august's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0x

August 06, 2026 in quilts

(kantha bouquet 2021 by ann rhode, 33W x 40L”)

when attending a big quilt show, ann bought a package of kantha quilt scraps that were rectangles and squares of various sizes. she designed a background and made a bouquet of the pieces using the original size pieces.

kantha quilts from india. they are hand quilted using a huge variety of block printed fabrics. ann had wanted to buy a whole quilt, but she could not narrow it down so she chose the variety package of the small quilted pieces and applied them with their raw edges exposed.

it's wonderful to be back in the bay area! x00xx

July 09, 2026

july's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x00xx

July 07, 2026 in quilts

(PB found pieces 2019 by ann rhode, 30W x 46L”)

PB stands for point bonita quilt camp that ann has attended for thirty plus years. each year, the campers bring fabrics that no longer speak to them and blocks that are left over from a quilt and throw them under the table where they are fair game to be claimed. in 2018, ann was bored with the projects she had brought and decided to shop under the table. the four patches were already made and the rest of the pieces were found. it was very satisfying for ann to work with fabrics she had not chosen and the limited quantity forced her to be more inventive. there were no scraps leftover to go back under the table! x0x0x

one year anniversary of the loss of my darling father! x0x0x

June 30, 2026

* today is the first anniversary of the loss of my wonderful, father… i am resharing the stories i told at his celebration of life! x0x0x

HAPPY, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY my darling dad! x0x0x

June 21, 2026 in family, holiday

(me and my dad circa 1987)

this is my first father’s day without my dad here on earth. in some ways it feels like he’s still around… making faces if someone interupts him, detailing his drives and puts on ALL eighteen holes of his most recent game, losing his keys or his glasses or his driving gloves, asking you to try this new juice or chocolate or specialty nut, reminding you to stand up straight and not “slunch,” asking you to come with him to tower records or kinkos or yoghurt park (or all three), slipping you cash when you hug him goodbye, snorting with laughter at his own mishaps, telling you he loves you, “higher than the sky is high and deeper than the ocean is deep.” his presence and energy and quirkiness and hilarity were just so BIG and all encompassing that i still feel him everywhere. happiest father’s day to my very favorite one! x00xx

HAPPY, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY adam chasnow! x0x0x

June 21, 2026 in family, holiday

(adam’s first father’s day as a double dad)

wishing you so many more wonderful experiences with our terrific children adam chasnow. they are so lucky to have you trumpeting and singing and worrying and researching and celebrating everything that they do. i am lucky to share this parenting adventure with you. HAPPIEST FATHER’S DAY! x00xx

so HAPPY to be back in the bay area! x0x0x

June 11, 2026

(japanese tea garden in san francisco! x0x0x)

so excited to be working in california again! x00xx

June 04, 2026

june's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0x

June 02, 2026 in art, quilts

(fly bye 2026 by ann rhode, 37W x 37L”)

ann’s fly bye was inspired by a quilt made of wood. she started in the middle and added borders of various scrap strips until it felt done. the flying birds seemed perfect to depict the freedom of the piece.

MIAMI! x0x0x

May 26, 2026 in travel

recently we went to a wedding in miami (which was a whole spectacular story in itself) and i got to walk the art deco district in south beach. i felt like i was on a perfectly curated movie set… the buildings were all painted pastel, cotton candy colors with the delightful curves and lines of the deco period. the SKY was brilliant, clear blue and ocean was pale TURQUIOSE. this ocean looked nothing like my northern california pacific… unfortunately, i didn’t get a photo of it as i was a little overstimulated and foggy headed (which seems to be my norm these days… i’m not sure what is going on with my brain, but i feels like tissue paper, easily torn and fragmented - for example, when i packed for the wedding i carefully put all of my wedding outfits and accessories into my suitcase and totally forgot to bring CLOTHES for the daytime. i walked the deco district in the jeans i wore on the plane since i didn’t pack a single sundress and it was a HOT tomale that day.)

