this and that

During some of my blog and random online perusing, I learned that yesterday (10/23) was the 10th anniversary of the introduction of the iPod. It's the white one above, next to my own. That was the beginning of the end for the boombox and walkman. Remember those? Some are still around, I know there are a couple tucked away in a closet somewhere in my house. But back to the iPod--were you like me and had a hard time wrapping your head around how this little thing could store and play music? It did seem strange. I'm always interested in these new techno things, but I'm not the person that runs out to buy a new gadget. Not only do I not have the disposable income to support that behavior, but I'm pretty skeptical about whether the latest greatest is a flash in the pan or here to stay. I'm happy to let others test the water. Fast forward a few years, and I was gifted a neat little iPod device, and it has been with me ever since. I just did a little research on the Apple website and found out that this 2005 version is the 2nd generation of the iPod Mini. It has a whopping 4GB storage capacity. That is miniscule by today's standards! I don't really use it for music much anymore, I somehow lost the songs I had stored on there with some update or something or other, but I do use it frequently for podcasts. I subscribe to various podcasts through iTunes, which stores any new programs for me and whenever I plug my iPod into the computer I get the updates downloaded. I love the little electronic button on the screen that says "Refresh". I think we should each have our own little personal refresh buttons to push whenever we want, and in an instant we would feel like we just woke up from an excellent sleep and stepped out of the shower! Now there's something for Apple to work on! Anyway, I don't have one of those iPod speaker gizmos, so I have figured out how to use an adaptor that fits into our cassette tape player on our stereo player, and I can listen without earbuds! This is great, because my listening happens either in the car or while I am quilting, and the earbuds are not ideal for those situations. My little 4 GB storage is enough for what I need, and I am happy with my little machine, even though it borders on antique (6 years old)!

So, you ask yourself, hasn't she been sewing anything? The answer is very little. This past week has found me at the store more hours than usual, but that's OK because my help was needed there. I have snuck in a little of this and that:

a new edition of the Baby Surprise Jacket

tracing and cutting out pieces to make this little decorative holiday design, Bareroots has packaged up kits for this and many other items, complete with everything you need except a needle!

experimenting with the shapes made by this curvy ruler

sewing sweet little baby shoes, I already made the little T-Strap style, and now will put together the Oxfords and the High Tops. I'm looking for a store that sells 12" shoelaces.

I have taken apart 6 more blocks from the antique quilt and have the pieces washed, pressed and basted to hexagon papers. They will go into my portable project bag, along with the wool project and the baby jacket. Later this week I am going to Houston to attend the International Quilt Market, and of course, I need to have some choices packed in case there is a moment of time available. Plane time is the best for reading and knitting, it's kind of nice to have no choice but to sit down for a few hours! Debbie and I are attending this trade show to purchase for Bear Patch, and we typically are on-the-go from about 7 am to 10 pm. That doesn't leave much "down time", but there might be time for a stitch or 2! If you are interested in knowing more about what goes on there, we will be putting up some pictures and stories on the store blog.

Now to get ready for the day--hope it is good for you!