A Typical Kate Story

This has been playing on my mind a lot lately and thought I would give you a glimpse into pre-adolescent Kate's life.
I had to have been about twelve, maybe a little older, maybe a little younger. My family and I were eating at our favorite Tex Mex restaurant, something that had become more and more of a treat in those days. As we ate, I overheard a conversation from the table behind us. A man and woman, obviously a couple, sat at one side of the table, while another man, probably not well-known to the couple, sat at the other. I don't remember the very beginning of this conversation, but the first thing I can remember the lone man say was "I'm the smartest man in the world." This made my eyebrows raise, and I listened closer.
"Here, I'll show you: What walks on four legs at the beginning of its life, on two legs in the middle, and on three at the end of its life?" I had to roll my eyes at this one. Not only was he using one of the most well-known, oldest riddles in the history of the world, published thousands of years ago in Oedipus Rex, but he had TOLD IT INCORRECTLY! And this man was using that as an example of his supreme mental prowess? I thought not. I decided to have a little fun with him. I turned around and said "Man. He crawls on all fours, then he walks on two legs, and then he uses a cane." The man was a little baffled and a lot affronted that some strange young girl (who looked younger than she was) had interrupted him and solved his riddle so flippantly. The lady and her hubby were also a little shocked. The lady covered by saying "oh, you probably heard that somewhere." And I remember thinking, so did he!
Then I think he asked me another riddle, which was in my riddle book for children, and I answered it. Then I asked him to put ten horses in nine pens without any of them sharing a stall. He gave up, and I drew nine pens, and wrote t-e-n-h-o-r-s-e-s in it. "oh, cute" was his dramatically pejorative reply.
Then he said something about being smart and I said that my parents were the smartest people in the world. He rolled his eyes at that. I believe I returned to my dinner.
I still cannot get over the audacity. A man openly claims his supreme intellect and then ventures to prove it by TELLING A RIDDLE that he had READ SOMEWHERE ELSE???
For one thing, making up a riddle that is clever and difficult to solve shows some mental prowess, in fact I believe it shows a lot in the manner of critical thinking, but what I have decided is the moral of this story is:
Telling a riddle that is as old as time is not evidence of a strong mind but of a strong memory.
and the secondary moral is:
If you are going to disregard the first moral and use an old riddle to prove your prowess, by gum, tell it the right way! (and beware nosy, precocious little girls. They'll humble you every time.)

Semester's End is Always the Busiest!

Well, it's finals week. I have finished one of two papers due this week, and still have three finals. Strangely, I'm not overwhemled yet.

That's probably because I'm so tired.

I have, however, put together my jewelry making exhibit for the library (for non-attenders, our jewelry making class always puts together displays of our individual pieces and places them in a display case in the library for all to see, it's a good opportunity to let everyone see what you've been doing all year). I had nine pieces, though I've really made somewhere around 14. I've given away or sold five pieces and did not have them to display. Four of those pieces are simply other copper pendants (one was copper wire wrapped and really cool, and I didn't get a picture, but I think I may make another one for myself!), and one was the silver rose ring, of which I made a gold version that is infinitely cooler. Pictures will be posted soon.



I don't know if I've told everyone my plan for the rest of this year. I'm graduating in August, not May (which is fine because it's still a year early), and then I'm working for a year (maybe more). Hopefully at MHMR here in town, so I can be near my friends at school (plus I just really like this area of Texas). While working, I'm going to take two classes (personality theory and painting) at a community college so I don't have to start paying back loans, and then I will apply for art therapy programs for the following year (along with graduate assistantships).

Anyway, I'm excited for the chance to live on my own and still have my friends from around here close.

When did fairy tales and folk tales become "for children only"?

In my ongoing obsession with folk and fairy tales, I have often asked myself this question. Surely the Grimm brothers, Hans Christian Anderson, and Perrault are now marketed more for a juvenile audience. And yes, many tales are marketed more towards younger people, but so many times the beauty of these tales is lost on them.

Take the Selkie myth, for example. There is such a conflict, a tragedy of loss and a weighing of the possible gains. Can you imagine having children you love but also knowing you cannot live unless you are once again one with the sea? Yes, children can tell that this is a tale of loss, but I'm sure the right storyteller could bring grown people to tears at the recounting of this story.

