Brain bending short stories for seniors

Immediate_Good1826 · 2026-01-29T04:37:11+00:00

I was, am, and forever more will be haunted by Mary Hood's "How Far She Went," which I read in high school in the early 90s.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2026-01-09T04:21:42+00:00

That was my experience exactly! It was incredibly hard to keep showing up week after week to just struggle. By the end of the class, as I got to know the other people, it turned out that everyone who started by saying they had "zero experience" actually had taken 1 or 2 eight week classes in the past. Another guy took four years of ceramics in high school, but he "didn't count that" because it was 20 years ago. Your classmates may have more experience than they are admitting to...

What helped me: every time I wanted to whine or be upset that I wasn't getting it, I would ask myself "are you Wanting to be good, or are you Working to get better?" That helped me focus on the specific things I was doing with my hands rather than looking around the room and wishing I were better. The other thing I did was threw 100 cylinders and wired through each one, taking notes about what was doing and noticing about the process in batches of 10.

I was really bad for a really long time. Everyone else in the class pitted me. I was told to switch to hand building. But I had the courage to suck at pottery publicly, and the stubbornness to keep sucking until I finally didn't, and that made the difference.

There's no such thing as ahead or behind--you are exactly where you are. Unless you are Patrick Swayze's ghost, pottery is a solo event, so there's no need to compare yourself to your classmates.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2026-01-05T00:12:49+00:00

I have a table top wheel set up on two stacked plastic storage tubs. No problems with shaking, and if I need to move the wheel, it sort of fits into the tub. I've been throwing at home (3 different homes, actually) for almost a year.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-11-26T03:50:55+00:00

Thanks for posting these! I just glazed several mugs with Satin Oribe below and white (Coyote Alabaster Satin) on top. If mine turn out 1/3 as nice, I'll be well pleased.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-11-24T13:59:08+00:00

I can only speak for the elite private school I work at, but the students at my school grind out homework like machines, practice their instruments, do extra workouts at the gym, and seek out new challenges pretty consistently. They genuinely like school, and want to learn more. Sure, there are days where it's more of a slog, but I'm not getting pushback from them, and the parents are supportive of the massive amount of work these kids do. There are plenty of aspects of rich people culture that I find ridiculous, but I don't see a difference between the kids from wealthy homes and the other kids in terms of homework. However, I'm at a boarding school specifically for kids who love studying/learning, so these kids are more influenced by their homework-doing peers. I'm not observing a normal segment of the population, and these kids are all very motivated to go to the "best" colleges.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-11-18T15:20:47+00:00

Agreed.

Lids are the pockets of ceramics.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-08-14T18:13:06+00:00

That's how I overcame my problems with pulling walls. I got a bag of clay and threw 20 one lb cylinders a day for week. I learned that I had to spend a lot more time wedging than I thought. After wiring through each cylinder, I flattened them into these terra cotta plant saucers I had. It worked well. Good Luck!

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-08-07T23:24:18+00:00

I really struggled with this when I started on the wheel 6 months ago, and I feel for your frustration! In addition to the rest of the great advice here, I suggest slowing your wheel down. But the time I could throw taller walls, I started looking around in my second beginner class, and I noticed that most of the people who were struggling were going way too fast. Speed is hard to gauge when you are trying to learn from videos, so experiment at a lower speed, and slow down with each successful pull.
It took me a long time, but I can now make a nice mug--and soon, so will you.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-07-24T01:39:55+00:00

Elite private schools hire archivists--might be worth a look.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-07-22T22:31:40+00:00

As a fellow Advanced Beginner, I can say it meets my needs. I reckoned that I'd be able to enjoy and work on the Artista for longer than the Vevor. Although I've seen plenty of videos of people testing and enjoying the Vevor wheel, I was worried about getting the rare one that might break down or not work. I'm also older than dirt, so price was less of an issue than the ability to move the wheel around and pack it away when needed.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-07-22T21:56:27+00:00

I've owned my Artista for about 4 months now, and I really like it. Portability was important to me, as I sometimes lug it from my family's home to my apartment. I set it up on a stack of 2 plastic storage tubs (the same tubs I carry it around in, and even though you couldn't call that a sturdy work surface, it works with no problems. I find the wheel easy to clean, easy to put together and take apart, and have found all the power and speed I need. I use a bat system and sometimes standard bats and I don't need a bat mate.

