Nearly Perfect

Sometimes all the tumblers in the universe line up and you are blessed with a nearly perfect day.  I had one yesterday.

After weeks of 90+ degree days, the weather broke Friday afternoon, and Saturday dawned with cooler temps and lower humidity and suddenly it was actually pleasant to be outside.  I drove out to see a quilt show and hooked up briefly with some friends.  The quilt shop across the street from the show was having a sale and I saw a lot more friends and guild members there, too.

Ordinarily I would have just gone home, but I decided to drive out in the country to a quilt shop I had never visited before, a little bit off my usual path.  I took a chance because I wasn't entirely sure where it was, but I found it rather easily.  There was a beautiful selection of fabrics, not big, but lots of things that I haven't seen at other shops in the area.  I found a couple of fat quarters for a fabric exchange at next month's guild meeting and, heaven help me, a stencil set for yet another eight-pointed star block.

Yes, 2010 is shaping up to be the year of the eight-pointed star for me.  There seems to be an almost endless variety of ways to combine these shapes, and I'm so enjoying trying them out.

Heading home, I passed the county historical society museum and saw a big banner proclaiming a civil war exhibit, and I decided to drop in and take a look.  Since the museum is on a one way street I needed to circle the block and my route took me by an antique mall I like to visit from time to time.  I stopped there first and spent a pleasant half hour or so looking around.  There is always such a jumble of stuff in places like that.  Victorian tables piled with garish '60's jewelry.  Old postcards stacked in trays next to "vintage" Tupperware. Is it possible for Tupperware to be vintage?  I ask you!  A dollhouse just like the one my sister had as a child selling for $75.  My gosh. 

Eventually I headed over to the county museum with only about 20 minutes to spare.  There I was doubled teamed by a wonderful older lady and gentleman who gave me a guided tour of each and every exhibit.  I like history in general, but I find local history to be so compelling.  I like knowing that the decrepit old brick building that I pass sometimes used to be the "opera" house and that the big church downtown was a way station on the Underground Railroad.  Or that the beautiful neighborhood that I drive through on the way to work each day used to be a park where William Jennings Bryan spoke. Someone had done a great deal of research on the regiments from the civil war that mustered from this area, and there were exhibits on the battles they fought in. My two guides kept me past their regular closing time, and I had to promise to return so I could spend more time looking through the civil war exhibit.  I left armed with brochures about other historical exhibits in the area and a schedule for the historical society meetings. 

 Altogether, a grand day.

I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend.