Whistle Creek: Happy New Year

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Happy New Year

Our Holidays have been very nice. We spent Christmas with our daughter and son-in -law in Charlotte. It was a very nice visit and we did not have to clean. Charlotte had a White Christmas evening and Sunday. We drove back Monday and took the long way around through Asheville to miss the worst of the snow on the West Virginia Turnpike. Except for a slow one lane section between Asheville and the Tennessee line the roads were fine and we had an uneventful trip. When we walked in the house it was 8 pm, 45 degrees, and the boiler was shut down.Luckily I have a regular boiler guy who came over and got it running before too long so little harm was done.

Our son is an international marketing guru who lives in New York. He recently bought a 78 Jeep Cherokee on E Bay. So far so good but the Jeep was in Portland ,Oregon. He decided that he would drive it cross country and put his finger on the pulse of hope and optimism in the heartland as he went.Things went well to Boise where he discovered the joy of transmission trouble on a Friday. It was Wednesday before he was rolling again but the transmission mechanic was more hopeful about sending his kids to college. A few more stops brought studded snow tires and chains to help on the mountain passes. Before we knew it, he was in Kansas, Arkansas, Memphis, and our house.

We were more optimistic than we had been in a week. I have to admit it really is a cool ride. The kind that makes you overlook mechanical problems and just accept them as the price of admission.The next day, he headed for NYC after picking up his aunt Libby who had gotten stranded in Cincinnati while the east coast was snowed in. Last we heard everyone made it to New York and Ben had even found a parking space.

2 comments:

Linda StarrJanuary 1, 2011 at 9:51 PM
What a cool classic, glad he made it ok and your home didn't freeze, the new year is looking up already, have a good one.
ReplyDelete
Replies
Dan FinneganJanuary 11, 2011 at 12:30 AM
Hi Dennis,
Doug and Hannah will be here April 15th-17th for their workshop. Fee is $150.00. There are a variety of places to stay etc. Contact us at the office at LibertyTown (540-371-7255) or just give me a call (540-604-6310) It'd be great if you could come! Dan
ReplyDelete
Replies

Add comment

Comments are the currency of the Blogosphere. Remember to tip your waiter.

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Why Whistle Creek

Whistle Creek is near the area where my ancestors settled in East Tennessee. It is about 6 miles west of I-75 and 8 miles south of Jellico.At various times the land was claimed by England, France, Spain, Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky,Tennessee, the Union,the Confederacy, and the Cherokee.My family was there around 1800 and possibly before.My brothers and I still own the top of the mountain and it is still very rough country. I named my studio Whistle Creek in memory of the Allens who scraped their living from the earth and managed to keep it for two hundred years.

Bricks,Bricks, Bricks

I have two loads of kiln brick at home and one more to go. Weather permitting I will get some help from my newly retired brother and haul the rest home next week. I'm still early in the planning stages for the kiln. I haven't decided yet whether to make the firebox perpendicular to the arch a la John Theis managama and groundhog kilns or to place it parallel to the axis of the arch. I do know that with #2 three inch arch brick It will be a 3"6" sprung arch on top of low walls with a sunken firebox. If i can find a saw that will cut 41/2" I can rip some of the arch brick to fill in the ends of the courses and use the arch brick on edge to make 9" thick walls. Any input appreciated.

The Pitcher and the Nun

Yesterday a couple of sweet elderly ladies came into my booth and fell in love with the pitcher from the last woodfiring. (See last Blog entry) They said they wanted to give it as a wedding gift, then they said the fatal words-" Do you take Mastercard? " I replied-" No, but I want this piece to go to a good home and I believe that if I send it home with you, you will send me a check." They agreed and we exchanged info. It turned out they were nuns.Instead of mailing me a check, they brought back a check and some homemade candy a couple of hours later.It was nice to make the sale, but even nicer to send out a little faith in mankind and have a good deed returned.

Ohio Slip

More Spring Fair Prep....

Today was spent loading a bisque kiln with pots I have been throwing the last few weeks.They are made with a really nice red clay that a friend sold me when I couldn't get earthen red at Highwater. I should be able to glaze Monday and fire the whole load again next week. This is the only clay that I fire in the electric kilns but it gives a look that a lot of people like and I can fire economically. This plus pots on hand and pots I have been glazing for the gas kiln should be plenty for spring fair so now I can concentrate on the booth.

Spring Fair

The main project of the week was to try to finish throwing a batch of red clay that I have been working on so I can get the pots fired and glazed for the big Spring Fair sale that the Clay Alliance is holding on May 2. This is the big annual sales event for the club and I am very happly to be included this year but I do feel a little pressure to up my game and have a booth that doesn't look like a yard sale. Once I get the pots fired, I will have to spend some time focusing on display space and building some nice shelving. The sale is 11 to 4 at the corner of Madison and Woodburn ( DeSales Corner) Just take 71 to Edwards rd., Edwards to Madison, Right on Madison and you will be there in a few minutes. You will have a great time and get to meet 40 of the best potters and ceramicists in the region. More info at http://www.clayalliance.org/.

*************************************