“Life In The So-Called Space Age”
Jim seems to have been inspired by yesterday’s blog entry, since he decided to have a birthday himself this very day. He turned 69.
I texted him to get some comments on what it’s like to be so ancient but he never replied. That’s because he’s old, and old people can’t use modern technology!
Or maybe he’s too busy playing one of the many video games he for for his a birthday. Have fun Jim 🙂
It’s my dad’s birthday today. He’s 79 years old. Every year I try to catch up to him, but he always seems to remain 37 years ahead of me…
Happy birthday dad! I wish I could be there and buy you a beer 🙂
For Christmas, I received a most wonderful item from Doctor Florence (aka. The Great Bear of the Northwest). Specifically, I received this:
“Useless Box“? What is that? All will be revealed…
There’s actually a funny story behind this gift! I had purchased one myself for JBF for Christmas, and when it had arrived I committed the evil sin of covetousness and very nearly ‘stole’ his for myself. My good nature won out though, and it was wrapped and put under the tree. I was super happy when I ended up getting one of my own from SFL! In short: this was a perfect gift 🙂
I made it yesterday. The suggested assembly time was 1.5 hours, but it took me at least double that. During construction I ruined:
– my eyes (due to me needing a new prescription)
– my fingers (due to friction from jewellers screwdriver handles and a soldering iron burn)
– my back (due to bending over the tiny pieces putting them together
But despite the endless and soul-wracking pain, this was one of the most enjoyable builds I have ever done!
That’s me being a technomancer there, soldering the toggle switch to the PCB. There was actually quite a bit of soldering required, since none of the wires came attached. Here’s the finished circuit:
You can see a motor, a PCB, a toggle switch and a pressure switch. What could it all do?
The box itself is made of thick laser-cut plastic, and is assembled using a very clever T-connection system (via nuts and bolts). The machining of the parts is superb, and it all went together smoothly, seamlessly and very easily. Here’s the nearly-finished box:
And here’s the final product, both closed and opened to show the inside:
I finished it! I made it with no mistakes, and it worked perfectly first time. As you can see when it is closed there is a just a switch poking out. So what happens when you switch it on? This happens:
Yes my friends, the box – when switched on – switches itself off! It’s only goal in life is to turn itself off if anyone happens to turn it on. The very definition of a useless item…
…and I love it!