OK to NC

     I spent about a week and a half in Mangum, it just so happened that my sister & her daughter & granddaughter where there as well!  The scenery was quite beautiful, Spring weather had been good to the area, and I had arrived the week before wheat harvest.

     We drove around to dad's old childhood home & of course to the Jester cemetery (a customary trip).  Dad has his headstone already in place - I like to tease him that he could have gotten a better price if he would have had that second date carved in at the factory.....
     I was lucky enough to be in the right place for yet another intense phenomenon in the sky - an annular eclipse!  Not too often do you get to see one of these.  I was on the very North Eastern edge of visibility, and was pretty excited about that.  Wouldn't you know it, right as the moon started to cross the sun, the clouds rolled in & obscured my view!

Although I couldn't see it, I sure could Feel it!  

     It was a great visit, but had to be cut a bit short.  I had a schedule to stick to.  I-40 East across Oklahoma. I have done this road many times, starting in early childhood.  There are memories ingrained, some of which I feel it appropriate to revisit as an adult.  One such is Red Rock Canyon State Park.  Picnic with the family when I was.....5ish? I remember the color of the rock walls covered with daddy long legs.  Had a beautiful morning drove down into it & spent about an hour or so wandering around.

Yup.  Although the walls aren't as tall now as they once were...

     Short detour in Oklahoma City to find a place called Blue Sage Studios.  Staying true to my ways, I just dropped by & they were closed.

I know where the place is now, and will make a point of calling next time!

     I took a little break once I got into Arkansas, and wandered around a little junk shop in downtown Ozark.  I keep seeing these glass swan dishes, all over the country actually, and this shop had quite a few.  I had one of these when I was young, blue & white swirly.  Here's my first glass memory - seeing these things made. I can still see it in my minds eye - pulling out the neck pinching the eyes & beak - maybe that was when the glass seed was planted.  I feel like the studio was in Arkansas, so I asked the ladies at the counter.  They told me of a place about an hour North, and of course it was too late in the day (and my schedule) to make it up there.  Next time.
     Made it all the way to Memphis that night.  I have been through Memphis many times, and have had some not-so-great memories attached to it.  That was a couple of lifetimes ago, and I felt like it was about time to give Memphis a chance!  So, I stopped right around dusk to check it out.  Landed right on Beale street.

     What a scene!  Music & people everywhere. Lots of Harleys lining the street. Quite the party! I soaked it in for a bit, check out the music for a bit, had a bite to eat.  The music was decent - there were loads of great musicians - but no one seemed to be playing anything remotely original.  Glad to have been there, but that was enough Beale Street for me.
Here's the link to a short photo album from the trip.
     I made it through to Durham, NC the next day just in time to prepare for the weekend's gig.

Time to Head East

      My time in California was coming to a close.  I would need to start heading East soon.  I spent the last couple of days working on future project ideas & chilling out with friends. A Massive emotional release had really started with that Full Moon hike, and knowing that I would be going to see my father & returning East was weighing heavily on my mind.  I was a bit out of sorts on my final full day in the Bay Area.  A friend of mine, who is a Healer, picked up on this, and kidnapped me for the evening.  She turned me on to this tool called a Ma Roller - a great substitute for the recent lack of massage.  I spent a bit of time on this, after which there was this magical moment  – she somehow managed to break through & open up some channels to allow negative shit to leave my body.  It was through touching a specific spot on my hand - and I went into a sort of trance.  She seemed to know exactly what I needed, there was no discussion beforehand - it just happened naturally.  It felt as though the pressure had been relieved, and I felt better than I had in quite a long time!

     The next morning I said my goodbyes to Public Glass, and started on my way. I had one more stop in California, the studio of Alan Masaoka in Carmel Valley. Jonathon Schmuck had sent a photograph of one of my molds (one that is very brain-like) to his friend Alan. It seems that there was a project underway that involved minds, and I was invited to come by & blow some of the brains! What fun! I took off towards Carmel Valley, I had never been there before. Holy Crap what a beautiful place! I found Alan's studio & gallery – he is an amazing stained glass artist (among other things), and has a fantastic little hot shop in the back alley. Just my style. This is going to be fun. The furnace was still a little cool when I arrived & we decided that it would be best to relax, have dinner & blow glass in the morning, when the temp was up.

