We got a good nap in and dinner at Chez Lulu before the Red Mountain Family Band played at Greencup on Saturday night. Two Tears and Dan Sartain (the bands we opened for) were a lot of fun, as was the afterparty at AC Temple, despite the fact that many a man went shirtless (Why, boys? Why?), and Firewater Charlie nearly fell backwards off the porch.

Three kittens are still mewing away in some remote room of the house, and poor Theresa is working herself ragged keeping them fed, clean, and warm. Kitten poop is not awesome, I'll tell you that much. Hayley has been making the sort of dinners I wish I still made, but don't have the energy for. Jennifer is working mad overtime and planning on moving her stuff in this weekend.

For entertainment and distraction, I still can't beat Avatar, but I've also been reading Gone with the Wind (my first time reading it, though it's one of my favorite movies) and When Things Fall Apart (Pema Chodron). Sleeping is up toward the top of my list, too.

Pillow Monsters Are Here!

Pillow Monsters are now available in the Napoleon shop. Each one is different and sweet and special in its own way. I want to keep them all to just have a big pile of monsters to cuddle! There are some new pillows and quilts to add, too, but I haven't photographed them yet. Shooting quilts is probably the hardest thing I have to do for the shop. They'll be up as soon as I get a chance, though.

I also wanted to share oh fransson's photostream with you. Her quilts are bright, bold, and easy enough for a first project. She also has great informational studies of color using fabric, and her blog has some quilt-along tutorials with lot's of helpful photos.

Beaux Animeaux is up in northern Alabama recording this weekend. I hope all is going well. I can't wait to hear the results. I'll let you know as soon as the album is available.

Papers and Pillows

Evan and I did some work last night for our new Etsy shop. We designed a banner, wrote our policies, and set up shop in general. Aside from the actual product, we're all set. Ha. But that's in the works, too. It didn't happen over spring break, so this weekend I'll try to make the screens. I ordered t-shirts already, and with any luck I'll be set to print as soon as they get here. (I'm curious to know how much the shipping ends up costing.) Anyway, I can't wait for the shop to open! I think you guys are going to like it.

I'd really like to knock out some school work at the end of this week, though, and that takes priority. Not strictly necessary, but it will improve my quality of life in the weeks to come. I have French to study and a paper to write for 18th C Art and Culture. I also need to start research on a term paper, since I have to present on the 9th. I'd like to say I'll have the whole paper out of the way by then, but realistically I'll turn it in at the end of the semester when it's actually due. If I manage everything well, I'll still have plenty of time to work on things for Napoleon, etc.

Speaking of work for Napoleon, after this current batch, I'm done making pillows for a little bit. I've got lots of quilting I want to get done. There's a bedspread and lap quilt for the Rowe School that are going to me my machine-quilting experiments. And I've just ordered backing fabric for a few quilts, one of which is going to Mark's little-girl-on-the-way. The though of my friends' babies all curled up in my quilts is almost enough to make me think kids are adorable. Almost.

Good Start

Well, the week got off to a pretty good start. I painted a big flourish on the living room wall this weekend. I ordered some rad decoupage paper for a project with my new dresser and changed the handles on said dresser, immediately improving its appearance by 15%. I prepped for my Chinese painting midterm. I wrote a paper about Dangerous Liaisons in record time. I finished five new sweater pillows that are now up on Etsy, so check out my shop. And I scored some more sweaters at the thrift store as well as some things to upcycle and sell at the next rummage sale.

Speaking of the rummage sale, it went really well, so now we've got funds for some projects. I had no idea Bottletree was so bumpin' on Saturday afternoons, but apparently they get a decent amount of brunch business. A lot of my favorite clothes that I was selling went to people who looked great in them and will appreciate them, which makes me very happy. Evan and I did a few appearance appraisals, but only for people we knew. No strangers. I think I'll enjoy doing strangers a lot better, not because I won't be inhibited, but because I'll be able to look at them more objectively. I plan on offering this service at other Cigar Box events, so if you didn't make it, you haven't missed your chance.

