Greetings!

Welcome to this Blog about The Drunkard’s Path along with other career, business and life advice. So, why The Drunkard’s Path? It is actually a Triple Entendre and meant to be catchy, funny and meaningful. The Drunkard’s Path is a name given to zig-zag quilt patterns that are difficult to learn, but once achieved, they open a larger range of possible designs. You will find that your own life will be much like The Drunkard’s Path. As you wind through the years, you will be constantly exposed to new learning opportunities. If you take on the challenging ones, you will find a wider space of possibilities will be open to you. Read on to learn more.

The Drunkard’s Path is a name given to quilt patterns that have been in use in the United States since the 19^th century and are a popular favorite among the more experienced quilters who love to take on a challenge. The stitch is characterized by its zig-zag pattern made of curved fabric pieces; it gets its name from the way the quilt block looks, as this pattern resembles the path a staggering drunk might take on his way home. The Drunkard’s Path quilt block dates to ancient Egyptian times when this design was discovered on several Roman artifacts; it is also known as Solomon’s Puzzle, Oregon Trail, Rocky Road to Kansas, and others. This block has been loosely tied to the Women’s Temperance Movement in the early 1900s and the Underground Railroad during the late 1700s until the Civil War in 1862.

While this pattern can be intimidating to any beginner quilter or one who has not attempted it before, this block is achievable with a little patience and practice. Once a quilter has practiced these patterns, it opens the artist to a wider number of patterns, layout options, and possibilities.

You will find that your own life will be much like The Drunkard’s Path. As you wind through the years, you will be constantly exposed to new learning opportunities. If you take on the challenging ones, you will find a wider space of possibilities will open to you.

I first learned of The Drunkard’s Path in the early 1990s from Judy Bachand, a quilter and the curator of the quilt show that adorns the walls of The Vanilla Bean Café every December. When she was taking the exhibit down, I casually asked her if she had ever done any M. C. Escher-style quilting. She said that she had not, but that it might be fun. The following December, I noticed that many of the quilts were abstract in nature and design, and I said to Judy, “I thought you hadn’t done any Escher-inspired quilting.” She replied, “I thought you had asked me to.”

For those of you who do not know M. C. Escher, he was a draftsman, book illustrator, tapestry designer, and muralist, but his primary work was as a printmaker. Aspiring to be an architect, Escher enrolled in the School for Architecture and Decorative Arts in Haarlem. While studying there from 1919 to 1922, his emphasis shifted from architecture to drawing and printmaking upon his teacher’s encouragement, oddly enough, Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita. Although best known for his iconic optical illusions, his lithographs, woodcuts, engravings, and drawings express a high level of technical expertise and meticulous attention to detail. Their puzzling depictions of winding staircases and interlocking spaces offer up visual conundrums to the viewer.

I purchased a quilt from Judy’s exhibit that year by the quilter D. Hervieux. In a way, I felt obligated to, but they were also terrific pieces. The one I purchased is called ‘Dawn to Dusk’ and is comprised of blocks of The Drunkard’s Path. It resembles Escher’s woodcut print titled ‘Sky and Water.’ At the time, I found the stitch’s name rather amusing; now I find it meaningful. That quilt has been hanging in our home for close to a quarter-century. It has hung above the cribs of both of my daughters and in our family room for many years. I have included a photo of it below.

When I look back at my own life, I see a very circuitous path. When I dropped out of college, I made a commitment to myself to always find opportunities for learning from the people around me, and I have worked many places and met many ‘teachers’ along the way. While most of my working career has been in the hospitality industry, I have had many different jobs at many different places. One of my friends once remarked, “How come you always seem to have the jobs the guys in the beer commercials have?” I took it as a compliment. All those jobs and experiences prepared me to be the storyteller, manager, and business owner that I have become today.

No one’s career path is ever a straight line from school to career to family to retirement. We all take meandering paths along the way, some intentional, some accidental. This is how life is for most, if not all of us; with its many ups and downs, twists and turns resembling that of a Drunkard’s Path. Just like learning how to quilt, you will create many more possibilities for your own life and career when you take on the challenges and the difficult projects with a sense of purpose.

The ideas and practices that are in the book will help you navigate your path. I like to think of it as one of the many guideposts that you will encounter along the way in your own life. When I look back, I can see my guideposts that were helpful to me—some were people, some were jobs, and yes, some were books. This one might help you.