     His friend Ellen would be joining us with some local fresh caught salmon, veggies, pie & ice cream for dessert! Wow oh wow! After dinner, some time was spent on an inversion table & in the hot tub, before retiring to a lovely treehouse for the night. 

     We awoke, had some breakfast & went to the glass shop. Spent the morning taking turns blowing some brains. Click here to see a few examples,(though they were made at different venues). 

     I really enjoyed myself, it was tough to leave – but I needed to be in Oklahoma by a certain day, and I had no more time. I had to get on the road.

    Once again, I was amazed at how Big California is. Took the rest of the day to get to the border on I-40 (of course there were some random turns & roads – I have to be true to how I like to travel!) The Following day, I woke up in California, and went to sleep in Texas! I had to pass on the Grand Canyon, the hour or so that I could afford was going to be too much of a tease. I did stop in Flagstaff long enough to figure out that I want to come back & spend a little time there. This was the first time travelling across Arizona & the western half of New Mexico. Quite beautiful, lots of dramatic scenery, and lots of time to think. Driving Meditation.  Here is a link to a photo album.  I have not been East in over 6 months, and I was not entirely sure that I was ready for the whirlwind that was before me.

A Prompt For A Little Self Examination

      I would like to clarify something regarding the last posting. The experience I had at Public Glass was amazing. The group of folks there have been so very welcoming and gracious to me, especially when my head was in its strange place. I was able to make a piece that I had been dreaming of for Years. I got to spend a fair amount of time in the area and get to know some extraordinary people. I hung out during the open cup blowing times and encouraged the folks who came by (to blow cups for the Hot Glass Cold Beer event) to try out my molds. I even got to blow a few cups! There were many other intimate interactions that really changed my outlook on things. These interactions are what it is all about for me.  There was a beautiful give and take between everyone I interacted with there. There is and will always be a little part of me at Public Glass.

      It turns out that the lack of enrollment for my class forced me to closely examine my approach. This was needed, but like many things, we don't deal with them until we are forced to (Everything happens for a reason, remember?). I had been in touch with my next two venues, and receiving similar reports. Not what I was hoping for. I really needed to start looking at what I have to do differently. After all, this is a make-it-up-as-you-go-along life, if something doesn't work, change it. One thing that I arrived at, is that the two day workshop is quite a commitment. For me, two days of dedication to one specific thing is not a big thing to ask – any day of the week. Most people do not live the lifestyle that I do. In response to this realization, I contacted my next two venues & let them know my thoughts. I proposed a more open format, where I would be available for private lessons, or as a guest artist in any ongoing classes.

      That was one aspect. The next was that I needed to step up the quality of my presentation & think about what I need to do to sell the work that I have been making along the way. With regard to the bowls, sans box was fine when the bowls were on shelves on the wall in the gallery, but now they needed to be presented as individual objects, in a way that lets folks know they are representations of unique moments in time.  The repackaging was an enjoyable process, I found a place called Scrap - seems like most cities have a place like this - and if not, they should!  It is a warehouse full of an eclectic mix of stuff - all organised in such a way that it is possible to locate things.  It is terrific if you are looking for some random, obscure item, or 100 of them.  It was here that I found just what I was looking for - little boxes & some pretty green tissue paper.  Printed up some stickers, signed the card & wallah!

A much improved presentation! There are a few of these left for sale, you can view them here.

These things sorted out, I felt like I was getting my head straightened out a little and when the weekend came, I went to Half Moon Bay Art Glass to help out, blowing some glass in between Douglass' lessons. We  made some fun stuff!

One of the blue vases we made that weekend is available at my Etsy Store.

