Blood Oranges

After a few years of drought,Sydney has got some blood oranges for me from a kind lady in Yesod Hamaala.Blood orange juice and a good cup of coffee [in a good cup,of course] is one of the few proper ways to start one's day,no?
Not a great deal happened in the studio,partly due to a lengthy but rewarding sale.I finished trimming and slipping another batch of vases for Meir's kiln and put them to dry in a warm kiln [60-90 degrees C.],then dug out a bag of cane and bamboo handles from last year's trip to N.Y. and threw eight smallish teapots and their spouts and lids for the smaller handles.Winter is a good time to make teapots in these parts,as everything dries out slowly.In the Summer,it's much harder to catch all the bits at the right stage,unless you're Ruthanne Tudball,who assembles her teapots as she makes them on the wheel.This evening I flipped the pots to dry on their rims and moved the lids-the pots seem about the right weight for their size,so not too much trimming required,and most of the lids promise to fit most of their teapots,which is still a relief after all these years.Speaking of which,2005 marks my 30th year as a potter,since starting as an apprentice with Robin Welch in Stradbroke,East Anglia.30 years and still learning every day-what more can you ask from a profession?As usual,tonights learning from "Pirkei d'Rebbi Eliezer" was appropriate-dealing with the bricks used to build the Tower of Babel.