... it means your block came out right.
I traced and carved my linoleum block for my printing project today. Five lemons -- one sliced -- and the words "Fresh Lemon Sherbet" on the horizontal. It was physical work but not terribly challenging, and it came out perfectly. I was very happy with the way the lemons came out, with the shading just right and my little detail lines showing nicely; on the letterpress the fine lines come out clean, whereas when I hand print them, they fill with ink. Very different carving techniques have to be used depending on the ink and printing method.
Yesterday I had a busy day, with four hours in the sculpture studio (I made a birdhouse and cast a gnome) and then a couple hours in the darkroom. I only got a couple prints out in the darkroom but I did get a contact sheet from the film I developed Thursday, and it looked nice. Only six of 36 frames were not worth printing, which is the highest return I've ever had.
The last day for wet clay is Wednesday, so I will be overtiming at school for the next several days.
oooh. would like to see it when you have a chance to breathe.