This that and the other
Sunday, September 19, 2010 at 5:39AM I have finally made fruitcake that I absolutely adore. I’ve experimented with several recipes and variations of them in the past, and at last I’ve settled on a perfect cake for me! My recipe was inspired by one from King Authur flour, tweaked and modified to suit my tastes better. I’ve posted it in the recipe section, enjoy!
;)
I did finish my scrappy star quilt and was going to load it on the longarm this weekend, but I have a customer quilt coming today that I need to do first.
I haven’t had time to look at it and decide how it should be quilted yet… and I still need to finish the Pirate Monkey Quilt too… yep I missed the fair. I think it was this weekend.
Jim and I (and the dogs) spent yesterday in Little Rock car shopping. It’s funny, we went down already knowing exactly what we wanted and exactly what we were willing to pay for it… and it still took all day! Well, let me rephrase that. I knew exactly what I wanted… right down to the exterior color, the interior color, the automatic transmission, the electronic hard top (convertible). Jim needed convincing on the automatic transmission and the hard top versus the soft top… which is what took so long. We had to drive cars with and without each so he could compare. Fortunately, that’s all it took to make him see the light of day. /grin
My days with a stick shift are over. For years, a Jeep Wrangler was my vehicle of choice, and even with a 6 cylinder manual, they were still a bit on the gutless side when it came to steep hills or passing power. And I’m a cautious, slow driver for the most part, as I have limited depth perception… I’m legally blind in one eye. The Mazda Miata, which is the car I chose after researching vehicles to find the right fit for my needs, is only a 4 cylinder (fuel economy), and has tons of power, even in the automatic version! But it’s not just an automatic, it’s a paddle shifter, meaning you can also put it in manual mode, and do the shifting yourself. The “paddles” are thumb controlled and mounted on the steering wheel. What a great alternative when a little more control is needed, and your hands still remain on the steering wheel. Well… it made Jim happy anyway. /wink
As for the soft top, I had one Jeep with a soft top, and one with a hard top, and while I loved the soft top for ease of removal, road noise was awful on the highway, and I was always worried about theft when I was out shopping… and they’re hard to heat and cool. The Miata’s hard top is electronic, and takes all of twelve seconds to open or close.
The car is tiny! I should be able to go shopping in downtown Little Rock now with no problem, something I’ve had to avoid unless I went with someone else, because there’s no way you can park a truck with a crewcab, extended bed, and duallys downtown.
Because the car is so low to the ground, I can’t judge the distance before I would run into or back into something simply by looking, because of my lack of depth perception. I can however, learn the distances. Jim will take me to a parking lot and set up two pilons, and by bumping into them, I can cement to memory what the distance should be, even if I can’t actually see it. I’ve learned to do this with many things over the years. Walking is a different story! I have always run into things, and probably always will! Our truck has a camera on the rear bumper which is a wonderful thing for me, and it sits so high I can actually see over the bumper, but the Miata didn’t have that option.
The dealer had to hunt down a car with the colors and options that I wanted, so I wasn’t able to drive it home yesterday. It should arrive sometime next week. I could have ordered it new, but having done my research, I knew that if there was one specced out the way I wanted on a lot somewhere, I could pretty much count on knocking about $5k off the price since it’s the end of the 2010 model year.
Now to convince Jim a convertible is just as much fun as a motorcycle, and sell all the bikes!
Reader Comments (17)
have fun with your new toy.
Karen
http://karensquilting.com/blog/
Oh man, your car shopping was a lot like mine! I ended up with an Acura TSX and it was so nice to have the paddle gears when I drove to Salt Lake City last year. But it has taken me FOREVER to figure out how to park in my own garage! Being lower to the ground has made the depth preception thing a bear. No soft top for us, though we looked at a Toyota Solara. Pretty car but the inside features were not really up to par. I really got used to the car seat memory we had on a previous car and the Solara didn't have that.
Pretty quilting too.
Enjoy your car.
I love - love - LOVE the quilt. It's on my to do list!!!
DH wants me to make the fruit cake... he is a fruit cake lover... citron or not. He thought the dried fruit in brandy sounded very good.
I'm glad you found a car you will like. Car shopping is ALWAYS an all day thing for us.
You little hotrod, you !!
Have fun!!! I would love a car like that if I didn't live here.
Whoa! Aren't you the hot chick speeding down the highway! Did you get a red one? I had a red Triumph Wedge in the late '70s. The way the hood slanted I couldn't see the end of it. It took a while till I was comfortable. So is the 830 going to fit? Who cares, right? Just buckle her in.
I love the quilt. The black in the border is just right. Diane in CT
Will the 830 fit into the Miata? (smiley face)
zoom zoom
LOL no, the 830 will not fit. But the 630 will!
Sounds like the car of my dreams. Can't wait to see what color. I have been tempted to get a convertible Mustang but not yet. What fun!!!!
Although I DETEST car shopping with my husband, I do love the results- a new car!! I got my new Nissan Rogue last year and loveeee it! I have paddle shifters, too! Such fun! Make sure you post us a photo when your new baby arrives!! grinning
Sounds great! My daughter always wanted one, but she's the one with two boys and another (a boy!) on the way. Dan loves them too, and his favorite color is British Racing Green. Looking forward to seeing yours. :-)
CJ,
You will be surprised how good that fresh air will feel as it blows thru your hair, A convertible has some kind of magic. It can lift the spirit pretty high as we ride down beautiful country roads, top down and some lovely music playing softly. Vow it brings back memories of my 50th birthday present from my husband, The burnished red 500 SL was magic for my soul and brought an occasional "nice" whistle, also much appreciated considering my age.
Go for it and enjoy your sports car! When I am ninety, I am going to get my next one.
Well, I thought about suggesting an automatic tranny, but forgot. I found when I drove our old stick shift truck that my feet would cramp. Feet do not do that with the automatic Honda, had it almost 2 years now. With your feet you need all the relief you can get.
I am anxiously awaiting a picture of you in your new car!!
CJ, you are still young enough to bike all over. Just came back from 5700 miles to Nova Scotia and have been thinking we are getting to old to make a big trip like that-a convertible sounds great-no helmet hair!!!