The sounds of the Cicadas is deafening!

Now that I have your attention....I realized I should take time to post my happenings!

See post below

My traveling season has started with a bang! My first trip was to the AQS show in Paducah, KY. This was a pleasure trip so I could introduce a good friend of mine to the quilting world and to have a chance to relax and get inspired by the beautiful quilts at the show. My friend was awed by what she saw. She is not a new quilter; she did hand piecing baby quilts when her girls were little. But she is new to the current quilting trend and wants to learn to update her techniques with a machine. I was more than happy to volunteer my services to help her!

The AQS show, as always was awe inspiring and I was glad to see new names as the big winners of the contest. Not that I don't want the other quilters to continue to win, but I do think it's nice when others are given the chance to prove themselves. The area, Paducah, KY and southern Missouri were flooding and the producers of the show had to do some scrambling to move the show to avoid getting flooded. I was amazed at how organized they quickly changed the locations. The flood gates were up and you could see that the water was almost to the top (you could see the boats sale by over the flood walls which were about 10 feet high which is, I think, at least 30 feet above the regular river stage). One of the nights we stayed there, there was a huge thunderstorm with more rain and I was sure the water level would have breeched the wall! Luckily it did not, but the town we stayed in across the Ohio River in Metropolis, Illinois (the home of Superman) did flood in their downtown area.

My next trip was to Parker, Colorado. The weather in Beaufort was just heating up (85+ degrees) and I flew into Denver in 30ish degree weather with snow! The lady I stayed with had 1 foot of snow on the ground! As I watched my luggage come off of the carrier, the first one was soaken wet as if it had sat in a puddle for some time! This was the luggage with all of my quilts in it. I wasn't as panicked as the lady who picked me up. My next piece of luggage to come down was broken! The wheels had broken off and the handle was completely detached! I hoped it wasn't a sign of things to come. Luckily, the quilts were not wet and nothing was damaged in the other suitcase but the attendant told me "good luck" making a claim since it was the wheels and handle which weren't covered under their claims. Needless to say, I had to go luggage shopping that day!

My hostess was wonderful, she took me around the area and despite the weather it was beautiful there. I was to lecture that evening and took all of my things (computer, projector, quilts, etc.). I'm getting ready to present my powerpoint presentation and I realized I forgot my projector cords! They were able to find a projector and cords at the meeting place and hooked everything up but nothing worked. My computer would not recognize either projector. So....I had to revised my lecture and wing-it. The guild was more than gratious and commended me for a good presentation. The rest of the stay went well, with a great group of ladies in my workshop, and I got to visit my brother and his wife in Broomfield for a couple days.

Next came a trip to Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I was driving this time. All around us in the midwest were tornado warnings and heavy thundershowers. The day I left, I was lucky with good weather all of the way there. As I was sitting talking to my new hostess I said "I hear an alarm outside". She opened the front door and said she thought it was the neighbor's lawnmower. We talked some more and I said it again "I really think I hear an alarm". She opens the door again and agrees it might be the tornado alarm. We sat in front of the TV for the next hour watching where tornadoes were touching down. All around us, but not near us! Finally the weather cleared up and we were able to enjoy the rest of the evening. The meeting and workshop went well with no hitches this time! I took my trusty Mac computer that never fails me instead of my fairly new PC!

Last week I had a wonderful group of quilting ladies come to my retreat center to enjoy a visit and lunch. They told me their church was being renovated and needed a place to meet for the month. I thought they were going to bring a project to work on, but instead just came to shop and visit and look at all of my quilts. It was such a nice day and I made new quilting friends. My husband, Mike, enjoyed telling his jokes and making the ladies laugh during lunch.

This weekend I will travel to Columbia, Illinois to present and teach at a quilt retreat. I love doing retreats. It gives me a chance to really get to know the quilters and have fun at the same time.

I also want to take this opportunity to announce the 10th anniversary celebration of another quilter I know. Benita Skinner has a website http://www.victorianaquiltdesigns.com. She is having an Anniversary and Fabric Party. She has told me that any of my visitors who leave a comment below this post, will be in the drawing for a chance to win a membership to her site ($22.50 value). She has lots of free web patterns, blocks of the month, and other wonderful things to see on her website! Be sure if you leave a comment, that I will be able to get in touch with you via email. In my previous drawings I was not able to access everyone's email address so I couldn't contact you if you won! I will draw a name on June 6.

You can see more information about her fabric party at http://www.victorianaquiltdesigns.com/VictorianaQuilters/BlockoftheMonth/VQDFabricParty.htm. Good luck!

Please say a prayer for the tornado victims in Joplin, MO and other areas. I am donating 10% of my sales until the end of the month to Joplin, MO. Be sure to stop and take a look at my kit specials for the month. Buy a kit and receive templates, patterns, or magazines for free! http://www.gatewayquiltsnstuff.com.

As always, everyday do what you love and love what you do. Toby Lischko