Ceramics update

Before the Christmas recess, I'd glazed the 4 pink walls of my Boulevard Haussmann and was expecting them to have been fired when I walked into the class last night for the start of the new term.

I was, therefore, slightly disappointed to find that they were lying unfired on a shelf. Pauline, le professeur, explained that I had put on the wrong glaze in her absence and she wanted me to wash it off and put on the right one. Basically, I'd chosen a high gloss finish when in fact the right glaze would be a satin finish.

So, over to the sink to wash off the high gloss glaze and thereafter replace it with the correct one. Glad she made me do it.

Washing off the wrong glaze.

Back to pink and drying them off.

Applying the clear satin glaze

Just the one wall left to glaze.

Hopefully, when I return next week the walls will at last be glazed and fired and ready to be assembled.
That still left me an hour or so to start the draughting out of my HO scale church, the facade of which will be my next ceramic project.

St Paul and St Louis, Paris

44cm high and 28cm wide.

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Dvorak:

Wanted to get away from everything at work today, so at lunch-time went outside and sat in the car and half-snoozed while listening to Radio 3.

As so often, I joined a broadcast mid-way through a piece, this time a piano trio, and tried to work out who'd composed it..

It was a beautiful and lyrical piece and reminded me of our many summer holidays in France. Therefore, I thought and hoped it was by a French composer. I thought maybe Faure or Ravel.

In fact it was by the Czech, Dvorak: his Piano Trio in F minor, op 65.

I like this photo of the Lom piano trio.

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Last night's dinner:

Absolutely nothing.

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My philosophical neighbour:

Yesterday, I bumped into one of my neighbours outside in the street as I was getting out of the car - quite a philosophical kind of chap.

After exchanging a few pleasantries he said, portentously: "Remember, the bottom line is this: one must always guard against self-deception." And with that he was off.

I related this incident to a colleague today. He said, "Do you think he was insinuating something?"