After a little hiccup in Japan, Jeff arrived home last night, 24 hours later than scheduled. The airline totally destroyed his largest suitcase. Amazingly, nothing was broken or lost. Packed within his clothes were small pots, a bottle of Omija berry wine, a bottle of sake, a variety of Korean gardening tools, and some herbal medicines.

While Jeff was in Korea he experienced an herbal therapy that uses the same pressure points as acupuncture. Instead of needles, it is a cylindrical stick packed with herbs and applied with a stick on base to a pressure point. It is then lit like incense. He brought a box home and we gave it a try on my left wrist, which has been bothering me.

The herb used is ssuk tteum, aka mugwart.

 It felt very warm, at first and then got quite hot feeling. Not hot enough to be uncomfortable.

You can have these treatments in what I would call a spa, but not sure if that’s what it would be called in Asian countries. In those situations the mugwart is place in little clay pots and burned on pressure points. It can also involve acupuncture.

There is a card inside the box that maps out pressure points… of course it’s all in Korean and we will have translate it!

photo credit: Sukyoung Kim

Here are Jeff, Ron Philbeck, and Jeon Changhyun experiencing some “heating and healing” time in Korea.
Time will tell how effective these treatments can be. It sure feels good and relaxing… and afterwards the house smells like we’ve been smoking pot. Surely, that’s not a bad thing!

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 Jeff is on his way home! Last night he messaged me with these photo from Shibuya Station. He was in Tokyo, waiting for his train to the airport. He says Shibuya is Times Square x 10.

Jeff requested spaghetti with italian sausage and tomato sauce for his first meal at home. I guess he has grown weary of kimchi, rice, and fish!

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I really love a freshly painted room, but I am not in love with the process of getting there. Especially when it starts with taking down wallpaper. There are so many steps that need a day to dry before you can move on. I have taken that “in between time” to clean carpets, line shelves (I have spent a small fortune on shelf liner!), and wash ceiling light fixtures. There were a few lights that we decided right away had to go. One was the “wagon wheel light” in the den. I may have already mentioned that one. Also on the list was the light in the hallway. Financially, everything can’t be replaced at once. Which means they at least need to be clean. After getting up close and personal with some of these fixtures, I have decided that a couple of them are rather sweet and very retro.

This is the guest bedroom, ceiling light…

I like how it has the little holes to let out little dots of light, and it’s light pink with gold flecks!

It was hard to get a photo with my phone, but it compliments the bedroom light. The dot holes are actually much smaller. The glass matches the bedroom light and the can is similar, not dark like the photo. It’s not a very big fixture for such a long hall, and the hall seemed dark. When I took down the light I realized that there was only one bulb in it. With two bulbs, the space is much brighter.

The painting in the main bath is complete, except for the trim and vanity. I need some advice from Jeff on that, so I am waiting for him to return home. I am hoping a friend will help me rehang the plate glass mirror today. I know I can’t tackle that monster alone. The original plan was to replace the giant mirror with a framed mirror, but this is what we found when the mirror came down…

The walls are plaster, and they weren’t finished on the lower half. The easiest thing to do is to rehang the monster mirror. At least it is keeping with the 60’s look and a large mirror helps make a small bathroom appear bigger.
That’s the latest chapter in the new house adventure. Stay tuned for updates, unless you are already bored to tears.

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until Jeff returns! I like “me” time, but I have had plenty. I am also getting really anxious about getting this house/studio move underway. There is only so much that I can do alone.

 I asked Jeff to bring back a t-shirt for my great niece’s birthday. What I didn’t know was that the festival t-shirts are “make your own”. The people working the booth apply a stencil for you to sponge paint the design.

The finished shirt looks like this…

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 and I am quite proud of her for doing it!

This weekend Danielle ran her second 200 mile relay race. The race is run in teams of twelve (I think) with each runner doing a few legs of the course. This year they ran from Hull to Provincetown, MA. The team rents a van, one member runs and one drives the van while the other teammates rest. They do get to stop occasionally for real food and they did all sleep for three hours on the side of the road.

I am so proud of this girl! She has grown up to be very active and outdoorsy. The total opposite of what she was like as a kid. As a child she was afraid of bugs, and didn’t like to get sweaty. When she went off to college she hated the dorms because the floors were linoleum and there was no carpeting. Never mind the shared bathroom thing. Here she is today, sleeping on the side of the rode, and I am sure she was mighty sweaty.

I may be spending Mother’s day alone, but having the joy of being Danielle’s mother is enough for me. I hope all you mothers out there are having a wonderful day, no matter how you spend it.

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I am heading to Charlotte, NC tomorrow for the Carolina Clay Matters, Spring Pottery Festival. Last year Jeff did the show alone because I was in NH for my Mom’s funeral. This year I will go it alone because he is in Mungyeong, S. Korea. I opted to simplify the booth to make set up and break down easier. I am leaving the Abstracta display system at home because it’s such a pain to put together. I am sure someone will give me a hand with the EZ-UP tent that really isn’t so easy!

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 I was heading out to the studio yesterday when I noticed something hanging off of the porch roof, swaying in the wind…

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I am finally getting some photos from Jeff that aren’t toilets and signs.

S. Korea is 13 hours ahead of us. While I was thinking about dinner, he sent me this photo of his Korean breakfast. All I could think of was, damn… I want that for dinner!

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Eventually we will replace these pain in the ass crank out windows. We have a few broken pains that will need replacing. I am hoping it won’t be too difficult (or expensive) to find someone to do it.
Doesn’t the “indirect” lighting in the master bedroom remind you of a hospital? And how ’bout those bedside wall lamps?!

It was 8:15 pm in S. Korea and this is the evening hang out for the festival participants. The 7-11 is next to the hotel and there is outdoor seating. They can go in and buy beer or soju and drink it outside.
The timing of this trip was definitely not ideal. Jeff could have declined the invitation but would it have jeopardized future invites? Thankfully we don’t have to be out of the log cabin by a certain date. I know that everything will fall into place… eventually.

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I must have misunderstood, I thought he said this was a POTTERY trip, not a POTTY trip.

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