Happy New Year… a day late! Yesterday was Korean and also Chinese New Year. Jeff made traditional Korean Tteokguk soup, typically served on New Years day. It’s a simple but spicy beef soup with rice cake.

We always have sliced cabbage kimchi on the side. I like to put mine right into the soup.

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The arctic air has settled in to Seagrove, NC. It seems we spend a good part of our day trying to keep warm and making sure the pipes don’t freeze. I was fascinated by how the faucet in the bathroom sink creates a bubble when it’s on the slow drip.

We had a short snow squall late in the day on Wednesday. In just a half an hour, more snow fell than from the entire winter storm of the previous day.

The expected high for the day is 18 degrees. The low tonight will be 4. I think that may be the coldest I have experienced since moving south. I am really longing for Spring this year.

Studio work is slowly getting done. While I have been working on more square bakers and bowls, Jeff has been completing a wholesale goblet order. This time of year we are thankful for the wholesale work because we don’t have too many people shopping in Seagrove. Temps will climb into the mid 40s & 50’s by the weekend. I hope that will stir some shoppers out of hibernation.

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 This is what we woke up to this morning…

Last night I made a yummy mac & cheese. This is my own recipe where I make a standard cheese sauce with cheddar and monterey jack cheese, then add sauteed onion, cumin, and red pepper flakes. When I mix it in the pasta I add a couple cans of Rotel tomatoes. Top with seasoned panko bread crumbs and bake until bubbly. Collard greens rounded out the meal. It was the perfect dinner to enjoy snuggled up on the sofa, streaming episodes of HBO’s “Six Feet Under”, and hearing the sounds of sleet falling on the metal roof.

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We are expecting a weather event! It’s been really cold here, 27 degrees at 2pm. Snow and freezing rain are in the forecast for late this afternoon and into tomorrow. We are prepared for the worse, hoping that it won’t really happen. Last night I roasted a chicken, and today I am making chicken stock with the bones. If we lose power overnight, I can make a soup on the wood stove.

The studio is a little harder to heat than the house, so I have to admit that I have been a little slow with the clay work. I finished a litter of pigs and moved on to baking/serving dishes.

Along with ovals I created a few squared off dishes. Rather than make them in two sections I decided to try cutting a crescent out of the edge of two sides and squishing it together, a la the B Van Gilder technique. I am still concerned with cracking on the two seams so I also experimented with pushing the sides with a board to created the square. I did this right after throwing, and before cutting it off the bat.

The first two were a little wonky, but I think I finally got the hang of it. This method does leave a little ripple in the clay where it was pushed in, but I sort of like the effect… once I learned how to work with it. I am waiting for the squares to firm up enough to finish the undersides and then I will attach some handles and give them some flower stamps. I guess it’s time to put on some layers, get out there, and go to work.
Stay warm!

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6:00 pm is closing time around here. Not for studio work, but for the sales gallery. Last night I was heading out to bring in the open flags and I mentioned to Jeff that I was taking scissors with me to cut some daffodils that were blooming in the yard. He quickly dropped what he was doing to join me… he had planned to cut some for ME for Valentines Day! We went out together and each picked a few for each other and proclaimed, “Happy Valentines Day”.  We like to keep it simple.

and wouldn’t you know, our flowers were photo bombed by a pig.

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I try to throw on bats as little as possible. Between us, Jeff and I have a large number of bats both big and small. The problem with bats is that when you throw on them they take up a lot of room. Small bats are a pain because there is the extra step of throwing a pad of clay to adhere them to. A couple of months ago Jeff bought a set of bats with a remove-able center. We have both been giving a them a go.

The bats are really thick and I hope that will prevent warping in the future. Only time will tell. The space saving feature is a big plus. I am not thrilled with the way I can feel the “finger” notches when I am centering. While it bothers me, Jeff doesn’t mind it. If they hold up, we will invest in some more center pieces.
I haven’t done a whole lot of studio work in the past week, it seems paperwork, and shipping have been at the top of the “must do” list. What little wheel work I have done has been in porcelain. Bowls, plates, and mugs. Stamped with flowers and destined for black underglaze and finished with celadon.

Geesh, do I hate pulling handles with porcelain. The constant battle with cracking :-/.

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Every so often I revert back to childhood and buy a box of glow in the dark orange, mac & cheese. Might I add that it tastes even better in a wood fired bowl! Jeff thinks it’s disgusting, which is fine with me. I won’t have to share.

While waiting for the macaroni to boil, my thoughts drifted to last spring when I was cooking for my Dad after my mother died. He is a picky eater (he doesn’t think so) therefore making meals was a challenge. I knew he liked mac & cheese so I decided to make the real deal with lots of good cheese in  a creamy sauce, baked in the oven with a panko topping. I asked him what vegetable he would like with his mac & cheese and his reply was, “Your mother and I always had hard boiled eggs with it”.

Huh, what? Hard boiled eggs?? I told him that hard boiled eggs weren’t a vegetable! He didn’t care, that’s what he wanted. He had his eggs and I had a salad.

Since my mother’s passing, my sister takes Dad grocery shopping and cooks him dinner once a week. She usually makes something that he can heat up another night. He finds cooking a real chore. At first we were appalled at what he chose to eat… lots of hot dogs and beans, keilbasa, SPAM, and frozen dinners. We have finally accepted that at least he is eating. He is going to be 88 years old in another week and he may as well eat what he wants. Aside from being lonely and eating lots of processed meats, he is in pretty good health and is doing ok on his own. He takes care of his own apartment and walks to the library and church when the weather is good. I wish I lived closer so I could visit more often and give my sister a break. Hopefully I can get there in the spring.

I think I haven’t posted a photo of piggy bank in at least a week… so here is your serving of pork for the day…

Happy Sunday!

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Jeff and I are headed to Shelby, NC this afternoon. The annual “Treasures of the Earth” pottery show and sale opens tonight. If you are in the area stop in at Cleveland County Arts Council, see the show and buy some new pots for your collection. The exhibition runs through March 5, 2015.

It’s been a super busy week for us. I have spent time traveling back and forth from the bank and attorney’s office… which means we are getting closer to purchasing a new place! It is starting to seem a little more real. Keep sending good energy our way! Tuesday afternoon we drove to NC State in Raleigh to give a presentation and demo to the Triangle Potters Guild. Jeff demonstrated some of his throwing and altering techniques, while I did some sgraffito… which is sort of like watching grass grow. The guild has a great group of members and we really enjoyed the evening.

As soon as I can take a breath I will try and catch up on reading my fellow bloggers posts. I hope everyone is having a great week.

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I have posted in the past about NH potter Al Jaeger. Al lives off the grid on a beautiful piece of property in Deerfield. The NH Potters Guild community wood kiln is located on his land. At one time Al constructed these amazing, wood fired, house sculptures. They are tucked into the woods along side the very long driveway to his home and studio. Al was recently featured on the show NH Chronicle. Here is link to the segment: Al Jaeger, NH Chronicle
I think you will enjoy this little peek into Al’s world.

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