clay play

Well, I forgot my camera tonight on my way to class and once I got there I totally lost track of time.  I had 7 pots to glaze, 4 to trim and one mug to make a handle for as we were all under the impression that there were only 2 classes left.  (It turns out we have 3.)

I also wanted to try the techniques Krista introduced me to on her blog.  That sort of flopped because I didn’t wedge my clay well enough and was short on time but I still had fun.  I’m looking forward to seeing my pots in 2 weeks but I still have to figure out some small hand building projects for that class.

I’ve always wanted to have my own tiles but I won’t have time to paint them up all fancy so I was thinking of perhaps trying some chimes.  I’m open for suggestions though!

waldorf in e-town

Somehow I’ve only managed to visit municipal council chambers once.  I’m not sure what they call the room where the public school trustees meet but it sure felt like council chambers with a lecture theatre twist.  At today’s meeting the board decided to act on a proposal to re-introduce the Waldorf pedagogy into the public school system.  I’m so excited!  Having the program available in the public school system means it will accessible to those who might not otherwise be able to afford Waldorf.  The only schools I know of in Canada are private and pricey.

It’s going to be a busy few months for everyone involved in the transition but it’s also going to be super exciting too!

back to the grind

This weekend I made my first trip to the mountains of the winter.  Now that we live so much further from the hills it is soooo much harder to get the motivation to travel west, no matter what the season.

Back in the fall, some women from my old hiking club invited me for a ladies weekend away in the woods.  Instead of camping or hostelling, the plan was to stay at the Goldeye Centre and do some exploring on foot, supplemented by crafting and some home cooked meals by the staff at the centre.  Despite having studded boots I’m always a bit fearful of winter hikes – especially with all the freeze/thaw cycles we’ve had this season.  I’ve been wanting to finish up my quilt which I started back in September and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to spend some time on it.  M and I like sewing together and we hadn’t seen each other since December so I figured she might enjoy a weekend in the mountains as well.  We had some great conversations on the drive down and the grandma’s were all over baby.  Okay, I was too.

Everyone else spent most of the days on the trail but we did have some good visits and I got a sneak peak at the trips being planed for the summer.  I really hope these knees start to feel better soon as I’d really, really like to knock of some sections of the great divide trail before we move further away.

My generously sized 78 x 52″ lap quilt isn’t finished yet as I underestimated how long it would take to stitch in the ditch on all the squares, but I’m one step closer.  I just need to trim the edges and start the task of sewing the binding.  Nothing beats a ferry ride between the gulf islands for that.  Somehow I think it might be another year before this quilt gets done!

Now, back to that grind.  It seems quilting isn’t the only project that I’ve  underestimated my time requirements for.

overpowered by life

These past couple of weeks have consisted of me being behind.  I’ve been struggling to stay afloat with work deadlines, homework and the important stuff like staying healthy and spending time with friends.  Needless to say blogging, or even reading blogs has been squeezed out.  I like being busy but on the work and homework fronts its been brutal.  I still have things I need to catch up on but this weekend I’m taking a break and doing things I enjoy.

First on the list is JWH concert tonight.  Now that he’s relearned it he’s promised to play one of my favourite songs – Nellie and Joe.   Afterwards I’m heading out for a weekend in the mountains with girlfriends.

Ah… finally time to breath.  And make some progress on me quilt.

just another hallmark holiday

So I’ve been sick for the past 10 days so my time on blogs has been minimal.  It’s been a nutso week for work too, but then when do we ever welcome illness anyways?

I’ve been trying to go with the flow more in the past few months and as wrong as it sometimes felt I let myself go without posting most of this week.  I was so exhausted and while it was a challenge to keep up with posts last week the desire just hasn’t been there this week.  I’m hoping lots of sleep during this long weekend will help and I’ll be back to more dialogue and the fitness regime next week.

First, since I’ve been hearing so much about romantic weekends for other couples and dread over tomorrow from my single friends I thought I’d share the delights of what will be going on around here tomorrow.  I’ve never been a fan of cheesy traditions… maybe that’s why I think the schedule of events for tomorrow are so comical.

First off – no sleeping in.  I need to get up around the same time as I do for work so I can help out at a Waldorf playgroup.

While I’m out, Kevin will be going into the city to pick someone up and then they’re heading out of town for a ski race.  I’m hoping I can eat lunch in the car and catch the end of their race.  Things get normal for a while then, although dinner will be rushed if I’m to be out the door by 6:30.  Why you ask?  Well, I’ve got to go to a meeting on V day night so Kevin is off to celebrate a birthday with a friend who rarely has friends available to party with him on the actual day.  I think it’s nice that it’s working out this way since it is a weekend and all.

Monday is a holiday so it’s not like we can’t make up the difference one of those two days.  I wanted to plan a clever little something but the exhaustion that has accompanied this sick makes me wonder if I’ll even get around to it.  I’m on the couch ready to fall asleep as it is (and it’s only 6 o’clock)!

dreaming

Oh how I would love to build my own house…

I’m sure it’s a dream many of us have but I’ve been collecting books and ideas for years.  I’m still reconciling the eco side of things but the  financial resources and a location need to be taken care of first anyways.  In my minds eye the land is a partly forested infill lot in a community that feels right.

Having lived in a few smaller towns and now suburbia, I know how important being able to walk to the store, the post office and work are to me.  I also like trees but want enough sun to grow a garden and not need to use lights if I’m inside on a sunny day.  When we were on the coast a few trips back we spied what we call the “yam”.  It had everything going for it expect the proximity to town but it was encouraging to see that there are others that are thinking along the same lines as us.  There’s still more room than we would need but I like that the main living spaces are upstairs and filled with windows and all sorts of fun angles from the roof line.  Now if I’d only taken my own photos of the inside so I could share!