Best of all, I got a package from Rubi at Stitch Spectacular! What a nice surprise. She sent a sweet card, a couple of wacky pacs, and a pretty handmade, lavender-filled eye pillow. I've been meaning to make one for myself for a while, so it couldn't be more perfect.

That's got me thinking about new embroidery projects, of course. I've got a lot of seeds of ideas, but nothing stands out just yet. And I have so so so many other things to work on, not the least of which is making screens and printing a bajillion t-shirts for Evan and my Etsy venture, and for the Secret Intentions. Plus the living room is to being done. Just a little more work on the painted graphics, and I'll be finished. In the meantime, here are some pics of a couple of things I've done so far. I bought these chairs without covers on sale at PBTeen, then covered them in ticking and threw together a couple of pillows. I also thrifted this sofa, side table, and rad vase, and made those blue batik pillows.
So it's a sweet week so far, and will end with us in SF! I can't wait!! I planned out all of our meals as soon as we bought the plane tickets, so I've been thinking non-stop about dim-sum and burritos, tea at Samovar, shoe shopping in the Haight. And I get to see friends who I haven't seen since I moved to the east coast. Yay for spring break!

Procrastination

Have I ever mentioned that K-Fed reminds me of my step-dad? Sorta trashy, knocked up some rich lady who turned out to be a lunatic. They're practically the same person. I'm reminded of this fact because I've gone back to reading The Superficial. I stopped for a while when I realized I was only indulging the qualities in myself that I don't like (like being negative and judgmental). And anyway, LiLo hasn't done anything awesome in ages. So, I haven't changed my position on the subject, but I do have a lot of homework that I'm avoiding and I'm running out of ways to avoid it.

Speaking of which, I made these apple zucchini muffins just now. I used this recipe, substituting a muffin tin for a loaf pan, and reducing the baking time to 45 minutes. (In case you're wondering, I used one large zucchini and one granny smith apple.) They taste sort of like mild carrot cake? Anyway, it's part of my effort to eat more vegetables. I was pretty good about it back when I had time to cook, but my diet has gotten a lot worse these days. As part of the same effort I roasted some beets the other day. I ate them cut into chunks with poppyseed dressing and goat cheese. A pretty awesome way to consume beets, but I think it turned my pee pink. 

Oh, and one of my pillows was on the Etsy front page today! Yay!

For Sale!!!

I'm excited to announce that you can now find Napoleon quilts at fawn&forest! fawn&forest is a stylin' online retailer of all things for modern- and eco-tots. For a sampling of their wares, check out the forest finds section. Rather than expound on the fab designers and products on the site, I'll let you check it out yourselves. (Have fun!)

I'm looking forward to moving some quilts so that I can get to work on my next round. I've been getting some really awesome fabric into the studio and can't wait to show it off. I've also got a couple of embroidery projects in the works, and am patiently awaiting the delivery of some felt so that I can make the most adorable bunnies in the world from this pattern that I won over at Wee Wonderfuls. I may go into a fit immediately upon completion from an inability to handle their inherent cuteness. I think it's worth the risk.

What?

I got an e-mail this morning from Lesley Taylor at WHAT letting me know that she's included my Six-Shooter pillow in her Fall 2008 Design Guide. WHAT focuses on "independent designers who work in a contemporary/modern style." All of the awesome designs on the site are either available for purchase through WHAT or have a link to the designer's site for more info. So what are you doing still reading this?! Go check out some rad design!

The Storque

For those of you who don't spend a lot of time on Etsy, The Storque is Etsy's blog. They have lots of different kinds of stories, some on a theme, particular artists, or just cool finds on the site. I noticed one of my items got a lot of hearts today, so I check The Storque and sure enough, may Napoleon banner pillow is shown in an article on bedding. So check it, homies!

p.s. Is anyone interested in seeing any of the following bands with me at Bottletree: Sunset Rubdown, American Steel, or Crooked Fingers?

