Happy Zombie

I know not everyone is as nuts about the Olympics as I am (or Laurie or Carol), so I warn you…. if 16 days of international love, peace, happiness and sports is not your thing… this is a very long post.  My sons, hubby and I are koo-koo for Olympic Cocoa Puffs.  When we learned 7 years ago that the 2010 Winter Olympics were going to be in Vancouver, BC… we said WE HAVE TO GO, whether we had event tickets or not.  Or not is how it turned out.   Seven years is not long enough for me to plan - I was too late to buy tickets.  So we just went to be there.   The world was going to be in Vancouver,  and by golly we wanted to meet the world.  Hello world.  I love you. 
Peace Arch

It was all very iffy when we were going and for how long. Lodging was one thing I was able to secure. So as it turns out, DH2’s school schedule changed. He was going, then wasn’t going… and then he was going - and that left us with leaving on Friday night and returning Saturday night. In the big picture of things, 5+ hours driving to get there is no biggie. Seriously. Live on a Hawaiian Island for six years - where a road trip means pulling out of your driveway, driving in a big circle… and ending up where you started. Roads trips like driving up to Vancouver are still very welcome - even after having left Oahu 10 years ago.

Check Point Charlie-DudleyDoRight

Entering Canada, we were greeted with beautiful Canadian border buildings and super friendly border agents who seemed genuinely happy to have us visiting. I think I found the Nordstrom of border crossings. Beautiful British Columbia lets us know where to find Hope if we need it.

As we get closer to Vancouver, the landscape is dotted with what’s to come… a beautiful international pot pie. Vancouver has beautiful flavor!

Go Canada Go on the freeway. The first one of THOUSANDS of flagged cars we’ll see.

The freeway suddenly turns into a city street.  Poof.   Just like that.  My Californian brain can’t conceptualize that we can get anywhere without a freeway… but look… there it is, we made it to downtown Vancouver on a city STREET!   No fuss no muss… and everyone was driving so friendly.

Along the way into downtown, I spot this condo complex. I have a thing for roof lines and pitches.  Roof-utopia.

Further down the street, this building reminded me of Germany.  My parents immigrated to the US from Germany via Toronto - and settled in California right before I was born.   I consider myself to be an Almost Canadian.   Go Almost Canada Go!

Go Canada Go at the Vancouver Police Department.

Gonad go!   Oh Canada, did you you do this just for meeeeee?!

Oh. All. Right.

Vancouver’s Chinatown. OH THE COLOR!!! I cracked up at the SHARE THE ROAD signs.  I SWEAR it’s Wayne driving the ‘76 AMC Pacer and Garth riding a bike.  Hmm… Mike Meyer’s IS Canadian.  Go Wayne Go Garth Go!

A fire station in Chinatown. I have a thing for doors too. I danno about firehouse… this screams quilt studio to me.

This ramp ended in a road block.  But worth it.   Oh the colors colours!  Go Colour Go!

A happy discovery… Vancouver’s Gastown District.

Charm, pride, history… I love the Gastown District.

I think I’m going to start having a thing for awnings too.

Million dollar (CAD and USD) view from where we parked our car. Yeeze… we could have had a picnic in our car with a view like this.

A steam clock on Water Street.

Crosswalk on Water Street. Go Crosswalk Go!

In a souvenir shop, DS2 does a shout-out for our family. Oi Oi Oi Team JoJoJo and Team OmiItoMarco!

My do-something-nice opportunity. Some thug punk a-wipe turned the flag upside down into the planter. I dusted off the dirt and replaced it properly.

I used to collect Olympic pins.  Before they were readily available like this (or on the internet).   I used to have to buy them through a broker with this thing called an envelope and this sticky thing we used to lick called a stamp.

Go Bus Go!

At Canada Place. More colour, colour, colour!

The International Broadcast Centre on the left.  BOB COSTAS & STEPHEN COLBERT… I KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE!

Canada Place overlooking Coal Harbour.

The Welcome Centre at Canada Place.   Because I love typing like a Canadian… centre, harbour, colour. Downtown was peppered with volunteers - answering questions, giving directions, saying hello and welcoming visitors. What wonderful ambassadors they were to Vancouver and Canada. Thank you volunteers for making us so welcome in your home.

