Checkerboard Progress and an old biker's birthday.

I have been making progress on my hand dyed checkerboard quilt dong it "15 minutes of play". I usually work for longer periods but for the last few days it has been in short bursts. I am amazed at how much I get done that way. I was going to stop at a 6 x 6 block setting but I decided to make as many blocks as I could to use up all the yellow and orange strips.

This picture shows the body to the top sewed together and the border fabric auditioning at the left. I stopped at 2 quilt shops yesterday (on the way home from jack's follow up visit after his Tuesday cataract surgery) and did not find what I was looking for to use for border. I had this Kaffe fabric and it looks pretty good so I cut it this afternoon. I have a lot of purple and blue strips and a bit less of the reddish strips and I considered piecing a piano key border but decided not to as I didn't have anymore yellow or light orange or peachy strips. One thing I am not going to do is obtain more!!! I like this now that it is together but not enough to want to work with these fabrics again.

Jack's cataract surgery went well and he is happy with the results. today is his birthday and he decided that it was only right that he should get out for a short ride on his motorcycle for his 81st birthday. He is slowing down a bit and doesn't take the long rides that he used to; when he used to leave in the morning and meet up with another old man and they would ride all day. He didn't start riding until he was 52 ( we almost got a divorce when he came home with his first bike). He used to  say he would ride till he was 65, then till  he was 70. When he was 69 he rode from NEO down to the Smokey Mts. to meet up with some on line friends and he rode the Dragon at Deals Gap.

I think this pic of Jack in the red jacket is from the 2nd year he went down to the Smokies. The label on the photo says Rain Ride. 
 The next year he went to Americade motorcycle event at Lake George and down to the Smokies again. This second photo is another year and the one in the red jacket with Jack is our son John.
 It has been 11 years since he has gone that far but he rides most days during decent weather and in the winter if the temp is above 30 and the streets are clear he might get out for a ride. Here is a link to Jack's hero. I hope Jack lasts till he is this old but I am sure his bike will not. BTW I never ride with him and never wanted to. He is a good safe rider and the only accident he ever had was when he got rear ended by a kid in a pickup truck at a stop sign.

I'm glad I didn't divorce him

when he showed up with that first bike.