Ceramics - Part 2

So I finally got the last few pieces from the ceramics lab.  For those of you that don't know, getting a piece from start to finish is a lot of time and work.  First, you have to make the piece.  You usually want the clay to be fairly wet when you do this so you can mold and shape it as much as you want (although there are a lot more things to take into consideration, but that's the basic idea).  After you finish making whatever you're making, you have to let it dry.  When it's dry enough, you fire it (bake it) in these huge, hot ovens called kilns.  To fire it takes a few hours and lots of technical stuff I don't understand.  After the first firing, your piece is called bisqueware (before the first firing it's called greenware) and at this point, you can put the glaze on it.  Glaze is the covering to pieces that gives it that glassy look and also usually adds the coloring. Kind of like paint that you have to bake on to the piece.  So after you put the glaze on, you have to fire it in the kiln once more.  And after that, all  you have to do is clean up the bottom and voila'!  You're finished!

So here are 2 more bowls that I made.  Actually, I'm only like 80% sure these are mine because in the ceramics lab, there are so many things in there and it's hard to remember exactly what yours looked like and it always looks different after they fire it so anyways, these are most likely the pieces that I made!

I know, I know you are all very impressed.  Well, I do have a surprise for my mom and sister....
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TA-DA!!!!!!!!!!

The swan has made it's final appearance!!!!

For those of you that weren't in class with us, I made this pretty much the first or second day of class.  It took me a couple weeks to finish because I had to leave early to go to work and didn't have as much time to work on it. When I finally finished it, I fired it for the first time.  That was the last I saw of it for awhile.....I kept looking for it on the shelf's, but I couldn't ever find it.  And when I did see it, I was usually doing something else and would forget to do something with it later.  This went on for pretty much the whole 2 months we had class.  My mom would send me a text saying that she found it and left it by my other bowls, but I couldn't find it when I would come in the next day.  But when I came in to the lab one day after work to finish up some other pieces, I found it!  I glazed it and now it's sitting on my kitchen table.  My swan finally made its way home!

Babies!

I have an announcement, I now have 3 little babies!  2 are flowers and 1 is a tomato!  A couple of weeks ago I planted some seeds in little pots, so that I could put them up in our window.  I'm REALLY looking forward to the day when I can have my own house or at least my own little plot of dirt that I can plant stuff in.  But for right now, this is the best I can do.

I labeled the pots because I knew I would forget which plants were what.  Right now, I have a bunch of little sprouts!  The only pot that hasn't sprouted is the green pepper.  I think that one may be a dud so I might have to re-plant it. 

These are the flowers.  The one on the left is Impatients (white blossoms) and the one on the right is Morning Glory (Scarlett O'Hara-red blossoms)

My tomatoes are sprouting!  The peppers...not so much....

I love planting stuff and seeing the progress.  I spend a lot of time going over to my window and trying to see if I have new sprouts or if I need to water them or if there are any buds.  I don't know why, but I find this all very exciting!  I'll be really excited when I can put my flowers in my flower pot I made in ceramics,  but when I do that I don't know where I'll put the pot because I think it's a little too big for my window sill.  And eventually I'll have to move my tomatoes to my mom's garden, which I'm also planning on planting some peas there as well.  And hopefully my peppers will revive and I can grow them too!

Pottery!

My sister Lisa, Mom, and I all took a pottery class for the past couple of months.  Once a week we would go up to campus and for 3 hours we would talk and laugh and maybe make something once in awhile...:)  I was a little apprehensive because I took a ceramics class (basically the same class) my freshman year and I was horrible at it.  I don't know why, but I couldn't do a single thing in that class that didn't look like a 5 year old had done it.  But this class was much better!  I made a swan that I never quite finished because it kept disappearing (I'll have to go back there today or tomorrow to look for it one last time...), a flower pot that Lisa kept calling a diaper pail, and some pots that I threw on the wheel!  When I took ceramics last time I was never able to successfully throw a pot on the wheel.  I didn't even want to try this time, but my mom got me to do it and I did!  I was very proud of myself.  Here's a picture of my flower pot.  I think it turned out pretty well! 

I don't have pictures of my pots, so I might add those later.  I'm glad I had this class because I was getting bored just staying at home and going to work.  It was fun having class with Lisa and my mom and being able to develop what little talents I have!

