Saturday, August 28, 2021

August - Sew'n Wild Oaks Retreat

Hello Everyone,

I've been enjoying myself so much over the past few days at my very own Sew'n Wild Oaks Retreat at Snowflake Lodge in Arnold, California.  I made new friends, and reconnected with so many other friends that I haven't seen in two years. Here I am standing next to a wall hanging that Barbara and Lynnette made for me two years ago.  I think it looks just like me!


We jump started the retreat by setting up on Sunday, August 22nd.  That way we could hit the ground running Monday morning at 8am and got those machines humming.


Sunday, after set up, we had appetizers at my cabin. What a spread!!  The girls brought the most delicious appetizers which we thoroughly enjoyed.


My sister Gail, on the left, is chatting with Janice.  We all had a lot of catching up to do.


This was just part of the dessert table.


We had a feast.




The cabin was humming with chatter, laughter, hugs, and kisses.  It felt so good to be able to be together once again.




So, you just saw pictures of the beginning of the retreat.  Now here are pictures of the end of the retreat on Wednesday evening.  While we we enjoying our appetizers and wine on the deck at the Lodge, management came to me and advised me of a new fire that was just 11 miles away from us.  I looked at the CalFire website and determined at the time that is was a small fire, and we weren't in any danger.  After dinner, I huddled with management and we collectively decided it was time to pack up after reading that the fire was exhibiting an extreme rate of spread....in our direction.  

Mr. Joe went downtown to gather information about the fire at our fire station, and saw that our two gas stations had long lines.  Prior to the retreat, I had given my quilters instructions to fill up their gas tanks when they arrived in town just in case we needed to get the hell out of Dodge.  They listened to me, and it's a good thing they did. If the main road into Arnold had closed, we were going to be in a world of hurt.  Roads were closing and my fear was the main road out of the mountains would not be accessible.


What started as a small fire grew to this very quickly. Evacuation orders were starting to pop up on the web and via texts for small communities in the immediate area of the fire.  Standby evacuation orders were also posted. 

These are not images that I took.  I found this on the web taken by individuals close to the fire.


Air tankers came out in force and covered the fire with retardant.  The red you see is the retardant, not flames.



It usually takes us a fair bit of time to pack up. We were packed and gone in a very short period of time.  The girls packed up their quilting supplies, then they had to go to their rented cabins and hotel rooms to collect their things before they could hit the road.

Needless to say, Mr. Joe and I didn't get much sleep Wednesday night at the cabin.  I kept waiting for an mandatory evacuation notice.  Luckily that never happened.

As of this writing, the fire is 50% contained, and we don't feel any anxiety or worry that we are in any danger.  

The girls all have a good story to tell.  Next year we should all wear T-shirts that say, "I survived the Sew'n Wild Oaks Retreat!"  The girls were real troopers through this entire experience.

Throughout the coming week, I will post pictures of the three wonderful days we had together until we were so rudely interrupted.

I've always said that quilters are the best people on the planet. This group of quilters were exceptional. I love them all for their creativity, their desire to help each other, their compassion, their laughter, and their love.  We were truly blessed to have our three days together. 

Soon,
Lynn 








18 comments:

  1. so sorry your retreat ended with a bang - not the kind you want. but so glad you all are safe! a retreat that won't be forgotten

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    1. We just feel so fortunate to have had three good days of being together before the "fireworks" started!

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  2. Wow! What a retreat...one not to forget. Glad everyone had a good time while there and are safe! Can't wait to see pictures of what everyone was working on..

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    1. I'll be posting throughout the week, Jeanne.

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  3. Now that was a memorable retreat, Lynn! Thankfully all is well that ends well and you’re all safe! I see many familiar faces! I know I’ll be absolutely giddy when we get together in October! Quilters are the best!

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    1. I'll be giddy right along with you as we gather together, Candace.

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  4. I've been wondering and waiting to hear from you considering how the fires have been acting. Glad to know you're fine, at least for now. Sorry the retreat got interrupted.

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    1. We are safe, but Lake Tahoe is certainly in trouble. It is so sad to see so much devastation.

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  5. Thank you so much for everything, Lynn: A fabulous & inspirational gathering of sharing and laughter ending with your calm presentation of the facts of the fire that brought us all to safely leave earlier than we planned. We were in the best of hands from beginning to end! Hoping the fire is over earlier than expected too.

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    1. Didn't we have fun!
      The fire near us is almost completely extinguished. We were so lucky thanks to the quick work of the firefighters.

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  6. Oh no! The fires are everywhere this year. I'm so glad everyone is safe and well. Lots of memories made at the retreat this year. Hugs!

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    1. Yes, the girls are going to have a story to tell. We all survived the Sew'n Wild Oaks Retreat!

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  7. So glad everything turned out OK! So glad you all were able to get together safely and a wonderful time had by all.

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    1. We always have a wonderful time when we're together!

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  8. Monique D (Belgique)August 30, 2021 at 1:09 AM

    Contente d'avoir de tes novelles car en Belgique les informations donnaient régulièrement l'état des incendies tant en Californie qu'ailleurs dans le monde.
    Comme tu l'écris tu étais bien entourée.
    A bientôt pour la suite de ton article.

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    1. Merci d’avoir commenté, Monique. Le feu au nord de nous continue de croître chaque jour et menace maintenant la belle région du lac Tahoe. Nous ne sommes pas en danger de cet incendie à moins que les vents ne changent. Il est censé y avoir beaucoup de vent aujourd’hui, et ce n’est pas ce que nous voulions entendre.

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  9. So glad you all got some time together before you were "rudely" interrupted. I figured a bear might have been the uninvited guest, but Mother Nature's fury can be much worse. Take care my friend, hopefully things will calm down for October. Best wishes, Sharon McD

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    1. I do hope for a nice 'boring' retreat in October. This was way too much excitement for me!

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