DAY SIX – Friday
Last day at Jewelry Camp 2007 – bummer !! It was a fairly slow day – finishing up our last projects, firing them, and then showing them off during “Show & Tell” at lunch. Yes, we have Show & Tell – each class puts their work along the tables and counters around the edges of the dining room, so everyone can see. Some of the wire and metal work classes have done phenomenal work – you would never believe that some of these folks have never done that type of work before.
After lunch and Show & Tell, the school begins to empty a bit. Some folks have very long drives (St. Louis, California, Michigan), so they pack up early and go. I finished up my last two firings, and then headed to my room for some preliminary packing and to make sure all my glass was safely wrapped. I was meeting the girls from last year to go out to dinner, so I headed out to the porch around 5:30 so we could sit in the rocking chairs, look at the view (no rain today – yay!), and chat for a while before heading out. And what to my wondering eyes should appear??? Yep – Chatty Cathy. She had attached herself to my friends and they all had a sort of desperate look on their faces. I had the sinking feeling she had invited herself to dinner with us, in which case I planned to tell them I was experiencing sudden gastric distress, and then sneak out to dinner with the girls from my glass class. Fortunately, Chatty did not go to dinner with us, so the lie was averted. Dinner was wonderful – of all things, there’s a dynamite little Italian restaurant up here in Young Harris. The owner/chef is a hoot, and makes sure he visits every table. They also have steaks and chops and some fish – I had a very delicate mountain trout that was really delicious. A lovely surprise in a tiny town.
So, tomorrow morning, it’s back to Atlanta - not such a long drive, fortunately, as some of my friends. I have made new friends, learned a new skill, and read several good books. A very relaxing week, and I hate to see it end, but I’m ready to get home. I need decent food, an air conditioner that doesn’t roar, and a martini – desperately !!!
Friday, July 13, 2007
Thursday, July 12, 2007
DAY FIVE – Thursday
A very productive day – learned one more new technique, and then we just stacked and fired for the rest of the day. I was disappointed with a few things, where the glass didn’t react the way I would have liked, but overall, a good day.
This was a day where folks were comfortable enough with what we were doing that we shared stories as we worked. One woman told us that she had an instructor last year, who told his silver-working class about the one class he would never forget. He had only three students in class during that particular week, and all were senior citizens – one who was on oxygen, one who was on a morphine drip, and one who had just completed chemotherapy. And they all bickered and argued for the entire week. By the time our classmate finished telling her story, all work had come to a complete halt because we were laughing so hard. She’s a good storyteller, as are all Southern women who have been “raised right.”
Tonight after dinner was the “tailgating” party in the dining room. This is where people who are here for the week, mostly instructors, bring out their wares to sell. It’s held in the dining room, so there are 16 tables full of lampwork beads, stones, glass beads, wire, stone beads, chain maille, precious gems, wooden beads, pearls, and beads. Oh, yeah – they also had some beads. I made just three purchases, but only because I’m not sure where I would put everything I really wanted. The shelves in my workroom are full, so it was a matter of budget and space. Jim is saying a quiet “Amen.”
Following the tailgate party, which ended promptly at 8:00 (everything around here begins and ends promptly), some of the ladies in my class asked me to join them for a game of Cranium. Here’s where my day took an hilarious turn. If you’ve ever played Cranium, you know there are four categories, and to move around the board, you must answer several different types of questions within each category. There are word questions (spell this backwards, fill in the blanks in this word, define this word); “data” questions (trivia); artistic questions (sculpt this with clay; draw this with your eyes closed and make your team guess what it is); and the dreaded “performing” category (hum this; act out that; pretend to be this person). One of my classmates had heard me mention choir practice, so all the humming questions went to me. And there were a lot. Over the course of the game I had to hum: “Wild Thing” – “My Best Friend’s Girl” by the Cars – and “Respect” by Aretha Franklin. Go ahead and laugh – I’ll wait for a moment while you try to hum any one of those songs.
OK, how did YOU do??? My teammates guessed only one out of three. In my defense, let me say that it’s hard to hum while you’re laughing hysterically.
