Friday, January 8, 2010

Should have stayed in bed

We were supposed to get snow last night, but all we got was a drizzly rain that caused roads to freeze this morning. Most of the schools around here had a two hour delay, but Wesley goes to a charter school and they operate independently, and no one, I guess, saw the wisdom in delaying. Soooo, on the way to school, we hit an icy patch, scary but no big deal, until we got to the bottom of the hill and saw an over turned truck. Not the best way to start the morning. After I dropped Wes off, I went another way thinking it would be less icy, nope! another overturned car at the first intersection I came to. Creeped on down the road, had to go to the Artscenter to get my stuff out of the kiln. I thought we were getting snow yesterday and my kiln is outside, so I thought TAC would be a better option. I was in a rush to meet Gerry so I unloaded still very warm pots and tossed them quickly into my tub of styrofoam peanuts, and yep, you guessed it, the peanuts promtly melted to the pots. Not the little test tile pots that I don't care about either. Just the ones that I burnished twice, put three layers of terra sig on (burnished between each coat) and had thrown and trimmed so carefully. Those are the ones the peanuts melted on! Good news is that when the pots cooled the peanuts pretty much peeled right off, there are just a couple of places that hopefully will melt off in the saggar fire. I know you folks in Cananda and Alaska must get a good laugh at all the southern chatter about snow and ice, but honestly the system just shuts down here with ice. No one can drive in it and the road crews don't have the proper equipment to get to all the roads. I am so ready for summer!!!! and I think I have a little spring fever because yesterday I worked out some new designs for garden items, lanterns and herb markers, stuff like that. I need some thoughts of warm gardens right now!

10 comments:

Laura Farrow said...

alls I can say is gggiiirrrlll!

we've got hyacinths blooming in the kitchen (from bulbs) and I can smell them all through the house, and I noticed my favorite bush (Fragrant Wintersweet) is blooming in the (Duke) gardens. I just want to take a bath in that scent. These things are helping me survive the cold.

Hugs to ya.

Tracey Broome said...

Don't you just love hyacinth!? Hot tea is getting me through it, and the electric blanket I got for Christmas a few years ago! My little orange tree is blooming and it is smelling up our house. Love It!

Peter said...

Eeek, Tracey... When I saw the first photo of the pots with the white bits on them and the pink stuff I thought..."Oh nooo the Olympic kiln has finally exploded and those are bits of props, fiber and goodness knows what!" If that happens again..... I would pop all the pots back in a kiln as soon as possible without trying to peel stuff off, and just heat them to a red heat. I think all that should burn away without affecting the terra sig, and be less risky than rubbing or peeling (just a thought).

Know what you mean about the system shutting down when there is snow and ice. Same thing happens here.

Hope you have a really great New Year,

Best Wishes P, L, and Ginger the cat

cindy shake said...

Thank god it's just peanuts!! When I first saw the photo I was thinking like Peter!! I thought one of your glazes had thrown up all over the pieces -ha! WHEW.

No criticism here about ice & snow, hell even Alaskans need to learn how to drive in the stuff :o) The news was filled with roll overs, ditch divers and rear-enders last night because of some bad freezing rain!!

Tracey Broome said...

If those photos were of an Olympic kiln issue my blog would have had to be censored! Peter, I did think that I would pop the pieces back in a hot kiln but luckily most all of the peanuts just came right off. My heat gun got the rest off, so no problem. Also they are for a saggar fire and one thought I had was that it might make some cool patterns. It's all lessons isn't it! Cindy, glad to hear the Southerners aren't the only ones driving in ditches!

cookingwithgas said...

somedays it is better to pull the covers over your head and stay in bed!
The pots- hum and here I was thinking, "what would happen if you sprayed some glaze on them with the peanuts still on?"
Thank goodness they came off.
AND what are those people thinking putting you and your darling child out in this weather?
You two stay safe.
And warm!

Hollis Engley said...

Of all the things that can go wrong in this business, who would ever have thought of melting styrofoam peanuts? I mean ... really.

Judy Shreve said...

I'm with Hollis -- who would have thought that styrofoam peanuts could ruin your day!
Glad to hear they came off -- and might actually enhance the saggar patterns.
Glad you and Wesley made it out in the icy world and back.
We had lots of icy roads - never got about 25 degrees today. I thought I lived in the South - what's up with global warming these days?

ang design said...

very sculptural trace...at least it all came off! sounds like a plan then escape the cold the garden thought of spring mmmm.. what am i saying we really don't get spring and its stinking hot outside!! hehehehe :P

Linda Starr said...

When I first saw the top photo I thought that was the effect you wanted and I rather liked it, glad the styrafoam came off with all that terra sig work did. boy those ice storms are scary with all the overturned vehicles.