Summer Jaunt #3 - Quilt Shop Hopping thru Dauphin-Lebanon-Lancaster Counties

 Gorgeous summer day, though it did sprinkle a bit later in the day.

Started at TLC Quilting in Middletown, which is really not very far away and quite easy to get to.  Small, but a bit of everything and nice people.  Lots of classes and get-togethers.  Purchased 1/2 yd of white.

Meandered from there through Mt. Gretna and Cornwall.  I never realized that Mt. Gretna is a summer fun/resorty area!  I wish I'd stopped and taken pictures, it was quite nice.  I then headed over to Lancaster County and Burkholder's Quilt shop (where I purchased two more 1/2 yards of white to turn into jelly roll strips).

From there, found the business card of Hammond School Farm Market, which I discovered whilst out jaunting last fall, so headed over to New Holland.  Bought some fresh veggies, chocolate chip cookies, and a whoopie pie, then headed down towards...

Intercourse and The Old Country Store, where I purchased nothing.  Funny, I don't usually purchase much there.  It's to be noted, however, that they have lots and lots of solid colors, including numerous whites, which I haven't been finding elsewhere.

Other than slowdowns/stoppages near/at the intersection of 283 and 30, the ride home at rush house was not a problem at all.

Wish I'd taken more photos!

Summer Jaunt #1 - York, PA

 Forced myself to get up and going, looked to be a beautiful day!  Final destination was the "Every Quilt Has a Story" Quilt Show presented by York Quilters Guild.

First Stop:  Gifford Pinchot State Park.

I needed to replace my Park Passport which got drowned in a flood.  All out a the visitor's center, but they knew that they had the available at the Campground.  It was Friday late morning and people were starting to arrive to camp for the weekend!  Drove down to see the cabins and yurts, the modern cabins (kitchen stuff and bathroom).  The last time you can get a 2-night stay is next Friday, after that it's weekly and it's actually quite expensive.  Lots of picnicking opportunities.

Haven't stopped at The Finishing Touch in FOREVER, and I'm glad I did because they're closing in a couple of weeks.  Huge sale....60 % off remaining fabric.  Bought 2 yds of a solid orange Moda to add as cornerstones to my Jordan fabrics strip quilt.  $6.60!

"Every Quilt Has a Story"

York Quilt Show at Grumbacher Sports & Fitness Center 

York College of Pennsylvania

3D Vibes

Cindy Leen

Loved it!

Close Up.

Deb Wilhide

EPP Flowers

Table runner.  Smaller hexie than I generally do.  Very cool!

Sue Royer

Just amazine!

Sue Royer

"Mountain Quilter"

Inspired by a photography by Dorthea Lange (public domain) taken in 1937.  The Dresden pate quilt was an artistic addition to the original photography of a "southern Lady."

GORGEOUS!!!

Sunday Drive and Colonel Denning State Park

What an incredibly gorgeous SPRING morning!  For a day that was supposed to be overcast, I received a wonderful surprise and decided to take advantage and hit the road for a morning ride..

I headed north on 233 from Newville on Doubling Gap Road.  Farms and homes, some particularly large and beautiful, dotted the landscape.  And then, out of nowhere, I saw signs for Colonel Denning State Park.  I don't think, in all my wanderings, I've been here before!

• Really nice campground.  
• No cabins.  
• Super clean, newish bathroom facilities (no wifi, though)..
• Beach and great  picnicking.
• Babbling streams.
• Waterfall beside the beach.
• Wifi near park office.
• In and surrounded by Tuscarora National Forest..

          

From there I continued along 533, passing through Landisburg, Alinda, Dromgold, and Sherman's Dale before hitting the rotary that leads to Carlisle Springs.

Blue skies, fluffy white clouds, absolutely gorgeous and perfect!!

