#low fire pottery

[acbellpottery]

quick wip pic: out of the bisque safely and decorated with oxide stains. next step is to cover with a lithium wash and fire to cone 04

[kbergceramics]

some kind of beast

[drewdaves-blog]

Clay Pot

[moothereartharts]

Back to ceramics these are Norse oil lamps based on an archeology find. Terracotta clay, heading to low fire. #ceramics #pottery #experimental #archeology #norse #viking #oil #lamp #terracotta #clay #low #fire #kiln #reenactment #living #history https://www.instagram.com/p/Cdgg0EyjQBJ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[bonefall]

Warrior Bites: Clan Tools

[Image ID: Reedwhisker, a black RiverClan warrior cat, sits behind two terracotta pots, some strips of willowbark, a traditional wooden pot called a firkin, and a rock. He has a stick in his mouth.]

Warriors of the Clans are shown in-canon to be able to weave, dig tunnels, decorate with shells, and do whatever it is that BloodClan’s got going on with those collars and manicures. Have you considered what other tools a semi-realistic warrior could handle?

A guide to the various tools and methods that the Clans can use to prepare complex dishes, including the equipment needed for smoking, baking, pickling, and so on. Part of the Warrior Bites series for Bonefall’s Clan Culture.

(The art in this guide was once again provided by my partner who hasn’t read a single page of warrior cats in their life but so help me god I’ll drag them down with me)

Tools + Equipment

Fire Starting

Containers: Twine + Baskets + Buckets

Cookware: Smokers, Ovens, “Grillstones“

1. Fire Starting

Flint can be used to start a fire, especially for Clans that lack lumber. Because flint is most easily found around the Mothermouth, it’s associated with StarClan’s glow and considered somewhat divine.

But for those situations without a flint starter, the Clans generally teach their apprentices the paw-drill method using a spindle. But these days, SkyClan uses stolen Glass to start fires quicker and easier than any other Clan…

Except on cloudy days, where some unfortunate apprentice still gets saddled with spindle duty.

[Image ID: Reedclaw, a brown tabby Warrior Cat from SkyClan, sits on his haunches and spins a long stick called a ‘spindle’ with his front paws. Smoke is rising from the board the spindle is spinning against.]

2. Containers: Twine + Baskets + Buckets

RiverClan has the easiest access to twine; Willowbark can be peeled right off the tree and used without any processing for simple string to tie things with. WindClan uses woven grass as twine. ShadowClan, SkyClan, and ThunderClan are able to make cordage from Blackberry brambles.

Once the cat has twine, it can be woven into a simple basket to gather things, like berries, clams, or insects. In order to carry liquids, forested Clans can create firkins-- a small wooden bucket that requires some carpentry ability, namely creating wooden nails.

But these tremble before the value of pottery, which is needed to store liquids, ferment and pickle food, and create stew.

Pottery is made from clay, which has to be baked in order to go from wet mud to terracotta. RiverClan is responsible for making the majority of new pottery because of the river, and ShadowClan’s marsh gives them lots of access to low-quality clay.

WindClan was once unmatched in the quality of their pottery thanks to tunneling leading them to the finest clay deposits known to the Clans. Though SkyClan is now rivaling the finest ancient WindClan pottery, due to their willingness to steal buckets from twolegs.

(Leafstar says, “if you cant make a firkin, store-bought is fine”)

[Image ID: Leafstar, the brown tabby-and-cream Warrior cat leader of SkyClan, sits behind a counter in front of an audience presenting a man-made firkin, parodying shopping channels. A speech bubble says, “Meow meow meow meow meow, storebought is meow.”]

3. Cookware: Smokers, Ovens, “Grillstones“

A smoker is very easy to construct, all that’s needed is some straight branches, twine, and fire.

First, a round pit is dug into the ground and filled with soaked woodchips. It is important they’re damp, because wet wood gives off more smoke than dry. Then, three beams are set and tied at the top, like a triangle. From there, a shelf is made inside of the beams. Multiple shelves can be made if a lot of food is being smoked at once.

ThunderClan wraps the smoker in a leather pelt, to keep the smoke in. Their prowess with smoking and seasoning a wide range of meats gives them the title of BBQ champions.

[Image ID: A primitive smoker setup, made of three sticks leaned against each other in a triangular shape and tied at the top. Two shelves are tied into the structure, the top row with minnows and the bottom with hanging strips of meat.]

