Jay Jasper's Blog, page 70

Kevin Bacon’s Secret Pandemic Inspiration

In an Alternate Universe, one can only Hope They had a Different Timeline for their Pandemics

Raku pottery vase, ‘Footloose‘, tells the tale of a pandemic that is now long forgotten. – which is a good thing, for we’d all be envious that we got stuck living through covid instead of the Dancing Pandemic!

$138
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Largely misunderstood

And tucked away in some corner of the dance floor of history, are a series of small plagues/pandemics that occurred in Europe from 7th century to the 17th century. One of the most well known of these took place in 1518 in France!

Those afflicted by this pandemic

Would dance for days, to the point of exhaustion and seemed to be in an alternate state of consciousness. It was rumoured some would indeed ‘dance till they’re dead’, but for the most part it seemed this condition would eventually resolve on it’s own with few fatalities.

No one is quite sure what caused this pandemic.

There were many theories, that included spider bites, demonic possession, or even directly blaming Satan. Contemporary historians have theorized that the cause could have been ergot poisoning, or mass psychosis from the miserable conditions of life at the time, but I have another theory.

The kids just want to dance!Was the dancing plague/pandemic the original ‘Footloose’?

In such repressive times, dancing would have often been frowned upon, probably by the same people who tried to cure the dancers with an exorcism. Fortunately, it was most often ‘cured’ by allowing the dancing to run it’s course. Many magistrates even provided the music to help dancers ‘shimmy’ the sickness away!

I am sure they too were tapping their feet.

So if I have to live through another pandemic, I choose this one! Maybe we could exchange covid for this one?

What do you think of today’s raku pottery vase ‘Footloose’ and our story today? And if you were living through a dancing pandemic and could make a song request to the DJ, which song would you pick? Let us know in the comments below!

This vase not your style? You can check out more raku pottery vases here, and I hope you all have a melodious day!

OR sign up to win your very own raku vase for FREE here

How-To: Make Peace With Your Mother-In-Law Instead Of Making Babies In A Never Ending Competition Of Fertility That You Will Never Win (And Don’t Actually Want To Anyway)

‘Nereus & Doris‘ focuses on the virtuous power couple of the sea, known for their fertility and general good nature. If you know anything about Greek mythology, which is a lot like reality television, this could only mean one thing.

They would be replaced. Nereus & Doris – $150
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Nereus, son of Gaia, was an honest man, known for never lying. But there was something fishy about him, and I don’t just mean his scales and tail. Maybe it was his shapeshifting ways, or his prophetic visions.

Doris was the daughter of Oceanus, and was known for the fertility of the oceans and her womb, for it is not every goddess who has the strength and tenacity to birth more than 50 children. There is even a cove named after her in Antarctica. Unfortunately her mother in law Gaia was always at her to have more children.

Nereus – $38
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Doris – $ 124
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While it’s true that this couple had over 50 children together

It was never enough for Nereus, who was a bit of a momma’s boy. Add to that his ability to never lie, and we have a real problem.

Outwardly, no one even realized to ask if there was anything wrong with this watery super couple, which is a good thing, or Nereus would have to tell the truth. But behind the scenes, the tell tale signs of problems were almost there from the start.

Doris was pretty happy to end up with Nereus. She wasn’t wet behind the ears when it came to god like status, and she seized the chance to marry up-and-comer Nereus, who would eventually replace her own father as god of the sea.

She hadn’t anticipated the impact of her new mother in law who also happened to be her grandmother. In almost an instant her grandma Gaia had gone from a largely absentee grandma how sent the occasional birthday card to a mother in law who only cared about one thing: Doris making more babies.

At first Doris took this in stride, and maintained her composure

But eventually after birthing 50 children she had enough. She decided to talk to her honest husband, who could not lie.

Nereus, who took after his mother, wanted more children. As the god of the sea he felt the need to constantly have more children, and poor Doris was left to care for all her children.

Doris knew that in order for their love to continue and for her to have a break from labour pains that something needed to change. She not only resisted the pressure of mother-in-law Gaia to have more children, but she prepared her daughter Amphitrite to take over for her.

Doris then set her up with another up-and-comer in the ocean, Poseidon, who would eventually become the new god and king of the sea, thereby freeing herself from the chains of constant labour.

But unlike other dethroned old gods, Nereus was able to fade into obscurity with Doris, where they lie deep below the murky depths.

This was finally Doris’ Day. Doris – $ 124
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You can check out more of our raku pottery vases (and their stories) here! If you would like your very own raku pottery vase, you can sign up for our newsletter, because we will be choosing a lucky subscriber for a pottery gift basket that includes one, which you can see here!

On The Wheel Wednesday

“Sometimes, reaching out and taking someone’s hand is the beginning of a journey. At other times it is allowing another to take yours.”― Vera Nazarian

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🙏 In Gratitude 🙏

~ For colour ~this summer has been very grey and wet.This has meant everything is very green and the plants (Weeds included) are growing very quickly It also means that when the grey has passed, the other colours really seem to pop! So as the grey highlights the contrast,
here is to celebrating Colour!What colour are you feeling
gratitude for today?

We would love to hear your answers in the comments below

One Type Of Man You Never Want To Marry

Previously on As the pottery wheel Turns

We told the harrowing tale of the birth of Alcemene’s son, and how Hera almost stopped it from happening with witches and snakes. You can read more about how Hera was thwarted by another goddess in her attempts and how young Hercules helped form the Milky Way.

