Yesterday was chilly & windy… perfect for a drive down to Central Illinois for a wedding in Pontiac! Had to watch the weather forecast though… as the strong, gusty winds & freezing sub-zero temperatures were on their way!!! Love this old weathered barn… and seeing it evolve over the years since I drove down that way for college back in the day!

It’s been a snowy week in Chicago at “The Friendly Confines”!

Last night was the kick-off of “season six” of the GREAT LILLSTREET THROWDOWN class! So exciting, as this is my favorite class to teach every year during the Winter session of classes. We started with each student throwing their own version of their “perfect” dinner plate… with some of them making their first plate EVER!!!

Once they finished the first plate, they were then challenged to make a second plate to MATCH!!! They had a great time followed by some good discussions & critiques.

And oh, but wait there’s more... their “homework” is to now decorate two plates to make their “matching” set solely with SLIP TRAILING!!! Again, a technique several of them have never tried before… more to come next week!

Doing one thing on Texture Tuesday… REPLENISHING!!!

Looks like Tess’s mom is enjoying her new “Birthday Mug”!!! I love when a good pottery surprise gift makes a great smile like that! Well played Tess!

From Karen in Maryland… “I forgot to send this on Christmas Eve. We were at Stephanie and Andre’s… and Travis got a cup of coffee. I heard Travis say ‘Is this a Gary original?”

Now I don’t know any of these people… Stephanie, Andre or even Travis… but you gotta appreciate that Travis knows what he’s talking about!!! Apparently word has been spreading… HA!!! Thanks for sharing this funny story Karen… perfect for another MUGSHOT MONDAY!!!

As a recent convert to the whole “streaming” thing… and possibly one of the very last people to get Netflix DVDs in the mail… I’m finally getting caught up on all of the fun & funny shows I’ve missed!!! Let me just say… this whole “streaming” thing is far too easy, addictive & bingeable… just one more episode… just one more!!!

Like “SQUID GAME”… which I LOVED, crazy as it is! And the terrible dubbing of Korean into English… brilliantly bad in the best way possible. And then the “sequel” version… an actual, real-life Reality TV show with real players!!! I’m in!!! And LOVED that too!!! And now they’ve said there will be an actual sequel?! Can’t wait!!!

Next up?… “TIGER KING.”

Homemade food always tastes better on handmade pottery!
And I’m sure Matthew’s pear tart was AMAZING!!!

The snow yesterday may have made it a bit tougher, but there are still people searching for my 2024 fortune cookies! Remember, I’ve hidden 24 clay fortune cookies all over Illinois Beach State Park on New Years Day 2024. Since then, people have been searching them out & making some great collections! Like Allison who is one of the most enthusiastic fortune seekers!

But don’t panic, I do know that some people prefer the “catch & release” version… searching & finding the cookies, photographing, but then leaving them behind for someone else to find! So some of these posts may make it look like they’ve all been found… but I’m pretty sure there are still several out there waiting!

Bundled up, but not broken down… looks like Leslie found her fortune for 2024!!!
Another happy hiker that found a fortune cookie out at Illinois Beach State Park!