Being the high control people that we are, we had planned ahead for the surgery.  We cleared our schedule of all but one 32-bag commercial order (this customer knew he would have to wait) so we both could devote ourselves to the task of the knee.  We went to the hospital training classes where they tell you what to expect of the surgery and therapy etc.; we replaced the shower head with a hand-held one; we bought a chair for the shower, a walker and a special light for the bedside.  Then, I scrubbed the guest room, aka patient room, from top to bottom, laundered all the bedding and curtains.  We were ready!

SURPRISE:  The first night home the incision leaks blood and stuff all over the sheets, mattress pad, blankets, side of the bed and the carpet.  No problem–?– I run to the pharmacy for special bandages,  wash all the bedding and buy a carpet cleaner.

SURPRISE:  The narcotic pain medications make him crazy and he is in Zulu-Land.  He doesn’t think straight, he’s sick to his stomach, and he smells bad.  No problem –?– we begin a regimen of drinking lots of water to flush the drug toxins from his system, give him a shower, and wash the sheets.

SURPRISE:  One of the drugs (still don’t know which one) they gave him at the hospital causes an allergic reaction and he breaks out in hives all over his chest and back, and it ITCHES.  When he scratches, the skin breaks open leaving bacteria all over the bed and him.  No problem –?– I run to the pharmacy for anti-itch cream, we give him a shower and put the cream on, and we wash the sheets again.

SURPRISE:  His red-blood cell count is low and he needs oxygen to supplement his breathing.  We call the oxygen company who brings out the machine and he is “teathered” to it via tubing which is always in the way!  Instead of fighting the tubing to get to the bathroom all the time, he uses the hand-held urinal, but it’s very difficult to hit the small hole at the top.  No problem — ?– we empty the urinal often and wash the sheets.

SURPRISE:  He is anemic (which is the same, I guess, as having a low red-blood cell count), so off we go to the doctor who prescribes iron tablets and metamucil to counter-act the constipating effect of iron.  No problem –?– we run to the pharmacy for the iron and metamucil and, for the next month, the Metamucil resides on our kitchen table!

SURPRISE:  The 26 staples holding his incision together come out and soon after the incision starts to bleed a bit… for the next week!  The physical therapist tries to help by applying steristrips, but soon there is more blood.  Back to the surgeon we go!  Luckily, there is no sign of infection, but she prescribes antibiotics just in case.  No problem–?– we run to the pharmacy again and wash the sheets every day that week.

This is not a complete list of surprises, but I’m getting tired of talking about them.  I can say that I discovered just how capable this woman can be when she needs to!  The walker did not fit through the bathroom door, so I took the door off!  The man could not get into the shower with the shower chair in the way, so I took the shower doors off!  The solar-powered battery that operates the gate to our place lost its charge, so I hauled out the battery-charger, hooked it up, strung two big extension cords and re-charged the battery!  I finished an order for 32 big rodeo gear bags, packed the two 50-pound boxes into the back of the truck and shipped them at UPS!  I shoveled snow, I cleaned snow off vehicles, I got Christmas organized, and I washed a LOT of sheets.

I can also say that we were blessed with help from every direction.  Thanks to my son Jake who helped us get home from the hospital that first day.  Thanks to our grandson Bowen who hauled all the Christmas decorations up from the basement and put up the tree and lights.  Thanks to our daughter-in-law Heather, an RN, who helped us understand the medications.  Thanks to our son Jeff who offered himself or his wife Heather to fly out and help us.  Thanks to the Physical Therapist who noticed the anemia and told us to get him to the doctor.  And a special thanks to our friend Bea, also an RN, experienced in surgery, emergency room, and her own husband’s knee replacement, for calling regularly and keeping us sane.  Hers was wonderful advice!  Also, thanks to my wonderful mother who, when I am feeling quite overwhelmed, tired and stressed, sends me a big box of her homemade specialty Italian Christmas cookies.  It felt like a hug.

