Kiln cooling

The kiln was below 400F early this morning, so I opened the dampers a couple of inches, but left the ports closed for a few more hours and I just went out and opened one port in the front and one in the back. I got a very good peek and the slipped pots don't look as dark as they appeared yesterday, and it looks like I got enough reduction for the celadon liner but not enough to turn some of the oribe pots red. I saw some red at the top of one bud vase, but the few oribe yunomis, from what I could see, look fine. It's also a juggling act trying to get the right amount of reduction and not being able to use an oxyprobe in soda/salt firings makes it a bit trickier.

I'm spending this kiln cooling time to rest and go through months worth of cooking, ceramics and other magazines and other paper work and have made great progressive in two days.

Yesterday I found out that I'm not included in the TRAC tour. Jim and I hand delivered my application and cd with a photo of my work for the booklet a few days before the deadline and I don't know who screwed up, but somehow that application never got processed. They've never gotten my location correct on the map even though I've gone in there twice to hand mark the map and now this.

Deciding to use the experience to find the pony in the manure pile- I realized I can relax and enjoy Thanksgiving, get my Christmas decorations up early and not have to do a major studio cleanup which I always do before each tour, and also start working on the next throwing/making cycle as soon as I get these pots sanded and priced.