Today was another day of terra cotta fun.
I made a couple long trays last week to fulfill a commission.
And as those are drying, I started making more pieces to help “fill the kiln.”
I can’t stand firing an “unpacked” kiln. I couldn’t bear to fire “just” the trays!
So today I worked on making some terra cotta flower planters. Textured on
all sides of the boxes… who wants a “normal” flower pot?!… NO ONE, that’s who!!!

And while I was working in the studio… playing with terra cotta… and textures…
I also spent several hours with several episodes of “LOST” Season Two!!! I’m rewatching
the entire series. Hoping to see if there were “little hints” along the way… and if there are
any other connections that make more sense now that we all know how is ended! I’m to
the point where “Henry Gale” has entered the Hatch and is now playing mind games
with Jack & Locke. Oh, how I’ve missed my Losties!!!

So glad that I have four more seasons  of “LOST” to rewatch…
So glad that I have a TV with a DVD in my studio!

Finally… the holiday season has come to end.
And I’m trying to get my life back to normal.

My Home Show pottery & shelves are finally in the basement.
My Christmas tree came down today and is now in the basement.
My decorations are all packed away and down in the basement.
My outdoor lights are off the porch and down in the basement.
You should see my basement!!! It’s a disaster.

But I did take some time today to clean my condo as the Christmas décor came down
Is it weird to watch past episodes of “Hoarders” as you’re packing everything
downstairs in the basement? I saw certain “parallels” that I wasn’t too too pleased with.
At least I know that I’m not “hoarding” animals like those crazy characters on the episode!
One lady was hoarding chickens & goats… another was hoarding rabbits and they’ve
taken over the house!!! Literally shtoopin’ like rabbits, running free in the house
and even eating their way THROUGH the walls!!! It was great!… crazy!… fun!!!
So great… I got “extra” motivated and even deep-cleaned two rugs today!!!

And luckily, I know I can take some time to clean my storage room area next week!
In fact, today I bought some new plastic storage boxes on sale at Target in anticipation!
Until then, my condo is finally getting back to normal… and I took some time to enjoy
the quiet beauty of my place after all of the Christmas craziness!

My poinsettias are still beautiful – especially with the sunlight streaming through
my dining room windows! Love the vein textures & details of the leaves!

My new orchid took an a dramatic flair as the sun created some great shadows!
Thank you Kel & Kelly for my newest floral addition!

And my fern is “over-wintering” in my dining room… counting down the days
until it can return to summer on the back porch! And so am I…

Though not a huge fan of the show, I did enjoy last night’s episode of “Glee”…
featuring one of my all-time favorite cult classic movies – “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”
It’s about time that Rocky and the gang made a pop-culture resurgence!
Many a midnight showing… ahh, the memories!

A shocking realization in Frankenfurter’s lab – Janet. Dr. Scott. Janet. Brad. Rocky. Ughh…

So there I sat, watching the episode and singing along with every song word-for-word.
Including all of the snappy retorts that have become legend to midnight viewers across the
country! Although I must admit that I did refrain from throwing rice & toilet paper
and squirting water all over my condo! I thought they did a very good job with it…
the costumes, the camp, the cover versions of the songs and some of the artistic liberties that
they took along the way – including Barry Bostwick & Meatloaf making cameo appearances
as TV network executives. Very clever… and you know I like clever!

Well, it’s official… I am a dork.
Look what just arrived today “hot off the presses” from Amazon.com…

And I’m very excited. Can’t wait to start reading it all, deciphering & dissecting
the facts and figuring out what really happened to my favorite island survivors!
The stories, the back-stories, the flash-sideways, the connections, the numbers…
so much more!!! I’m very excited. And yes, I have already started the entire series
re-watch – I’m in the middle of Season One already. It’s fun watching it all over again
especially now knowing how it ends. And watching for all of those “clues” they kept
throwing at us – and we had no idea at the time!

So yes, I am officially a dork. And proud of it.
Admitting there’s a problem is the first step, right?!

Thanks to Amazon.com… my package came today… and…
I could finally erase all of the episodes of “LOST” Season Six off my TiVO!!!
Yes, I know it’s sad… I’ve “saved” all of the episodes. But I’m still suffering
from “LOST-separation-anxiety.” And am now ready to start over from the
very beginning with Season One’s original plane crash! But for now, my “LOST”
DVD collection is complete!  4 – 8 – 15 – 16 – 23 – 42… pathetic, I know…

Also in my Amazon package…
the latest “500″ book from Lark Publishing… “500 Plates & Chargers.”
Sadly, I totally spaced out applying for this one?! Watching for their application deadlines
used to be a high priority… but somehow it fell off my radar this time?! But… luckily I have
been published in three of their other books… “500 Cups”, “500 Pitchers” and “500 Tiles”!
Check out this older blog post on “My Lark Trifecta.”

And a little guilty pleasure… also from Amazon, my favorite movie from third grade!
It’s a little short film by Albert Lamorisse called “The Red Balloon. A sentimental flick
about a lonely little French boy who is befriended by a Red Balloon! A saw it in 3rd grade
and still remember it to this day… check it out!!!

Last night was 5-1/2 hours of “LOST”  fun…
the series ended… and I miss them all already… I’m such a loser!

