Sunday Happy

Yes I am alive as some of you have asked. And I swear I am not being lazy,I have just been super ass busy because you know life and all that.

So what have I been up to? Just a whole lot of clay business. Right after the crazy holiday rush in December I kinda crashed a little for a week or so and then signed up for another market that was just last week. If you do any type of ceramics, especially selling of ceramics, you know that a few weeks is not a whole lot of time to get a bunch of shit made so that is what I have been doing. Making shit. HA!

And ok, I did do some other stuff. There was more birthdays celebrated (the mr turned the big 40!), tattoos were gotten (by me and the mr.), family gatherings, sledding and snow ball fights with the littles. (Side note. They are not so little anymore. Judah is now officially taller then me and the mr. is teaching Miley to drive. Coco is Coco and has always been an old man, and So, well she started a book club at school and is bacsilly a cooler, younger version of me so yeah, they are all getting old and I can’t even.), the holiday madness of markets. It was a lot. Other than that, not to much else. I am still running through the woods every day and we go hiking or snowshoeing as much as we can. Has the winter weather been great for outdoor winter fun? Not really. It’s been way to freaking warm and there definitely has not been enough snow but what can I do besides bitch about it? Move to Alaska, that is what.

So yeah, hopefully now that this last market is behind me (it was a couple nights ago) I can slow down this week and gather my bearing before the madness of the spring and summer markets really hit. I am trying to be proactive and do more life planning, like garden planning stuff (is it really that time?) and have more pots made so I am not rushing like a mad lady in between markets. We will see how well I do, but first things first. Start the god damn taxes. Every freaking year.

Here are a few internet links from the week. And I don’t have many pictures that are not pots and you can just see those on my instagram (@stemandnode). I’l be better next week, maybe. And hopefully I’ll post a new recipe because I have been making some A+ shit. (SO much soup. Duh.)

-Take your date to the grocery store. This is 100% a great idea. The mr and I LOVE a new grocery store experience. Especially while traveling in other countries. Highly recommend.

-A Gua Sha Technique For Easing Jaw Tension In A Minute Or Less. Has anyone had luck with this? I need to do something because I am constantly clenching my teeth and my TMJ is killing me.

-A bit of a hoarder’: woodpeckers stash 700lbs of nuts in California home. That is a lot of nuts.

-Is Bathroom Carpet Due for a Comeback? Fuck no.

-C

Sunday Happy

Is it really the last day of July? Are we happy about that? I know I am because it means August, then September and hopefully that means it will not be so hot. And also it means apples and pumpkins and sweaters and I will stop now because it is only the last day of July. HA!

The week. It was a weeeeek. In a good way, or mostly good but also kind of frantic and maybe a little bit stressful, but good. We started off camping and this time we brought the crew. Took them into the woods, rented there pampered little butts a lean-to (it was actually a good thing because it poured that night) and basically spent the entire day either in the water, on the water, eating, or playing with fire. All the exact things one should do will camping. And after a long day of all the fun that was had, they all conched out in the lean-to (the mr and I split in out tent outside the lean-to) and the sky opened up with thundered and lightning and poured all the water. A grand storm and boy were were glad for the kids being in the lean-to. I don’t think we would have made it through the night if they were in their tent. But they did and woke up rested, ate a extremely large amount of food, played in the rain, and then claimed exhaustion and needed to get home. Got them packed and home by late morning, the sky cleared, the sun came out, and it got hot. Blah.

Then the rest of the week was go go go. I loaded and unloaded like 3 kilns madly glazed more pot, threw a shit ton more, and tried on several different occasions (3 TIMES and all fails) to get shit my cards printed out at Staples. Basically running around with my head cut off but whats really new. The mr and I did manage a few minutes together at points, we even took Meg, Miley, and Bean to the farm to pick flowers, but mostly we were bot just busy busy.

Then Saturday was market day. I (and the mr) unpacked, set up and I slung those pots. Saw a ton of people, sold a bunch of my favorites, and handed out the flowers. There was music, free ice cream, and people riding around on bikes dresses as unicorns. All I call, another fantastic successful market. And then we came home, unpacked the pots and stuff, repacked the camping stuff, and crashed.

