Cell phone lodged in woman's throat

If you can't say something nice....

The Kansas City Star

A Blue Springs woman was taken to a hospital emergency room early today after a cell phone became lodged in her throat.

The woman was in an argument with a boyfriend when the incident occurred, said Sgt. Steve Decker of the Blue Springs Police Department.

Decker said police were told that the woman tried to swallow the telephone because she didn't want the boyfriend to have it. However the case is under investigation.

Police responded to a call about a non-breathing person about 4:50 a.m. in the 3000 block of Southwest U.S. 40, Decker said. Police arrived and found that the 24-year-old woman was having trouble breathing. Her identity was not released.

The woman was taken to the emergency room at St. Mary's Hospital in Blue Springs. She still had the telephone in her throat upon arrival at the hospital, Decker said.

A condition report was not available.

ScooterPie

We got Elizabeth a dog for Christmas. She has had him a few weeks. This is the year for early Christmas presents for some reason. The kids computer died, so Connie and I got them a new Mac Mini for Christmas, but gave it to them early so they could use it in the meantime. Zack needs it for school work and Elizabeth has quite a few fun sites she like to work on.

My sister, Robin, had two dogs a neighbor was trying to give away. Mom took one and we took the other, which is the runt. He's a cutie and doing pretty well. I always forget how much work it takes to train a dog, but Connie and I are both pretty good with animals. He's going to do fine. We finally let him meet Aslan, our Golden Retriever. He acts like his regal self and pretty much ignores Scooter, who is jumping all over him most of the time. But at least he is kind to Scooter. Could easily have him for lunch if he wanted to!

Yesterday, Connie went to get Scooter to bring him back in the house and he was all wet! he had fallen into our pool. Poor thing. Good thing I run 20 degrees warmer than the rest of the world. I cuddled him and got him warm again. See, I'm good for something!

Christmas Show Pictures

Here a few pictures I promised from yesterday's Children's Christmas Program at my church.

In the first picture you see our choir. The children did great. They sang 6 songs. The little girl in the front by the mic stand, the blond, is my daughter, Elizabeth.

The second picture is my son, Zachary, who was narrating the story of the shepherds.

The third picture is my daughter, Elizabeth, performing her first piano solo in church, The Waltz of the Christmas Toys.

Christmas Sunday

This morning we had our Christmas program with the school children. I was rather disappointed as 5 of our students were no shows. That was about 1/3 of our choir. But the remaining students did a great job. They sang 6 songs. We had 3 instrumental solos by the children and a narration by my son, Zachary. Had a pretty good crowd as well.

The program was followed by refreshments. All in all a very nice day. I'll post pictures when I get them loaded onto my computer.

Christmas Stuff

Christmas is close at hand and I haven't bought one present, haven't decorated, haven't bought a tree and that's just okay with me. Been so busy lately. Made several presents and I'm pleased how they've turned out so far. Hope the recipients are pleased as well. That's the hard thing about making gifts. They can't take them back for refunds!

Our Christmas program for the school is on Dec. 18 @ 9:30 a.m. if anyone wants to attend. It will be the school children performing for the church and their parents. That usually gets us a good sized crowd.

I've taught the children 6 Christmas songs. Some of them are not as popular as what you usually hear on the radio, but I like them. The kids liked them and that's what's important. I think it will be a nice program.

How I did

I didn't realized I never posted about the ceramics show after the fact. First of all, I am glad I did it. I got to see reactions to the type of things I made. I learned that people liked my regular stuff much more than they did my Christmas stuff. (Sure glad I crammed in so much Christmas stuff the last few weeks.)

People liked my ceramic roses the most. They also seemed to like my handmade stuff better than the molded stuff I just buy and glaze. I sold more of my vases etc. than any premade things I just glazed. So, that made me happy too.

I made enough to pay for my space and buy a few dinners. I guess I can't complain about that. I had a nice gal next to me and we were both first timers, so we had an interesting time figuring out what sold and why. A ceramic instructer next to me sold nothing. I felt kind of bad because she does this for a living and I sold more than she did.

Anyway, it was a good experience. I'll do it again next year and I'll start looking for other shows. I heard that there's a very good show in Lakewood. I'll have to try to find out about it.

Ceramics Show Tomorrow

Wow! I can't believe how much stuff I have made for tomorrow's show. I hope it isn't a bust. I must have 6 large boxes of stuff. Lots of stocking stuffers, plus some good sized vases and bowls and much more. The hardest thing is selling pieces I really like, but I can't keep it all and I can't give it all away, either. I've spent a lot of money buying the kiln and slab roller and potter's wheel. (Well, my dear wife bought me the slab roller.)

Some of my newest work is pictured below. That juicer has been popular in that color. I suppose yellow is a kitchen color. The head started out to be Santa Clause, but then it didn't look like him to me and I decided it was Jack Frost. Then when I put the glaze on it and fired it, as I was taking it out of the kiln, I decided it was my friend, Wayne, from church! (Don't know if he'll think that is a complement or not, but I really like it.)

The slab vase is an experiment using stains instead of glazes. It's very rustic and I'm pleased with it.

I love the last one. It's much more organic than most of my work. It sort of looks like a lava flow if the lava was guacamole! :-) Anyway, it's a very different candle holder and I'm very pleased with how it came out.

Samples

Here are some samples of some of my work I fired yesterday. Most of this will be at my shown on Saturday.

Correction

In the previous post, I wrote that the Santa's Workshop was behind the La Mirada Library. Actually, it is on the other side, near the fire station. You want to go in the back entrance, facing the park. I will be in booth 20. There's supposed to be food etc. sold there as well. I've never gone to one before, so that's about all I can tell you. But it should be an interesting day. Elizabeth is in a parade the same day for Brownies! So, Connie will be there part of the time. Zack will be there to help me out, however.

Ceramics Show

I'm going to be selling some of my things at the Santa's Workshop on Saturday, Dec. 3, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. I'll be selling mostly my smaller stuff. They want stocking stuffers, but I'll bring some of the bigger things for presents. Elizabeth has a parade on that same day. Wish I could see that, but Connie can go to that while I do the Show. I've got Zack to help me set it up as well. Should be a fun experience. I've not had a show yet.

I had thought of joining the La Mirada Arts Colony, but when I called for information, the guy I talked to really talked me out of it. He said I'd be the only potter so I could never compete and made it sound really boring. So, I'll opt for a local show now and then instead, I guess.

Anyway, if you're able to come by on Dec. 3, I'd love to see you. It's on La Mirada Blvd., north of Rosecrans and south of Imperial behind the library in the new Activity Center. I think part of it is inside and part is outside.

Thanksgiving

Getting ready for Thanksgiving. Everyone is coming to our house this year because we can seat the most for dinner. Here's who is coming: Mom, Connie, Zack, Elizabeth, Robin, David, Tyler, Mary, Becky, Tony, Anthony, and ME! I'm cooking the turkey, Connie is making her wonderful pies, and the rest will make the rest.

We have a BIG surprise for Elizabeth tomorrow. Early Christmas present. I'll post picture here tomorrow, hopefully.

Bob

Mom

Had a scare the last couple of days. Mom was at home, a friend was visiting her. The friend noticed Mom didn't seem herself. Mom was dizzy and seeing with blurred vision. So, the friend insisted on taking her to the Dr. who put Mom in emergency. Her blood pressure was 209. So, she stayed overnight and came home yesterday afternoon around 4:00. Her BP had come down to about 150.

Andre Again!

Well, I think I'm being stalked by Andre Crouch! Just kidding. But I went to a wonderful play called "Carnegie's In My View" and guess who was there? Yup, Andre Crouch. His cousin is a friend of a man in my church and she saw me and took me down to meet him and we chatted about his reading my article about him and then his calling me on the phone and ended up talking about pastoring and how hard it is. He's a very down to earth man and it was exciting for me to get to talk to him once more.

Space Cadets-This is just too much fun

Space Cadets hoax out of this world
By This is London
16 November 2005
A new reality TV show is aiming to pull off the biggest hoax in TV history - by persuading a group of Britons that they have been blasted into space

The new Channel 4 series Space Cadets has been under wraps since the idea first came about 18-months ago.

Nine people will be told they are set to visit the final frontier as space tourists and that in preparation they will undergo intensive training in Russia courtesy of the Space Tourism Agency of Russia, but in reality the groups will be "trained" for space in a disused airbase in a secret location in the UK.

Unbeknown to them, their shuttle will be a Hollywood creation, made originally for the film Space Cowboys.

A giant custom-built screen positioned just outside the shuttle will, it is hoped, provide the illusion of a view of Earth from space including a hurricane over Mexico and a glimpse of the UK on one day when cloud cover parts.

