My March Madness
Winter Thoughts -
    Do we talk about the weather too much? Do we discuss how much we love the cold or winter or the snow? Or how ready we are for spring? I'm getting tired of the 'I'm tired of the snow' talk now. The "Bring on Spring" conversations are bugging me a little. Why? It's a ridiculous idea. It's March in NE Wisconsin. It's March. There is no spring here in March. No flowers or buds or bugs or birds or beautiful mornings on the porch with a coffee.   Â
     Melting snow=mud=mess=extreme sadness. That's what we've got to live through once the snow is gone and before we get spring. And spring is here for a mini-second. Then it's summer and we wonder if we missed spring again. I prefer winter--it's clean. The dog poo freezes. The mosquitoes are dead. And I've got a cozy fire to sip my coffee next to. And a comfy chair. I'd love to go to sleep now and wake up on Memorial Day.Â
The importance of Flowers
This Christmas gift gave us plenty of deep rich red color throughout February.Â
This is NOT a lemonade story
Years ago this clump birch that stands outside the kiln shed/next to the raku pad was healthy and strong but as trees do, it began to fail. The tree trimmer came in and cut down the dead parts of the clump. I almost cried. It was so naked, alone and frail almost. In a serendipitous moment, I noticed the vases on the side porch that were destined for the second sale. I knew that they would fit just righton the newly created stumps, so before the tree trimmers were even finished cleaning up I had moved the tallest vases to the clump.Â
                                                                                            Throughout the years some of the vases were knocked over by wind or dogs or people and broke. Even with sand in the bottom, that would happen. Sometimes I wanted new vases on the stumps. I left these on the tree way too long before I finally put them away for the winter. First, though-photo time!
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We are working in the studio, reading pottery books, moving snow (not me, John does that), walking dogs, stacking and burning wood, hauling wood ash, cleaning snow off the roof, visiting medical pros (we're a little older :) and we've learned it's an older person "hobby"), reading and having a few naps. These are all good winter activities for creatives and makers. We're taking a very nice break and refueling, giving our brains some room and time to work without our interference. It's working, too. It's an exciting time in the studio. Â
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