"Our time in Jackson Hole, Wyoming was lovely and relaxing, taking in the magnificence of the jagged Grand Teton Mountains, and the intimate viewing of free range bison. They are uniquely reliable wildlife to see there, where you can park you car and watch them cross the road right in front of you -- enormous, and completely ignoring our presence.
From there we made our first visit to Bozeman, to take in a quilt show I'd read about. What a gem Bozeman is! It's a fair sized city (75,000ish) with a university and hospital, nestled in an area of mountains and hills covered with dark, lush forests, and rolling open spaces.
Many of you already know that Blaine's grandfather homesteaded in Miles City, MT, where his mother grew up on the ranch. Both her parents died by the time she was 13, and she lived there with nine brothers and sisters. At age 19, she asked for money from her inheritance, and went to Bozeman to attend college, quite a feat for a woman in 1917! What an amazing adventure that must have been for her! When she returned to the ranch for the summer, after that first year, her remaining siblings told her she could have no more money for schooling, and that she was needed there to cook, clean and help work the ranch. As I passed by the university daily, I thought of her, and what a crushing disappointment that must have been, and how differently her life would have been, had she been able to finish college and become a teacher. Our life journey doesn't always take the path we intend, does it?
But, back to the present! On Thursday I drove out to the Quilting in the Country with five wall quilts I was putting in the show, to discover that the owner and author Jane Quinn lived there, as well as had her shop there. What a delightful place! It's an old farmstead, with a lovely home and many outbuildings, with shops in three of them, including the old bunkhouse and barn. The enormous barn is over 100 years old, and mountains in the distance surround the whole place.
On Friday I took four fun mini workshops -- about 80 of us did. I volunteered to help, and on Saturday left the RV park at 6:30 am to help hang quilts at this, the 15th annual show. We worked in efficient teams, and hung 500+ quilts, on every building and fence -- what a glorious sight! Blaine returned with me mid-morning, and was he ever blown away! We strolled the grounds, enjoyed a great lunch, and soaked in the nicest ambiance of any show either of us has attended. About 4000 people enjoyed the day, with perfect weather, and of course marvelous shopping.
Cars were parked by Jane's husband in his adjoining alfalfa field, which he purposely left not mowed. He wanted the green alfalfa to prevent a wildfire from being started from someone's hot catalytic converter, which we found quite interesting.
I can't believe we've been so close by in the past, and didn't know about this show, but we've already agreed that we must return next year, knowing we'll again have a great time! Here's a picture of Blaine, viewing quilts on the barn."