Fall New (Samhain) Moon
Kate said she likes this time, when the gold colors have just begun to appear, because “it seems like 
all of fall is ahead.” Yeah. I like it in the rain and mist we had today, an atmosphere that makes me think of falls gone by, the ones I thought of as normal.
(Briscoe’s showroom is the building at the rear.)
We drove up to Stark, Minnesota today to Robert Briscoe‘s home and studio. He has a fall sale, a 24 year tradition. It includes other potters. This year Jo Severson, Jason Trebs and Matthew Krousey. His home and studio sit on a high point surrounded by a maple, beech and birch forest.
Long, maybe 20 feet long sawn boards, 2x2x18, placed on metal sawhorses held the pottery. Some it was under a white tent, but most of it sat out in the rain. We bought a large vase and I poured two inches of rain water on the ground.
Briscoe is a big bluff former Kansan. We talked about tornadoes. He said his dad would gather the kids on the front porch and point out the funnel clouds as they descended from the sky.
All four potters make pottery meant for home use. We bought bowls and plates, the vase, a small bowl with a top and two cups. Having handmade items, varied in design and color, makes each meal special. Too, we get to know the people who made them so the pieces are personal, not anonymous. Both things appeal to me. A lot.
After leaving Stark, we headed back down Highway 65 to Anoka County 18. 18 runs through the largest nature reserve in the metro area, Carlos Avery, and on the grounds of Carlos Avery is the Wildlife Science Center. Today was an event there called the Harvest Howl and sounded very interesting. Local vendors. See wolves and other wild animals. Support good work.
The center is just beyond two stone and cement pillars topped with an old worked iron arch that says Carlos Avery Game Farm. It was better in my head than on the ground. It was wet, for one thing, which lifted the urine and feces scent from the ground and distributed it. For another, the center focuses on real science. That is, they train DNR, Animal Control personnel on how to handle bears, wolves and other critters. They also train scientists in how to tranquilize and examine various species. What I’m trying to say is the area is not spiffed up for an afternoon’s stroll on a wet day.
It looks clunky, down at the heels. It’s a shoe-string operation and it shows.
Worth going to once. Probably not for a return visit. Except maybe in dry weather.
