So fall is here, school has started, I'm done with my outdoor shows for this year and starting to think about fall/holidays stuff. I'm trying to start posting more often again.

Bella has been coming around and visiting us more than often lately, the girls are absolutely fascinated with her and will just sit and stare in awe. If Skye happens to find she is outside while we are still in bed she throws a tantrum until I let them out so she can go see Bella again.









The fish heads as my neighbors call them are back in force, and it seems like way more than last year. Even with the news saying the DEC closed part of the river until the end of October for fishing, I've seen so many big fish come up out of the river in the past couple weeks its insane. Its fairly calm during the week but when the weekend hits, every side street and parking lot is full and town is crawling with fishermen. I'm thinking the tournament weekend will be crazy with the increase in people.

We also heard from the local paper that apparently a crew is in town filming a 4 part miniseries about all of this called "The Run". How weird would that be if a major network did pick it up? Turn into what's going on in Pulaski on A&E... guess we'll see what happens with that.

One more day until my vacation, I can't wait. I've missed every previous one but will actually be making it to the Rings & Things road tour this week in Rochester. I've always wanted to go but never had the chance. I plan to take pictures, this looks to be an incredible thing to see.

I'm working on the upcoming show for the North Country Crafters - A Handmade Christmas. Its a brand new show at a brand new facility and all handmade. I'm really excited to bring our group to the public with this event.. there is so much talent & imagination here, people really need to check it out.

I was set up at Coyote Moon yesterday for the Keith Brabant memorial festival... there were high winds all day and some very high winds in the afternoon.. but the tent held. This is one of the tent weights in action. They sit on the tent footplates and are double bungeed in place. The tent would rock back and forth but held strong. I'm really happy about this design and how it worked.

DIY Tent weights

So there has been alot of talk in North Country Crafters about tent weights...

... how big?     ...what weight?    ...to hang or not to hang?    ...water/sand/concrete?

I've done alot of digging online.. read alot of tutorials and specs.. discussed the idea with my Dad and we came up with something. They are currently curing and I'm thrilled with them.


There were our materials:

(1) 10 foot long, 4 inch pvc pipe (the lightweight kind, not schedule 40 kind)
(8) flat pipe caps (4 inch)
(1) 80 pound bag of sacrete
(1) can of pvc cleaner
(1) can of pvc cement
(8) 24 inch heavy weight bungee cords


The total cost for this project was about $67, which is pretty on-par with most of what I had read... $47 for the supplies and $20 for the 8 bungee cords.


Here's what we did:


Check the pipe, one end will be flared out (where it would connected to the next pipe if being used like that).  Measuring out from the non flared end, cut the pipe in (4) 2 foot sections. You will have one extra 2 foot piece left over with the flared end.

The caps we used are flat ended (with slightly rounded edges).  There were rounded end caps but they were very heavy and almost $8 each, so this option was more cost effective and worked just fine.




We got the lighter weight pvc pipe that was stacked up on the back wall at Lowes rather than the heavy schedule 40 stuff that was stacked up in the plumbing section. You could use either, but in this case the lighter pipe was more cost effective, lighter and as Dad said, basically all you are really looking for is a mold to shape the concrete. The most I can safely lift is 25 pounds, so this works out perfectly for me.




After cutting the pipe and setting aside the flared section you put the end caps on. First, clean the ends of the pipe (and inside sides of the cap) with the pvc cleaner so it will hold a better seal. Next apply the pvc cement to the outside of the pipe and the inside sides of the cap. Put the cap on securely and turn it 1/4 turn.

Here you can see the pvc cement is the orange stuff. The cement will be a little rubbery at first but then it will take hold and lock tightly.




After the pvc cement is dried, you have 4 tubes ready to be filled.




The ends are just cut and unfinished but its not an issue. The caps still go on just fine.




Either tie/bungee your tubes to a stable object (like a support beam) or stick them in a container to keep them upright for filling & curing.




This is the whole 80 pound bag of sacrete (concrete mix) its the just add water kind.




Add the water slowly and mix the cement up well, making sure to dig out the corners and the bottom so it is all mixed to the same consistency.




