Big Day at the Tel

Shiny new gas tank
Farewell,old gas tank
Lousy IPad photos,I know- my IPhone has crashed [not that it took that much better pictures]: after months of haggling and serpentine bureaucracy,the gas company came to excavate our ancient gas tank and stick the new huge tank in an even huger hole. They sucked the gas out of the old tank into the new,replaced most of the dubious gas pipes and taps and were finished by four o'clock. Pretty efficient. We had to stop a gas kiln in mid-fire [luckily we had reached 980º,which should mean that the firing can start again tomorrow without damage to pots]. The blue cables,they assured me,lead to magnesium rods buried deep that are supposed to absorb any corrosive elements in the area. Meanwhile we all pitched in to make a large pile of last year's left-over dry seasoned wood which Eli [3rd year] and crew proceeded to saw and split into manageable and flammable pieces for next week's anagama firing. Back at Sydney's after my day in Tel Hai,I rigged up the long thermocouple and pyrometer ready for tomorrow's firing- probably no live commentary [see IPhone,above],so either come by to see how we're doing,or wait for a report.
No less impressive- on my way back,I noticed that Tsfat has acquired not one but two brand new roundabouts- one [long overdue] at the southern entrance to town,the other by what used to be Dubek [in Tsfat you show your pedigree by referring to places that no longer exist,like Dubek,the traffic light,the old Bank HaPoalim,etc]. We wait with trepidation to see what misbegotten statuary the Iriya will choose to erect on them; recent eyesores have included the Two Spies clutching their grapes but headed in opposite directions,a small purple piano and a large white artist's palette full of flowerpots.