So now the traumatic time has passed, we are both back to making bags, planning for next season’s events, returning to normalcy.  And now I have new friends at the pharmacy and I am looking for a sale on new sheets!  But, wait a minute, what about the other knee that is worse than the one we fixed!

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One of my standard remarks is about the weight of a lady’s purse.  I tell her that, if her purse is too heavy it must be because she carries Too Much Money, and all she needs to do is spend some of that and she will be just fine.  And, also, she could use a wonderful tapestry/fabric purse which start out light-weight, then, when she loads it with money, it’s not such an issue!

Of course, I get all sorts of answers!  Mostly, people smile and say, “Yeah, I wish it were money!”  or “Money, ha!  It’s all the junk I carry!”  Occasionally, someone goes along with the program and tells me, “Well, that must be it!”  or “You’re right!  I hadn’t thought of that!”

But, this summer I had a lady say, with a serious straight-face, “Oh, Idohave a lot of money …  it’s a burden, actually.”  I laughed, but later wondered if she really was joking with me….. ??

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Many years ago, I had the booth up at a County Fair in the small town of Calhan, Colorado, in the southeastern part of Colorado.  Back then, our product line was mostly aimed at the Rodeo and Horse People.

We didn’t have many purses, but made a lot of rodeo gear bags, bags for horse tack, etc.  Among them was a Hay Bag, which people use to feed their horses.  You put the hay in the top and the horse eats out of the hole in the front.  This is particularly good when you travel as you can hang the bag on the side of the trailer and keep the hay off the ground.  Some horses are very sensitive to breathing in dust off the ground.

So, there I am in my booth in Calhan and in walks a middle-aged couple, who look to me like local farm folk.  The lady is real nice, with a smile, and the man is no-smile, stocky, strong, browned by the sun, arms folded in front, no-nonsense.  He reminds me of my old German uncles — hard-working, salt-of-the-earth type folk.

The lady is looking at our bags and spots the Hay Bag!  “Look, Dear,” she says, “a feed bag!”  He looks.  “Nay,” he says, “you don’t need that.  It’s not your Mother’s size.”

I couldn’t believe it!   And I looked at him and there he was with a cute little onery grin!

It’s been years since we’ve been there, but I’ve never forgotten this story and his dry sense of humor!

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Here’s what it takes to make a sturdy handbag:

1.  Heavy-Weight, Industrial Sewing Machines.  We have two Juki DU-141 Walking Foot machines, as well as a Brother Industrial 5-Thread Serger.  I also have a home machine — a real nice Bernina — but it’s just too PUNY in relation to the Juki.  I use the home machine for household mending … it never touches my bags.

2.  Good Quality, Heavy-Weight Materials.

 I buy only 1000-denier nylon Cordura to use as the base of most of our bags.  “Cordura” is a Dupont Corporation product and is much better than “microfiber” or other knock-offs.  It’s strong, holds its shape and wears and washes well.

Most accent fabrics/tapestries are not a strong as the nylon Cordura, so wherever we use the tapestry we line it to give it extra strength.  Also, some tapestries are a looser weave than others, so we serge the edges of those so it will not fray or run.

I use only YKK zippers, mostly #5.  Again, I researched brands and weights of zippers and these are the best that are made.

3.  Going the Extra Mile with Sewing Techniques.  I double-sew all the zippers, triple-sew all the intersections and bind all the seams.  I back-tack often at the beginning of a seam so there is no chance of coming un-sewn (I’ve worn the paint off the back pedal!)  If I run out of bobbin thread when top-stitching, I take out the entire seam and start again so that the top stitching is one complete line and there is no danger of coming undone.  I have been sewing since high school when I took sewing lessons from a professional seamstress so I’ve had many many years to develop my skills.

We do all the work ourselves and can be sure of our quality that way.

4.  Sturdiness Built Into the Design.  Several of our patterns call for straps that are sewn down the side as opposed to fitting into a top seam where they might pull out.  Our three Totes even have the straps sewn all the way around the bottom!

