LeeU

Family is mostly gone and they never did get why I would go into art rather than something useful, like either find a husband or learn touch typing and be a secretary. Estranged from my one sibling. My daughter is super supportive, actually interested, and full of reasonable ideas/suggestions. She likes hearing about processses, glaze attributes, structural issues, marketing strategies etc. We do Zoom (she's on the other coast) and have a mutual Show and Tell--my latest ceramics and her latest sewing project . Close friends are moderately interested, mostly in the vein of "I like that color" on finished pieces, or, the dreaded "Could you make me a...." (fill in whatever is annoying to make and outside of my creative interest). They are quite supportive tho.

I'm also a member of this club. Added to that, my dad wanted a son and got me instead and decided to rectify the situation by simply treating me, including me, and teaching me, as tho I was a boy (versus the norm of not teaching girls "boy stuff" in the '50's). So I learned a lot & it has served me well all my life, including facility with many types of tools, making tools, and until I no longer "had to" do it all myself, using all manner of tools. For clay, however, my best tools are chopsticks and repurposed household thingies...whatever else I need I buy from our great suppliers and keep my life simple.

"I have always depended on the kindness of strangers." Blanche DuBois-Streetcar Named Desire (What she said.)

I use them and have always gotten satisfactory clay-not too soft and not too hard. I got 50 lbs this week (I'm in NH) and it is perfect. If you haven't contacted them and spoken directly with someone, it might well be worth letting them know you have an issue. (If you have talked to them and gotten no resolution, if it were me I'd contact again and make some noise!)

I'm going to double dip here & comment again, since I am in a completely different head space today compared to yesterday. Right now I'm enjoying a dark roast coffee from a beautiful mug by Maureen Mills. This simple object, made even more special by knowing its creator, connects me to many other cherished pieces from various ceramicists. Each item carries with it a personal link to the people and events that brought them into my life. These connections sustain the vibrancy of memories from anagama firings (w/John Baymore = extra special), studio visits, cool demos, exhibitions, lively conversations, interesting day trips, and Guild meetings. Then there's my own pieces-the keepers that have moved with me over the years, along with the newer items that I use daily for functionality and display. My relationship with these objects distills down to two essential drives: the impetus to create, and need to affirm my existence. My claywork says "I am here, I'm still breathing" (a sentiment I belted out long before Sia's "Alive".) Those two themes-creation and survival-are metaphorically expressed in my deliberatively unrefined style and especially captured in my Hidden Mask Series (1980 to the present).

I have a paradoxical relationship with the clay in my home, whether my work or other people's work. I have kind of a Yin/Yang, push-pull, thing going on at the moment. It's been emerging for a few months now. I am simultaneously embracing my treasures and deriving pleasure, comfort, inspiration and connectivity from the ceramics, scattered throughout every room & out on both porches, and yet spending an equal amount of energy divesting myself emotionally from so much possession of STUFF, regardless of value or meaning. Today I chucked 10 tea light bases into the recycle bin. They were actually perfectly fine, it just seemed I had too many. I am not motivated to sell or even give them away-so out they went. Indeed, I was relieved of a some sort of cosmic burden, and yet, very disenchanted with myself for even being in the situation. I have decided, upon addressing this QotW, to amble around Winnisquam Lake through the public trails/woods & waterfront, and scatter said tea light bases (retrieved from the bin) about the ground when no one's looking. I will tape tea lights to each. My hunch is I will feel much better after that...and it won't make a dent in the volume of really cool items that I'll keep. The executor of my "estate" (the contents of a rented mobile home that's beginning to resemble a hoarder's paradise) can deal with it later.

Either-or; both-and; yes-no. All-round value, entertainment, education, opportunity to support/assist others, respect & inclusion/all levels, ideas, connection, community, & a healthier place to be than at the mailboxes arguing w/the wrong-wing extremist from down the street.

I have an L&L EZ. Given that I can't half remember settings even after doing them a zillion times, and that I just don't like searching a site on a laptop & programming the kiln at the same time, having the wonderfully thorough manual (binder, not bound) right there (inluding notes I've added along the way) is great.

My kiln is on the enclosed back porch of my mobile home. It's a 23" wide 18" high L&L EZ and I love it. The width is most essential & the height is more than sufficient. I'd even have a hard time if I had to stretch down deeper to load. More important, had I gone any higher I would end up having a hard time filling a larger kiln (I'm not a production potter) which would then delayg anything I might have a deadline for, or, worse, risking a poor fire if the kiln is not fully packed. My kiln is set on Hardi Backer board, which was recommended by folks here & which I'd recommend. Also, my 2-cents worth is when you can afford it, buy lightweight shelves, like Advancers or Thermalite. Worth every penny and saves the back & wrists, eliminates strain on lifting/placing & you don't need kiln wash.

These rods may be a litttle for earrings, but you can get thinner ones. For me, this is a great system. It's flexible and reliable, holds a decent quantity. This is a set of Roselli Bead Racks, but I don't remember where I got them. Might have been the Ceramics Store.

I'm planning on going to the 91st annual League of New Hampshire Craftsmens' Fair " ...a beloved tradition that transforms the Mount Sunapee Resort into a bustling hub of creativity and craftsmanship. Running from August 3rd to 11th, this nine-day event is one of the oldest and most prestigious craft fairs in the country." Basically it's in a hugmongous field and has tons of pretty high end & interesting/beautiful stuff as well as more modest (i.e. affordable) offerings. I'm going to bring a chair and take up an offer to sit in Mill's & Zoldak's booth because I can't do all the walking and need a place to park it for a while in between forays. They'll be doing demos, including Steve's amazing slip trailing.

I fire all my earrings, beads, & pendants w/all sides glazed, on kanthal rods (not wire) that are suspended between whatever works for the necessary vertical height (tile setters, short posts, bead trees etc.) I make the holes to fit the rods w/a little wiggle room-it's not hard to calculate shrinkage relative to the diameter of the rods. Just pay attention to the rods diameters when ordering so they are thin enough for the purpose. I add the fittings (i.e. earring hooks etc.) post-firing.

SO COOL.......I just renewed my membership in the Guild, and had never fired in the former kiln. I'm looking forward to experiencing this one in the not-too-distant future. The setting, in the back woods of Derry, at Al's place, is stunning. It's also terrific that it is an anagama, especially since the loss of the one at the former NHIA site.