Here I Sit in Albuquerque

You have not heard from me for several days.  Just didn’t feel like writing.  The Phoenix show turned out to be a disappointment.  Enough said about that.  The last night we drove to Flagstaff and the next morning (Sunday) to Albuquerque.  We picked up our products from Sonja as she has decided not to do any more shows for us.

Virginia fixed us a great home cooked meal of pot roast, potatoes, and salad; it does not get any better than that.  We get so tired of eating in restaurants when we are traveling. Today we will spend the day exploring Santa Fe, with Mike and Virginia.  I will be posting pictures so watch my personal Facebook page.  Later this evening I will share them on Quilter’s Rule’s page.

We have one more show to do this week and then it is off to home.  I have determined I do not do well with four shows in a row.  I don’t think I will let that happen again.  So today is a play day for us.  The first since we started this trip on the 9^th of January.  So far we have put almost 2000 miles on the truck.  Loaded in and out three times.  I am absolutely convinced we need a day off.

Phoenix

Yesterday was set up day in Phoenix for the Rusty Barn show at the Arizona State Fair grounds.  Before we started we had to get some banking done.  Fortunately our local bank has branches in Arizona to serve all the Wisconsin snow birds.  At the start of set up motivation was difficult to come by.  On the other hand we completed in six and half hours.  Best time on this trip.  Maybe we are getting back in the groove after being off for almost two months.

Last night we had dinner at our favorite Mexican Dive in Phoenix.  We found it by accident a few years ago. We were tired, and it is just around the corner from our hotel. Up until this year we have had to deal with a menu that was in Spanish.  High school Spanish was many decades ago.  But this year there were English subtitles.  If you are in Phoenix it is called Sinola’s and is on McDowell near 27^th Avenue.

The show opens today at 1 AM and closes at 5PM.  The weather here is absolutely wonderful.  Temperatures expected to be in the mid 70’s.  I don’t even tell my wife how nice the weather is during this set of shows.  No excuses for folks not to come to the show. 

Traveling in the Desert

All in all Road to California was a very good show.  Just not as wonderful as last year.  It would be helpful if the economy is California would improve.  But it is what it is and there is very little we can do to change it.  The show ended.  It took four hours to inventory, pack and load the trailer.  Unfortunately there is no easy way to do it.  We are not a single product booth and we travel to more than one show and we don’t think it is right to take it home for someone else to count.

We are traveling again.  Monday morning Patricia got to sleep in.  We started out about 10 AM and drove out on Interstate 10.  We ate lunch at Desert Center a tiny spot on the road with 125 people.  Most of the remaining buildings are empty.  It has not changed in 40 years except to get smaller.  Then it was off to Blyth, CA.  It is a small agricultural community on the Colorado River. 

We did our laundry, caught up on email and sent some instructions to the office.  Late in the day we got a quick rain storm.  Check out the photograph on my Facebook page or Quilter’s Rule’s Facebook page.  I have no idea why it loaded the way it did but is turned out better than the original which was pretty cool.  Today we will travel a short distance to Quartzite, AZ to a huge flea market in the desert, than late in the day we will end up in Phoenix.  Tomorrow we set up at the Rusty Barn Show in Phoenix.

All in all Road to California was a very good show.  Just not as wonderful as last year.  It would be helpful if the economy is California would improve.  But it is what it is and there is very little we can do to change it.  The show ended.  It took four hours to inventory, pack and load the trailer.  Unfortunately there is no easy way to do it.  We are not a single product booth and we travel to more than one show and we don’t think it is right to take it home for someone else to count.

We are traveling again.  Monday morning Patricia got to sleep in.  We started out about 10 AM and drove out on Interstate 10.  We ate lunch at Desert Center a tiny spot on the road with 125 people.  Most of the remaining buildings are empty.  It has not changed in 40 years except to get smaller.  Then it was off to Blyth, CA.  It is a small agricultural community on the Colorado River. 

We did our laundry, caught up on email and sent some instructions to the office.  Late in the day we got a quick rain storm.  Check out the photograph on my Facebook page or Quilter’s Rule’s Facebook page.  I have no idea why it loaded the way it did but is turned out better than the original which was pretty cool.  Today we will travel a short distance to Quartzite, AZ to a huge flea market in the desert, than late in the day we will end up in Phoenix.  Tomorrow we set up at the Rusty Barn Show in Phoenix.

