Catching up
Change, they say, is as good as a rest
Here’s me adding some wax-injected mold parts to a tree. Casting is a process I don’t have much experience with, so it’s nice to try something new. Truly, it still bugs me to work with so much stuff in the way, like masks, safety glasses, etc. but as a teacher and responsible and logical adult, this is the way.
Originally published 3-12-2022
Quick update: I know it’s been a year since posting here, but I, along with everyone else in the world, have been preoccupied…
So, yeah, Lapidary Journal went belly-up this past fall, and it’s jarring, disturbing, and really quite sad that after writing more than 135 columns, countless projects, articles and briefs over more than 15 years of my life it’s done. I read that magazine for most of my life and it’s going to leave a big hole in the industry for sure.
Then, right after that, my very much-anticipated and desperately-hoped-for 2022 classes in Tucson were cancelled because of COVID for the second year in a row (grrr). Yet another bummer in a four-plus-year run of bummers. So really, I have just been too grumpy to write anything here. Sorry about that.
All grumpiness aside, the current state of bummerness doesn’t mean I haven’t been doing anything constructive, and I’ve been keeping busy and employed with blogging and some social media work for Instagram for the Gesswein Tool Company, and also writing my At the Bench series for MJSA Journal, so it hasn’t been a total wash.
I also joined my local rock club, the Tuscarora Lapidary Society, and have already taken 3 very enjoyable casting and mold-making workshops since the early winter, so that’s made up for some of the lack of human contact I’ve experienced due to cancelled events and classes. And, there’s nothing like learning how to use a ginormous slab saw to chop up some boulders to drastically improve a bad mood.
I don’t want to jinx anything, but it looks like things are inching back to a facsimile of normal, and BeadFest in August looks like a go. Workshop signups haven’t gone live yet, but I have listed my classes on my schedule. I’ve also booked a fall Cold-Connections workshop at Snow Farm. so, it’s getting better all the time. Let’s keep our fingers crossed, yes?