      There was another thing about that weekend.  It just so happened to be a very powerful full moon Saturday Night - which also added to my wacky head space that week!  I was invited along for a moonlight hike in the redwood forest with friends from Public Glass, who happened to be house sitting in Half Moon Bay.  As you probably have noticed from earlier posts, the full moon tends to have a powerful effect on me.  This was no exception.  I was in excellent company - and as we pulled out of the driveway, the first track of Pink Floyd's "The Wall" came on.  I felt a little like Pink, sitting in the back of the car wrestling with bottled up emotions that decided to start bubbling up to the surface.  We went to a spot not too far away from where I had been just a week before.  We hiked for a couple of hours by the light of the full moon.

It was an absolutely Magical Hike - and Much Needed!

Reality Check?

  The experience of the Redwoods was just what the doctor ordered. I had accomplished a life long goal of visiting those trees. I felt changed.  I rode back north the next morning at a leisurely pace, stopping in Half Moon Bay to visit the Bakery and do some laundry.  While waiting for the wash, I called Public Glass to check in regarding the workshop that was scheduled for that week.  I was informed that there were no students enrolled, and that the class would not be running.  Shit.  This was not entirely unexpected, but a little disconcerting none the less.  The class was a chunk of money that I was depending on to make it to the next leg of the Journey. The show was a success on many levels and while I did sell some work, I was quite short of where I needed to be to continue on.  I will admit there was a bit of panic setting in - I have no back up plan.  There is no credit line.
    I walked around town a bit and checked out some of the shops, while settling into the idea of reexamining what I am doing and how I am doing it.  I noticed a couple of shops, one was purely art glass called Light & Art, the other a combination of imported items, beads, jewelry, incense, crystals, and related new age nick knacks called Tokenz.  I walked in to Light & Art, the owner asked if she could help me, I told her I was a glass artist. "Do you have any work with you?" "Yes, in the truck." "Why don't you go get it?"  I pulled out the big silver suitcase with miscellaneous glass pieces packed in newspaper.  Overall, I think she enjoyed looking at the work, some of which made her laugh (the chain mold tumblers & ornaments).  She picked out a variety of objects, and paid me for them right away!  Wow, okay, great! Lets try the next place.

    This was a different experience altogether. Seems that I only have enough mojo for one successful solicitation per day (usually the first), any others become a learning experience.  This one especially.  I took a couple of the bowls from the show (still wrapped in shoddy newspaper) and let the owner know that I thought she needed to see them.  Her sheilds were up from the beginning, but she was kind to me considering that I walked into her shop trying to sell her on my work!  She let me know about a local glassblower, Douglass Brown, and how to get to his shop.  I thanked her, and went on my way.

    Douglass' shop is housed in a barn on the same property as the La Nebbia Winery.  Here is the link to his website - click!  Pretty cool set up, nice small shop, a couple of little electric furnaces, single glory hole, couple of annealers, just enough room.  Oh, and it is next door to a winery.....I walked in the door and introduced myself.  "Wait, what's your last name?" "Vinson" "Did you just teach a workshop at BAGI, and do the Hot Glass Cold Beer at Public Glass?"  "Uhmm......yes?"  He pulled out a mold, and informed me that he was inspired by my work to make it. Whoa.  Crazy.  We had dinner and chatted a bit, he offered me a place to stay nearby, he happened to have an extra house for a couple of weeks, and he let me crash there.  He invited me back for the weekend to hang out in the shop & work on a couple of molds for him.
    A little cash in pocket and with something to do for a little cash over the weekend, I headed back to San Francisco.  I was still a bit distraught. I was left with most of those little bowls from the show that I now needed to figure out how to sell and from the recent experience in Half Moon Bay, I knew that digging them out of a box of old newspaper was not going to cut it.  The workshop format that I have been marketing has only had a 50% go rate.  I had two more scheduled in the East, with no clear way of how I was actually going to get there, and not knowing whether I would actually have students once I did get there!  Looks like I have to rethink this whole thing!  I thought a book might be helpful, something like Zen and the Art of Marketing Yourself.  Made it to a bookshop on Haight near Ashbury. Asked for said book - apparently it does not exist (not yet anyway) - but I was led to the business section.  Returned to the counter with "Marketing Lessons From the Grateful Dead" - very appropriate I thought!  
    

