Amanda throws clay on the wheel. I asked her if making pottery was relaxing and meditative. She said that sometimes it is but people always jump to that conclusion. She explained when you are actually trying to make something (besides an ashtray) the process can be difficult. Kiln temperature, clay moisture, drying time, and matching finishes all require a preciseness that can destroy the calming effect of pottery.
Painting is how the studio is made dirty. Painting is how the studio is made clean..
Today was a "beautiful day in the nieghborhood." I saw this policeman getting a drink of water from a gardener this morning. My favorite sign that Spring is here isn't the red buds, bright green leaves, birds, or the Sun. It’s how pleasant people act towards one another when they're outside enjoying the weather after months of cold. Spring makes the World closer to the utopia of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood.
I went to an Irish-style pub named Nanny O'Brien's. I was there to take pictures of a fellow member of Vets for Peace. She plays several traditional Irish instruments during frequent Irish musician gatherings at Nan's. The music is amazing, the best thing is the musicians just sit around a table in the back room socially playing their instruments and drinking.
My friends Andrew and Maris wash their dog Matilde
I have been burning this prayer candle since pope John Paul II died. I am hoping for an African Pope who will help bring real equality to the World. However, I think this might be a Santeria candle.
I went to the hospital today to pick up my friend M. E. Sprengelmeyer from the recovery room. He had surgery to have a small tumor taken from his thumb. A tumor he named Lumpy. Though the surgery was minor it will definitely put a damper on M.E.'s productivity as a writer for Scripps Howard News Service. Headline -- Lumpy is Dead.Pre-Surgery Serenade
Yesterday I hiked over to M.E.'s place to witness his last accordion playing for who knows how long. On the way to his place I stopped at the Mount Pleasant Dollar Store to pick up a magnifying glass to help focus on a good thumb picture.
My old friend and Marine Corps photographer came to visit me yesterday. My former brother in arms Miller is now an active duty sergeant. He has been taking videography courses at Defense Information School not too far from here. We sailed to Afghanistan together in the Marine Corps with Eason, another friend of ours I decided to call -- only to find that he had joined an infantry reconnaissance unit of the Florida National Guard just yesterday! I couldn't believe he had actually joined the Army. Having been a Marine it seems like sacrilege. Eason said one of the main reasons he joined the Army was because in many ways it would be easier to be Army reconnaissance than it was being a Marine photographer. We all laughed.
