Zero Days & Nearo Days

I've been doing a lot of hiking over the last couple of years. Often I am in the company of a good friend who is training for an Appalachian Trail hike, & who introduced me to the concept of Zero Days. 

In distance hiking, Zero Days are not a bad thing - they are resupply days, or days when you just give your body a rest. In my daily life, occasionally I will have a day when I just can't. Can't anything. On those days I just lay around reading, or streaming a show. As any self-employed artist knows, we can't afford many nonproductive days, & I used to hate myself for them; but understanding them in the context of a thru-hiker, I see those days differently. Sometimes you need that break. 

And, as I have come to realize, my days are never truly zero days; more like near zero. Nearo Days. Yesterday was one such day: supposed to be a teaching day, but 14" of snow said otherwise. Bonus studio day, right? NOPE. I spent no time in the studio, despite having leatherhard mugs that need handles & a jaunty jar that needs assembling. I just...couldn't. Things I did do: sent out invoices for the Maine Pottery Tour, & worked on updating the mailing list & the spreadsheet. Also shoveled a boatload of snow! So my zero days are not (usually) sit-around-eating-bon-bon days; it's my creative muscle that needs a rest. 

I do, on much rarer occasions, have literal zero days; unless "make coffee" and "keep breathing" count as accomplishments. I have learned to forgive myself for these days; maybe they aren't manifestations of laziness, but instead my brain insisting on a needed break. 

Today will be a teaching day, & tomorrow is looking like another snow day. Looks like were making up for the first, snowless month of winter, all in a week's time. 

Going for it!

The poster for the 2022
Common Ground Fair

I have been on the fence about doing art fairs again after a long pandemic break, & then just unsure whether I wanted to go to the trouble & expense of rebuilding my booth, which I deconstructed after more than 25 years of service & one facelift. In the spirit of The Big Push - my New Year's Resolution - I decided to go for it, starting with the Common Ground Fair in Unity. 

There's no guarantee that I will be accepted, of course! The Common Ground is a competitive juried event. I didn't apply to this fair last year, & the two years before that I was accepted (but the fair, of course, was cancelled both times due to the pandemic) but if I recall correctly I was not chosen in 2019. It sucks, of course, to be juried out, but that is a necessary risk of applying to the best shows. The best shows in Maine, anyway; I've made a decision that I will not be applying to any show more than about 100 miles away. This is largely for environmental reasons - all those emissions from all those artists driving all those trucks & vans to all those art fairs! We forget that the flip side of "Shop Local" is "Sell Local." I have other considerations as well, mostly travel time & travel expenses.

Anyway, I've sent in my application & my ten bucks, now we wait & see. 

Today in the studio, I am finishing a jaunty jar & making some pasta bowls for Bay View Company, and also reclaiming clay - not my favorite job, but I'll turn it into a meditation. 

Buffalo Cauliflower on Free Form Plate

 

The cauliflower was only OK - needed thicker batter. But the plate! I need to make more plates like this. All food looks good on it. 

I'm not gonna publish the cauliflower recipe until I get it right. 

Kung Pao Brussels Sprouts

 

I have sort of a ritual with my hiking buddy, who goes by Hiking with Yowie on instagram. (Here's me, btw) We do our hike (or snowshoe, or bike ride, or paddle), then we find a local restaurant & have lunch. Yowie is vegetarian, so we always look for a place that has good choices in that vein. Last week we hiked the Gannett Woods trail to Shed Pond, then came back to Augusta & ate at State Lunch. We both had salads as our entrées, which were fine, but most memorable was the appetizer: Kung Pao Brussels Sprouts. 

I liked those so much I decided to try them at home! I've had an air fryer for over a year, but until recently basically only used it to heat up fishsticks. It can be a quicker way to prepare healthy foods (& an energy saver!), so I made a resolution to learn to do more with it. First I learned homemade chicken nuggets - no batter, no oil, but juicy, spicy, & quick! - and now I have figured out this new dish.

Kung Pao Brussels Sprouts

10-12 Brussels Sprouts, cut in half
Optional: diced red bell pepper, 3/4s cup
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1/2 cup Dry Roasted Peanuts, no salt
1 clove & 2 cloves Garlic, minced
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
1 Tablespoon Honey
1/2 teaspoon Ginger
Splash of Frank's Red Hot Sauce
1/4 teaspoon Cornstarch

I rarely measure when I cook, so these are approximations.

• Mix soy, ginger, honey, hot sauce  & 2 cloves garlic together. Whisk in cornstarch to thicken. Heat in saucepan until just boiling. Reduce heat & stir in peanuts. Remove from heat after 2 minutes.
• Toss cut brussels sprouts (& bell pepper, if using) with 1 clove garlic & cook in air fryer 9 minutes at 400°. 
• Place cooked vegetables into bowl. Pour sauce mixture over & toss to thoroughly coat. 

Makes 2 servings if side dish, one if main course. 

