INTERESTS
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INTERESTS |
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I've always enjoyed hobbying in the electronics field. I tend to prefer unusual applications like science fiction toys, and fundamentals like unfamiliar circuit configurations. I enjoy teaching, as well, and I've finally gotten a hobbyist's tutorial of mine online. My electronics tutorial and hobbyists study was written originally for my friend Chris to try and teach him some electronics. It is not a rigorous technical text, but an intuitive approach in which I use the simplest of mathematics to teach the way in which I, as an electronics technician of 25 years experience, largely approach my own electronics problems. It is one of those open-ended works-in-progress to which I will be adding to from time-to-time when I can spare some days analyzing some aspect I wish to add. The circuits and analysis section, which makes it so open-ended,will gradually include circuits that are anything but trivial, but will be analyzed in that same simple style as best I can.
"Do not worry about your difficulties in Mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater." --Albert Einstein
Electronics has long been my chosen career path, too. Prospective employers looking for a senior electronics technician / senior technologist are invited to peruse my resume.
This project is a dovetailing of my interests in wanting to be able to make woodcuts for the Roaring Dragon Press, cut plaster for the making of molds for rubber stamps, route copperclad circuitboards for my electronics projects, create carving on wood used in houses, furniture, wooden chests, etc., and answer my interest in motion-control technologies. It has five different dimensions of motion.
I've collected my thoughts over my guiding philosophy and set down some insights.
There are new technologies constantly in the news, and I'm quite a fan of breakthrough science. I also enjoy frequenting "fringe science" websites to hone my technical judgement, entertain myself, and to prod myself into keeping an open mind to the possible.
Understanding how to survive in the world should involve knowing how to start and run a micro-business. These are the lessons I've learned on the subject. I'll be applying them to Gadjetec, printing at Dickens' Fair, and others as I find them.
Vote! Study the issues and write your congressman. Be a part of what makes civilization. Dig up dirt on both sides of the issue. You've got an Internet connection--use it! Get your thinking kick-started.
I find the storytelling and writing crafts a fascinating hobby. My friends at Draigsffau have also posted several of our stories. As I usually write for entertaining like-minded friends, the tales reflect our shared mindset of fantasy and humor. Years after my first "Wizard" story, Krys discovered John Bellair's "The Face in the Frost", which creates the very atmosphere I seek to in my own stories. Since it was the only one of it's kind, I've been forced to continue to try and write the kind of stories I wish to read.
I've been struggling to develop an ongoing research essay which organizes and clarifies my personal insights to the mindset I share with my friends at Draigsffau of what I could describe as the "Music of Faerie" and "Magical Tales". Music has always been important to me, but I never seem to find as much time as I wish to play it. I've certainly developed a fine little collection of instruments over the years -- a number of recorders and pennywhistles, a Renaissance-style wooden flute, a bodhran, an Ashiko-style drum, a fiddle, an electric piano, a portable pump organ, and most recently, a Native-American-style flute. My research essay will not bear the fruits of real discovery and creativity until I return to playing music more regularly.
I've long had a deep interest in trying to stay alive and healthy. ("Who doesn't?" I hear you say. You'd be surprised.) So, as if I didn't have enough else to do, I started a website devoted to the subject, with information I've researched and links to products which fascinate me. It proved to be far too time-consuming, of course, so I'll likely subsume the info into these pages.
I enjoy improvisational street acting and traditional handcrafts and spend half the weekends each year with the Renaissance Pleasure Faire and Heart of the Forest Renaissance Faires (As You Like It Productions in California. This directory is handy if you like ren faires. The best online resources I've found for historical research of source material in early manuscript facsimiles and translations are the links from the library at the State U. of NYC at Cortland
Here a few of the many, many ren faire photos I've taken over the years.
I am deeply involved in historical printing demonstrations, assisting the owner with teaching, transport, and maintenance of this Gutenberg-style printing press.
Imagine being in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, perpetually on Christmas eve. Volunteering for this event is pretty much how I like to celebrate the season.
The Elite Printing Company at the Dickens' Christmas Fair many years ago ran a small newspaper for a couple of seasons which contained a lead article and usually a secondary article of real "gigging" news amongst mostly canned period newspaper clippings which proved wildly popular. Since I desperately wanted to see it return, Sully, our commander-in-chief editor and historical printer, dropped the editorship into my lap. I realized that what gave it its popularity were the period-style articles about our own actors set in our own fair. So, for the last two seasons, I have been writing, editing, and printing a scandal-sheet that would have made the Victorians proud. I set out to create an entirely fresh broadsheet every week for the four or five weekend run of the Fair composed entirely of silly article concerning what the actors' characters were actually up to that week on the "streets of our fair city", hoping to recapture that old sense of fun we experienced. The results proved successful beyond my wildest dreams. In the guise of a roving reporter, I canvassed the fair, interviewing characters, becoming involved in impromptu street theatre, and generally having a great time. I have never met so many people personally in my life as in those few weekends. It was incredibly hard work, as I generally write a large percentage of the copy, and do huge amounts of historical research online to improve the quality of my historical references. I seem to have created a new niche for myself at the fair, and I shall endeavor to keep it a rich experience.
Occassionally, I relax with the medievalists of the SCA, too. Here are some related how-tos at a fan site.
I used to be a die-hard Trekkie in high school. I occassionally like to check out a convention. The World Science Fiction Convention over Labor Day 2002 in San Jose has come and gone. I feel rather fortunate to have such convenient access to it. One of the perks of living in a major metropolis like the San Francisco Bay area. Eventually, I'll post a few pics.
I never get enough time to indulge in this one, it seems, but here are some tips on building your own, and stuff from my old ones.
XBASIC is a compiled BASIC integrated development environment, designed specifically to run in a GUI. I like it because it's free, it's faster and cleaner than Visual Basic, you can easily port your source code between Windows and Linux, and it works well with the mighty EditPad Pro. An XBASIC file type color markup file is available for EditPad. The language does have some weird quirks, such as no direct printing or port access. Still, it is wicked fast for string manipulation, among other things. I can parse and sort substrings in an entire CD full of thousands of data files (650MB) in less than five minutes.
VRML broadens the Web experience to 4-space, along with several other competing approaches. If VRML interests you, a browser plug-in such as COSMO(best nav) and something like JAVA is needed. Some sample VRML pages. I rather enjoyed visiting Stonehenge.
I have an interest in old-world handcrafts and technologies. I do a lot of simple, elegant storage-shelves in wood -- I'm no cabinetmaker.
I like to make my own boots and shoes for the Renaissance faires.
Then you can take a break and read the comics.
Wigu,
Doonesbury,
Calvin and Hobbes,
The Boondocks,
Dilbert,
ScaryGoRound,
Questionable Content,
Non Sequitur,
OkPants,
Clan of the Cats,
Bob the Angry Flower,
Stupidity in Magic,
College Roommates from Hell,
Spells & Whistles,
Sinfest,
Queen of Wands,
Lenore,
Lenore2,
Lenore3,
Making Fiends,
Fallen,
Get Fuzzy,
Ballard Street,
User Friendly,
SomPos,
AACMAW,
Altermeta,
Penguin Palace.
Find oldies, but goodies!
The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers,
Trots&Bonnie
Read the comic gossip!
Rate 'em at Buzzcomix!
From the artist's point of view: 50 Reasons To Stop Sketching At Conventions.