It's a small world

I downloaded this image from the Travels with Samantha travelogue (an early version of a travel blog) in 1993. I used this very calming image for my screen background in the high-stress period while performing my PhD research and writing it up. Back then, I had no clue who this Philip Greenspun character was, except that he if very open about his attraction to pretty women and takes great photos. See the bears fishing at Katmai series if you need more proof.

I am not sure what prompted me to look at the photos again last week, but I did. I couldn't believe it! Could there be two Mike O'Briens from Venice Beach absolutely gonzo about geysers? I think not. That's "big Mike" from my current research group.

I showed the comment to my office-mate this summer (same MIT student intern as last year), and he said, "Philip Greenspun is a real character."

"You know him?"

"Yes, he teaches occasionally at MIT and I took a couple of classes with him."

Asides:
I blew another week of my life that I will never get back trying to move data (unsuccessfully) between two "hardened sites". I am beside myself with fury. Think about the overhead in our lives from deterring theft and hackers, not to mention airport security. Is it really worth it?

Serenity now. I finished blocking and ironing (yes!) the ribbon lace scarf. I will try to post a picture of the scarf on Iris tomorrow in natural light.

She is spending the first 6 weeks of the summer at Performing Arts Workshop. I need to make her a long dark dress with two aprons (one frilly white, one bright and simple) by July 11. That gives me two weekends. But Mark wants to go to San Diego during the holiday weekend. Make that one weekend. But Iris neglected to tell me until I asked her at dinner tonight. Make that one day to make the costumes. Serenity now. Recall that I am the mother that made 22 costumes for her kindergarten class concert in one weekend. I can handle this.

Hats attack New York

Last weekend, Iris learned that her mom used to work as a wardrobe mistress/chief dresser at an equity theater. What is a wardrobe mistress, she asked? Through the serendipitous nature of the internet and search engines, I learned that Martha Stewart has a wardrobe mistress and a blog!

I loved the hats in the Come see hats, hats, and more great hats!! entry so much, I had to show you one. Follow the link to see a couple of dozen more fantastic hats.

The blog is also delicious tongue in cheek fun. Learn another use for black Sharpies.

Karena, my wardrobe mistress, painting the soles of my Louboutins black - I am not a fan of the signature red soles and always change the red to black - this is easy if you use a broad sharpie.

Has any one else ever been sent to prison for carrying a Hermes Birkin bag? Did she have a wardrobe mistress during the trial? I know it is outside the scope of the wardrobe mistress' job, but someone should have stopped her before the mink scarf and Birkin bag incidents. Don't defense lawyers send their clients to wardrobe consultants?

I am a hat person. Mark and I bought height extenders for our Billy bookcases so I could better show off my collection. Perhaps I will dust off a few of my favorites and photograph them for you.

Links:

• Come see hats, hats, and more great hats!!
• A Place to Hang Her Hats at home with Mimi Weddell, subject of of the documentary “Hats Off”.
• A Head for Hats Patt Morrison shows how to wear a hat. (Mark did jury duty with her but never got up the nerve to talk to her. He said I would have liked her hats.)
• Hatfetish.com aka Berkeley Hat Company. A good source of finished hats and millinery supplies, back in my wardrobe mistress days.
  

Homework détente 3

A follow up to the thread, Homework plagiarism, Homework détente, Homework détente 2 and Open House.

Iris finished the satellite model and the first draft of the report last weekend with us riding herd, but not doing the project for her. At first, she wanted to make a satellite that would save our planet from global warming, a giant umbrella of some sort.

I could have just let her turn in her umbrella and world globe and let her be done with it, but I talked her out of it. As commentator Eric C. mentioned, it would have been better to ask Socratic questions. But she doesn't have any clue about the complexity and energy expenditure to put a giant umbrella in space. I told her that it had been suggested before and rejected as impractical.

Fortunately, she had seen Spy Kids 1-3 the weekend before that. (Don't ask why we let her watch so much TV that weekend.) The satellite section of the library was cleaned out, but the spy section contained 2 books (1 a gem) about spy satellites. She was hooked.

She started with a shoe box, but abandoned that for an IKEA desk organizer box with a lid. She found a little plastic snack box and some cardboard in the craft room and constructed a "camera". She covered it in foil while I covered the bigger box with foil. The foil represents solar photovotaic cells. I showed her how to create a hinge with clear package tape. She made the rest of the hinges.

With the globe, I showed her how the satellite has to store energy to operate in earth's shadow. She remembered the batteries in the clock she took apart last month and quickly ran downstairs for 2 AA batteries from our e-waste box. She taped them inside her spacecraft, with the battery ends touching a foil-covered part of the camera. (She was very proud that she observed and remembered that batteries need a metal contact.) She had both positive ends touching the camera and I showed her how batteries are usually alternated +/-. She made the change.

Mark printed out a 60's style space logo which she cut out and glued to the side. She told me that she could make a model of the plane that catches the film canisters that drop out the trap door of her satellite, but that would be showing off. No, she would not show off. She is done with her project.

Not so fast, she needs to rewrite the final draft in cursive.

Anyway, I periodically browse Trends in Japan; I like to look at the rampant creativity in the Street Style slide shows. Serendipitously, the top link on the main page goes to The Science of Origami. What should I see but a folded satellite antenna?

(Photo courtesy of Dr. Nojima Taketoshi)You pull opposite sides of the piece and the antenna blooms before your eyes, all while maintaining a steady center of gravity! Magical.

An artist's conception of the antenna in space.