Tuesday, September 15, 2009

DEBRA - 5 things that rock

#1 We recently had to change our newsletter. "Our guy" was no longer in the business so we had to scramble to find a new way to do things. And I love the new system. Check out our newsletter and you can even sign-up to receive it. You'll find a link at the bottom.

#2 I loves me some Skippyjon Jones. These books are about a Siamese kitten who thinks he's a chihuahua. These take concentration to read. Be prepared to sling Spanish and English and laugh out loud. And by the way, the sand in Egypt is kitty litter. See picture at the right.

#3 I'm overjoyed that CRITTERS OF MOSSY CREEK is now out so fans can stop beating me up or making me feel guilt with sad, sad letters of heartbroken waiting. Michele is going to post some about that on her day.

#4 One of my quilts recently won a ribbon in a show. Small show. 1st place in its class. Didn't win the category or the show, but hey, I wasn't sure it'd win anything so, woohoo! Here's a pic with my hubby trying to hold it up straight and a little detail of the center.

#5 Patrick Rothfuss - THE NAME OF THE WIND
I'm not so jazzed to still be waiting for # 2 to be published, but his blog is a right treat. And I've thought about this book for months now. I linked to his reviews. Just take a gander at the high and mighty (trades and authors) who agree with me.

Got something you'd like to get off your chest? Come on. You know you've been dying to tell us about the "last best thing" you've found.

28 comments:

MJFredrick said...

LOVE Skippyjon Jones! My 4th grade students even get into it, and I named my youngest cat Skippyjon Jones! And I have a stuffed animal. Yes, I'm 7.... ;)

Laurie G said...

Gorgeous quilt! Boy, I wish I could do that!!

Georganna said...

What a beautiful quilt!!! Did you hand or machine quilt it? I used to quilt before I had 4 kids! I hope to get back into it after my youngest goes to school. There's just not enough hours in the day now!!!lol

Unknown said...

Wow, Deb, what a gorgeous quilt.

My last great thing...oh...Almond Joy ice cream!! Seriously, a reason the world should continue to spin!

Debra Dixon said...

MJ- I call my little black cat "SkippyJane" as a nickname because she is always into something and you know it's some kind of adventure and she's going to be getting in trouble! Her other name is "Evil Kitty." And, Lucky.

Debra Dixon said...

MJ-- I do need to confess that I don't have a stuffed animal only because I thought I'd be the only adult with one. Now I'm reconsidering.

Debra Dixon said...

Laurie-- Of course you can quilt like that! It's not rocket science. However, you do have to *enjoy* it and want the finished product pretty badly (g) or you'd rip it to shreds and take up cursing.

Debra Dixon said...

Georganna-- Thank you! My family has been kind of neutral on this quilt which makes me wonder if I'm the only one who loves it. So, it's nice to hear others say it's pretty!

This is hand quilted by me.

And I hear you on the kids putting the temporary skids on quilting. You might look into hand piecing. Very portable for the constant waiting at school, at soccer practice, etc. Jenny Beyer has a fab book on hand piecing and why it's perfect for take-along.

Debra Dixon said...

Lois-- Almond Joy ice cream?

Oh, boy! Sign me up. I love Almond Joys! I had no idea they made this.

Michele Hauf said...

Wow, that quilt is gorgeous! Such detail in the quilting!
I'm happy about Critters finally being out too. :-)

My fav thing is the new iPod I just got yesterday. I've been using a 'mini' for five years and it was on it's last legs. Updated to the nano. This thing is in color, it has a radio, a pedometer!, and it takes video. It's so freakin' cool. And it holds all my songs so I can hop in the car and I can just drive forever.

Debra Dixon said...

Michele--

I've got to upgrade my iPod. Because I know I'll use one more if it holds my movies and does lots of other stuff besides just play music.

My friend has the "good one" as we call it.

Playground Monitor said...

Oh wow, Michelle! Does your Nano cook too? If so, I'm getting one. ::grin::

My granddaughter loves books and loves their cat and loves to pretend she's a cat. So I believe I might need to look into the Skippyjon Jones books for her.

Last best thing? Donating all my fat clothes to the thrift store. :-)

Marilyn

Debra Dixon said...

Marilyn-- "Donating fat clothes" is official awesome.

Helen Brenna said...

Deb, that quilt is beautiful!

Does being almost finished with my latest book count as something that rocks? lol

Debra Dixon said...

Helen-- I'm thinking your fans are totally going to agree that a FINISHED book rocks. If you'll see # 5 on my list, you'll find an author who has not released his "next" book.

