Well we anxiously await possible rain....We are experiencing the worst drought in eighteen years.  I am irrigating the food items in the garden, and then the pines around the property line.   Things are brown and the trees are wilted.   The moisture from my gardens draws birds and toads and frogs for much needed hydration.  The farmers want one more crop of hay, and some rain would help reduce the risk of fires.  So we wait.  I am cleaning in preparation for our sale this weekend.  I am selling alot of collectible stuff also, and will probably continue to sell off accumulated stuff.  Time to clean out .

Classes are still going, and the students are firing in the wood kiln. It is booked by a group for October, and we hope to fill in workshops year round.  After two days firing there is a two day cooling period, so guest potters can take advantage of other things the area has to offer.  We have State Parks and wildlife areas within close proximity.  We are located about halfway between the Twin Cities and Duluth, two metro areas with lots to offer.  

I have made my blog public, because I am planning on hooking it up with my website.  Also I am hoping my friends can see it now with out signing up for yahoo.  I have journaled all my life, but never like this....well I am putting some thoughts down on artist's life today.  After my repo rant I guess I should clarify that we've always lived on the edge, so to speak, but I am so greatful for what we have.  I never wanted to "be" anything but an artist, and when Paul and I  set out to start a pottery on the land here, no one thought we could make it.  We had a camper and we built an Olson fast-fire kiln that we fired with scrapwood. We sold our work at Art Fairs and Festivals in and around Minnesota. About the time our daughter was born, we formed a partnership with another potter in order to make enough pottery for the retail marketplace.  There again, many of our peers criticized us for working in this manner.  The purists believed , I think, that it wasn't art if we produced it in numbers large enough to create financial success. Or maybe they considered us sell-outs by going "commercial" .  Production of any kind is sometimes looked down upon by the art world.  But hey we are potters!  With the rich history of community involvement in the production of utilitarian ware, I felt we were participating in a great tradition!  The folks that came to work with us got an education in all aspects of pottery production.  Their skills were improved by their practice. The guys travelled the country selling the work and thousands of pieces are out there with the Rock Hard Stoneware label.  I am going to stop now and finish this later. Denise