Just….

I was in therapy a couple of weeks ago, and my therapist asked me what gym I go to. I said, “Just Planet Fitness.” She asked me why I used the word “just.” She said not to minimize your workout by saying, “Just.”

It made me think of how often in life I do that. People ask what I do for a living… I typically answered, I just have a little quilting business. 😳 I’ve worked hard for 20 years in my business, and it is anything but “a little quilting business.” I am trying to eliminate this word, or at least how I used it when she asked me where I work out.

Do you find yourself doing this? Minimizing what you do or what you want? I sure do, and it needs to stop.

Getting old sucks

So today, I turned 55 and spent the day at Paoli Hospital getting x-rays of my hands, feet, and knees. Fun time! I have had pain in those areas for the past year. I got blood work done last year, and my ANAs were high, which I guess is a sign of inflammation in the body. I got more bloodwork done over a week ago and am still awaiting the results. The X-rays don’t show anything abnormal. The results say normal mineralization, whatever that is.

Photo by Gerd Altmann on Pexels.com

The worst is every morning waking up with pain in my hands, and they feel swollen. This really puts a damper on my quilting. I haven’t done any handwork in quite some time, and no bindings are being done either. My doctor put me on Celebrex, which hasn’t helped. I do find that staying active helps the feet and knees, but hands are always sore. The frustrating thing about going to the doctor is it’s rarely just one and done… you have to go see more doctors and get more tests, all hoping for an answer and a solution to the pain.

I thought when I gave up drinking that it would help with this inflammation. Not to mention, maybe lose some weight. Neither is happening. Crossing my fingers and hope that I have some answers soon.

It’s Double Nickel Day!!

I have now been 126 days alcohol-free. I continue to feel great about this decision in my life and wanted to share with you what I think is the number one benefit. There are many benefits but I think clarity is the one that I love the most.

Eliminating alcohol has given me clarity in work, friendships, and family.

I have thought about lowering the price of my membership, QG Creative Design Society for some time. I knew that I wanted to make it more affordable for everyone and that it wasn’t at the current price. The task of changing it was overwhelming and had me put it on the back burner. I realized that anything worth doing is not easy, so I just put my head down and did it. Feels great!

I am a recovering people pleaser, so boundaries are something that I wasn’t always familiar with. I now have them, and it has made me realize that not everyone loves this new version of me, and I’m ok with that. I love this version of myself! Wish it didn’t take me 55 years to get here.

Happy Birthday to me. Double Nickels feels excellent!

A friend of mine made my day with this:

“Well, for what it’s worth, I think what you’re doing is amazing and inspiring. This is a very, very positive version of Lisa. You’re working on yourself AND putting yourself first. Which you deserve. Anyone who doesn’t want to be better around you as a result… doesn’t get it.”

If you are inspired by my journey… let me know!

Emails hurt

I have worked hard not letting the off comment hurt my feelings. Maybe I am overly sensitive this week since I’ve been working hard to get the QG Creative Design Society members over to the new $9.97/month price. In doing this, I have given myself a huge pay cut to make it affordable to more quilters, so when someone tells me that they are disappointed in how this was handled… it freaking hurts my feelings and frankly makes me a bit angry.

Photo by Mateus Souza on Pexels.com

I made this change the only way I felt I could financially accomplish it. So, to those who may feel disappointed, I’m sorry you feel that way but not sorry for doing it the only way I saw fit. My other option would be to have not done it at all, and for me, that was not an option.

I have tried to focus on all the wonderful comments and emails I have received instead of the negative ones, so I hope to get it off my chest and resume being happy that the membership is now more affordable.

This goes back to one of my other posts about thinking about what we say online and in emails. Remember that the person on the other side of the computer is an actual person with feelings.

I’m wondering if I am being sensitive. Have you ever received an email that hurt your feelings? Tell me about it so I know I’m not alone.

Very Nervous!

I have just completed phase 1 of the $9.97 membership, QG Creative Design Society. The sales page is up, and you can sign up for it now. If you are a current member and pay more than the $9.97/month, your membership has been canceled, but wait til you receive an email from me as you have a credit! So please be patient.

As I was canceling 200+ memberships, I got a pit inside my stomach that maybe this was crazy and I wouldn’t be able to pay my bills. 😳 I know that making the membership more affordable makes me happy, so I just have to trust that I will get enough new members to make up the monetary difference. So please share with all of your quilting friends!!

If you have any questions… don’t hesitate to reach out!

Lisa

lisahcalle@me.com

Stupidest Decision?

Well, this can be either the best decision in my business or the worst decision. You may be wondering what I have decided.

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I have had the Quilter’s Groove TRIBE membership since June of 2021, and I absolutely love it and the members. Currently, the price is $24.97/month. There is a low-price offer for the Design Decision Dilemma at $9/ month.

For the past 3 months, I have been thinking of making a huge change and have made my final decision. I will combine the two memberships AND reduce the whole thing to $9.97/month. This is both scary and exciting because to do this, I must cancel everyone’s membership (and give refunds where applicable) and trust that they will sign back up. So, I am giving up revenue, in hopes that it will come back.

You may be wondering why I am doing this….

1. I realize that many quilters are retired and on fixed incomes, and it breaks my heart when I hear that they have to cancel because of the recession.
2. I would like to make the membership affordable for all!
3. Combining the two will mean slightly less work for me.

As I said, this is both scary and exciting and could be the worst decision I have made in my 20 years in this business. So, if you are currently in the membership, you will receive an email explaining all this and the link to sign back up at the discounted rate, but rest assured, if you have paid for the year, you will receive a prorated refund.

