First Night

Yasha and I took the first night shift with Meir's kiln in Pardes Hanna from midnight 'til seven this morning,burning small logs just outside the air passage beneath the firebox - not really firing the kiln,just warming it up and driving off any dampness left in the mainly-unbisced pots.We gradually moved the fire into the air passage,reaching 150 degrees or so early in the morning,to the accompaniment of a dawn chorus of Pardes Hanna dogs and cockerels,then started to throw small logs onto the grate in the firebox itself.Meir and Rachelli took over to start the real work of the firing;we drove back to Tsfat and I got a few hour's sleep,surprisingly weary after a sleepless night but a fairly relaxed shift. Tomorrow morning I'm off to Tel Hai,where the anagama firing started this afternoon and should be reaching serious heat by the morning,then [after another rest] back to Pardes Hanna for another night shift,also working with a much hotter kiln. It's just as well that Shabbat comes right after all this strenuous activity.