Halfway There!

After over a year, maybe close to two I have a quilt halfway done.  I am so sick of this quilt so maybe I should just make it a baby quilt and go from there.  I hate this to be a 3 year quilt.  Log cabin quilts are tedious even though the results are stunning if you can stick with it.

I suppose I should just walk away for now.  I pulled down the rows and put them away.  With each block having 16 or 21 pieces x4 for one block is enough to make anyone scream for mercy.

Yes.  That is my husband in the back..don't tell him.

Catching Up

It's been four weeks since my bike accident and I'm finally feeling normal.  That was some killer concussion and I hope I don't have to go through one again.  Four weeks of having your marbles rattled takes it toll.  I've learned to appreciate how complex our brains really are.

I'm torn on that bike I used though.  Part of me wonders if I could ever trust the brakes on it again and should I sell it.  However; if I sell it, I don't have a mountain bike to ride.  She's a great bike, I'm just scared to use her.  What do you guys think?

I have been riding my fat bike, the Salsa Mukluk.  It's been a blast and I did a 20 mile trip with it last week.  Even though it looks slow and cumbersome, it's not and I love it.  I wish I could afford different tires.  I'd love some Surly Nates, but they are something like 100 bucks a tire.
 

I spent today cleaning out the garage looking for bike parts and organizing things.  It still looks like a disaster, but it's more organized.  Sort of like my fabric stash..LOL.

Oh..I hiked 4 miles the other day at the local state park.  I've never hiked more than 1/2 mile without wanting to throw up.  I had a great time with my daughter and between my inhaler and riding bikes, my stamina and strength has improved beyond anything I ever dreamed.

I am NOT Crazy..LOL

Sorry it's been awhile.  I am alive.  Been taking it easy with my head.  It's been a little over two weeks and I'm still working on "normal".  Some days are good and others are "sleep all day" because you did too much the day before.  

At least I have a pair of glasses now so I can see.  

I have done a little bit of piecing and will put a pic up soon. 

Cycling:

However; I am NOT crazy.  That crash I had two weeks ago was because of bad brakes.  I took the bike in after the crash to see if there was something wrong with the bike over a week ago.  Picked up today and was told the bike was just fine.  Scratching my badly bruised head, I wonder if I really did go over due to my own stupidity and lack of experience.  

I took the bike out on the road in front of my house, hit the back brake and slid down the road.  Nothing worked despite how hard I pressed the levers.  I'm not skidding, just sliding like I would on ice.  What???  Did you not even check the brakes while it was there?  LBS said they were backed up for weeks so I enlisted the help of YouTube and a mountain bike forum.  After the LBS version of "checking" my brakes, I'll do it myself.

I am not mechanically gifted...at least with bikes.  Disc brakes are harder to work on than regular rim brakes.  I finally figured out how to get the pads out and checked them over.  You can't contaminate the pads so you use isopropyl alcohol to clean them.  Got the dirt off the pads and the rotor and installed them again.  Next you have to "burn" the pads to the rotor by using the brakes over and over..or something like that.  

I have the brakes working better, but not perfect.  It took me all afternoon to figure this out via videos and the great guys on the forum.  My back finally said "I quit" and I'll finish up tomorrow.

Here's what disc brakes look like and the pads:  

      

Now it looks like I just need to make adjustments with the cable and the calipers.  Something like that anyway.

I do find doing your own work rather satisfying.  Once I figure this out and the lightbulb stops flickering I'll be a pro.

I must be down to two helmets going around my head instead of ten because I've realized my house is a disaster pit, we need groceries, my rose bush that I bought is nearly dead because it didn't get planted and I understand the English language again.  Now I need to remember that just because you feel better doesn't mean you are better.

What I wish I had thought of was to go to Lenscrafters and get a pair of glasses.  Duh.  DH didn't think of that either so my new pair will show up whenever they get here.  I think I picked out a nice pair.  At least I hope I did.

I finally got a look at my helmet.  Yup.  Nice crack all down the foam.  Hopefully you can see it from the picture:

Dang thing was awfully expensive, but worth it in the end.  May she rest in pieces.

BTW, I would LOVE to know how fast I was going before I ate dirt.  I had to be doing at least 10-15 mph on that bike.  My son said it was most awesome thing he'd ever seen me do.   He even said the news vans showed up and talked to him but didn't have their cameras.  I figure since I didn't come out on a board all beat up, I wasn't worth a news story.  I guess they didn't need a "Hey kids wear your brain bucket" news story.  


I forgot to mention that I picked up Geta Grama's book, "Shadow Trapunto Quilts" from Amazon.com a couple of weeks ago.  Worth the purchase and I can't wait to try out her technique.  When I can use scissors without wondering what I'm holding in my hand, I'll be making one her projects.  She's got a wonderful blog that I can't remember the name of right now, but definitely check her out.

Every once in a while I get the desire to write a quilting book.  Then I realize I don't know what to write about and then would anyone even be interested?  I'll put the book idea on my never ending bucket list.