Memorial Day Weekend is here -- and so is summer, finally.
Since I last wrote, I had the pleasure of attending the graduation ceremony of the Beryozova School nearby -- a K-12 school serving about twenty children, most of whom are memers of Russian Old Believer families in our community. Two students graduated, younger students put on skits, and families provided a delicious lunch; the school is very unique. According to what I saw and heard, attendance, academic achievement, and appreciation for this culturally sensitive school are strong. The school calendar takes into consideration Russian Orthodox religious holidays, the girls wear dresses, and both Russian and English are spoken fluently by all students. As we arrived, two girls, dressed in beautiful, satin-like dresses, were climbing onto a four-wheeler in the muddy area outside the front door, headed home for a forgotten hair bow. I was fascinated and intrigued by Beryozova School; although very much off the beaten track -- it seems on track for this small pocket of Russian families, with very dedicated educators and parents determined to have their children educated with regard for their culture and beliefs. Was very appreciative of an opportunity to visit this special event.
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| Big flakes in late May |
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| The blanket of snow returned |
We sure have talked about weather a lot this Spring!
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| Sunsets across to the north |
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| An orange moon to the south |
Sunsets and a beautiful moon have been spectacular during the week,
and now warm sunny days and non-freezing nights have arrived, too. The
lake has pockets of water on top of the ice; ducks have found water
for landing along the shoreline. Bald eagle activity, but we've not yet seen loons on our corner of the lake.
From inside the house the views have been beautiful late at night, in all directions. One night I was reading Barbara Kingsolver's
Flight Behavior and realized I was doing so at 12:30 a.m. without any light turned on in the house.
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| Looking out from the loft at 12:30 a.m. |
It won't be long before ice in the lake will magically turn to water, reflecting a beautiful, blue sky. Today Keith planted the first patch of grass seed; earlier in the week he planted eleven shrubs, some of which were totally root bound by the time we were able to get them in the ground. Still watching for those tulips and have not given up on them -- yet. Today they received some water to see if that encourages their appearance.
Have a kiln firing tonight, so am keeping an eye on it to be sure it's doing what it is supposed to do. There will be photos, soon, of another load of completed work. Some folks are awaiting specific pieces, so I was anxious to get this firing underway. Also, and I should get lots of good information from the firing regarding what the new glaze, Shore Break, looks like under each of my previous glazes -- as well as how it looks over each of the previous glazes. A couple pieces were glazed with "mystery glaze," which is a collection of several glazes mixed together -- recycled into a bucket labeled "mystery glaze." Everything on the top shelf was glazed in the same combination -- lined in white, with a blue/green/nutmeg combo on the exterior.
Will post photos of completed work here and on Facebook as I've done in the past. Thanks for staying tuned. Didn't get everything in this kiln load, so may do a second glaze firing before starting the next cycle of work. It's nearly 2:00 a.m. and time to do another kiln check. G'night.
Have a kiln firing tonight, so am keeping an eye on it to be sure it's doing what it is supposed to do. There will be photos, soon, of another load of completed work. Some folks are awaiting specific pieces, so I was anxious to get this firing underway. Also, and I should get lots of good information from the firing regarding what the new glaze, Shore Break, looks like under each of my previous glazes -- as well as how it looks over each of the previous glazes. A couple pieces were glazed with "mystery glaze," which is a collection of several glazes mixed together -- recycled into a bucket labeled "mystery glaze." Everything on the top shelf was glazed in the same combination -- lined in white, with a blue/green/nutmeg combo on the exterior.