Sunshine Coast Spinners and Weavers Guild.

Before I left the Textile Arts Program at Capilano University I won the Janet Collins memorial scholarship.....memorial being relative as she is still alive and looking quite lovely I might add. Janet and I have had intersecting lives for ages and strangely enough just after a trip to LA to tape a segment on needlefelting for Uncommon Threads we were both diagnosed with Breast Cancer within the same week. Janet is terminal, I am in remission. So winning her scholarship was an emotional experience for me......part of the commitment of that was that I had to give a talk on my progression as an artist and the impact of the program on my work and myself. I was excited to go and to see Janet again....I had to most hysterical drive to horseshoe bay with an overheating car.....but managed to arrive as a foot passenger on the Langdale side relatively unscathed and towing a ginourmous rolling suitcase courtesy of my son. I was met my Janet in her lovely little PT Cruiser and we toodled through the area stopping for a bowl of soup at a place called 'the gumboot' before heading to the meeting. The powerpoint went off without a hitch which in itself was a bit miraculous and the women seemed genuinely interested and I may have had a few converts for the program....lol. My mini trunk show was also well received and between that and an honorarium I left with considerably more than I usually make in a day so no guilt about taking the day off!. We then went back to her house where she gifted me with some precious little treasures from her stash including the perfect finish for a hat I am working on....we finished the day with a lovely dinner with Penny and her husband Jon before Janet returned me to the ferry terminal. There is always the joy of seeing an old friend and a bittersweet sadness of wondering if it will happen again. Life is short and I am reminded again of what is really important. I made the return trip in the crazy car who made it back to my driveway to finally gasp its last breath. In a panic yesterday I managed to procur a van just before it was listed in the local auction with the help of a friend in Merritt.....few stressful,hours running (literally) to the bank, to the auction, to the insurance and then to work.....but, all in all worth it as I am now the proud owner of a post telus dodge caravan with awesome ugly roof rack perfect to hold the tent and the gridwall.......I am positive again that everything happens for a reason. Today I am setting up my outside studio and just settling into my first day off in a month.....coffee first.