Random Thoughts

As requested, a post about my quilting:

I'm working on several quilts right now: one is a commission for a friend, another will be a going-away present for a neighbor who is moving, and a third is just for me. This third quilt is an ongoing project that will feature the autographs of my favorite authors, each surrounded by a fabric that symbolizes what that person's work means to me. For example, I got Lawrence Block to autograph a piece of fabric at a book signing two years ago, and I have a New York themed fabric to go with his New York based books. I just got Elizabeth Peters' autograph, and I have some Egyptian fabric to match it.

I have been able to get a few of the signatures in person at book signings, but several of the authors either don't tour much or haven't come near here since I started the project, so I have been collecting signatures by mail. I send out a letter explaining my project, a piece of muslin fabric stabilized with a piece of cardboard, a Sharpie, and a return envelope that has enough postage for the fabric and cardboard and Sharpie. I've received four autographs back so far, and not a single author has returned the pen. I don't know if they assumed that I didn't include postage for the pen (I didn't specify that I did), or if they all really needed a permanent marker, but I'm going to have to make a run to Wal-Mart before I can send out any more requests.

Authors I've collected so far:

• Lawrence Block
• Sue Grafton
• Elizabeth Peters
• Sharyn McCrumb
• John Kovalic
• Laurie R. King

There aren't a lot of other series that I read right now, although I may see if I can get Anne McCaffrey's signature just for old times' sake (I haven't read any of her recent books published in the last, oh, decade). And I'm trying to decide the validity of tracing over the signature I have from Douglas Adams ... it's on a sheet of paper, and I can't ask him for another because he's sort of, um, dead. But it was an actual autograph, so I think I can justify it. Now if I traced the signature that's embossed on the cover of one of my Robert Heinlein books, that would be another story. I still might do it, but it would be a blot on the authenticity of my quilt. Of course, the quilt is mainly going to be used to keep me from freezing to death when I type in my (unheated) office, so the authenticity isn't really a prime factor, I guess.

****

Also as requested by a reader: A discussion of how I like the wood floors in my kitchen

The wood floors were here when we moved in; previous to this house we have always had vinyl tile in the kitchen, and I always thought it looked sort of cheap. The hardwood here definitely looks nicer than vinyl, even though the floors are uneven and you can tell where the boards are different heights in some areas. So far we haven't had any huge cleaning problems - I vacuum about once a week, spot clean drips with a wet paper towel, and use a wet Swiffer to clean the floor before company comes to visit. We haven't had any huge messes to deal with, though, so I have no idea whether grape juice would continue to seep out of the seams. Cat puke is easy to clean up, at least when the cat has the kindness to avoid the throw rugs and aim for the wood.

I do know that the floor is exactly the same color as our cat, and before we put down the throw rug in the kitchen we kept tripping over him because he was camoflaged so well. The throw rug is a holdover from our apartment in Japan, and it has come in very handy in all of our houses since we returned. It's basically a double thickness of loosely woven cotton, similar to what you would find in a couch throw. Because it's double-sided we can just flip it when one side gets too spotty, and the whole thing fits in the washing machine when both sides get too grungy. It's gotten a few pulls in it, but that's not too bad considering it's been in constant use since 1998.

Yeah, I'm off topic a little bit. Back to the hardwood ... if I was starting from scratch, I don't think I would install this exact flooring again. I've heard good things about the manufactured bamboo flooring, and the samples of it that I've seen in magazines and home centers look really nice. I've also heard good things about cork, although I think you have to reseal it periodically, which would be more effort than I would want to put into a floor. As far as I'm concerned, the best thing would be epoxy-coated cement with a drain in the middle, so I could just hose the whole thing down when the cat hair reached unsanitary levels ... but that's a little industrial for most people's tastes.