Fabric Envy

Any of you who have hung out with me around fabric ordering time have heard me complain about how difficult it is. When you're picking things out online from a tiny swatch it's hard to tell what color it will really be, how it will match other fabrics, etc.

I've been noticing another problem recently, too. I subscribe to True Up which is a great blog dedicated to fabric. Writer Kim Kight posts pics of fabrics on a weekly theme, as well as new fabrics of note, sales, etc. I find that when Kim posts a collection that I've already looked at on the manufacturer's site, I often notice a print that I didn't before and kick myself for not considering it. This is especially true of smaller prints. I think it says something about the design of some manufacturers' sites. I want bigger images when I browse, and I want collections to be better organized.

My other fabric-related problem today is that Moda is sold out of two (two!) of the fabrics I ordered. I had to throw in three or four bolts of stuff I didn't know what to do with to meet the minimum order. But it couldn't be those that were sold out. It had to be fabrics I had specific plans for. Sigh.
In much much better news, I've been accepted to Trunkt which is a juried collection of online portfolios for "creative entrepreneurs" (read: artists, designers, craftspeople). Buyers, wholesale and individual, can browse the portfolios, which will then direct them to the artists online shop. The shop can be the artist's personal website, Etsy shop, or wherever they do business online. Because the site is juried, it ends up being a lot more professional than Etsy, in terms of photos and products. As much as I love Etsy, there's a lot of crap on there. The front page is always beautiful, but once you start browsing, there's no telling what you'll find.

What a Mess

This is what my work table looks like right now. I'm alternating between quilting this giant project during the day and embroidering at night. Happy to be doing both, though, especially since they're coming out well.

The new sewing machine came, but between school, work, and outside projects like the Cigar Box website, I haven't even had a chance to test it out.

I've also been spending a lot of time trying to promote my Etsy shop. I originally intended it as a sort of back-up or a place to sell one-offs, and that's still the plan. But any kind of promotion or site traffic is good, so there's no need to treat it like a red-headed step-child. And hey, if any of you guys who know my work ever have brilliant PR ideas, send them my way. I'm pretty sure you don't have anything better to do.

Thinking about a game of Monstercards next Wed. Anyone up for it?

Updates of Machines

Today I received in the mail an update to my camera situation. That is, I bought a new one. Hence the pictures. I am both relieved to not be using the ancient back-up camera anymore, and sad that I had to spend the cash.

Next week I will take delivery of an update to my sewing machine. The current one is a very basic, non-computerized White purchased during sophomore year of college for less than $100. I've been working on a commission this last week, and I realized in the process that my machine just wasn't going to cut it anymore. I need something that doesn't make me pull my hair out. I wanted something computerized, but still can't afford more than a proletarian brand, so I decided on the Brother CS6000I. It's a 60-stitch machine with automatic one-step buttonholes, speed adjustment, and the all-important choice of auto-stopping with the needle either up or down, depending on your preference. I've been coveting that feature ever since I borrowed a machine that had it, probably sometime very shortly after buying my poor little mechanical White. The Brother has mostly good, but a few worryingly bad reviews on Amazon, so I'll have to wait till I get it to tell you if it'll be an improvement.









Here's a sneak peek at the commission-in-progress. The front and back are both pieced and are ready to be quilted. Evan and I both really like it and will be sad to see it go. It makes me want to find some time to make something for myself. It's pretty unlikely that will happen anytime soon, though, especially as I'm starting school on Tuesday. I'll still be doing my work for Napoleon as well, which will leave a lot less time for cooking, cleaning, and extra-curricular quilting. Besides, I find that I'm unable to stop embroidering in my free time. I'm thinking of doing a whole series of embroidered variations on the theme of butterpants.

