September 13 - Catch up

I've been really busy lately as you can see by my neglect here.  Here's a quick catch up post to get us up to today.

I've been busy at work, busy making pots, and generally just running around in circles.

This Saturday is the 8th Annual Mint Museum Potters Market Invitational sale and my friends Hal and Corine are firing their wood kiln, so the day is going to be crazy fun.  I am so pleased to have been invited back to help with this firing after helping with the one in March.  It's a wonderful thing to be a part of and I wouldn't miss it for the world.

On to the last few days...

On 9/8 I started making some traditional shapes
to fire in the wood kiln.

On 9/9 I threw a rim on the larger pot,
but didn't like the way the other one was developing,
so I darted it and made a slab rim for it. 
It's a departure for me and I like it.

On 9/10 (and well into 9/11) I glazed a load of pots
that had been piling up since I missed some kilns.
It took me until 2:00 am, but I got them finished.

This is one of our spray booths.
It's great since they fold flat and store nicely.

My glazing caddy.

On 9/13 I started making some pots using loafers glory.
I thought it was time for a change to some lighter clay.
These pots should glaze differently since this clay
is missing all the iron in the clays I usually use.

I believe that catches us up to today.  Watch for the posts from my upcoming crazy Saturday!


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September 4 - Airplanes and trash

I'm getting up there these days.  Sixty is looming ahead in the road.  I guess I could look at it as a barricade or check point, but I prefer to think of it more as a speed bump or maybe even a pothole. 

I used to be really hung up on ages.  Before I was thirty I didn't think I would make it that far because of some of the stupid things I did.  Most of the stupidest things involved cars --like getting every car I owned completely airborne at least once.  (Kids, don't try this at home.  I was lucky on more than one occasion).

Turning thirty was a big deal to me since I really thought I would be expected to grow up.

It didn't happen.

When I was thirty and one day nothing changed.  What a relief.

I'm fine with numbers now --and that's what they are, just numbers.  Internally I still feel like I'm about 18 years old, although perhaps a bit wiser.  My body often lets me know that I'm not that young, but so far I have been able to deal with it's limitations.

What got me thinking about all this tonight was when I was putting out the trash in a light rain.  I rolled the bins out to the curb and enjoyed my special time for a moment.  (I like going out in the driveway/front yard at night.  There is no one about and I have the street all to myself.  I stand there and soak in the breeze and the sounds and I'm all by myself for a few moments.)  I stood and listened to the rain drip and enjoyed the cool, wet air on my face.

And then I turned around, put my arms out like an airplane and banked back and forth down the driveway on my way back inside.


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September 3 - Yard Art Day

Monday was Yard Art Day in Charlotte and people put all kinds of great art in their front yards.  I didn't have anything planned so I decided to do some art in my front yard.  I pulled a wheel out there and did what I know best, threw some pots.

I got about an hour in, including setup, until the sky started leaking.  Before the rain one neighbor stopped by to see what I was doing and the folks in two cars waved back to me, but the other twenty or thirty cars never saw me.  Most were too intent on getting out of the neighborhood to run their errands and an unsettling number of them were looking down at cell phones or reaching around near the floor for cell phones.  The non-reachers had their eyes straight ahead, missing anything out of the ordinary that might be happening in the yards they passed.

Things like an old guy throwing pots in his front yard.

I'm not saying that it's any great shakes to watch me throw a pot, there are people that do it way more elegantly than I.  What I'm getting at is how many times in your life do you actually see somebody throwing pots in their front yard?  It's just not that ordinary, even in North Carolina.

Maybe next year I'll try to keep plates spinning on sticks like they did on the old Ed Sullivan show.  I can hear the "Saber Dance" music playing now...

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September 2 - Moon shot

I missed the blue moon, but I caught the moon the next night.  It wasn't quite full, but it was close.  I wish I could do more than 80x zoom --just think of the detail I could see.  Sorry about the framing, but I am taking these free hand so it lurches about a bit at 80x.

Be amazed at everything around you every day (or night).  Life is amazing, you just have to notice it.


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August 25 - Saturday - Keep moving

Saturday was an important day.  It was a Muddy Fun day with both morning and afternoon classes and it was also the night of the big Clayworks fundraiser.

We had a great turnout for two Muddy Fun classes with lots of people eager to learn about playing in the mud.  It's great to be a part of our Muddy Fun sessions and help people learn something new about clay and about themselves.  People either think it's very easy or very hard to throw pots.  Like most things, it's actually somewhere in the middle.  Some folks have dabbled in it in college, some have never gotten close to a wheel.  Some take to it immediately and some struggle.  The one thing they all have in common is the adventurous spirit to try something new.

We couldn't do Muddy Fun without a group of dedicated volunteers.  Angela is a wonderful teacher and we can't thank her enough for volunteering so much of her time to run the classes.  Thanks also to the rotating group of caring volunteers who help Angela by wedging all that clay and assisting her in her teaching role.

We rely on our volunteers for so many things at Clayworks and we couldn't do without them.  Thanks to all who give their time and talent.

Saturday evening we had the annual Clayworks fundraiser at Hodges Taylor gallery with a raffle, a silent auction, food, and libations.  Christie Taylor was very kind in allowing us to take over her gallery again.  It's a wonderful space and we always have a great time there.

We had a raffle for a beautiful Ben Owen piece with strong ticket sales.  Speaking of volunteers, Susan Benoit goes above and beyond the call to sell our raffle tickets before the event and she and Rae Stark do a great job of selling them at the door.  Thanks to both of them for their hard work, and thanks to Ben Owen for the donated pot.

The silent auction had a slew of gorgeous pieces.  They came from inside and outside of Clayworks, spanned a wide range of ideas, and created a stunning display of talent.

The conversation was lively and I caught up with several people I hadn't seen in a while and met some new folks.  The food was delicious (thanks again to the volunteers!) and the libations flowed freely.  It was a stellar evening and was over all too quickly.

We cleaned up, packed up the leftovers, and it was like we were never there.

Thanks again to all involved for a wonderful event.

Eager students getting the preliminaries.

I found Justin and Greg in the other classroom
talking about pottery --go figure!

There's always a crowd at the food table because it's so good.

Kimberly and Steve discussing art.

Lots of mingling.

Some of the artwork:  Becky's llama and Ralph's wave.

More art from all over.

Large Adrienne/Greg collaboration and Nick Joerling pieces.

Here's a photo of the unfired piece
in the studio with better lighting.

Cary talking to Greg.

Our raffle ticket team, Susan and Rae.

Kary and Michael discussing art or beer.

The Ben Owen raffle piece.

The TransAmerica building's
homage to The Big Bang Theory.

By the way, this is a the Rebecca Jones
piece that I purchased in the silent auction.

I was too busy trying to win it to take a photo at the gallery
so here is a cell phone photo of it on my shelf.
I love it.

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