Thursday  30 Aug 2012           comment?

From today's NYTimes:

... I have spent the summer making species other than dogs watch DogTV, a television and Internet channel made specifically for viewing by dogs. Not to brag, but my research raises provocative questions about perception, genetics and the very definition of sentience and life itself. It also proves conclusively that snakes do not appreciate the miracle of Tupperware and that putting birdseed on your laptop keyboard is a poor idea.

Well. My snake spent spent two days in Tupperware when I drove from Colorado back to California last summer, and he was in remarkably good spirits when it was over. He did hiss when I first put him in the container but I think that was more because I had just woken him up. And to continue a theme of Sroyon's, I saw a fox saunter through the parking lot at the office that morning, the only fox I saw in the year and a half I spent in Colorado.

In case you're wondering, yes I had drilled ventilation holes in the lid of the Tupperware. And I didn't leave the snake in the car parked in the sun. I brought him with me into restaurants.

Tuesday  28 Aug 2012           1 comment

I wonder, did those who designed this package have any idea how entertaining it could look to people in the 21st century?

Friday  17 Aug 2012           1 comment

The words Pussy Riot were all over the news today—or not, depending on the sensibilities of the news outlet. A WaPo article leaves the band's name out of the headline and the photo caption. They get around to saying "Pussy Riot" in the fourth paragraph, at which point the reader can breathe a sigh of relief that they are safely past the words.

PBS NewsHour went out of its way to avoid saying Pussy Riot in their report this afternoon; I contrast that to this BBC dude, who had no trouble saying the words tomorrow:

(click for mp3)

An article in the New Yorker details just how bizarre and pathetic the Pussy Riot trial was. You can't make this stuff up:

Throughout, there was a rotating cast of guard dogs in the courtroom, lest the three women try to run away from the glass "aquarium" in which they are locked during the trial. Last Thursday, it was a German shepherd, lying on its back, paws up, its handler scratching its belly. On Friday, it was a Rottweiler, aggressive and barking. "Remove the dog—we can’t hear anything," one of the defense lawyers asked. "He's barking because you speak too loudly," the handler retorted.

This is as good a time as any for me to offer a translation of a proposal on artistic freedom written eighty or so years ago for a committee of the League of Nations.

Wednesday  15 Aug 2012           comment?

This evening.

On the horizon a little left of center is what most people call Mount Williamson, but which I've known as Mount Beavis ever since a climbing buddy pointed out the similarity to said character's profile.

Monday  13 Aug 2012           1 comment

When he's getting ready to shed, the scales over the eyes go cloudy and he can't see well for about a week.

Sunday  12 Aug 2012           comment?

Saturday  11 Aug 2012           comment?

Solving a design problem feels so good. The more time spent being frustrated by not finding what you want, the more satisfying the feeling of success if and when it comes. And yet I'd rather be able to solve problems quickly, what with how short life is.

I'm in the middle of a woodworking project, nothing big but something I'll see every day and which I want to be a pleasure to look at. The challenge has been in making it look (and be) strong and durable, yet not look ponderous.

And this design has curves, which means more degrees of freedom than you have with straight lines, which means trial and error takes longer. I know what I like when I see it, but that's not the same as being able to picture it before it exists.

I think it's cool to get curved and flat surfaces to complement each other. E.g., I like the shape of the Shanghai World Financial Center.

Thursday  09 Aug 2012           2 comments

Saturday  04 Aug 2012           comment?

A lathe is good for making stuff out of self-harvested wood because you can avoid the most dangerous operation (ripping irregularly-shaped pieces). You just turn the bark off.

Sharp is good.