The Olympic Flame in all it’s glory.  Like Cinderella’s Castle in Disneyland… it looks much bigger on tv. Much controversy about the cauldron - it’s surrounded by fencing. The fencing was moved closer before we got there, but still bah hum bug over it. I think it looks like a captured alien being interrogated. FREE THE CAULDRON!  FREE THE CAULDRON!  Go Cauldron Go!

One of the improvements made was to set a “viewing area” atop this balcony.  Hey, let’s go up there! BTW, that’s me in the pink hoodie.  EVERYWHERE you see EVERYONE with “iPhone arm”.

Ha. I guess we won’t be going up to the viewing balcony. Oh sure, we can wait in the queue with 20,000 of our new best friends. I think the end of the line was at the entrance of Stanley Park. Back to the chain link fence we went. But it was fun. SOOOO many people speaking so many languages and everyone was so happy and festive.   It was an amazing experience I’ll never forget.  It really did feel like the center of the world there.  I say this EVERY Olympics… I wish the world lived in the same peace of the 16 days of glory - but doin’ it 365 days a year.

Go Canadian Doggies Go!

“Mom. Mom… where are you going? Mom!” - I was zombian’ over to the red and aqua container. I don’t know what it was… just that it was red and aqua and it caught my eye.  Wink.

More red. And a wish list for my yard.

On our way back to the Gastown. The sweet smells of Germany taunted us. The line was huge. HUGE.

As we headed back to the garage, we came upon an Old Spaghetti Factory on Water Street in Gastown.  We really wanted to go, but we decided we weren’t going to come all the way up to Canada and eat at an OSF  when we can do that in our Vancouver (Washington).  BOY do I regret it.  They had beautiful outdoor seating and a huge Euro vibe about it.  I almost wept. And the weather was 100% al fresco dining weather to boot (as you can see by my Winter Spring Olympic footwear).   It was packed, the final reason we nixed it. Look at this photo I found on flickr.  Yeah.  We passed that up - but we had a consolation… we found an all you can eat sushi place and WENT.  TO.  TOWN.  We’re going back to Vancouver and we’re having dinner at OSP on Water Street.  No ifs ands or buts.

I don’t know how it happened, but I became a Russian athlete/coach stalker - in hopes of befriending them and they’ll hand over their adorable red and white jackets/hat. Laurie has a great post about the US athletes attire at the opening ceremony.  While I love the Ralph Lauren outfits… I gasped when the Russian team walked into the stadium with the red/white swirliques on their hats and jackets.

I see Redwork.

I see felt.

Team Russia is using a German car with their red swirliques.  I take this to be a sign.  Swirliques and an Audi… this should be my car.

Why, hello Russia.

I go to a mall about once every 2 years.  I had no choice but to visit one in Vancouver - I had to go to The Bay if my life depended on it.  But it was fruitful and worth it.  Oh so worth it.

Coffee and dessert the Canadian way. Go Timbits Go!

The flip side of the Peach Arch as we head back into the US. The border agent asked us the standard crossing questions. He then asked us, “Oh please don’t tell me you drove from Oregon just to spend one day in Vancouver?”   Um.  Well.   Now my brain is thinking that clearly no matter what our answer is - is that we’re gonna look like Cocoa Puffs and the next thing you know our truck is being torn apart and inspected.  I did volunteer my apples for ag surrender.   Maybe that did the trick.  Doing the right thing is always best.  Plus the last time we crossed from Victoria I smuggled a few Cuban cigars into the US and I’ve been carrying the guilt.  In case the border patrol is reading this… I just made that up about the Cuban’s.  BTW… Dear US Government: Safety and security is job one and we’re grateful for the US Border Patrol’s service and dedication.  But have you seen how pretty Canadian’s crossing is?  Our border agents look like they’re working out of 3rd world outpost and it’s not looking too welcoming to our visitors.  I think we can still kick ass and look good at the same time - just saying.

A sure sign we’re back in the USA. Deep fired delicacies on wheels.  We are home.  And I miss Vancouver oh so much.  At least I can watch from afar via Carol’s blog and flickr.  Go Carol Go!

Thank you, Vancouver. We heart you.

DH and I are headed up to Vancouver this afternoon. Normally we turn right at I-5 and go to Vancouver, Washington. Today we turn left - and make our way up to beautiful Vancouver, BC… and I CAN’T WAIT! We have no itinerary, no plans, no event tickets. Lodging is the only thing I’ve taken care of. We’re having a little Winter Olympic adventure, Monica style - my little Mo’lympics.  I sure hope they take my passport from jr. high at the border!