The questions where one must pretend to be another person also seemed to fall to me. My first one was to act out Dr. McCoy from “Star Trek” – I could say anything he would say, but I was not allowed to say any specific names or places. I got blank stares (keep in mind that two of my three teammates were over 60, and one turns 80 next week), until I said, “The phasers seem to have made him think illogically – I can’t heal him!” For some reason, that clicked with the one person on the team who is around my age. Fortunately, she also guessed the last question, which was the game-winner for us. I had to pretend to be Julia Child. My first thought was (everyone say it with me), “Saaaave the livah!” (a la Dan Akroyd) – deer in the headlights, I’m telling you. Then I said, “And if you drop the chicken, just pick it up and throw it in the roasting pan. You’re the only one in the kitchen, and no one will know,” said in my best Julia Child voice. Again, my buddy got it, and we won the game. Cranium is hard work, and I’m not playing again without alcohol.
Tomorrow is our last day of class, and lots of folks are leaving in the afternoon. A couple of my friends from last year have decided we all need to go back to the restaurant we terrorized … um, I mean, entertained … while we were here last year. Friday night dinners here at jewelry camp are notoriously bad, and I’m not risking it. The restaurant it shall be. Then, on Saturday morning, these country roads can take me home.
OK, that? I can hum ….
A very productive day – learned one more new technique, and then we just stacked and fired for the rest of the day. I was disappointed with a few things, where the glass didn’t react the way I would have liked, but overall, a good day.
This was a day where folks were comfortable enough with what we were doing that we shared stories as we worked. One woman told us that she had an instructor last year, who told his silver-working class about the one class he would never forget. He had only three students in class during that particular week, and all were senior citizens – one who was on oxygen, one who was on a morphine drip, and one who had just completed chemotherapy. And they all bickered and argued for the entire week. By the time our classmate finished telling her story, all work had come to a complete halt because we were laughing so hard. She’s a good storyteller, as are all Southern women who have been “raised right.”
Tonight after dinner was the “tailgating” party in the dining room. This is where people who are here for the week, mostly instructors, bring out their wares to sell. It’s held in the dining room, so there are 16 tables full of lampwork beads, stones, glass beads, wire, stone beads, chain maille, precious gems, wooden beads, pearls, and beads. Oh, yeah – they also had some beads. I made just three purchases, but only because I’m not sure where I would put everything I really wanted. The shelves in my workroom are full, so it was a matter of budget and space. Jim is saying a quiet “Amen.”
Following the tailgate party, which ended promptly at 8:00 (everything around here begins and ends promptly), some of the ladies in my class asked me to join them for a game of Cranium. Here’s where my day took an hilarious turn. If you’ve ever played Cranium, you know there are four categories, and to move around the board, you must answer several different types of questions within each category. There are word questions (spell this backwards, fill in the blanks in this word, define this word); “data” questions (trivia); artistic questions (sculpt this with clay; draw this with your eyes closed and make your team guess what it is); and the dreaded “performing” category (hum this; act out that; pretend to be this person). One of my classmates had heard me mention choir practice, so all the humming questions went to me. And there were a lot. Over the course of the game I had to hum: “Wild Thing” – “My Best Friend’s Girl” by the Cars – and “Respect” by Aretha Franklin. Go ahead and laugh – I’ll wait for a moment while you try to hum any one of those songs.
OK, how did YOU do??? My teammates guessed only one out of three. In my defense, let me say that it’s hard to hum while you’re laughing hysterically.
The questions where one must pretend to be another person also seemed to fall to me. My first one was to act out Dr. McCoy from “Star Trek” – I could say anything he would say, but I was not allowed to say any specific names or places. I got blank stares (keep in mind that two of my three teammates were over 60, and one turns 80 next week), until I said, “The phasers seem to have made him think illogically – I can’t heal him!” For some reason, that clicked with the one person on the team who is around my age. Fortunately, she also guessed the last question, which was the game-winner for us. I had to pretend to be Julia Child. My first thought was (everyone say it with me), “Saaaave the livah!” (a la Dan Akroyd) – deer in the headlights, I’m telling you. Then I said, “And if you drop the chicken, just pick it up and throw it in the roasting pan. You’re the only one in the kitchen, and no one will know,” said in my best Julia Child voice. Again, my buddy got it, and we won the game. Cranium is hard work, and I’m not playing again without alcohol.
