Holiday Season...it has arrived!

Yes, WillowAK Pottery, along with other Willow art studios, will be open to all on Saturday, December 1 1.

Stay tuned for details.

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First, Recollections of Thanksgivings Past:

Thanksgiving 2020 we dined in what we call the "cove" of our home, enjoying the company of Cedar, our golden we knew we'd be saying goodbye to soon, and Birch, the new golden puppy who had just joined us. Although we love our dogs, it did not seem very festive or "quite right" to be without family for my favorite dinner of the year! Dr. Fauci said not to gather and we thought that may be a good plan since no one really knew much about Covid-19 at that point...the who, what, where, why, how, and when. So, we stayed home...just two oldsters, accompanied by a wonderful adult dog and a precious puppy, being thankful, uncertain, and concerned!

Thanksgiving 2021 was different. We were joined by family in our dining room with son-in-law Steve taking on the chef duties, as usual. Two turkeys smoked on outdoor grills at a -12 degree temperature, with great results. Delicious sides, topped off by perfect pies baked by grandson Ben, made a fine fare for ten of us, one of whom was grandniece Taylor of Gulf Shores, AL. The kids cleared a skating rink on the lake for hockey and races, they walloped the adults in Taboo, watched Detective, Detective, Detective once again, laughed a lot, and it was great having them with us. The heroes of the day: grandson Noah who asked if he could take a look at the control panel of our on-the-fritz dishwasher and ended up diagnosing and resolving the problem. That, after our being told by service repair folks that an $800+ part was needed, but not available! Also, grandsons Hunter and Ben moved about 1,000 pounds of supplies from our truck to the studio with no audible complaints. Lots of opportunities to be thankful!

Thankful for cooks and bakers, thankful for food and family fun, thankful for a curious and capable young mind that fixed a dishwasher! Thankful for young, strong bodies with a willingness to be helpful. It was a great day! Yes, there are bigger, more important things in the world for which to be grateful, but Thanksgiving thoughts were pretty close to home in 2021.

Next, Pottery News and Views:

So, moving forward, what's this blog's intent you ask? Allow me to update you about the pottery. A clay and glaze shipment finally arrived last week and a fresh start at creating is about to begin. Friend Rohde installed a new pump on the studio stand-alone Cink, so that's working again. Thank you, Rohde! One kiln load of work was completed before the new shipment was picked up at Span Alaska. Some of these pieces were specifically ordered by those who have patiently been awaiting news that the glaze firing is complete. Those notifications went out this evening. Here is a sampling of what came out of the kiln two days ago: