The guys at lunch were discussing the tendency of male ego to cause assertions that "I did it all by myself" when the greater truth is that we are quite interdependent. Some parents make a big deal over their part in the physical creation of a bright child who goes on to become the town's mayor. The winning pitcher acknowledges the catcher, the coach and the groundskeepers. We can't really accomplish much without relying on the skills and achievements of others.
Recently, Lynn went to work on her kiln furniture. The kiln gets up to 2000° F, enough to cremate ME (!). Getting that hot melts all sorts of things. It isn't the heat level in the interior of the sun but metals, glass and organic material like wood or weeds are totally consumed. Getting that hot takes energy and Lynn hates to waste energy. The shelves and uprights the shelves stand on (the 'kiln furniture') is expensive. It has to be able to stand such temperatures without melting, cracking or exploding. Each piece is coated with kiln wash to lower the chance that melted glaze will flow down the side of a piece and weld it to the furniture shelf it sits on during the firing.
You look at a piece of pottery, such a lovely creation. But the kiln furniture was made by someone as was the kiln itself. A sander and the sanding sheets used to strip off the old wash. The goggles that protect her eyes, the brush used to paint new layers of wash on the furniture. The wheel on which she turns a piece while she is making it, the shelving the piece sits on to dry. All sorts of unknown people contributed to her pottery work.
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Bill
Main blog: Fear, Fun and Filoz
Main web site: Kirbyvariety
