On the sufferings we are gifted.

I would like to move back to writing mornings, as in the evenings I end up falling asleep. Here I am writing back in the platform of Notion for a time while other things get resolved. It truly is a hassle that with a simple update of one plugin or platform it can lock up a smooth-running process. But I think from my experience I should know better, as change is the only constant thing that happens. It might be why I end up being so pessimistic.

Today I have off from working the big paper factory and have scheduled a full day of working on the wood kiln, Ana. Cool summer overcast days are the best days to build, as you’re not out in the heat getting sunburned. I will update more on how all that went in a later post, as I feel much of this writing the last few days has been more about what I plan to do rather than what I actually got done.

Along the lines of being more self-reliant, self-sufficient, and self-sustainable to help build a better community, I think some progress is being made. The garden is growing nicely with the rain we have been having, and we will be able to harvest some of the plants and vegetables within the next few days. We still need to weed the garden as keeping up with it all can get out of control. There are still things I need to get done besides the kiln, and there are also things dealing with family that concern me. My brother needs a bypass as they found his arteries blocked. I may need to make plans to go see him. Also it seems the oven we use to bake might have a burned-out element. Since we have a classic retro stove the parts are hard to find and very expensive. I tried all I know to do but it looks as if we will need a new oven.

I had some good pot sales for the month of June off the website. I was able to send out two large raku vases that folks were using as wedding gifts. I also sold two shave bowls that may be some of the first wood-fired shave bowls out there. I hope to add a few items each day to the online shop as for some reason Google has been showing the work to people in searches. Next on the way will be more teacups and wood-fired shave brush handles. I also would like to fire a load of pots in the rocket kiln test I am working on. For me I tend to make the pots for the tests first before I have all the firing details worked out. It may seem a bit backwards, but it always seems that no matter what tests I run with the different firing methods I will always need pots.

On a side note, I was able to finish the book The Gift by Lewis Hyde. This was a great summer read. I learned about Lewis Hyde from ceramic artist Jack Troy after seeing a speech he gave at the NCECA pottery conference some years back. After reading Hyde, I do feel a lot better about both working and making art. Many times people try to define what a real artist might be and what real art might be. For me I have no idea what a real artist or art might be and only a little about what it is not. In my view you become an artist by creating art, just as a runner becomes a runner by running. In a few posts back I talked about all of that. I am sure lucky to still have the ability to create and make work. I am sure lucky to have the physical ability to go stack bricks out at the kiln that I have been so generously given. It seems that all my sufferings that I have been gifted are a labor of love.

If I were living yesterday a second time: I would have written in the morning instead of fighting sleep in the evening. The words come clearer when the eyes are open.

Things I am grateful for: Good pot sales in June and two raku vases heading off to weddings. Jack Troy for pointing me toward Lewis Hyde.

If I get to live to be 86, I might only have: 12,648 days left. Some of them are labors. All of them are gifts. It seems the two are the same thing more often than not.