Stewed prunes

.......are just one of the things I love about cruising. Ever available at the buffet or as a side dish in the dining room, they are indeed a tasty breakfast treat. And now I'm all pruned-out until the next cruise rolls around. I'm not sure when that will be exactly, but that's OK . I think I've pretty well gotten them out of my system....heh....heh.....

My embroidery addiction won out, so instead of knitting progress or travel photos, today I present the jacket project...as it moved down the coast of California and Mexico and along Central America and into the Panama Canal and back again.

By the time we'd reached Cabo San Lucas at the tip of Baja, I had one flower done. The original design as sketched by BCG was a little too much for the actual stitching process, so I altered it somewhat. And I think I mentioned a special white pencil I got for drawing it onto the jeans fabric? Well, forget that! I ended up using my trusty BIC cheap-o ballpoint and just drew the flowers freehand right on the denim.

By the time we got to Acapulco, I was well underway on the dragonfly. Mr. G. was positive those were beads on the wings, but I assured him they were French knots. The stitches I use the most, in addition to the French knots, are chain, satin, backstitch and outline. As a kid (and sometimes even as an adult....hee...hee) I loved to color. Now I do it with thread instead of crayons. Once the dragonfly was finished (along about Costa Rica), I did start an outline stitch around the wings. I've used 3 strands of embroidery floss on everything except the wing outline; I'm using only one strand for that. During one day at sea, as Mr. G and I were sitting on the back deck looking out at the ship's wake and I was stitching, a couple of dragonflies appeared nearby and flew around for several minutes. I thought it was strange. Seabirds?

I started making progress on the other front as we headed toward Nicaragua, and really got rolling when we had to miss that port and spend another day at sea. Seems a cargo ship had taken our spot at the dock. I really like doing leaves and vines. Once the flowers are in place, I just fill in the empty spaces with lots of greenery.

I don't use an embroidery hoop when I work on denim. Mr. G. wonders how I manage to avoid sticking myself with the needle when I work, but my hands seem to somehow communicate with each other. I guess you could say they play well together.....

Here's a picture Mr. G took of me just before we disembarked. I respectfully requested that he not photograph my chubby cheeks. There were many desserts.....not just the prunes. Even though the cruise fun is over, there is still much stitching to do on the jacket. It might need a few garden delights on the back too. I may need another cruise to finish the job.

I have a funny cruise story to relate. A comedian told it on an earlier trip. First, I have to tell you that whenever the room steward goes into a stateroom to tidy up.....usually twice a day......he always folds the end of the toilet paper into a "V" shape. I'm not sure why this is done, but sometime long ago a room steward must have tried this and it quickly became a tradition. Anyway.....a young lady who was an entertainer onboard a ship decided she'd have some fun with the steward. Every time she'd use the paper, she'd refold it into the "V". She was sure the steward would really be scratching his head over this. But it seems he got the last laugh, when one day she went into her bathroom and noticed a prune sitting on top of the toilet paper.