The launch sound has been created by a Hollywood sound specialist while the shuttle will tip and rock in the process.

Channel 4 admits that the joke could be on them if the participants, who are currently being selected from a group holed up in a secret location with no contact with the outside world, cotton on to the stunt.

Three actors have been placed in the group and will be able to report back on whether there are any suspicions.

What's Happening Now

Didn't realize it had been so long since I posted. I've been quite busy with school completing the first quarter and giving finals, grading papers and getting ready for Parent Teacher Conferences.

I don't think that I've mentioned that I have entered into the La Mirada Christmas Craft Show on Dec. 3, 2005, in the La Mirada Activity Center. I hope to have more info on that soon, but if you're in the area, I hope you stop by and say hi. I'll be selling mostly smaller ceramic things I've made. They asked us to emphasize stocking stuffers, so I'm making a lot of Christmas pens. My sister in law is sending me back some of my things have haven't sold as well as some of her craft items for me to try and sell for her. Hope we'll both do well.

I'm going to be taking some Christmas Pots, pins, magnets as well as some of my freestyle hand work. I've got some interesting vases and the like to sell. I've got some Christmas ornaments in the works and I hope to have some candles ready by then as well.

I've tried hooking up with some other candle makers to use my pots for candles, but it hasn't worked out yet. I may just end up learning how to do that myself. Turns out Elizabeth has a Brownie parade in Whittier the same day, so I think it will be Zack and me selling in the first half of the day, at least. I made a jughead that was supposed to be Santa, but it doesn't look much like Santa, so I think he's now Jack Frost! Wasn't that easy? The license we artists take. :-)

Texas Pastor Electrocuted During Baptism

I have watched in terror many times as pastors did this. It finally happened.

WACO, Texas

A pastor performing a baptism was electrocuted inside his church Sunday morning after grabbing a microphone while partially submerged, a church employee said.

The Rev. Kyle Lake, 33, was standing in water up to his shoulder in a baptismal at University Baptist Church when he was electrocuted, said Jamie Dudley, a church business administrator and wife of another pastor there.

Doctors in the congregation performed chest compressions for 40 minutes before Lake was taken to Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, Dudley said. Police said they weren't called and the hospital referred calls to the church.

The woman Lake was baptizing was not injured, Dudley said.

Pastors at University Baptist Church routinely use a microphone during baptisms, Dudley said.

"He was grabbing the microphone so everyone could hear," Dudley said. "It's the only way you can be loud enough."

About 800 people attended the morning service, which was larger than normal because it was homecoming weekend at nearby Baylor University, Dudley said.

Lake, who had a wife and three children, had been at the church for nine years, the last seven as pastor, Dudley said.

Ho Ho Ho

After teaching my cermics class how to make jugheads, see picture below, I was inspired by my wife, Connie, to try something for Christmas. I'm considering entering into a Christmas show in La Mirada. Connie suggested I try making some jugheads that look like Santa Claus. So, I started last night and almost finished it. (I think it looks like a Mexican Santa.)

I'll post a picture when I'm done, but it's rather interesting. It looks like a very old fashioned Santa. Almost reminds me more of Jack Frost. But once it's glazed, I think it will be pretty cool.

The one I made is pretty large, so I'm thinking of making some much smaller. The boutique I may enter is asking for vendors to sell things on the small side. Most of my stuff is probably bigger than they want. However, my sister-in-law, Cathy, is probably going to send most of my ceramics back to me because they haven't sold that well at the fairs. (Nothing much is selling there.) So, that will give me a lot small stuff to sell.

Eagle Trophy

This year at school we are letting students have a small eagle to keep at their desks to show they are the student of the week in their class.

For Student of the Month, I am making a large ceramic eagle. Then I take it to a trophy shop where they mount it on wood and put a brass plate on it with the student's name and month they won the award.

Here's a picture of it. I just sold one for $50.00 to someone who wants to give it to their pastor.

New Ceramic Items

I'm been playing around with some new techniques and items. Some are quite fun. I'm posting some pictures. One is called a jarhead or a jughead. They were used for scaring kids away from stills in the mountains. They are kind of scary looking!

The other picture is of some crystals I designed. Simply a piece of art, no function. There's always a raging debate amongst potters about form and function. I'm starting to lean more towards form. Function requires so much perfection and you should be able to duplicate it successfully. I'm not really there yet. But form is always different and hopefully beautiful. Well, can't say beautiful about the jughead, but it certainly is different! Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Decisions

I'm thinking of joining the La Mirada Arts Colony. They have memberships for the entire family that are quite reasonable. By joining, I would have some venues for showing my work. So far, that just hasn't happened. They are having a show in November, so it could be fun. It will be something I have never done. I need to get more information. I try to make several pieces a week, but with school and work, it's not always that easy. This seems to be a very small group and they don't currently have any potters in the group, so I guess that helps me out as well. Won't be any competition in my field.

It's not my fault!

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/10/18/051018164658.5t5yxs3t.html

I just found out I am not overweight. I just have a virus. Read the link above!

Bob

Here I Sit

I've got After Care duty again today. I was lucky Monday was a holiday, so I didn't have to do it then. So, here I sit, glad to have the internet to keep me busy.

The good news is that we have the whole computer network up and going. We now have the Distance Learning ready to go, so people can connect to our school computers even if they live out of state or even in another country. So, if you know someone wanting to home school, but feel the need help, we might have the solution because all the curriculum is on their computer and they can work with a teacher live, asking questions and getting things graded immediately. I'm excited about that.

On the ceramics front, I'm trying to connect with a friend of my sister Robin, who makes candles. I'm trying to get her to pour candles in some of my small pots. Her candles are much more fragrant than most. My thinking was that when people finished their candles, they'd have a pot for a plant or a bowl to use as they wish. What do you think of that idea?

I'm hoping people will buy some of my things for the Christmas season. I have some nice gift items. We'll see. I need to update my online studio site.

Best Fund Raiser Yet

Our school is always needing more money. Maybe this is the way to go. If I could just find an overweight pastor...

FATHER Pete Colapietro, known as the "whiskey priest" for reasons completely unclear to me, is going through hell for a heavenly mission.

"Knocking off the occasional mild restorative called bourbon is a breeze, but sacrificing pasta, now that is tough," said Father Pete, 57. "But let's all remember that all suffering is temporary."

The good shepherd of Holy Cross Church on West 42nd Street and the guardian of the Holy Cross School at Times Square is going through a painful diet for the cause of his students.

It started in the Hamptons Aug. 6, at an annual fund-raiser for Father Pete's school when someone came up with the idea that was going to put him through great anguish and self-denial.

"Lynn Wiegand, a great lady of Manhattan and Quogue, a charity maven of some status, figured I was too fat," Father Pete recalled with a sigh of resignation.

"Lynn organized 40 pledges from local friends. Collectively, they paid $2,000 to the school for every pound I lost. Most of them were $5 pledges per pound but there were two or three who pledged $100 [per pound]." The money is for the school which has 400 students starting at pre-K to the eighth grade. Some students come from as far away as central New Jersey. More than 90 percent are minorities and 30 percent are non-Catholics.

"It costs parents $2,000 a student per year, but truthfully it costs $2,900 to educate each child, so somehow we have to make up the rest from charity and just people's good hearts," Father Pete said.

When Father Pete started his "diet for God" regimen, he weighed in at 317 pounds.

The diet is being monitored by a doctor, and Father Pete weighed in on Friday at 293 pounds, a loss of 24 pounds, putting the pledgers on the hook for $48,000 in contributions to the school.

"Settling day is on St. Patrick's Day next in the rectory, and I want to get down to 250 pounds even if I have to have my right leg amputated," he laughed.

Glazes

It was months ago, during the summer, that I was given 2 vans full of glaze materials. The problem was that I had no idea how to use them, but I knew I had been given a great gift. Well, after reading a ton of books and researching on the net, I finally figured out how to make glazes. (The measuring is chemistry, weighing everything in grams etc.)

Anyway, I fired my first home made glaze yesterday. It was a simple clear glaze. Looked like mud when I brushed it on, but it fired beautifully. A very nice clear glaze. Now it's time to start messing with it to get some other colors into it. It was a big step for me. I have done a lot of different things lately. I will have to post pictures of my new work. It's quite different from what I had done previously.

The Pictures

The top picture is of Zack and Elizabeth at Neff Park. They liked this old tree with the huge roots and wanted to climb it. (Notice how tall Zack is getting?)

