Wednesday, August 6, 2008

THE WINNAH!!

We have a winner! The winner of two pounds of chicken-themed fabric did not even submit her name to me – it was submitted on her behalf by a woman I’ve heard from before. Her name is Noreen and she suggested I send my fabric to the flood victims of Iowa. (Actually, she wrote to say that Kaye England sent out an e-mail suggesting that.) So I sent the box to the person collecting it:
Jill Reicks
Pine Needles Sewing Center
1000 Old Marion Rd NE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52402

I could do worse than suggest my readers – those who find themselves threatened by an avalanche of fabric every time they enter their sewing room, and you know who you are – might consider thinning the herd, so to speak, and sending the result to Ms. Reicks. Or even just going through the shelves and/or drawers and pulling that length of gorgeous fabric you are ready to admit you’re not ever going to use and gladden the heart of someone who could use a little gladdening.

Thank you, Noreen! And thanks to everyone who sent an entry. If it weren’t for the obviousness of Noreen’s entry, I’d be in a real quandry deciding who the winner was. The entries were cheery and creative and plaintive and inspiring. It would have been extremely difficult to pick a winner. I am glad I didn’t offer second and third place prizes, because I’d still be arguing with myself over whom to place. I am pleased that so many of you thought to enter. Thank you so much. Happy stitching!

I am going to be in upstate Minnesota most of next week, staying in a cabin on the fringe of a state forest, researching a novel I hope to be writing in 2009. Working title: Buttons and Bones – I’ve talked about it a little on this blog. I will bring my laptop with me and will try to find an Internet connection to send a report to Killer Hobbies from up there. But places out of reach of the ‘Net are becoming truly rare, aren’t they? And that’s a good thing. Really. Isn’t it?

6 comments:

Camille Minichino said...

Great choice and great idea, Monica.

I have to choose winners this week for a drawing and now will simply add a book to be sent to your Iowa address.

Also want to do a "random" selection ... usually I send the list of first names to a relative or friend, who then picks on the basis of name or whatever. Anyone else have a random method to share?

Camille Minichino said...

I meant to add that the reason I don't pick myself is that I'm afraid I'll be influenced by the post. If someone says I Love Your Books, do I reward that???
Or if someone doesn't give an address, and I know it will be more work, do I eliminate her?

and so on.

Betty Hechtman said...

Great choice for a winner. I haven't had a contest yet, so haven't dealt with the difficulty of choosing who wins. I like Camille's method of giving the list to someone else to make it truly random.

I'll send a copy of Hooked on Murder and some yarn to the address, too.

Terri Thayer said...

Great choice for a winner! I've often sent off extra sewing supplies to flood victims. A book is a great idea. I may even have an extra rotary cutter.

I found a random number generator online and just used that to pick my winner when I ran a contest. You can make it fit your criteria and it's truly random. Just goggle.

As for being cutoff, sometimes the choice is made for us. My main computer gave up the ghost this morning, leaving me without internet access. I have figured out how to use my laptop but it's not the same.

Enjoy the solitude and time spent with your characters.

Kathryn Lilley said...

One laptop tip I learned is to attach a mouse and use a mousepad with the laptop. It reduces the nuisance factor, which is often the scrolling and navigation...

Anonymous said...

I am still on a high from 'winning' the contest. I never thought that anyone would take my suggestion seriously, and I'm so pleased that I could help (in a very small way) to help lighten a fellow quilter's load. Plus it kind of makes me 'famous' to be mentioned in a blog - I'll have to practice my autograph now! (LOL)