I finished my Retirement rug!

It is finally finished. The edges are turned under, and it is hanging on the wall. This rug is actually a primary source! I started my teaching career in 1968, and taught until 2008. During that period of time, we landed on the moon, the internet became available for use by schools, and our first African American President, Barack Obama, was elected! At the bottom, you can see a white section, that has my first email address acquired somewhere around 1990 or so. To the right you can see portions that include my two favorite internet projects. The Jason Project, which we did at Hidden Hollow Elementary in Kingwood, TX and Journey North(my absolute all time favorite internet project).

But there is so much more hidden in the symbolism of this rug. For example you probably notice that the 3 central parts have different colored backgrounds at the bottom. They are black for slate, green and white. My first school actually had the same style slate boards as when I went to school as a girl. After moving to Texas, and returning to newer school there were green chalkboards, and eventually the magnetic white dry erase boards. On the first you can see A, B, C in white for the white chalk we used. The middle section has j,k,l, in yellow like the anti glare yellow chalk that became popular. Those letters happens to be my initials and the middle of the alphabet and at the end W, x, y, z. You might have already figured out the profile is one of my favorite presidents, George Washington. If you haven't read a biography of his life, you should give yourself that pleasure.

The school house in the middle section has a dragonfly zipping along above it. TX roof, because the larger part of my career was here in TX. Dragonfly because, well, if you know me, you know that :)...

To give some perspective to its size which is roughly 30 inches by 50 here is a pic of a part of the rug and a French Door leading to our dining room. If you peek through the door, you can see light reflecting off the top of my dh's bald head. He hung this finished rug for me today. Not quite a year after the date I retired after 35 years as an elementary teacher.

I'm a hooker, not a blogger...

While most people might think it strange for someone to call themself a hooker, in this case I mean rug hooker. I've finished one rug this week, and am within a couple of evenings of finishing my BHR.(Big Honking Rug) I won't put any pictures of Bob the Mighty Hunter up until the end of March when that challenge is over. It is one of the rules of the game in our group. The pics cannot be posted online except on the challenge blog, until after the challenge is complete. When I finish the BHR which is a retrospective of my teaching career, up it will go. The deadline for that challenge was December 31st 2008. So missed that deadline by 2 months. Which isn't tragic or mean I'm a bad hooker. The bottom border just wouldn't come into my mental design...When it did I could have slapped my forehead! :) It was actually rather perfect in the way it fit into the symbolism of the rug. Every bit of my rug is about the 40 years or so while I was a teacher. It speaks to me of transformations. Some good, some I did not like at all. But change is inevitable.

When I put up the picture of that rug, there will be details of some parts and an explanation of what that section symbolises to me. You may laugh at how much I think this rug has to say about being an American teacher in the last 40 years. It is a job I recently retired from, June, 2008. It is a job that was my pleasure during the day, while working with students, and my bane while attempting to keep up with papers, deadlines, and the ever increasing convergent thinking of how children should be taught. Since my strength as a teacher was in divergent thinking, the last few years were extremely difficult for me. Ageing no doubt, was a part of that difficulty. Still in all, it is a job I was proud to do, and feel I could look God straight in the eye and say I done my best. Not with pride, just as a summary.

So watch for my rug to appear sometime soon. Bob will follow in April... his story will be told then too, but it is the same. As a kat, he done his best, and is still doing it. He is turning gray, and ageing too, but he is still kicking it!

A new view of life

Our granddaughter graduated into a new car seat this weekend. No longer facing the rear with only a view of the upholstery, which is fine when you are a baby. She wasn't sure when being buckled in, our daughter said she looked like she wasn't sure she approved of her new place. But then, the car started and she realized she could see the road ahead and perhaps out of the side windows too. She has always twisted her hands and feet with excitement, and looks a bit like someone conducting an orchestra when she gets going.

How often in our lives do we hang back, unsure about leaving the comfort of what we know? How do we change how we think of ourselves, define what makes our life of worth to us or others? I seldom think about these things anymore. Perhaps it's time for me to get a new car seat as well! But not tonight...

In Memorium Sandy Deabler

Today was a celebration of a dear friend's life, but after her death last fall. She will be with us for as long as we remember the times spent together. I had grieved her passing a couple of times, when she first told us of her illness, again when she moved to New Hampshire and to be nearer family at the end. Why do I still think of her as if she is just a phone call away? Beats me, but I hope that it goes on for the rest of my life.

Her children spoke of her, and read emails from her. Those were especially dear to me, for I had never had the chance to read them. We (the coffee group) called ourselves cybercoffee in the early days of email and stayed in touch nearly every day. She had quotations, jokes, questions and all kinds of insightful comments. It was a delight whenever we talked on the phone, she and I both flitting here and there with tangental comments, coming back to the original topic and shooting off in another different direction. She was well versed in every area. She read everything, and helped me to understand so much of life.

It may sound corny, but she still feels so close. I will continue to talk to her in my head, just like when my prayers of thanksgiving or please go up... So dear Sandy, keep on hanging around just a moment away!

Happy Moo Year!

The next year is just a few days away, and CPLG is going to be giving away a surprise each month. I've been thinking about the new year with Rose Colored Glasses if you'll excuse the mixed metaphor, so let's go with the grass is always greener on the other side! Now greener can have all kinds of meanings, and one that I certainly hope applies will be the reusing of wonderful items. I call it upcycling(now) when the idea was new to me it was called recycling, and in the olde days, there was a saying "Use it up, Use it Out or Do without". So while the words change and the ideas transform, a good trait(thrifty ~ use/reuse of things with value) endures.

To kick off our year of giving, I'm offering a cow which I hope will bring you a year of prosperity. It is made from a "cutter quilt" in the pattern known as Grandmother's Flower Garden. This one seems unusual to me in the use of the brown fabrics. It immediately suggested cows to me. How now brown cow, and all that jazz...

To win this cow is simple. Leave a positive comment about one of the two following topics.

1. upcycling
   
2. coming new year
   

How easy is that? Well, honestly, if you are not a member of cplg it gets even more probable!!!
I'll draw from available names, with a preference for non group members. If none exist, then ladies in the group will be most likely to win! I'll need to ship this item to the winner, so if you are interested, please keep reading the blog for an announcement. Winner to be chosen on January 15th, the last day of our Valentine Launch. Y'all make a comment on the CPLG BLOG at http://cplgblog.blogspot.com/ and come on back now! Here and there!!!

Please note, the comments must be left on CPLG blog to qualify for the giveaway!

One Year Ends and Another Begins!

Although it is just a little over a week until the end of this year, my CPLG(Country Primitive Ladies Group) is planning a launch of handmade Valentine Treasures beginning in Early January. It may actually be more like the 2nd or 3rd than the 1st ;). But one of the more productive members could have something up by New Year's Eve as far as that goes!

I'm planning to do a couple of Makedo s with old doorknobs or bedsprings, and some embellished hearts in wool, so if that sort of thing appeals to you please check our listings. I plan to switch my ebay id from SwimminginFabric, to CottonEyedJo if that is available, so that my name will be the same at Ebay and Etsy. I've loved my old username, it so tells the truth about my sewing room, but I plan to keep using my templates, so you may still be able to find me under either name... Hope you'll drop by, and check out our Tokens of Love!

I won an award

Thank you, Debbie of Sweet Country Blessings for the award you have given my blog. Glad you enjoy it. Jo

The rules of this award are: * Put the logo on your blog or post.* Nominate at least 5 blogs(can be more) that for you are Uber Amazing!* Let them know that they have received this Uber Amazing award by commenting on their blog.*" Share the love and link to this post and to the person you received your award from."