Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Good day to stay inside


This was the view outside my garden door this morning.

I didn't even try to open the door to access the compost pile.


It had begun snowing Monday while I was at school, and while I was washing up the paint pallets and brushes, the director came by and urged me to go home.

Well, there was still work to do and I ride a subway, now how was that going to be disturbed by snow? When I finally left, the snow was still falling and the sidewalks were quite slippery in places, especially on the downhill grade.
Luckily I made it to the station with lots of slips but no falls.

The train, about 8 levels or more below ground , was running but it seems every boss had nagged their employees to leave early. The usual sardine-can was crammed with people. In fact, at each station, more tried to shove in and the doors could hardly close over the bodies.
The only people I say sitting were young and dry and looked like they had been sitting a long time with a number sleeping. People were packed so tightly there was nothing left to hang on to.

I took Nikko on her evening walk as soon as I arrived home to save going out and getting wet all over again.


The sun came out in the morning but the snow had piled up to the point that opening the front door was like plowing the snow and even opening the front gate a challenge.

Nikko was very excited ... like a kid on a "snow day" with no school.












I fished out the shovel and cleared a path to the corner. One lady on the corner had "fixed" the problem in front of her house with hot water.

The snow was heavy and wet, and where people had walked since the evening, thick sheets of ice.


The snow was about a foot deep and broad-leaf evergreen trees had branches bending way down.





When we got to the park, I let Nikko off her leash.

She made three or four wide laps round and round the edges of the park before trotting back to continue her walk.

It is hard to believe, looking at her run, that she will be turning 15 in a few weeks.


My usual Tuesday schedule had been cancelled so I took the opportunity to work on the tree quilt for the conference.








I finished appliqueing the tree.

Then I found four prints that seemed to represent the four seasons, measured and cut some strips and sewed them on the border.

Half-way through I remembered I had wanted to put a one-inch strip of green on first for an inner border.

I thought of un-sewing what was done but as I considered that possibility, I realized that if I did, the seasonal prints would be too short to meet and I would have to come up with more solutions for the corners.
So, I left it as planned.
Now looking at it, I might have added some solid corner pieces with appliqued kanji for each season. Well, I could still do something like that for an outer border.

Nikko and I walked to the station area for a bit of shopping and there was quite a bit of shovelling going on ... as well as kids playing in the snow and an igloo near the train crossing. The crescent moon was out and now the wind is rattling the windows.

How nice to spend a day with a bit of sewing. Now I will have to prepare some material for leaves. I wonder what the members will like ... many colored solids? small prints? stripes or plaids? Something they could embroider veins or initials on? Well, I still have a little over a week to prepare...

11 comments:

  1. I like all different types of leaves. Enjoy the snow. We only got a dusting this morning.

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  2. will you use all green leaves, or link them to the border of seasons? What a huge fall of snow, how cold is it really? Shovelling would be such hard work,boiling water sounds like my way to deal with making a pathway.

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  3. Love your photos of Nikko and the snow - it can be so pretty and treacherous at the same time - and a lot of work to clear a path only to have it ice over later. Enjoy your "snow days" stitching - and sorting through your leaves - ;))

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  4. You got quite a bit of snow and hard when you have to walk on sidewalks to get to places.
    Love the border on the quilt, wondering if prints might compete with it, or if you use the same prints in the leaves? Might be too perfect looking, lol. I like the idea of solid and a place to write their names.

    Debbie

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  5. Nikko certainly loves the snow. All the leaves in different fabrics will look wonderful on your beautiful quilt.

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  6. Wow, that is a lot of snow. It always looks pretty but of course is cold. Nikko looks like he doesn't mind it at all.

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  7. Wow Julie ..... you have so much snow ....exactly like in our montains in France !!!
    This is just incredible...
    Keep warnm in your home doing beautful stripes :)
    Blessings,
    Isa

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  8. The snow that fell in my part of Tokyo seems to have been much wetter and it was SO heavy. I had to showel a lot to clear a good passage. Luckily the next day much of the snow melted, but what remained has now frozen solid. This is such a cold winter. Will your plants in the greenhouse survive?
    The beautiful tree in your quilt is standing in a snowstorm, isn't it?

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  9. Snow day in Japan. Glad you and Niko enjoyed it. Great day to sew when you’re snowed-in.

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  10. stay safe in all that snow ... and with idiots trying to "solve" the problem with hot water!!!!

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  11. Well I'm back from my blogging break - and trying to catch up on reading my favorite blogs. I love that tree - what an amazing amount of work - it is going to be so lovely when finished. Glad you made it home through the snow.

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