We have spent the last week at Denise & Dan's cabin on Kerr Lake (Buggs Island to all the locals) doing a little canoeing, swimming lessons for the grandkids, fishing and relaxing…….I even took my iPhone, glasses and hat for a nice swim in the lake! All were recovered eventually, thank goodness!!
When Joni-Dee is in basket class, I am sure she appears to be an endless fountain of energy, but I can assure you that Joni does need some time off. Nothing recharges her batteries, however, like spending some quiet time alone with her children and grandchildren (in addition, we had Craig’s girlfriend, Meredith with us this past week). And, being Joni-Dee, she could not let the time pass without getting a little weaving in. Both Kamaya-Dee (flower pot) and Meredith (wine chiller) had a Nantucket basket project going at the lake.
But, alas…..Lake Week is over for this year and HNCB is once again open for business. Jimmy Buffet is back playing in the Studio and Rock and Roll is emanating loudly from the Shop. As an aside, they say that it is the bass player that makes your girlfriend dance, and he's the same reason your basket bases and rims get made in my shop!
HNCB will be in Aiken, SC with the "Beloved Group" at the SPCA this next week. The following week will be the final Woodland Retreat for 2016 in Summerfield, NC. Denise Bendelewski will be down for that one, before they head to TN to see how Eric Taylor does it.
We are happy to report that my finger is doing fine (see HNCB Blog July 31, 2016) and is not getting in the way nearly as much as we thought it might. Dr. Burchette gave it a good report this morning.
We’d like to feature Joni’s new tissue box (see picture below). It is made on the DELS' 5” square mold and should be available in walnut and cherry. I have also included a photo of a new 6” traditional Nantucket made with black-died cane and ebony knobs & washers, and Joni’s tote featuring an Ivory-carved dragonfly. The Dragonfly and the ebony illustrate the transition happening in the world of Nantucket baskets. As we blogged a few weeks back (HNCB Blog June 30, 2016), we will no longer be carrying African elephant ivory at HNCB. We will still offer carvings and scrimshaw in mammoth ivory, shed antler, bone, Corian, Eco-Ivory and ebony, etc. But, this dragonfly may well be one of the last African elephant ivory carvings that we will receive. (Whoops! I've just been informed that the dragonfly is shed antler. Sorry about that!)
The story behind Joni's love of dragonflies: Everyone who has been around Joni-Dee for any length of time quickly learns that there is something about her and dragonflies. There are dragonflies all over out house and even her personal logo button design features dragonflies. Well, a long time ago she heard of the native american legends that a dragonfly in your home was good luck. That may be part of it, and the fact that my being an entomologist may be part of it, or the fact that she just likes dragonflies is a part of it, but for whatever reason, we've ended up with dragonflies imbedded in our kitchen tiles, on prints in the house, on rugs, chair coverings, and on a lot of her baskets. Fast forward a couple of years. When Joni's father was very ill and at one of the last times they were together, he told her that when he was gone, if a dragonfly every came and sat on her shoulder, it might just be him coming to tell her that everything was alright and that he was ok. Fast forward again to last week...the whole family is swimming in the lake, when a huge dragonfly (probably a Common Snapdragon or Common Green Darner) began buzzing us back and forth. The grandkids all hollered at the same time, "It's Popa"! Who knows, but I think Joni will be loving dragonflies for a long time.
That’s all for now. Everybody be careful out there and we look forward to seeing you in the future. Remember, it is a beautiful day….don’t let it slip away.
David
ps - I am very proud to say that I have had the privilege to be married to Joni-Dee Thompson Ross for 40 years as of August 6, 2016 (even better - we have been going steady for over 46 years! She is a great person and I am a lucky lucky guy…..)
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