Dog bite afternoon

A while back (September 15, to be exact), Clio and I were walking past this one house where a big dog lives. In the past, the dog ("Leo") has charged us but that's all, so I wasn't too worried. This time, though, he came flying out of their backyard and made contact with Clio. The owner dragged the dog inside and we continued on our way.

I didn't think Clio had been hurt, but about a half hour later, I noticed the area around her right eye was scraped and swollen. It being Sunday, I took her to the walk-in vet clinic to be checked out. In the waiting room, I realized she also had a puncture wound in her neck. That meant this was classified as a dog bite and I had to fill out a (poorly designed) state form about it.

Later that afternoon, I visited the other dog owner to deliver the bill and to warn her that she would probably get a visit from Animal Control. The next day, I talked to Animal Control myself; they requested photos and they sent an officer to get my story (again) and to talk to the other dog owner. And I thought that was it.

But no. About a month ago, I received a subpoena. My first thought was, Did I do something wrong? It wasn't me the city was after, but the other dog owner. I don't know the series of events that led to my having to go to court as a witness, with my "evidence" in hand, but I dutifully showed up this past week. That was an interesting experience.

Apparently, all the dog bite and dog nuisance complaints are processed on the same day, probably to limit the amount of time Animal Control officers need to be in court. The hearings were a mixture of formal and informal, and mostly scripted: a reading of the charges; does the person plead "admit or deny or talk to a lawyer". Most admitted to the charges and received a fine; a few had a side discussion with the Animal Control officers, then admitted to the charges and received a fine.

I think my neighbor had already been to court but didn't admit to the charges. This time, she, the Animal Control officers, and a county sherriff all went into the hall... to do what? Negotiate? Somehow, her charges were reduced from "dog bite" to "nuisance" (really?!?) So I didn't get to testify. I'm guessing she convinced them she didn't know her invisible fence wasn't working, but now it is, etc.

She and I chatted afterwards, as she wanted to assure me that the invisible fence is now fixed. Leo is not yet full grown, will reach 200 pounds, and that is a lot of dog for an invisible fence to contain. I suggested a physical fence would be more appropriate, and today I noticed that a temporary one has been erected in their backyard.

All of which is to explain why I have only four spheres completed, not the one-a-day I had planned. At my age, it doesn't take much to be thrown off track, and a mandatory appearance in court certainly did that. Mentally, I rehearsed my testimony over and over again, and then did not even get to have my say.

So, not much to show this week. Instead, I will catch you up on some pottery purchases, made at the Michiana Pottery Tour 2024.

I like how this bowl feels in my hand

Yarn bowl

Ramen bowl

I like red, so this red mug came home with me

The four spheres I have done so far are all about a pound a piece. Next on the agenda: larger ones.

I'm back... I hope

It's been a while, longer than I realized. Somehow life intervened and clay fell to the wayside. But then we visited Cranbrook Art Museum, and I became inspired.

Toshiko Takaezu is known for her ceramics, painting, and weaving, but mostly the former. The exhibit included the usual cups, plates, and teapots, but then expanded to double spouted teapots, connected vases, and closed forms, evolving eventually to lifesize beings.

It was the closed forms that captured my imaginations.

My attempts to make mugs, bowls, etc. take wabi sabi to a new level - they always look amateurish. But closed forms don't need to be smooth and perfect. Or even round.

I'm working on my own collection of closed forms, starting with these spheres, which use about one pound of clay each. What happens to them after bisqueing is to be determined. Right now, I am perfecting techniques. Even if all I do with them is scatter them around the yard, they will be perfect.

Right now I don't have a very good place to work. The garage is too cold, so it will have to be the laundry room for the time being. I contemplated returning to the Build Guild, but I really like having everything close at hand. My short term goal is a form a day. We'll see how that works out.

Pinched tea cup

Nothing like a leftover bit of clay (or clays) to invite one to pinch a pot, or in this case, a small tea cup. This one used up what was left from the small, two-color anvil bowl.

Pinching clay is one of the simplest methods of shaping and is usually reserved for objects small enough to fit in one's hand. Still, it is a little tricky to get things even. Multiple pinched shapes can be joined to make larger pieces. I added a foot ring to this cup.

The pinkish orange color is from a mason stain. After a bisque firing, I applied clear glaze to just the inside.

Another small object of questionable value except as an exercise and experiment for the potter.

Mushroom anvil bowl

There are all kinds of doodads to help the hand-builder make things that are uniform (more or less). One of them is what is called a mushroom anvil. Made from wood, a variety of forms may be attached to the handle. To shape the clay, the potter makes a slab, lays it out on a piece of foam rubber, then quickly presses the form into the clay. (See my anvil here.)

I tested out the anvil a while back, using two different colors of clay, one colored with mason stain.

After a bisque firing, I applied clear glaze to just the inside to display the difference between the glazed and unglazed surfaces.

As you can see, the bowl is quite small. There are larger forms available, but I haven't coughed up the bucks for those yet. I believe these are hand turned and made from fine wood, so a little pricy.

Popcorn bowl #2

Bowl #2 was made at home, by slumping a slab over a pyrex mixing bowl that I sometimes use for popcorn.

Again, a dearth of notes, not even photos of what I was doing. If memory serves me right, the inside is glazed in 'Stoned Denim' and the outsie in 'Cinnebar'. The rim shows a layering of the two.

And AGAIN, I didn't allow for shrinkage, so this bowl would be better for pasta or salad instead of popcorn. One of these days, I will learn to make everything at least ten percent larger than I want the end result to be.

Popcorn bowl #1

Bowl #1 was made in class. No construction pictures. The method was one kind of coil building. As I recall, mine started caving out, so I had to make a "dart" - cut out a section and "glue" the edges back together. Initially, I was unhappy with the thing, but decided it wasn't so bad after all.

After firing, I decided to try the "peacock" method of glazing (at home). The idea is to create runs of color that resemble a peacock's tail. I used Mayco 'Stoned Denim' for the base, Amaco 'Honey Flux' for the U's and big circle, and Mayco 'Cinnebar' for the dots. I really don't know what I am doing - can you tell?

It didn't turn out the way I had hoped. Basically, the glazes did not run.

I *think* what I did next was overglaze the inside of the piece with 'Oatmeal' (or was it a layer of 'Honey Flux'? I really need to get better at making notes.) Anyway, the idea was to get some movement of the glaze. After yet another firing, the result was much better, closer to what I was aiming for.

Again, I did not allow for shrinkage, so this isn't much of a popcorn bowl by today's standards. When I was a kid, we had a set of salad bowls we used for popcorn, and they were about the size of this bowl. It just goes to show you how serving sizes have grown over the years.

Dog bowl #1

For this dog bowl, I used Clio's food bowl as a mold of sorts, draping a slab of clay over it. (The bowl was covered in an old kneehigh stocking, to prevent sticking.)

Then, after bisque firing, my granddaughter glazed it. I have no idea which glazes she used other than those from a Mayco sampler, and I'm sure she doesn't remember. She selected them based on glaze combinations as shown online. The results are interesting, though.

The lesson learned with this project is clay shrinks. This pic shows the dog dish sitting completely inside its model, making it more appropriate for a cat than a dog (at least, my dogs). Going forward, I will need to keep this in mind.

I will offer the bowl to my granddaughter, in case she wants it, but I would be happy to keep it for myself.