Jay, You understand me too well. Of course, I immediately had the urge to start rototilling up land for another 100 tomato plants, but I poured myself a tall glass of tea and mowed some of the grass instead. Since it rained, the bermuda grass has just gone nuts. Now, I have to warn you....if you hear a knock at your door one day, and you open it and there is a short blond-haired woman standing there with her William Woys Weaver book (and you know which book I mean!)....and she is waving it enticingly in the air...and saying "How many seeds will you trade me for this book....?" Well, that wild-eyed woman who is lusting after all those tomato varieties would be me. IF that were to occur, just call Tim and tell him "she's lost control...." and he'll come get me. (You don't have to worry. I wouldn't really show up at your house, but you should be grateful you live so far away that I can't do this, otherwise, I might! LOL) You garden in the sky sounds heavenly! And it's so funny that she wondered if you were trying to get out of growing tomatoes....as if anyone would deliberately quit! Carol, I haven't sent Jay an e-mail yet, but he knows that I will as soon as I figure out how to break the news to Tim that I need a bigger garden and it is all Jay's fault! Time does seem to fly by so quickly the older we get. I remember when I was a kid that summer seemed to last forever, and now it flies by so fast and I find myself saying the same thing every year: "Where did summer go? The kids are getting ready for back-to-school already? How time flies!" I know the house has kept you busy. The first few years that we were here, it seemed like all we did was work on getting everything in and around the house "just so". The last few years the garden and yard have had a disporportionate amount of the attention. We really need to paint the exterior of the house and make a few minor repairs. A new house sure doesn't stay new for long! I still don't know how you do all you do...the house, the sewing project, all the summer visitors, the garden, etc. I have noticed you write a lot late at night. I should try that. The house, of course, is really quieter then. I hate for the heat to come back too. It is miserable here with the temps in the 90s and the humidity exceptionally high, and I think every day for this coming week we're going to have each day get slightly hotter than the day before. I hope we get some more cold fronts soon! I don't even care if they bring rain as long as they drop the temperatures a bit. Oh, well, September is only a month away. Carol, it sounds like the peppers and beans are going to keep you busy picking in a few weeks. Yea! The melon sounds like it is doing great. Now, keep your fingers crossed that moisture won't fall and water down the flavor as it ripens up. I'm glad it is doing so well. I know we keep talking about what a hard year it has been, but honestly our garden is mostly having a great year now. In early June, I wouldn't have thought that possible. The onions were small after waterlogging, but are storing well. The tomatoes were late, but are producing very, very heavily. I am almost at the "sick of tomatoes" stage. Luckily, if I can free myself from the kitchen and not have to cook, freeze or dehydrate any for a couple of days, I get "well" very quickly. The corn was so-so, but that was the fault of the raccoons. The peppers are the best crop ever here. The melons are about the same. Broccoli was the best crop ever in Oklahoma and rivals the best year I ever had in Texas. Potatoes are so-so, but I expected that since they froze once and drowned twice. The squash has produced heavily. The okra has gone bonkers. I don't know if it has ever produced as many pods per plant and quickly as it is this year. So, I feel like I have very little to complain about and only hope the fall garden does as well and that the first fall frost is late and not early. I need to pick tomatoes again tomorrow since I haven't picked in 3 days. It is amazing how they stay green for so long and then all start ripening about the same time. I think it is a conspiracy. And, here's some local Lake Murray news for Carol: Mom and Pop's Grocery Store/Restaurant on the east side of Lake Murray burned down last week on, I believe, early Tuesday morning around 3 a.m. I don't know if you ever went there, but it was the only store at that end of the lake and the local residents are quite upset at the loss of their convenience store and gathering place. They think it was an electrical fire. Every time there is a medical call at that end of the lake, or a fire call, the dispatcher's directions always say "Turn south...or west...or east....or north at Mom and Pop's and go......". Tim and I are wondering what they'll say now? Turn east where Mom and Pop's used to be? No word on whether the current owners plan to rebuild. From listening to them talk on the news, I don't think they had insurance. Dawn

Anybody that has a horse farm! Check outside of town in Goodlettsville.

Thanks, all. I think I like the suggestions of a little blue in the border....Now just to figure out how! MRG~ Of course I'll try to help you if you need it. I had trouble understanding some of the instructions, and really just had to work through them one step at a time with my stuff in front of me...That helped. Don't know what the next 'challenge' will be....Will get through this, have a few unfinished little things, then we'll see.

Well, of course I like the Mariner's compass. I was just seeing what everyone else thought! Yes, I actually made the mariner's compass. I fussy cut the printed triangles to get the kaleidescope affect. The cream & drk brown triangle sections are paper pieced, and the green was cut with a tempate. A lot of inset seams...I'm better at them now than I was before! I will need to applique a small circle (probably brown) to the center...the points barely meet and will fray during the wash. It doesn't need to be larger than a nickel. MRG~ This is all regular paper pieced...sewn pieces to paper. English paper piecing is hand pieced around a stiff template and then the template is removed. Still lots to do with it, but I'm thrilled! And keep going downstairs to stare at it! LOL