My dilemma: Do I leave Saturday to go to the Jinny Beyer Quilt Seminar or do I stay home and watch the Green Bay Packers win the Super bowl?

I'm sure you're wondering what I'm talking about since you probably don't think the Green Bay Packers are playing in the Super Bowl.
My time machine is going back to 1997.

I had become quite proficient in using my knitting machine and decided to knit the sweater you see my granddaughter wearing here.

She watched me work on it and was thrilled to have an original Packer sweater knit by her grandma. She was also quite a story teller.
She told me she needed a matching skirt. I told her I didn't have any fabric to match.
"No," she said, "you have to knit it".
After struggling with this uncooperative yarn and never wanting to use it again and certainly not wanting to buy more of it, I told her I didn't know how to knit a skirt. She told me it was easy and her Mom had done it - no, it was her Dad that did it. Neither of them had ever knit to the best of my knowledge.

Well, she finally got me to agree to knit a skirt. My criteria was I would start at the bottom and knit until the yarn ran out at the top so I would NEVER have to use this yarn again! I finished it and she was delighted. I think I must have taken a whole roll of film of her modeling it!

I was scheduled to leave for Jinny Beyer's Quilting Seminar the day before the Super Bowl as I usually did.

When I told her that she said "Oh, you can't. Change your ticket. You have to be here for the Super Bowl." I explained to her that it wouldn't be possible to change the ticket.

She then told me they were having a party for the Super Bowl at their house and I HAD to be there. I again explained I wouldn't be able to make it. She then told me "Someone who used to play for the Green Bay Packers would be at the party."

I asked her who and she said her dad's friend Bobby. I knew he had never played for the Packers knowing he was a runner and not built like a football player. I played along with her and said "Oh, I didn't know that. Next time I see him I'm going to have to congratulate him"

Knowing she was caught her quick reply was "Oh, he only played once. He didn't like it".

This was one of her stories I don't think I'll ever forget. She told "stories" for quite a few years!

I did leave on Saturday for the Jinny Beyer Quilting Seminar and watched the Packers win the Super Bowl on Hilton Head Island. The game was on so late I'm sure she did't even stay up to watch it.

If you don't live in Wisconsin you may not understand the the devotion those of us in Wisconsin have to our Packers.


This is the scoreboard at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.
In 2004 her younger brother was able to become a Green Bay Packer team captain. He was able to be on the field in the end zone during warm ups and then on the Packers sideline for the team introduction and National Anthem. I'm sure that is something he will never forget.

This story comes to mind because this is the 29th and last year of Jinny Beyer's Quilting Seminar on Hilton Head. I feel so bad that I will have to miss the last one.
The dates just don't work out with the opening of my show.

I will be blogging about my memories with photos of some of the more than 20 previous seminars I attended.

If you attended any of the Jinny Beyer seminars please email me or post a comment. I've lost all my addresses and email addresses to contact most of the people I knew and I'd love to get back in touch with you. I already have some photos from one other participant that I will be sharing while the Seminar is in session.


The puzzle tonight shows my quilt Fantasia in my last solo show in the gallery that used to be Mrs. Anderson's bedroom. It overlooks Lake Michigan and is just stone's throw from the lake.