Steve and I are in Santa Cruz, which is a vacations stop on the way to King City where I will teach and lecture on Monday. Today we hiked at Big Basin Redwoods State Park. This is a huge park and we only saw some of it. For me, the most exciting part of the hike  involved a dangerous water crossing :-). Steve carried the camera and my phone in case I slipped off the log. He also found a long stick which helped me to stay balanced. (I left the stick by the water and I hope others have made use of it.)

There were lots of other hikers on the trail, and bicyclists were out in force. And motorcyclists. Actually, everyone in the Santa Cruz area was outside today.

One thing I noticed on the drive were the fun, hand-painted signs. If you’ve driven Highway 1, you’ve probably seen this:

Yes, the truck is eye-catching, but it’s that big strawberry that is the best! And the other signs around it are each wonderful in their own way. If we are jam, we would definitely have stopped for a taste.

Looking at the signs made me think about how self-conscious I sometimes am about my own handwriting. And, if I were to ever paint a roadside sign, I’m pretty sure that I would try to make it too perfect.

These signs are more eye-catching because they are so obviously made by hand.

The imbalance, the quirkiness, the imperfections, all show the hand of the maker in the design. This is exactly why I find myself drawn to improvisational quilt designs, both pieced and appliqued.