Tomorrow is our last day of class, and lots of folks are leaving in the afternoon. A couple of my friends from last year have decided we all need to go back to the restaurant we terrorized … um, I mean, entertained … while we were here last year. Friday night dinners here at jewelry camp are notoriously bad, and I’m not risking it. The restaurant it shall be. Then, on Saturday morning, these country roads can take me home.
OK, that? I can hum ….
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
DAY FOUR – Wednesday
Today was our half-day – we worked in the morning, and had the afternoon to ourselves. Got a lot of things fired this morning, and we were able to creep into our classroom after dinner tonight to see some of the results. We’re all getting better as the week progresses, and it’s fun to see what everyone is doing. The goal now seems to be to use all of our scraps of glass, which should lead to some pretty interesting projects over the next day and a half. We’ll only have three more firings, and then we’ll have to stop.
A couple of girls in the class asked if I wanted to go with them to explore another nearby folk art school in North Carolina, so off we went. The other school is huge – John C. Campbell Folk School – and has a much larger selection of classes. Jewelry arts are only a minor part of their curriculum. They also teach things like weaving, music, quilting, pottery, blowing glass, woodwork, painting, blacksmithing, cooking, and sculpting. Of course, it’s also proportionately more expensive. Roughly twice the cost of this school, and that’s if you choose dorm-style accommodations – four to six people to a room. If you choose a room for two, you can add another third to the cost. So it’s a toss-up – cost vs. curriculum. I admit – I’d be tempted ….
One of the nice things about the Campbell school is that they allow visitors to observe classes briefly, so we wandered in and out of a few classrooms. Everyone was very welcoming and took time to explain to us what each class was about. Their grounds are lovely, and we were fortunate enough to pull up just when the fiddle class was out on a balcony practicing for bluegrass music night. I could have stood there all afternoon. Mountains rising from the mist in the background, a warm, breezy afternoon, smells from the nearby flower garden, and those fiddles … those fiddles !!! It was haunting ….
We spent about an hour there, and then took off to explore the neighboring town of Brasstown, North Carolina. Brasstown’s main street (nope, no capital letters, it doesn’t have a name) is roughly one city block long, and is comprised of a small folk art gallery (2 rooms), two antique stores, four art studios, and a pool table store. Apparently, there’s a booming business in pool tables up here. Who knew?
Back to our school for a quick dinner and a riveting conversation at my dinner table about retirement communities. I zoned out, and escaped as soon as I could. Retired folks are a lively bunch, but the things they are lively about just don’t interest me … yet. One lady’s community has a great pool, and they have yoga and tai chi classes, computer classes, book clubs, and cooking classes, so maybe … ahh, never mind.
Tomorrow, we’re learning one more technique, and then we’ll have the exciting “tailgate party” after dinner. Students and teachers will display things they’ve brought with them to sell – sort of like a mini-craft fair. My checkbook is feeling a little heavy . . . .
Today was our half-day – we worked in the morning, and had the afternoon to ourselves. Got a lot of things fired this morning, and we were able to creep into our classroom after dinner tonight to see some of the results. We’re all getting better as the week progresses, and it’s fun to see what everyone is doing. The goal now seems to be to use all of our scraps of glass, which should lead to some pretty interesting projects over the next day and a half. We’ll only have three more firings, and then we’ll have to stop.
A couple of girls in the class asked if I wanted to go with them to explore another nearby folk art school in North Carolina, so off we went. The other school is huge – John C. Campbell Folk School – and has a much larger selection of classes. Jewelry arts are only a minor part of their curriculum. They also teach things like weaving, music, quilting, pottery, blowing glass, woodwork, painting, blacksmithing, cooking, and sculpting. Of course, it’s also proportionately more expensive. Roughly twice the cost of this school, and that’s if you choose dorm-style accommodations – four to six people to a room. If you choose a room for two, you can add another third to the cost. So it’s a toss-up – cost vs. curriculum. I admit – I’d be tempted ….