Simple Gifts

Last night, as I was driving back to Rexburg after a rehearsal with the Idaho Falls Symphony, something great happened.  To get back to Rexburg from the theater, you pass by the Idaho Falls Temple.  I happened to drive past it while listening to Appalachian Springs by Aaron Copland (it's one of the pieces that will be played in our concert tomorrow, along with Shubert's 5th Symphony!).  The specific part of that piece I was listening to was the theme "Simple Gifts".  I can't explain it, but it was such a calming, wonderful moment for me. I was thinking about the words to the song and what they really mean to me.  Here are the lyrics:

 'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free
'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain'd,
To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,
 To turn, turn will be our delight,
Till by turning, turning we come 'round right.

The first line got me thinking.  "'Tis the gift to be simple", I don't think this means to be simple-minded or to forget all responsibility, I think it means to be content to live a simple life.  You don't have to have all sorts of things.  You don't need all sorts of fancy things, you can be happy just living day-to-day with your family and enjoying them.  I think that's what our Heavenly Father wants of us, to be happy with whatever we have.  I want to live like that.  So here is my list of simple gifts that I'm thankful for:

•  Going on drives with David, where we just talk and laugh and have fun.
• Pop runs.
• Playing in the symphony.
• Having dinner with my family every Sunday, and all the crazy conversations we have!
• Going to as many of David's concerts as I can - it actually makes me feel very proud of him every time I see him up there!
• Being able to communicate with my Heavenly Father through prayer.

Here's a picture I snapped while driving past the temple, and the section of Appalachian Springs I was listening to.  I hope I can always focus on the simple gifts in my life and not get down when things may go wrong.

David's Birthday!

Well, yesterday my darling husband turned 24!  He felt very old and didn't like being reminded of how old he is now...here is how the day went!

When we woke up, David was running a lovely little fever and had a nice little cough to go with it.  He skipped his first 2 classes because he felt so crappy. :(  Not a good way to start out your birthday, but he was a trooper about it.  He had a meeting for Sinfonietta at 11:30 (they're going on tour at the end of the semester) and after that I had a nice surprise for him - sushi!  We went to pretty much the only place in Rexburg that has fairly good sushi.  David loves it and we haven't been able to go for awhile because of money issues, but I saved up so he could have some!  Doesn't he look excited?

After that, he had rehearsal with the University Orchestra.  He plays bass in that orchestra because they really need him to beef it up.  I went to the rehearsal and got a couple pictures, but they are of his back because I was sitting right behind him.

Here's a short video of one of the pieces.  They're doing the William Tell Overture which I am actually really jealous about because I have always wanted to play that piece...I know it's sideways, but I couldn't figure out how to put it right side up...and it does get a little loud at the end, sorry!  It was funny watching them because everyone kept getting really excited and rushing all over the place and some girl started stomping her foot when this melody started up, I was laughing so hard! 

David didn't like being taped, but oh well...  After that he had to teach a cello lesson and then I went to rehearsal for the IF symphony and he had a concert so it wasn't that exciting.  One of the girls in the IF symphony that we are both really good friends with came up to me at rehearsal and asked if it was David's birthday.  I said yes and she said it was her husbands birthday too!  And we were both there at rehearsal....I guess birthday's aren't quite as much fun when you get older, but hopefully David still liked it a little!  Tomorrow we're having a wonderful birthday dinner (Steak!  Thanks Mom and Dad!) and cake and ice cream with my family.  Today he's in SLC doing the same concert they did last night, so hopefully he won't be too tired to enjoy dinner tomorrow!

To David - I'm so happy we are married and we made it through all the bad stuff to get to this point!  Thank you for all the laughs and good times!  I hope your birthday was good, even though today you are probably super tired from staying up all night watching movies with me!  I love you!

New Trend

As I was picking David up from class today, I saw one of our friends and his new wife.  They were driving a brand new SUV.  I also know that this particular girl has hundreds of shoes.  And they live in a big apartment.  Her dad is a lawyer and they aren't exactly scraping by.  I told David that lots of people we know are marrying into rich families and he said it was like a new trend.  I told him he kind of drew the short straw on that end....