An oven is a large construction. Capable of cooking several meals at once, each clan would have just one to use communally. Because the communal oven is such a big project, each Clan would have one that looks unique to their environment.

ThunderClan’s, for example, is flat and made of stone, simple in design but very sturdy and capable of cooking a lot of meat at once.

[Image ID: A stone oven made of flat, piled rocks. A fire is lit at the bottom and meat is browning on the top shelf. A stick leans against the side.]

For the quickest and easiest way to make a hot meal, meat is roasted on a spit or loose stick over an open fire. The best sear comes from a large, flat slab of rock propped up over a flame, known to the clans as a grillstone.

[Image ID: Firestar, ginger tabby warrior cat leader of ThunderClan, watches bacon sizzle on a large, flat rock placed over a fire. His daughter, Squirrelkit, sits beside him. A thought bubble above her head contains a waffle, and a question mark.]

(Clan blood be damned that kittypet can work a grill)

[najia-cooks]

فخارة العدس / Fukharat l'adas (Palestinian clay-pot lentils)

The name of this dish comes from "فَخَّار" ("fakhar"), meaning "pottery," and "عَدَس" ("'adas"), meaning "lentils." It is traditionally cooked in a قدرة ("qedra," clay pot) made from clay refined from local soil and shaped in family-owned pottery workshops. This type of pot is also used to make a lamb and rice dish of the same name commonly eaten in Gaza and Hebron. The qedra is filled with the cooking ingredients, sealed with a flour-water paste or with aluminum foil, and placed in a wood-fired oven—or buried in an earth oven—to cook for several hours, or even overnight.

This simple dish cooks red lentils with yellow onion, olive oil, and cumin to produce a smooth, earthy stew; additional olive oil and fresh lemon juice squeezed on after cooking add freshness and a tart lift, and شطة (shatta, red chili paste) is spooned in for heat.

As of 2019, the number of families producing qedra in Gaza had decreased from 40 or 50 to 3 or 4, according to workshop owner Sabri Attallah. The Israeli blockade which began in 2007 closed off foreign markets for Palestinian qedras, while cheaper, metal imports cut in on the local market. When the pots are exported to Israel, the multiple checkpoints and mandatory searches between Gaza and Israel cause many of them to break. The compression of Palestinians into small areas by Israeli government and settlers also spells problems for the qedra industry, as the smoke caused by firing pots reduces air quality for nearby residents. Many consider pottery-making to be both an integral part of Palestinian identity, and to be dying out: thus the targeting of Palestinians' economic self-determination targets cuisine and culture as well.

Today, Israeli weapons threaten Palestinian existence. Palestine Action has called for bail fund donations to aid in their storming, occupying, shutting down, and dismantling of factories and offices owned by Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems.

For the lentils:

1 cup split red lentils, rinsed

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground

Salt, to taste

About 3 cups water

For the shatta (شطة):

100g (about 1 cup) fresh red chili peppers

2 tsp table salt

2 Tbsp olive oil

To serve:

Olive oil

Juice of 1/2 lemon, or to taste

Sweet peppers, radishes, spring onions, pickles, olives, leafy greens, shatta (red chili pepper paste).

Instructions:

For the shatta:

1. Wash peppers and remove stems. Use a mortar and pestle, food processor, or potato ricer to reduce peppers to a paste.

2. Add salt and stir. Add olive oil and stir. Store extra shatta in a jar in the fridge; cover with a thin layer of olive oil to avoid spoiling.

For the lentils (in the oven):

1. Coat the inside a piece of clay cookware of sufficient size, such as a Palestinian qedra or a Moroccan tanjia or tajine, with olive oil. Add the rest of the ingredients, followed by enough water to cover the lentils by at least an inch (about 3 cups). Make sure that the opening of the pot is completely covered (e.g. with a layer of aluminum foil, and then the pot's lid).

2. Place the clay pot in your oven and then heat it to 500 °F (260 °C).

3. Reduce the heat to 150 °F (65 °C) and cook for 2-3 hours, until lentils are mushy.

For the lentils (on the stovetop):

1. Heat olive oil in the base of your clay cookware, or a large pot. Add onions and cumin and fry briefly.

2. Add water and lentils and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes on medium.

3. Lower heat to low and cook for another 30 minutes, until consistency is smooth and mushy. Add water as necessary.

To serve:

Transfer lentils to individual serving bowls. Top with lemon juice and olive oil. Serve alongside shatta (which you may choose to spoon into your bowl) and fresh vegetables.

[sovaghoul]

Thinking about Dew and Aether having a shower together, like just one of those plain ol showers, nothing spicy.

How Aether takes off all of his jewelry before a shower, Dew watching as he clasps his bracelets closed before laying them carefully in the ceramic dish one of the ghouls made during a brief pottery stint. Taking off his rings, placing one to the right side and the one he wears on his left hand (that Dew made for him) on the left side. He's very cautious of worldly possessions like jewelry, polishing the silver adornments once a week, sat at the kitchen table in a feeble attempt to undo the patina left behind by soap and hand sanitizer in the infirmary.

Meanwhile Dew is simply releasing his hair from the low bun it had been tied back in all day, before brushing it out haphazardly. The fire ghoul not caring about what happens to the jewelry he wears, a simple matching band on his left hand that is identical to the one he made Aether. Dew loved the look of patina, how tarnished and scratched jewelry shows the wearers commitment to longevity. Albeit in a different way.

The way they would enter the shower together, Aether wordlessly reaching for Dewdrop's shampoo and bringing the fire ghoul into the stream of water. Dewdrop melting into his touch as Aether takes care in washing his long blonde hair, before rinsing and repeating. Finding his conditioner and using a generous amount, before braiding his hair to let it sit. The pair silently hoping no major detangling would be needed afterwards, even though there always is.

The way after their shower they would sit together, Dew scrolling through shows on the television to watch while Aether works mercilessly at a knot that formed from Dewdrop's towel drying method. All before they settle on watching M*A*S*H again for the millionth time, just because Aether loves it and Dew loves listening to his quote the show mindlessly.

- @the-moon-in-the-gutter

🥺🥹😭🥺🥹😭🥺🥹😭

Thank youuuuu this is so sweet and lovely. I love me some domestic Dewther. This is precisely the kind of thing I needed

[jbbartram-illu]

Current status: frantically creating small beasts & pinch pots for my first ever kiln firing, as the guy who's helping me replace the bottom element/make sure it's ready to go is coming by on Monday, EEK.*

Since I have no idea how the kiln, who I've decided to name Calcifer after my favourite fire demon, will behave, I'm focusing on objects that don't take too long to make (so no WoodsBeasts or Bird Ladies in this batch), which is honestly a nice, low-stress/no thoughts head empty way to start my pottery year!

ALSO: I have not forgotten about the many lovely questions still waiting in my inbox...it's just been the Busiest Holiday Time and I haven't had the brainspace for my always-too-extensive answers...they're on my list to start answering again & I hope to do so soon (for real this time)!

*Due to drying time, I estimate that my first ever bisque firing will happen in maybe 2-2.5 weeks? I really really want to make sure everything is super dry & it's actually been pretty humid here lately (the ONE time I'm wishing for horrible winter dryness & it won't oblige! RUDE!).

[artifacts-archive]

Ewer

French, Saint-Porchaire or Paris ca. 1550

This ewer is one of the largest and most impressive examples of a low-fire white pottery made in France in the middle years of the sixteenth century. Known as Saint-Porchaire ware, this group of elaborate and often architectural pieces is distinguished by the complex interlace designs of colored clays inlaid into the cream-colored earthenware body. These wares were believed to have been produced in the town of Saint-Porchaire in western France, but a Paris origin has also been suggested due to their technical sophistication and the ambition of their designs.

[rowenabean]

deep pottery anxiety (my first teapot was in the kiln load... the person unloading the kiln just messaged the pottery group to say there was a kiln disaster (piece from low-fire clay went in and melted)... was my teapot involved?? do not know cannot know until after work tonight!)

[imlivinginyourtrashcan]

Give me your Blyndeff sister headcanons please.

You got it, Boss!

MOLLY BLYNDEFF:

Starting off, I think shes autistic. Look, i know this is low hanging fruit, but i mean... come on...

I have a list of all the nervous tics she has, which include:

Chewing on her hoodie strings

Clicking a pen, mechanical pencil, figit cube

Cracking her body, mostly her hands, fingers and wrists

Chewing her inner cheek

Biting herself

Shaking anything jingly

Nervous hand flappies

Pacing

I also have a list of stims that i kinda projected:

Hand flaps are a big one

Same with fist shaking

Patting her thighs too

She also makes small popping noises

Ok back to ACTUAL headcannons:

Doesnt do well at amusement parks, but is cool about the scary halloweeny stuff

Quiet kid in school on the days she goes

Vocalizes what she does (aka making sounds as she does stuff) (akaaka her walking and she goes "eh eh eh eh")

I feel like she indulges in horror games, thinks the cutesy stuff is boring

Did not realize she was autistic until Trixie said "Thats neat Molly! By the way, did you ever get diagnosed for autism?" After she went on a whole rant about bear facts.

