Corning Museum of Glass

 This week the kids are off of school. Rather than stay home and get on each other's nerves, we decided we should do SOMEthing. My husband said we should go down to Corning to go to the glass museum. So off to Corning we went.

Corning is a charming old city. The main shopping area is on

Market Street.

There are many shops and restaurants. All housed in beautiful old buildings.

The weather was splendid. It was warmer than Buffalo, since we have the lovely Lake Erie keeping things cool. It comes in handy in the summer months. But in spring, it's annoying.

The Corning Museum of Glass is quite an incredible place. Big V and Little V took the wall instead of the sidewalk. (I know, they look like the same size, but one is older.)

 This sculpture greets you as you walk in the front door.

It is made of 500 individual blown glass elements and weighs 1400 pounds.

There were some pretty incredible pieces of glass.

Art.

Ancient. (like, 50-75 A.D. ancient)

Venetian.

Tiffany.

Roman.

Extravagant!

Tiffany.

Whimsical.

We went to a Hot Glass Demonstration.

The man who is blowing and shaping the glass is called a "gaffer". His name is Chris. He put the glass in a mold of sorts that puts a pattern on the glass that grows and stretches as the glass is blown.

He continues to shape and blow the glass thru the hollow steel tube the glass is attached to. The tube is constantly turned to create a centrifugal force. If he stops turning the glass, it will fall off the tube in a blob on the floor. He puts it back into the oven to keep it hot. If it cools too much while he works it, it will crack.

On the screens above the work area, they showed the view from inside the oven.

It seems as though Corning Glass made the windshields for the space shuttles and they can withstand 4000 degrees, Fahrenheit. So, they are able to make a camera that can withstand the 1200 degrees inside this oven.  I thought this was quite a view.

He took a small blob of glass and turned it into this bowl in about 15 min. Chris has been blowing glass for 15 years. He made it look very easy, but the other man, who was announcing the show, said it is very difficult.

The ride home was quite picturesque. I love the rolling hills and farmland.

Spring means the gray trees will soon be green. They each take their turn to produce a show. Some start ealier than others. Among the trees waiting for their turn, would be a shock of this beautiful chartreuse. Wish I could bottle that color. It was gorgeous. I doubt my pictures will do it justice. Its hard to take a good picture at 75 mph. Lol.

I love a green farm field high on a hill. It makes me want to run through it all - Maria from The Sound of Music- like. Singing. Twirling. Wind in my hair. Do, Re, Mi!  

When we got home, we found our cherry tree in full bloom.

When we left yesterday, about 1/3 of it was in bloom.

We have been having some screwy springs as far as cherries in my yard are concerned. The weather gets too warm too soon and then turns cold. Tomorrow night we have to be concerned about frost. If that makes all the blossoms fall off, then I don't think we will have any cherries. Last year, the cherries came out, but it wasn't sunny and/or warm enough to ripen them. By the time the weather was good, the cherries were moldy. It was very disappointing. Even the birds didn't want them. A couple of years ago we nearly filled a 5 gal bucket. All the neighbors got a container full. I hope we have a good year this year. I would like to freeze them for the winter. Or maybe make a chutney or jam. One thing I do know is there are plenty of bees doing their job out there.

I may be sleeping outside tomorrow night with a fire in my firepit under the tree. ; )

I'm giving thanks today for a great trip to Corning. We had fun together as a family, and I know that the older my kids get, those times will be fewer and farther between.

Thanks for checking in. Enjoy your spring!