Pack ONLY what you need

Where did all this humidity come from? I don't mind the heat, but the humidity can be a killer—it makes everything feel damp! 

But I continue to walk—it's good practice for my upcoming trip. One thing that I'm very much looking forward to is that most of that walk will be done in the countryside or small villages, and there will be no cars or very few. The idiots in this area are, well, idiots! TWICE yesterday, people came whipping around a corner, looking left as I stood on their right! 

One must be vigilant and NEVER trust anyone. I'm not afraid to yell at them! 

It was a great day, as we had Monday Sewing, and I tried to focus a bit more. So what happened? I'll show you in one second, but all I can say is there really is a light at the end of the tunnel. 

The eagle is done. This was the only applique on one of the borders, but it involved many fiddly turns. This applique would be a breeze if the edges were straight or somewhat straight. But with the double blanket stitch, it takes a bit of thought as I'm stitching, especially when turning the corners. 

The sky borders are done! 

It's not perfect, but it's perfect enough for me!! 

Detail of the stitching

Once the applique on that border was complete, I stitched it to the central part of the quilt. YES --- I can definitely see the end, even though each quilt has FOUR more border sections and a LOT of appliques. Slow and steady!!!

Quilt Number One

And there's the second quilt with that one border stitched in place. 

Quilt Number Two

This morning, I went back to cutting out another applique project on the digital cutter, but I forgot to take pictures. This one will have the applique stitched using the embroidery machine. It is much faster but less relaxing. Or is it faster? It's certainly not cheaper! While finishing the edges might be quicker, it takes a lot of time to set it up so you can do the machine embroidery. 

Someone asked me why I didn't convert the patterns in Cabin in the Woods to machine embroidery. Well, I could have, but at least I used the digital cutter to cut them out. Sometimes, it's just way more hassle to deal with technology. And quite frankly, doing some stuff by hand is extremely important. Those kinds of things teach patience, and we all know that everyone in this world needs more patience. 

So, instead of focusing on the technology, I go within my brain and dream up other things while I'm stitching those appliques. I have zero issues with it once I get started! 

Well, I was going to take pictures of my stuff, but then I packed them in the backpack and forgot the pictures. Let's just say there is NOT much going in the backpack. My goal is to have that backpack weigh no more than 12 lbs. Just for fun, as I was packing, I decided to weigh the categories to see how much they weighed. The backpack itself weighs 2.2 lbs. The walking sticks weigh .9. My two pairs of shoes weigh 2 lbs. But I'll have one pair on at all times, so I won't technically carry all that on my back. My clothes weigh 3.1 pounds (still one pair of shorts to be added), but again, I'll be wearing part of the clothes, so I won't be carrying all that on my back. 

I reduced the medical supplies to the bare minimum—scissors, pills (just pain meds—which I hope I won't need), tape, gauze, and some small packs for bandaging open wounds like blisters, which I hope I won't need. 

Toiletries are also at a minimum—a small bar of soap and a tiny bottle of shampoo, along with toothpaste and a toothbrush, a comb, clippers, and maybe one or two other small items. One does not need much. 

The electronics are packed as well: three chargers, a keyboard, and a power converter. I'll wear my Fitbit, and I'll carry my phone, money, and all the important stuff in a small, flat waist pouch. 

After taking out the clothes I will wear when I leave, I weighed the backpack. Can you guess how much it weighs? 10.8 lbs. My snack bars are even included in that total! WOW -- I did excellent at the packing. I've seen people carry all kinds of optional stuff on a walking trip. Bottles of lotions, potions, heavy clothing, books, journals, etc. And while some people may feel they need those things, they all become super heavy when you carry them for 30 KM in high heat. 

It makes me chuckle when I think of packing for a regular visit somewhere—I try to put everything in a carry-on, and it usually weighs about 22 pounds. When I pack my sample bags, I'm trying to keep them under 50 lbs. And my little backpack is less than 11!!!

If there is anything I've missed, I can buy it there. I have to laugh because there is that last-minute panic-packing when I go on a quilt retreat. That NEVER happens on a walking vacation, and everything is something that I will use. I was contemplating throwing in an actual book, but I won't. I have an e-book on my phone and can download more if needed. 

I still have emails to send and errands to run, and there are still bags of mulch in the garage. Oops—I forgot about those. So it's going to be a busy day, but I have time, and I'm not in a panic. 

I have a couple of interesting articles to share with you. The first one is about an Olympic quilt, which is very cool. 

The second one concerns Quilter Tattoos. There are many other interesting blog posts on this site (Quiltfolk), but I still need to check them out. 

And that's a wrap for today. 

Have a super day!! Don't melt!

Ciao!!!!