For years I have wanted to write about my art. For years things got in the way of both doing what I love and writing about it. Now I am in a position to both joyfully write about a great fall of art work and also the opening of my 'garagio' to welding workshops!

As a trial, this year I donated a workshop for four to the Alaska Botanical Garden annual Art Show. It was purchased by some wonderful women who treated me to wine for a design and planning session and then came for a day to try their hand at metal smithing. The result was a fantastic day of fun, dirt, art, and another glass of wine to decompress and critique. I have already rescheduled with this group and look forward to advertising more sessions at my upcoming First Friday, November 7, at Cabin Fever on 4th and G Street.

The thing I love about teaching is catching people's enthusiasm. I certainly love welding and have spent many years channeling that in my art process. But as I have said in other writings, welding is dirty, hard, loud work. When someone learns for the first time I am reminded of the mesmerization of molten metal and the first time I soldered silver and watched it flow under the heat of a torch. Perhaps over the years I have learned not to rub my face with my filthy gloves, and certainly I don't have a mirror in the garage; so I may be just as bad, but the eager, soot-smudged faces just make my day.

Welding is relatively easy, but doing it well takes a lot of practice. It is rewarding to get a student to the point of completing a small project in a day but wanting the chance to build more skill - perhaps even to get into the art itself. It is also rewarding to see how far I, myself, have come since quaking in my boots the first time I struck an arc or turned on a grinder. Again, loud, dirty, hard work and not for the faint of heart.

These four were not faint in the slightest. Thank you, ladies, for a wonderful day and I look forward to round two!