One hundred years ago, a woman my age would not have been able to make the kinds of statements I just made. There was a long, hard battle to win women the right to vote in this country, and if you are not familiar with that history, I suggest you check this website as a good starting point. For ninety years, women all across this country have had the right to vote in every election. With the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, this franchise was emphatically extended for all women. This summer, we've had primaries across this country in which the turnout has been around 20-30 percent. The primaries are where the parties sort out their contenders and pick those who will be on the November ballot. These small turnouts don't make sense to me and have never made sense to me. So many of our ancestors longed to have the right to choose their leaders; we have that right, and we don't always exercise it. Whatever your political persuasion, please learn about the candidates in your area and get out and vote. If you think I'm wrong, vote against me. That's what it means to be an adult in a democracy. So there.
On the general theme of women's roles in the world, you really must read The Yarn Harlot's posting of August 25. She's talking about getting our priorities and our language straight, both in the home and in the world.
Now, for some craft news. Sarah had asked if the leaf quilt were appliqué, and it is. We were experimenting with different stitches and different settings of those stitches on our machines. By the way, this was in a class taught by the wonderful Jane Sassaman, who got stuck with a student like me who doesn't like to follow directions. Here is a close-up of the quilt where you can see the stitch variations on the leaves, sort of.