Sunday. Well I am beat ass tired but no problem because CAMPING and even in y worst state, camping always is the answer. But first we are going to a 1 year olds birthday party which should be fun, if not a little more tiring. I think I will make it. (I just hope no one expects much more then my presence because my brain is mushy and I’ll be moving around like a sloth). So party frst, then camping, and then hopefully a chill evening of sitting by the fire reading followed by an uninterrupted 5-6 hours of deep sleep in the fresh air under a sky of stars. But before any of this can happen today I need to drink the entirety of a pot of coffee so that is what I am going to do.

Internet from the week.

-Something you didn’t know you wanted to know. Why Are My Trees Dropping Acorns Like Crazy?

-How Caffeine Became the World’s Favorite Drug. I am and will forever be an addict. I cannot live without coffee.

-Fucking instagram. 4 steps you can take right now to improve your Instagram feed

-Why some people find pimple popping so grossly satisfying. I am not one of these people.

-The mysterious inner life of the octopus. Octopus intrigue and freak me out. So many tentacles.

-Ok, sure sure. Live Out Your Gardening Dreams in This $770K Greenhouse Home in Sweden

-”A Bike Ride Is Far Better Than Yoga, or Wine, or Weed.”. I completely concur.

Pictures from the week.

Sunday Happy

This is the time of summer that hate or strongly dislike. The heat and humidity. All a bunch of bullshit. 😬

We went on our first camp of our camp season and I give it an A (not A+). Everything was perfect except that it was hot, like mother freaking stupid hot. So hot that when I made dinner (soup as always and forever) the mr refused to eat it .Me, well I ate it and dropped more sweat then I thought possible, So yeah it was stupid hot and yes we did go out in the kayaks at exactly the hottest part of the day (really bad choice) and sure I might have died a little but it was still all good. The stroll through the woods. The tiny little fire that I sat far far away from. My hot soup. All the stuff. And when we woke up the next morning the temperature had dropped enough to be a bit chilled, I made the coffee in a long sleeved shirt, walked to the pond for sunrise then packed up camp and home we headed.

Then the rest of the week. I blinked and it was over. First thing back I went to the dentist and had my teeth cleaned all nice and shit. Then I basically spent the rest of the days running around with my head chopped off. I was in the studio almost everyday loading and unload kilns, glazing all the stuff, and helping transition the new studio manager to the place. Wasn’t so bad given the air condition and all because, as you might also be dealing with, a stupid ass heat wave. Whenever I was home I was miserable and bitchy and cursing the sun back to hell. The house felt like a furnace and I did not deal with it well. Not my finest moments as a human but I didn’t literally kill anyone so I consider that a victory.

Sunday! Not only ar we going camping but we are bringing the crew with us. The 3 littles, Barb, and the mr and I are heading out to the woods this morning to do what we do best. We will hike and swim. They will fish and I will read (or run around with Coco). Got the frisbee and nerf ball and playing cards. And we packed a ton of food (healthy and junk). There will be fire and s’mores and when the wake up the get the full on meal along with breakfast hot chocolate. Sure there is a chance it gonna rain all night but I really don’t care because summer camping rain is just fine by me. We won’t melt, I hope anyway.

Some internet reads from my week.

-The Era of Climate Change Has Created a New Emotion . I feel the “eco-anxiety.” every damn day.

-Glamorous and unafraid are not the two words I think of when I here this design trend but hey, it’s actually pretty awesome. Not for me but I love to see it! Barbiecore Is the New Design Trend to Completely Obsess Over.

-This Is The Most Common Weather-Related Phobia. Can you guess my weather phobia? Yeah it’s definitely 100% thermophobia.

-Do cats and dogs remember their past? Obviously.

-I don’t got to restaurants but if I did I would want to know every single detail of what I was ordering. Is the Minimalist Restaurant Menu Over?

-Sad. Beloved monarch butterflies are now listed as endangered

-Crazy. This goat is all ears. REALLY! They may be the longest in goat history

-The case for caring less. All about caring less or as I like to say, not giving two fucks.

Pictures from the week.

Sunday Happy

I am super freaking cranky right now…the heat has finally ramped up and taken ahold of my brain. When it gets 90 and above I am not a good person.