Hopefully we’ll find ourselves in interesting places and among interesting people.  I’ll be tweeting while I’m there if you want to follow along with me.  I hope I’m able to catch Shaun White, Stephen Colbert, Chris Collinsworth & Johnny Weir milling about (maybe they’re shopping for red mittens too!).

A big bah hum bug about being in Vancouver, BC on Friday… there are no Jack in the Box’s in Canada. WHAT THE WHAT? I guess I’ll have to hop down to Blaine, Washington to participate in JITB Taco Friday. This should make The Anti JITB Taco-ite very happy. If anyone is not familiar with the JITB two for 99¢ tacos - they are delicious deep fried treats of who knows what. Elizabeth says they moisturize your lips as you eat them.   And it’s true!  Elizabeth, Kathi, Camille Pot Pie, Jona, Vanessa… just to name a few - we’re all doin’ it (and workin’ on the Fat Quarter Shop girls… Kim, Debra and Ice-karate champ Jocelyn).  Join us!  Come hop on the JITB Taco Friday bus.  Just watch out for Pam…

she will snag your tacos, lock you up and throw away the key if she catches you.

I was so touched by the wonderful emails, comments and flickr notes I’ve received over my previous post/photos.  I wish I could find the words to express how much everyone’s kind words mean to me.  And a simple thank you just doesn’t seem big enough to cover my heartfelt thanks!  I really suck at mushy stuff and expressing myself from my heart.  Thank you!!

My finished quilt.
My Bunnyhill BOM.
My Dude, Where’s My BOM quilt
My “fire quilt” (the quilt I’d grab if the fire marshal said I could run in and only grab ONE QUILT if my house was on fire).

I had lots of leftovers from my Sweet and Swell charm packs - so I decided to use them for my setting.  Like little hands applauding and clapping Anne Sutton for her beautiful designs.  Clap, clap, clap… bravo, Anne, bravo… clap, clap, clap…

I’m happy to share my setting “recipe” if anyone wants to use it.   Paying it forward.  From Anne to me.  Me to you.  You to ___?

From my leftover charms (5″ squares), 39 to be exact, and from about a yard of solid I cut:
348) 1½” squares of assorted prints
80) 1½” squares of white solid (I used Moda Bella, it’s dreamy)
62) 8½” x 1½” strips white solid

Make 20 9-patches from 100 print squares/80 solid squares:

Make 31 sashing strips from 248 print squares/62 solid strips:

My quilt finishes at 36″ x 47″.   And now that I’m done with this, I’m going to move on to my next project and get ready for my sista-friend Tammy Gilley and her friend Rebecca Sower - who have joined forces and created a wonderful upcoming project called Quilt Haiti (you can grab your own button here).  I hope to soon have a freebie quilt pattern for Quilt Haiti available.  Soon.

Medical, food, funding… all things Haiti still needs.  At some point the people of Haiti will have homes again - and will need to fill it with something soft, something warm, something made with love… something from the hands of her caring global neighbors.  Everyone has a something to give or do for Haiti.  Medical teams heal, builders build… and quilters quilt.  Our turn is coming soon thanks to Tammy and Rebecca.  I’m starting a lap quilt soon - so I can be ready.

Done.
D.O.N.E.  Done.
Not that I didn’t enjoy every minute of making Anne Sutton’s adorable A Tisket, A Tasket BOM blocks - I couldn’t wait to finish it and get it set and quilt it.  Setting is still in the audition progress as I’m playing with two setting ideas.  A fun dilemma to have, for sure.

For an entire year I looked forward to the 5th of each month - and was sad when this last January 5th rolled around and there was nothing to download.  And then to my surprise (Gomer: Surprise.  Surprise.  Surprise!),  Anne started a brand new block of the month. Oh happy 5th day of the month! I loved seeing what all the other Tisket Tasketeers were doing too.

I had a big posting/making gap since June - my posts from the past: January, February, March, April and May & June. It feels so great to finally get caught up. Thank you thank you thank you, Anne!

Scenario I hope to never witness: The house is on fire.  All people and pets are out, as well as important documents, photographs, kids artwork, clothes and fabric. The fire marshal says there’s just enough time to run in a grab ONE quilt.  Once finished, this will no doubt be my fire quilt.