It seems SO long since we’ve seen a good sunrise.
I get up each morning, step out on the back porch… and if it’s raining
I head back to bed. No need to ride in the rain if you don’t need to!
But today… finally a rain-free morning & a beautiful sunrise bike ride!

It was raining this morning, so there was no sunrise morning bike ride for me.
But I did get in a great bike ride after camp today… when the sky was MUCH better!

So my campers are working fast & furious to finish their totem poles!
After kicking off camp Monday with large terra cotta planters, we moved on
top large mosaic totem poles. With some basic plans, acrylic paint, some tile
breaking, a lot of adhesive and more grout tomorrow… they’re almost done!
Each kid came up with their own theme, and have designed their own totem
creation… each on their own course, each on their own path… all coming
to the same conclusion – hopefully by the end of camp tomorrow?!!!

So here they are… stacking, connecting, gluing, making plans & sketches…
We have totem themed flowers, weather, pets, treasures, emotions and so much more!

And breaking up their own tiles… safety goggles required!!!
A lot of focus, a little determination, some muscles… and some occasional assistance.

Then the fun of gluing them all onto their totem poles…
Trying to keep the adhesive on the tiles & totems – and not their fingers!!!

And by the end of today… we were close to finishing!!!

At this point… we need some finishing grout work, a little touch-up paint, some
finishing touches and some drying time. Then they’re off to their new homes & gardens!
And it appears as though they’re still having a lot of fun!!!

I love witty wordplay…
so when I got this as an e-mail, I knew I needed to share…

The Wikipedia definition of paraprosdokian:
“A figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentance or phrase
is surprising or unexpected; frequently used in a humorous situation.”
Where there’s a will, I want to be in it” is a type of paraprosdokian.
Okay… so now consider a few of these…

1. Don’t argue with an idiot.
He will drag you down and beat you with experience.

2. The last thing I want to do is hurt you.
But it’s still on my list.

3. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people
appear bright until you hear them speak.

4. If I agreed with you, we’d both be wrong.

5. We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public.

6. War does not determine who is right; only who is left.

7. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

8. Evening news is where they begin with “Good Evening”…
and then proceed to tell you why it isn’t.

9. To steal ideas from one person is plagarism.
To steal from many is research.

10. A bus station is where the bus stops.
A train station is where a train stops.
On my desk, I have a work station…

11. I thought I wanted a career.
Turns out I just wanted a paycheck.

12. Whenever I fill out an application, in the part that says
‘In case of emergency, notify:’ -  I put “DOCTOR.”

13. I didn’t say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you…

14. Behind every successful man is his woman.
Behind the fall of a successful man is usually another woman.

15. A clear conscience is the sign of a fuzzy memory.

16. I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn’t work that way.
So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.

17. You don’t need a parachute to skydive.
You only need a parachute to skydive twice.

18. Money can’t buy happiness,
but it sure makes misery easier to live with.

19. There’s a fine line between cuddling
and holding someone down so they can’t get away.

20. I used to be decisive. Now I’m not so sure.

21. Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be.

22. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

23. Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian
any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.

24. A diplomat is someone who tells you to go to hell in such a way
that you look forward to the trip.

25. Hospitality is making your guests feel at home
even when you wish they were.

26. When tempted to fight fire with fire,
remember that the Fire Department usually uses water.

Well… I had much better telephone reception in Hinsdale than in Schaumburg.
Plus the weather was better… colder, but at least we didn’t have flash floods!
So I had a good chance to actually use the “Square” for my credit card processing.
And now I have a few more things to point out in my ongoing “review”…

1. Yes, indeed it is too good to be true!

2. It was so simple to put the “Square” apparatus into the the headphone jack
of my iPhone, click on the App and process the transaction. Very simple…
especially once I figured out how to set up the sales tax percentage.

3. People get a kick out of signing right on the iPhone screen… especially when they
find out that they can just shake the phone to erase it and sign again!