The next picture is Neff House. It and the George House are the oldest two houses in La Mirada. Mr. Neff and Mr. MacNalley owned this property. It was a working ranch and very famous for the olive groves. La Mirada still has a lot of olive trees in this part of the city. Mr. MacNalley is of the famous Rand/MacNalley, the famous Map makers. If you look at a Rand/MacNalley map of California, you'll see that La Mirada is show much more prominently than you'd think for such a small city. I've heard it was an agreement that was contracted into the company many years ago.

The next picture is of a lady who was demonstrating lace making. It was fun to watch. They move those little spindles back and forth, creating the lace. It was fascinating to watch.

The last picture is a beautiful quilt. Connie loved it so we bought some raffle tickets to see if we could win it. Many of the groups at the park were demonstrating something and trying to get interest for their various organizations. They did a great job of it.

Neff Park Pictures

Here are a few pictures I took while at the Neff Park Celebration.

What's a Neff?

What's a Neff? was the cry of all the students at La Mirada High, where I went to High School. Neff High was our rival school. But the Neff family was the founding family of La Mirada with the McNalleys of the famous Rand/McNalleys who make maps. Anyway, it was the 29th anniversary of the park that has the original Neff House, George House and the Neff Barn, all of which are the oldest buildings left standing in my town.

Our whole family went there and there were many booths with crafts, various civic groups, and of course, FOOD! We had a nice time, stayed about 3 hours. They had a baking contest. I had told Connie she should make a pie, but it was a busy week. Anyway, we didn't see even one pie there! So, she would have been an instant winner I guess. I'll post pictures of that soon as well.

All Fired Up

Have a load in the kiln right now. We have 13 children in our new ceramics class at school. I'm teaching kids from Kindergarten through 11th grade and all together, mind you. It actually works quite well. I find with crafts that kids are having so much fun that they tend to just help each other. I also have 2 teachers in the room with me and one parent, so it's pretty tame in there. Anyway, I'm firing at least 13 coasters, which was their first project. They also made some things with pinch pots, so they are being fired to bisque. (the coasters are now glazed and being fired.)

But I am excited about a few things I did myself. I made a face jug. I've always liked these. It's a jug as in "little brown jug" that has a face sculpted on it. The original idea was to make scary faces on them to keep kids afraid of going near moonshiner's stills. They, the jugs, were placed in trees and bushes to scare kids away. I think this one will be pretty cool when it's done. I might make a lot of them. A good gift for your boozer friends. (Just kidding)

I am also firing a new glaze called Apricot crackle. Can't wait to see what it is. It is a discontinued glaze and I got a whole gallon for $10.00, which is VERY cheap for glaze. Bought 4 others that I haven't tried out yet. I'll post pictures when I'm done.

Saturday

It's been another very busy week. School is going well. I think this will be a very good year. The finest bunch of students we have had in a long time. Although I needed another full time job like a hole in the head, I am enjoying teaching high school again. I always did like teaching and it's much more fun than administrating things.

Poor kids don't know what has hit them. I have them studying Call of the Wild with me, going through "The Singer" as a Bible study each morning and reading the a chapter of the Book of John each day. There will be much more literature and composition this year, since this is my thing and I feel it is very important.

Public schools have senior projects that are requirements for graduating. Private schools don't, but I'm thinking of implementing it, just to assure good writing skills. Our students do a lot of essays and smaller writing projects, but they need more 'official' term papers under their belts. (keeps those pants up.)

Also had a student's dad offer to coach basketball for us. That's a blessing. I said, "yes" right away.

Prophetic Powers

Sometimes I scare myself. Tonight was no exception. Connie and I decided to watch the Emmy Awards, even though we don't watch many of the programs they celebrate. But I like Lost and Raymond and wanted to see them win.

So they announce that they are going to have a contest to vote on the CBS website. They are going to vote for the greatest 4 TV theme songs in TV history. So, I say to Connie, "Well that would have to be Green Acres!"

Seconds later, none other than the great D, Donald Trump and some gal are singing the theme song. I never laughed so hard. I guessed the second one as well, before they announced it, but then the ruined my chances by announcing the others ahead of time.

I loved Green Acres. Certainly one of the funniest shows ever. But only Jim Eagon will probably get this. :-)

Baby Sitting

Here I sit in the playground after work. We lost our after care lady and the teachers and I are rotating staying until 6:00 p.m. BUT, the weird, but good thing, is that for some reason, our playground has a very strong wireless signal that I can get on my laptop! Ha ha, takes a lot of the boredom out of the job. There's a Christian coffee shop/bookstore that has a wireless connection, so my guess is that's where it's coming from. I wish it made it into the classrooms or my office. That would be nice. So now, when I have to do research, I have to go sit at a picnic table in the playground. So, I'm sitting here, writing my blog, listening to Hugh Hewitt on the internet. Pretty cool!

Maclectic BBS

Many of you know that I have run a Bulletin Board System since 1986 called Maclectic BBS. I've "reinvented" it again with a new web portal called PHPNUKE. I really like the new design. The board centers on Macintosh Computers, but is "eclectic" in nature, covering politics, religion, entertainment and much more. Please stop by and give it a look. I'd love to see you register and participate on board. It's lots of fun.

Bob

http://maclectic.com/PHP-Nuke/index.php

Andre Calling

I don't normally have a very exciting life, an unusual one, yes, but not terribly exciting. That is until Saturday afternoon, of course. I was outside squirting Elizabeth with the hose when Zack came out with the phone for me. I had a hard time at first hearing who was calling. (What's new about that?) But eventually I realized that the person on the other end of the phone was none other than the famous gospel singer, Andre Crouch!

For those of you who don't know this, Andre Crouch was one of the most innovative Gospel singers in the 60's and 70's. He had a group called Andre Crouch and the Disciples. He still does concerts, but he also does a lot of producing for music behind the scenes now. He also pastors his father's church in Burbank. I believe his father has since passed away.

Why did he call me? Well, many months ago, I wrote an article in our church bulletin about Andre receiving a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. A member of my church knows Andre's cousin. She gave the article to Andre. He saw it yesterday and felt like he wanted to call me and let me know that he was grateful about the words I wrote. We talked about 10 or 15 minutes and I was really blessed to receive that call from him. I guess he is the most famous person I have ever spoken too at this point in my life.

You might remember some of his classic songs:

Through it All
Soon and Very Soon
The Blood

I think it is pretty cool for someone in his position to take time to call someone just to say thank you for such a small thing. I'll never forget this. (Debbie, if you're reading this, you and Becky will certainly remember Andre.) The first time I saw him was when Inez and Howard Bryant took our youth group to see him sing at Whittier College. I must have been around 15 years old.

3 more weeks!

Only 3 more weeks of summer freedom and then school begins. I'm still hoping to register some more students before then. Usually, we get a lot of last minute inquiries. I hope that holds for this year as well.

I have 3 students to interview this week. I'm still waiting to hear from some parents about whether or not their children are coming back or not. I find it so strange that some people refuse to tell you their plans.

I'm going to have to make a lot of things before school starts. I have the entire new Student's Handbook to print out. It's finished except for the pagination of the table of contents. Lots of printing to do. The Slide Show for the Parent's Night is almost finished as well. I'm feeling pretty good about this new school year getting off to a good start.

Masks

I promised a while back that I would show you the masks the kids and I made together. Zack didn't get his done in time for the last firing, so here are the ones Liz and I made. Mine is supposed to be Corkey, my parrot. Elizabeth's is supposed to be Taz. They were quite a bit of fun and I know the school kids will love making them.

Roses

Some people think my roses are the best thing I make. I certainly do like making them. I've made them for years, but I used to make them out of bread dough. Ceramics is much more durable. You might want to think about giving these for Christmas, anniversaries, or birthdays. Every woman I've showed them to has gone crazy over them. They sell at my store for $10.00 a piece if shipped, only $6.00 if you pick them up. These are how they come out of the kiln. I add stems and leaves to them so you can put them in vases. I've found people prefer these colors better than solid colors. I certainly do myself. I've found people like to get colors to match their decor and that's pretty easy with my ceramic roses.

Garden Bunny

I made this one for my sister in law that I sell bunnies to, but she said it would be too big an item for her to carry. But I made it anyway. I thought it was really cool. So, I'll either put it up for sale or stick it in my own garden. Let me know what you think of Farmer Bunny.

I fixed this photo so Bunny would be standing up, but it reverted back to sideways. So, place your head on a table and look at him and he'll seem right side up!

Bob Bunny

New Products

I promised to post a few of my latest ceramic pieces. These just got out of the kiln this last week.

More Kiln news

I am firing some more things right now. When you make a pot a day, believe me, it starts to add up! We're having a silent auction at our school Sept. 8, so I'm going to plant some plants in my pots and make some candle holders out of them. I also went and bought some lovely greenware for the auction. I bought a pretty pitcher, a tea pot, and an orange squeezer. Just to bide some time, I got these and I'll just glaze them. I think Connie wouldn't mind having some of them either.

I also bought this magnificent eagle stature. It is so majestic. I'm thinking of giving it away for the Student of the Month. Our mascot is the Eagle. I'll post pictures when I'm finished.

Bob

Kiln Openings

I read something interesting yesterday online. It talked about how some people who have studios send out emails announcing Kiln Openings. In other words, people come to see the kiln open and get first dibs at whatever is in there if they want to buy something.

That might not make too much sense to you unless you've ever seen what goes into the kiln and what comes out. Types of glazes, variations in firing temperatures and timing all affect what comes out on your ceramic pieces. So, even the potter isn't exactly sure what will turn out on each piece. The hardest thing about pottery is to wait long enough to open the kiln so you won't crack everything inside by a rush of cold air coming in. It's like Christmas as you look at each individual piece and see how it has turned out.

So, I can see how an established potter, who has a dedicated clientele, could have such "openings" or "Parties". I opened my kiln at 6:00 a.m. this morning. I like to put it all out on our dining room table for everyone to see when they wake up. It's rewarding to hear the oohs and ahhs as they see each new piece.

This opening revealed my mom's finished napkin holder. (I'm sure she gave up on ever seeing it finished. It was a complicated piece, but it turned out great.) The masks we did were pretty cool. I tried out a new glaze called "Bark" and it is a very interesting glaze that sort of looks like tree bark, at least it is an organic look that I like. I am getting a lot of little pots made as I do my "pot a day" throwing. I'm going to make them into candle holders and small planters for the most part. It has helped me a lot to make a pot a day, so I'm going to keep at it.

I also have a new "gold" glaze, that turned out quite interesting. This first use of it came out as a "black Gold". It's sort of a black luster with a gold tinge to it. It's supposed to be more gold than I got, so I probably have to adjust the temperature next time.

Well, I've probably bored you all with this, but it's my latest experience to share. I'll post the new things on line at my pottery store and then you can see the pictures.

With Christmas coming, I hope you might consider getting gifts from my studio for friends. I need to spread the word on this site as not enough people seem to have found it. I sell some from it, but I need to find an outlet for the rest of these creations.

http://studio.maclectic.com

All Fired Up

Staying home today with the kids. It's nice and cool, the way I like it. I'm firing up my kiln today. I had 26 pieces to fire, but I couldn't fit them all in!

I'm firing two of the three masks the kids and I made. Zack hadn't finished glazing his yet. I'm also trying out a new idea of painting on terra cotta pots. We'll see how that comes out.

I'm having a silent auction at school on Parent's night. If anyone wants to donate something for the auction, I'd sure appreciate it. I'm afraid it will turn into an art show for me instead! I will be putting up several things I have made. The terra cotta pots and the masks will be there for the parents to see. Hoping to get those whistles done as well. I have way more ideas for the pottery class at school then I have time to make things.

For the Love of Mac

Several people were injured this morning as thousands of people rushed to buy used Apple iBooks for $50 each from the Henrico County school system.

The Associated Press is reporting that a stampede broke out when the gates to the Richmond International Raceway, where the sale was being held, were opened at 7 a.m. The county was offering 1,000 used iBooks for $50 each to Henrico residents, who began lining up overnight. Several people are said to have suffered minor injuries in the stampede. Sales were limited to one computer per person.

Whistle While You Work

I've been working with my kids on projects we can make at school this year. The other day we made some clay masks. They came out pretty good. I made one that looked like a bird, Corkey was my model. Zack made a face with a tongue sticking out that was pretty cool. Elizabeth made a good one and I've forgotten what it is supposed to be! I'm in the doghouse now, but it came out well.

Today I found several sources for making whistles out of clay. I'm sure the kids would love to make those. I look at the various things kids are making in other schools and I'm quite astounded at the talent out there. I can't wait to see what our kids will make this year.

A Pot A Day

I was reading one of my online ClayArt discussion groups and a lady mentioned that she was having trouble with throwing on the wheel. She made a pot once a week, but didn't seem to make any progress. The response was, "You'd better make a pot a day if you want to get any good at it."

So, I am making a pot a day. And I'm getting better each day! Glad for that, but what in the world am I going to do with 30 pots at the end of the day. My stuff isn't selling that fast!

Oh, well, if you're a mild acquaintance of mine, you might get ready to look surprised when you get your pot this Christmas. :-)

Glazes Come Home

When we got to the freecycle.com location the husband was cleaning and putting all the stuff out on the grass. There were many 5 gallon buckets, a whole bunch of 5Lb bags of minerals, and some 1 gallon jars. What I ended up receiving was not what I was expecting, but in the long run, I think it was a very good thing for me.

You see, I have been doing my pottery the easy way, but also the more expensive way. I'm a painter so I like to have many colors on my pottery. Therefore, I have been using glazes that are similar to paint that I buy ready made. My teacher, on the other hand, dips his bisque pieces into large buckets of glazes that he mixes up himself. The downside is that you tend to get a one colored piece, and I got tired of the colors pretty fast.

What I received in this offer, however, were a LOT of the various minerals and chemicals that one uses to make their own glazes from scratch. So, basically, I have received a giant chemistry set! Now I have to learn how to combine all of this to make my own glazes. My teacher, Gary Hamner, knows a lot about this, so I am now going to be getting into a new angle with my pottery experience, which is rather exciting.

My Eyes Glaze Over

This morning should be an interesting start to the day. My friend Doug told me some time ago about a group called freecycle.com. The premise is as follows. To keep things from going into landfills, we should recycle things as best we can by simply offering them free to others instead of throwing them away. Well, he called me a couple of days ago because there was a listing about someone giving away a truck full of free glazes for ceramics. He thought I might be able to use them for myself or for the school.

So, I responded to the email list and after a day of consideration, I won the offer. So, this morning Connie,Zack and I are off to get it. The question is what is the stuff like? Glazes can dry up etc. so I'm not sure what I'm getting myself into. I'm hoping I'm not just taking a load of stuff out of someone's garage for them. I have no idea where I'm going to put all of this stuff, anyway. Should be interesting. Mom's giving me some room in her garage to store things, so that will help. My studio takes up about 1/3 of the garage as it is. I've thrown so much out and there's still so much to get rid of. I guess I'll put some stuff in the freecycle myself.

If It's Good Enough for Us, It's Good Enough For Them

WEARE, N.H. - Near the foot of an unmarked, dead-end dirt road sits a humble, mud-colored farmhouse. A sign on a mailbox jutting from a tilted post spells "SOUTER."

Some folks want to make that "Hotel Souter."

People from across the country are getting behind a campaign to seize Supreme Court Justice David Souter's farmhouse to build a luxury hotel, according to the man who came up with the idea following a Supreme Court decision favoring government seizure of private property.

"We would act just as these cities have been acting in seizing properties. We would give Souter the same sort of deal," said Logan Darrow Clements, of Los Angeles.

Town Clerk Evelyn Connor has had to return checks from people wishing to donate to a hotel construction fund. A rival proposal from townspeople would turn Souter's land into a park commemorating the U.S. Constitution.

Souter has declined to comment on the matter, but he has defenders, like Betty Straw, his sixth-grade teacher.

"I think it's absolutely ridiculous," she said. "They're just doing it for spite."

Souter was one of five justices who sided with the city of New London, Conn., last month in a decision favoring government power to seize private property by eminent domain. The city plans to build a private hotel and convention center, office space and condominiums.

The 65-year-old justice has lived for decades in his family's home in this central New Hampshire town, about 15 miles from Concord. His 8-acre property is undisturbed by neighbors whose yards are strewn with rusting farm equipment and old pickup trucks.

The house, more than 200 years old, is one of the few remnants of the original East Weare village, which was seized 45 years ago to make way for a dam.

Clements, 36, has never been to Weare, population 8,500, but is a member of the Free State Project, the libertarian movement that chose "Live Free or Die" New Hampshire as its promised land and wants to move 20,000 followers here. The group's second annual convention started in Lancaster on Saturday.

He knows his hotel plan is hard to take seriously.

"That's sort of the story of my life: Nobody takes me seriously until I do something," he said. "We will be taken seriously when we make a formal presentation to the powers that be in Weare," he said, adding that he is talking to several development consultants.

Clements said his mission, like his long-shot bid for governor of California in 2003, is rooted in his passion for a philosophy of free-will capitalism embodied in Ayn Rand's 1957 novel, "Atlas Shrugged."

"We should have a voluntary society where people interact with each other through trade, not through the initiation of force," Clements said. He got 274 votes.

Connor, the town clerk, said it's all a little much for a town where the biggest excitement of the year usually is the Weare Patriotic Celebration, which this year featured an American Legion chicken barbecue, carnival rides and a men-versus-women softball game.

"We just got a Dunkin' Donuts," she said.

Other town officials agree.

"It was the general consensus that we were not interested in taking anyone's property," said Laura Buono, head of Weare's board of selectmen. She said board members are willing to review any formal proposal Clements submits.

But in a state where people fiercely protect their right to local control over land and government, many said the nuisance is Souter's just deserts. A recent University of New Hampshire poll reported 93 percent of state residents oppose the taking of private land through eminent domain for private development.

"It's something you really don't want to screw with around here," said Charles Meany, Weare's code enforcement officer.

He thinks the hotel idea is "ludicrous" and doubts whether Clements will be able to satisfy requirements to prove the economic necessity of building a hotel on Souter's land.

But Clements has his share of local supporters, including David Archambault, who runs a go-cart track near Souter's home.

"What this is doing I think is wonderful, because he's getting a point across to all these people that they're getting too much power," Archambault said.

Robin Ilsley, who makes syrup on a family farm about two miles from Souter's place, thought the justice brought the controversy on himself. "It was a pretty stupid ruling," she said.

Even her mother, who watched Souter grow up, is unsympathetic.

"I like David very much, but I don't like his ideas," said Winnie Ilsley, 77, who runs a doll museum at her farm. "I just don't think it's fair," she said of the New London decision.

And the hotel?

"Let 'em build - but I don't think it's going to happen," she said.

We're Home

We got in last night. Boy, it was a hot one. The temperatures were as high as 117 on the way home. Then we ran into a very terrible thunder storm. It was so fierce, I could hardly control the car. I was worried it might turn into a tornado. It blew one very large truck over on its side and it was hanging over a ditch! That happened just seconds before we got there. We stopped in a Dairy Queen for shelter as did everyone else on the highway. That was sort of funny because they had 2 kids running the store and about 50 people in the store wanting to buy things.

The rest of the trip was non-eventful, for which I am grateful. I will be posting more pictures soon.

Bison Bob

Vacation

Well, we're half way home, almost. Make that about 1/8 of the way home. We've left Bison Ranch and are now right outside the entrance to the Grand Canyon. We're in the Holiday Inn and they have broadband connections in each room! yea!!!

We had a nice time at Bison Ranch. My sister Robin and her kids were with us and her friend Mary. My family and mom came too, so we had quite a group. We're in two vans. We went to the Imax Theater, which has nothing to do with an Apple product, and we saw their movie about the Grand Canyon. I had seen it before. It's excellent. Tomorrow morning we will head out to see the Grand Canyon and then head home. I've got about a 10 hour drive ahead of me. I'm pretty tired of driving, but it's almost over.

Saw a lot of great Indian Pottery. I'm anxious to try and incorporate some of their ideas and techniques into my work. They have a very interesting technique where they put horsehair into the pottery and get some unique results. Not sure if I can do it in a kiln or not, electric that is, but I'll give it a good try.

See you all soon.

Bob

It's Sunday, but Monday's coming!

Had a pretty good day today. Services went well, we had a pot luck following the service. Good food as always. Yesterday, we had a work day at the church. Got a lot of things done. I trimmed trees. We also painted the wrought iron fence, put arrows on the entrance and exit, cleaned the sanctuary, painted the nursery, put new liners in the kitchen drawers as well as cleaned it, sprayed for bugs and more. Quite a lot got done.

My spider bite is finally simmering down. Guess the leg is not going to fall off. Everyone told me the flesh would be eaten away, but it's getting better. It's still tender and itchy, but the redness has lowered quite a bit.

I finished another load in the kiln. I will send things to my sister in law tomorrow. She's particularly waiting for my handmade roses. Everyone seems to like them, especially for Valentines and birthdays and anniversaries. I've used some new glazes that are just knockouts. Everyone seems to love them. You can take a look at them by going here and looking under the flowers category.

Spiderman Got Me!

Turns out I didn't have a 24 hour virus, I was bitten by a black widow spider! I didn't even notice on my leg that there was a bite. And I don't remember getting bitten, but I've seen plenty of them in the garage and that's where I do my ceramics. I must have scared one of the little guys and he decided to have me for lunch.

My leg has a huge red patch on it and it is very warm and itchy. My friends tell me I'm fortunate because their relatives blew up like balloons and had horrible open wounds. I just have a very ugly leg. I'm supposed to keep it elevated and put ice packs on it, which does make if feel a lot better.

Firing another batch in the kiln tonight. Kind of excited because I'm trying a new idea out. I took a picture of a kid (goat) and etched it into leather hard clay. So I have this relief picture in a square piece of clay. I fired it to bisque and it came out great. Then I painted it with glaze and I refired it. I'm not sure how it will turn out. You don't have the same freedom with glaze as you do with acrylics and oil paints. They don't blend well. But we'll see.

The 3rd of July

We had a very nice celebration last night. The City of La Mirada put on a big even at the La Mirada Regional Park. It's a 90 acre park, that is really quite beautiful, full of trees, playgrounds and a small lake on rolling hills. Thousands turned out for the event. They had old fashioned games like potato sack races, three legged races, pie eating contests, rock wall climbing and much more.

There were eating booths provided by many nonprofits in the city. We had tri-tip sandwiches and hotdogs. In & Out burgers were selling for $7.00 for a double double, so I passed. (hard to pass them up!)

The fireworks were fantastic, some of the best I've ever seen. There were several new types I hadn't seen before, so that made it a bit more special.

While Connie went and took the kids to see stuff, I stayed with our chairs and blankets. I listened to my ipod for a while. Have a good book on their that I'm "reading". Then I called my buddy Wayne from church, who just bought a MiniMac. It sounds so cool.

Today I'm waiting to hear from my sis in law, Cathy, to see how their show is doing. They are selling at a bit 4th of July event that is supposed to have 60,000 people in it. She's selling, hopefully, some of my ceramics.

Seems I have the flu or something today. I've got the chills, aches, and have a low grade fever and I almost never get a fever. But I can handle it.

Our idiot dog tore down the screen door and actually bent the bars on our security screen door like Superman! I can't believe this dog. That was when he was on 3 tranquilizers!!! I guess I'm going to give him 4 tonight, though 3 is what they told me. It didn't phase him a bit. I'll have to take pictures of the door damage. You won't believe it.

Happy 4th to everyone.

Shelby Foote

If you ever watched the CIVIL WAR series that made Ken Burns famous, you will remember Shelby Foote. He was the Southern gentleman that spoke so frequently through the series. He brought a warm and gentle touch to the series. I bought the 3 volume set of books he wrote on the Civil War. It's a must if you are interested in such reading. He'll be missed. His volumes on the Civil War were rated the #15th best nonfiction work in the USA.


http://start.earthlink.net/article/nat?guid=20050628/42c0cb40_3421_1334520050628985661672

Billy Graham Crusade

I was fortunate to see Billy Graham's last crusade in California. Here's an article about his, most likely, last crusade ever.

Billy Graham Winds Up Revival Meeting
June 27, 2005 3:28 AM EDT
NEW YORK - The Rev. Billy Graham concluded a three-day revival meeting by raising spirits and leaving open a question that was on the mind of most who attended: Will this be the last time the celebrated evangelist preaches a mass meeting?

Graham had all but indicated this would be his last revival in the United States, but hedged as he began his final sermon at a New York City park near Shea Stadium.

"We hope to come back again someday," he told New Yorkers, then perhaps more seriously noted he had told journalists asking if this is the end, "never say never."

Among the 90,000 who turned out despite blistering heat was an Anglican rector from London, part of a committee that wants Graham to preach a meeting there in November around his 87th birthday. He'll discuss that with Graham now that the New York event is over. But Graham had said previously he doubted he would accept.

The evangelist demonstrated he's still up to the task. Despite various ailments, he looked reasonably fit and was firm of voice, though he seemed to tire and after only 23 minutes in the pulpit rather abruptly delivered the invitation for listeners to step forward and commit to Jesus.

There were slight signs of age when Graham put D-Day in 1945 instead of 1944 and confessed that he forgot to thank Mayor Michael Bloomberg and U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer for attending the Saturday meeting. Sen. Hillary Clinton also attended then with husband Bill, who spoke briefly in appreciation of Graham's ministry.

Graham's staff said 2,691 "inquirers" registered decisions for Jesus on Sunday, bringing the total for three days to 8,273 out of a cumulative attendance of 230,000.

The expectation that this might be Graham's farewell, and thus a milestone for American religion and world evangelicalism, hovered over the event. Noting his own advanced age, he said, "I know it won't be long."

"We are celebrating the end of 60 years of ministry with Billy Graham," said the Rev. A. R. Bernard, crusade chairman and pastor of Brooklyn's booming Christian Cultural Center.

Ismael Rivera, a New York City firefighter in the throng, couldn't bring himself to believe this was the windup. "Hopefully, praise God, I'm sure he will go on."

Joe Lin, a Brown University graduate student from Singapore, said "I just wanted to see Billy Graham preach the last time... This is a historic moment. Nobody has had such impact on the people."

"It's a little bit sad if this is the last one," said Bertha Astor, an usher who went forward to recommit herself to Jesus at the first rally Friday night.

Graham suffers from fluid on the brain, prostate cancer and Parkinson's disease. He uses a walker due to a pelvic fracture and is largely confined to his home in Montreat, N.C.

He rested up before the sermon in an air-conditioned tent, with aides nearby in case of a medical emergency. The pulpit had a movable seat hidden from view, enabling him to sit down after the sermon as people responded to his invitation.

Sociologist William Martin, Graham's biographer, traveled from Rice University to witness the weekend. He said he expected to see a largely white Anglo turnout but was struck by the "amazingly diverse crowd. I wonder if a crowd this large and this diverse has ever assembled." Simultaneous translations were offered in 20 languages, far more than at Graham's previous New York-area meetings.

Martin recalled that in 1953, Graham ended racially segregated seating at his crusades in the U.S. South, even before the Supreme Court's school integration ruling.

"There he took the ropes down. And now all the barriers seem to be down."

The program mingled contemporary Christian bands with emceeing by Cliff Barrows, 82, and a nostalgic "How Great Thou Art" sung by George Beverly Shea, 96. Barrows and Shea have appeared continually at Graham's meetings for decades. Graham called his colleagues up for a round of applause and said he's grateful "they put up with me" for 60 years.

Graham has preached to more than 210 million people in 185 countries. He has been sought out for counsel and friendship by U.S. presidents and leaders worldwide.

Appearing at the Saturday night rally, Bill Clinton called the evangelist the only person he has known who has always lived according to his faith.

"God bless you friend," Clinton said. "Bless you."

New Feature

Blogger has just added a new feature for uploading pictures. Up to this time I have had to use Flicker, which is fine, but you have to go through many steps. Here's my first try. I'll upload a pottery picture and see how it goes. This is a napkin holder I made for Connie. I'm making a different one for my mom. I worked hard to find a glaze that matched our dinnerware, which is blue. Finally found it.

Friday

Stayed home today. Elizabeth had to take some medicine that would keep her sick most of the day, so I am homebound today and tomorrow. Connie worked today. She does the lunch shift so the nurses have time to go get lunch on Fridays. But mom was also on Connie's floor today, so Connie went early and gave mom some extra TLC.

Since I was home all day, I painted glazes on my ceramics. My sis-in-law, Cathy, and her husband Peter are traveling the country selling Bunny Stuff. They've decided to expand and start going to festivals and other types of shows. I have been making them some bunny stuff to try and sell and now they've opened up to just about anything. Today I worked on 2 small Indian busts. They are coming out well.

We're all hoping my stuff sells well. This July 4 will the first festival we sell at. I'm adding penguins, Indians, my handmade roses and a few other surprises.

Our Creek Park

Lots of good stuff happening all of a sudden. A couple of years ago, I asked my friend, Steve Jones, who at that time was mayor of La Mirada, if we could get some playground equipment put in our park down the street. Creek park is a walking park. It's very beautiful, but there's not much for kids to do there except run. It's basically a V shaped, very long park. It's a steep valley with a creek running down the middle.

Steve Jones told me he didn't think they would put anything in because that wasn't the purpose this park served, being a walking park.

Fast forward 2 years. I had been down to the park and felt the same way still. There's not much for my kids to do there in this part so close to our house, so I emailed Steve Jones again. This time, I, by serendipity, got to him just before the finalized the city budget and they passed a measure to put in the playground equipment! I don't know what it will be, but I'm very happy it's coming. Maybe I can finally go there and play on the swings!

Mom Update

Mom went thru surgery very well. She went in at about 11:30 and came out to her room at about 2:00. It's nice because Connie knows everyone there and has them taking very good care of mom. Connie will be her nurse tomorrow! Connie was incredible in her care for my dad in his last few weeks. Mom was very encouraged to know that Connie would be there for her during this knee replacement. So, all is well. Thank you all for your prayers. We are hoping to take mom on vacation with us in the summer, so she'll have to heal up fast!

BobBlog

outofthefirestudio

Had something interesting happen just now. I found a very nice web site on pottery and I noticed that they produced a DVD on throwing clay. I bought it and really thought it was well done. I wrote the people a note and told them how much it had helped me. Well, they just emailed me that they had placed my site, Clay2Glory, on their site as a recommended link! That's quite a complement since I'm just beginning and they are a very successful business. Hopefully, that will get me a few more sales. I have sold some things, but it's hard to get the word out. Mostly, just friends know about my site.

Anyway, take a look at his link to mine. I think you'll get a bit of a kick out of it.

Bob

Surgery Today

Mom will be going in for knee replacement surgery today at 11:30 a.m. Her knee has given her a lot of pain the last few years. She'll be on Connie's floor at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton and hopefully, Connie will even be her nurse tomorrow when she works. Connie works with orthopedics, so this is right up her alley. Please keep mom in your prayers.

I won't be at work today or tomorrow so I can be with mom.

Smokey Joe's Cafe

We are season ticket holders at the La Mirada Theater for Performing Arts. Tonight Connie and I saw Smokey Joe's Cafe. It was so cool. I thought we were going to see a comedy. Then, upon getting there, it appeared we were going to see a musical. Turned out there wasn't any acting. It was a tribute to the music of the 50's and 60's. Many of my favorites. The cast of singers were superb. One of the best nights I've ever spent in the theater.

McCoy/Rigby produce the season's shows and Tom McCoy has an incredible talent for finding talent. He never ceases to amaze me each year in what he chooses for us to experience. Catch this show if you can. It's play for several more days.

Mom's Knee

Mom will be having knee surgery on Monday at St. Jude where Connie works. She's having a knee replacement done. Her knee has bothered her for quite some time and she's started using a cane to help her out. We appreciate your prayers on her behalf. We'll be going on vacation in about a month and I want her to be able to go with us. Connie says that is doable. Hope so.

Thursday

Ah, a day off, finally. Nice and quiet. Just Zack and me to day. Connie is working, Elizabeth is with Grandma to go see "Josie" the hairdresser. I'm going to do a firing this morning in the kiln. Have lots of nice stuff ready. Everyone is asking for more things for the store. It's building up slowly and steadily.

Elizabeth is about to embark on her own line of jewelry. She's making her own beads, then she'll glaze them and put them together. I'll have to ask her Aunt Cathy how to do the fittings. I've never done that part.

Everyone asks for the kids to have more to sell, but they want to keep everything! So, I've put up pictures to look at what they can do and perhaps people will take orders from that.

I can understand that. When you open the kiln and take out your stuff, it's almost like magic. What you put in looks crummy because the glazes are dead and lifeless. When you open the kiln, they are bright and beautiful. It's quite the transformation. It takes a lot of foresight to do ceramics. It might not come out how you envisioned it in the first place.

A Quiet Day, but a sick wife

Today was the first day of summer school. I went early to help get things ready, but Cindy was already there teaching the kids. During the night Connie had awakened me to tell me she was really sick with bad stomach cramps. At one point she wanted to go to ER, but decided to tough it out and go to the Dr. instead. He took tests, but there wasn't much else he could do. She's still quite uncomfortable.
I don't know if she'll try to work tomorrow. I doubt it.

Zack is catching up with work in Summer School. He's struggling with history. I'm not sure why. He's always done pretty well with it before. In fact, his average is pretty good, but he's taking the final review and having a hard time.

Elizabeth is all caught up and finished with school, so I bought her an arts and crafts book and she worked on that all day making stick flowers. They came out pretty well. She's very good at working on her own if it's drawing or any kind of art.

When we got home around 1:00, Connie still wasn't feeling very well. I made a meat loaf for dinner. Later she felt better and she made some beads with Elizabeth. I bought a dowel so Elizabeth could make ceramic beads and then make her own jewelry. She has a great eye for design, so I'm trying to encourage it in her.

Zack hasn't done any ceramics for quite a while. Not sure if he's keeping an interest in it or not. Now that I have my own complete studio, I was hoping the kids would work there a lot this summer. But, we still have a lot more cleaning out of the garage. After I added the slab roller, pottery wheel and the kiln, there wasn't much room for moving about.

