guilds, work, learning as i go

updated sat 7 dec 02

Marcia Selsor on thu 5 dec 02

Kelly,
I can't believe you're 41.
You are always an inpiration. As Dannon said, a good work ethic is
something that you learn early. I always enjoyed Montana ranch kids in
my classes. Hard workers and able to be resourceful.
I have some simple cookie recipes. email me off list and I can send them
to you.
Marcia

--
Tuscany in 2003
http://home.attbi.com/~m.selsor/Tuscany2003.html

primalmommy on thu 5 dec 02

This is my first year being part of the Toledo Potters Guild's holiday
sale. The first thing I learned is that next year, I'm going to block
out this week (or two) with a big red marker on the calendar and plan to
do nothing else. I could throw in my "potting closet", but when it comes
to glazing, I'm out in the studio, feeding the woodstove, listening to
whatever odd radio programming presents itself in the wee hours... at 41
I don't recover from a four-in-the-morning bedtime the way I did when
younger.

Next time, I'll prepare like I did for childbirth, cooking and freezing
meals in advance, lining up some child care, etc... I am investing in an
intercom so I can run out to the studio for brief periods during the day
and still be able to hear what the kids are up to, answer questions,
etc.

The whole thing is a little nerve-wracking. I have done a similar sale
at the Unitarian church in the past, but this time there will be the
lovely works of 20 accomplished potters on the tables around the room...
which makes questions like "is this perfect enough to sell?" and "How do
I price this?" especially perplexing...

This guild divides space equally between the potters who show up at the
meeting and say they want to sell stuff. We draw numbers out of a hat
for the size/location of our table (I got a six footer!) Then folks swap
and share among themselves if they need to. Then we all show up and
pitch in to empty out one of the two guild buildings, scrub and polish,
etc. to prepare for the show... make cookies for the sale... and show up
afterward for cleanup. The Toledo Botanical Garden has several artisan
cottages, so the glass blowers and stained glass guild, photographers
and painters and herb society and rockhounds and etc. will all be there
this weekend selling stuff and doing demos... luminaries, hayrides,
strolling carollers, the works. Wish us all good luck and good weather.

It strikes me that there is a certain amount of "who does all the work"
concern involved in any group organization, like a potter's guild. The
ones that show up for the meetings are also the ones that sign up to
clean, or volunteer for various duties when the list goes around...
those who don't show manage to avoid all the work as well.

But I have to go by what I tell the boys, when they argue --cleaning
their room-- about who is doing more work.

You should do your work with your whole heart. Work because it's your
guild, because work is good for the soul, because you are NOT one of the
people who is willing to let others do your part. It is fruitless to
fall into the martyr trap, or pass judgement on non-participants who may
have challenges we know nothing about. I have to practice what I preach
to my kids -- "Measure yourself with your own yardstick, not against the
shortcomings of others. Do your best and be proud of what you do."

The older I get the more aware I am of how much time people spend
complaining about their jobs, bosses, kids, spouses, general
responsibilities -- yeah, it feels good to vent frustrations to friends,
but it can become kind of a request for attention/appreciation for all
we do. It tells me we're losing track of our internal sensors; maybe all
those years of jumping through hoops for a gold star or a grade or a
paycheck make us forget what inner satisfaction feels like. It's not
about "what's in it for me?" or "Who's getting a free ride?" (Not
talking about clayart discussions here, OK? Just a general
observaton...) If it's worth doing, it's worth doing with your whole
heart. If it's not, quit.. find the thing that's worth doing to you.-

What you give out in the world you get back threefold. If you do what
you can, do your part and then some, the payoff might be just a deep,
tired night's sleep, a sense of pride in your work, an example set out
for others to follow. I forget who said "work is love made visible".
(Gibran?) We could all use more of that...

Off the soapbox... Kelly in Ohio
(Racking my brain for what kind of cookies say "pottery"... little
cookies shaped like bowls? Maybe I can crimp a cookie cutter into a vase
shape, striped with chocolate throwing rings?? little tarts with
cookie-lids like casseroles? Any ideas are welcome...)





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Judith S. Labovitz on thu 5 dec 02

Kelly....this may (no..DOES) sound a little odd....but it might
work.....Try a Hanukkah menorah cookie cutter....but cut off some of the
lower base and the candle tips...it might look like a bowl similar to
thepty Bowl logo

just a thought

good luck

judy in Michigan

At 09:14 AM 12/5/02 -0800, you wrote:


>Off the soapbox... Kelly in Ohio
>(Racking my brain for what kind of cookies say "pottery"... little
>cookies shaped like bowls? Maybe I can crimp a cookie cutter into a vase
>shape, striped with chocolate throwing rings?? little tarts with
>cookie-lids like casseroles? Any ideas are welcome...)
>
>
>
>
>
>_______________________________________________________________
>Sign up for FREE iVillage newsletters .
> From health and pregnancy to shopping and relationships, iVillage
>has the scoop on what matters most to you.
>
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>Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
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Dannon Rhudy on thu 5 dec 02

Kelly said:
about who is doing more work......
........Work because it's your
> guild, because work is good for the soul, because you are NOT one of the
> people who is willing to let others do your part.
"Measure yourself with your own yardstick, not against the
> shortcomings of others. Do your best and be proud of what you do.".....

........"work is love made visible"..........

Kelly, thank you for those wise words. There are undoubtedly
people who do not work in that mode, and don't even know that
there IS such a thing as working because one can, and will, and
loves working. But measuring against one's own yardstick is the
only way. I learned that young, and not altogether willingly, but
it has stood me in good stead, and I recommend it. My grandmother
used to tell us "other's ways are their ways; don't even wonder
about them, but do your own things in your own way and let others
be".

As to the cookies: your time is limited, right? Let the shape of
your cookies say "handmade", just as your work does. A little
irregular, perhaps, not factory stamped - but of excellent flavor.
Lidded tarts? Another day, perhaps, when you've enough time.

regards

Dannon Rhudy