Two Things: An Update on T & More Show Prep

Second Post of the Day

First, thank you to those who looked out for Cambria's friend through prayers, karma, good thoughts, and more. Every bit of it was appreciated. And I am pleased to say that the family feels they have received a miracle - T just came home. 

I didn't put it here on the blog, but things had gotten very grim for T and it was questionable that she would pull through. I honestly thought that she would not make it and I was dreading the news.

Cambria immediately set to work on a poster for T when she heard that she was coming home. (Guess who is a lefty like her mama?)

And then Jessica drove her to deliver the poster and the trick or treat candy that Cambria had collected for T by bringing an extra bag along when she went out trick or treating.

I am grateful that T is home, and I am grateful to all who offered support. Heartfelt thanks.

Switching gears now, the Happy Trails/Dan Patch Show is just four days away! I'm in good shape, though, and could actually go out to Oxford and set up now. 

Yesterday I set the Feast sewing aside for an hour and made a show drape for photos.

I really like that fabric and the Standardbreds on it are all pacing! (Dan Patch was a pacer.)

I thought that Elise Partanen had a great idea when she included a mystery surprise in her donations to the show.

 I decided to copy borrow her idea and wrapped up my own Breyer mystery surprise.

I have a thank you gift for Brooke and Tom, too. They don't read the blog so I can share what it is - a Breyer 1990 Dan Patch never removed from its box! They've talked about having an area in the Dan Messner building for Dan Patch things; this would be a nice addition.

Finally, and just for fun, here is the view I have every time I come downstairs. 

Our trees are just gorgeous this year! That view won't last more than a few more days, but in the meantime, I am enjoying it to the max!

Filming with Some Friendly Help

We did it - we got my BreyerFest seminar filmed. I cannot show you the finished drape, its fabric, or any photos or videos from the filming itself. But, you can see the aftermath - my sewing room is a wreck!

We were filming in three different spaces in the sewing room, and as we moved into one space, we'd clear it out quickly, usually by throwing everything onto the bed or the sewing table.  ("Don't worry; I'll clean it up later," I reassured Lisa several times. Not looking forward to that today!)

We moved the furniture around and even brought in some to accommodate the camera needs. 

My iron got knocked to the floor several times as we hauled it around but fortunately did not suffer any damage. (I always have a spare one, just in case. Just as I use my sewing machine almost daily, I use my iron just as much. No iron, no sew for me. It's essential.)

I'd gathered fabric samples and models to use and they were all neatly laid out beforehand. Now they are tossed about in piles. Well, everything except the models. They are all over the room at the moment, but they are either lying on a pony pad or in a safe spot.

Meanwhile (left to right), the stunt coordinator, assistant director, script supervisor, and costume director were all a little miffed when they were not allowed to be present for filming and had to wait with the best boy when filming began. 

Always adventuresome, the stunt coordinator did make a surprise appearance by using his talents to get past the gate at the bottom of the stairs, charging up with a happy grin to offer his services. ("Cut!! Nash! What are you doing here, buddy??")

Anyway! Filming is done and as I watched the segments (there are 25) last night, I was really happy with how the seminar is turning out. I'll go through them very closely and start collating and making notes for Jessica about what to cut out, what to speed up, etc.

When I'm done (hopefully by the end of the day) I will send them to her and then she will work her magic.

Oh, and in case you are wondering about Lisa's water heater, Craig is going to go to her home this morning to meet the water heater repair person. Hopefully it will not need to be replaced. 

Stay 'tooned!

At Last, I Can Share

Yesterday Breyer announced a few of the virtual workshops that will be offered this July at BreyerFest.

One of those was mine.

Last week I'd gotten an email from Breyer saying that people had been asking about the virtual seminars and so they were going to announce some of them earlier than planned. I was asked if I could send some info about mine for that BreyerFest blog post.

Normally we don't send those blurbs until later in the spring, but I was actually glad that Breyer was going to be sharing some of them early. It's good to know that folks wanted to know and that the demand for the virtual seminars is there.

A show drape that I made for The FAMulous Collectibility Show in 2019.

It's nice that I can now talk about my seminar publicly. I was asked last September to do it and there have been times when I would've liked to share about it.

So, the cat's out of the bag (The pony's out of the stall? The model's off the shelf? LOL) and now ya'll know. 

A Morning with Models/An Afternoon with Kathy

There was even MORE rain yesterday (and it is spattering against my window as I type this morning) but I still got a lot accomplished.