Speaking of facts, hyperfixation/special interest list:

Bears

Pokémon

Lethal company

Any horror game you give her, really

Horror movies

History (this is me protecting)

Actual Headcannons:

Textures are iffy for her

Shes touch seeking but will freak out if she feels or tastes a weird texture like with fleeces or fabrics

Naven triedd to help her with this, but it didn't work out and she spat out the food while apologizing

Likes Rasin Brain, its the only cereal thats not sweet

Drinks black coffee and tea

I feel like she owns a green Nokia with a bear keychain

Music taste is probably those nice music box covers or really quiet piano with rain ambiance.

LORELAI BLYNDEFF:

Shes autistic too, but not at the same spectrum level as Molly

Abandonment Issues

If shes stressed she'll stim while talking out loud to herself

Had HORRIBLE meltdowns when she was younger, she stopped around the time Molly was born since her parents said she had to set an example

Sweet tooth, favorite flavor is Birthday Cake

I can sense she has a Dnd special intrest, most definetly has played Baldurs Gate 3 at some point

Warrior Cats kid

Bedazzles everything she owns

Horrible cook. Dont let her touch an oven

Her and Molly used to infodump together before they started hating eachother

Def a bedazzled flip phone girlie

Idk why but I feel like shes a Chai drinker, no explination I just feel it.

Also really likes Halloweeny stuff

She struggles more with school work than Molly (Proof, her spelling in PoP) but she doesnt want to ask for help cuz she feels stupid about it so she just does it wrong

Full Hyperfixation/Special Intrest List:

Fantasy

Dungeons and Dragons/TTRPGS

Baldurs Gate 3

Rabbits/Bunnies/Etc

Harry Potter (Fuck JKR)

Warrior Cats

Wings of Fire

Percy Jackson

Actual Headcannons:

I feel like shes an Art Kid

Specializes in Pottery and Doodles

Also has taken up plushie making! Without an Epithet, I may add

She doesnt have an issue with texture most of the time; but if she feels any slime or coldness on her hands she'll flip.

She likes the popular music; but secretly loves fantasy game soundtracks and vocaloid. DWEEB!!!! (Me too i get it Lori)

Storing money to go to a Renaissance Faire

She sometimes uses her dream bubbles for Dnd campaigns with the friends she has! Or she would if she had any

I feel like she sits alone at lunch :(

Loves Boba! Tried getting Molly to taste it but she spat out a Pearl

Theater kid. Gut feeling.

Thats all from me, anon! Enjoy!!

[acbellpottery]

as yet untitled, speed drying in the sun for a bisque firing. lowfire earthenware, hand built pinched and coiled on a slab base.

[slavicafire]

very interesting breakdown regarding rodnovery from Scott Simpson’s Strategies for Constructing Religious Practice in Polish Rodzimowierstwo:

A purely academic reconstruction of a religion from the past is “legitimate” when it is made up of fragments which have been selected solely on the basis of the academic authenticity and reliability of the evidence. When a particular fragment had not been recovered, a scholar may always choose to simply leave that space blank without perverting the intention of the reconstruction (whether it be pottery or religion). Rodzimowiercy, in contrast, need to have a complete and functional religion in order for it to be legitimate. If the participant finds her- or himself in personal need of a Slavic marriage ceremony, then that space must be filled by something in spite of the lack of a conveniently pre-existing Pagan marriage script from, say, the Wiślanie tribe in the early 10th century. It would be a serious perversion of the religious intent of such a reconstruction to give up suddenly at that point.

the strategies Simpson describes below the cut. a very recommended reading, too, so I hope the full text will get some attention as well. 

1. Direct re-enacting: faithully replicating a custom described in sources such as chronicles - which Simpson notices is rarely possible as stand-alone strategy given all the blanks and generally limited sources. the most classic of issues everyone interested in neo-paganism knows and battled. 

2. De-Christianising: removing obvious Christian elements from “sacred” folk practices - think rodnovery Kolęda removing Christian elements from a folk tradition - one that is rooted in customs predating Christianity on slavic lands, and so can be stripped back into its more “original” (and pagan) form.

