burned at the stake...

Blergh--the contrast with the pretty flowered pots I am showing here is stark:  I had this horrible dream just now where somebody we knew was to be burned at the stake at midnight, and the question was how to help or defy or prevent this…and as a citizen in whatever awful society this was, you basically knew you could also be burned at the stake if you tried to help….I woke up at 3 till midnight, the question unanswered.  I mean, it is true, what would a person do if faced with such terrible injustice?  Risk your own safety, your own life?

that wild thing the green and purple do together...

I am introducing, I think, a new purple glaze to my lineup, different than this one…but I am not getting rid of this purple glaze yet, oh NO!  Isn't it remarkable how the emerald and grape glazes mix?
Have terrific Wednesday!

more more flowers!

I actually have an interesting order going on, relating to the old fashioned ME.  The zoo in Binghamton wants to add my work to their gift shop, how cool!  I will have to interrupt all of my floral work with some turtles and frogs and whatnot, not a sacrifice :)

But look what came out of the kiln yesterday….looks even better in person.  Have an awesome Tuesday!

worshipping at the dog park...

Reverse God and you get dog, right?
As a Quaker we believe that no day is more sacred than another, also that all people are equal (with varying degrees in belief in the divinity of Christ).  If you do the math on that one, you understand that Easter is not a big deal to many Quakers (well, not entirely true--we know the Christian tradition, we also live in the NOW, so some Quakers might find a lot of meaning in Easter, and there might be eggs and chocolate, but for many Quakers it is kind of just another Sunday, or First Day, because Quakers also renamed days of the week, but that is whole different story).

The scene at the dog park is frankly very equable and congenial.  Every person is so different, their dogs too, but there is such a friendly vibe to enjoy, talking amongst strangers and becoming friends as the dogs race around together.  Humans should spend more time with dogs, and humans and their dogs should spend more time playing together.

Sunday was a nice day and that is what we did….

having been hacked...

It is a weird world, right?  I don't like complications.  Keep things simple, if I can.
BUT, you know, you have the email, the website, the etsy, the Facebook, etc…and somewhere along the way, this weekend, somebody got ahold of my yahoo address book and is using it to send spam in my name.  Not using MY email, using theirs, but in my name, to people I know.  From what I read, you can't do much about it except change every password you can think of.  MY GOSH it is a strange world…

IN OTHER news, the day spring sprang in it seems like all the ideas I have worked on this winter came together, and here I am, making these celadon pieces with flowers, getting better all the time… just thrilling and looking GOOD.

It is Easter.  If that is important to you, then Happy Easter!

my Georgia O' Keefe period….

We were given a nice little pile of books by someone downsizing recently, 2 of which were enormous art books starring Georgia O'Keefe.
She has been so thoroughly poplar at times you almost don't pay attention…so many posters and notecards!
But my goodness she was skilled and managed to produce a huge body of work that maybe everyone could like.  Maybe no other artist of the last 150 years can say that?
ANYWAY…she did a lot of flowers and shells, and I can totally understand why, as I find myself doing a lot lately with flowers and shells.

an unexpectedly AWESOME day

Yesterday seemed ordinary…UNTIL!  After lunch it got SO warm, 75! And sunny! And work was fun.  Above you see I was toying with dragon candle or incense holders.  I have made them before, as a globe shape then add the head, and had the idea to make them as a teardrop bottle then add the head…PERFECT.  I also unloaded a super duper kiln load.  SO, off we went to the dog park at the end of the day…the wife asks
"what kind of people have jobs that  they can just wander over to the dog park and hang out in the afternoon?" to which I replied
"people like ME!!!!!"

Penny always has to sniff the whole area first, then check out the dogs THEN play….

shells strike again….

Well, sure, everybody likes shells!

what would a dragon eat for lunch?

I have to say, there are so many things I canNOT do.  But some things come to me naturally, including this cheerful monster I like to make.
So, you know how winter days are, you are a little crazed and it amuses you to think : "what if I had this dragon eating a skull????".

flippin' SNOW

Not very much.
Having had a mild winter, some of our weather lately has been a bit more typical of upstate NY in spring….

15 degrees on the first day of spring AND there are many many many ways to do flowers….

(YES, it was 15 degrees early Sunday morning…entirely ordinary for us most years, but a little out of character for this warm year…)

You remember that last year on January 1 I dreamt I should put flowers on pots, my macho self began to do so:  painted, stamped, etc.  I had an idea I should try to form flowers on a piece, and above is the first try…not too bad, hmm?  I was excited with this and am trying variations of it….

Have a great Monday!

dreaming of: BOATS

I had the most vivid dream:  I was making pieces on the pottery wheel and turning them into ceramic boats.  In the dream it was the most amazingly cool idea ever…and I will act on it, but not sure yet what you can do with a boat shaped pot or sculpture… :)

In other news, the color in this photo isn't accurate, but you get the idea:  tall light green vases…I REALLY like this shape and form.  Have a great Sunday!

who says snails are slow????

 


 The first time I have put a snail on a mug like this…cheerful yes? Have a great Saturday!
 

A man goes to a Halloween party with a woman on his back. The host asks him, "And what are you?"
The man says, “I’m a snail."
The host says, "And who's that on your back?"
And the man says, "That's Michelle!"

puke on the sidewalk = an utterly ordinary Friday

March 18, except for some people's birthdays or the excitement of the end of the work week or payday--just another day, really.  Not like yesterday, when some people go nuts with the Irish beers and whiskies and then, as the wife and I remarked yesterday:

she "I'm crossing the street this morning before walking past Kilpatrick's"
me "it's the puke on the sidewalk, isn't it?"
she "yep"

A pair of large new vases by me, pretty nice, hmm?

fix your kiln, feel like a million bucks….

"Electricity is not a hobby.  Hire an electrician!" goes the bumper sticker on the back of….you guessed it! The electrician's truck.

You have to be careful, but you can repair your own kiln and most of us do.  Most of them are not too complicated and you have a good repair booklet.  I am always nervous, even when doing something routine like just replacing the elements (they break or get old and ineffective after a few years, like lightbulbs). BUT, of course, you feel like you have done something AMAZING when you are done….
Cross that one of the list for the week….

In other news, the cat has a window seat, and I finished the kiln and found it occupied unexpectedly occupied…she is quite a climber, actually….

joy at the dog park….

Whenever dogs have some acres to run around and some friends to chase they look so utterly JOYFUL don't they?
I had gotten some good work done so Penny and I went to the dog park in Ithaca's Cass Park on Cayuga Lake.  I have taken her there once before, and other dogs many times.  Penny is shy with other dogs, but it is worth giving her a chance….
In her beaglish way she spent a lot of time sniffing around but then began playing with 2 puppies…a 100 pound Great Pyrennies (sp.?) named Bubba…100 pounds at 4 months, due to weigh at least 140 as an adult!  His owner says he is very stubborn…he is very friendly, but my 20 pound stubborn beagle is a LOT easier to manage, don't you think?  Then a poodle type puppy named Sophie came along and was Penny's size and they were ecstatic together…..