My little pig farm... kind of

My studio looks like a pig farm! and not because it's messy ;o)
I've been making piggy banks and salt pigs all day today. I had a custom order for 2 salt pigs and I figured why not just make a day of it and make lots of them.

I took a break from the little piggy's for a short time and made some magnets and some really cute little dishes, I think all of them were animal related actually.

I'm about to be in the market for a new laptop. The one I have now is several years old, I've babied it pretty well, but it starting to have issues. My space bar wasn't working properly last night so I hit it a few good times with my finger hoping to scare it into working properly. Well that didn't work, so I blew under it and hit it a few more times thinking it was stuck. Finally I just pulled it off and then I thought *ut oh...* well I found out what the problem was. There is a little rubber nipple thing that sits under the key, this is what makes the key pop back up after you tap it. I knocked it out of place some how. So I put it back and now I can't get the space bar to click in right, it's there... just a little loose. I have a compaq presario and I promise you it was the best money I ever spent, it's been a jewel. But.... I think it's time for a new one.

I'm heading out to the movie theater tonight. I think I might see either Alice in Wonderland or the Bounty Hunter with Jennifer Aniston. I'll decide when I get there.

Tony Soprano and his hit man are trying to ruin me!!!

Wow I had a rough night. Sunday mornings are reserved for 3 full hours of The Sporanos. I know it went off tv a few years ago, but A&E plays reruns and Mike and I are totally caught up in it.

I think this may be why the mafia sent in Munchie (obviously a hit man working for the mafia), to watch me and see what I'm up to. I loaded my kiln Saturday night so I could fire it early Sunday morning. The Sopranos come on at 10am and that was also the time for the last of my 4 start up switches to be engaged (coincidence? I think not!) I was in such a hurry I ran down, closed the lid and the peep hole and raced back upstairs and took my place on the sofa in front of the TV, I didn't realize until later that night that I didn't engage the last switch.

Late last night when I discovered what I had done I was so upset with Tony Soprano, this is all his fault. If I hadn't have rushed to met his time line everything would have worked out ok. Late last night while everyone was sleeping and I was working in my basement studio waiting for my kiln to finish up. I discovered someone had been snooping around!!!

(Evidence)

So last night / early this morning I got that heebee jeebee feeling that someone was watching me. I brushed it off, I figured it was late (around 3am) and I was just tired, so I went on working until something caught my eye. He was trying to be sneaky, I ducked and ran and hid, stalking the stalkers every move. Slowly I picked up my rolling pin (I use it for rolling small slabs of clay), and WHAMO!!!! I pounced, pinning his tail to the table with the handle of the rolling pin.

(Munchie aka the hitman stalker aka cupcake killer)

I let Munchie spend the rest of the night and afternoon under a coffee can so that he could think about what he done and to send a message to the others. Then I released him in the back of my property near the neighbors house that I don't like *muhahahaha* she's a mean lady! don't judge me! LOL

Oh and for the record I don't usually keep cupcakes in my studio, however... that would be an awesome idea. This is a scented bath fizzy that you put in your bath water (I used it as a prop for my cupcake stands), it's baking soda based, so HA! Munchie and Tony Soprano! You've got nothing on me.

It's like Christmas... kind of

I popped out of bed this morning at 5am to open my kiln. I always hope for the best, but you never know, anything can happen in your kiln. Some of the goodies I retrieved this morning were a cupcake stand, a hand built tray with matching dishes and a cake stand.

Oh, I'm glazing one of my piggy banks, he just had his 1st firing a few days ago. I'm thinking black and white spotted? We'll see.

Custom travel mug

I love doing custom work, when someone comes to me with an idea and I am able to do it for them, it's so rewarding. I tend to stress out about it a bit, hoping the kiln gods are on my side and I don't completely wreck the piece.
This is my latest custom order for my friends daughter Cristi and she loves it! yay!!!

Wonky pots and hospitals

Well my mom is back home after her 5-6 week stint in the hospital. She and her hubby were traveling down the interstate and for some reason, possibly ran over something in the road, they blew out a tire and rolled their truck. They had to be cut out of their truck. Mom got the worse end of the deal, broken ribs, dislocated shoulder, broken knee, cut over her eye and several other bumps and bruises. So she had surgery and is wheel chair bound for the next several weeks. BUT the good news is she is back home, unable to walk but that sure beats being stuck in the hospital.

So just an hour ago I get an email from my friend Barbara's daughter telling me Barb is in the hospital! Barb is one of my dearest, "love no matter what" friends. She's in loads of pain, not real sure what happened, she was thinking spider bite, but she got a bad place on her leg that went really bad really fast. They operated and hopefully we'll know what's wrong tomorrow.
The last time she was in the hospital I went to see her, it was around Valentines Day last year.
I took her some candy and some chili cheese tater tots and crawled in the bed with her for a photo.

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Ok so on another note, completely unrelated. I just love my wonky pots! These started off as a bit of a joke with Mike and I (Mike is my husband), he scrutinizes everything I make. One day I had made a few vases and seeking approval I hurried him down to my studio show I could show him what I did. He looked them over and of course zeroed in on the one that wasn't so perfect and he said " they look great, but what about this one? it looks a little.... wonky". *ugh!!!* So this continued for several months and finally, being the brat that I am, I made perfect things wonky intentionally. I use to work in an office environment and that provoked the wonky pot desk set. I have friends that are still trapped in offices and everyday I am so thankful that I escaped and I'm able to do my own thing.

I'm sick :o(

It's been a week today that I've been down and out with this godawful cold, sneezing, coughing, cold to the bone with chills, chapped lips and runny eyes. I've gone through 200 cough drops, a whole roll of toilet tissue and a whole box of puff's with lotion tissues, which by the way are wonderful. I ♥ them.

I have 3 kiln loads of work waiting on me to fire, coffee mugs, spoon rests, cake plates, small ring bowls, stamped trays etc...

I'm trying everything to get better, but nothing is working. I called my favorite Chinese take out place and ordered dinner for my son Levi and I tonight, we both had their chicken noodle soup, I swear it has magical healing powers. Mike and Michael are camping and caving this weekend with some of our friends. I'm pretty sad that I couldn't go.

I have surrendered myself to sofa city with a weekend of chick flicks and a super soft throw blanket.