3. Sacralising folklore: taking elements of “secular” folk tradition and re-framing them in religious practice - for example, elevating folk melodies to sacred songs accompanying rodnovery rituals, or adapting the circular toasting custom of passing a drinking vessel among participants of an event as a religious expression other than just a secular way of toasting common among peasants.

4. Sacralising the archaic: emphasising ancient, archaic, timeless, non-modern aspects, moods and motifs - similar to above, putting religious emphasis on things which in the past were simply common. think archeological finds regarding clothing and adaptation of everyday clothing of the past as sacred or ritual clothing for modern reconstructionist practice. another example: drinking horns and mead being chosen for religious ritual because they are seen as more authentic (incorrectly) than wine or cups which are “too modern”.

5. Sacralising the natural: emphasising that which is organic, untamed, rustic. the clear emphasis on low-tech content, everything is wood or stone or raw wool - celebrations are more likely to be felt as legitimate if they happen in the forest rather than in a bar. 

6. Aesthetising: artistic embellishment of existing practice. think how focused rodnovers are on creating religious visual art, music, craft mead for celebrations, hand embroidered banners and altar cloths, representations of deities and reimaginations of symbols. this helps build a language of religious expression which for rodnovers is much more communal and reliant on members of the religion. not every member of christianity feels responsible for making religious art to be used by the religion - that task is usually fulfilled by the hierarchical structure.

7. Indigenising: localisation of ideas and practices found elsewhere. so some foreign ideas are rejected in order to maintain cohesion (for example Valentine’s Day being seen as a US tradition which does not belong on slavic lands) vs acceptance and adoption of others. the biggest example Simpson gives is the widespread usage of Internet and social media in creation of this religious belonging. or utilising fire poi in kupala celebrations.

8. Direct revelation from sacred beings (ancestors, spirits of nature, gods): If the sacred beings are understood as currently real, and if they have made their presence known to the Slavic tribes in the past, then they may do so now. think shamanic approaches, divination, contacting ancestors as beings with agency and influence, interpreting signs from gods.

[chefbeepo]

Tribes and their Arts!

Headcannons

Mudwings-

-lots of pottery and reed weaving. This can also include tapestry weaving and fiber arts, made from plant fibers. Macrame is common, though it serves little purpose for them, as they don't fish.

-musical instruments are reed pipes and flutes as well as drums of leather and clay pots. They also use their spines for percussion, using reed rods or bones to tap on them for a clicking sound. There are maracas and shakers made from clay pots filled with seeds, teeth and nuts. Singing is usually low and smooth, not very fast paced and usually is quite soothing.

-cooking is a vital art for mud wings. Fire is very useful for clay baking, but is often used for food as well. Meats aren't always cooked, but when they are, they'll be served with various roots like onions or potatoes or beets with bell peppers and nuts.

-dancing is usually done in groups of sibs, so roughly 4-8 dancers per dance. Each person plays their own role in the dance, acting together more as a play or performance than a dance.

-writing is done with papyrus paper and beetle blood, usually only for keeping records or writing important letters. But poetry is growing in popularity as mud wings have taken some skywing culture home with them following the war.

-architecture is almost always made up of a wooden armature frame, built on with clay and dirt to create round huts. Holes in the top allow for smoke to escape as well as large windows. Each has a patio with several shelves facing the sun, so that clay pots can be cooked without a kern. There is a sleeping corner or room that all the sibs share.

[talesofedo]

Here's a little "today I learned" about Hiraga Gennai 平賀 源内, arguably one of the most interesting individuals of the Edo period.

+ Gennai was born in 1729 in Shidoura village, Sanuki province (one of the provinces on the Nankaido road) as the third son of Shiraishi Mozaemon, a low-ranking samurai.

+ He grew up in a family with many siblings and was a precocious, intelligent child whose interests ranged from painting to poetry, and science to naturalism. In fact, pretty much the only thing I didn't find in references was any mention of talent with (or even just interest in) the sword.

+ Around age 12 or 13, Gennai became an apprentice of one of the domain's doctors where he learned traditional Japanese medicine, herbalism, and Confucianism.

+ After his father died in 1748, 19-year-old Gennai became the head of his family. During the Edo period, it would have been more common for the eldest son to succeed the father as both head of household and in his hereditary post (if he held one), so it stands to reason that Gennai's two elder brothers either did not survive into adulthood or there was some other reason neither could succeed their father.