Wet Day

Had the kids from school over today for swimming and a BBQ on the last day of school. Graduation is tomorrow. They had a ball, though I thought it was too cold to swim, myself. Before we swam, we took them to Creek Park to have their annual waterfight. They bring squirt guns, super soakers and water balloons and run all over the park getting each other wet. It is something they love to do each year.

I'm firing another load in the kiln. Still doing mostly bunnies and apples for my Sister in law. I've come up with some goat and sheep pots that I think are really cute. They'll be online soon at

I keep adding stuff. I've sold some things. Help me get the word out, please. I'm trying to think ahead and do seasonal things. So far the cats are the biggest sellers. How could someone who hates cats as much as I do, be selling them more than anything else? I don't get it.

I have one point of redemption in my cat hatred, however. My friend Guy has ragdoll cats. I must admit they are better than most cats. They are very docile i.e. they don't scratch out my eyeballs and they like to be held. They are very pretty too. I gave him a ragdoll ceramic cat pencil sharpener. I made it just for him and it is the only one that exists in the entire world.

He has the coolest "cross wall" in his house. He took me up to see it last time I visited him. I had made him a cross, but mine was too small. You can see it at Clay2Glory. So, now that school is over I am going to work on making him a big one. I have to think out of the box on this one and make is special. He's been a great friend to me over these last several years.

I also stumbled across a great DVD on pottery that takes you through all the steps. It demonstrates some different techniques that I want to try. If you've never done pottery, you'll have to stop by and give it a try sometime. Very relaxing and really gets the creative juices going.

My sis in law tells me she's going to try some dog shows next. Bunnies, apples, dogs, oh my! Bunnies, apples, dogs, oh my! Bunnies, apples, dogs, oh my! Bunnies, apples, dogs, oh my!

G-Rated Films More Profitable than R

My Way News

If you ever wondered about the designs of the movie studios on our culture, you might want to read the article link above. So sad that even money won't clean up Hollywood.

My Weekend

On Saturday Connie, Elizabeth and I went to see my friends, Guy and Nay, Ontario to pick up 3 Pentium IIIs that his church donated to our school. That will help us a lot. Most of our computers are just Pentium IIs. I took him my Ragdoll ceramic cat I had made him. It had a special feature I added, but I can't tell you because I have not yet patented it. But I can assure you it is the only one in the world like it.

On Sunday, after church, Connie, Elizabeth and I took mom to lunch. Zack has been working with Doug at a dog show for the whole weekend and spent the night at Doug's house. Connie and I went to see Star Wars together. Not as big of a crowd as I would have thought. It was good, but it certainly is more violent than the rest because you get so see how Darth Vader became Darth Vader and now I know why he was so crabby.

On Spymac they are comparing George Bush to Darth Vader and the invasion on Star Wars to Iraq. Of course, they are "nuts."

I decided to use Darth Democrats and Obi Wan Republicans. I'll see if I can get them upset that way. :-)

One more week of school and I'm out on good behavior!!! My plans for the summer are to work on the church buildings, doing what I don't know how, to fix them up anyway because nobody else is ever going to do it. I threatened them with dancing elephants in the women's restrooms. I also plan to do a lot of ceramics, hoping to get my store off the ground. People are complaining that there isn't enough there yet. (Like I have a place to put more stuff.)

I'm working on a huge vase for the 4th of July that I think will be pretty cool. I'm also doing lots of apples, bunnies, goats and sheep for my sis in law, who sells the stuff around the country at animal shows she works at. I'm now calling myself "BunnyBob".

But you CANNOT call me that. I can just call myself that. Now that I've hit 50 I can start acting a bit senile without drawing attention to myself.

Man Sues Over Exploding Porta-Potty

Man Sues Over Exploding Porta-Potty

A New Reason To Quit Smoking


Man Sues Over Exploding Porta-Potty
Posted 6/2/2005 08:20 AM

The lawsuit alleges Pennsylvania man was injured when methane gas leaked into the toilet and ignited when he lit a cigarette.
Story by The Associated Press

A Pennsylvania man injured when a portable toilet exploded is suing a general contractor and a coal company for negligence.

John Jenkins, 53, and his wife, Ramona Jenkins, of Brave, Pa., filed the lawsuit in Monongalia County Circuit Court in Morgantown on Tuesday. They are suing Chisler Inc., a general contractor from Fairview, and Eastern Associated Coal for $10 million.

The explosion occurred July 13, 2004, at Parrish Shaft in Blacksville. Jenkins is a North West Fuels Development methane power plant operator. He entered a portable toilet, sat down and tried to light a cigarette. When he struck the lighter, the toilet exploded.

The lawsuit says the cigarette ignited methane gas leaking from a pipe underneath the unit.

Eastern Associated Coal owns the property where the explosion occurred. Jenkins alleges Chisler ran over the pipelines with heavy equipment before the incident, causing the methane gas leak.

Jenkins had severe burns on his face, neck, arms, torso and legs. The lawsuit says he is permanently disfigured.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

A Good Friend

I had just gotten to school this morning, made my rounds, and entered the church office when I heard a banging at the door. A very distraught man was standing there. He said with tears in his eyes, "Pastor Bob, Nate died!"

Nate D'amico was an old friend from way back when. I knew him since the 1980s. He was just 42 years old. He had had quite a bout with diabetes a couple of years ago. They had to amputate his toes on his feet and he had to relearn how to walk.

Nate had lost a lot of weight, but he had more than gained it all back. His blood sugar was 480 this morning. He pretty much just woke up this morning and collapsed. He never woke up again.

Nate was very talented. He was involved in drama, making all kinds of great stagecraft. He was very proud of his work in "Little shop of Horrors" because he had created the animated man eating plant.

He did puppetry in the church as well as youth work. He was very active in church. He served as the President of our Deacons at Grace for a year or two.

God bless you Nate. You left us too soon...

My Studio

I spent all morning working on my store. I've added a lot of things and will add more this week. If you are wondering why there are so many bunnies on the Animal page, it's because my sister and brother in law make software for breeding rabbits. Well, the software doesn't actually "Breed" the rabbits, they do that very well themselves. Well, I don't mean my sister and brother in law breed the rabbits, I mean that ...oh, never mind, I'm going to get in trouble.

They have software that tracks the breeding of rabbits and they also sell rabbit jewlery, shampoo, and their famous rabbit-tat. Not sure I spelled that right, but it's a clever little hand held device that can tattoo rabbits or even YOU!

So, she, Cathy, is linking my store from her web page, so bunny people will ,hopefully, buy from me.

If you know someone who breeds rabbits, send them to www.stibbar.com. They've just released a PDA version of it. Pretty cool.

Click on the title to see my store.

Eddie Albert

Eddie, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

A sad passing for me. Most of my friends thought Green Acres was way funnier than anyone would like to admit. I don't know of a show that made me laugh harder than this one. Eddie Albert was a true war hero. He did a lot to help the children of this world and he was a pretty good actor and conservationist too. We will miss him.

e-Trash

Today is going to be a hard, but productive day. The City of La Mirada is having an e-trash day, which means people can take their computers, monitors, tvs etc. and dump them for free. I had Aaron, our school tech guy, separate all the computers etc. at the school that were too old. We filled 3 vans and a pick up truck! Plus I have more at my home. But there comes a time when this stuff just is no longer compatible with anything on the market.

So, that's what we do today. My worry is that they might refuse what we have because they told us, after the fact, that we were limited to 125 lbs. per car. That wasn't stated in the literature, but we've already got the vans packed, so I'm hoping it will go through all right.

Clay to Glory Studios

Clay to Glory Studios index.html

I chose from one of our readers the name "Clay2Glory" for my ceramic studio name. I really like it. I hope you do.

The online store is open. Still got a few bugs to work on. I hope you'll at the least, enjoy seeing what I make. I get satisfaction from that and would love to hear your comments. If you'd actually like to buy something, that would be great. My kids will be selling online too. They are getting things ready.

If you live close by, please don't even consider the Shipping and Handling, just drop by and pick up what you want. (Call first, please. It might have sold!)

Some things are already gone. I'm doing my best to keep it current, but I'll leave pictures up in case you want order it.

Would you help me spread the word? There are some great gift items you might want for birthdays, anniversaries etc. My roses are a big hit with the ladies. I made one for each lady at church for Mother's Day. That was a big project! But they really liked them.

So take a look and let me know what you think. There are probably cheaper shipping options in the USA if you don't mind waiting longer.



Bob

Hot Day

Went swimming with the kids today in our pool. Felt so good.

I got everything set up to upload all my info and picts to my new online store and the IP was down. Can't try until tomorrow as they are 'upgrading' the site.

