where do i start?

Well, the Vacation was less than successful.

Here's where we start. Headed to Vegas on the 14th, arrived, good times, everything was smooth (except the cold weather and Rain + Losses). Then, on Tuesday evening we head to Paso Robles to Suprise Gen's Mother, and suprised she was. Fast forward to our departure about 24 hours later, we head down I-5 in California toward the Grapevine, and it's closed because of snow! So we need to cross over to Hwy 101, all crossing paths are closed, except the one we came across 2 hours before. We backtrack 2.5 hours past Mom-in-Law's house, head down the 101 toward LA (out of our way), in hopes that I-15 back thru to Vegas will be open by the, why not? We hit Rancho Cucomonga at about 4am, and i-15 was still Indefinitly closed! We wait, and listen to the radio until about 6am, and they are still not open, our flight is at 10am, they finally opened it (limited), at about 8:30am, but it was too late. So we reschedule our flight, extend the rental car, and close out our room at Balleys. We decided to suprise my mom in the "OC", and once again, suprised she was. At 12pm on Friday, we finally head out to Vegas, and it takes a bit longer than the normal 3-3.5 hours to get there, it takes 5! So it's 5pm, and we are trying to return the rental car in vegas, we didn't have time to get our stuff from the hotel (on the way via UPS right now), we forgot to fill up the rental car (another $40 cost), and we get to the Airport with about 45mins to spare, at wich point the automated machine tells us we have to wait in the long ass line! Dramatic to say the least. Well, we made the flight, which ended up being 40 mins late, and got home at like 11:30 on
Friday night.



Gonna throw some stuff tonight, and do a Bisque this weekend, probably late sat, or early Sunday.

Xmas was good and Quiet.

-LB

Slow

So i have not thrown anything in about 1 week. I plan to do something tonight hopefully, i guess it's just as well, since i don't really have much money right now to replenish my propane, to fire. I'll try to build up some stuff in the next few days before we leave for Vegas, so when i come back i can get a good set going for the new year.

-LB

Friday for the Ices

Well, it snowed like crazy all day yesterday, and cleared today, but now it's under 10 degrees, it's Frigid!

I'm starting to realize that there are some really impressive individuals doing the pot out there. This guy Pottery at Jingdezhen, China has done some really impressive stuff, and is only 20! I'm 33.5 and i could not throw one half-assed centered pot in the time he could fill a room with quality pieces! Speaking of, i think my Wheel head is a bit warped, and it's frustrating me, i'm not sure what to do. Maybe i can replace the Head only, or maybe i can make one? All i know is it's pissing me off.

I started doing Scraffito style with my pots, i did one that's pretty cool, and have 2 more waiting for the slip treatment. There's one on the wheel now that i forgot to trim this morning, so i suppose it will be a loss, MEH, it's a lopsided mofo anyways...

-LB

nanna

Junk

Sooo, did a firing over thanksgiving, it was successful, but not super awesome. Some ok stuff, and something that didn't really fire. Here they be:

A victim of my own work

I attempted to start my Bisque last night, and it blew up 3 pieces, at which point i pulled the plug until Sunday.

It was a combination of Wet pieces, and 1 with an air bubble, but boy did they explode. The wet ones shattered everywhere, and the one with the Air bubble blew out the side and bottom.

I know better, but i didn't listen to myself. The reality is, i need to take great care when prepping, and i need to wait at lest 3 days from the time i create, to the bisque to allow from sufficient dry time.

Meh

Almost there

I'm a few days away from Bisque #2 in my hodgepodge kiln. I think i have everything i need for success now, i've got the right Glaze, i know how to get the kiln to the proper cone temp, and i even have a more suitible clay (FOR THE NEXT BATCH). I think after this round, i'm going to attempt a PIT firing at my dad's place, i may actually save 4-5 pieces just for that purpose. So maybe if i create 4-5 more in the next few days, i can get them in the bisque. Word...



On another note, i have "special ordered" a Vinyl flooring called Allure from Home Depot, it's a light Bamboo, and I'm going to do the whole 500sq feet of our kitchen/living space in the house, it's a really cool product, it looks and feels just like wood, but it's totally waterproof, and durable, and 1/3rd the cost of wood. If it works out well, I'll do the entire upstairs of the house, and trash the dog-pee carpet!

couple more pieces

I'll throw a couple more pieces for my next firing here this weekend, and see how it goes, i have a couple of shapes that i really like, and some other stuff that i don't. I'm still trying to find my stuff again, but i don't think I'm too far off. I will probably put a little more effort into the last couple of pieces i do this time, and see where it goes.