4. No one even questioned the process… I though people might find it all a little odd
that they were doing things on my phone, and not “really” receiving a receipt
until they get home to check their e-mail or text message.

5. After a full day Sunday, with a lot of credit card transactions, the battery level
on my iPhone was still only half-way used. Plenty of power for the day!

6. When I got home, all of my credit card transactions were right their in my e-mail.
Simple… easy… done.

But here’s my question for anyone who is also loving their “Square.”
Is there a way to list multiple items in one transaction? It seems to me that you can
only take a picture once, and type in a description for one item. That there’s only one
line available to type a description. But what do I do if I want to shoot a picture and add
a description for more than one item on more than one line with more than one photo?

Also… is there a easy way to print out some sort of “ledger sheet” or list of transactions
from the day? Something for the files… short of printing out every e-mail confirmation
that came to my e-mail?

Anyone?… Anyone?… Bueller?… Bueller?…

It was a very fun weekend at the art fair.
Not only did I have the best art fair assistants ever (again)… thank you Mom & Dad…
and nice art fair neighbors California paper artist Donna & Colorado painter Tim…
but there were a lot of people show stopped by to say ‘hello’ and to let me know
that they follow me on Facebook and read my blog on a regular basis. Imaging that.
Just when you start to wonder if anyone out there is reading this dribble that I keep
putting out there… someone comes around and says thank you! And makes me feel
like I might be sharing something worthwhile. And maybe I should keep it up?!

I think it might the addition of my Facebook page into the mix.
Never before have we had so many people stop by and mention that they follow me
and my ongoing anecdotes & photos. Whether other potters like Jean Burnett &
Nancy Gardner who were also exhibiting at the fair… or random customers who said
they follow me. I even had one Facebook “follower” Bev who lives in Kentucky
and came all the way to Hinsdale. When I asked her ‘why?’… she said because she
couldn’t make it to Schaumburg for my previous art fair!

So thank you again to everyone who stopped by to say hello!
It was very heart-warming to find out that so many people are indeed reading my blog!
And following me on Facebook.

So if you’re one of them… and I assume you must be if you are reading this right now…
and very special thank you to YOU. If you’re on Facebook, be sure to find me at
www.facebook.com/firewhenreadypottery and click the “Like” button.
And then tell your friends too!

Today was my first day of Summer Camp 2011 at Lillstreet Art Center.
My “campers’ were so quiet & so focused all day long as we were all working on
large terra cotta planters… Yes, I said they were “quiet”!!! I’m sure they’ll warm-up
as the week continues and they get to know each other better! This week is called
“Garden Camp” where everything we make this week is for their garden. Large
planters today, glazing them tomorrow – then moving on to mosaic totem poles!!!

After a long weekend of standing around at the art fair chatting & selling…
it was nice this morning to get up for a leisurely… err, okay… fast ride down the
lakefront. The early morning glow had a beautiful, yet slightly ominous tone.

Followed by a huge “blanket” of clouds that seemed to envelop the sky.
Very dramatic… yet very serene… as the sun seemed to disappear into the sky.

I woke up this morning, rolled over and saw sun outside my window.
Already a better day than Day One. Time to head back to Hinsdale for another day of fun!

Sunday in the park was so much better than Saturday.
The skies were clear with no rain in the forecast. Everyone’s moods were much higher.
And there were customers milling about even before the show was to start at 10:00am.
With better weather and more customers… Sunday was a much better day for everyone!
Even the park itself looked prettier…

Okay, so I woke up early to drive out to Hinsdale…
and it was foggy & cold. But I figured it was early and it would burn off, right?!
Wrong! Instead, as I got closer to Hinsdale it actual seemed to get colder and
and the fog turned into mist… and then drizzle. Did I mention cold?

So I got all of the finishing touches done in my booth set-up. And put on a second shirt.
The about an hour into the show… I put on my sweatshirt – never to come off again.
Luckily, the drizzle finally stopped and and some customers came out to shop…
but there’s something wrong when you want to wear gloves in the middle of June!