Blue Ribbon

In order to wash the terrible memory of Jinsei from my mind, I had sushi last night for dinner. Ramani took me out to Blue Ribbon Sushi, in the Six Columbus hotel. It's one of the top-rated sushi spots in New York, but never had a chance to try it when I lived here. I had a truly amazing (seriously) sashimi platter, a few bites of Ramani's Blue Ribbon fried chicken (?!), and awesome bread pudding. I also have to mention that I stopped into the ladies' room, located in the hotel, and I felt like I was being eaten by the future. Bad, scary, but without being post-apocalyptic future. The walls of the hallway were completely upholstered in chocolate brown cow hide. Not leather. Cow hide. With hair. Hair (fur?) walls. And blue, hurts-your-eyes futurelights.
And now I promise not tobring up sushi again.

Nothing of note has happened since I arrived. After flight cancellations, a night in Charlotte, and many hours in the airport, I finally made it to New York on Monday. I did a little shopping yesterday, and had an afternoon appointment with a kids' store in Williamsburg. It went...okay. I did find that I had plenty to say about my work, though, and I think I sounded much more professional than I feel. Even though I remind myself that everyone starts somewhere, and that there are a lot of independent creators and designers in the same boat, it's hard not to feel like you're a kid playing at being a grown-up.

I got to see Steven and Cathy for a bit yesterday evening. I'm glad I caught them before they moved. There are a couple of other friends to catch up with today and quilting stores to visit. Tomorrow afternoon we're headed to W. Virginia. I won't be terribly sad to leave. Birmingham has gotten me used to privacy again and I miss it.

Free Wireless

I'm sitting in the Charlotte International Airport, wishing that I could find some kind of souvenir with the words "Raise Up" on it. Not that this was actually a reasonable possibility, but that's what wishing is about. Despite their lack of Petey Pablo-inspired memorabilia, I say, "Here's to you Charlotte, North Carolina, for not being one of those dick airports (like LaGuardia) that charges for wireless."

I have completely failed to get any appointments with buyers, so this trip has become little more than an expensive vacation. I have gotten some encouraging feedback, though, which I'll tell you about if it turns into anything. Also, I've added some things to my Etsy shop, so give it another look.

Since I've got nothing else to do while in NY, I plan on finding some sneakers, shopping in stores we don't have in Alabama, and catching up with friends. Because it's New York, I will probably also spend some time worrying about my weight and/or clothes, and coveting things (housewares, bags, jewelry, etc) that I can't have and won't care about at all the second I leave the city. On Thursday night Richard, Kate, and I will head to W. Virginia for Erin's wedding where I will lament the state of my life, drink too much, and engage in various forms of merry-making.

When I return, it'll almost be time for classes. I was approved for in-state tuition, which is pretty awesome. I've picked out my classes and...oh! I should be registering for them right now. Whoops!

***Update: Flights cancelled, lives ruined. The weather in the Northeast has created a nightmare here. I'm stuck in Charlotte till tomorrow.

Stress Means an Empty Fridge

I'm stressing big time about all of the things I need to do before my trip to NY. I leave on the 27th and I still haven't contacted buyers. I had a few last things to get together and didn't want to be unprepared when I called. Today has been all about making an order form, invoice, and line sheet. A line sheet is a quick reference for buyers, with photos or drawings of what you're selling along with item numbers and prices. This has also meant finalizing all my terms and conditions, like shipping methods, return policies, etc.

Before I left New York I happened upon the book Craft, Inc. by Meg Mateo Ilasco. It's been enormously helpful with this sort of thing, i.e. making sure you know all the things you need to have in order, from business licenses to minimum order requirements, when turning your craft into a business. I've also been reading The Boss of You by Emira Mears and Lauren Bacon. It's for women starting their own business, and while I don't particularly care for the girlpower tone of the book, it's a good resource. The books compliment each other well, the former having a lot of nuts and bolts info and the latter dealing more with branding, marketing, and PR.