Aardvark

The best clay place around for potters is Aardvark Clay in Anaheim. Connie, Liz and I went there today. Zack was at grandma's. Bought lots of new glazes, 100 lbs. of clay, and a few tools I needed. I'm looking forward to making a lot of stuff this summer. The glazes are incredible these days. So many cool things to try out. Hope I end up selling some stuff to recoup my investment.

Got a really cute bunny mold the other day. I have that and a real cute pig mold. Either one should make a cool looking bank as well as a figurine.

Hoping to get the store online tonight. Don't have to write a sermon today because I didn't end up preaching last week and still have that one to go for tomorrow. Freed me up to do ceramics and play in the pool with the kids and Connie today. The pool is up to 76%uFFFD today! Finally, it feels good to get in.

Online Store

Well, I chose the Clay to Glory name for my store. I liked that one. I figured out this morning how to do the Pay Pal store, so I basically had to tear apart everything I had done, but it will be better when I'm done. I'm going to try hard to get it up tomorrow.

When it is ready, I'll be real annoying and email everyone I know once that it is up and running. Then, I will have an update service for when I add new things for those who want to be notified, but I don't want to turn into a spammer, so just those who are interested will be contacted.

Even if you don't personally want to buy something for yourself, I hope you'll at least spread the word for me. Perhaps some of your friends will think of me when it's time to buy presents for people.

I've got a lot more stuff coming up. It tends to become ready in waves because you try and fire a kiln when it's full. I'm anxious to see how it goes.

Bob

swimming

Ah, the first day hot enough to have a really good swim. Kids and I came home and in the pool it was. We've tried two times before, but it was just too cold. Not bad today. This means it's time to have the school kids over for the end of the year swim and BBQ. Some years the water doesn't get hot enough, but this year is looking good.

Well Stocked

So much has happened since I last wrote. Connie bought me a slab roller for my birthday. She and the kids had kept me out of the backyard patio since Thursday. Turns out she had assembled it out there. A slab roller is a large table with two rollers on it, sort of like the old washing machines. It comes with 2 large canvases. You put a hunk of clay between the canvasses and then you crank away. In a few seconds you have a beautiful flat piece of clay that you can turn into just about anything.

Then, after a series of events that sort of ended up getting me some extra cash, including birthday money, I had enough to go buy a potters wheel as well. Connie, bless her heart, went and got it for me while I was at work. There's really nothing else I need to make anything I want now. I have the wheel, the slab roller and the kiln. Pretty much have a working studio. Just need to clear up more room to put it all. Getting a bit crowded in the garage.

Bob

Ceramics Online Studio

I've had a pretty good reaction to starting up an online ceramics store. I finished firing a load last night. I think it's my best work yet. I'll try and post pictures soon. I haven't had so much luck on ebay, I hope this store does better.

I hate CATs

Well, I don't like cats, but I guess I hate CATs more. Spent the last two days administering the California Achievement Test. It's pretty boring to sit and watch a room full of kids take a test all day long. At least they were well behaved. I hope they did well. Some finished so fast, it worries me they aren't trying their best. Guess we'll know soon.

This is the last year of this test. It has been upgraded to the Terra Nova Test. The great feature of the new test is it is MUCH more expensive. With the CAT test we are able to grade the tests ourselves. The Terra Nova test charges over $16.00 per student to grade. Now, that wouldn't be so bad except that they are just those bubble cards read by a machine. I've done those myself and it just takes seconds to do a class of students. That really bothers me.

Ceramics 101

Went to class this evening with Attie and Liz. Cindy and Zack didn't go. Attie and I each made something on the wheel. I was trying to make a nice bowl and I was trying to enlarge it and put my finger through it. What a bummer. There wasn't time to make another one. I decided to keep it, leave the hole, but patch behind it because it had so much character. I am really getting to like distorted pieces. Wonder what that says about me???

I saw this picture today that gave me perspective. This potter makes sculptures out of pieces he breaks. He does whole walls full of broken, glazed potter. Really looks cool.

I'm hoping to get a slab roller soon. That makes big slabs of clay, which allows you to make almost anything. I like that more than throwing on the wheel. But I imagine someday I'll have to buy a wheel also.

Busy as a Bee

Had an interesting day, today. One of our students, Bruce, had his 9th birthday today. His dad got pizza for everyone and a big jumper for the kids to play on. I was told that the dad would be bringing pizza to the cafeteria at 12:15, so I walked downstairs to help him. As the kids started coming to the cafeteria, I heard some yelling. (That's not too unusual.) I opened the door and bees were swarming everywhere. They settled in one of our smaller trees and commenced to build a hive!

We called a bee keeper company and they came out and killed all the bees. They said when it's a school, they just try to kill them as fast as the can because they can't take a chance with the little ones getting hurt.

I can appreciate that, but now there's no honey for my honeypot.

Zack's Birthday

Had a bad start to this day. Zack and Elizabeth had spent the night over at mom's house because Connie and I went out to the Ralph Carmichael concert for FEBC. About 4:30 am Mom calls and says Elizabeth is shaking all over and can't stop. We took her to emergency. She had a fever of 103. They gave her medicine and brought it down, figuring it was a virus. (Standard Dr. Answer for wanna pick straws?)

Anyway, we were pretty tired. Brought Zack home. Had to change plans because Connie and Liz couldn't go out, so I took Zack to the ceramics store and let him buy some stuff he wanted. He's pretty good at ceramics now. This will be his first time to work on a molded piece. Then we went to see National Treasure, which was a very good movie and quite clean, but full of suspense and adventure.

Then Zack played on his Game Cube, worked on his Ceramics, opened his presents and all. Hoping Liz will be up to church tomorrow. I don't want Connie to miss Mother's Day at church. I have a nice surprise for all the ladies.

Mel Rockhill Scholarship Fund

We will be starting up a memorial scholarship fund in Dad's name pretty soon. We already have been given $400.00 to begin it. Let me know if you'd like any information about it. I will construct a web site with information and some things about Dad's life.

Any donations should be sent to:

Mel Rockhill Memorial Scholarship Fund
C/O Grace Christian Schools
12722 Woods Ave.
Norwalk, CA 90650

Contest

If anyone here comes up with a name I end up using for my online ceramics store, I will make you a piece of pottery that you'd like if I am able to do so. So, start thinking!

Bob

Fiesta bowl2

Fiesta bowl2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

This is my other favorite piece. It's a large bowl with an explosion of color around the edge and inside the bowl. The glaze I used has crystals that melt and explode when fired. I want to try more of this technique.

HeartCandyDish2

HeartCandyDish2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

I just made this as an example to my students at school. It's a handmade candy dish with a Maranatha dove in the middle. I'm planning to come out with a whole line of Christian inspired pottery. I used to see that a lot, but not so much anymore.

IvyCross2

IvyCross2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

Made this cross for my buddy Guy, who collects crosses. It came out pretty small, so I think I'll make him a bigger one. Clay shrinks quite a bit when it air dries and then it shrinks more when you fire it. I have to learn to anticipate that better. Had the same trouble trying to make candle holder only to find the candle wouldn't fit after it fired.

NeptuneVase2

NeptuneVase2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

This vase is constructed by hand. Another of my sealife creations. It has stark contrasting colors, vivid and primary, unlike what I usually do. I suppose it is a matter of opinion as to whether you like the color combinations. Wouldn't work in my house, but it will catch your attention!

PiñaVase2

PiñaVase2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

My second Tower. Another very large vase. I stippled it with slip (liquid clay) and carved designs on the side. Just fired it to bisque last night. No glaze on it yet. I have an interesting idea for glazing it. I think it will come out great. Connie likes these large ones a lot.

SealifeVase2

SealifeVase2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

This is my personal favorite piece. I'm keeping it for now. I use real sea creatures for this. I make my own molds of their little selves and then I use them as appliques to add to the piece. This piece is called a slab rolled piece. That means instead of throwing it on the wheel, you roll a slab of clay and construct a piece from it. That's the overlap you see on the left, which I personally find attractive.

Blackpocket2

Blackpocket2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

This is another prototype of what I'll be making. Just a different color and decoration on it. I like working with appliques. I'll be doing more of that I think.

brnPocket2

brnPocket2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

These are miniatures of what I will soon be making. They are pockets that can hold flowers on the wall. These are just prototypes. I expect to actually plant live plants like ferns in the large ones. They have a leather thong hanger in the back and the finish is sort of a burlap effect. They are fun to make and decorate. A lot of people like my roses I make, so I put some on this one.

Bunny2

Bunny2, originally uploaded by bobrocky.

This is for my sister in law, Cathy, who sells bunny stuff. It is inspired by Killroy. Not that it looks like Killroy, but it sits on a shelf or computer monitor and peers down at you. It's quite small. I've got another one about finished that looks quite different. I think he has some character in his little face.