RIP...

A couple of weeks ago one of my heads went to head heaven.  I keep about fifty of my heads hanging on the wall where I work.  There was a glaze spill in the area where this fella was residing.  My co-worker brought the mop out and accidentally knocked over my guy with the mop handle.  Luckily, I documented him some time back.  I remember he was one of the first heads I made after my three year break from ceramics.  During that break I did a number of landscaping projects and started my old myspace blog.  Those two activities were enough to satisfy my creativity, so ceramics took a back seat for a while.  Then, in 08, I ordered a bag of terra cotta clay in an effort to get back on the ceramic horse.  They ended up sending me eight bags of clay.  I took this as a sign that I was supposed to be making a bunch of ceramic stuff.  And make a bunch of ceramic stuff I did.  I tore through those eight bags of terra cotta clay, making enough terra cotta pieces that, I suspect, when my work is viewed in chronological order, this particular stretch will be called my "terra cotta era".  Anyway, I really liked this guy.  He was on of my faves and I'm sorry he's gone.  Sometimes I get attached to the heads that I make, and this was definitely one of them.  God Speed, terra cotta green haired guy with the big black eye.  You will be missed....

And here's a shot after I pulled his remains out of the garbage:

My co-worker felt really bad about the accident, partly because this was the second time he had accidentally killed one of my heads.  He insisted on buying me something to make up for my loss, so he bought me a 3-D plastic rendering of Jon Bon Jovi's shoulder tattoo:

I'm Sure Jon Bon's Skull Will Feel Right at Home Alongside my Plastic Dreamcatcher,

paulsen

Gone Heads (GH)...

These fellas were all sold or bartered over the last couple of months.  I'm really hoping they are enjoying their new homes.

This guy was bartered with.  A neighbor chopped down my tree and he received this for his troubles:

Unfortunately, I failed to photograph some of the heads.  I hate when I do that.  I have a whole lost generation of stuff floating around out there because I was too lazy to document my work.  A lot of stuff from the late nineties that I sold at the end-of-semester pottery sales at college are totally gone.  I probably only documented twenty percent of my work back then, and I was prolific.  I practically lived at the ceramic lab.  I blame having a digital camera that I didn't know how to use.  However, if I ever get around to developing my rolls of film from the late nineties, I should be able to corral a large number of pieces that only exist in my memory right now.  I really should get those films developed before that outdated technology doesn't exist anymore, if it doesn't already.   Damn it, I hate knowing there's a number of GH out there that I don't have documented.  Bums me out, man.


Always Document Your Work,

paulsen

I Captured Osama Bin Laden...

Don't worry.  He's in a safe place and you will be able to buy him soon at www.3sevens.etsy.com


paulsen

Twitter account...

In an effort to increase my presence on the web, I've opened up a twitter account.  Unfortunately, I don't have one of those smart phones so my on-the-scene tweeting capabilities will be rendered useless.  Still....


http://twitter.com/clpaulsen

The Clothes Department at the Truck Stop...

A couple of months ago I stopped off at one of the truck stops in Troutdale to buy a fountain drink.  I had spent the previous four hours hiking and the last hour of that hike thinking of nothing but how refreshing a  fountain drink would be.  I reached the truck stop and was pleasantly surprised to see that they shared real estate with Popeye's.  In addition to my fountain drink I was able to sample a Popeye's Po Boy chicken sandwich, which was really good.  I even kept the pickles on the sandwich so as to experience the Po Boy the way God intended.  I must say, I think I may turn into a pickle guy.  Oddly enough, I had my first pickle at a truck stop about four years ago.  I believe my buddy Dave documented the event in photographic form.  That's probably the only "first" in my life that's ever been captured.  Speaking of capturing images, here's some shots I took of the clothes they sell at the Troutdale Truck Stop....


For people that only purchase Christian items:

This would probably go best with a nice denim mini:

I love funny shirts.  My buddy Packy's dad wears a shirt that says "What part of 'you don't get it' don't you get?"  This one is less complicated but just as clever and funny:

They also had some rock and roll shirts for sale.  I narrowed my choices to these two:

I ended up purchasing the Skynyrd shirt because I really like Skynyrd.  However, I can't wear it in public because of the whole Confederate flag thing.  And it's Skynyrd, so people would probably think I'm trying to be ironic or something.  Which leads me declare that from here on out I will only wear solid colored t-shirts, preferably from Banana Republic or Eddie Bauer.  I've sampled those brands and determined they make a fine product.  In the interest of full disclosure, I should add that my Drive By Trucker t-shirts, as well as my North Face sport-fit t-shirts will still be in my rotation under a Grandfather Clause.  So really what I'm saying is this:  all future t-shirt purchases will be of solid color with no advertisements.  I suspect this will make me appear mysterious, but that's okay.


Keep on Truckin',


paulsen

Book idea....

Someone should go and take pictures of flaggers at construction sites and make a book.  Actually that sounds totally outdated.  It would probably be more apropo to just make a website dedicated to flaggers.  Here's my entry:

Photo Blog...

This is a picture of George Washington's nose:

Race Studies...

Last month I went to the shop on a Sunday.  I went with the intentions of logging some hours in the studio and banging out heads.  When I got to the shop and started to unload my tools, I realized I had left everything at home.  So I decided to sit in my car and listen to the Stern show, which kept me occupied for a few hours.  During those few hours I noticed a trend:  There was a steady stream of Latino Americans parking their cars in SE Industrial and walking towards the Esplanade.  The following day I asked my co-worker Ignacio why there were so many Latinos in the neighborhood.  He told me there was a concert by some rock band that has a large following in Mexico.  They were playing in a tent on one of the vacant lots that the city owns.  So it all made sense.  The Latinos came out in droves to the SE Industrial area to watch a concert by a Mexican rock and roll band.  Here's some mental notes I took during my few hours of Latino gazing....


---A large majority of the guys had very ordinary cars with shiny after-market rims.

---A large majority of the guys had those new fangled MMA inspired t-shirts.  Lots of skulls and lettering on the back.  Lots of stuff going on with the t-shirts.  I'm not sure where they sell these shirts, but I see them frequently.  Next time I'm at Fred Meyer I'll look for them and try one on.  I predict I'll feel like a tough guy but look like a douche.

---A large majority of the gals had toddlers in tow.  The gals were also very small.  Some of them appeared disgruntled and put upon.

---Much like 'The Jersey Shore', it seemed as though the guys put more effort into their appearance than the gals.  I'm starting to think this is a trend that's not going to go away.  I first became aware of the "guys turning into chicks" theory last summer when 'Jersey Shore' premiered.  I noticed further evidence this summer when I spent a few days with my old pal Jason.  Jason tans, talks about where to get good deals on clothes, wears jewelry, openly raved about the new hair product he just discovered, and he insisted on wearing sandals with jeans.  Jason 1998 would have made fun of Jason 2010 for sure.  And then the theory was reenforced recently with the Latino guys.  Guys in this country are slowly but surely acquiring feminine traits, and it appears to not be relegated to a particular race.  As evidence I point to the Italian Americans on 'Jersey Shore', the Latino Americans of the Portland area, and my white friend Jason.


GTL,

paulsen