    

Encounter With The Redwoods

    There was so much build up for the show and demo, that I was in a bit of a daze the next day. It was quite a mixture of things. It was a bit too much to digest all at once – I was going to need a little bit of time. I knew that I had to take the show down – there was a ceramics show being installed right after me – it took some time, but I got there.

     I finished up right about the time the demo piece cooled down. THAT was exciting! I have been thinking about this piece for a very long time, and I finally get to see what it looks & feels like. Sometimes ideas can be great all the way from conception to planning to making, and then are sort of a disappointment once they come out of the oven. And we were definitely pushing our limits with this one. I didn't know what to expect.

We were not disappointed! I think this piece was much more than I had expected. Evan called it “Bottle Storm” - perfect. Here are a few more pics of it – Click!

    I wasn't going to have class until Tuesday, so I decided that I should dig out that Treasure Map & go camping. I needed to decompress – a lot just happened. That and I figured that this was going to be my one chance to see the Redwoods – so I had better do it. Drove down Coastal Highway 1south out of San Francisco – what a beautiful ride. Right along the ocean. The ocean here is different than I am used to – in the East, the land is flat for some distance before you reach the long sandy beach. Here there are hills that are chewed away by the waves and tides and very short beaches lie just beyond these cliffs. Stunning. I had the pleasure of this view for some distance, before turning East. Hills, some wooded, some groomed, wind there way up and over. It is late evening as I enter into an area where the trees change. There are some Really Big Ones beside the road. I am headed to Portola Redwoods State Park via hand drawn map. The road in climbs in elevation a bit, past vineyards, and small farms, the smell of eucalyptus, sea mist and redwoods in the air. At dusk, I pulled into the ranger's station, self registered and picked up some firewood (I did have a debate about going to see trees & burning wood – but a fire is nice, you know) and drove down into the camping area. I parked at space 19, right next to these two Big Ones and unloaded my camping gear.

    I couldn't wait any longer, so I made my way over to check them out before setting up camp. It was now just after sunset & getting dark. I noticed a dark familiar shape at the base of the tree – It's a hole! I peered Inside to find a large dark cavity. I ran to the truck, grabbed a candle, walked over to the opening & went Inside.

    I hung out inside that tree by candle light. for quite some time. I could feel energy swirling around me, and eventually through me. These things are giant antennae, connecting the energy of the earth & the sky, and here I am, my first encounter with a Redwood, Inside the antennae! Intense! I have wanted to meet these trees my entire life, and here I was! Perfect.

Not sure how long I was in there, but a sharp sound outside interrupted the transmission, and let me know that I should probably set up the tent. I slept very well that night!  Here are some more pics of my stay - Click Click!

Return to Public Glass - Hot Glass Cold Beer

    I was given a hand drawn Treasure Map to an area where some redwoods grow - a place called Portola Redwoods State Park.  Barbara used to go there when she was a little girl, and since I have to tell everyone how much I have wanted to hang out with the Giant Trees all my life, she thought to share this place with me.  It was also right on the way to San Francisco from BAGI.

    You would think that I would have gone straight there.  The lack of fuel & temporary lapse in funding dictated that I proceed directly to Public Glass.  The Redwoods will have to wait. Again.

    I arrived in on Monday afternoon - charge day & shop cleanup.  It was good to be back.  The furnace lost some (but not all) of its decoration, and had been running smoothly since I left in December.  I met up with Evan - with whom I would be staying with - and helped finish up the chores of the shop so we could catch up.
    Dropped the Kids (that's what I have started to call the blow-mold collection) off Tuesday at Todd Tankersley's Studio to have their portraits taken - they are quite spectacular (here's the link).

