sheer beauty

[Squirt]

all is quiet,
except for the gentle roar of the furnace
and the glow of the glory holes.
the pipes lay in the warmer;
the tools set by the bench.
he enters, the studio his kingdom,
surveying his battlements.
the cavalry enters,
prepared to take his orders.
after warming a pipe,
the furnace is opened,
and he smoothly,
calmly,
like it was second nature,
gathers a heap of
molten glass;
glowing, burning at
two thousand
one hundred and
seventy five degrees.
with such ease and care he shapes it
and the form gives way at his commands.
a second gather...
a third...
a fourth...
the heap of glowing glass is heavier
hotter
keep it centered
watch the thickness
the bubble is a perfect size.
he rolls it out over the table of
heated marinis;
little glass colored beads aligned in a series of rows.
every muscle in his arms writhing under his skin,
working to steady the
twenty five
pounds of glass on the end of the pipe.
a fifth gather...
a sixth...
the excess glass drips in a bucket of water,
simmering, cracking,
as it sinks to the bottom.
cut it fast
keep it centered
the cavalry scurry about like ants in a rain storm,
reading his mind,
knowing his every command before he opens his mouth.
heat the neck
cool the bottom
give me light!
easy, easy...
reheat
flash the neck
keep turning
keep it centered
turn
turn
turn
flash
bring it out
let it cool
attach the punty
keep it centered
quick quick!
heat it back up -- it'll get too cold
open the neck
refine the shoulders
even out the belly
finishing touches....
he puts his piece in the annealer,
his crown on the shelf,
one last admiring glance as the door closes.
it will cool in a few days,
and he will remove his masterpiece,
his perfection of timing,
judgement, and
creativity.
sheer beauty.
===============
i wrote this after watching stephen powell, our glass blowing teacher and a well-known great artist, blow a gorgeous bowl tonight. it really makes one appreciate the process behind artwork. if you ever have the chance to watch someone blow glass, don't pass it up. it's an amazing thing to see.
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"baked. not fried. it's the healthy choice."
fuck plur! it's all about the hardcore ass fucking!
((official founding member of the stuck up/8 up crew))
"Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect. But, what it does mean is that you've decided to see beyond the imperfections."

 

[Aja909]

I like it a lot!!

 

[Mr. Nice Guy]

I like to watch someone giving me a blow job, does that count?

(Beat you to it, Mr. Sticky!)

seriously though, I liked it.

 

[firstrays]

this is a nice peice. Shall I assume that you or someone close to you does glass blowing? it's an incredible art and I have great respect for someone who has that kind of artistic talent.
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This is your life, and it's ending one minute at a time.

 

[Lothlorien]

When i was a little kid with my gramps up in Queensland i was in a place where you could walk through this gallery thing that had an in-house glass blower and you could go in and watch him working, i'd forgotten bout that, reading your piece reminded me. Thx

 

[fizzygirl]

that's so cool squirt...ya know, one of the things i really admire about your talent for writing is that you are able to put the most everyday things into words. there is so much wonderful poetry written about emotional aspects of life--love, fear, loss--but to be able to take an common experience and show it in such a way takes a really special gift

*muah*
brooke