So, yeah, definite rockage.

Kathleen Eagle said...

Deb, your quilting is fabulous. My late sister-in-law was known for her star quilts, and I know the kind of skill and patience such intricate hand quilting requires. Yours is to drool over.

See, I'm thinking Critters. Congrats on the much-anticipated release. Gotta get me one. I blogged up my last best thing on Friday, and a Beauty she is.

New toy since my last dog is the Chuckit ball launcher. (Oh, the images that spring to mind!) I'm as inept at throwing as catching, and Beauty will chase that ball endlessly. Chuckit works wonderfully for throwing (I had my doubts) and I don't have to touch the slobbery ball she dutifully drops at my feet.

KylieBrant said...

Beautiful quilt and congrats on the ribbon! I just picked up the Skippy books at Christmas time and yes, reading them does take some concentration!

Debra Dixon said...

Kathleen-- I didn't get to the blog until Monday so I posted late on Beauty, but I totally get she's your last best thing!

The Chuckit really works, huh? I wondered. Thought about getting one.

Thanks for the kudos. :)

Anonymous said...

Debra- I hadn't heard of Patrick Rothfuss before but I went and checked out his website. I'm going to get that book for my husband for Christmas. By the time he finishes, which will be in a long while, the second book should be out. Thanks for mentioning him.

BTW that quilt is lovely and you definitely deserved the ribbon. Congrats!

Michele Hauf said...

Playground, I think it could cook! Or at the least, I could download recipes to it and read them as I'm well—I can't say I'm much of a recipe person.

Debra Dixon said...

Kylie-- I saw that you got some for the grandkids. You know I found a huge book, the kind of book you read to groups of kids, and it was only $5. I'm still kicking myself for not getting it. I'm thinking of going back because it'd make such a great teacher's gift.

I'm guessing the publishers make them really cheap so that big groups of children will go home from school and tell their parents they want Skippyjon !!

Debra Dixon said...

Lunatic-- Oh, it's such a fab book if that's the kind of fiction he likes. It's a very interesting structure in that you're reading the "now" story and the "how we got to here" story all at the same time.

Very hard thing to do, but I have to say that I so enjoyed it once I got sorted out that I wasn't going to get the full "now" story and I'd better enjoy the "how we got here story."

And once the you're into the book, the stories are linked so tightly and everything begins to have new meaning.

Candace said...

Gorgeous quilt, Deb! How long does somthing like that take to make?

My new thing is an electric ice cream maker. I've had it about six weeks. It makes to-die-for frozen desserts in about 30 minutes. 'Course, having an ice cream maker involves extra time on the elliptical trainer but it is so worth it.

Fresh peach ice cream. Strawberry Daiquiri Sorbet. Dark chocolate frozen custard with fresh raspberries. Yum! I'm going to have to try Lois' Almond Joy Ice Cream. Let's see, vanilla ice cream with chocolate swirls, crushed almonds, and a bit of toasted coconut? Double yum!

Debra Dixon said...

Candice--

Oh, YUM! An ice cream maker is going on my next best thing list. (i.e. Christmas wish list)

How long does this take? I've always been afraid to keep track. Normally I can do 1 "show" quilt a year and several other nice, but not necessarily show quilts per year. And that's with me devoting a serious amount of my free time to quilting.

If we go to family dinner, I'm the one sitting there with hand work instead of just talking. If my husband is driving, then I've got some work with me. I steal back a lot of the wasted time when I can.

Twisted Sister Meg said...

The last best thing I received was a set of wheel jacks and and transmission jack. Yeah, I know, I'm twisted, but now the '68 will be off its tires and out of the way. And, after changing DH's race tranny twice in less than 2 weeks, I needed the new 'toy.'
Love the quilt--my colors, and kudos on the ribbon.

Debra Dixon said...

Hey, Meg!

I should have known the Racing Queen would add car parts and tools to the list. (g)

Hank Phillippi Ryan said...

Oh, what a beautiful quilt! It's complicated...is that an original design?

And remember mocha almond fudge ice cream? It's coffee ice cream with strands of chocolate through it, and dotted with chocolate covered almonds. Yum yum yum.

Debra Dixon said...

Hank-- Thank you! Yes, it's an original design.

What is it with you people and ice cream?! LOL! I've been craving ice cream for 2 days.

I love coffee ice cream. Back in the days before it was readily available I'd sprinkle some instant on vanilla and mix it up carefully as the crystals dissolved. It wasn't Hagen Das but it was good.