It seems rather odd to be wished a happy Memorial Day given the purpose of the day. Though my family encompassed a fair number of people who served in the military from the earliest days of our national aspirations, only one that I know of died as a direct result of the service. My late sister's husband was one of the last USN pilots shot down over Viet Nam. Unfortunately, he did not die from that crash but from being shot by the VietCong who came to his wrecked plane. He always carried a non-regulation 45 handgun in his plane and he started shooting at the VC who then shot back. She did finally get his remains back years later and he was interred in his family's church graveyard in Massachusetts. He also had a bridge dedicated in his name when his remains came home.

I introduced my sister to this guy, never really expecting much from their introduction. He was a nice enough guy with a decent sense of Irish humor but he was not very well read or even well educated and my sister went to a well-regarded college after being  named a National Merit Scholar. It's hard to say if the marriage would have lasted but because of his death he acquired heretofore unknown saintlike status that never wavered. In her final hours when she was talking to ghosts his name was heard over and over.

Coming back from our early morning walk today, we bumped into the father of the young lady to whom I was giving the Democrat Rose quilt. He said that out of the blue, and  day after the bridal shower, the groom called off the wedding. I don't really know either bride or groom but this was a shock to the parents. As for me, I have a beautiful quilt all dressed up with no place to go. Guess I will unroll it and put it in on the guest bed.

 The first time I entered a quilt contest, I won a prize for excellent applique even though I had no idea what I was doing. As I have written many times, I have not taken any quilting classes though I did teach a kids class at a shop and I also held quilt evenings at my house a long time ago. But anything I know about quilting has been through trial and error (lots of error) and my own previous sewing experience.That first prize winner had an appliqued center and a pieced border that the judges decided just did not fit with the center although I thought it did. The center was a lovely floral heart wreath with a ton of other flowers and the border was a single wedding ring block in complementary colors.

My current project reverses that with a pieced interior and an applique border but those same judges might not find a good fit in my vision again. The center is a variation of New York Beauty and my envisioned border incorporates some of the NY state symbols such as American Beauty roses and Eastern bluebirds. What makes design sense to me might not make design sense to anyone else. Funny story, though.

When I started this project, I thought I would tell Bill Volckening. That's not quite as odd as it sounds since I have known Bill for a very long time from before he ever saw a New York Beauty quilt and only wanted a T-shirt quilt from his long swimming career. I found out that since last we talked he had gotten married, still lived in Oregon, was starting his swimming competition again, etc. When I told Bill I was making a NY Beauty, he said he wanted to see photos when I finish. 

I am definitely not finished or even close but my husband took a photo today of the progress. The bird that I put on the top border is supposed to be a male eastern bluebird. The female is far less flamboyant which may be why neither my husband nor I know if we have ever seen one. There is an American Beauty rose and a ladybug, the state insect. The female bird will be on the side border that is still incomplete in the photo below. The other borders will be different, not necessarily any official state symbols, but more flowers birds and bugs.

The background fabric is at least 27 years old because I bought it right before my 25th anniversary. Some of the fabrics are older than that and some of them are younger. This will end up at about 60 inches square, far smaller than the Democrat Rose. I have plans for some quilting that isn't simply cross hatched, perhaps some trapunto