Art from Nature

We have lots clay in our yard and also lots of fire ant mounds. Jeff dug up an abandoned mound and bisque fired it. It's still quite fragile, but I thought it looked pretty cool. He has bisque fired dirt dauber nests in the past. Those fire quite sturdy, because they are probably made with the clay from the studio.

If you are celebrating Easter this weekend, I wish you a happy one. We have a group coming for lessons in the morning and in the evening we will cook a ham dinner. The Easter Bunny may even bring some candy, since we have been a good boy and girl. ;-)

FIRE...

ANTS, not wood firing or raku, unfortunately.
Once again I had an encounter with the f@#;'n buggers. Last year I had just a couple of small bites while mowing the lawn. My foot swelled up after a day or two and I was miserable. Meredith, over at Whynot Pottery, told me to be careful if I was bit again. She has seen reactions get worse after a second incidence. She told me she has an Epi-pen if I ever need it.
Yesterday, I stepped right into a nest to cut some flowers. I was COVERED in ants, almost up to my knees! I ran to the water faucet, tore of my shoes and socks and quickly rinsed them off. I was a little freaked out. Considering how many ants were on me the bites were minimal... maybe a dozen total. I had some benadryl spray and luckily did not need to run to Whynot for an injection! Last night they were mighty itchy and tingly, and this morning a little swollen. Looks like I will live to suffer through the healing process.

While on the subject of fire. Look at this gnarly mug from the wood kiln...

I didn't see this get unloaded, but my guess is it was on the shelf that collapsed, and it ended up in the fire box. No amount of grinding or sanding will make that rim comfortable to drink from!

back in the Grove...

We arrived home in the wee hours of the morning on Saturday, slept for a few hours, and woke up to a lawn that was almost a foot high. A note to self: hire someone to mow at least once while we are away next August. Jeff and I got right to work on the lawn and with the cooler temperatures it didn't take us too long to get it it back into shape.
I stupidly mowed wearing crocs and no socks and at some point must have stepped on a mound of fire ants. I felt that telltale stinging/burning sensation, took off my shoe and saw a couple of bites. I woke up yesterday with a very swollen right foot. By last night it was nearly doubled in size. I have been applying ice and using benadryl spray. I hate taking benadryl because it really whacks me out, so it is always a last resort, the spray at least relieves the itch a little. Earlier this year I had two ant bites on my foot and they hurt and itched but the swelling wasn't anything close to this. This time it looks like I have a least four bites :-(.  If anyone has some good healing remedies for fire ant bites, I am open to suggestions!

I will probably be moving slowly again today, since it is hard to walk on this swollen foot. I am okay with that, it's raining and I have a book to read and Etsy orders to ship. The trailer will still be waiting to get unpacked once this foot is better.

My great-niece Arianna came to the Craftsmen's Fair with my sister. She and I rode the chairlift to the top of Mt. Sunapee. It's not a big mountain, but the chairlift gets pretty high off of the ground. She is a brave little four year old! It seemed like she had grown a foot since I last saw her in March. I will post more about the fair later.