Day Three at Road

The show is starting an hour early today.  Yesterday when rain was forecast for this morning, a note was sent to all the vendors and an announcement was made the doors would open early to keep the customers out of the rain.  No, it will not end early.  I hope they come, but………..Just looked out and it is raining.

All things being equal this is normally the best show we do each year.  For us it is a little off of the best year we have had at Road.  We can hope that it will be better later in the show, but it is what it is and there is little we can do about what is.  People are spending a lot more cash than we are used to getting.  Maybe that is the result of the economy.  Folks are saving for the show and not just putting it on their credit cards.  In any case it is different and lower than previous years.

The crowds of people have been good.  There are plenty of quilters at the show.   Caroline always gets a crowd.  But like all shows toward the end of the day the people go away and the hall empties before the show ends.  Many are just tired, some have to go take care of their family, and many just want to beat rush hour traffic.

Set Up at Road to California

Yesterday was one of those incredibly long days.  Up at 6 AM breakfast and off to the Ontario Convention Center for an unload time of 7:30.  Finished dumping the booth supplies on the floor about 9:00.  By that time we had discovered that two of our bookcases were broken and unusable.  I knew the road was rough but I did not think it was that bad.  On the other hand many of our plastic totes suffered damage also.

By 3 PM we had the booth set except for the books.  So back to the hotel to clean up, catch up on email, and the office, clean up.  Then we went shopping for a book case. After three stops we found a substitute, but we will have to assemble it.  Then we realized we had not eaten except for a half sandwich since Breakfast.  Okay, find a place to eat.  We finally settled on a Mexican place.  Not that is hard here.  Back to the hotel to get ready for the teacher meeting at 7:30. 

Caroline had a very nice meeting with the teachers.  Yes, there was lots of chocolate which improves any meeting. Back to the hotel at 9 PM, and the bookcase still needs to be assembled.  Guess what it can wait!    

Okay it is 5:40 AM and we can get into the Convention Center at 7:30.  I think all of you know what I am going to do this morning.  First thing!  Let’s all hope for a great day at Road to California. 

The Mundane

What do you do when you are in the Outpost Laundry in Apple Valley, CA waiting for clean clothes?  Of course you catch up on your blog that you haven’t written for three days.

We have had two very uneventful days on the road.  First from Oklahoma City, OK to Albuquerque, NM, and the next day from Albuquerque to Barstow, CA, just mile after mile of road.  What can I say about the trip?   It was long.  It was boring.  I was tired and slept every time Patricia was in the driver’s seat.  I did finish the book Killing Lincoln by Bill O’Reilly.   Recommended reading for everyone. 

While we were washing everything else we got the car and trailer washed.  For dry roads everything got so dirty.  This afternoon we check into the hotel and tomorrow we have a dock time at road of 7:30 AM.

I have to tell you that when you are traveling to shows we do a lot of very boring things.

Wrapping up at Oklahoma City

I was correct that yesterday would be a long day.  After a brisk day at the show we started to break down at 5:00 PM.  We needed to do a complete inventory so we can invoice in the next couple of days.  So we worked and worked and finally put the last box in the trailer about 9:30 PM. 

We looked around and there were only 5 booths still working.  One was Sew Batik.  We walked down and started to help Bruce who was working alone and had three booths to take down.  Actually he was pretty well packed up but still had to load it into his trailer.  So Patricia and I started hauling tubs while Bruce packed them in the trailer.  To make a long story very short we finished at  about 10:30 and went to have dinner.  Crawled in bed around midnight, and tried to get some sleep.  I know better than to eat that late.  Here I am writing this at 5 in the morning.

For several of the vendors crime struck.  One trailer was stolen and the locks on a couple more were jimmied.  Fortunately we escaped without any problems.  Last year our car was broken into.  Of course I have not looked at it yet this morning.  One can only hope.

It is a shame that people feel they can steal and it is okay.  All any of us are doing is trying to make a living.  I know that times are tough, but really.  One would think that you would see more police.  But the only time I saw them is directing traffic for a game in the arena across the street.

Long drive today.  Off to Albuquerque,  NM, we will spend the night with Mike and Virginia Walton.

Last Day for Oklahoma City

Yesterday was a second day of decent crowds at the show.  We were very busy in the morning and then things slowed a bit in the afternoon.  This is an interesting show because the first day is never the best day for sales.  Yesterday was much better than Thursday and we expect today to be about the same.  It’s like working a show in reverse.