SO … BUY A QUALITY MKI BAG.  Warning:  Make sure you like the color …  you’ll have it a looong time!

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I did manage to keep sanity in my travel bag by using two Packing Cubes and one Packing Tube to organize my stuff.  It eliminated my rummaging through the bag looking for lost items.  Nothing was lost!!

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Now, driving north to Laramie at this time of year is usually a challenge.  We have, in past years, encountered snow, icy roads,  cold, fog so thick you can’t see where you’re going, and wind, wind and wind.  There’s a Country-Western song about a truck driver that has a line something like, “if the wind is blowing, it must be Wyoming.”  Well, this year was a bit windy, but not so bad, and the weather otherwise was wonderful — sunny and warm.  I’ll take that as a positive omen for the weather this season.

There are two major reasons I love craft fairs:  (1)  I meet so many genuinely nice people.  (If you listen to network news, you wonder if there are any of those left!) and (2) I get to shop for high-quality, unique items that you can’t find in stores.

When we arrived at 5:45 AM (yawn, yawn) Deb was already there and had the coffee on.  Deb is a member of Xi Beta Chapter of Laramie Beta Sigma Phi and has, for the past 9 years, organized their Spring Bazaar.  The event is a fundraiser for the charities that they sponsor and the ladies work the kitchen (complete with homemade cinnamon rolls, yum,yum) as well as spread smiles and good cheer all day long.  I admire those ladies who spend their time and efforts to raise money for charity!  Good-hearted, nice people!   And customers and fellow vendors who are also genuinely nice people.  It was a good day!

Then, to make it an even better day, I was shopping and found just the right hat that I’d been looking for!

And Mavis found just the right bag that she was looking for in our booth!  She chose a Navy Queensland Tapestry Teardrop for an upcoming trip because it was sturdy, light-weight, will carry “the big billfold” and has a good pocket for a bottle of water and handy pockets in front for tickets, etc.

Like I said … it was a good day!

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Sara writes, “I am in Panajachel with Lake Atitlan in the background.  Your bags worked very well!”   She has her Navy/Mystic Teardrop over her shoulder and is holding several Packing Cubes and Tubes which she used to organize her suitcase.

I love the scenery!  What a beautiful place …  Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.  Our bags are certainly world travelers!

MKI Tapestry bag on Sara's shoulder at Friendship Bridge Guatemala

While in Guatemala, Sara had an opportunity to interact with the clients of Friendship Bridge.  Sara writes, “ This client asked to have her picture taken with me.  Check out the size difference between me and her. She’s 73, still working, has 10 kids, I think she is illiterate as many of the older clients are, but dynamite to listen to. She told us, through translation, of her life which had been difficult. She got married (young) and worked and supported her husband’s family who never liked her. She has a business, maybe selling vegetables in the marketplace, maybe weaving.

It was very interesting contrasting her circumstances with some of the younger women in the trust bank group who had much fewer children, like 1-3 instead of 10, and they had stayed in school into high school. Their husbands helped out with family chores and kids so they could work on their business. We saw a lot of change from the older to younger generation at several of our visits.”

Sounds to me like Friendship Bridge is making a difference in the world and I am happy to send a contribution to them.  Check out their website at www.friendshipbridge.org.

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Here’s what Nancy says:  “I can keep all my different connections that go with the iPad and the computer in this purse, plus checkbook and  few other odds and ends.”

” In front, on the outside of the purse, in the two velcro pockets, I use the larger one on the left for my iPhone since I have a larger case for it.  The other side I keep my ID in it and drivers license and staff ID for quick access.”

” In the zipped front bottom part, I put a couple of pens and a stylus that I use for the iPad in it.  Works great!”

Nancy also mentions that the fit is tight because she has a stand-up case on the iPad … but it works!  She also lists the numerous(and I mean LOTS)  items she carries in all the pockets and compartments in the main part and says,”The net sides are invaluable!!!!  You are correct!  Nothing falls out!”

Thanks again, Nancy!

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