One of the nice things about the Campbell school is that they allow visitors to observe classes briefly, so we wandered in and out of a few classrooms. Everyone was very welcoming and took time to explain to us what each class was about. Their grounds are lovely, and we were fortunate enough to pull up just when the fiddle class was out on a balcony practicing for bluegrass music night. I could have stood there all afternoon. Mountains rising from the mist in the background, a warm, breezy afternoon, smells from the nearby flower garden, and those fiddles … those fiddles !!! It was haunting ….
We spent about an hour there, and then took off to explore the neighboring town of Brasstown, North Carolina. Brasstown’s main street (nope, no capital letters, it doesn’t have a name) is roughly one city block long, and is comprised of a small folk art gallery (2 rooms), two antique stores, four art studios, and a pool table store. Apparently, there’s a booming business in pool tables up here. Who knew?
Back to our school for a quick dinner and a riveting conversation at my dinner table about retirement communities. I zoned out, and escaped as soon as I could. Retired folks are a lively bunch, but the things they are lively about just don’t interest me … yet. One lady’s community has a great pool, and they have yoga and tai chi classes, computer classes, book clubs, and cooking classes, so maybe … ahh, never mind.
Tomorrow, we’re learning one more technique, and then we’ll have the exciting “tailgate party” after dinner. Students and teachers will display things they’ve brought with them to sell – sort of like a mini-craft fair. My checkbook is feeling a little heavy . . . .
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
DAY THREE – Tuesday
Well, it took a couple of days, but this year’s “character” has been revealed. She’s a dear, sweet, friendly woman who never. Shuts. UP!! And, no, it’s not me. Our paths crossed on the first day, and she chatted briefly with our group at dinner. Yesterday, we talked a little more at lunch, and I learned more about her background. I thought she was a little more forthcoming about some stuff than I would have been with a perfect stranger, but some people are. I smiled, said, “Oh, really?” a lot, and didn’t really think anymore about it. Besides, she loves tomato sandwiches – how bad can she be?? Hold that thought.
Today’s class was fun – I actually made a kind of picture with some glass – am hoping I can get it fired so I can see the final product tomorrow. It took forever, but I was happy with the pre-firing result. Saw a lot of my pieces in final form today, and was disappointed with a few, but overall, things weren’t too bad. The glass changes a lot as it’s heated, and sometimes, not in ways you’d expect. Aha! My first life metaphor from Jewelry Camp!! Yes, we are like glass … yada, yada, yada ….
After dinner tonight (and let me just say, it’s official -- this year’s cook is nowhere near as good as last year’s), there was the weekly auction. People bring things to donate, they are auctioned off, and the money goes to help fund the school. The auction was fun, I bid on a few things (not to worry, Jim – my big purchase was a grand total of $17), and tried to pay attention as closely as I could to the items that interested me. The operative word here is “tried” – my friend, Chatty Cathy, was sitting beside me and talked for the entire time. And we were sitting at the front of the room, near the auctioneers. Of course, this is all very casual, no professionals involved, and there’s lots of good-natured joking and commentary, but everyone was asked at the beginning to keep the chatter to a minimum, because it’s hard to hear bids from the back of the room (especially when the auctioneer has, shall we say, met his golden years). Chatty Cathy kept up a running dialogue with me, and then, when I wouldn’t participate anymore, with the two ladies on the other side of her. Constant, low pitched, irrelevant chatter. Her vacation to the mid-West, her sister’s rich husband, the item she donated, the ones I bought, the food last year, her gem collection … just a low, monotonous hum. I finally pled a headache and escaped to my room, so I have no idea what the final total for the evening was. But I cannot begin to convey my deep, rich, abiding happiness that Chatty Cathy is not in my glass class !!!
Tomorrow is our half-day. Some of “the girls” and I are going to take a short trip up to a neighboring school, which invites students from our school to come and sit in on classes or explore their facility. Should be fun. In the meantime, I’ve attached (I hope) some pictures of what came out of the kiln today. The one with the fish in it is not mine – it was made by one of my classmates who has never, ever done this type of work before. I have determined that I am probably the least artistic person in the class (and, no, that’s NOT false modesty, I assure you), but even so, I don’t totally suck, so I’m happy !!
