My, My How Time Flies

I cannot believe that it has been two solid months since I wrote a blog post.  I realize that I am making excuses, but I have a good one. 

I am teaching four online classes this semester.  Yes, four.  F-O-U-R.  Every semester it seems there is something strange about how my classes work out.  This semester I have four onlines and only one seated class.  It is going well, but I spend all day at work every day sitting at my computer.  I respond to student emails and answer questions and even hand grade their written work all at my computer.  Technology is wonderful that way.  As a result, I have not been able to make myself sit down at the computer when I'm at home to do anything.  Thus, no new posts here.  

I would promise to do better, but realistically I probably will not do better.  Let us just skip the empty promises this time and move on to what I can share right now.  

First of all, the Carolina Pottery Festival is this Saturday!  Hours are 10am to 4pm at the LeGrand Center in Shelby.  It is worth the $5 admission to see the wide variety of work.  I would love to see you there!  

About a month ago, I realized that this was happening again (as it does on the first Saturday of November every year) and I was not even close to prepared for it.  Pottery panic ensued.  Since September 26, we have been working in high gear at A Griffin Pottery.  I think the kiln has been fired 4 or 5 times already (previously unheard of in my studio), and I have another glaze fire to load up tonight after I finish glazing my last pieces.  I was not the only one who did not have as much work ready as she felt like she needed.  Gail and Lisa have both been right there with me frantically churning out the work. 

I made mugs...

soup bowls...

and bunches of other things that I did not stop to take pictures of. (Sorry.  I ended that sentence with a preposition.  I am exhausted.  Cut me some slack.)

All these things will be at the festival on Saturday.

We have experienced lots of rain and some wind due to two different hurricanes in September and October (Who am I kidding?  I can not remember when those storms were except that they were not this week or last week.) that have blown through our area.  The second one brought down this limb.  Only minor damage to a couple of cars that were parked there.  We were really lucky. 

Perhaps most exciting thing that has happened since I last posted here is that some long needed work to spruce up the outside of the building began.  This is further proof that when one thinks that one cannot do one more thing because she is too busy, that is when that one more thing will have to happen.  (Did you follow that?)

Check out this before and after.  Well, it's an after and before, but you get what I am trying to show you.  The building looks amazing!

Obviously, we are not finished.  I have to get the "stuff" back up on the outside now that the new paint is on. (Again with the preposition. Yikes!)  There will be a new sign soon too. Once that goes up, I'll get this guy back up and we will be all set.

For now, he is content to hang out inside where he is safe.

 Oh yeah, we have a new door knob on the bathroom door too.  I no longer have to worry about someone getting stuck in the bathroom because the door knob broke.  The knob broke on Sunday afternoon.  Lucky for me, I was on the outside and not the inside.

BIG thank you to my "handy" husband, Jeff for replacing this today.