Dad made this scooper by riveting a handle to a can for this project.  It works great!




The can is just shy of 4 inches across and we are working with 4 inch pipes, so you can kind of gauge how they are filling as you go.




We went around the group, scooping 1 scoop into each tube, and then the next and so on. That way if we were a little short in the end, they were all still filled to the same level.




Here they are after using all of the 80 pounds of concrete mix.




To top them off (if you want) Dad added rocks (because as I learned concrete is made of rock) so it will just become part of the same once it cures. After a couple of rocks in each, they are all full.




After this you clean up, and wait. You can rub the concrete dribblings on the outside of the tubes clean with your hands and water. Right now its about 7 hours since I took this picture, and Dad says they are setting up nicely. They should be cured by tomorrow.

Once the concrete is cured, we will clean the pipes and caps and cement them on. To avoid stressing the joints on the tent, we skipped the hanging hooks and went with bungee cords instead. My tent came with large metal foot plates, so the plan is to sit these guys on the foot plates, and secure them each to the tent legs with 2 heavy weight bungee cords. We already tested this to a leg of similar diameter to the tent, and the 24 inch bungees fit just right, wrapping around twice.

I will post new pics once the weights are done and in use, which may be as soon as next weekend (depending on the weather) for our town-wide yard sale.

I hope seeing our process gives you a little more insight in what you want to do for yours!

Huge thanks to my Dad for making this happen :)

Happy crafting!

So its 2012 now... not much said on here but alot has happened in the past year. I went through a really bad winter with back pain and back problems. It got to the point I had nothing left and really couldn't function much at all. When you are laying on the bed/couch/floor bawling your eyes out because the pain is so unbearable no matter what you do, you've pretty much hit rock bottom.

I tried lumbar epidurals and trigger points at the pain clinic, which really hurt (especially the lumbar).. they didn't do much long-term but we kept trying. I started drinking alfalfa tea to deal with some of the arthritis in my back.. different vitamins and lots of other stuff. I ended up in the ER twice. After finding out the orthopedic group probably would refuse me as a patient because I had already had back surgery once.. I really started looking for an alternative, because I couldn't keep on like that.

On Google I found a "spinal regeneration center" in Watertown that is part of a chiropractic practice. As of this week, I have completed my first phase of treatment with them.. it consisted of 2 months of treatment 3x's a week. Each treatment is a session on the spinal decompression table, followed by a chiropractic adjustment. The spinal decompression table actually gently pulls your spine apart and applies negative pressure to it. Think of it like this.. if you sit it may be like 50 pounds of pressure on your spine, standing, 100 pounds of pressure on your spine...  on the table.. you (depending on your treatment) could be at 40 or 50 pounds of negative pressure on your spine. Its like undoing what you do every day. The treatment sounds barbaric, but really it isn't.. it doesn't hurt but my back is a bit stiff when I get off the table.  After ice and a chiropractic adjustment, its pretty good. I'm up in the low -70's right now.. and it is helping. Its a slow process but lets be honest, I'm pretty screwed up. As the Dr. says, there's alot of trauma in my lower back and they are working it out slowly. I still can't feel part of my foot (going on 3 months) but that's a long term goal of my own, to be able to walk normally and feel my whole foot again. If you've never been through it, sciatic nerve compression seriously sucks. Who would think something could be numb and throb/burn like mad at the same time...? But I'm remaining positive.. this is helping. Int he past 2 months I've been able to do some serious cleaning and dump trips (my office was a disaster), paint the front steps, do some projects outside and in general, function pretty well. So, it is a long, slow process, but it is good. I just need to continue being patient.. my own goals will come too.

The good news following all of that is that this year, I WILL be doing craft shows in the area. About this time last year I started a group on FB called North Country Crafters. Currently we are up to almost 160 members, and have started a branch off group for another region. This is an incredible group of talented people from every front you can think of.. every genre, material and even some handmade arts you'd never though existed. We are all working towards the upcoming craft shows, making product, getting our 10x10 tents, making weights for them and encouraging each other in what we do. I am so proud to be involved with these people.. they are truly incredible.