Today will be a very long day.  Show starts at 10:00 AM but we need about an hour to restock and pull an order for Terry from Threads and More.  She carries lots of rulers and notions.  We carry extra stock just to restock our customers.  But I deviate from the discussion, the show will end at 5 PM and we have to inventory our product and reload into the trailer.  That is about a three to four hour job.  Over 90% of the vendors will be gone by the time we finish.  With a little luck we will be done by 8:00 PM, but more likely it will almost be 9:00 PM.  Then we will have to decide if we want to eat or just go to the room and get ready to drive tomorrow.

Patricia has a new program loaded on her computer.  It allows us to access the computers in the office and work like we were there.  Last night she prepared an invoice for Threads and More.  Normally the invoice would have to wait until we got back to the office.  Same thing applies for the show invoice.   We are going to attempt to invoice each show as we go so we are caught up when we get home. 

Oklahoma City Quilt Show

It has been a pleasant day at the quilt show.  Nice crowds and very friendly.  But it has been a chore to get back in the routine of dealing with a show. Or maybe I should just take a remedial course in how to run the cash register.  Patricia is going to shot me when she sees the mistakes I made. It’s a good thing I am her father.

All shows die in the afternoon.  Just after I posted a picture of the crowd at 3PM on Facebook, the crowd decided to go home.  All in all a nice day. 

Went to dinner at Traders with the folks from Nolting. Heard the story about the tow truck in Nolting’s wall last February.  Too funny for words.  Ask Dan about it.

Oklahoma City

Set up went well, took almost 7 hours, for us that is a little slow.  That’s what happens when you have not seen friends for several months. Have to catch up.  I will post pictures on my personal Facebook page later today, and a few pictures of select booths and products. 

Compared to last year the weather is beautiful.  The wind came up yesterday, but no snow.  The local residents think is really cold.  I just hope the turnout is high.

Enough for now, I woke with a massive headache.  Maybe more later.

This is Why You Always Plan Extra Time

Yesterday was one of those mixed blessing days.  Got up early and had a quick breakfast at the hotel and started for Joplin, MO to visit with the Kings. Should have a easy day for us.  But, by the time we got half way to Joplin, we were having trouble with the trailer.  The breaks were not working properly and the trailer was not pulling well.  We called Richard and asked him about a reliable place to take the trailer to have it checked.

Richard made arrangements for us to go to Mid America RV.  Well, there we were in Joplin, trailer not well and still 5 hours to OKC.  And we needed to be ready to unload at 9AM on Wednesday morning.  And it is 11AM in the morning.  22 hours until our plans go totally up in smoke.  We have until 4PM to cancel our room reservation.  Things are beginning to look a bit tight and expensive.  Remember we just put new breaks on the trailer.

So off we go with Richard and Sandy to tour the devastation left behind by the tornado last spring.  It is so sad to see block after block with no homes and all the trees were destroyed.  You can see some new homes going in to replace what was there.  Richard and Sandy had to raze their home and with luck they will begin to rebuild in the next couple of weeks.  Joplin lost so much.  I simply can not conceive of what it would be like to lose everything so quickly.  The Kings are doing well.  They don’t like their insurance company.  But they are doing well and starting over. 

My mind has not been on the trailer for a few hours and it is now 2PM and I call to see if we need to start changing our plans.  The brakes are okay and just needed to be adjusted.  The wheel bearing are not okay and need to be replaced.  They have to find replacement bearings because they only have two and we need three.  As it turns out they can find it and go to get it.  Nothing on a trailer is easy.  After they get it put back together, there are not lights on the rear and they have to trace that down or we can’t pull it safely.  Finely, six and a half hours after we pull into Mid America RV we are on our way again.  A few hundred dollars are missing from our wallet.  The trailer is pulling great, the brakes are stopping us and the lights work.  Patricia will miss NCIS.

We finally settled down in the Hotel in OKC and went to sleep about 11PM.  I am not a night owl. 

So, you ask what were the mixed blessings?  We did not lose a wheel or have an accident, or break down on the Turnpike.  We had a wonderful time with our friends, who have lost so much and still have a great attitude.  We found a great place to have our trailer repaired on the road.  I recommend them.  We arrived safely in Oklahoma City and we will be ready to set up today.  Finely, no snow and I did not have to put on a jacket all day.  What more could you ask for?

On the Road Again

Patricia and I left at 2:30 this afternoon.  Unlike so many other January trips the weather is beautiful, 44 degrees, clear skies and not a snow storm in sight. I wonder when the hammer will drop. We are traveling south on I-55  and will spend the night near St Louis.  Tomorrow we will stop and visit with Richard and Sandy King.  They want to show us the devastation caused by the tornado last summer. I am not sure I will recognize Joplin after that terrible storm. 

