2023: Vietnamese Year of the Cat!

I'm super excited to see this latest stitchery project coming together!

May is right around the corner, and this is the project I'll be presenting to my Vietnam travelers in early May! 

"But Bonnie - a cat? Why a cat? Isn't it the year of the rabbit?"

As China, Japan and other East Asian countries celebrate the start of the Lunar Year of the Rabbit, the people of Vietnam will be an exception - welcoming instead the Year of the Cat.

There is no official explanation for when and why the Vietnamese embraced the cat instead of the rabbit. They also replaced the Ox with the Buffalo on the 12 year lunar calendar.

Whatever the reason, Year of the Cat works for me - cue up the Al Stevens version:

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Visiting Goldfield, AZ!

Back in the 1890′s Goldfield boasted 3 saloons, a boarding house, general store, blacksmith shop, brewery, meat market and a schoolhouse. And a brothel.

Today, it's open for tourists who come from all over to experience just a tiny slice of Arizona's wild, wild west along the Apache Trail.

It may be kitschy but I am an enthusiastic tourist when it comes to things like this. I love to walk through, poke around, see what's what.

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Decompressing My Way Home -

It seems I hit the motherlode of spool cabinets yesterday on my journey from Greensboro, NC to Mouth of Wilson VA.

Not that I need one.  Not that I can afford one!  But I love seeing them - 

I imagine these beauties sitting proudly near the checkout counter in the local general store, and the customer - what was she wearing? Asking for a spool of black, a spool of white - and perhaps a vibrant pink for the dress she is making for Easter, or cousin Ruth's wedding.

What a history these simple pieces of thread organization have seen!

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Where in the World is Tortilla Flat?

This post is full of travel photos - shots taken through windows in a moving car, a bit blurry, a bit too zoomed in - but what a day with so much scenery!

First things first - I arrived into Greensboro, NC last evening around 10:15pm and stayed overnight in a hotel in Greensboro so I could drive home today in the daylight. So this girl is ALMOST home!

When Dad suggested we "take a drive" on Monday, I was intrigued enough by the name "Tortilla Flat" to say "Let's go!"

What ensued was a wonderful journey through backroads winding around the Superstitions mountains.

Family has lived in Arizona since I was 15.  Why had we never done this before?

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Four Family Birthdays!

Three generations and four birthdays!

January has always been the time I come to Arizona - since the time my boys were little.

It was a way to celebrate our January/February birthdays while my Grannie was still alive, and of course it gave us a well needed break from the winter doldrums when we lived in Idaho.

Starting at the left - My dad is turning 83 in less than 2 weeks.  My niece Emilee has her birthday tomorrow.  Then there is me, with my birthday last week.

Next up is my new brother-in-law Todd who has his birthday in just a few days.

Not seen - Melissa who was at the other end of the table, celebrating her birthday on January 1st.

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Baby, it's Cold in AZ!

It's 8am.  And it's 34 degrees!  

Not exactly the pre-spring-break that I was hoping for, but at least unlike the white stuff that is currently falling at home in Virginia, there is nothing here we need to shovel.

Because it has been on the chilly side, we've basically stayed in and relaxed - until yesterday afternoon when we broke away to catch a matinee showing of "A Man Called Otto" featuring Tom Hanks.

Hooray for outings!

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