The Help

I just got back from a five(ish)-hour stint lending an extra pair of hands at More Fire Glass Studio in Rochester (off of East Ave). After meeting and speaking with its owner Elizabeth Lyons just a couple weeks ago, I was very excited to have the opportunity to help out occasionally on an as-needed basis. While it might not sound like much - and perhaps not actually be much - I am a bit bemused at just how excited I am about this. I am SO happy to be doing things in a hot shop again. The two women I worked with today are so friendly and super chill. Reminds me why I love glass folks. You'll occasionally run into a "glasshole," but most glassblowers I've met and worked with are particularly wonderful, laid back, good-natured and welcoming people.

And hey, I might not actually get to be the gaffer for free for a while - probably not while I'm in Rochester; not until I find someplace where I can exchange shop assistance for blow time (Philly? Portland?) - but ya gotta start somewhere. And as long as I'm using this summer to do whatever I want while I still can, I might as well milk the hell out of it.

Which reminds me, again, how much I want to create a setup for my torch in the garage. It's just so full of stuff. Even when my room gets messy and I don't know where to start cleaning it, I just sort of start moving things. The space in the garage though... I literally do not know how to begin. There is no place to put anything. When I pick something up I just end up putting it back in the same spot I got it from. I think I need help - it's a big job for just one person. Once it's all set up though, it's gonna be good. Let's disregard for now the fact that I don't have an annealer.