A little stitching and some more DVD's!!!

I finished up the dark green area along the bottom of square 4 . Here is a snap of the progress.


The picture looks kinda wonky... it surely didn't last night when I took it, that MUST be the cameras fault!! :)

I also revisited the GOOB Video store and got some more titles, these are ones that I wanted but just had never gotten around to getting. Here is a snap of the haul....


How could I pass up two of my favorite Greer Garson flicks, Goodbye Mr Chips and Mrs. Miniver. Chips was the first movie she made in America, and Miniver is the only role for which she won the single Oscar of her illustrious career, she was nominated 7 times. She is just gorgeous in both and the acting is stunning. Now they need to release Valley of Decision to DVD and I will have all of my favorite Greer Movies!! The Last Emperor ( I did read that Criterion is going to release a version of TLE next year, can't wait for that!!) and Orlando are just visually spectacular films that they can be watched over and over and The Year without Santa Claus is one of the few Christmas DVD's that I didn't have, who could pass up Heat Miser and Snow Miser??

Paisley - Of course you can borrow the Rebecca chart, email me at edgarmathews at aol dot com and let me know where to send it and I will get it in the mail next week.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great weekend!!!

Take care,
edgar

SBQ of the Week

Today's SBQ is -

"When you have to frog out stitches, do you reuse that thread or do you start over with a new strand?"

It really depends on the piece of thread that is frogged. If it is still usable then I will try and reuse some if not all of it. Most of the frogging that I can remember in the recent past I have reused the pieces as I had to frog out what had just been put in. I think if I have to go back a day or two later after the mistake is found then more than likely I will just pull out what offends and toss.
This is usually done with a seam ripper so the thread is usually not in a shape to be used and is in small shredded pieces.
If I have to frog out immediately then I will more than likely use a needle and just backtrack over what needs to come out.


Thanks for taking a look.....take care,
edgar

Started on Block 4/2 - St Peter's

I started on the grass in the 4th block which would actually be block 2 if I were being done in order. Here is a snap of the really gorgeous dark green that is the bottom of the square.


I am really liking this VoHRH project. The stitching is really fun, except for the issues at the forge, and I think I will be be pretty sad to finish it up. That is a long way in the future but I know that is how I will feel.

Not much else going on here, hope everyone week is going along on an even keel!!!!

Thanks for stopping by!!

Take care,
edgar

Block 3 is almost there.....

I worked on and finished Block 3 - City Hall - everything except for the 8 or so French knots in the flag. That is a knot that I have not been able to master. Mary from Needle in a Haystack is going to help me with them when I go over there next time. So now it is on to the Church....all white stitching, my favorite thing! Here is a snap of Block three.....

This is actually a snap of the piece as it stands now. I also finished up the sable border lines for Block 4/2, so that it is ready to go. This block does have an error, pointed out in the directions that the Reverends name is charted as "Isiah" and the correct spelling is "Isaiah." I think I will correct the spelling when I stitch the actual name. Is that what most are doing or are they following the chart to the letter. I know that lots of stitchers that do this are changing lots about the charting. I kinda like it the way it is except for this misspelling. That I think would drive me a little batty, and I do not need a push in that direction!!! :)

On the way home from shopping last night we stopped and Diamond Heights Safeway and the Video store in that mall is going out of business. It is basically a rental store with lots of titles. Well, you know I couldn't pass this sale up..... I found three titles I have been trying to acquire for the longest time.


Shogun is the the mini series and it runs anywhere from $90+ new and is at least available, Notorious and Rebecca are Criterion releases and both are out of print and can be VERY expensive on the secondary market. I paid less than $20 a piece for them!!!! woo hoo!!!! I also picked up the Marie Antoinette with Kirsten Dunst as I had loaned out my copy and it was never returned, don't you just hate that!!!! I think I will go back for a few more things.......

I really enjoyed the comments about the cobble stones, the only story I have about cobbles is, that the first time I was at Versailles walking up through the Marble Courtyard, the cobbles are not flush against each other and I had quite a time not wiping out and falling down or twisting an ankle. It was the first time I visited Europe and I had never had to deal with cobblestones in Florida. That was when I was a Junior in High School and million years ago......!


Thanks for stopping by!!!!

Take care,
edgar

A bit of old San Francisco , and VOHRH

Over the past couple of weeks some city workers have been tearing up the secondary streets around us here in the Civic Center area. Last week they stripped off all the blacktop from Minna street that runs along behind us and Julia Street a half block long one way alley just to the west. The streets around us were all named for ladies of less than sterling virtue, or that is what I have been told. I took a couple of snaps yesterday when the men went on their 4th or 5th break of the day to show what is hidden under 3 inches of tar. Here is Julia Street....

This is shot looking north towards Mission Street. I really like the brick and stone cobbled streets much better than the blacktop, but I know that driving on them would be one bumpy ride. Here is a snap of Minna Street with half the street laid down.



This is looking east towards 7th Street. It is harder to see here but the same cobbled street is under all that tar also. There were also the remains of railroad tracks that ran along this street that began down by the Embarcedaro and are now mostly missing or very obscured.

I also worked on VoHRH las night but made very little progress as I was watching "Sweet Bird of Youth." I really enjoyed the performances especially Geraldine Page. I don't think she ever gave a bad performance!!! One of my favorite movies of all time is "The Trip to Bountiful" it was this performance that won her the Oscar for best Actress in a leading role. If you have never seen this film you need to go out and rent it. Beautifully acted and simple with no tricks and CGI to get in the way. Another performance of hers, if it ever comes out on DVD, is Sook in "A Christmas Memory." This is a Truman Capote story brought to film again with simple ideas beautifully presented.

Let me get away from that tangent and show the snap of VoHRH.


Those are some funky looking birds!!! I almost changed the colour as the bright yellow I really think sticks out, I still may.

That's about it for today, thanks for stopping by and especially the nice comments. I knew I was not alone out there with issues and shopping!!!! Y'all are the best!!

Take care,
edgar

Weekend stitching and some bitchin'

I worked on VoHRH and it is really coming together. Here is a snap of the progress.


I still have all the black fill in the windows. (By the way did you see the mistake in the lower left window...look at Fridays post and look at today's, I had to pull out all the blue and restitch it, I need to pay attention and not watch TV while I stitch!!!) I always avoid or change if I can stitching in black or white. I just have never like to do either. I know the next square is a white church so I am not looking forward to that, but it will need to get done.

Here's a little story............last week started a saga with my portable DVD player. I usually carry this just about everywhere with me. I bought this player about a year and half ago from Sears.com, good price and they offered the extended warranty. I never buy the extended warranty, except this time for this player I did.

Some back story,I took the DVD player to my sisters and it played fine in the airport on the airplane and at her house.....coming back on the plane it would not load the disc. After I got home I tried numerous discs new and old and nothing would load, so it is broken.

My extended warranty was for replacement and not repair. Feeling that this would be easy to deal with and that I was covered..... last Thursday I got all my papers together and copies of the emails from when I bought the thing and innocently called Sears.com. That started a phone call from hell which went round and round with multiple people and holding and listening to bad elevator music and bouncing all over the place. Needless to say 14+ persons from phone operators to "Supervisors/Managers" and two, count them, two long hours on the phone later I finally find out that I can not send this back to any place that I would need to take it to a Sears store........ well the closest Sears store is down in south SF near the airport, about a 30 min (on a good day) drive away. Why did they think I bought the thing online in the first place....so I would not have to drive to the store, whatever! I was one pissed off mister man!!!!! and vowed that I would never step foot in on near another Sears or it would be the very last place I would look for anything!!! So I bundled up my papers my broken portable DVD player and trotted myself down to the electronics department at the Tanforan Mall.

8, count them, 8 mins after talking to Ivethe and Julio in the electronics department I had a new player and was on my merry way. Why oh why couldn't I have been told at the beginning of all the numerous persons I explained and explained what was going on that I would have to go to the mall, and that I would at least get the help that I needed...... All 14+ people knew the story because of course every one of the 14+ people during the marathon phone call had to hear the story because " I can't help you if I don't know what is going on...." if I had to hear that statement again I was going to strangle me an operator....... that's all in the past now, but it ain't over oh no sirree bob!!!! I am still writing me a letter outlining the phone call and the final resolution, don't think I didn't take and keep notes on the call, including names and times I was put on hold, boy I am still fired up and it has been 4 days!!

I know I need to let it go, and I will AFTER I write my letter!!!


After picking up my NEW Dvd player and getting some new jeans I did stop at JoAnns fabrics to see what was on sale and got some stuff. At the checkout counter I found my new favorite holiday candy.

I already love those junior mint things, dark chocolate and mint you can't beat'em....but now they have added crunched up candy canes!!!!! OMG little bits of heaven!!! Go get some!!!! You will not regret it!!!!! :)

Happy Monday!!! Thanks for stopping by and listening to my bitchin'!!!!!

Take care,
edgar

VOHRH more stitching

After work I ran down to Britex and picked up a bunch of finishing stuff, ribbon, buttons etc... anticipating upcoming exchanges. No picture as it would give away some surprises, I think. I also stopped by the Caswell & Massey store to pick up some lotion and shave cream I was out of. They have been in this spot for 80 or so years and the company has been around since the 18th century, they must be doing something right, and the products are superior!!

I picked back up Village last night, just to prove that I can stitch that thing and not skip threads!!! I did make some pretty good progress on the city hall and here is a snap.

I am really liking the two shades of blue colour that are used in the door and windows.

Not too much else except........ does anybody watch Ugly Betty and Grey's Anatomy????? These two shows are making me crazy. I am still watching but give me break, the decisions that the characters make are just beyond the pale!!! I just want to smack George, Izzy, Betty, Marc, the new Heart surgeon, Erica Hahn.....and the list grows!

Thats about it for the week, thanks for stopping by!!!!

Take care,
edgar