July Desktop Calendar

Have you ever started out to do one thing, then got distracted and done another? And another? And then wondered what the heck you were supposed to be doing?
No?
Liar!! If you're over the age of 40, you know that's the truth!

So tonight I started to work on the calendar at 7:40pm Central Time. By that, I mean I opened up my Mac and clicked on Parallels (the Windows emulator software I use to access my Electric Quilt 7 program where I design the quilts for my calendar). While I was waiting for it to load (which takes for-flippin-ever), I went to check my emails.
Got one from my sister. Talking about where we grew up in Park Ridge, IL (along with Hillary, apparently. I don't want to talk about that.)
Anyway. Then I got to thinking about all the places we used to walk to from my Gramma's house. Like to the Pickwick Theatre in downtown Park Ridge. A quick search on Google Maps told me it was 1.9 miles. And then, by clicking on Street View, I was able to actually trace the route we used to walk.
Here's my Gramma's house, a cropped screen grab from the Google Street View. Our bedroom (we shared a double bed till I was about 8 or so) is the second floor left window.

And here's the Pickwick Theatre, in all its art-deco glory. Beautiful architecture inside with lots of tile and ornamental wood. And as I recall, it was only 50 cents a ticket.

Then I decided to walk the same route I took in high school to get from our duplex in Arlington Heights to my piano teacher's studio downtown, about 1.9 miles away. (Again, Google? Was everything 1.9 miles away from me??) We lived in the right half of the duplex, and I remember sketching that tree for one of the weekly art assignments as a sophomore in Miss Akers' class. She gave us one (1) piece of oatmeal drawing paper on Monday, and we had to come back with a finished pencil drawing of whatever she assigned, on Friday. I usually waited till Thursday night to do it. Go figure.

Here's Mr. Matteoni's old studio - a 2nd floor walk-up in that brick building. When he was dying of brain cancer (in '96, I think), he turned over his studio to a former student, who still runs it. Mr. Matteoni was the closest thing I ever had to a father, and I loved him for teaching me and encouraging me to major in music at DePaul. We kept in touch for all those years. And he'd call me every year at Christmas just to talk. I've even saved his letters. He was such a sweet man. Every so often I still cry over him. Wow. That got mushy real fast!

Holy mackerel! I've wasted 90 minutes already. Damn that Google maps thing!

Back to designing the quilt calendar.

Right after this:
I just remembered tonight's the night Venus and Jupiter are supposed to be so close together they'll seem to be one big star - as big as the moon. Have to go look. Wait right here!
...time slowly passes...
Well crap. Drove about a mile down the road (not 1.9 miles LOL), to the clearing in the big pasture.
Nada. Too cloudy. But here's a picture of the moon through the trees at my house. Just pretend it looks like the Star of Bethlehem.

So where was I...oh yeah. I still have an hour and 15 minutes, so I'm good. Hey! Did you see 5 year old Heavenly Joy on America's Got Talent tonight? Shirley Temple reincarnated. What a cutie-pie!


11:02. Need to get a move on. BRB.

How about another one-patch with Kaffe fabric? I like that.

Hang on. It's 11:23pm and my son-in-law in South Carolina is calling. Emergency?
No. Job/career issues. Good. That I can deal with. Still working on quilt while we talk.

Midnight. Still on phone, but I've finished the calendar. And it's only 22 minutes late. Have at it, folks!

Click to expand the image to full size, right-click and choose Set as Wallpaper or Background.

To really make the calendar "pop" right-click on your background and choose black. Your family and co-workers will be jealous of your awesome wallpaper! Be sure to tell them where you found it!