Then the Wild Swans/Six Swans tale. The sacrifice the girl goes through for her brothers, the fear, the pain. Of course, Juliet Marillier did a very good job of telling this in a more adult way in "Daughter of the Forest", the first of a trilogy. And then there of course is the Donkeyskin/Allerleiraugh story in which such mature themes as insanity and incest are discussed. Again, this was recounted very well in Robin McKinley's "Deerskin"

Note: both of these books mentioned have rather graphic and upsetting scenes. So I REALLY mean it when I say mature audiences. Like maybe upper level of high school at the youngest.

Let me also just say that as soon as I take a figure drawing class I'm going to do justice to the picture of the selkie that is in my head. This is so frustrating! The same with Allerleirauh.

Anyway, I think that folklore and the importance of it has been lost to the general public. Children read them and sometimes adults (like me) get fascinated with them, but other adults write them off as new agey freaks who belong more at rennaisance fairs than in the real world.

Truth be told, folk tales, in my opinion, give us a strong view into our culture, and the tales that certain people like will tell you a LOT about that person. It is a shame that so few put a strong emphasis on these, and allot them to nothing but childhood fancy.

There is such beauty in these tales that they have been echoed and re-told for years. They belong in more than single-shelves in bookstores, all mixed in with mythologies of different countries, not one country having a complete or sufficient collection.

Now I REALLY want to run away and be a storyteller. Too bad there's not much market for them these days.

Friction produces heat???

Well, as you might guess from the title of the post, I've injured myself through a brief memory lapse on the laws of physics. I was working on the dual ball ring that I found the tutorial for on "A Metalsmith's Journey" http://www.doxallodesigns.blogspot.com/ . It's really cool, but I had trouble from the get-go. First, we didn't have the right guage of wire, and so I had to settle for 14-guage square wire instead of 12-guage round wire. Then, when time came to drill the hole for the 20-guage ring, it was nigh on impossible to find a drill bit that hadn't been broken by some of the other punk jewelry making students (it's okay, that's said in complete love and respect for them), and most of the ones that weren't broken were dull. So, drilling through the two wires took an inordinately long amount of time. Then, disaster struck. The drill got away from me, and my ring started spinning uncontrollably. I turned off the drill (once I got some sense back), and reached to pick up my ring in progress. Now, let me remind you that when friction is applied, energy (heat) is produced. Let me also remind you that silver is a very good conductor of heat and heats up quickly. So, I reached to pick up my ring in progress, and recieved a burn instead. If you look closely, you can see the circle on my index (on the right) and middle fingers. I am an idiot. Then, I tried multiple times to produce the "second ball" on the wire, but could not get the technique to work. I tried fireproof fabric that had been soaking in water, then manila envelopes soaked in water, but I only succeeded in discovering that the first bead I wanted to use was plastic (because it melted) and nearly setting the paper and fabric on fire (well, the fireproof fabric smoldered an glowed a bit). So I modified it a bit and ended up wrapping the leftover wire around the shank. This was the best photo I could produce (I'm sure I'm just not using the cameras to their fullest potential), and hopefully it fits the person I made it for! She said size 8 and I pretty much abused it on the mandrel until it got there.
Sadly, I also attempted my rose ring in gold. Failing to measure the amount of gold I had and the amount needed, I only cast part of the ring (thankfully, part of it was the flower) and had to order gold wire and gold solder to finish it. My tax refund is officially gone (I think). Hopefully it will all be worth it and I will have a piece that I will wear for the rest of my life and pass down from generation to generation. Pictures will be posted soon, after I've gotten over my shame.
One more week of jewelry making class. That makes me very sad. But then, only one more week of my other classes, too. That kind of makes me happy.

My Dad's Website!

I know most of my readers (all two of them) are outside of Texas, but just in case anyone from around the state (or elsewhere if you want to fly him out ;) ) I thought I'd plug his site!

http://leejonesphotography.com/

These are just random pictures he took, some are my senior photos and senior photos for friends. Check his web site for a few more pictures.

My First Show, First Sale, and Second Sale in One Day!

Okay, so Allerleirauh didn't turn out as awesome as I planned, but I'm still pretty proud of it. I may be working on it a little more...but here are pictures from the show:

Then Chelsea asked me to make a piece like my turquoise pendant, this time using moss agate.

