And the wind was strongly blowing, so the webs were moving back and forth.  It was disturbing to think that one of these critters might accidentally get stuck to me… (shiver).

If you’ve ever worked in an office, you know how painful it is when people of different ideal temperatures get together and are tormented by central air conditioning/heating.

Vern spent many months working on the challenges of his vision. At one point, he gathered together his team of experts to come over to our studio and to spend a day or two getting things figured out. It was a really great working weekend, even though a huge storm blew through, causing everyone to find shelter from the hail, for their cars. Paul drove his newish, Prius into the studio (through the garage door) to protect it from the storm. Everyone else parked on the concrete patio.

Now, the reason I’m writing about it is because James was an integral part of the process! He, amongst our other tech friends (Rick, Paul, Jake, & Gray), are mentioned BY NAME on page 424, during the “Many Thanks” part of the chapter! Marvin, our resident super-hero artist grumbled at his lack of mention, so he’s mentioned here!

Now, back to the book, James did the software design, the 3D CAD design and some testing/assembly, along with many hours of advice during phone conversations. He also produced the actual flow charts, a ton of advice (positive & negative ) the CAD drawings used in chapter 11, and the space for great minds to meet. Very Cool!

I got to do some proof-reading, idea-bouncing, concept-testing, and the listening/questioning during many lunches with James & Vern.

So, if you want to know more about Parallax Propeller Micro controllers, pick up this book. Amazon already has a few glowing reviews!

• Here is the Amazon Link:
• Here’s the official Parallex link
• And the book is being discussed on the Parallax Forums

I am so proud of Vern for being involved with a dissimilar pack of tech geniuses (including André LaMothe) and creating something new in the world. It’s an idea that we can all relate too, and Vern has the beginnings of a system that may actually work! Vern, congratulations for becoming a published author, and congrats to his team of loyal geniuses that created something new!

Currently we’re using a SkyIPCam500W camera with a power inverter and a car battery. It’s been awhile since this thing has been in action, because of weather and other factors.

This photo actually shows an older set up where we had an IR illuminator on a tripod, and a home-built power regulator (thanks Paul). This gives you a general idea of what it should look like…

Anyway, last night, we put the unit into the field and were delighted by the awesome images of deer that were being transmitted. We were excited about a future where we could move the camera around and catch images of visitors to the feeder, the pond, etc. And we might even be able to catch a poacher that has been menacing the area.

This morning, we looked at the streaming video and it was no longer streaming… this was the last image transmitted…

You may not know what this is, but it bears a striking resemblance to our neighbor’s horse…Cowboy. If you look closely you can see this is the side of the horse, as it runs into the camera!

This is what Cowboy looks like in the cold light of day. Who knew he was such a trouble maker? We always thought Pepe was the bad influence! Cowboy always seemed to be such a… sweet and mature horse, but I’m beginning to think that Cowboy may have the spirit of a rebel and that all the things we’ve been blaming on Pepe, were actually Cowboy’s fault… He’s the only horse that can get across the cattle guard on a nightly basis, so most horse-related mischief can and should be blamed on him…

So, with dread in our hearts, we got down to the deer feeder and THIS is what awaited:

Sigh.

The tripod may be a lost cause. It is no longer a tripod – more of a bi-pod with a bent leg. The battery leaked acid into the bucket. Now, we have to take it to the local hazardous waste disposal place. The camera and the inverter still work, but how do we make it horse proof?

This reminds me of the “Great Horse Deer Corn War of 2008.” Long story! My dad tried storing deer corn in a metal trash can by the deer feeder. Every night, for several months, the horses had their way with the deliciously tempting, fragrant deer corn… the metal trash can was, eventually, smashed into oblivion. James and I could hear the horses kicking the garbage can around, late at night.

Anyway, the point is: Cowboy has learned that delicious things are found in enclosed containers…now, anything we put out there will probably be stomped.

The first generation deer camera was destroyed by an unknown animal that pulled everything out of the bucket and pulled the wires of our inverter completely apart. The only evidence was some fur, stuck to the electrical tape… The wildlife in this area just DO NOT want to be photographed!

]]> http://blog.nyssa.com/site/?feed=rss2&p=226 0 http://blog.nyssa.com/site/?p=120 http://blog.nyssa.com/site/?p=120#comments Fri, 15 Jan 2010 02:55:47 +0000 admin http://blog.nyssa.com/site/?p=120

The horse and the mailbox

We decided that the time had come to replace the mailbox in our neighborhood… every time you

opened the door, it would fall to the ground, underneath the car. It had been welded and glued and welded again, yet it’s time had passed.

So, we purchased a mailbox and began the surprisingly arduous task of replacing the old, rusted one.

I’ve developed a terrible habit of feeding random animals the food I have in the truck. Guess what

happens when you do that? Do they go away? No. They actually become intensely interested in what you’re doing.

Sadly, I forgot this lesson when we were replacing the old mailbox… our neighbor’s delightful horse “Pepe” came over to say

“Hello” (at least that was my interpretation). So, I gave him an apple that I had lying around. Yeah, BIG MISTAKE!!!

I guess in the horse world, when you get a delicious apple, it means that REALLY INTERESTING THINGS are happening…

So, Pepe (after eating the apple and drooling on the tools, and sticking his head in the mailbox) became actively helpful in

our proceedings. Pepe was having so much fun that “Cowboy” (our neighbor’s more mature horse) came over to say “Hello” as well.

