Trade 3 – A Quilt for a Sewing Machine

I knew when I went up to film Trade 2, that Mom had already found a trader for the quilt. She had been telling all of her friends about it. One friend was about to buy a new sewing machine from my mom’s shop and had one, still in good condition, that she wouldn’t be using. So she told Mom she wanted to trade it for the quilt.

Mom called me and asked if that would work. I figured it would because I know the sewing machine Jan has to trade is a good one. I also know that my mom knows hundreds of quilters who are her customers. I’m guessing one of those ladies might be interested in a trade. So I said yes.

So that’s how on the day I traded for the quilt, I then turned around and traded for the sewing machine. While filming my mom’s trade, Jan Ramsey held the camera. She has these big eyes and every time my mom would crack up laughing she would stop the camera, and roll those big eyes so far up I thought they would roll right out of her head.

So when it was time for Jan’s video, we had Mom hold the camera. Big mistake. When I would start to talk, she would start to laugh, again silently, and shake. Those takes, when you look at them, appear to be taken during an earthquake because the camera is shaking so much. So I made a decision, we would put the camera on some boxes and film without Mom holding it. And we made Mom leave the room.

Jan and I did just fine after that. We tried a couple times and got a take that works. Jan now gets the quilt, but she is not even keeping it. She has given quilt to a couple for a wedding gift. So Jan has done something nice for me in helping me with my efforts to put my children through college, AND she gave a beautiful quilt to a bridal couple who will probably have it for years in their home. I think that’s fun, win/win/win.

That’s what this game is all about. I work toward my goal of putting my children through college, and along the way people trade something they are not currently using for something they will use.

Thanks Jan, you’re a sweetheart…and a better camera crew than Mom was. (sheesh)

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