-LB

Lull

I'm in a bit of a ceramic lull at the moment. I need to produce about 10 items (8-10), to fill the kiln for the next Bisque, i suppose i could do more, and just not finish in one firing. Probably something like 3 larger pieces, and 7 small, if i were to get some new, larger stilts, i could fit one more shelf in the kiln, and place some smaller stuff also.

Now that i have the issues with Cone's, Glaze, and temp figured out, it should be ok. The kiln can reach CONE 06 (not 6), without any issue, and i can probably Bisque at 04-06, and then low fire Glaze at 06.

My next task is to call, or drive by this propane place. They re-fill tanks instead of exchanging them, so I'm hoping that it will be cheaper. It's costing me $18-21 dollars to exchange a tank, and it's taking 75% of 1 tank to do either firing. So what happens is i take in a 3/4 empty tank to get exchanged, and waste the excess fuel, plus pay a bit more.

I need to find my Style again. Right now i'm throwing various objects, but i find i don't really have a "voice". I want to throw more "robust" style bowls and such, i have found some inspiration from the website of Legendary potter Otto Heino, although i don't want to spend too much time there, for fear my stuff will end up looking just like his (his are great, but i want to be unique).

Meh.

What a dumb ass

So there i wuz, firing away with my custom kiln, thinking that it JUST WASN'T GETTING HOT ENOUGH. I was wrong, 4 of the 5 bottles of Glaze i purchased were Cone 5/6, not cone 05! Major difference! Cone 5= 2300 degrees. Cone 05 is about 1800 degrees. Shit bricks man! I could not figure out why my 06 cone would bend, but the Glaze would not flux.....

It's because I'm a retard.

But at least i voted Blue.

-LB

Mother *&%$#er

Well, i re-ran my Firing for 2 hours, with the FLU 70% closed, and it got hotter, so i had to go this morning and pickup another propane take, and try this again. I'm hoping that restricting the FLU will cause more of the heat to stay in the kiln, and out of the air.

Here's the one Piece that actually Fluxed in the 2 firings, it looks kinda funny, not enough Glaze on it, etc...



-LB

The day after

Well, candy-day in America is over, now all we have left is Election night. I have a re-Firing to look forward to. So the kiln fired last night, 5 hours, but i did something wrong, only 1 of any of the 6 pieces in the kiln Fluxed at all, and it was a larger Vase at the top.

I think, THINK, that i need to dampen the flu on the kiln, to get it to hold on to some of the heat it's pushing out of the lid hole. I hope that's the issue, because it's just not getting a high enough temp to fuse the Glaze on the pottery, not even close (probably 1-200 degrees off), what trips me out is that the 1 piece fluxed a little bit, looks kinda funny. It must have trapped heat in the position it was at in the kiln, and when i blocked the flu last night, it trapped enough in that pocket to reach CLOSE, to Cone 06.

Meh, i'll try again today with the remainder of my Propane, see how hot i can get it, and then get the tank refilled.

I was way silly thinking it would work on the first shot! Hell, it might take 10 shots!

Happy Nov 1st.

-lb

Happy Halloween?

Well, as i prepare for my Glaze firing tonight, i found out today that i have been Cleanly back stabbed at my day job. A since uncreated position was filled, one that i had requested to have a shot at (considering my experience), as it turns out, the whole time behind my back they have been planning to have someone else take those duties, in a newly created position, that will also server as my supervisor.

What really pisses me off is, i have been dedicated to this place for 5 years, i have worked hard, and protected it. This fat ass came in, worked here for 2 years, and they are promoting (with $$$), and giving him the small sliver of hope i had for moving upward in my career, and in this organization.

This sparks the end of my journey here, I'm not 100% looking for a new job, i think even if it pays the same as i make right now. I really thought they gave a shit, but in the end Bankers always look out for their own, and I'm not one of them.

Here's to good glazing on Halloween!

-LB

Glaze it like the sun

Well, I'm going to finish applying Glaze to my first successful Bisque pieces tonight. I'll probably fire it Halloween night, since we have to be home anyways. By no means will this be my best work ever, but it's truly my first independent work, from start to finish. Standby for actual fired work, it's been 16 years since i last saw that!

On a side note, i have been walking every day at lunch lately, i find that it's very pleasant, and gives me time to reflect, or just stop thinking about driving, answering the phone, etc.

It came to me today, that we have to vote Obama in, no matter what you think, it's the RIGHT way to go, the right attitude, etc. It just feels like he is normal, an actual intelligent person, with a family, who is real, and not a Character created by the times. 5 more days and we will find out.

-LB

Glaze Glaze Glaze

I went by Mile High Ceramics today, and picked up 5 different glazes. We will see how they turn out, they are pretty trick, high end glazes. Back when i was in school, we always had powdered glaze, and had to mix it ourselves. This stuff is pre-bottled, and pricey!