Well, it took a couple of days, but this year’s “character” has been revealed. She’s a dear, sweet, friendly woman who never. Shuts. UP!! And, no, it’s not me. Our paths crossed on the first day, and she chatted briefly with our group at dinner. Yesterday, we talked a little more at lunch, and I learned more about her background. I thought she was a little more forthcoming about some stuff than I would have been with a perfect stranger, but some people are. I smiled, said, “Oh, really?” a lot, and didn’t really think anymore about it. Besides, she loves tomato sandwiches – how bad can she be?? Hold that thought.
Today’s class was fun – I actually made a kind of picture with some glass – am hoping I can get it fired so I can see the final product tomorrow. It took forever, but I was happy with the pre-firing result. Saw a lot of my pieces in final form today, and was disappointed with a few, but overall, things weren’t too bad. The glass changes a lot as it’s heated, and sometimes, not in ways you’d expect. Aha! My first life metaphor from Jewelry Camp!! Yes, we are like glass … yada, yada, yada ….
After dinner tonight (and let me just say, it’s official -- this year’s cook is nowhere near as good as last year’s), there was the weekly auction. People bring things to donate, they are auctioned off, and the money goes to help fund the school. The auction was fun, I bid on a few things (not to worry, Jim – my big purchase was a grand total of $17), and tried to pay attention as closely as I could to the items that interested me. The operative word here is “tried” – my friend, Chatty Cathy, was sitting beside me and talked for the entire time. And we were sitting at the front of the room, near the auctioneers. Of course, this is all very casual, no professionals involved, and there’s lots of good-natured joking and commentary, but everyone was asked at the beginning to keep the chatter to a minimum, because it’s hard to hear bids from the back of the room (especially when the auctioneer has, shall we say, met his golden years). Chatty Cathy kept up a running dialogue with me, and then, when I wouldn’t participate anymore, with the two ladies on the other side of her. Constant, low pitched, irrelevant chatter. Her vacation to the mid-West, her sister’s rich husband, the item she donated, the ones I bought, the food last year, her gem collection … just a low, monotonous hum. I finally pled a headache and escaped to my room, so I have no idea what the final total for the evening was. But I cannot begin to convey my deep, rich, abiding happiness that Chatty Cathy is not in my glass class !!!
Tomorrow is our half-day. Some of “the girls” and I are going to take a short trip up to a neighboring school, which invites students from our school to come and sit in on classes or explore their facility. Should be fun. In the meantime, I’ve attached (I hope) some pictures of what came out of the kiln today. The one with the fish in it is not mine – it was made by one of my classmates who has never, ever done this type of work before. I have determined that I am probably the least artistic person in the class (and, no, that’s NOT false modesty, I assure you), but even so, I don’t totally suck, so I’m happy !!
Monday, July 9, 2007
DAY TWO – Monday
It’s about 7:30 pm – dinner is over. It’s a cool evening – windows open, ceiling fan moving the breeze around, voices coming from the porch outside. There’s a guy telling the corniest jokes you ever heard, and giving all sorts of mis-information to some teenaged girl and her mom. “They wanted to do a brain scan on me last year, but they found out I don’t have one.” “The Indians sold Manhattan for $20 worth of beads.” And this about the new list of the world’s seven wonders – “I don’t know what happened to the old list, I think they’re all gone now.” And, yes, it’s all I can do not to poke my head out the window and say, “Dude, that’s a total myth about Manhattan, and the places that were on the old list are still there. They just aren’t on the list anymore!” Yes, the Know-It-All raises her ugly head once more.
I’m lucky – I have a great class. We’re all on about the same level of experience (none), and the teacher has the patience of Job. My classmates are from South Carolina, Florida, North Carolina and California. We have one woman who has never done this before at all, and she’s probably the most gifted artistically. She made one piece that looks like two goldfish in a bowl, and the depth of the piece is really amazing.
