Dynamic Duo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ending a busy Halloween day with my favorite treat, the Katcup.

Dinomite

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This year we had a herd of dinosaurs wandering the neighborhood. I wanted a better picture but you know dinosaurs, they never stay still when you want them to.

Still Weenin' II

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe next year we'll do something different. You never know!

Still Weenin'

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another year another Halloween, pretty much the same setup just not as cold as last year.

New Room Old Meeting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This year's meeting was held in a new room, but the events were the same as always. Hard to believe I've been to 14 of these things now. Time she do fly.

No Tie Policy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's time once again for our yearly Policy Committee meeting, and the necessity to dress for said event. In a move I am extremely grateful for, this is year we were told ties are no longer required. Mari took this picture and did the color edit on her phone. Not bad for an old man.

Space Wolf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In honor of upcoming Halloween, I give you the Dark Wolf Nebula.This celestial lycanthrope brought to you by the aptly named VLT in Northern Chile. VLT stands for Very Large Telescope.

Tangerine Lepidoptera

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We spied a new, striking butterfly on the bush today. We looked it up and he's called a Gulf Fritillary. The butterfly bush is a gift that keeps on giving.

Valrunner

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Val Adams had another metal sculpture on display as well. I really like a lot of his work. He's a local artist and Air Force vet who runs many of Monthaven's "Healing Arts" programs, his focusing on veterans.

War Weave III

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Living with a bunch of quilters I have learned a bit about the technique that go into it. While I liked the eagle quilt I know the center is just a panel, while from a skill standpoint this pieced quilt took far more time and effort.

War Weave II

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of my favorites from the quilt display.

War Weave

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The secondary display was a few quilts from the Quilts of Valor organization.

War Water

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The main display was the water color paintings of Vietnam era Army veteran Gerald Morgan.

Fair To Cold

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The BBQ started with perfect weather but as the night went on got pretty cold, still I'd rather be cold than sweltering in the southern summer.

BBQ3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We went to our third Veteran Arts BBQ at Monthaven. The first one was not the best, the second was better and this one was really good, but in the end its all about supporting veteran arts programs. Somehow even Magats can do good things now and then.

Dump Trump (Again)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Biden put him down once, Harris will again and hopefully that will be the end of his shameful blip in American history.

Time Well Spent

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mari, Dad and I went to early vote today. The line was long but not ridiculously so and the time seemed to pass quickly with nice people around us and friendly poll workers. Most of them were probably Magats but it shows if you keep religion and politics out of most things people are just people. In the end it took about 2 hours to vote.

Good Floor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hello brand new, shiny, pretty floors that are the same throughout!

Bad Floor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The old, original floor from 1998 plus the cheap parquet I put in are on the way out! Goodby gouges, scratches, sun bleaching and stains.

One Day Office

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The house in shambles but for a very good reason, to be revealed tomorrow. So for now I have carved out this small and not very comfortable space to work in the guest room. #firstworldproblems.

Good Rug

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In with the new.

Bad Rug

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are changes a' coming to the house. Out with the old stained carpet.

Cult Classic

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cult of the Lamb is a tongue in cheek game where you play a lamb who starts a cult and eventually becomes a god. You get to choose as you go how weird, kind, or dark your cult is. The cult building and action mechanics were fun at first but by the end had become repetitive I was ready to be finished. Still, I enjoyed by time in the cult so worth the effort.

Where Have All The Quilt Stores Gone

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the end of the road there is a combination quilt store, bakery, and bait shop. You know, the usual. But the quilt shop portion was very nice and well stocked. Strangely around where we live there are no quilt stores. There used to be several but they all closed so now Mari and Dad have to get most stuff online. It'd be nice to have a place like this closer than a two hour drive.

The Big Sew

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here's the Methodist Church where the quilt competition  / display was held. Dad got a big red second place ribbon for his efforts. The winner was very traditional with a lot of applique so apparently that's what the judges liked.

Kinda Mayberry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Granville calls itself the Mayberry of Tennessee. They have some cars like the ones from the show as well as cutouts of various characters. This is arguably the largest building in town, which is usually a garage to display all the cars but was cleared out to become a temporary diner for the festival. In front was a full jazz band complete with two singers (one man, one woman) who preformed old-timey songs. They were pretty good!

Small Small Town Surprise

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here's the other direction. One thing we did not expect to see in the middle of a tiny town in a deep red area was a booth for democrats! So we were pretty excited to see that. Note, there was zero noticeable MAGA presence.

Small Small Town

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've been in a lot of small towns over the years but Granville has got to be the smallest. It's literally one street with a couple of buildings. Quaint and charming sure, but there just ain't a lot here.

Gran Adventure

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dad entered two quilts into the Granville, TN quilt competition this year and he took second place. So we're off to Granville to see his ribbon and collect his quilts. The drive was nice, and this is the view from where we parked.

The Three

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I might have shared this before but I can't remember. Casie drew this for us years ago when all three girls were still around. Hard to believe we're alone now. Tara, Mystic and Mad. In our hearts forever. 

Pretty Thoughts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Casie and John were kind enough to send us flowers in memory of Maddie. It's nice to know we have people in our lives who care so much, it makes life easier to handle.

WOTM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is an Indian wolf. The India kind of Indian not Native American. Just thought that was cool. Hard to get excited about much as we're still grieving Mad, but life will go on.