+ Around 1752, Gennai traveled to Nagasaki to further his studies. Specifically, he studied rangaku (Dutch learning, but really any Western learning): Western medicine in general, surgery specifically, natural sciences, and oil painting, for good measure.

+ After his time in Nagasaki, Gennai realized he was much more interested in studying, traveling, writing, and inventing than he was in being heir to his family or being stuck in his province. He abandoned his position as head of the family - this went to his sister's husband - and resigned from his clan, becoming a ronin, so he would be free to pursue his own interests.

+ Gennai was interested in everything. At various times, he pursued (among many other things, I'm sure): Western medicine, surgery, traditional Japanese medicine, herbalism, mining and smelting techniques, mining development, natural history, ferry building, electric generators, fire-proof cloth, pottery, plays, and literature.

Electricity go brrrrrrr: Gennai obtained a broken, second-hand elekiter (エレキテル) from a shop in Nagasaki in 1770 and used it as the basis to build his own. He demonstrated the elekiter to the shogunate and many individual daimyo, and used it to treat various medical conditions, though perhaps more as a novelty than a legitimate attempt at treatment.

Two more things from the brain of Hiraga Gennai:

On the left, kakanpu, Gennai's fireproof cloth woven from asbestos, which would obviously not burn even if you threw it directly into the flames; and on the right, green glaze pottery dubbed Gennai ware, which was based on Chinese cochin ware.

Gennai also wrote ... a lot. He published 6 illustrated volumes on herbalism, 5 kabuki plays, 9 gidayu, and an assortment of other works, including an essay on farting, a guide to kagema of Japan, and his most popular work, Rootless Weeds, a gay love story featuring Enma, the king of the underworld, and Gennai's lover, the onnagata Segawa Kikunojo II.

That's Kikunojo in the two prints below. Yes, he's a man, despite appearances.

+ Gennai's death is a bit of a mystery. Apparently, he was involved in the building or renovation of a daimyo's mansion. At some point in this process, a drunk Gennai started arguing with several of the carpenters over what he believed to be stolen plans to the mansion. The argument turned violent and Gennai murdered at least one man and perhaps killed or injured a second.

+ He was arrested and died on 24 January 1780 in prison. His cause of death, unexpectedly, seems to have been tetanus.

[trivialbob]

This morning I rode my bicycle to the Minneapolis Uptown Art Fair. It's been several years since I've attended.

Most of the art is interesting. People watching is good. There are plenty of food and beverage trucks/stands. And I had nothing else going on today.

There is a free bicycle valet service. Riders leave bikes at a fenced-in area with people monitoring everything. No need to lock. I unclipped my pannier bag and carried it with me like a man-purse. It contained some bottles of water and my regular glasses (so I could switch out with sunglasses). My heavy, urban bike lock and a cable were in the bag. I didn't think to leave them with the bike. The bag got uncomfortable to carry after a while.

Several artists do paintings or drawings of the Minneapolis skyline. I always like those. The artisanal, hand-made, all-natural bars of soap interest me too. Today I didn't buy any, but other times I get some despite them being pricey. I saw some really beautiful dining tables made from enormous, solid chunks of wood for the table top.

This set of drinking fountains running from a fire hydrant looked cool (figuratively and literally).

I got paella from this stand. It was delicious and expensive. But my economics degree tells me that with a short, steady line the owner has a pretty solid price point.

All the food and beverage places are up front about expecting tips these days. There's not really any service involved. "Here is your bowl of food. We don't have tables and chairs, so you'll have to stand somewhere. Help yourself to napkins. So would you like to add 15, 20, or 25% to price?"

The tall, narrow shelves of pottery make me nervous. People tend to look one way and walk another. Children and dogs are everywhere. Yet I didn't see or hear a single vase or mug break.

Numerous THC-CBD stands featured seltzers, drops, gummies, potions, elixirs, and salves. There was a bit of a snake oil vibe as sellers described all the ways CBC would improve one's life.

I bought a can of beer. Despite this being an event, the price was a respectfully low $5. A stand next door sold bottles of water for $4. It's nice knowing that the malt, hops, and yeast that came with my water added only a buck to the price.

From the land of sky blue waters. That was the line in the old commercials with the Hamm's Bear (he got a home run in that commercial below).

I think I saw every art display. After finishing my Hamm's and paella I retrieved my bike from the free valet. Those people provided a worthwhile service and deserved a tip. I didn't mind putting something in their jar.

One the way home I passed a small neighborhood brewery. Is a bike ride complete if don't stop at a brewery?