Viva Tuesday!

-LB

Bisque=success!

Looks like the Bisque went well, nothing exploded,and the total firing took 7 hours, then i let it cool overnight. Propane works well, although my tank is very close to being too small, and causing a freeze...

New setup

Ok, so i got this electric Kiln about 2 months ago, and i decided due to Electricity rates, that i would convert it propane. Tommorow will be the first run.. Hopefully i'm lucky.

-LB

Transition

This post is to mark a transition of this blog, to a more Pottery-centric blog. There are literally millions of them out there, some GREAT artists, some not so great. My only hope is to land somewhere in the middle. I shall never claim to be like the great ones. I don't have the education, nor the training, but what i do have is a unique perspective.

Present moment: I'm waiting on a Propane conversion for an old Kiln that i bought, and I'm planning on doing some more work this week, at least 3 more pieces to hone my skills (which are sucking from 10+ years away from the craft).

More shall come when i begin setup and such.

-LB

Old, but perfect SNL sign of the times!

Sweet

As i inch closer to moving out of the country... MY MOMENT of Zen.. : )

Political pic week

This sums up alot.

Time, She flys...

Ok, so my misson to get Gen a Different Mountain bike frame is nearly complete.  I aquired a 2005 Santa Cruz Chameleon frame, in excellent candy red conditon.  This was spurred by the fact that she recently rode my Gangreen Chameleon.  As it turns out, her 17.5 Inch felt was too big.  I had ideas of getting a complete bike in the 15 inch range, but it didn't quite work out, and if i could, i really wanted to get the SAME frame i have.  As luck would have it, i picked up this nice one.  I should have it this week, so we will see how it turns out, the plan is to have it rolling this weekend, since there's only a few more good weeks of weather before the cold/possible snow.

My intention will be to post pics.

word

-LB

There i Wuz

Another week has passed. I need to get my dad's help to get my Kiln running (maybe this weekend, or early next week), I'm lazy as all hell.

A friend sent me some info on Boat living, kinda interesting. I bought my Kiln from them, and they had left the "mainland" to live on a boat in Hawaii. It's pretty cool, i'm not sure i could handle it, but it's a neat idea.

http://www.koolinamarina.com/slips.htm

http://www.livingaboard.com/

Right now i'm focusing on getting some more $$$ out of my current employer, or looking elsewhere. I had an opportunity for an interview at a school, but i turned it down. It just ended up being a bit too far away, and it paid almost exactly the same as what i make now. Plus, the guy seemed kinda weird in a "Churchy" sort of way, and that does not suit this Devil.

Also, on my Lunch break today, i watched Cloverfield for the first time. I found it interesting, but to tell you the truth, i was more interested in the ARG leading up to the release of the movie. The movie was good, but it only contained the "event", and no real detail, and anybody who knows me i LOVE the details of a story.

Well, that's all for now.

Peace!

-LB

Bla Bla Bla

Yeah, so what.

I'm apparently obsessed with the Olympics this year, I swear, I'm watching like 3 hours of it per day. I'm not all HOO-RA "USA" or anything, i guess I'm just into the competition?

My arm is no longer gigantic from the tattoo, so i feels better now.

I need to bike more. Rode the bike to work today, and it's great, sweaty, but great...

All for now.

-LB

Hell and a Handbasket

Well, the horrible deed of inking my arm is done. It looks awesome, but what a price! My arm was like a balloon all week! it's about 98% deflated now, but i was really scared for a while. At this point, it's just sore, as if i had been working out.

I think the main cause was being tattooed directly over my elbow joint on both sides. Boy was it not happy!

more later,

LB

Oh Barf

Geese, what a last couple of weeks. I've been half-sick forever, i've been looking for a pottery kiln, and i'm half-tatooed.

Work has kinda sucked with Audit stuff going on, and becoming more bored with the place after 5 years.

There's an outside possibilty i may convince them to promote me to a Internet Security Officer, which i would hope would carry more $$$ and new things to learn. We shall see, but i fear that the end is near if they do not. 5 years was just the beginning in my dad's era, but 5 years at one place is like forever for me!

Forever for me to POOP on!

-LB

For me to poop on!

Well, my birthday/Vacation week passed. I was sick all damn week!

On the plus side, i'm now officially a Ceramic potter again, thanks to my lovely wife, and my mom. She bought me a full on Wheel (can center 100lbs of clay), and my mom got me a Gift cert for a local Ceramics shop, now all i have to do is find an old Kiln! I also got a Bike stand, i've wanted one of these for a few years now, and will allow me to work on our bikes very easily. yay.