Great Friday Nine to Five Drive

Carlisle to:

ShippenStitch, 45 W. King St, Shippensburg, PA to:
     Checked out the shop for the first time, as well as their "EverSewn" machines

The Yarn Basket, Chambersburg, PA (which was, unfortunately closed for the Labor Day weekend) to:

Shady Grove Fabrics, 2900 Buchanen Trail East, Greencastle, PA ( a Mennonite shop, with mostly fabrics and goods for Amish/Mennonite sewing, with a few cottons for quilting to:

Itchin 2 Stitch, Waynesboro, PA  (my GPS took me about a mile down the road, next time, watch for the address and don't trust the GPS.  I didn't stop this time) through:

Gettysburgh, to:

Creative Ewe Yarn Shop, 11 N. 5th Street, McSherrystown, PA (Loaded down with yarns!!) and
     Golden Dragon Chinese & Japanese Restaurant, 7 S. 6th Street, McSherrystown and on through:

Hanover, PA and then

HOME

A Sunday Drive (On Monday) and So Much More!

What an awesome "Sunday Drive" I had today - enjoyed my day off celebrating Martin Luther King and Civil Rights in this gorgeous desert.  I made a huge loop around the city, wandering around on the west side of the Tucson Mountains where I don't think there's more gorgeous terrain anywhere in the world.  So many cactus!

First, though, I went up to Sentinel Park and visited A Mountain.  It's sort of like going to the top of Cadillac (in Acadia) but with a completely different feel.  Since it's not part of the National Park system, it's not in pristine condition.  There's graffiti.  There's shining glass and ground-in litter in the parking areas.  The views are incredibly expansive - 360 degrees!  Granted, the view does not include ocean and lakes and incredible greenness, but the views of the city, with mountains, and cacti and beautiful blue skies are just as spectacular in their own way.  The cars parked up there - and there are many, many people enjoying the vies, sitting on the rocks and looking out over the expanse - are, for the most part, battered and old.  Mine included.  A free view.  Clean air.  What more could one want?

I found a letterbox up here, too, which was the reason I ascended, but became a plus.  I really enjoyed this trip.  The woman who planted the box let me know that she no longer comes to Tucson (her daughter was a student at the U of A when the mom planted it) and she's glad it's still safe and being found.

From there I hit Silverbell and headed north.  Hadn't been over here in years.  Stopped at Christopher Columbus Park where I found another plant by Desert Flower.  I was sure I was nowhere near where I was supposed to be, but followed the directions and VOILA!  There it was!

From there I headed north even more to go to the Picture Rocks area, meandering across the Tucson Mountains, along Sanderio Road, Kinney Road, and Gates Pass Road.  LOVE IT SO MUCH OVER THERE!

I found my last letterbox of the day along the side of Wade Road, in a desert setting, in the midst of all sorts of cacti.  The letterbox was called "Cactus Village."  Cactus Village to be sure!  Two different kinds of cholla, barrel, prickly pear, and saguaro plus a whole lot of creosote bushes and small palo verdi trees - just gorgeous, just sitting there.  With the letterbox sitting innocently a hundred feet or so from the edge of the road.

As a side note, I checked my altimeter reading at the top of Gates Pass and it was 3150 feet.  I don't usually drive from west to east over Gates Pass and I missed the view going the other way.  It was still pretty darned breathtaking.....

Sunday Wanderings

Well, I've been a hermit, an old stick-in-the-mud, for far too long.  Last weekend was really beautiful, so I decided to embark on a long-awaited Sunday drive.  I might as well take advantage while the weather is beautiful and I'm still living in the Old Pueblo....

I headed down Houghton Road to Sahuarita Road, west to Green Valley, then hit 19 towards Tubac.  I pulled off at the Amado cut-off, but deicided that I'd wait to drive the 40-or-so miles to Arivaca until a Saturday, when there's something to see (like the farmer's market) since you have to turn around and retrace the road back...it's the only way out of there.  So I got back onto 19 and headed to one of my favorite places in the world, Tubac, Arizona.

