Welcome from Southern California. There are many Bargello quilters that hang out here. I found that taking a class from Harriet Hargrave, who I consider the Diva of getting machine quilting recognized, helped me over many difficulties. I always suggest to get her book "Heirloom Machine Quilting". I found it easier at first to follow a line so then I could concentrate on my stitch length being consistence. Another trick is to not look at the needle because that is where you are NOW, but look to where you want to go. Hope the makes sense. I find lots of inspiration from this site.