Because I've been doing so much work and also because I'm going to be doing a lot of cooking this weekend, I've totally avoided going to the grocery store and have been trying to make simple things from what I've already got. The tuna and white bean salad I made last night required no fresh ingredients, and it turned out really well. We had it as an open-face sandwich, but the leftovers I ate for lunch were just on a bed of field greens. These measurements are just a guess. There's no need to be precise.

White Bean and Tuna Salad

2 small packages or cans of tuna, drained
1 can white butterbeans or other white beans, drained
2 tsp capers
1 tsp red wine vinegar (or lemon juice)
1/2 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Mix ingredients and serve on field greens or toast.

Night before last I made a crustless broccoli and cheddar quiche. It was a little too brown on top, but it tasted fine and most importantly it was really easy. Evan hates vegetables, so I precooked the broccoli and then pureed it so as to render it inoffensive. You could easily just pour this into a premade pie shell, too, if that's your deal. The recipe I used was something like this:

Broccoli and Cheddar Crustless Quiche

1 small head broccoli
8 oz shredded cheddar
3 eggs
2 cups milk, cream, half and half or some combo
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground pepper
green onions or chives
butter for greasing

Preheat oven to 475˚ Chop broccoli and microwave (about 3-5 minutes depending on size and ammount). Squeeze in a paper towel to remove excess water. Puree broccoli with eggs. Combine all ingredients and pour into a greased pie dish. Sprinkle green onions on top. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until center is set.

Website!

Hey, everybody, check out my website! It's done! Hell yeah! One million thanks to J. Fishwick for building the site and to Stephanie for design help, even though she doesn't know me. And Thank you, Evan, for writing the copy. Also, above are the business cards I had printed recently, for which I owe Rick a debt of gratitude.

In other news, I'm starting the UAB masters program in art history next month.

Denial

I haven't written because I've been in denial. For the fourth, the Rowe School had a barbecue. Dr. Jason and Evan grilled an amazing leg of lamb; Adam commissioned some Banana Bread Bacon Burgers, or Quad Bs; Laura brought awesome ribs; Rodney mashed up a batch of guac; Jessica made black bean salsa; I handled dessert. I didn't mean to go overboard, but I did. Grilled peaches, triple berry clafoutis, and two types of popsicles (cucumber-mint-chili and lemon-basil). I ate more than any person should consume and drank to excess. A wonderful time was had by all and I've got the pictures to prove it. Or I did, before I realized that my camera went missing. I've been hoping it would turn up and I would be able to show you all the amazing food and drunken hugs, but alas, I think it's been stolen. Some skater kids from down the street crashed the party for a moment and I fear that when they left, they took my camera with them. I suppose there's still a chance that one day it will turn up, having been stashed in too secret a hiding place. But I think it's best if I assume it's gone forever.

The loss of my camera also means that I can't show you what I've been working on. I've embroidered four new pillow fronts that I'm pretty happy with. I also took apart the koi quilt I've been working on for the last two years so that I could replace the batting and start the quilting again. I spent a long time embroidering the quilt top, and I'm in love with the backing fabric, but the batting I was originally using was cheap and had too high a loft. It was driving me crazy. I got pretty damn far into the hand-quilting, so it was a bummer to destroy all that hard work, not to mention a pain in the ass. But I knew if I finished it the way it was that I'd never be happy with it. Now the new batting is in, the basting is done, and I've sketched out the pattern for quilting. I also took some time last week to set up an Etsy shop (for all of the things I won't be trying to sell through stores, like one-off quilts or embroidery).

There are still so many things to work on. It's mostly the fun kind of work, but when I run across some other quilter's blog, I'm floored by how much quilting she seems to get done, and feel a bit pathetic myself. Plus the work is so beautiful it makes me wonder why I do my work by hand. Of course the piecing and the machine stitching drives me crazy, but I'm awfully jealous of the results sometimes. Alas. Here's my todo list:
• repair quilt for Evan G.
• finalize design and find fabric for commission
• finish David's album art layout
• scan more Monstercards
• design fabric for Spoonflower
• plan a murder mystery
• quilt koi
• figure out who the final cylon is
• make a needlebook (there's a reason this is at the end of the list, but I want one so badly!!!)