Ok this laptop is officially hard to use bumping down the road.  My thumbs keep hitting the mouse and that causes the cursor to jump around. Will I ever learn?  Maybe I will wait until we settle down for the night to finish this post.

Right so we have settled down for the night in Pacific, MO at 10:00 PM.  Nice short day. We drove nearly 400 miles or almost half way to the first show in Oklahoma City.  Last year this area was covered with snow and it snowed all night.  Much nicer this year.

Oh yes, I have been posting pictures to my Facebook page to accompany this Blog.

Final Preparations

So Quilter’s Rule has spent a rather short week finishing preparations for a month on the road and closing the company for 2011.  The trailer has been indoors getting new brakes in between all the laser cutting, injection molding and packaging of products.  Monday morning we will load the trailer and Suburban and hit the road.  In addition, this week we have had everyone in the office busy closing the company, gathering paperwork, and explanations of the numbers, and taking the paperwork to the accountant for his blessing and filing of partnership reports and taxes.  Each year we have a goal of being first to the accountant.  So are we ready to leave on Monday?  Who knows?  Due to a change in IC’s lineups we added a show in Denver the first weekend in February.  Hope it doesn’t snow!  Hope we have enough products!  It is going to be a great year.

I was asked to talk about new products in this blog, and we are introducing three new tools on this trip: The Nested Mini Right Triangle, the Nested Mini Equilateral Triangle, and the Square Chain tool.  The two triangles were requested by Dusty Farrell, and Patricia has worked on the Square Chain for about a year.  Actually Dusty will be using the Triangles at Road to California and Patricia will be demonstrating the Square Chain at all the shows.  Come by, say hello and ask for a demo.

The triangles are a continuation of our inside collection.  They are small tools that capture the foot of your machine, make pointed corners and offer the ultimate in control.  The Square Chain is a border tool that allows the creation of a myriad of designs, including a Southwest motif.  As we work with these tools we will post pictures on Facebook and send them back to the office for inclusion in instructions. 

My next big test is, can I actually use a Laptop and do this from the road.  No more full sized keyboard and that wierd square finger mouse.  We will see……..

And yes, we will be working this weekend!  In fact for the rest of Quilter's Rule, the weekend started 2 1/2 hours ago. 

Welcome to Travels with Quilter's Rule

January 2, 2012

I almost never make New Year’s resolutions, because I never keep them, but this year I have a couple of new toys to help me stay connected.  I have always been a late adopter of new technology.  All my friends had cell phones and were moving on to smart phones when I got my first cell phone.  Of course it was just for phone calls and I did not send or receive text messages.  Well last month we made the decision to renew our contract for phones and we changed companies and bought smart phones. 

Yes, texting is now a part of my life and I can even post to Facebook from my phone.  And I now, believe it or not, I have a laptop to work with when I am on the road.  So what does all this have to do with not keeping New Year’s resolutions?  Well, all my excuses are gone.  I can now write something when I think about it.  Yes, I know I could use a paper and pencil but do you know how hard it is to find them at 60 mile per hour on your way to the next show.  So I have made a resolution this year to write this blog to keep our customers more informed about happenings at Quilter’s Rule. 

So what does that mean?  Well, a lot depends on what happens as we move forward. Do you really want to hear from me?  Will you correspond with me and tell me what you are interested in hearing.   I would certainly like it if some of you corresponded with me about what you would like me to talk about.  Right out of the box, I am going to talk about what it is like to be a vendor at quilt shows.  In January, we will do three shows, one in Oklahoma City, OK next we move to Ontario, CA, then to Phoenix, AZ.  We will be gone for just over three weeks and drive about 4,700 miles.

That means you will hear from me from the road many times during this first month.   As many of you know I travel to shows a lot with my daughter Patricia.  This year we are planning to be at about 12 shows.  I will tell you a lot about the shows from a vendor prospective so it will be a bit different view than what you think about a show as an attendee.

Quilter’s Rule did or was represented at over 50 shows in 2011, we would love it if you came by and said hello either to us or to our IC’s.  This year we will be handing off several shows to independent contractors (IC) and we will be trying out a few new shows.  Sometime this year we would like to add an IC in the North East.  There are a lot of shows in that area of the country and we do not do a good job of covering them.