My family was never rich growing up, but we sure did have a lot of fun!  Even now, we still have lots of fun even if it's just sitting around the dinner table talking.  David and I keep joking that we're going to be the poor family on both sides.  But we also joke around that our house is definitely going to be fun!  We're always talking about how awkward our kids are going to be whether it's tall, freakishly skinny kids like David was or too scared to talk to anyone like I was or more likely, they'll just have the weirdest quirks you will ever see. 

I know it's going to be awhile before we have money.  Before we don't even think about spending $25 buying lunch, or can go on vacation without having to plan out and save up for it for 6-8 months in advance.  But I think no matter what our situation, we'll find ways to have fun.  When we get time together, it's usually just at home.  Or out buying pops...(we said we were going to cut back, but that didn't really happen....I kind of turned him into a Mitchell in that respect....) but even if we're just at home, we have fun.  And laugh a lot.  I think we laugh more than any other couple I know.  We have fun.  I think that's all you could ask for in a marriage.

Direction

The last week or so I've been in a funk.  I couldn't figure out why, but I just felt down in the dumps and sad.  Last night, I think I figured out why.  I've almost always had a goal in my life, and most of my goals involved schooling.  Getting through high school, studying music, studying art, getting a Masters and working towards a career.  I still have the goal of getting my Masters, but at this point in my life, it isn't something I can work towards besides saving up money to do it.  We don't want any more debt than we are already in with our car and David's student loan from when he first got back from his mission. 

The thing that's bothering me is that I don't really have much of a direction in my life right now.  I clean the house, work, and that's pretty much my life.  I don't hate my job, that's not it.  I just don't feel challenged.  I would like a job in the arts, but around here that's not really an option.  I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't have many things to look forward to.  The summer will be nice because it will be warm, but I'll still be doing what I'm doing now.  I want something to work towards.  I liked going to school because I felt accomplished.  When I finished a class, I was that much closer to graduation, or being able to take the next level of classes.  And then I graduated, and I don't know what to work towards.  David says I need to find a hobby and I told him I feel like my hobby is laundry because I feel like that's all I do.  I want to find something I'm really good at, something that I'll really look forward to doing. 

Sorry this has been kind of a downer post, but I had to get all my feelings out so I can work through them in my head.  That's basically how my mind works.  Maybe tonight at work I'll have some epiphany about what I should do.  Until then, I'm open to suggestions!  (and to my family-I know you're all going to say stuff like underwater basket weaving...I know exactly where all my sarcasm came from.)

Symphony

It's concert time again!  Tomorrow the Idaho Falls Symphony will be putting on their Red Dress Concert.  We'll be playing Bizet's Carmen suite (I know you have all heard of it because everyone has heard the Toreador song!), Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (if you're a wind player you love this song, if you're a string player....not so much), and Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade.  If you don't know these pieces, I think you should look them up because they're all very cool! 

During our dress rehearsal tonight, I was thinking about how much I love to play in a symphony.  That was one thing that made me really sad about graduating, that I would have as many opportunities to play in a professional-type orchestra.  Luckily, I found the IF Symphony!  They play at about the same level as the college (which from what David tells me, for a community orchestra is pretty rare) and I have so much fun.  I'll be sad when we move away because I probably won't be able to find these types of opportunities.  I know life will kick in and I'll get busy with other things, but I hope I'll always find time and opportunities to play.  I know that right now I would probably have an easier time finding a job or getting more hours at the job I have if I didn't play, but I couldn't do that.  I would be unhappy because I wouldn't be able to do one of the only things that really makes me feel accomplished. 

When I play, I like to imagine scenes where this music would fit, kind of like in movies.  It helps me get in the right mood and feel for the piece.  I try to get into the music and forget about how I look when I play or what others may think of mistakes I make.  I especially love concerts.  I think I always have.  I love to get all dressed up and do my hair fancy.  I love seeing everyone all dressed up, especially the men in their tux's.  Someday I'll be able to afford a really nice black dress I can wear to concerts!  I think I like concerts because that's when you can play the music without having to worry about the conductor stopping you and everyone (for the most part) is prepared and knows what to do and you can just dive into the music.  Often during concerts, I forget there is even an audience there.  Of course, then I remember they are and I get nervous, but then it goes away again and I can just be myself.  When I play, it is one of the few times I feel graceful and at least somewhat talented.

