The Article that best represents us mothers .........

TELL ME ABOUT IT ®

By Carolyn Hax

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Carolyn:

Best friend has child. Her: exhausted, busy, no time for self, no time for me, etc. Me (no kids): Wow. Sorry. What'd you do today? Her: Park, play group . . .

Okay. I've done Internet searches, I've talked to parents. I don't get it. What do stay-at-home moms do all day? Please no lists of library, grocery store, dry cleaners . . . I do all those things, too, and I don't do them EVERY DAY. I guess what I'm asking is: What is a typical day and why don't moms have time for a call or e-mail? I work and am away from home nine hours a day (plus a few late work events) and I manage to get it all done. I'm feeling like the kid is an excuse to relax and enjoy -- not a bad thing at all -- but if so, why won't my friend tell me the truth? Is this a peeing contest ("My life is so much harder than yours")? What's the deal? I've got friends with and without kids and all us child-free folks get the same story and have the same questions.

-Tacoma, Wash.


Tacoma,
Relax and enjoy. You're funny.

Or you're lying about having friends with kids.

Or you're taking them at their word that they actually have kids, because you haven't personally been in the same room with them.

Internet searches?

I keep wavering between giving you a straight answer and giving my forehead some keyboard. To claim you want to understand, while in the same breath implying that the only logical conclusions are that your mom-friends are either lying or competing with you, is disingenuous indeed.

So, since it's validation you seem to want, the real answer is what you get. In list form. When you have young kids, your typical day is: constant attention, from getting them out of bed, fed, clean, dressed; to keeping them out of harm's way; to answering their coos, cries, questions; to having two arms and carrying one kid, one set of car keys, and supplies for even the quickest trips, including the latest-to-be-declared-essential piece of molded plastic gear; to keeping them from unshelving books at the library; to enforcing rest times; to staying one step ahead of them lest they get too hungry, tired or bored, any one of which produces the kind of checkout-line screaming that gets the checkout line shaking its head.

It's needing 45 minutes to do what takes others 15.

It's constant vigilance, constant touch, constant use of your voice, constant relegation of your needs to the second tier.

It's constant scrutiny and second-guessing from family and friends, well-meaning and otherwise. It's resisting constant temptation to seek short-term relief at everyone's long-term expense.

It's doing all this while concurrently teaching virtually everything -- language, manners, safety, resourcefulness, discipline, curiosity, creativity. Empathy. Everything.

It's also a choice, yes. And a joy. But if you spent all day, every day, with this brand of joy, and then, when you got your first 10 minutes to yourself, wanted to be alone with your thoughts instead of calling a good friend, a good friend wouldn't judge you, complain about you to mutual friends, or marvel how much more productively she uses her time. Either make a sincere effort to understand or keep your snit to yourself.

-Carolyn

And just think there's those of us who do all this AND go to work!!

Disappointment

So I have been working on Father Davids priest ring for the past 2 days and I had it perfect until it came time to join the carving of the frame and the cross to the ring itself. It became uneven. I am so disappointed in having to do all that work over again. I have to bring it back in on Friday morning just to make sure its completely perfect. How sorry am I to have wasted all that time and wax.


On the otherhand I managed to finish my pendant. Please see below for the pictures of the finished pendant. I just have to get a bale and hook it up to a nice chain or maybe some leather. I went with leather. Your opinions please and be honest!
 

Business Management Final Exam

I am sitting here in the Exam Centre of University of Toronto waiting for the exam room to open. I should be taking this time to study but I can't seem to focus. There are several different courses being examined today and alot of people here to write them. My concern is already I have encountered someone with too much perfume on and that makes it hard for me to concentrate, remember, and think straight. I am not making any excuses just being very aware of my surroundings and if there are more people like that I need to know who they are so I don't sit near them. This is important to me. I need to pass this thing. Not quite sure how I will be able to finish the whole certificate course. I have 7 more of these classes to go. I am not sure where I am going to come up with the money to do it but I will.


Well I asked the instructors or at least the examiners if there were windows that open and ghey moved me to a desk where the windows opened that was a real blessing as the place reeked of a mixture of perfume, cologne and feces. Not good! I guess it's obvious now that I am done the exam. Not sure that I passed it. I seemed to have drawn a blank especially with the oh whats it called again? The written questions. I don't seem to be able to recall. My head is still reeling I guess. On way home now.... Oh yes the essay portion thats what it's called shit I feel stupid.
 
Anyways home to do dishes and other brain not needed acts.
 
Have a great day!!!
 
