Thunderstorm at Tahoe

   I always check the weather forecasts before a show, and once in a while I take them to heart. Last weekend was predicted to be on the chilly side, but I am glad I dressed lightly for the heat that was the reality.

     The thunderstorm forecasts for Tahoe were off my radar screen. The lake is so big, I assumed that if there were thunderstorms, the chances that they would be over my head were minimal.
 
     WRONG. Right over my head, directly over my booth was a big blowing, pounding, hailing, lightning thunderstorm. There was a certain charm to it, that disappeared in about 3 minutes. Mud was splashing up from the pavement and spotting everything under my canopy. Every item on the ground was splattered with mud, and rain. I had a new canopy with pristine white walls. Had of course, now all splashed with mud.

    I had brought an extra sweatshirt dress, so that took most of the rain, and at least I could be mostly dry driving home. Thank goodness for the extra shoes I carry, since my sandals were completely waterlogged.

     Today I should be slowly making my way back into the studio. Instead, I am unpacking the van, wiping the new layer of Tahoe mud off of my booth.

   I leave for Tahoe City on Thursday and of course I will check the weather forecast again.

Homewood This Weekend

I just mailed out my newsletter for the upcoming show in Homewood, and of course forgot right away that I added a link to this newsletter. So when I actually remembered, I sat right down to write this up.

I did a kiln load of hearts last night for Tahoe, and got a mixed batch. A few had great color, and a few were muddy. The muddy ones have their own charms, to be sure, but I prefer the bold color patches sweeping across the body of the pendants. But this is the craft. I can sit down in a few weeks and they could be worse, or they could be perfect.

I went to order some glass I was out of, and discovered that my glass supplier doesn't sell glass anymore. HOLY COW. Another recession victim. I know they relocated, and I assumed it was to a smaller space, but not to sell glass? Who knew. So I hustled around the internet looking for a supplier. Since I never bothered to buy a glass numbering chart, I couldn't produce the manufacturer's item number to order more. So something that had been a relative no brainer for my entire glass making career now has become a serious challenge.

I did find a supplier out of state, so I don't know if I'll have more hearts for this weekend's show.

Tahoe is always fun. Hopefully the wind won't be too bad. My goal for the weekend is to actually put my feet in the lake, instead of seeing it from the car on the way to the show.