Another Stoney Evening...

...which should hold you till I get back tonight. I did this one on Thursday. I'm actually standing above the level it starts on. The completed work is over my head. One rock (rock C) is about seventy pounds. I was scared it would fall and break my leg, forcing me to saw it off with my knife and crawl bleeding to my phone. It all turned out all right.

...but I got in late last night and have to run to work this morning, so I'll get you all that plethora of pictured tonight. Swear.

I've been in NC for two days now stacking with the guru. Tomorrow you'll be subjected to a mindnumbing array of photos, so find a comfortable seat and get ready. Get snacks.

I'm going to bed, really. I gotta go in the morning. NC, Dave's garden, endless stones. But it was foggy again tonight so I just snapped a few. I'll see if I can blog from Dave's. Wish me luck.

Sentinels

Digitized, yes. Nifty lookin', yes.

They look good as photo art. I think they enjoy the photo ops.

...a great day, start to finish. I liberated some more stones on the way home from work last night. I took some cool fog photos of the garden later still. This morning I did a new stack. I didn't have to work, so I got more rocks and stacked, and in the middle of it all I found out that
A) I'm going to North Carolina in the morning to see Dave's Avant Garden (see link) and stack rocks for two days; and
B) I start my new job on March 2! The guy called while I was doing the second arch of the day.
In addition, I cleaned my room, did all of my laundry, and raked the yard. I'm telling the Toner that the raking was a favor to him, but it really just makes the stacks look better to be in a nicer frame.
So it's off to Mecca in the AM. I apologize in advance for the vast number of self-indulgent photos you're about to have to endure. Actually, no I don't--you're gonna love 'em.

Foggy night in the garden. This one used the flash, of course. I used the tripod on the next ones.

I like how the silhouettes accent the delicate nature of the balances involved.

Cool, man. Real cool.

These rocks were purloined last night in the fog. I stacked 'em before work this afternoon, which it turns out I didn't have to stay for because we weren't busy at all. So I stopped on the way home and got some legal rocks from along a railroad track to do the following pieces.

This is my second arch. It took a lot of time and patience. It's very dependent, as the keystone needs the weight of the one above it to have enough downward force to make the arch work. I'm pretty danged happy with this guy.

Then I did this little arch to use the last of the rocks. The arch itself is only four rocks, but it still needs the ones above it to live. Its shape, though, lets it support a lot of weight. But I was out of rocks.

The boys are still standing. I'm so proud. I thought that at least the little delicate guys on top would have fallen, but they're all hangin' tough. God I love those guys. The problem, though, is that since I used every stone, I have nothing left to stack. Dang.

...was how the day was, but I needed to rebuild the garden. It was a good day. I'm writing this late on Saturday (or early Sunday), because I lost track of time while stacking today and had to rush off to be in Hell (work) on time. It was a big night at work so I had a drink after and am getting home just now to blog for you all.
I have been energized by the recent comments from the dog slaves (the guys who follow their dogs around with plastic bags to collect crap) who have started stopping to offer complements on the garden. The common comment is "How do you drill the holes to put the rod through?" I then tell them that they are all balanced and they are sufficiently wowwed. It's a nice ego boost. The wind took a lot of stuff as I built today, mostly my delicate caps, so I was able to just put the tops on at the end. Each night and morning as I lie in bed I listen to the wind chimes on the porch, which have become alarms of doom for the stacks I have created. No worries, though, I can make more. It was glorious, however, to come home late tonight, and find that EVERY SINGLE STACK WAS STILL UP! Even through the winds of today! I walked around and told them how proud I was of them. They like that.

Started off with this. As I finished it the neighbors came out to complement the work and I had to explain, yet again, that it was all balanced and did not use glue or metal rods through the centers. They were instantly more impressed and told me so. The neighbor wife then said, "How long do they stay up?" I replied, " In a wind condition like this it's anybody's guess," at which point this one blew over. It made the point nicely, and I think they were even more impressed.

So I rebuilt this one. It's as high as my neck. I love the second rock down. When this one falls I have to find wonderful uses for that stone. I call it the bird stone. I haven't started naming individual stacks like guru Dave does, because they are all so fleeting due to the wind, the birds, gravity, and my limited rock supply. If I named them all it would take more time to create names than stacks. Once again, I envy those stackers with an umlimited supply of stones. This one isn't as graceful as the first couple, but it seems tougher. We'll see how it weathers the storms of elements that conspire against my craft.

Then did these. A good mix of different kinds of rock. There are granite, quartz, limestone and sandstone playing well together. I put a little tiny cap on the one on the right at the end of the day that isn't pictured.

Then these guys.

My first arch. It was harder than I thought it would be. I have to consult the guru for more arch advice.

This little guy used the last of the rocks. It includes the little bits that have broken off when other stacks fell.

Another day ends in the garden. Hope I'm not late for work.