Hot Cakes

This is my major "Hot Cake" item in my booth at this time. Having made more than 8,000 of these little bird houses that go on a stick, I can tell you that their popularity has not wained since my fellow potter Debbie Dean convinced me to make them more than 10 years ago.

Hammering the Cramps

"Hammering The Cramps" is a song from an indie soundtrack called CHICAGO CAB MUSIC, by SparkleHorse......it's a rockin tune that my husband put on a mix-disc we play in the car, a fantastic song to drive fast to. I made the trip from southern Oregon to Portland last week for Ceramic Showcase. A show with over a 150 potters sharing a giant hall. The scope and depth of the talent in the room would be hard to put into words, you will simply have to go yourselves, next year April 30 - May 2. It is a 5 day ordeal, and basically by Sunday, every system in my body was breaking down, accept for my sense of humor. The show was a definite bright spot in an otherwise tragic economy. It felt like the good people of Portland wanted to get out and finally spend some money, having been really really good since Christmas. My sales were up from last year 25%, wow! It was a too brief Shang-ra-la however, that I woke up from the instant my van started sputtering on the way home. I turned down the blasting reggae music to have a listen, yeah, no gas. Apparently, you have to look down at the dials once in a while, instead of singing and dreaming up pottery schemes. Luckily I was near an exit ramp on I-5, I was able to ditch the green pottery van there and walk to a friendly Starbucks, where I was greeted with the kind of cheerfulness that I desperately needed. Back on the road, I went strait back to the blasting, the Reggae, and the will-full indifference to worldly concerns.