    I spent some time the next couple of days checking out the city - sold a few of the remaining pipes to a shop on Haight, near Ashbury, which provided me with some much needed cash.  Went to dip the feet in the Pacific Ocean, and walk around Golden Gate Park.  There were all kinds of activities in the park, I chilled out I watched a some music happening.  It is a truly beautiful city, lots of trees - and not just trees, but BIG trees - there is nothing quite like the smell of eucalyptus.

    The week was spent in and out of the hot shop, getting ready for the big day on Saturday - the demo for Hot Glass, Cold Beer & the show, "99 Bowls Made of Glass on the Wall".   The Hot Glass Cold Beer event is pretty neat. The way it works is this: a couple times a week, the studio is open for people in the glass community to come in & practice blowing cups for free.  The cups then go into a collection, which is displayed at the front door on the night of event.  Attendees then pay at the door for a cup, which can be filled all night with beverage of their choice.  There is live music, demonstrations and a show in the gallery.  I hung out for one of the cup slots & brought the molds around for folks to play with.
    The lead up to the event was pretty intense, getting the gallery together, practicing for the demo.  These events are generally well attended - even though they were not expecting a huge crowd (I'm not that well known, you see), it was still going to be one of the biggest crowds I have demonstrated for.  Here are some pics of getting ready - click!
    The time came & let the show begin!  It was so much fun!  It is not very often that I have many assistants and a full shop at my disposal!  Not to mention Live Music to blow glass to!  These guys were playing what seemed like everything out of my "most often played" list. I like to dance & sing when I blow glass, so it was great to know most of the tunes.  Totally unplanned.  The demo went down like this - James was on one bench making little bottles from two of my molds - the design that I have 5 different sizes of - while Evan & I made a bunch of larger ones.  We then started in on a coiling technique that we figured out how to do the day before that would eventually become the neck of the piece.

Stuck them all together & Presto! "Bottle Storm" was born!  I have been dreaming about this piece for about 4 years - the drawback being the resources needed to make it happen.  I did two little ones at FOCI last November - now I REALLY want to keep going - I feel that we have just scratched the surface here.  Hats off to Jason Wertheimer for documenting the demo - Here's a link to an album with loads of pics - Click!  Many Thanks to all who helped this one happen - It was definitely a turning point for me - I think this pic of me at the end of the evening says volumes:

Workshop at BAGI - Day 2

    I spent that evening walking around downtown San Jose. It was quite a scene. People watching is always a trip.  There was a stand up evangelist at one point - microphone & amplifier, bible in hand, standing on a crate. It was a fairly busy spot on the sidewalk in a courtyard, he was facing the street and traffic and there was some interaction from the crowd.  Sort of showboating on the ol' soapbox.  A block away was another, this time in a not so busy spot, no amplifier, just on a crate against a building in some dramatic lighting.  This guy had a sense of conviction that was very intense - you could feel it as you walked by.  More real, in a way.  Less approachable.  Witnessing these two reminded me of a scene from Monty Python's "The Life of Brian".

    There were a few other minor observations along the way that evening, families on vacation, touring.  One of them left a camera behind - good job I noticed, that really would have put a damper on the evening!
    Onward to the next day!  There were molds to be finished & molds to be blown! The shop was a flurry of activity, as there was another workshop going on at the same time - Murrini making with Jonathon Schmuck.  It was fun to have multiple things going on around us.  I have been familiar with Jonathon's work for quite sometime & it was good to get to hang out a bit.  One of the students in Jonathon's class was Todd Tankersley, a professional photographer from San Francisco.  He was entranced by my mold collection & asked if he could photograph them!
    We had a blast blowing all the molds, some with success, others were a learning process.  That is one of the fun things about the workshops, It is really like sketching out ideas and seeing what is possible, and how these processes can be used in a person's own work, beyond the two days.  Here are some pics - Click!
    At the end of the day, Jon, Rich & I gathered up a ton of glass & blew the Biggest Mold I own.  It was a fun way to end the session. We made a bit of a mess, but man, what fun!  There was much video taken - all of which needs to be edited - it will be posted as soon as I get to it.