So… did they answer all of our questions?…  NO.
Did they resolve all of our concerns, theories & reservations?… NO.
Was it a beautifully filmed episode that we will talk about for years to come?… YES.
Was there action, drama, comedy, closure, redemption and more?… YES.
Was I pleased with the ending?… YES.  Was I “thrilled” with the ending?… NOT SO MUCH.

But the more I’ve thought about it today, the more I like it, the more I appreciate it.
I think they gave us a lot of answers, but left us with a lot of topics for us to ponder.
Much like the rest of the “LOST” season. Why should we have expected anything else?!
I think they were brilliant in the way they crafted the entire series so that it “connected”
with each of us in a different way. I think that how you’ve interpreted “LOST” says a lot
about you as a person. For the past six years, we’ve all viewed it, discussed it, critiqued it,
and analyzed every little clue – all based on our own experiences & beliefs.

I still maintain that this has been my favorite show on television ever!
And that’s a strong statement from someone who takes his television watching seriously.
The show was brilliantly crafted, well written, well acted and it gave us all a lot to think about.
It was more than a show to sit on the couch and watch. It made you think. You had to work
for it. Piecing together the clues, catching the symbolism and foreshadowing, making theories.
And I still think that some of MY theories were so much better than what they told us.

In the end, it wasn’t so much about The Island, Jacob, Widmore, Ben and the Others.
It was all about Jack… and always has been. And how his journey was affected by everyone
else on the Island. How they all impacted his own journey. And how they all needed each
other. The episode does make one stop & think about the important people in your life.
And hope that they might be there in the end to help you “let go” as they did for Jack.

I loved the entire journey. What a great place to escape to each week.
Even the episodes that most people hated… dare I say Paolo & Nikki.
Thank you to the creators & writers for sharing such a wonderful experience with us!

I’m already planning on watching the entire show again from the beginning.
I’m hoping to see different clues & hints along the way, now that we know what happens
in the end. It’s been a long and wonderful journey with all of our friends who crashed
in Hawaii. But now it’s over… and what am I going to obsess about now?!

With the finale of “LOST” coming tonight… I just realized that the “answer”
to everything on the Island has been staring me in the face all along. Who knew that
the overall theme would be captured in a set of little bottles I’ve had for years
as part of my Cory McCrory Collection!!! Go figure… luckily, they each have stoppers!

With only a three-and-a-half hours left of “LOST”… one of those hours tonight!!!…
and a lot of answers yet to be explained, here’s a topic to discuss before it ends.
Who’s your favorite character and why?! Least favorite?!

Okay, so by now you know that I’m addicted to “LOST”…
but my other “Island Addiction” is the reality show “SURVIVOR.” I have been a HUGE fan
since the very beginning – when they kicked them off the boat and made them swim to shore.
And last night was the finale of the twentieth season – celebrated with an all-star reunion
of Heroes vs. Villains. It was another great season, with great characters, great twists
and great people doing stupid things!!!

Congratulations to the Top Three, left to right below.. Sandra, Parvati and Russell.
Although I won nothing in my own “Survivor Pool”… it’s still a lot more fun watching
Reality TV when they’re money riding on it!

In third place, the self-proclaimed biggest “Survivor” Villain of all time… Russell.
He is the most conniving & manipulative player ever; who always thinks he’s in charge -
all the way up to the final Tribal Council. But how ironic, that the guy who thinks
he’s the best player ever – got ZERO votes in the end!

And then there’s Parvati… my favorite! She’s the one who has been “on the Island”
the most, with well over 100 episodes and three seasons of “Survivor.” She was my
“gut choice” to win, but of course I overthought the game. Thinking that they would never
let a strong, competitive, previous winner get to the finish line again. But here she is -
still strong and coming in second!

And the winner… Sandra, who flew under the radar a bit, frequently scheming but never
too aggressive. She’s never won a challenge, but now has won the game of “Survivor” twice!
I’m not too excited about her win… I do like her wit & sarcasm… but I’m just more excited
that Russell didn’t win! He’s an idiot…

Next season, the “Survivor” castaways will be going off to Nicaragua!

The Best Show On Television… Ever! Sadly, coming to an end all too soon!
We’ve loved the characters, hated some of them, hypothesized, theorized and criticized!
And as it comes closer to the end, there are still a LOT of questions to be answered.
Last night’s episode was “supposed” to explain everything about Jacob, Anti-Jacob,
the “Rules” and quite possibly even “The Island” itself. I feel like it told us some of the
story, but never fully wrapped it up. I was a little disappointed I must say.

Luckily, we still have one more episode, plus a BIG finale night on Sunday, May 23rd.
Starting with a one-hour “LOST” recap… “Previously, on LOST…”
Followed by a two-and-a-half hour final episode to “answer” ALL of the questions?!!!
Then… and oh, but wait there’s more, a cast reunion on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”

So?… any theories out there?!
Who’s good? Who’s bad? Will there be a happy ending? What the heck is going on?
We already know that some of our favorites are not going to survive… as some
are already gone! Or are they?! And what’s with “Sideways World” anyways?

I know I have my theories… and I’d LOVE to hear yours!
So there’s the topic, now discuss amongst yourselves… and post them as a comment.