The sun is shining, cough, sneeze, wheeze...

Tis that time of the year, sniff, when the juniper (junipers?) is (are?) in bloom. That also means that the air takes on that mystical quality of fog as certain gusts of wind drive the clouds of pollen from the libidinous juniper bushes (trees?) that festoon the hillsides, lowlands and just about every nook and cranny in this part of New Mexico.

The juniper encrusted view from my bedroom window.
(Yes, that's snow from last snow event.)

Unfortunately, I am one off those individuals who suffer from pollenosis (among other allergies) and manifest this immune system disorder in a variety of ways, usually all at the same time. Let me take this opportunity to say "Thanks Mom and Dad!" Yes, tis the season of sniffing, snarfing, coughing, wheezing and wiping of the eyes. The sniffing and snarfing part drives Jude to distraction. It makes me rue the day of my birth, for I am the one that brings this wonderful gift of full blown mucous distress into her otherwise calm existence. Oh, and one other note that I must add here is that my affliction (or maybe I am an affliction upon others) brings mood and character altering aspects to an otherwise calm Roy. Not the most pleasant aspect of my personality it seems. I get rather stupid and unreasonable all of a sudden. I just simply cannot understand that but Jude insists that it is indeed true.

Here I am at a much calmer place, but notice if you will,
that the Juniper are still lurking in the background, just waiting to attack!

Even with all of the physically challenging endocrine system malfunction (well, actually it is functioning just the way nature intended for it to.) life seems to be going along breezingly well. Yesterday was a Raku firing day at Tomas Wolf's house and including Luna (Tomas' greeting committee of one) there were eight of us (Nick and Pete were busy in the back putting up a portal and were therefore not included in my count of 8) wandering about oohing and aahing and trying to duck and avoid the plumes of smoke from the "kilns" set up around the main kiln and the driveway. All in all, there were about 6 different "kiln" devices in operation which seem to put out various amounts of smoke and heat.
The day was warm with a breeze blowing carrying most of the smoke away. Lots of comraderie and banter accompanied the whole process. Tomas very patiently answered all questions and explained each step in the process from the preparations to the completion. Some beautiful pieces were turned out as a result. Actually, all pieces turned out beautiful! If you are interested in seeing photos of pieces as well as Jude's newest creation, tune into www.strawmountainblog.blogspot.com.

From the humble, the divine.

Clay dug from the earth
lovingly arranged in sublime forms
allowed to dry.
Painted designs of colored earth transforms
monochromatic soil,
the heat of the kiln performs.
Viola!
Humble elements from earth emerge divine!

Well that is about it for now. Thanks for tuning in. Have a little fun when you can.