Faith, Folklore, and Friends

Live Oak Cemetery in Selma, Alabama, is huge and ancient.  It is more than a cemetery; it is a history lesson, a museum full of art. A soul could spend the day here and not be able read all the epitaphs and dates and endearments carved in marble. Selma has several museums, old Victorian houses downtown, and the Edmund Pettus bridge made famous in 1965 by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights movement.  Lots to do there if you go, but don't miss Live Oak Cemetery.

If you read this missive regularly, you know that Jerry Brown and his art have a special place in my heart.  I wrote about his pottery  here,   here,  and  here .  Mr. Brown became ill early Thursday morning, and passed away late Friday.  Before his death, he insisted that the festival go on. Hub and I got to Hamilton about 11:30, and the Brown booth only had a few items left.  The people working there told us that the store was empty, and these shelves held the only items that were left of his work. I bought one last piece that Mr. Brown had signed, and stood in line a while to pay for it. Mr. Brown's work was always the highlight of the festival, but there were many more wonderful artists there. My friend, George Jones, Jr., with his fabulous handmade brooms. With Mr. Brown gone, I have to wonder about the future of this festival.  I really hope it continues.

Beautiful mosaics at the entrance of the St. Augustine Visitor's Center. 

Yesterday, Hub, Baby Boy, Rachel, and I attended the Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg, Tennessee.  South Pittsburg is where Lodge makes all those iron skillets to cook cornbread in. I think the festival is twelve years old, and this was our third time to attend.   It was an almost-perfect day. Rhonda Vincent and the Rage put on a good show, and their sponsor, Martha White, was generous with gifts and samples. Cornbread Alley lets you sample many different kinds of cornbread, including some with chocolate chips and pecans.  They were all good, but after all that sampling, I was thinking it might be a little better with a pork chop to go with it. With more than sixty vendors with real art, it was hard to choose what to take home. I especially loved the bird houses. It was hard to miss this one-man band clown.  His doll had eyes like Chucky and it kinda scared some of us.  Then the clouds started churning,...

I make more string quilts than anything else, and everyone asks how to do it.  Here goes: If you are a quilter or seamstress, you already have a tub of scraps.  If not, buy several quarter-yards of different fabrics and cut them in strips.  We called them strings; they were usually fabric scraps that were not big enough to use any other way. Cut squares of desired size from newspapers.  These are 6.5" squares, and I use 9.5" sometimes. Take a piece of fabric that is long enough to cover the center of the square diagonally.  Add another string, place right sides together, and sew.   Flip it around, and sew another piece of fabric on the other side of the center piece. Press.  Don't worry about trimming right now. Add two more pieces, one on each side.  Press.  As you can see, the paper square is covered on one side already. Add another piece, making sure it covers all the paper.  Press.  It...