I don't feel like that when I play a solo.  I'm not a solo player...too much pressure... but I would play in a symphony any day.  I just wanted to share those thoughts because I was thinking about them all tonight.  I'm glad we have 2 more concerts after this!  So come tomorrow night and listen to some great musicians!  It's going to be a fun night!

New Calling

Last Sunday I got a new calling.  Well, new would imply that I had a calling before and even though we've been in the ward for about 9 months, we have been on the DL most of that time.  We never had to give the customary "new to the ward" talks or anything like that.  The closest we came was when we were asked to give the opening and closing prayers one sacrament meeting, but it was a holiday weekend and there weren't many people they could choose from. 

Anyways, my new calling is to be on the Relief Society Activities Committee.  I think it's going to be a good calling, the bishop told me it's going to be me and 2 other girls and they would like to have at least one activity a month.  That was all fine for me so I gladly agreed.  I was already trying to come up with all sorts of fun activities later that day, but I found it was a lot harder than I thought.  Our ward is a married student ward.  The good thing is that most everyone is pretty close in age.  The thing that made my brainstorming so difficult was that about 3/4 of our relief society is either pregnant or has a child under the age of 1. 

Most of the activities our relief society has done in the past has been something like a recipe swap, a play date for the kids, or a baby stuff swap (they said you could bring other stuff too, but most of what they wanted was baby stuff like cribs or toys or something like that).  It's hard for me as a non-mother (I don't know what other term to use so I decided to make one up) to want to go to these activities because I won't be able to contribute anything and will feel super out of place. 

So here is where I ask for your help.  In order to help myself and the 5 other girls in my ward that aren't expecting (I just came up with the number 5, although sometimes I feel like it's only about 1 other girl....) I would like to know your ideas for fun stuff our relief society could do that would be fun for everyone.  One idea David came up with was to go gun shooting.  I don't think that would be too difficult because I know a lot of people that would probably let us borrow their guns for an afternoon, but I don't know if the girls would like it.  I don't know the girls in our ward too well because everyone is always moving in and out, so do you think that would be a good idea?    I would like some ideas so I can contribute at least a little bit.  So if you have an idea, please share!

Dali

Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dali I Domenech, aka Salvador Dali is one of the worlds most known Surrealists.  His most famous painting is "The Persistence of Memory" (see below picture).  He is a Spanish painter, but had his hand in many American productions. In my Art History class, we talked a bit about him and I'd like to share a little about what I have learned and my reflections on it.

Dali, like Monet, was the son of a wealthy family.  He was born in 1904, just making it to the 20th century.  He grew up and went to a fine art inistitution in Spain.  He built a home there with his wife and many of his paintings deal with his love for his home country.  In one year, he held his first one-man art show, joined the Surrealists ( style of art in the 20th century stressing the subconsciou or nonrational) which were led by a former Dadaist (basically a style where they tried to change everyone's perceptions on art), and met his wife Gala who eventually started taking over the business side of his art.  It is after all this that I think Dali's life really got interesting.  War was brewing and in 1934, Dali's lack of political fervor got him kicked out of the Surrealist group although he did show with the Surrealists for the rest of that decade.  After WWII started getting more and more serious, in 1940 Dali and his wife moved to the United States where he eventually met up with none other than Walt Disney.

In 1946, Salvador Dali and Walt Disney started on a collaboration that took 57 years to complete.  It was a cartoon, but as you can imagine, with Dali involved, it wasn't going to be your run-of-the-mill show.  Dali and John Hench (Disney studio artists) spent 8 months on the storyboard.  They even managed to get 17 seconds of the actual cartoon produced.  But the project was suddenly abandoned when the Disney company started to run into financial problems.  In 1999, while Walt Disney's nephew was working on Fantasia 2000, he found all the old storyboards and the original clip and decided to bring it back to life.  It took 25 animators roughly 3 years to complete the project, but they did it.  Here is the clip of Salvador Dali and Walt Disney.  A cartoon that, in my opinion, exemplifies the Surrealist idea.  Not just a story about a girl, but a look into the creative mind of a wonderful artist.  I give you: Destino