Doing Well by Doing Good, 2023

 

It has been s few years since I sponsored a cat at Kennebec Valley Humane Society. As I am working on getting my groove back, I decided it was time to do so again. As with everything in this business, it all starts with inventory. Yesterday I threw 20 little cat-dish-sized bowls, which I will sell to raise money to sponsor a cat's adoption fee. 

I expect these to be fired in mid-February, and the sale to commence shortly there after. 

Also this week, I got the ball rolling on the 2023 Maine Pottery Tour, learned to make Kung Pao Brussels Sprouts, and hiked to Shed Pond. So beautiful! 

It All Starts with Inventory

 

As I said in an earlier post (which I published but then accidentally deleted, well done, Lori), I am sort of starting over in 2023. I got very lackadaisical in my studio work over the last couple of years - maybe just hard to gear up again after the pandemic, or maybe just getting older; that's what we are here to discover. I would like to get back to bringing more energy to the business. Actively seeking accounts, making video tutorials, applying for fairs & grants, all that stuff. 

It all starts with inventory. I can't create or respond to opportunities without it, so this month is all about making. 

Yesterday it was plates! I rarely make plates, except as class demos, but I got this set in my mind as sometimes happens, the desire to reify it was quite overwhelming. I put off a bunch of other stuff that I really should be doing, because I knew I wouldn't be able to concentrate until this set of plates was a thing in the world. 

Today I am making jaunty jars, & small bowls, applying for the art fairs I have neglected for the last couple of years, & sending out an organizing email for the Maine Pottery Tour.

I'm Ready: 23 for 2023

23 for 2023

1. Catchphrase: Try Harder. 
2. Learn to use my air fryer. For real, not just fish sticks.
3. Clean my car regularly. Started this today! I'm a tidy person...except my car. It's gross. 
4. Stationary bike 5 miles/day
5. One social thing/month. For introverted me, this has to be intentional. 
6. Rebuild art fair display. Not looking forward to this! But it has to happen. Maybe it'll be fun...?
7. Take time regularly to really appreciate the abundance of love, comfort, and beauty my life has been blessed with. Truly, I used to know I was the luckiest person in the world. I am no less blessed now; more so. I just don't notice it as much. 
8. 10+ hours in the studio each week - actual making tasks (as opposed to kiln maintenance, admin, cleaning)
9. Back to blogging! Blogs have fallen out of fashion; I'm pretty sure no one is reading this, or, like, less than 10 people. (I no longer have a stat counter, so, who knows, it could be a million. But I think 10 is more likely.) In a way this is freeing! I don't have to worry that I am being boring or sloppy. It's a place to put my thoughts, like it was in the beginning. If you are out there, thanks for reading & I love you! I hope you aren't bored. :)
   Anyway, one blog post a week, average.
10. 5 Postcards to voters/month. Maybe I can do better than this - sometimes, anyway - but trying not to be unrealistic or overload myself.
11. The year of the dishwasher! I think this will claw back about 3 hours a week for me
12. Learn to use instagram to sell 
13. Utilize social media better generally for promotion & audience building
14. 5 new outlets - preferably wholesale, but well-established, local consignment is good, too
15. Stay hydrated! The 8-glasses-a-day thing turns out to be bullshit, but still, staying hydrated is a good thing. Let's say 40 ounces a day, min. 
16. Do better about birthdays (2 of them, anyway.). I suck at birthdays, not entirely by accident. I know I am forgetful & I know I have a lot to remember, so at some point I made a decision that I had to let go of something. Better, I decided, to control what I forget, than just start dropping balls. I sort of decided that, since I don't really care about my own birthday, it would be ok to not try to remember other people's birthdays. Just clearing something from my plate so I don't forget crucial things. I still feel that way, but 2 of my nephews are kids, & I am going to remember their birthdays this year. 
17. Explore an idea I have: making clay videos for Patreon. 
18. Kayak the Nonesuch River, through the Scarborough Marsh
19. Get back to Acadia! It's a couple-three hours away but so much to see & do. I hate that I haven't been there since 2019. 
20. A purge! I have a lot of stuff. Don't we all? More comes in the door every day. I need to get rid of some of it, & create some sort of habit or process to do that regularly. 
21. Related: clear up two massive clutter sites, my desk & the tool closet
22. Related: create attic storage area
23. Spend more time with Doug

A lot of this list seems a little, idk, grim, I guess. Work more! Work harder! I think that's because my personal pendulum has swung to far in the direction of recreation: Hiking, biking, kayaking, binge-watching, book-reading, & cat-cuddling. I don't need nudges to do easy, laidback stuff - I do plenty of that without prompting. I want to see if I can get back to being a go-getter! I am prepared for the possibility that I am just not that person any more. If I don't end up doing these things, or I do them & I am less fulfilled in my life rather than more, I will have learned something about myself. 

Happy New Year, everyone! Hope your is everything joyful.