Luddite quilter

I am a long time quilter, I started quilting in 1984. Back in the day we used plastic templates and a lot, though not all of us hand pieced our quilts. I was and am a happy hand piecer. I love making quilts and while none of them will ever win a prize most of my quilts look pretty good. I find the quilting process to be soothing and almost zen like. However a friend persuaded me to take a quilting class by machine. I needed to spring forth into the 21sr century, she said. I had too much fabric and would never use even a tenth of it unless I learned to machine piece, she said. It’s easy to learn, she said.
So I signed up for and recently completed a ten week course beginning machine piecing quilt class billed as a “fun” class. All I can say is that I did not have fun. I had nightmares, I broke down into crying jags, my cats hid and my spouse almost divorced me. My only consolation was that another student in the class also had the same symptoms and that we both survived.
Some evenings striving for the elusive perfect ¼ inch seam so that my quilt block would “square up” seemed to me to be akin to being on the front lines in a war zone with no knowledge on how to shoot a gun or, in my case, operate my sewing machine. I lived in a constant state of terror and stress. On a rare occasion I’d get a block right and it was if I’d just come in first in the New York marathon. Most nights were not like this. Most nights were spent sobbing, pleading and bargaining with my machine. Being heartless it ignored me.
The experience has led me to the following conclusions
1. If I use two ply thread I may attempt a machine pieced wall hanging. The fabric I use will be quite ugly so I will not have to sorrow after my beautiful fabrics lost in a bizarre and senseless death under the rotary cutter’s blade.
2. Most of my quilts will continue to be made via hand and anyone worried about my excessive fabric may remain mum on the subject.
3. Zen like states cannot be achieved at the machine though a dangerous rise in blood pressure can. Somehow I think this info could be used in a good murder mystery plot …
So I’m about to begin a queen sized churn dash and a little part of me is thinking…churn dash is pretty straight forward. I could piece this on the machine but then I look at the trusting face of the one cat who finally ventured out from under the couch and think nah…. Somebody has to be the last hand piecer in the world and I’m okay with that.