Missteps

I photographed my quilts last week. Things were not as easy as I was expecting. First I had to build some very low-tech light stands out of 2x4s and shelf brackets. I've had the materials for weeks, but only just got down to putting these together. Then I clipped on cheap reflector lights and screwed in some very expensive daylight bulbs. I threw together a backdrop by cutting a black bed sheet to size and sewing a rod pocket on top and bottom. Each pocket got a curtain rod. The top rod slides into to screw hooks mounted into the wall in the hallway. The bottom rod is for weight to keep the sheet flat. This is where the stupidity begins. I pinned the first quilt to the backdrop, positioned my lights, and set up my tripod. Then my camera battery ran out. After recharging, I tried again. I took the first few photos and realized that 1) the lights weren't evenly flooding the quilt, and 2) photographing a whole-cloth quilt this way, unless you're trying to show of some really amazing stitching, is really stupid.

Plan B was to take photos of the quilts on my work table, a nice white surface. I set up my lights and got to shooting. As you can see from the thumbnails above, things turned out okay, but the photos are short of spectacular. These are going on my site, so I really wanted them to be good, but alas, I am no photo stylist. So if any of you are, and are aching to do some product shots for your portfolio, I'll do you a favor and let you redo the photos of my quilts. Otherwise, this is as good as it's gonna get.

Also in the news this week:
• One of our boarders will be leaving the Rowe School, so there is a vacancy. Anyone wishing to be considered for the big loft bedroom, please apply in writing or in person.
• The squash 100% died.
• I realized that my flight back from NY arrives in Birmingham 18 hours before my best friends wedding, which is an 11 hour drive from here, so I'm going to have to change the ticket.
• Monstercard scanning has begun.
• Tastespotting is back!

Edible Monster Card, Pt. 2

We had our Monster Cards game and it was awesome, per usual. I promise as soon as Adam and I have a chance to get our project going, you, too, will know the joys of Monster Cards. I used the game as an excuse to make macha cupcakes. I saw a recipe a few months back and have been wanting to make them ever since. The original recipe calls for pretty pink marzipan flowers on top, but I didn't think that was much in keeping with the theme of the night. Instead, I decorated with monster faces, bacon strips and t-bones, etc. If vanity is the sin that sends me to hell, I'll blame that marzipan bacon.

The cupcakes turned out to be delicious. The same cannot be said for the triumvirate of new Mountain Dew flavors, sampled during the same game of Monster Cards. But I'll let Adam tell you all about that. What I will say is that Mountain Dew: Code Red cannot possibly prepare you for the severity of this latest blunder.

It's been a while since I posted any pictures of the quilts I'm working on. They're looking good and I'll show them to you soon. I'm about to have to take some for-real, professional(ish) shots of them for marketing purposes, which is why I haven't taken any half-assed ones. I'm done with the samples that I'll be taking to New York next month, so you'll get to see those. I'm especially proud when I look at the little Napoleon label in the corner.

The garden is producing a little, but mainly it's failing. The squash plants got huge and are now dying, one by one without ever having shown sign of making a squash. The stems seem to be rotting from the inside. I have no clue if this is due to some failure on my part or if they're diseased, or what, but it's sad. The tomato plants got big, too. No matter how much I stake them, they're a tangled mess. Nevertheless, I've eaten a few tomatoes from them and they're not bad. I also managed to get a Japanese eggplant to grow. I haven't eaten it yet, but it'll be part of my lunch some day this week. Even the sad little cantaloupe plants have put out a couple of runners and are trying their best. I fear for their spotty-leaved, insect-eaten little lives, though. I've learned enough to do better next time, I think. And if it all dies tomorrow, I'll try again.