I'm Going to Texas

Monday, December 19, 2016

- Blue (agave) Christmas

Patch #354 Texas Christmas cactus

It's cold. The weather app said 22 ...

but Wimberley is down in the valley. We're about 300' higher and our thermometer had a slightly lower reading ...

But the ultimate indicator is the frost weed and it was in fine form, close ...

closer ...

closest ...

Last winter we didn't get a frost weed freeze until the end of January, which means it made it on to the Remember cloth ...

You'll notice it's just to the left of a sunny day patch ... and two more patches to the right is the memory of an 80 degree day at the end of January.

So yeah, don't feel too sorry for us. Here's our forecast for the next five days ...

Gotta love Texas. Which is why we decorate this way ...

The neighbors really appreciate it, too ...

I managed to finish a trio of retro patches today ...

If you look at the original post on November 28

http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.com/2016_11_28_archive.html

you'll notice there's no mention of an expected grandchild. But that was the day we received the news, so the secret is finally out ...

And knowing Meg would be getting the news on the 28th, we held off shopping for her birthday until November 29

http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.com/2016/11/one-more.html

Also knowing Meg to prefer more subtle colors, we were on the hunt for corals, peaches, or raspberries rather than the stereotypical pinky pink. This is what we got ...

Hence the patch Pretty in not-quite pink ...

And so we made it to Meg's birthday on November 30 without spoiling the surprise

http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.com/2016/11/big-reveal.html

Process note: I was especially pleased when the bleach discharge on gray (Meg's favorite "color" long before it became trendy), turned a pale pink, because a little bit couldn't hurt.

Sunday, December 18, 2016

- Land of extremes

Patch #353 The color of cold

It's not my most inspired patch, but it does mark the beginning of "drip the tap" season in the Hill Country.

Yesterday's high was 77 degrees ...

This morning our thermometer read 21 degrees. The math is mind-boggling: a 56 degree drop in 15 hours!

So I'm thinking a possible variation on the Land of Flood and Drought series might be a record of the highs and lows for each day in 2017, from red patches for the triple-digit days to purple patches for the below-freezing days ... and every color of the rainbow in-between.

But first I need to finish this year's projects. I'm still slogging through last month.

November 23 Turning inward

http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.com/2016/11/peace-and-love.html

November 24 Self-titled

http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.com/2016_11_24_archive.html

And here for your viewing pleasure is the latest addition to Don's assemblage herd ...

The end ...

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Saturday, December 17, 2016

- Trip the light fantastic

Patch #352 Tree light-full

It's hard to get good pictures in the dark, but the Wimberley Trail of Lights was so magical that I tried anyway ...

By the way, that "C" floating at the bottom of the picture is the reflective patch on G's jacket!

The tree wasn't as big as the Zilker tree in Austin, but perched on top of a hill, it was definitely higher. In fact, it was so windy up there that G said, "Can I have my hat? I think we're at the North Pole" ...

And I'm not sure, but I think this is a 20' high roadrunner ...

But if you want a better sense of place, just go to the website

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zx9YfavEhhQ

There's an over-long drone sequence at the beginning of the video, but all the individual lighted scenes follow and for a little town it's a pretty big deal.

Friday, December 16, 2016

- Hands-full

Patch #351 Simple gifts

I was going to do a kitschy Santa hat patch, but after looking at the day's photos, this seemed more apt. See if you don't agree.

Thursday, December 15, 2016

- Joy-full days

Patch #350 Armadillo art

Today we're headed to the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar in Austin. It's a wonderful two week affair of local art and music and Ray Wylie Hubbard is playing tonight.

I love that they actually have a blog (now in the Kindred Spirits list) and the neck of the guitar on this year's poster ...

reminds me of my patch strips. So I zoomed in on one as today's inspiration ...

Speaking of Kindred Spirits, I wanted to point out that the Blessings patch on December 2

http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.com/2016/12/won-get-fooled-again.html

referred to my rendezvous with Sue McQuade, who often comments here. She and her husband have made it back home and you can read about her visit to Texas here ...

http://blessingsofthread.blogspot.com/2016/12/good-morning-from-brrrrrrrrrrr-il.html

In titling today's post, I was reflecting on how I was anything but joyful in November. I commented to Don last night that I was tempted to make a string of dark, somber patches to match my post-election funk. So I had already decided on gray for my next patch, but ended up calling

November 21 You are my sunshine

http://imgoingtotexas.blogspot.com/2016_11_21_archive.html