The Week in Review

It has been HOT in Ohio this week.I know it has been hot elsewhere too but that is easier for me to deal with.Sometimes I read Ang Wolford's blog just to hear about it being cold in Australia. Blondie and I have pretty much stayed inside out of the sun. I finally gave in and dug an old AC unit out of the basement and put it through the studio window.I didn't know if this thing would even run. I can't remember buying it and think it may have been a hand me down from the in laws in the 70's. I flipped the switch and God bless Sears and Roebuck it ran. (cue music) Heaven, I'm in heaven...It is so nice to have a comfortable workspace where things can dry. Humidity has been 80%+ outside so I was amazed that mugs I threw yesterday needed dipping in water before handles could be applied.

 

I also fired the new kiln last weekend. At the last minute I realized I was out of cones so I fired without them. Everything seemed to heat evenly and on schedule but I will put cones on each shelf next time too be sure. It was mostly refires and.... HERE COMES THE TIP LINDA ASKED FOR...I had a bunch of flat bottomed baking dishes I was refiring. Usually broad flat pieces are tough to refire because they are prone to cracking. I programmed the controller to limit cooling to 150 degrees  per hour and all of the baking dishes came through unscathed. Happy Happy. I also got out some old jars of glaze to see if they were still good and they were so it was a pretty good firing. The other thing happening is I have been teaching kids classes this month. My Thursday girls( 2nd thru 4th grade)  did a nice job on some pressed candy dishes so I put in a picture of them too. Thanks for stopping by.

Recent Work

After a blistering week in Southwest Ohio, we finally have a little break in the heat.That helped the Clay Alliance have a lovely annual picnic at the home of Josh, Marie, and the ever entertaining Zedalee Hamaker..There are a lot of super nice people in the group and it's always great to get together.

In the area of public policy suggestions for the week I'm not going to comment on the grandstanding idiots in Washington who claim to speak for America when Gallup reports 67% of Americans disagree with their hardline stance. I am wondering about Ohio though. Every day the State pays to run commercials that tell me I can get rich if I just buy a lottery ticket. Why not take the part of the state budget that the Governor hasn't given away to  big business and just spend it all on lottery tickets.It's a win for everybody!

In studio news,I'm going to fire off the new electric kiln this weekend so wish me luck.We have had a couple of gas kiln firings at Middletown so I'm showing you the results. I had a lot of people looking at the blue and white pots at my last show and had about sold out of them so I made a few more affordable ones.Also included is a large bucket that is awaiting a handle and some really sweet little cups. Enjoy looking and thanks for stopping by. Special thanks to Tracey Broome for kid project suggestions. The little girls made pendants yesterday and really enjoyed it.

New Baby in the House

Late last week, my friend Toby let me know that Ky Mudworks in Lexington was having a celebration for their 10 anniversary. They were having mfg reps, free workshops and big discounts. After a couple of phone calls I scored a great deal on a new kiln off the show floor.! The best part was that later on Friday, Toby went over and tried to buy the same kiln. Nanner, nanner,etc, she has to wait for hers.

Saturday morning, Blondie and I headed for Lexington to pick up the kiln and visit for a spell.She was the best dog in the world except for that one jerk on the leash that made my complementary hot dog fall to the floor.( I think that was a calculated move but she denies it). I ran into other Clay Alliance friends and had a great time. I went to a couple of workshops. Arthur Kettner was doing one on image transfer with Mayco products and Matthew Gaddie did a very nice slide show and talk on building a small basic soda kiln that has moved me one step closer to changing my stack of bricks into a kiln.. The gang at Mudworks loaded the kiln for me and we headed home, very pleased with the kiln, the workshops, and the hospitality.

When I got home, I sent an email out to the Clay Alliance members and sold my old kiln within 24 hours.Those connections really pay off. The couple that bought it even helped me unload the new kiln and get it stacked! Great weekend.

Lastly, I started new kid classes last week.I'm open to project suggestions if anyone wants to chime in. 2nd thru 5th graders.

Random Thoughts

There has not been a lot happening around the pottery this week so my mind has had time to wander about and ask those stupid questions again.

If you copy and paste this to your Facebook Status you are a deserving and intelligent person and the world will love you. If you don't copy and paste this to your Facebook status you are a worthless coward with no moral values. Also I'm trying to spread some malware around the www and you can really help me with just a few clicks!

It riles me when people say you can't trust politicians. You can't believe their promises but you can trust that they will always do what they think is in their own best interest.

I went into Little Caesar's Pizza the other day . All the girls were wearing t shirts that said "HOT and READY". Neither claim was true.

Politicians need to deliver on their promises to the top 1% to get them to donate enough so that they can convince the 10% of the voters that are in play that they really did it to help them.

Cutting subsidies for oil companies is a tax increase but increasing co pays for Medicare isn't?

We all need to share the sacrifice to get out of this hole we're in. That's "We" the poor, the school children, the middle class, the sick and the elderly. Not "We" the affluent, the special interests, and big oil companies.

How long did it take you to make that pot?    60 years

The sign in the store window said 50% off ladies swimwear. Where do they think they are, France?

Just because you painted a sunflower doesn't mean you are Van Gogh.

If potters priced like painters, mugs would be $150 each.

The guy who decided to take food and energy prices out of the inflation index was a farking  genius. As long as we don't eat or heat we don't need those wage increases.

I bought a new camoflage shirt the other day. I brought it home and now I can't find it. Shoulda seen that coming.