G will be headed to scholl next month, and it's been long due. Fine arts will meet it's mach starting Aug 11, 2008. I think it's going to be excellent, we will be strapped financially for a while, but for the RIGHT reasons. Here's to fine art!

Standby while a put my assless chaps back on, and chill. more later.

8 million years later

I post to the Blog again....

Well, Gen and i are in the process of Renting out our existing house, and purchasing another in the local town. This is a brave experiment, and it may turn out good.

we were never in "LOVE" with the house we live in currently, it was more of a "we need to buy a house" thing back in 2003, and the market turned around and bit us in the Arse. I like our house, in general, but i don't like the layout, nor the neighborhood. We are about 8 miles away from the town, and we have come to the conclusion that we want to be in the middle of things, so that we can get to restaurants, ride our bikes to work, etc..

Then comes the alter battle, the one where we don't want to make a mistake in the Home we purchase, it's become such a point of contention that it could cause us to miss out, do nothing, or go insane.

The one we are putting an offer on now, is really cool. 1930's bungalow, corner lot, nice yard, little garage. Just super charming. The other we have, or "Had" interest in, is a 1950's home, a bit further away from the center of things, it's slightly bigger, but feels DARK, and a little odd. We have struggled so badly with the idea that we need more space, as compared to the charm, and fun of the older house, it's just brutal.

I think something that always brings me back to the 30's place is the fact that the current owner is a local Artist, headed back to Boston this summer. Gen is a budding artist, of many different Genre, so i kinda felt like it was "in the stars". Also, this person creates pottery, which i was heavily into about 10-15 years ago, and i still love it, doing it or not. Maybe I'll remind her of the Artistic link in this place, to make her feel better tonight.. : )

I intend to post much more often now, and stop being a loser!

-LB

Where does one start?

Well, it's been a while since i've posted, and much has transpired. Miss Gen and i are now about 85% out of debt (unsecured debt), which is incredible! I didn't think it would be in the next 10 years, but we are going to make it!

For commuting purposes, i acquired a super-fabulous 1992 Ford Festiva. It's turned out to be far more of a Basket case/project. I'm honestly not sure if i'll keep it, or just sell it. I find the "festiva" community online fascinating, but my current experiences are not all that "funtiva" ha, ha..

Finally, we just finished watching the Super Bowl, it's was less entertaining than i thought, and the Giants Won, so it was even less for me (more for Gen though).

Now, i need to not be sick anymore, i'm stuck with some sort of Throat/tonsil thing going on, where some times during the day i feel ok, and sometimes i don't. UG.

-LB

New Year, New Madness?

Well, i was just informed this evening that my Mother in-law has reached a new low (or high?). Apparently she and her better half had spent the last few days in Laughlin Nevada, Gambling, etc..

I guess she pulled in a pretty good take, something like she went there with $300, and came back with $1300. That's pretty serious when you consider that I NEVER win anything, so walking away with 1k is a pretty nice trip.

She HAD almost 2k i guess, but she was working at a table or machine(i have not had the details), but she made around $600, and went to cash it at the electronic changer, instead of the actual "cage". She proceeded to feed her stuff in, and it stopped working (in her words), so she leaves to get someone to help her. She comes back, demanding that they make it "work". Well i guess she just wasn't patient enough, because the person who was waiting behind her collected the $500 she could not wait for. The machine was re-queing itself i suppose, and she freaked.

What a shitty way to lose $500! I can think of many other ways that are much more physically damaging!

Anyway, it's just a hoot.

-LB

New Year.

Well, it's been a while since i've self-posted, it's the NEW YEAR. Alot of things have happend. 1/3 of my unsecured debt is gone, and most likely in the next 1-2 months, the rest will be gone (thanks mom), and i have a feeling it will make a huge difference.

For Christmas, i got a Electric Toothbrush that i really needed, a wikid awesome Garmin GPS that i use way too much, and a bunch of other stuff, ipod accesories, gift cards, and other cool stuff. Per usual, i'm actually happy that the holidays are over, it will be nice to get back to "normal".

This week i "switched" GEN over to a Mac Mini, and it's going pretty well. I think we are both pretty damn tired of dealing with Microsoft, and the garbage of PC's. Unfortunately it's my job, so i still have to deal with them outside of the house. I think i'll be switching also to a Mini, it's just more elegant, and some of the apps (iphoto), make it all worth it.

On Christmas Day we went and saw I Am Legend. I had read the book, and i have to say that i enjoyed the movie more. It was just as good as i thought it would be, very moving, disturbing, makes you think a bit.

BACK TO WORK! ug.

-LB