Wyoming Breezes

Honda Misawa, Japan Fall 1979  Once I found a reasonably-priced used car and obtained license and insurance, I was able to move out of billeting and into my off-base house . Notice the outside mirrors mounted on the front fenders. I never could figure out why they were located there instead of near the windows. It was tricky to adjust them. I can't tell you how many times I went to the left side front door to get in only to remember the steering wheel was on the right. Even though the car had an automatic transmission, shifting was tricky because I am right-handed. The accelerator was located on the right, which made it easier to adapt. I had to constantly remind myself that as the driver, I needed to be sitting on the inside of the road. I avoided passing other cars: it was just too difficult to force myself to look right to check for on-coming vehicles. It was a good car and served me well for two years although it was sometimes temperamental when moisture got under

Carol's Fall Flower December Block The Quilter's Neighborhood I took some artistic license with the December block because I did not want to fuss with convex and concave pieces. If I had cut the pieces, I knew that none of them would have turned out the correct size, so I grabbed a pencil and created an adaptation. The directions called for lovely curved petals to form a chrysanthemum. My adaptation (see my pencil lines on the diagram) looks more like a star; thus, I am calling it a "Star Aster" rather than a chrysanthemum. All the blocks for the 2011 Block of the Month are finished. Now, I need to decide what to do with them. The complete set of Quilter's Neighborhood blocks. 

Larry Stearns & Grandma Rosie 1974 Whenever any of the guys wanted a haircut, Grandma Rosie brought out her trusty clippers and the wild, layered skirt and got to work. I don't know whose skirt it was, but it was used every time someone got a haircut. I think my Mom stored the skirt with the clippers. Notice Larry's trimmed locks in the lower left corner of the photo above. I don't know when my mom started cutting my brothers' and nephew's hair, but she did it for years and the pile of used clippers in the cupboard served as evidence. I don't think my brother had anyone else cut his hair until after Mom died in 1989. Terry Stearns & Grandma Rosie 1974 Note : Just to clarify, Mom didn't give buzz cuts but trimmed the hair into the style my nephews or brothers wanted.

I am seldom in the right place at the right time, but the stars aligned for me on December 17, 2011, the day to pick up the last block of the month at Sheep Camp Quilt Supply. After selecting some tone on tone yardage for my stash, I wandered to the back room where Clearance items are located. A kit for a 66 x 82 inch quilt, marked 50% off, caught my eye. I thought it was a great deal, so I picked out some coordinating yardage (also in the Clearance area) for the backing and the binding. I was pleasantly surprised when the store owner told me that Clearance kits were 75% off. Wow, an even greater deal! The two pieces of fabric on the left are the backing and the binding, and were not included in the kit. The damages:  Floral backing fabric (top left) was 60% off -- $18.92 Red binding fabric (lower left) was 55% off -- $3.94 The remaining fabric was in the quilt kit which I purchased for $16.75 Grand total for a 66 x 82 inch quilt: (not including batting)    $39.61 I

Silent night, holy night. All is calm, All is bright Round yon Virgin Mother and Child Holy Infant so Tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night. Shepherds quake at the sight. Glories stream from heaven afar; Heavenly hosts sing Al-le-lu-ja. Christ the Savior is born. Christ the Savior is born. Silent night, holy night. Wondrous star, lend thy light. With the angels let us sing Alleluia to our King. Christ the Savior is here, Jesus the Savior is here. Silent night, Holy night. Son of God, love's pure light Radiant beams from Thy holy face, With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus Lord at thy birth; Jesus Lord at thy birth.

Christmas Display Misawa AFB Misawa, Japan December 1979 Christmas Display competitions were held on base the both years I was there, and the panels shown above were exceptional. This display was simply beautiful and a work of art. Click the photo to see more detail. Merry Christmas to all of my readers. 

seen on Burma Road December 2011 Burma Road, a local farm to market road, was under construction most of the summer. A major portion of the road was relocated to remove some dangerous curves, but Burma Hill remained. I saw the sign, shown above, last Saturday. My first reaction was, "doesn't every hill block a view?" I'm not sure what danger this particular sign and its twin going the opposite direction (one for each North and South bound traffic) is pointing out to motorists. Just past this point, the road curves and the grade of the hill is significant, but this Warning sign or others around it do not indicate the curve. Burma Road will probably only have local traffic so most motorists will be familiar with the road's curve, yet this sign it more of a novelty than a warning.

Shetland Road, north of Wild Licorice where the mailbox was located.  The storms in 1986 were similar to those of 1978 ( see this post ), but the County and residents were better prepared to deal with the aftermath. After the storms in 1976, my brother purchased a rear-mounted snow blower for his tractor, and in 1986 between his labors and that of the County Road Department, Gabe's Road was kept open to the highway for the milk truck. Nancy Stearns on Shetland Road, north of the mailbox. Rosa Stearns checking the mailbox at the intersection of Shetland  and Wild Licorice roads, west of the farm. The mailbox post was broken  off by the County when they plowed, and here it is merely stuck in the snow  bank. In the Spring, my brother John welded a metal pole on the box to replace the wooden post.  Gabe's Road south of the silo. Any cattle in the fields for winter could easily step over the fence.   In 1986, I lived on the farm north of Pavillion. My brother, Ri

Little Miss Muffet I didn't work on this blanket, but it is too cute not to share Several Oddball blankets have recently been finished. I've posted updated photos at the end of their previous posts. Citrus Burst Raspberry Delight Flowers Chocoholic

Train Barbecue designed and built by John Stearns June 1986 Regular readers may remember the post about the train barbecue  that my brother, John built. Recently I found some photos of the barbecue in use and wanted to share them. Brenda's high school graduation party June 1986 John Stearns and his train barbecue June 1986

Malaysian Children December 1979 The children gathered at a Mosque gate when my group toured the building. Our group probably provided a distraction for them on a hot December day. In my travels, I only encountered children begging for food/money in the Philippines and in Bangkok.

Fall Harvest , a Western Region Oddball Baby Blanket, is promising to be a stunning blanket. So far, it has been to Idaho, Canada, and Wyoming. Where will it travel next? The first section used Garter Steps ; the second,  Purled Ladder ; the third section, Single Chevron . The blanket is 104 stitches wide and will have six four-inch sections. Update : January 31, 2012 Fall Harvest needs one more section before the border Update : April 18, 2012 Fall Harvest is finished!

Terry Stearns Gabe's Road - 1/2 mile from Hwy December 1978 Over the weekend, I found the photos of the Winter of 1978, and I discovered the photo on this post is really from 1986 and not 1978, as I first indicated. Once I saw the other photos of 1986, the memories came back, but that is for another post. This post contains a lot of photos of the aftermath of the 1978 storms. I am giving direction and road names for those know the area: my apologies to those who do not. Long-time readers of this blog know that I grew up on a dairy farm. My mother and brother did all the work themselves, and the Winter of 1978 kept them extremely busy. Fresh straw had to be placed in the corral for the cows to have a place to bed down and not freeze their udders. The cows had to be fed twice a day, they needed fresh water (sometimes the stock tanks or automatic waterers would freeze), calves had to be fed and kept warm with fresh straw and heat lamps. It was exhausting work, but the Winter