Then I randomly made this piece from the original bezel for my rose window locket (it didn't work out, I prised it off, and re-used it), a misshapen pearl, and some gold-colored wire. I called it "Selkie" after the Irish story of a seal who left her skin on the beach and turned into female form. A fisherman found it, kept it in a box, and took her for his wife. For years this woman lived with the fisherman, longing for the sea. She had two little girls, and though she loved them dearly, she still ached to return. One day, the fisherman was gone and had left the key carelessly in sight. The selkie took her skin out of the box, and she and her daughters walked to the sea. As she she was about to put the skin back on, she kissed her daughters, telling them to look to the sea whenever they were lonely. She entered the ocean again as a seal with her daugters watching. The fisherman, I believe, moved even closer to the sea, right on the beach, and he and his daughters would all go to the ocean to watch for the seals, knowing their mother could not be far. My friend Sarah bought it, for my second sale! That just makes me happy.

All this was done instead of (oops) doing my baptist history paper, which I will turn in late. This seems to be becoming a trend. I just can't concentrate!

Daphne

For some reason (no, I know the exact reason and am ashamed of it, but will tell you later in the entry) I have always been intrigued with the story of Apollo and Daphne from Greek mythology.

In the versions I've read, Daphne is a virgin priestess or servant of Diana (the virgin goddess of the hunt, who had an affinity for deer, and all her followers vowed celibacy). Apollo, the god of light (who some versions say drove the chariot of the sun across the sky, but others say that was Helios, mythology is finicky that way) is walking around one day in the woods and sees Daphne. Apollo, with a lust true to all the Greek gods (except the virgins) pursues Daphne to do what we all know he wants to do. Terrified, Daphne runs, but the god is faster than she, so she cries out to Diana for help. Diana answers by turning Daphne into a laurel tree just as Apollo reaches her.

Another Greek myth has an elderly couple turned into I think rowan trees that entertwine when they ask Apollo that they both die at the same time so they are never apart from each other.

Why these seem like good ideas, I don't know. I know the Greeks didn't view the afterlife as such a good thing, and that they believed that trees were inhabited by nymphs (many cultures believe in tree spirits), but it still amazes me that in this culture Daphne would rather have spent the rest of her life as a tree than to have submitted to the gods.

Anyway, I've been intrigued by this since...ugh, I feel so awful letting go of this shameful secret...since I read the Babysitter's Club Mystery that was set at an art museum. An exhibition by a sculptor was being shown and there were some missing coins...anyway, one of the sculptures was both woman-like and tree-like, based on Daphne. I think, sadly, that this is part of what originally got me interested in Greek Mythology (though now I tend to enjoy lesser known folk tales).

I've been playing with the idea of a woman that looks like a tree...or a tree that looks like a woman, and I think I have the next idea for my wire tree. I sketched a couple of ideas (one of them during Experimental Psychology, where I do a lot of drawings...sorry Prof.!). Anyway, the first one was done tonight and the one on notebook paper is the original. Yay for mythology and yay for actually drawing something that's halfway decent.

"Have you ever shot anybody?"

This is my least favorite question for someone to ask my dad. I mean, how does someone automatically assume peace officer = gunman? Because they carry guns? Why don't they ask just about every man here in Texas the same thing?

I don't remember asking my dad that except for once. I was somewhere between 11 and 13 I think. Maybe I was older. He told me that one time he arrived on scene just in time to witness a man get stabbed fatally. The wounded man ran over to my dad's squad car and died holding on to the driver's door. The murderer was standing in front of an interstate full of drivers. Dad pointed his gun but didn't shoot for fear of hitting an innocent bystander.

I know that here in the States we all seem to have this huge authority problem. I think it started with the Revolution, maybe even with colonization. People came here because they didn't want to be told what to do or not to do (or for enterprise, that happened, too). We still don't want to be told what to do, and a lot of people take it out on our peace officers.

My dad joined the force because he wanted to help people. "Fighting crime, surpressing evil, and protecting widows and orphans" is something he jokingly says quite often. But that's what he does. He hates writing traffic tickets and is pretty good to the people who recognize that this is his job and not a personal vendetta.



I guess what I want to say is, you have not gone through what a police officer sees. Don't think you know what they do.

Copper turquoise pendant

Pretty self-explanatory...I guess not bad for my first bezel piece (I hate that word..piece...it always looks wrong).

Sorry about the poor quality pictures. I'll fiddle around with the camera later.

I put my Allerleirauh piece in an art show and just got word that it was selected! I have to make a little blurb about the story though so it makes more sense. Pictures to come!