This is my favorite shot from the move from North Carolina to New York.

The girls actually handled the move way better than I had expected and they had a great time. They would sleep through much of the driving and then be up and ready to play when we stopped. They even did pretty well in the motel rooms and relaxed without much issue.

Zoe on the other hand was a druggy moron, which isn't too far from her usual state as stupid neurotic cat. Her antics almost got her left behind twice because she disappeared and we couldn't find her.

When we left Cary, it was around 80 degrees and the girls were well overdue to be shaved. However, when we got to New York it was in the 30's and 40's most days with some really cold winds. By the time it warmed up enough to get them shaved, overdue was an understatement.

This is Skye the day before she got shaved:

...and this is her right after:

The groomer couldn't believe she found a little puppy under all that hair. Shelby & Skye both feel great now and love going on walks. As this is a nice small town, there are lots of places to walk safely. There are also paths along the Salmon River.

The girls love to stomp around in the water before continuing on in our walk through town.

Pulaski is a small, quiet town at least most of the year until fishing season starts (but that will be a post for the fall). There is pretty much no crime and everyone has been great. We even have a town pet, her name is Bella.

No, this picture wasn't taken at the zoo, it was about 20 feet from where I park. Bella is the un-official town pet of the town of Pulaski. Some people love her, some hate her (usually because she has eaten something they planted). But Bella is so used to people its quite hard to spook her, even if you are trying to. She seems to think she's a dog and will often times wander down the street following someone who is walking a dog. I have come home numerous times to see her laying down across the street or eating grass in my neighbors yard. When I took this picture I was talking to her and she walked right up to the fence to check me out.

We are in a real house now, with a basement and multiple bedrooms and a fenced-in back yard. The landlord is great and has let us do alot of small things to improve the house. I repainted the dining room, I like the color much better than the washed out yellow it used to be.

Dad built a railing and gate on the back porch so the girls can run straight out to the back yard. I hit it with a couple coats of white and you would never think it was added later.. it completely looks like it belongs as part of the house.

My landlord also had the contractor install an outlet in the basement for my kiln, so I actually have a full studio down there that won't impede on any other rooms like in the old house.

All in all I'm very happy to be back up north. I will miss my friends in NC but this is where I am supposed to be right now and I'm happy everything has worked out so well thus far. I can't wait to see what's next.

We've come a long way...

So, its a new year, new job, new home, new life. On March 20th Mom & Dad and the girls and I left Cary, NC headed for upstate New York. On April 2nd I found a house to rent in Pulaski, NY. I'm now a Technical Service Manager so instead of working in a management center supporting hundreds of customers, I'm working from home supporting 1 very large customer. I have adopted a new soldier through Soldier's Angels... its a girl! The girls have gotten bathed and shaved so they are no longer hairy beasts. I've already had a number of opportunities to do things with my family and its great. The weather is warming up slowly and hopefully the rain will stop soon.

Mom & I have pieces on display at the Salmon River Fine Arts Center in their spring community show and we are looking at many opportunities in the coming months. My clay studio in the basement is about finished so I can finally start working on that stuff again.

Quite a few boxes remain in the house but I'm working through them as I can. Here's to lots of new beginnings...

Wow...

So its 2011, and yea I'm a slacker. I never posted once in 2010 and *poof* its gone.

Alot happened in 2010... I didn't enter the state fair like I had intended because I had foot surgery and was out of commission for a while... that sucked but it was for the best.

I got to be home with my family for Easter & Thanksgiving and went to my brothers for his end of season breakfast for the 1st time ever. His syrup is the absolute best.. if you've never had the real thing.. you are so missing out.

I adopted a number of soldiers who I am proud to say are all now safely home. Once my life calms down, I will pick that up again.

Christmas in July at the VFW was a great experience and for a 1st time event, it went very well.

I'm no longer the MWAN guru now... that torch has been passed on.

Now I'm looking to the future and for a change... decisions have been made, plans have been put into motion. I know what I will do, its just a matter of figuring out the how. I already know the why.

Soon... I will be home.