Besides not being able to deal with the fucked ass backwardness of what the world is coming to, yeah, the week was alright . The mr and I went for a hike, I did a lot of gardening (sliced open my hand while doing it), had a boys day. We took them to the pool then played the best and least fair game of scrabble, and watched a show about imitation cakes while they ate all the ice cream. Good times.

Then there was more pot throwing and glazing, cat sitting, and overall life things. The weather was pretty great for most of the week but then yesterday it wasn’t and today is supposed to. be even worse so screw.

Sunday. Like I just said it it suppose to be stupid hot again so what the mr and I are planning on doing is heading to a river for a good while. He will fish, I will sit in a shallow spot and read. I have no other expectations because once I leave said river I will probably end up laying on the kitchen floor for the remainder of the day. I hate the heat!!

Internet from the week.

- I didn't realize there was a unicorn flavor but my first thought is that it would taste like meat with rainbow sprinkles. Nasty.HAHA! What Does Unicorn Flavor Actually Taste Like?

-Just looking because we don’t need a new tent yet but this one…LOVE!

-What do you think? I think if they were not called a ketchup popsicle but a tomato popsicle because tomato popsicles are great! Ketchup Popsicles Are a Thing Now — Here’s How You Can Get Them

-If you get bored enough I guess. One Woman Covered Her Toilet in Chia Seeds, and Yes, It Looks Like a Giant Chia Pet

-Freezing Lettuce Works If You Follow This One Simple Rule. I actually freeze some lettuces all the time. I add it to soups. Most lettuce taste great in soup.

-This news shook me. I will now be hoarding mustard. A Mustard Shortage Could Be Hitting the U.S. Soon — Here’s What You Need to Know

-Why Does Rain Smell So Good? Because rain is magic.

-It’s berry season. Do Moldy Berries Ruin the Whole Batch?

-Oh hell no. A Horrifying Proposal for Airplane Seating Confirms the Future of Coach Is Being Knocked Unconscious

Pictures from the week.

Sunday Happy

Can you believe that we are half way through the year already? It is giving me a little anxiety, like I am having a mid year crisis. All I can think of is like ‘what the hell did I do thins year?’ And I know I have done a lot but still, its that feeling of time gone by and things that I should of or wished I have done already. Oh well can’t do anything about it now. HA!

We had a pretty good and fun week. We did some stuff besides the stuff of life matinence. The mr and I took the kayaks out and paddled/blew around on a big pond for a afternoon. We went for a walk that turn into a 10 mile walk ( I got stung on the foot on that walk), I picked up like 8 ponds of greens from farm share (no joke) and now all I eat is lettuce, and we took the littles strawberry picking on the coldest summer day on record. At the farm in the play area the mr found the mini excavator in the sandbox and I think he had more fun playing with that then anything else we did this week.

Sunday. Today the mr and I are both doing work. He has a project that he needs to finish up and I have a shit ton of stuff to glaze before the markets. But it’s all good because we are going to take the first half of tomorrow off and go do something fun together. Plus we are gearing up for camping soon so once we start, its on. No more Sunday work!

Got some links from the internet to read if you want.

-Get your eggs ready! Summer Solstice 2022 And The First Day Of Summer: Facts And Folklore

-Lab-Made Honey Tastes Like the Real Deal. Is That a Good Thing? I didn’t even know this existed. Is it a good thing? I don’t know. I mean half the food people eat these days is lab grown and it is good to leave the honey to the bees. So yeah?

-Greenland’s polar bears are learning to get around in a less icy world. These bears. They are really something fantastic.

-I was just asking myself this question because I am in the market for a suit myself and I really don’t want to spend $50 for a piece of fabric I will probably only wear 2-3 times when I bring the kids to the pool. What Makes a Bathing Suit So Expensive?

-IKEA Created a List of Baby Names Based on Its Products. Why not I guess.

-Love this house.

-This house in Japan too.

-Yes, I'm a Disney Adult. Let me explain. I needed to read this because I know a few Disney adults and it confused the hell out of me.

-Fun fact. When I was a l kid I called sunscreen sun tan lotion and I don’t know why. How does sunscreen work?

Pictures from the week.