LESLIE checks in

(pots by Leslie)

Leslie contacts me out of the blue, and she is a potter and wacky sort of person who does something mysterious in DC. I love being contacted by adoring strangers, but she turns out to have a pretty interesting story etc:

Hi there,

I love your blog. I just found it but read it daily on google reader. I graduated from Cornell in 1990 and took a semester course in pottery. I loved it but got sidetracked by life. A year ago, my girlfriend and I set up a shop in her basement. We do cone 5-6 firing with commercial glazes…I’m getting better. A semester is no time to become an expert. I’m always amazed that an hour passes by in only 3 seconds.

I love your blog because it reminds me of days in Ithaca – I haven’t seen photos of Fall Creek in years. Reminds me to visit this summer. I also love your blog because of the pottery information, pictures, and videos…and your frequent posting.

Thanks!

and further:

I’m a fur wearing, gun toting liberal democrat who wears a suit all day and plays in clay all weekend. I was married in Annabel Taylor Hall in 1991, a year after I graduated from Cornell Ag. We lived it Ithaca for 6 years – back when we had a socialist mayor and Ithaca HOURS made their first debut. Now, my husband and I live in Arlington , VA with our 7 year old son, Isaiah and two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. My husband is a school teacher and I work for clients at the Department of Homeland Security. You can’t live in DC and not be political so I’m leveraging my corporate slut-status towards the greater good. We regularly contribute to democratic candidates throughout the country - from Barack Obama (January 2007) to Kay Hagen in NC (she beat Libby Dole) to John Tester (Jr Senator from Montana ) to our own (newly blue) Virginia candidates including Jim Webb and Mark Warner. Can’t get elected without money after all.



For the past year I’ve been nurturing my inner Ithaca . I rekindled my love of pottery by creating a shop in my girlfriend’s basement. I find the clay to be healing after a hectic week of deadlines and will sometimes sign my pieces Happy Pots to reflect the sheer bliss of a 12 hour day covered in mud. I make almost anything with varying degrees of success - from mushrooms and garden items, to kids handprints for the wall, to functional pottery for the kitchen. I hate to give up on a piece and sometimes find that my mistakes turn out to be the most interesting while my perfectly thrown pieces look awful in an unfortunate glaze selection. Recently, The Potter’s House (pottershousedc.org) asked me to make their signature mugs and I quickly learned that production pottery is as stressful as corporate work. For the most part, I’ll be sticking to days where the clay tells me what it wants to be. I love Gary ’s blog for the great videos and beautiful examples of pottery - and the re-connection to Ithaca it brings me.

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Gun picture below is for laughs. Note the ridiculous look on my face? This was our gag Christmas card. Swimming picture below has old glasses on. I now have my new Sarah Palin MILF glasses because everyone’s gotta have a piece of the sarah. And they match the gun after all.

Couldn't get the gun pic to save, but this all makes an intersting story, yes? And cute pottery, esp. the bumblebee!