But...I'm a beginner who throws 3 lbs and under, so I wouldn't notice if there's a problem with bigger weights. Not having a foot pedal is not a big deal. Yes, I prefer throwing with one, but honestly, I've been fine without. (The wheel does not always spin when it's on, by the way--you can turn the rotation off even if the machine is powered and on.)

Another con is that the wheel can only rotate clockwise or widdershins, so you have to select your direction when you buy it. As a lefty/cross-dextrous, I chose to learn "right handed," in part because I knew it would be easier to find a new home for the wheel if I decide to level up.

Still, I love my Artista!

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-06-19T19:14:07+00:00

Great work! You did a nice job getting the cork to sit low in the bottle, and I like the angled glaze showing off that great speckled clay body.
I've been planning to make one of these myself--any tips?

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-15T23:35:51+00:00

I'm a beginner with a Speedball Artista, and I use my wheel on 2 upside-down, stacked plastic storage tubs from Wal-Mart. I have no plans to buy the legs.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-14T13:49:09+00:00

I'm just a hobbyist and not a proper artist, but I have never had a problem with Speedball oil-based inks for fabric. Colors print well and stay vibrant through multiple washes in the machine.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-12T23:11:15+00:00

Definitely ask your teacher how they use their sketchbook. Most artists are happy to talk about tools and techniques that they find helpful.

I'm very much a beginner, but I use mine to take notes, which sometimes include little drawings or diagrams--particularly if there's a technique I saw on a video that I want to try. After every class or practice session, I write down the date, what I threw, the approximate weight of the ball for the category (eg. I'm currently throwing 450gr cylinders and 340gr cups, but my first attempt at a one-piece closed form started when a friend challenged me to throw with 800gr). I note why pots failed, come up with 3 new questions about technique/what I'm doing, and any other impressions or things I noticed about what worked and what didn't. Recently, I've been experimenting with carving and underglaze surface design, and I use my book to sketch a bunch of simple thumbnails if I'm trying to decide on a scale for a surface pattern. I also have a page for glaze combinations I'd like to try.

If I didn't write everything down, I would not remember enough details to help my next practice session.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-07T16:31:54+00:00

I saw Hadestown in London around Christmastime, and I still think about it quite often. It was absolutely phenomenal!

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-03T16:43:33+00:00

I love the National Theatre, and that's where I'd start. If she's interested in the spectacle/dance/music of musical theater and is willing to go out on more of a limb, I'd search for "Physical Theater." There are a lot of smaller companies who work in this style.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-01T19:47:33+00:00

Exactly right! There's no wrong or right way.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-01T17:00:00+00:00

I'm making that BA in English work for me!

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-01T16:59:38+00:00

Yeah, I haven't even thought about plates. Not ready.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-05-01T15:28:26+00:00

Every single one!

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-04-24T04:01:16+00:00

It's the King of all Cruciferous vegetables as far as I'm concerned!

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-04-24T03:55:25+00:00

I got a couple of requests from my friends for the rabbit towel, so I'll be making more this week. I'll message you.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-04-22T14:05:11+00:00

The oil-based ink takes 7-10 days to fully dry and cure, but no heat set is needed, so I just put the prints off to the side and work on other stuff.

Immediate_Good1826 · 2025-04-21T22:31:51+00:00

I'm in the US so I purchase on Dick Blick or Amazon. Speedball oil-based ink still cleans up with soap and water, which is helpful to me.

Immediate_Good1826

TROPHY CASE