pumpkin and pottery

This has been the week of pumpkins and pottery and planning, Oh MY!

After a month of working 50+ hour work weeks, I finally slowed down. We didn't have Monday off, so I took Wednesday as a day for me and my own sanity. Somehow, the idea of taking Wednesday off turned Tuesday night into a cooking frenzy night. I had a bit of a sniffle and skipped out on the martial arts class I was planning to attend. My friend is teaching it and he gave me plenty of teasing for wanting a night on the couch instead of a night of getting bopped in the forehead with his index finger.

I'm not even really sure how the cooking frenzy got initiated, but I suddenly found myself cutting open the 8 pound pumpkin that had been hanging out on the kitchen counter since October. The pumpkin that never got carved for Halloween, that never got carved for Christmas, Jess' birthday pumpkin that never was, the Happy 2009 Pumpkin that didn't, the Valentines Day Pumpkin that wasn't loved into a heart-shaped jack-o-lantern suddenly became meals and meals and meals. I roasted pumpkin seeds, I made my pumpkin-chickpea curry recipe, I made pumpkin nut bread, and I still have a lot of pumpkin hanging out in the fridge waiting to become pumpkin fritters and other culinary delights. Oh pumpkin, how I adore you, how you fill my belly.

Wednesday I met up with one of my new pottery friends and spent 3 hours in the pottery lab and it seems something has clicked into place and I made attractive pottery! I'm really excited and proud of the fact that I have finally made some pottery that looks like something other than a cross between a candy dish and an ashtray. There are photos here if you want to check it out and give me positive reinforcement by telling me how awesome I am since I've been doing this for only 6 weeks!

Oh and the planning! Next weekend is my big event. I'm the co-chair for a fundraiser event for the non-profit, independent high school where I volunteer. The event has a Friday night talk and a Saturday morning workshop. It is starting to feel less like volunteer and more like un-paid part-time job, but that's probably because there is still SO much to do! And I've got to update the school's website and email the volunteers and on and on. So much planning for this, but I'm glad it is happening and will provide some good resources for people in the community. I've also been making tons of plans for the weekend...pottery lab on the weekend, brunch with a friend, a resume-help session with another, dinner with another friend, and when am I getting caught up on Battlestar and Dollhouse and laundry?!

Maybe I need to make some pumpkin ice cream, or maybe ferment the pumpkin and make some kind of alcohol. Or a pumpkin facial cream? Hm...so many options for so much pumpkin!