I also can’t help but confess that I really like Jay Shafer’s Tumbleweed Houses, especially little ones that go on wheels, like the weebee.  Kind of like a VW van but a little more permanent.  I don’t think we’re likely to go quite that small anytime soon but something like the B-53 just might work.  I’ve played with this plan a bunch of times, trying to find a way to make the kitchen booth more open so the space would work for sewing as well but haven’t quite figured it out yet.  I like that Jay’s plans aren’t filled with unused space and the living area in this house is pretty close to what we make regular use of in our current house – even the 2 floors part.

My main reservations (apart from being in a place to build a house we won’t have to leave) are architectural features or lack thereof.  When (if?) we build I would want to make sure that the house was designed to allow natural light to infiltrate in all the right places and that it felt like home.  I’ve picked up some great inspiration from the designs by Ross Chapin Architects but of course they would be much more complicated to design and construct.  One of my favourite snapshots is this:

That small window on the left and the skylight bring light, but not so much that the room is constantly flooded in light.  A wood stove is a must and I like that the bookshelves (also very important) create part of the frame for the room so the ceiling doesn’t feel strangely high.

Anyways, I’m just rambling now… I’m so glad my brain is working again after 4 days of the flu…

Avoiding the trap

I’m taking one final online course to fulfil my B.Ed. entry requirements. I’m frustrated by my instructor’s lack of communication but I’m trying not to fall into my usual trap of getting frustrated and then either making a big stink or becoming completely ambivalent.

For a web course it seems absurd to me that an instructor won’t answer simple questions in email.  The first time I asked something which I thought was really straight forward (because it was really just 3 questions that could be answered with yes/no) he responded to tell me to call him during his office hours.  This seemed absurd since he already knew that I have other commitments at those times.  I followed up to say I’d call as late as I could – just before office hours and when I called I left a message with a repeat of my questions.  That was Tuesday and I’m still waiting on a phone message or email response.

I know I should just get that first assignment done and worry about what the results are later but my frustrations are eating away at me. I so wish I could drop this course without screwing with our BC plan!

pottery!

I finally remembered to take my camera to class tonight!  I’m finally getting the hang of this pottery on the wheel thing and I couldn’t be happier.

I usually have no idea what I’m going to make when I start out but great things have been happening.    And unlike in my first set of classes (where I only got on the wheel three times) I’m actually challenging myself to let things go.  That usually means squishing up the last thing I’m trying but last night that meant making my cheater plates a little smaller than planned.  All in all, it’s fun, fun, fun!

BTW, these photos are of things I made last week before I started trimming them.

breaking the rules

I have my own rules.  I think we all do, but how many people have their own snow removal rules?  I think I may be on my own there.

1. Keep sidewalks and driveway clear of snow.  This one is pretty easy.  If it snows, I shovel.  Quick removal reduces ice buildup and makes future clean ups easier.  Life is much sweeter now that Kevin understands why I’m so anal about this rule and helps maintain our chunk of concrete.

2. Don’t use de-icing salt.  It’s bad for the environment and besides there’s a watercourse a few hundred metres down the hill.

3. Be generous to neighbours and clear beyond the property line.  Go above and beyond whenever they are sick or away.

I’ve owned a house in this winter wonderland for 4 winters now and until this weekend I had never considered buying or using de-icing salt.  It was so hard for me to break that rule but if you had seen our sidewalk and the number of people who were using it this weekend you would understand.  The crazy part is that I had to break 2 other rules before I got to that one.  I’m disappointed in myself but I’m not sure whether I would do things differently next time.

I’m always worried that someone else will have a bad fall like I did a few years ago but thought people might actually stay indoors or avoid our road.  That didn’t seem to be the case so there was much shovel bouncing off of 2″ thick ice and guilt about the state of our walk before I finally reached for the forbidden chemical.  And of course with the trouble I was having with my own walk I wasn’t trying any more than I “had” to (i.e., not going next next door).

Yesterday I finally wiped the slate clean by chipping the whole chunk of sidewalk from neighbour to neighbour.  I was thinking my timing was spectacular when I spotted this machine right after I came inside.

Turns out he was just there to level out the snow but for now there’s no need for me to worry about someone slipping on our sidewalk as a result of our neglect.  Now if I could just convince some business owners to think the same way winter would be easy peasy around here!

Candlemas

Happy Candlemas one day late!  I had intended to write this up and post it last night but I was more in the mood for a long conversation with a good friend when I got home.

Christian celebrations have never felt right for me but since we decided to celebrate winter solstice two years ago the Christmas season has been much better.  As I’m learning more about Waldorf I’m finding there are all sorts of other times of year to celebrate.

I find it interesting that some of what we know as “religious” celebrations actually have their roots in pagan traditions.

Yesterday North Americans celebrated groundhog day and the shadows that “tell” us winter will last 6 more weeks.  Up until two weeks ago that’s all I was aware of on February 2.  Now I know there’s a brighter celebration on the same day – the visible return of light, halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox.  It sounds like more of a pagan sort of celebration but I see that there are a lot of Christian connotations with the name Candlemas.  I found a little quote that ties the celebrations together “if Candlemas Day is bright and clear/ There’ll be two winters in the year.”

In celebration of Candlemas, our local Waldorf group held a potluck and candle making last night.  Kevin and I had a good time and we made some candles to supplement our dwindling supply as well.  Perhaps the best parts were the people and that there was other food we could eat (an exceedingly rare treat).  It was a great day and now here’s a photo of our silly candles!