67 x 87 squares

Jeff and I are on an anniversary getaway to the coast. 

Thirty-five long and sometimes glorious years, thank you very much. 

I found a Living Social coupon for a fun motel in Garibaldi, down on the dock. It is an older motel but has been recently renovated and I really like it. The decor is tasteful. 

And Jeff thinks he needs one of these for his four fishing rods.

I wanted to know why he has four rods when he never goes fishing, let alone catches anything.

But he is tolerant of my many quirks, so I didn't press the matter.

Which is just as well, because later on we walked around the docks and the town and I ran across this treasure in an antique store.

Each square is one inch, and all 5,829 of them are hand-stitched together and then hand-quilted.

It was $75 and I wanted it.

Look, I said to my darling husband, can you imagine how many hundreds (maybe thousands) of hours went into this quilt and here it sits, all unwanted. Except for me.

And he understood.

We can use it out at the Ranch, he said. Let's get it.

So we did.

The store owner told me it was from the late 1800's and had been stored in a chest owned by a 90-year-old man who had just gone into a retirement home. She claimed most of it is flour sack cotton, but if that is true, it's from the 1930's or 40's. I am hoping that one of my quilting friends will know something about it. Either way, it kills me that some family member didn't love it and want to use it. 

But now it is mine.

And I love it and will use it until I die. 

And then one of my kids had better love it and use it or I will haunt them in nasty ways until they do.

The end.

Oh, and if you want a lovely peaceful and not too expensive place to get away from it all, try the Harborview Inn and RV Park in Garibaldi. They have lots of nice little extras such as cookies and hot chocolate in the lobby and a fire pit with s'mores and good company in the evening.

Really the end.