I wandered around the cemetery for the umpteenth time, sat on a bench, took some pictures.  Wandered around the shops, taking the time to go into Tumacookery and La Paloma.  Then I headed north, again, on 19, going through the Border Patrol stop just north of Tubac, and turned off into San Xavier, another favorite place.  I sat in a pew for awhile, taking it all in.  Of course it was a Sunday, shortly after a mass, so the place was packed.  Ah, well, not as bad as it was last March...

When I got back onto 19 I decided to continue west on 10 and turned off onto Congress in downtown Tucson.  I swung over to the Tucson Museum of Art.  They were setting up outside for an evening wedding.  What a cool venue!  I wandered around the gift shop, where Arizona craftspeople are fetured, and then had a good yack with the women tending to the entrance.  Wonderful lady let me in for free, since I am a teacher that loves her kids (that's what she said!) Made me feel like a million bucks.

The place wasn't crowded, but the main attraction, wildlife paintings by*** , although wonderful, didn't strike my fancy.  A very small exhibit entitled was quite cool *** as was another, slightly larger exhibit, that was all about hands.

Before I left I ventured up to the second floor to see the museum's own collection of Latin American artifacts.  This was particularly interesting to me because I'm in the middle of teaching about the history and background of Mexcio, primarily the Olmec and Maya so far.  And there were some great artifacts!  Imagine my delight when I discovered that some of the pieces in this exhibit are on loan to the museum by the grandparents of one of my students!

I ended my day by strolling around the Downtown Artisans galleries, which used to be wonderful but is almost gone and not very exciting.  The huge fake marigold encrusted Dia de los Muertos altar in one of the shops always interests me, though.

A nice day, and nice ride.  I hope to keep it up!

Sunday Wanderings

This Sunday was a gorgeous day - mid 70's, very difficult to leave the house, the finches, and the pool-whose-water-is-getting-warmer-and-warmer. It was one of those Arizona, azure skies. Unbeatable. but I hit the road anyway, and just sort of went where my nose led me.....

Antigone Book Store, 4th Avenue, Tucson Since it's Sunday, Antigone didn't open until 11, so I got back in the car and decided to head downtown to the Il Tiradito Shrine. To my disappointment, the roads were blocked today for some sort of Tucson bicycle extravaganza, Cyclovia, so that was out. Ah well, another Sunday. Back to Antigone. Today was their party to celebrate being the first bookstore in America to be 100% solar powered. Now THAT's pretty cool. I love this bookstore. It's quite difficult to describe. Artsy. Loads and loads of cutting edge new books, including kid's and kid's poetry. More journal than I've ever seen together in one place, and some of the most clever - and unusual - greeting cards anywhere. Music. Gifts...out-of-the ordinary, nothing "usual." Tee shirts. Very back-to-the-earth-y and environmentally friendly. They have a parking area for customers, too, so I've never found it difficult to find a parking place.

San Xavier del Bac, Tohono O'odham Reservation, a breath south of Tucson on Mission Road (or I-19) The White Dove of the Desert. I love this place....at least, when it's not overcrowded with tourists, like it was today. Note to self: Do NOT go to San Xavier on a Sunday in March. Huge crowds. People would smash into y ou for a parking place. Save this trip for a different time of year or day of the week. It was still lovely to look at, but I high-tailed it out of there pretty fast. I went north on Mission Road instead of getting back onto I-19 and headed up for Gates Pass and the west side of Tucson, Super Saguaro Country.

Tucson Mountain Park, on the west side of Tucson It's hard to say whether there's a more beautiful desert drive than through Gates Pass and north or south on Kinney Road. The thickest stand of saguaros anywhere, orange-tipped ocotillos, teddy bear cholla, sentinel-peaked mountains, clear azure sky. Oh my, oh my, oh my. Breathtaking. And this place is my HOME now, I'm not even a tourist. That's why I have to take advantage , right?