urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:marmiarmo marmiarmo marmiarmo 2007-02-11T14:47:27Z urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:marmiarmo:2927 2038-01-19T03:14:07Z 2007-02-11T14:47:27Z Okay, I know it's an unusual sounding combination...wasn't Ponch the cop Erik Estrada played on "CHiPs"?? And what has that got to do with "The Wizard of Oz"??<br /><br />Ponch was the nickname chosen many moons ago by Mario, the dear cousin-in-law many times removed who passed away earlier this week. His father's name was (is) Mario, and young Mario didn't like being "young Mario" and greatly admired the character of Ponch on "CHiPs", so he chose that as his nickname. A fiercely loyal and dedicated man, he kept that as his nickname long after the character and show fell out of fashion.<br /><br />Well, we now know that Ponch died from a massive heart attack. Shocking, to say the least. He was a healthy size and weight, and as far as we know, he didn't have any warning signs of trouble ahead...and at 42 years old, he was quite young for such a tragic end. It's really very sad...<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/marmiarmo/pic/0000tkxs/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/marmiarmo/pic/0000tkxs" width="190" height="144" border="0" /></a> That's Ponch on the right, with a friend he was helping after the friend suffered a stroke.<br /><br />And then there is "The Wizard of Oz". Ugh.<br /><br />I got the bright idea to stitch this for my boss for a combination Christmas/50th birthday gift. She is a HUGE fan of the movie and collects little things related to it...not obsessively, but she does have a cool little collection. she is also a HUGE fan of my needlework, and is always admiring what I stitch. So I thought what better gift, right?<br /><br />Well, it will be...if I ever finish!! I stitched like a madwoman for the first three weeks, and almost the only thing done was the durned sky!!! That burned me out and I started stitching at a slower pace...too slow! Christmas and her birthday came and went, with no sign of a gift from me.<br /><br />Cut to yesterday, when I decided that since I am going to be laid up for the weekend with this crummy cold, I may as well get as much time in on this piece as I can. And here it is as of midnight last night, when I finally quit and went to bed.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/marmiarmo/pic/0000wag0/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/marmiarmo/pic/0000wag0/s320x240" width="237" height="240" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Just one more color (and very few stitches of that, thankfully!) in the Emerald City itself, one color to fill in on the grass, and the backstitching to do. I'm thinking a few days at most. Hooray!!! I want this over with...first of all, it is overdue. Secondly, it's a great finish and I really will like it again once I have finished it. Thirdly, the boss will be ecstatic!! And finally...I am absolutely ACHING to start something new!!!