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Peddle Powered Sound System

There are so many ways to demonstrate efficient uses of energy, and this one speaks volumes (BWAH!)

John and crew has been working on this system for a few months (years?) now. The results are killer. Peddle while charging the batteries for some park, street or beach party. Might be a bit loud for an apartment party… but I think that could work too, as long as you plan on moving out shortly afterwards.

Weekly Digest – 2012-06-25

  • High speed robotically controlled camera. So that's how they do those slo-mo shots. [thx Michael] http://t.co/RTblC47w #

Weekly Digest – 2012-06-18

Weekly Digest – 2012-06-11

Efficient Cooking

I’ve been noticing more and more stoves with these new “radiant elements”, where the heating coil is embedded into the counter top, under a piece of glass, and wondering how efficient they are.  Are they more or less efficient than a standard heating element?  How about compared to gas?  What about when I’m boiling water, is it better to use an electric kettle where the heating element is right in the water itself.

These thoughts get fueled even more when I see inventions like the BioLite.

This is the old video that I saw two years ago, but it best demonstrates how this little efficient $129 camping stove works.

Now that you’ve seen that, you should see how you can now charge USB devices (camp with your phone often?). They also have larger scale models in Africa.

Next, we need to tackle this water problem. Oh! Wait! It looks like these water filters could help with that issue.

Detroit’s Lookin’ Good

A visit to a friend in the Fisher building, followed by a walk up Woodward to the Detroit Public Library.

Of all the libraries I’ve visited, this is my favorite. History with some some welcome upgrades.

Detroit Fisher Building Falcon Attack

While looking out of an open window, 20+ floors up in the Detroit Fisher Building, the resident falcon flew about 4 feet from my face. I was looking to the street below, when the falcon swooped down towards me, turning suddenly, staring me down the entire time.

My heart is still pounding… but luckily my eyes are still intact… and at least it wasn’t a flying copter kitty cat.

What a view.

Weekly Digest – 2012-06-04

Weekly Digest – 2012-05-28

  • Fresh install of Windows? Here's the easiest way to get up and running with the base applications. *click* [thx Joel]: http://t.co/UFH7C5ra #
  • True gesture control for only $70 w/ Leap. *holding mouse above trashcan* [thx Ruslan Vasylev] http://t.co/FXEhwDlz #
  • Plan to crowd-source your funding for game development? Don't sell yourself short. http://t.co/f4ATrWkg #

Weekly Digest – 2012-05-21

  • Yoga helps, but not when the ego kicks in. Don't wreck yourself. http://t.co/D4wQnBG6 #
  • Europe's history viewed through this map w/ event time lapse. Fullscreen this 11 min video. [thx Taylor Moll] http://t.co/ASAzOiAl #
  • Nikola Tesla, you are all sorts of awesome. Edison, I am speechless. [thx Art Curry] http://t.co/7a3o1jKI #

Good Morning, Romeo

I’m staying with my sister in downtown Romeo.

My sister lives in a house that is about 150 years old, surrounded by houses that are about the same age, if not older. Apparently she received 1,500 trick-or-treaters last year, as the street next to hers has a crazy setup for Halloween.

The last few mornings have been rough, as I developed a nasty case of asthma after staying at my mom’s place for that first night. Don’t get the wrong idea, my mom’s place is clean… it’s just that there’s something about those animals that panics my lungs. Luckily, I’m nearly back to 100% breathing capacity and the mornings are getting earlier. Last night I set my intention to greet the morning sun, and here I am at 5:30am, doing just that. Works better than an alarm clock, I tell ya.

Ok, now time for a walk. Maybe I’ll encounter another applicable message like the one below, which I discovered on yesterday’s stroll through the neighborhood. For now, this is where I be and I will make the most of it… though my branches are still reaching back to Toronto.

Superman vs Hulk

I just gotta respect the crazy amount of work that goes into these one-man projects. Some moments look great, others still need quite a bit of work, but considering the length of level of detail of these clips, I’m letting it slide. Plus, how else are you going to see this DC character battle the Marvel bad-ass? Michael Habjan has more of his work on Youtube.

They meet.

They fight.

…and fight some more.

