New Format of blogging

I am going to try a different style of blogging today with pictures as I tell you about the day.  I started the day off with an early trip (6:30) to the antique market in search for some blue glass to hang from some of the handles of my pots.  It was very cold this morning.  It is like it just decided to turn cold overnight.  It is not that cold, but it was much colder than it has been.  I wanted a light jacket this morning but was hit by the morning chill unexpectedly.  I was shocked to find these jade crucifixes at the market along with all of the jade jewelry.  I thought you guys might find that interesting.

My only purchase at the market was this sweet dragon pipe (it is really an opium pipe) that I figured my boys back at school would think was awesome.  Alesha was very happy to model it for me with a cigarette stuck in the top.  The mouthpiece is either made of porcelain or slipped and the dragon is some unglazed earthen clay. 

I love this picture of Martin.  He is the visiting artist that is with us until around the NCECA conference this month.  He tells the most awesome stories ever.  He is from Saskatchewan Canada and he says it gets so cold there that they sometimes send out warnings on the radio for people with sensitive teeth.  it gets so cold that it literally can crack your teeth if you open your mouth.  He has worked quite a few interesting jobs and was a ceramic lab tech for a while before starting his own studio.  He also bottles his own beer.  He is making one of his home made brewing bottles in the picture.  He said they are made from english influence.  

He also made some large wide jars.  This is a bit loose for my personal taste, but I like his functional things very much.  I am very excited to learn about kiln building from him.  He says he has built and designed quite a few in his day so hopefully I can pick up some good tips.

This is the awesome plate of food I ate for lunch.  I know you guys enjoyed that yesterday so I decided to do another.  This is rice, carrots, and some really, really awesome fried banana stuff.  I think there may be some kind of fat put in there as well, but it was one of the sweetest dishes we have had so far.