It has been a good day. I learned how to cut glass, operate two kinds of kilns, and prepare glass for firing. I’ve learned that dichroic glass is not exactly what I thought it was, and that teensy flakes of glass can be very, very sharp. I have seven pieces in the kiln tonight, and have prepared ten other pieces. Can’t wait to see how the first pieces turned out. Tomorrow, we’re learning an “opal” procedure – have no idea how it will work, but that’s why I’m here, right??
It’s about 7:30 pm – dinner is over. It’s a cool evening – windows open, ceiling fan moving the breeze around, voices coming from the porch outside. There’s a guy telling the corniest jokes you ever heard, and giving all sorts of mis-information to some teenaged girl and her mom. “They wanted to do a brain scan on me last year, but they found out I don’t have one.” “The Indians sold Manhattan for $20 worth of beads.” And this about the new list of the world’s seven wonders – “I don’t know what happened to the old list, I think they’re all gone now.” And, yes, it’s all I can do not to poke my head out the window and say, “Dude, that’s a total myth about Manhattan, and the places that were on the old list are still there. They just aren’t on the list anymore!” Yes, the Know-It-All raises her ugly head once more.
I’m lucky – I have a great class. We’re all on about the same level of experience (none), and the teacher has the patience of Job. My classmates are from South Carolina, Florida, North Carolina and California. We have one woman who has never done this before at all, and she’s probably the most gifted artistically. She made one piece that looks like two goldfish in a bowl, and the depth of the piece is really amazing.
It has been a good day. I learned how to cut glass, operate two kinds of kilns, and prepare glass for firing. I’ve learned that dichroic glass is not exactly what I thought it was, and that teensy flakes of glass can be very, very sharp. I have seven pieces in the kiln tonight, and have prepared ten other pieces. Can’t wait to see how the first pieces turned out. Tomorrow, we’re learning an “opal” procedure – have no idea how it will work, but that’s why I’m here, right??
Sunday, July 8, 2007
JEWELRY CAMP 2007
DAY ONE – Sunday Evening
(Please note – all names have been changed. I’m using names from the TV show “Alias” because I’m using them as aliases – get it? Yeah, I know …. Sad, isn’t it?)
(Please also note – the aliases used from “Alias” are in no way intended to impute each character’s personality on the person using their names in this blog. I just like the names. OK, except maybe in one case ….)
Well, here I am at what Jim calls “Camp Wannamakeapendant.” I swear, it’s just like camp when you were a kid. You arrive, and as you walk up the steps to the lodge, you are greeted by one of your buddies from last summer. Your room is familiar – not because it’s the same one as last year, but because they all pretty much look alike. Dinner is the same, the classrooms are the same. Comfortable, but still exciting, because it’s the first day.
I got here around 4:00, having left Atlanta as a rain storm approached. Great – the first rainy Sunday afternoon in months, and I’m gonna miss it. No matter – I’m off to camp. As I said, I got here around 4:00, and had barely parked my car when I hear “Mary Beth!!!” from the front porch of the lodge. It’s my pal Sydney from Montana. She was one of the women in my wire class last year – one of the two women I stayed in touch with over the past year. We spend a few minutes catching up (broken foot, gallbladder surgery, ailing inlaws, kidney stones – Lord, I’m old!), and then I haul my stuff in. Suitcase after bag after tote bag full of stuff … clothes, books, DVDs … you’d think I was moving in for weeks. The temperature is not quite as cool as it was last year, and it’s very humid, but I don’t care – it’s camp, I’m here, and I am happy.
I finally get everything unpacked and put away, and spend about an hour beginning the first book of my vacation – Edna Buchanan’s “Love Kills.” Awesome. Then, off to meet Sydney and Francie for dinner – only Francie isn’t here yet. She’s driving in from Florida and we expected her to be here long before now. Over dinner (pot roast), I ask if Francie was bringing her friend, Anna Espinoza, again this year. Those of you who received last year’s e-mail journal will remember Anna – the thorn in my side. Not this year … seems Francie and Anna have had a falling out, and Sydney’s not too broken up about it. Me neither. But I must admit – I begin to worry that this year’s blog won’t be as entertaining as last year’s e-mail. My apologies if there’s no class trauma. Anyway, Francie finally arrives, and our small circle is complete. The two of them are taking a different class from me, but that’s okay – they are gonna be SO jealous when they see the glasswork I’ll be making!