 Jenn

Todays class

So it is now 10:22pm and I am riding the subway home from class. Today was such a waste of time because most of it was alot of waiting as the actual casting took only a matter of 10min to actually do. And because I'm not positive of what I am doing as my final project I didn't have very much to do. I did bring Steve's next ring with me (thank goodness) cause I worked on that but I am not sure when I will be casting that one because of the cost to cast it in gold. I am hoping that Father David emails me with what he wants done so I can at least do that ring as my final project. I am hoping that if he's willing to pay me for my labour as well as the cost of the silver it might actually supplement my next class or at least pay for half of it. My next class will have to be a fabrication class as I won't be able to do the advanced casting class without it. Maybe if I am good enough only the one fabrication class will be enough to allow me to rent a bench by the day as I will be doing mostly the casting at the shop only minor fabrication while waiting for the kiln to finish the molds so I can cast them. We will see. It is ultimately up to Gillian. I am now at Wellesley stn and am hoping that Davisville comes quickly I am soo tired.

These pictures are of the last parts of the casting process.

Flask enters the water



Here is Daniella washing away the investment from the silver pieces.

Daniella posing with the flask



Cleaning the investment off the pieces



So Much Silver



What the pieces look like once the investment has been removed.

Just come out of the supersonic cleaner

Just come out of the supersonic cleaner

Just come out of the supersonic cleaner

After filing some of the rough spots and the fine silver casting film off.

Just filed the edges and sanded the very top and bottom of pendant, can you see my mistakes? Good thing I know how to fix those now!

Almost but not quite done.

Polished most of the piece. It's still a piece in process.

I really hope you like hearing about my process to becoming a better jewellery designer!

And of course if you are interested in any of the pieces let me know. All pieces will eventually be available for sale once I have perfected my technique and have the ability to rent bench time.

Jenn

oxoxoxo

Silver is Gold!!

So I am sitting here at Davisville waiting for the bus (yes I know I'm being lazy so what?) I just finished 3rd casting class. Well I casted not only my own piece but everyone else’s. If I had known I was doing that I would not have volunteered to do it first. (Not that I was afraid of failure but afraid of screwing up everyone else’s piece as well!) . There was allot of sanding and more sanding and learning how to make the mould (its called investment) by 9:45pm yet another 15 min passed the end of class the ring is still not as finished as it supposed to be. Good thing my husband (the one whom the ring is for) has lots of stuff that can be used to finish it at home. I have until Monday night to finish it so he can take it with him to Vegas.  The biggest thing I was not prepared for was the price. The ring is 26.6 grams @ $2.00/gram plus tax you do the math I don't want to see it anymore.  But to be honest, it's worth it and more but that's just my opinion. I do however understand Sarah's inability or rather her reluctance at selling the first few of her pieces, it's alot of work and alot of love that goes into it.

Right after casting

So I took a break to eat dinner and finish the ring completely.... It is now sitting on the left hand of the husband which is very happy with the end product. But to continue from prior to the break....

It also will explain why Sterling Jewellery costs so much. The cost of Sterling Silver (925) plus the investment material (something close to plaster of paris but stronger) and the wax all add up not to mention the cost of the tools and machines all add up to a pretty penny. Then it took me if all is said and done a total of 12 hours to make the ring from start to finish and if we want to include the timing of the part in which I could not do.. The baking of the mould in the kiln which took an additional 8 hours due to the size of the pieces. So in total that would be 20 hours. How much would all that work be worth to you I wonder. It makes me double think what I think is a reasonable price to pay for jewellery from now on. Well anyhoo I hope you enjoy the pictures of the rest of the process. Some are better than others. Feedback is required. Please share!!!

After completing ALL the sanding and buffing!

And there is progress!!

Well I attended my 2nd casting class. I was very happy with my work tonight. I ended up staying an extra 15 minutes longer than the class is supposed to take to ensure that it gets casted and done by Steve's departure for Vegas on the 19th but I think it will be worth it. Everyone is saying how good it looks (to me it's just this plain round green thing) but perhaps it will be impressive in shiny silver!
I am however hoping it drums up some business so I can take the fabrication class and the 2nd level casting class. It's in teh 2nd level where I will be learning to cast for setting stones. And then I'll be better equipped to do better made jewellery. Not just wire wrapped jewellery.
I am really excited. Because the instructor said I did great even better than most beginners. That I have a natural knack for this.
The pictures this time are much better the next set will be of the silver right after casting and the finished article.
I do hope that it turns out the way I hope it does. It will give me some confidence to work on my own for the final projects. Our new Wedding Bands.
Until Next Week.......................

Introductory to Casting .....

So this here is what your wedding bands or any of your casted jewellery start out as..... WAX. Yep WAX. but not just any wax special wax that you can carve and form.

Anyhow, about my class....

I really like it. The above is the beginnings of a ring that I worked on for 3 whole hours (well more like 2hrs because there was about an hour of intructional time). This will be a ring for Steve he's given me specific instructions about what he wants. He's a simple person so other than the extra width and depth it will be quite plain. My next project will be a pendant which is where I will be able to get all crazy creative with. I am really anxious to get this ring done to move onto the pendant portion of the course. I have been dreaming about things I can do. I just have to figure out how to draw so I can get what's in my head onto paper and into wax & ultimately into Sterling Silver!!

Wish me luck!!!!

p.s. sorry for the crap pictures.