Updates and Upgrades

I continue to be entertained by sunrises in their infinite variety. Yes, I am still getting up a couple or three times a week and taking a walk before I'm awake. This is from last week. Today it was kind of misting rain, so I kept the camera/phone in it's pocket. I only saw one other person out tramping in the damp today.

There is a new quilt block finished,(Two more to go) for the Austen Family Album Quilt, however the light is really not good at the moment.I haven't found any decent photo editing in the Windows upgrade, so will have to look further afield, I think.  I've played a little with Instagram on my phone, but haven't quite figured that out yet either. I seem to be in a private maelstrom of upgrades/changes/new programs that is taking me a little time to sort out. Maybe a trip or two to You tube or similar. I contacted my cell phone provider the other day concerning a difficulty I was having and the tech I was talking to discovered some upgrades that had never been sent to me. It's all change, I tell you.

I finally finished a Craftsy class that I got a couple years ago; Janet Pray's Jacket Express.  I have wondered about the Islander System for a very long time. I did enjoy myself with the "no pins" approach and the smaller seam allowances that mean less trimming. The jacket is finished except for redoing a button hole on one of the pocket flaps. Another day when the light was bad and I cut too close with my buttonhole chisel.

Are you are making some discernible progress in something in your life these days? I'd love to hear about it. It does help to keep engaged and moving.

Before I'm Awake

I tell people that some mornings I literally roll out of bed before 7 and after abbreviated ablutions, dress in drab sometimes slightly smelly clothes. I put my house key in one pocket, my cell phone in the other and pull on my walking shoes. I'm on my way down the sidewalk before I'm fully awake.This precludes any real objection to the very thought of exercise.

I was aware that sometimes when struck by some scene in my view I pull out the phone and take a photo. When I return home, my phone reconnects to my wi fi and automatically and silently uploads the photos to a file in Dropbox. Easy, almost too easy. 

Today I looked at my little collection and edited a bit. Here are some examples of what I see and snap before I'm awake.

A mama Muscovy with three chicks

Some Sand Hill Cranes

Some flowers I can't name. They are growing in a small pond of water in the abandoned golf course

Some mornings are quite hazy

Some are overcast

Clouds attempting to obscure the imminent sunrise

Gradually being tinged with color

Or left drab and monochrome

Old Maid's Puzzle for Tom LeFroy

Block 23 in the Austen Family Album Quilt commemorates the brief encounter/romance/acquaintance of Jane with a young Mr. Tom LeFroy. Apparently this relationship was not to be encouraged beyond the Christmas Holidays in the year 1795 due to Tom's lack of a fortune and Jane's lack of a dowry to bring to a marriage. It was unwise for such equals to marry in this case in those times.

If you would like more details you can of course visit the Austen Family Album Blog here.

The block itself I personally found to be rather uninspiring. It is shown to be composed of triangles and squares of different colors/prints. While being relatively simple, it had a rather unfocused feel to me. (Is this what others think of Old Maids, one wonders.) Neither am I impressed with my finished product. I guess there have to be a few like that. "You have to take the duds with the fluffies," as a college friend opined, likening life to a bowl of popcorn.

Sunrise in Fairway Villas

I have started a new regimen to try to keep up stamina and health. I get up relatively early and go for a brisk walk. I found a route which Google Maps tells me is just short of two miles. There is a gentle downhill side and a gentle uphill side. I've only gotten one blister - due mostly to a new pair of shoes. In general the early mornings are cooler and so far I have avoided walking when there is a real threat of a storm.

A rainbow at sunset