i left my heart in san francisco... x0x0x

May 21, 2026

(stunning berkeley marina sunset! x0x0x)

i LOVE pompadour! x00xx

May 19, 2026 in travel

even though we haven’t lived in amsterdam for sixteen years (i can’t believe it’s been that long!), when friends are traveling to the netherlands, i still get asked about my favorite spots. the top of the list is always POMPADOUR chocolate shop. this beautiful, jewelbox of a place was right around the corner from our apartment and theo and i used to go there several times a week. the front of the store has cases of gorgeous little cakes and chocolates and the back has pretty marble tables where you can have coffee and tea or a tosti (the dutch version of a grilled cheese, but smaller and not buttery.) theo and i popped in on rainy afternoons to meet his sweet friend, ruby, and her adorable mama. theo and ruby would have hot chocolates and i typically had a mint tea (which was made with real sprigs of mint) and served with a little almond cake… DELICIOUS!

so much fun to be working in the bay area! x0x0x

May 14, 2026

grafitti in nature! x0x0x

May 12, 2026 in art, travel

(the end of the tunnel with the mountains in the background)

over spring break we went to tahoe with dear friends. since there wasn’t much snow (and even after 14 years in colorado i don’t ski anyway, but i am quite good at apres ski!) we did other excursions in the mountains. one of them was visiting the donner summit railroad tunnels built between 1865 and 1868 by over 12,000 chinese laborers. these tunnels are an astounding engineering feat created with only sledgehammers, picks and explosives. 15 tunnels were carved through SOLID GRANITE… progress was slow, they typically only managed 14 inches a day, but they completed them 15 months ahead of schedule. the chinese workers were not acknowledged when leland stanford opened them in 1869, nor were they mentioned at the one hundred year anniversary. it wasn’t until the 150 year anniversary that their contribution was celebrated by then US transportation secretary elaine chao, herself a chinese american immigrant. the tunnels were eventually abandoned and closed in 1993. they were finally designated a national historic landmark in december of 2024.

HAPPIEST MOTHER'S DAY 2026! x0x0x

May 10, 2026

while for the majority of my life to date i was not a mother, this role is such an intrinsic part of who i am that it feels like i have always been one. and in some sense i think i have… i read that all the eggs a woman has are present at birth, just waiting for their moment. so it’s really just this ongoing, overlapping ribbon of motherhood tying us all together, generation after generation. and that feels right. i am definitely still mothered by my own mama who encourages and supports and worries over me, even though technically i have been an adult for almost forty years. i also feel mothered and protected by my grandmothers, long gone, as their advice and examples reside in my consciousness. as hilary says, “it takes a village!” it’s too much for one woman to bear the sole responsibility for the safety and development of human beings. we need the grannies and aunties and fairy godmothers and best friends to bolster our mothering.

just THE BEST to be home! x0x

May 07, 2026

(southside rooftop view of san francisco! x0x)

may's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0xx

May 05, 2026 in quilts

(it’s only a little planet 1999 by ann rhode, 40W x 39L”)

it’s only a little planet is the result of a “challenge” that judi warren blayden set up. judi asked a group of quilters to respond to a quotation by robinson jeffers in quilt form. this quilt with repeating circular planets of varying sizes is ann’s interpretation of jeffers’ quote.

robinson jeffers:

“it is only a little planet, but how beautiful it is”

i'm thrilled to be home in california! x0x0x

April 30, 2026

GAME OVER hip hop dance performances by DESTINY ARTS this weekend! x0x0xx

April 28, 2026

the incredible kids from destiny arts have been rehearsing and dancing their tails off for their series of hip hop dance performances this coming weekend. see below for tickets… it’s going to be AMAZING! x0x0xx

HAPPIEST BIRTHDAY adam chasnow! x00xx

April 25, 2026 in family, holiday

today the father of my children is having a BIG birthday. out of respect for his privacy, i won’t say which one, but it is a DOOZY and it falls somewhere between fifty-nine and sixty-one… so please join me in celebrating him for reaching this special, well-earned, new decade. HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY adam! wishing you everything wonderful! x0x0x