Since Auburn California is a nice place to visit, and conveniently has a quilt shop AND a needlepoint store, I loaded up and headed out just before lunch. It's Saturday, so I was sure there would be no commuter traffic (terrible in this part of the country), making for a nice relaxing drive. Yup ... I was kidding myself BIG TIME!! I barely hit the freeway heading East to Reno on Hwy 80 when traffic came to a screeching halt for a paint truck. Finally past that obstacle, it cleared out a little as the 80 mph people raced ahead of us law abiders, only to stop traffic again in the Roseville corridor where Highway Patrol set up a sting operation. There are five lanes going through here ... maybe six ... and we are packed in like sardines going 65!! My knuckles started turning white several miles back, and by now I'm trying to unglue them from the steering wheel as my offramp gets closer. I think I left LOTS of DNA behind as I pried them loose and got the feeling back, as well as lowering my shoulders about six inches!!
I turned off in Auburn and breathed a sigh of relief. No wonder people hate to drive around here!! Now starving, I stopped in at The Daily Egg, simply because it had a parking space in front and offered lunch. When they recommended the pork carnitas eggs benedict, I'm sure I made an ugly face, but decided to try something new!! Why not ... try something different ... you might be surprised!!
Not too appetizing, right?? It was carnitas on an english muffin with a perfectly cooked egg, smothered in tomatillo sauce, with avocado, and it was excellent!! A little too much tomatillo sauce for me, but it was the best sauce ... not tart or bitter, not sweet ... just really good with the egg and carnitas!! Check it out if you are in Auburn ... it's in the 800 block of Lincoln Street.
Making lunch even better, the needlepoint shop was directly across the street. Needlepoint is a dying art and finding stores that sell canvases and thread requires lots of dedication to the internet. Here is one for the books ... it isn't even her store, and this VERY nice lady spent over an hour with me picking threads and explaining how to do varied stitches to make this little guy a masterpiece. She even wrote down every single direction and thread type. Unfortunately for me, the sales person forgot to put that sheet in the bag. I called as soon as I discovered the missing "map", but they were closed for the weekend. I'm hoping it's still in the store by Monday and they can mail it to me!! The little kitty in the top left corner is magnetic and keeps your needles from getting lost.
On the way home, I threaded my way through several neighborhoods to find this little store in Fair Oaks. It's funny how different each quilt store can be, as owners pick different fabrics to sell. This one LOVES big bright bold patterns ... not my style ... but this yellow and grey quilt caught my eye. Surprise!!! I didn't buy the kit ... only the pattern!!
Finally home and after downing a couple of advil for the achey-breaky fingers, and of course playing with the puppies for an hour, we finally relaxed on the couch. Today I'm headed back home. I've always only thought about L O N G trips in the RV ... but this short three day escape was well worth the time and effort. I never really thought about a home-away-from-home for shopping sprees, but this has worked out VERY nicely!!
There MUST be more quilt shows in California I could attend and since I'm gaining more confidence in being on the road alone and navigating parking lots, the Monterey Elks Lodge has been on my radar. As for the needlepoint stores, that's NOT a cheap hobby, so I'll have to wait until these two are complete (isn't it weird how TWO canvases got in my bag?)!! If any of you know of needlepoint stores around the country however, I'd love to hear about them!! It's a perfect take-along hobby!!
On the road again ................
Have you tried "Stitch in Time" at S. Virginia and Smithridge Dr., in Reno, NV? Vickie is the owner, and she has so many things there, a lovely shop and lovely lady! She has special ordered many things for me in the past. I hope you try her shop if you get that way, I think you'll be happy you did!
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard of this store, but I will definitely add it to my list and stop by the next time I'm in that area! Thank you so much for the info!!!
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