Weekly Digest – 2012-05-14

Weekly Digest – 2012-05-07

  • “@brainpicker To take your breath away – 5 fine art photographers capture animals like you've never seen them before http://t.co/hCdVVcDY” #
  • Most "problems" are actually "symptoms". It's easier to practice prevention than it is to find a cure. #
  • Toronto director's "Unstoppable" ad for the Paralypics. http://t.co/INOepvTF #
  • Machanical waves sculptures by Reuben Margolin help me redefine "Technical Artist". #TED http://t.co/LITbBJCL #
  • Pixar's been great about sharing tech. As proof, here's a complete list of their whitepapers.: [via Tyler Von Muehlen] http://t.co/8vivqvgx #
  • Nostalgia via LEGO patent drawing circa 1958 http://t.co/jlO7XBX8 #
  • Travel routes weaving our footprint on the globe. #map #infographic http://t.co/Wia5JmlH #
  • Morning tribal psychedelic heartbeats providing tempo for portfolio building. #music http://t.co/kk9ry3Yq #

Weekly Digest – 2012-04-30

  • The Kevin Smith of design. Loving Draplin's "Tall Tales From A Large Man" talk. Detroit Whah? [thx Zak Koski] http://t.co/TX14hwky #
  • Monty Python's John Cleese on how to switch modes to become more focused or more creative. http://t.co/Uu8rZXC4 #
  • Game developer employee manual describes a flat corporate structure w/ almost no management. Love U Valve. http://t.co/WQO8LwA0 #

Resume Rebuild

Realizing that this resume template that I’ve been using for over a decade now is a bit out of date, I’m rebuilding it from scratch using responsive design techniques.

Almost completed with the base content and design. Just started the creation of the icons.

The Passion Declaration – 10 Years Later

Inspired by this talk by Ken Robinson (thx Mo), I looked back to a forum post I made a few years back, where I made my public declaration to follow my passion. I’ve copied/pasted my original forum post at the end of this article, unedited (though corrected distracting spelling mistakes). I apologize to my father, for being harsh… but that’s how I felt, at the time. Although I think that my desire to win my father’s approval gave me quite a bit of fuel.

Around the time I created the following post, I drew this sketch, at my desk, while working at K-Mart headquarters. I was just doodling, passing time, not really realizing what I was doing till I was finished. In the image, I saw myself, adding all these technical robotic components to my body, trying to fit into the machine… including a more uncomfortable version of the classic Wedlock collar. I sketched a door in my chest, to access my heart, with “Close when done.” written on the inside panel. Trying to conform, but couldn’t, and the other machines didn’t even want me around.

Two years later, the sketch acted as the foundation for my first large 3D animation project. This indie project became my first 3D demo reel (2004), which landed me my first job at an animation studio in Vancouver.

8 years working in IT in Michigan, plus another 8 years working in film, TV and video games in Vancouver… and now what? That’s another story entirely, that’s in the middle of unfolding.

Ok… so here’s the post that I made 10 years ago. As it turns out, it was 10 years ago, this month (April 3rd, 2002 – to be exact)!!

============================================================================

posted 04-03-2002 07:27 AM #1

Question New Job…. New Career…. New Life *first post*

I’ve seen quite a few threads like the one I’m about to create, but I never had the motivation to create my own, and share my thoughts and feeling about something that means so much to me. This will be a pretty long one, as it requires a little background, so bare with me. 

Continue reading

Weekly Digest – 2012-04-23

You’ll Know When It’s Time To Break

Clearing up loose ends before May begins. April is a major transition period which hopefully ends soon. Standing at my computer all day has become a bit tiresome for my arm and shoulders, but luckily a visitor snuck in the window to remind me to take a break.

“Trouble” demonstrates how actions speak louder than words (and luckily I don’t appear to be allergic to this big guy).

Speaking of “words”, has anyone ever spoke to a porcupine? Do they really sound like this?

Zen Typing with OmmWriter

Had to type a fairly emotional yet technically accurate email today (not a regular occurrence, luckily), so I used an open source alternative to OmmWriter called FocusWriter. There’s also a closer clone called Catlooking Writer. The only feature that the open source alternatives are lacking is the chromotherapy option.

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