Feel free to tell me I am absolutely crazy in the comments. In my heart, I know this is the right decision to make, it feels good. (right now).😂

Lonely~

The Merriam-Webster dictionary says the meaning of this word is

a: being without company: LONE

too many lonely nights at home

b:  cut off from others: SOLITARY

the train stopped frequently at lonely little stations—Robert Hichens

2: not frequented by human beings: DESOLATE

a lonely spot in the woods

3: sad from being alone: LONESOME

He was feeling lonely without his wife and children.

4: producing a feeling of bleakness or desolation

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Over the past couple of days, since my realization that going alcohol-free can be lonely, I have thought a lot about this word. I never thought that giving up alcohol would make me feel lonely, but it has. It could be that in the past, to avoid feeling lonely, I would drink. That is a genuine possibility. Alcohol tends to numb your feelings, and while I know that I have used it to numb feelings of frustration, anger, hurt, and disappointment (and I’m sure many more). Lonely was never something that I thought I used alcohol for, but alas, this weekend, I realized that I probably did.

I have never dealt with emotions (or at least what I consider to be the harder emotions) very well. Anger, hurt, disappointment, sadness, etc. This weekend, I had an overwhelming sense of loneliness. The good thing is that I just sat in my emotions and felt all of them. Now, I’m certainly not saying that I enjoyed it; quite the contrary, I hated every moment. It certainly makes it worse knowing that the life changes that I am going through (not talking about menopause, although that’s there, too 😂) are self-imposed. I don’t have to be alcohol-free, but it is something I am choosing, so in essence, I am putting myself in this position of being lonely.

I am only 114 days in, and I hope it gets easier or better because, honestly, I did not like the overwhelming sense of loneliness that I felt.

Shout out To QG Creative Design Society Members (Formerly TRIBE)

There isn’t much I love better than teaching, other than a well-struck iron shot into an elevated green. The Creative Design Society is my ongoing membership, and it focuses on all things machine quilting. Someone asked me what is the thing I love about it the most. That is an easy question to answer. It is all of the members. While the primary focus is on quilting, we have supported members through some trying times. I, for one, leaned on all of the members when my mother passed away. The support was incredible. Other members have had falls, cancer, and wonderful unknown health issues. We discuss all of these on our Zoom calls and, of course, quilty things.

So, I will be highlighting members here from time to time! So let’s get started. First and foremost, congratulations to Janis Devitto! We had a front-row seat to Janis’s “birth” of her wholecloth which is stunning! Janis won Best Wall Quilt at Quiltfest in Greenville!

Congratulations to Cathryn Scott for her 3 Ribbons at her guild show. Looking at them, you can easily see why they won!

We had a sew-along last year. We all were working on Hunter Star quilts. Some of us added to our UFOs while Jodena Beard was finishing hers! Great job and your feathers are fabulous!!

Congratulations to Carolyn Ray for finishing another UFO! You, my dear, are on a roll!

I will say that Debra Lynne Vaughn killed her sampler. It is no secret that these are not my favorite tops to quilt. They take a bit of figuring out, and Debra did an amazing job!

We have so many talented quilters in the Society! If you are interested in joining, here is the link. I am in the process of getting the new sales page up and using the new name.

Stick with me for more life, golf, fitness and, of course, quilting.

The Electronic Curtain is Real

Hi all,

First, I would like to thank you for the overwhelming support on my alcohol-free journey. Between personal emails, Facebook messages, and responses to blogs, I feel your support. 🥰

In this day and age of Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc, and texting… I find it interesting how many dare to say things (type things) that they probably would never say to your face. This can be quite disheartening when you put yourself, your craft, and your heart into the things you do.

I believe that if you do not have something nice to say, just don’t say anything. It is also important to remember that when typing/texting, there is no chance of hearing the inflection in the voice, which is a huge indicator of how the text or response should be taken. Something that you meant as cheeky could come across as rude or dismissive. While I know not everyone is a fan of emojis, these help understand the message in the light the sender meant.

So what I am asking, not just in response to my posts but in response to everyone’s, is to think before you are so bold as to type out something that you wouldn’t say to someone directly in front of hundreds of people. When you can, please use an emoji or two so something that you meant as funny or witty is taken that way.

The quilters you see on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram (and wherever else) are real people with real feelings that can be hurt by insensitive comments. I believe that in the era of computers, some people have become very brave since they can just type away and do not see the repercussions of their typing. “Think before Typing.”

I will come off my soapbox now. Everyone, have a fabulous weekend!

TRIBE no more!

That’s right… we, meaning me, are changing the name of the monthly membership. So I am enlisting your creative minds to help me! Quilter’s Groove TRIBE will live on with a new name. So far, a few suggestions… Quilter’s Groove Society, Quilter’s Groove Insiders, Quilter’s Groove Clique, Quilter’s Groove Guild, or Quilter’s Groove Posse.

What do you guys think?

On the back end, I will combine the Design Decision Dilemma and QG TRIBE. I don’t even think many people know about the Design Decision Dilemma membership, so by combining them, when I talk about one.. I’ll talk about the other. So, Design Decision Dilemma will still have one video a week, while TRIBE (or the new name) will have Design Decision Dilemma but will also have the monthly content and the Zoom meetings.

The monthly content will be changing a little as well. I would like it so that the content can be consumed in 45 minutes to an hour and geared towards designs for free motion and ruler work.

Please leave suggestions for a new name in the comments! Thanks