The morning was a model horse one coupled with some sewing. I got the show drape for Midwest Mini Mayhem finished and ready for a final pressing.

Shannon asked for blue and I had several shades in stock. Thinking of those teeny, tiny models and how hard they can be to see, I went for a lighter one. I recorded all measurements in one of my sewing sketchbooks (where I draw diagrams and figure out measurements when I am drafting a pattern) as I've learned that you never know when you might be asked to revisit a project and make it again.

Breyer Boot Camp is getting ready to begin. Entries are being accepted and the galleries open for entry April 26. That's when my work begins; I am one of the stewards for this show.

Liz Cory and Jamie Rott have been introducing the judges and the stewards on the Breyer Boot Camp Facebook page and my turn came up.

I will be stewarding the OF Foals and OF Light Divisions this year. It's a lot of fun and something I can do from home any hour of the day. If I find an entrant has made an error in the formatting of their entry or put their model in the wrong class, then I work with the shower to get their entry corrected and ready to be judged. 

Just before lunch, I hopped in my car and drove around the corner to pick up my friend, Kathy, and her guide, Tate. She had been invited to come to Kentland, Indiana and speak at the elementary school there about guide dogs, asking me to join her.

I've driven her to speaking engagements many times, and while she uses Tate to get around safely, my role is to do what Tate cannot - tell her where the microphone is, how close she is to the audience, when the audience is coming in and about how big it is, and more. I also make sure she has a chair if one is not provided, watch her purse and coat if she asks, and keep my eyes open if other dogs are around.

The school was having a "Doggy Day" and had invited other service, therapy, and performing dogs to visit throughout the day. A group of dogs were in the gym on the other side of ours and we could occasionally hear that group barking while Kathy spoke.

Chill guide that he is, Tate was unfazed by their noise, even when one handler opened the door, walked her dog through the gym while Kathy was speaking, then proceeded to walk back through and out!

Kathy could tell that another dog was in the room and turned and asked me about it. I confirmed that there was and reassured her that I had been keeping an eye on it. Tate had seen the other dog, too, but he continued to ignore it. (I once saw the handler of a therapy dog ignore Kathy's repeated requests to keep her therapy dog back because Nacho was in harness and working. A distracted guide compromises Kathy's own safety. That handler boldly ignored those requests because "my dog needs to meet other dogs. It's good for him." It was incredibly thoughtless and very irresponsible.) 

 

Anyway! She first spoke with a large group of first and second graders and then one of fourth and fifth graders. 

I think it was quite eye opening for the students to see a guide dog work but also to discover that Kathy was a teacher despite her blindness. The older group asked her some very well thought out questions about how she was able to call on kids if she could not see their hands up, what Tate did while she taught, how she got around her classroom safely, etc.

After her second presentation, Kathy and Tate had a very touching and meaningful moment. A fifth grade girl was in the audience, and, just as had happened to Kathy at the same age, she was losing her eyesight and would eventually be totally blind. Her teacher asked if we could stay and meet her.

E's face lit up when Kathy came over and sat down on the bleacher next to her.

While Kathy did a lot of listening, she also answered a lot of E's questions about being blind. E was learning to read Braille and had attended a summer camp at the Indiana School for the Blind, but she was still very new to the process of losing her vision.

Kathy took Tate's harness off so that E could pet and explore him. I didn't get a picture of it, but he licked her hand, smothering it in kisses (which delighted E.)

Always, always teaching and aware of the needs of the students around her, Kathy had E help her figure out the gift the school gave her to thank her for coming. (Kathy is reading the Braille on the tee shirt in this photo.)

Using her new Braille skills, E told her that it was a heart with the alphabet in Braille running around its perimeter. It was a really cool gift and, as Kathy said, "I can't tell one tee shirt from another in my drawer at home. But I'll always know when I am wearing this one!"

 Traveling with Kathy is always awesome. We taught together before I retired, we are neighbors, and she is one of my closest friends. Never does she fail to leave a place better than it was before she came - that's just the kind of person she is.

But to watch her reach out to E, engage her in a successful activity like that, and offer her a vision of life where blindness is not a detriment, where life can be full and happy, and show her by example that there are opportunities that may look like hurdles but that can be overcome...

Kathy made a big difference in someone's life that afternoon. 

And I was lucky to be present and witness it unfold.