What's Up?

So, what's new and exciting? Well, I got a dry erase board; that's a big thing! I know, I know: I need to get out more. (Although, I don't mind a sedate life. I had an exciting life once; it sucked.)

Why is a dry erase board such a good thing? Well, I am a visual person. It allowed me to chart my current projects and priorities in a way that keeps them always in front of me, and to see that though I am always busy, and almost always working, I am not directing my efforts in focused ways, so I end up spinning my wheels.

Right now I have three major work projects going on, and, of course, several minors and budding ones. The big three are:

1. Current firing cycle: I am loading on Friday and firing Sunday. I am on track with this to fire Sunday. I'd post a photo of the glazed pots - lots of stripes and dots again - but my camera is in Westport, Massachusetts with my husband at his book signing.
2. Kickstarter. I have done everything except the video, including writing the script, but video is a new medium for me, and getting over the intimidation hump has proved difficult. I need to get some footage of my various processes and a face-on camera appeal.
3. Improving my firing economics. This has two facets: 

• Determining if my burners are as efficient as they can be - and it's looking like no, they aren't; but it's really freaking complicated and I am lucky to have the assistance of a very knowledgeable friend in this matter.
• Determining whether I can fire to Cone 6 and get the same or better results. These are not mutually exclusive; if I can re-work my burners and lower my firing temperature, the possibility exists that I will be able to pay myself this year. So exciting!

Anyway, where I was going with all that, is that the dry erase planner lets me see that I should be spending the majority of my time on those three thing, and I had not been doing that. I'd been blogging, because it's fun; I'd been researching and trying out new projects for my classes - important, but I already have a lot of demos up my sleeve. I'd been trying to organize the Maine Pottery Tour - I want it to grow this year, and it will, but maybe I should settle for a little growth, and let the chips fall. And I'd been doing website work - again, important but far from urgent. I just was not spending time according to importance: poor prioritizing.
All that was pre-dry erase board. I hung it, and divided it into five sections: one for each major goal; one for "Other:" all the stuff that needs to be done that is not one of those projects; and one for "Upcoming," projects on the horizon that don't need my attention right now, but that I also don't want to let sneak up on me.