Living with Another Artist

Bill and I have been together for a long time.  For a while it was on again and then off again, but over all we’ve been together for longer than either of us will admit.  We met when we were 19.  For the last 16 years we’ve owned a demolition and environmental company together.  Need something torn down?  We can do that.  Need asbestos abated, mold removed, or lead paint take care of?  We can do that too.

But secretly?  Both of us are frustrated artists.  I’m a quilter and would love to  work in that field full time.  But Bill…well, he’s a photographer.  If you get a chance drop by his Facebook page and take a look at his work.  He’s awesome.

The reason I bring this up, is that the man who has championed my quilts, sent me to Lancaster and Paducah and other parts for quilt shows, the man who never blinks when I come home with a new machine or bolts of fabric…the man who has celebrated every ribbon and disparaged judges that didn’t give me one?  Well, that man has made the cover of The Best of Africa Magazine with this picture:

 

I. Am. So. Very. Proud.

He’s a wonderful photographer and he takes beautiful pictures.  And I sincerely hope as we enter the next 30 years of our lives he can begin to take more photos and tear down fewer buildings.

Being married to a photographer is fun in a lot of ways.  We do  day trips on the weekends for him to take pictures and for me to poke around antique  and quilt shops.  This past weekend we rode over to Murray’s Mill near Catawba, NC.  There wasn’t a quilt shop open on Sunday, so it was my plan to look around and take some of my own pictures.  A wonderful side-advantage to these trips, besides antiques and more fabrics and great local meals, is that I get to see a lot of nature up close and personal.  I take pictures for myself not only to remember the time we have together, but to get color inspiration for my quilts.

Murray’s Mill was a wonderful place.  Quiet and picturesque.  I met one of the docents for the mill and general store.  I mentioned I was a quilter and Jennifer immediately whisked me into the back room to look at some of the quilts the museum had — as well as some of the feed sacks that had come from the mill in the 1920’s and 1930’s.  I got to see a cotton plant…and the scales where they would weigh the large cotton bales as well as the grain that came into be ground into meal and flour.

It was just a lovely place and a lovely afternoon…

 

These pictures really don’t do the place justice, as they were made with my iPhone.  If you want, you can jump over to Bill’s Facebook page and see some really good ones.

To me, one of the neatest parts of the trip was this:

Murray’s Mill is part of the Carolina Thread Trail.  And while yes, that looks like a Mariner’s Compass Block, it’s not.  I know the name “Carolina Thread Trail” would make you think that, but that’s not the reason.  Murray’s Mill is part of the trail that links North and South Carolina via hundreds of miles of walking, running, hiking, and biking trails.  There are also rivers and creeks you can paddle down.

The photo of the lion at the top of this blog was taken at the Asheboro Zoo.  That was another adventure, as we went that day to try to get a picture of the elephants.  The elephants were having nothing of that, refusing to cooperate.  So we trekked to the lion exhibit just in time to see the lions get fed.  It was a perfect set up.

This was my favorite picture of that day.

Since the pictures and the trips have turned into a kind of a side adventure/venture/hobby/obsession for both of us, I’d like to invite you to a new blog called Carolina Backroads.  It will be up shortly.  It’s a monthly blog that Bill and I are doing that features his pictures and my writing.  It will involve places, but more than that, it will introduce you to some characters we’ve met along these adventures.  Some of these folks will make you laugh until you pee yourself.

But I’ve left with tears in my eyes and my heart ripped open with others.  These are stories that need to be told.  These are people you need to know.  They will make your life richer.

I will always have my weekly blog about quilts.  Quilts are my passion.  Quilters are my best friends.  Nothing has changed about that.

Carolina Backroads is a delightful side trip we’ve found together on this journey.

Love and Stitches,

Sherri and Sam