Hera’s Our Guest Today

Hera’s Heart, follows the tale of tantrum and tears of one of the most famous gods of Olympus. She’s beautiful and her position as Queen of the gods has afforded her untold power. Today we take an in depth look at the goddess of women, marriage, child birth and family – Hera.

$140
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Trophy Wife

In order to try to understand the intricacies of Hera and her penchant for revenge, it is important to get to the root of most of her problems. Her marriage.

It’s not like young Hera had a thing for the bad boys. She had resisted the advances of Zeus for what seemed like forever.

Ladies, other people who have relationships with a certain kind of man, you know this story. We’ve all been there or know someone who has. That man comes along and you try to ignore him, which only makes him want you more. That’s because his attraction is based on the fact that he’s objectified you. Sure, it feels kind of flattering at first, but it gets awfully lonely on that pedestal he’ll put you on.

Part Time Lover

Zeus relentlessly pursued Hera, who had little interest in a relationship with him. She was a busy goddess, with important work, looking after women, their relationships and families. Eventually, though, his relentless advances paid off and the two would wed.

It is questionable whether or not they ever had a honeymoon period. Perhaps that’s because almost immediately after their nuptials, Zeus showed the true colours of his variable emotions by constantly falling in love with other women and having children with them. So much so that his offspring outside his marriage vastly outnumbered those conceived with Hera. In other words, he would definitely have been guest material for a Jerry Springer baby daddy show.

My husband won’t stop having babies with other women

Hera was a proud goddess. After all, she was Queen of Olympus. Unfortunately that pride was often injured. It wasn’t just the fact that Zeus was having affairs and chasing after several mortals, but also he was not the most discreet philanderer.

Couples find ways to work out their troubles oftentimes. But when do you know your marriage is in trouble? If your husband has children in the double digits with other women, it might be advisable to end that relationship.

Unfortunately that wasn’t really an option for Hera in her situation. The constant humiliation and whispers at Mount Olympus ate away at her. She soon become consumed with revenge.

$140 You Better Don’t cross Hera

Girl Code doesn’t seem to have been a thing back in ancient times, at least not among the gods. Sadly, often bested by Zeus, Hera often took her revenge upon his mistresses.

Don’t forget to turn Io into a cow!

Understand that these women were for the most part blameless mortals relentlessly pursued by a womanizing lothario with untold power and influence. After some time, Zeus must have known that these women he ‘loved’ would become the target of Hera’s wrath.

The moral of the story:

If he thinks he’s a God, He’s Probably Not

Take these words to heart, or yours may be broken!

Win a raku vase of your own (and more!) here

Mugshot Monday

“Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue, and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.” Mug 15 $35

Shipping Included in US and Canada ~ Judy Garland Our old pup in the forestWhat dream would you
Like to see come true?

More mugs can be viewed here.

If you don’t see one for sale in the colour you like,
please contact us and we can work with you directly.

Vase In Focus – Rokonlélek

“It’s Hungarian for ‘Kindred Spirit’, Marica. Isn’t it lovely sounding? $198
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I think it suits The Alchemist’s vase quite well, don’t you? Conjures up all of the timeless ideals of form about which we were speaking earlier…,” Missy said while sweeping her long front leg through the air.”

Read more of Marica’s Name That Vase winning story of Rokonlélek here

This Week At The Studio In Photos

Morning Dew An action shot throwing on the pottery wheel! Evening light in the Forest Mary J. Vase hangs out with the chives A mushroom of some sort found on a forest walk.
Any ideas?That’s been the week here.

How’s your week been?

Want to get reeaaaaaaalllllly ahead on your Christmas shopping?

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To Hell & Back

‘Draupnir‘ tells the tale of dwarven headhunters, a father’s love, the ultimate wealth multiplier, and a journey to hell and back. It’s about a gift, made in response to a wager, that almost cost a trickster his head.

Forged in fire, Draupnir was one of three gifts which also included the Mjollnir and the Gullinbursti. They were created by dwarves, Brokkr and Sindri, as part of a wager with Loki. Loki made a bet that they could not make better gifts than the Sons of Ivaldi.

Loki must have lost his head, betting against the brothers. He was very wrong, and this was no small wager.

The dwarven brothers may have won the contest because of the Mjollnir (Thor’s Hammer), but the Draupnir was literally worth it’s weight in gold – actually eight times it’s weight in gold!

It was time for Loki to pay up and he had wagered his head. But as usual Loki had a trick up his sleeve. He argued that in order for the brothers to take his head they would need to injure his neck and that wasn’t part of the bargain.

The dwarves discussed, and settled for sewing his lips together with wire.

Perhaps just to shut him up.

‘Draupnir’, old Norse for The Dripper, was no slouch of a gift. It was a golden arm ring with a special ability: every nine days it would drip out eight new arm rings of the same weight and quality of gold!

Move over Michael Bloomberg, that’s quite a return on investment!

This arm ring would become a prized possession of Odin’s, but in the ultimate act of a father’s love Odin placed it on the funeral pyre of his son Baldr.

But the rings story does not end here.

In the land of death, Baldr would give the ring to the messenger god Hermodr, who would ultimately return it to Odin.

A circular journey to Hell and back rings true for ‘Draupnir‘ – but if you buy this vase, please don’t return it to me.

It’ll be yours. I insist.

Draupnir $74

If you liked this story, you can find many others like it in our first book “A Potter’s Dream: Myths & Legends”.

Win a gift basket of pottery here!