After we eat, the instructors introduce themselves, and we’re off to our classrooms for a brief introduction to the class. Our instructor, Marshall, is an adorable little elf of a woman. She’s a bit “scattered” in her introduction of what we’ll be doing, but once she brings out trays of samples, we’re all sold. I can’t wait to get started. Y’all, this is going to be SO COOL !!!!
DAY ONE – Sunday Evening
(Please note – all names have been changed. I’m using names from the TV show “Alias” because I’m using them as aliases – get it? Yeah, I know …. Sad, isn’t it?)
(Please also note – the aliases used from “Alias” are in no way intended to impute each character’s personality on the person using their names in this blog. I just like the names. OK, except maybe in one case ….)
Well, here I am at what Jim calls “Camp Wannamakeapendant.” I swear, it’s just like camp when you were a kid. You arrive, and as you walk up the steps to the lodge, you are greeted by one of your buddies from last summer. Your room is familiar – not because it’s the same one as last year, but because they all pretty much look alike. Dinner is the same, the classrooms are the same. Comfortable, but still exciting, because it’s the first day.
I got here around 4:00, having left Atlanta as a rain storm approached. Great – the first rainy Sunday afternoon in months, and I’m gonna miss it. No matter – I’m off to camp. As I said, I got here around 4:00, and had barely parked my car when I hear “Mary Beth!!!” from the front porch of the lodge. It’s my pal Sydney from Montana. She was one of the women in my wire class last year – one of the two women I stayed in touch with over the past year. We spend a few minutes catching up (broken foot, gallbladder surgery, ailing inlaws, kidney stones – Lord, I’m old!), and then I haul my stuff in. Suitcase after bag after tote bag full of stuff … clothes, books, DVDs … you’d think I was moving in for weeks. The temperature is not quite as cool as it was last year, and it’s very humid, but I don’t care – it’s camp, I’m here, and I am happy.
I finally get everything unpacked and put away, and spend about an hour beginning the first book of my vacation – Edna Buchanan’s “Love Kills.” Awesome. Then, off to meet Sydney and Francie for dinner – only Francie isn’t here yet. She’s driving in from Florida and we expected her to be here long before now. Over dinner (pot roast), I ask if Francie was bringing her friend, Anna Espinoza, again this year. Those of you who received last year’s e-mail journal will remember Anna – the thorn in my side. Not this year … seems Francie and Anna have had a falling out, and Sydney’s not too broken up about it. Me neither. But I must admit – I begin to worry that this year’s blog won’t be as entertaining as last year’s e-mail. My apologies if there’s no class trauma. Anyway, Francie finally arrives, and our small circle is complete. The two of them are taking a different class from me, but that’s okay – they are gonna be SO jealous when they see the glasswork I’ll be making!
After we eat, the instructors introduce themselves, and we’re off to our classrooms for a brief introduction to the class. Our instructor, Marshall, is an adorable little elf of a woman. She’s a bit “scattered” in her introduction of what we’ll be doing, but once she brings out trays of samples, we’re all sold. I can’t wait to get started. Y’all, this is going to be SO COOL !!!!
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Today, I'm test-driving the "post picture" options, since that's one reason I started this blog. There *should* be some pictures attached to this post with samples of some of my recent work. All pendants are wrapped in gold-filled wire, which is stronger than solid gold. The first is a porcelain piece with an image by the artist, P. Buckley Moss. I added some Swarovski crystals for a little flash. The second is a piece of beach glass I found on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The third is a piece of fused glass that was a gift from a classmate at "jewelry camp" last year. She wanted to see what I could do with it ... and this is what I came up with. Sort of art nouveau (strictly by accident). I'm still new at a lot of this, but then serendipity attacks and I get something cool, like these! Perhaps my next project should be taking better pictures!
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