In Search of the Perfect Frog

Usually when we make a new animal, insect, or flower, we try to find the real thing in nature to study. We pluck a flower, dissect it, scan it, and draw it. We capture an insect in a jar and measure it's thorax, abdomen, and little legs. It's a goal of ours to really know our subject matter. Of course we take some artistic license with the features we include in the final piece, but we start with the real deal. Now comes the problem with our latest sculpture- the poison dart frog. They aren't just hanging out on the porch on a warm spring night. Sure, I've got my pick of bullfrogs and toads by our pond- they sing sweet melodies at night and have inspired great stories to tell my kids at bedtime. But they're music pales in comparison to the beautiful markings on the poison dart frog.
Last night, I found myself rummaging through my kid's toy box in an unfruitful search for a small bag of toy frogs from our local science center. No luck. I even searched for the 3D bookmark of a frog that perches on the top of your page but it was also M.I.A.. So now it's my quest to find a good replica of the dart frog to study. This may involve a field trip or two...

New Stuff and new presentation

I have been blogging on Myspace for the last year and have come to this realization:
A: I'm 30 not 16
B: I'm blogging about our business and a banner of "Secret Crushes Waiting To Meet Me! Click Here!!" is not very professional.
So here I am among the civilized and well spoken- I'm not sure I'll fit in!. I will, however, continue to write about our shop Beechwood Metalworks in Burlington, NC. Here is an update on the events:

It's been super, mondo busy this year! We completed a 27 piece sculpture garden for St. Francis Children’s Hospital in Tulsa, OK in January. We are on the final phase of the UNC-CH Children’s Hospital sculpture garden- adding bees, 125ft of steel grass, and a sign. There is a chance that we may do another sculpture garden at the hospital if our proposal is accepted.

Our employee count is now at 5 which is crazy considering it was me and Casey for 5 years and we added the other 3 in 6 months. Speaking of adding, we are also doubling the size of our new shop in the next few months to accomodate more equipment and more workspace. We continue to add new critters to the lineup. An inchworm, snail, tree frog, and the bees are all new items.

Lastly, to wrap up this "toot your own horn" rant that seems to have spilled forth- we will be on Fox 8 WGHP today for a short clip about the shop. Also, check out next month's Alamance Magazine for an article about us.

Thank you for reading my first "Blogger" post! I hope you will read more...