Now, we’re trying to work with two giant horses “helping” us, as only horses can…

After we got the new mailbox out of the packaging, Pepe walked over and began to explore. At first he licked the box, and then he picked it up. I was like, “Whoa! Hey, hey! We might have to return this…”

Yeah, apparently horses don’t care about return policies…
He picked up that box and well… this video should demonstrate what happened next:

Pepe completely destroyed the box, even tearing it into little pieces. He threw it in the air, stomped on it, and even tried to carry off bits of it.

We rescued the remaining cardboard, horse-spit-soaked pieces and put them safely away. Pepe did not actually eat any cardboard… i.e. “no animals were harmed in the making of this video…”

Our neighbor came by in a pickup truck. We stopped to chat. Pepe (the horse) started to pull stuff out of the back of the pickup! He pulled out a plastic bag full of pecans! Our neighbor said, “I forgot that those were back there…” So, I separated Pepe from his pecans and returned them to their rightful owner.,

Anyway, at the end of our hard labors, we got a new (non-returnable) mailbox and some highly amused/amusing horses. We are considering giving them more cardboard to abuse, before recycling, as they seemed to really enjoy boxes!!!

We got to hang out with a bunch of relaxed, life-loving, safety-relaxed, people on New Year’s Eve… It started with a few fireworks being shot into the air, then fireworks started being thrown into the camp fire…

Eventually, it ended with A BOX OF FIREWORKS (many different varieties…) being thrown into the fire… Giant explosions, ducking flying bottle rockets, a cactus, falling into the river, covered in mud… what a great night to remember! VIVA 2010!!!

That is a blurry photo of an M-80 firework exploding, as I am running and ducking AND taking photographs…

And here is an unidentified man chucking a firework into the fire…

What a fun night!! (Kids, don’t try this at home…)

With minutes to spare, I submitted my entry for this year’s Hunting Art Prize. We shall see what happens. I really like participating in this contest because it’s free, and winner-take-all. The prize is $50,000, and their online submission system is easy to use. This year, I submitted “Woman in Darkness.” Last year, I submitted “Woman in Fear.”

James’ “International Man of Mystery Photo Shoot” by David Friedman has made it to the pages of TIME MAGAZINE’S WEBSITE!!!

It is part of David’s photo series called “Inventors & their Inventions.” If you will notice, #2 in the line up is the INVENTOR OF THE POST IT NOTE!!! Hah! That is some very fantastic company we’re keeping… virtually, anyway!

One year, we ran David at South By SouthWest. He was looking for inventors, and we were showing off our latest creation, a total match! The photo shoot was really interesting, David taught us a lot about lighting and attitude. Even though James has spent years pointing his camera at people, he was finally in front of the lens…

Wow! This incredible photo lives on! As children during the awesome reign of Time Magazine, this is an amazing event! If you look in the background, you can see my Robot Wars T-shirt, and to the left you can see part of my brain sketch! Also featured are a Roman Spatha Sword (replica, from our days of selling swords online) and a soldering iron (from our current days of selling stuff at Nuts & Volts Magazine…) Heh! Enjoy this fabulous picture of James, at the Times Magazine’s Inventors & their Inventions Photo Essay… Woot!

Please click on this link to read David’s blog about the photo. It is totally worth it!

Unfocused Brain & I wrote an article/side bar for Nuts & Volts magazine about a magnet detector we created. We modified “Das Blinkenboard” (a previous project of Unfocused brain & friends) by adding a few components, and then we were able to play with magnetic fields. But the more exciting thing is that WE’RE PUBLISHED AUTHORS in a national magazine!!! Hooray! To read more, please pick up a copy of Nuts & Volts at your local bookstore.

At a party last month, our neighbor had ominously announced, “The Hogs
have arrived…The Smiths have already taken out 16 of them. So if ya see
one, shoot it!” Wild boars are bad news. The most frightening thing is
that they will actually attack with a lot of mass. We aren’t planning to
shoot any ourselves, but we wanted to be armed, to scare them off.
We carefully walked the perimeter while spotlighting the landscape. It
was quiet. There was no grunting and there were no glowing eyes reflected
from my big light.

We got in the car and drove around a bit, spotlighting, but we could find
no wildlife. The area was secure.

When we went back inside, I was totally frazzled and kept straining my
ears to listen for any more strange noises.

I heard something.

I walked outside. “Meow…meow…meow” It was coming from the same
bushes as my phantom hog. “What the…?” A LARGE orange cat, came
bouncing out of the bushes, meowing gleefully.

So, what does this mean? Do we have wild boar terrorizing our yard, or do
we have something more terrifying?

The worlds first were-cat-pig…? Or maybe a giant tomcat with allergies?
Who knows?

Now, you may be wondering why the patio smelled of Axe Bodywash? We spent
the evening trying to make push molds for a part by taking commercially
available products and altering (heat, hammer, etc.) to fit our piece.
We’ve been melting tampons, glue stick containers, and even part of a
Styptic pencil (used for stopping blood loss). The Axe container needed
to be emptied and modified, so we emptied the contents of the small
container and then hammered to the mold. Thus, hours after application,
the outdoors was still coated with a fine layer of teen boy scent.

I carved a big wooden bone, hollowed it out, filled it with electronics and then affixed the Antler Head stone to the wood. I also deepened the grooves of the teeth to make them more pronounced.

The eyes are marbles glued to washers. It was important to have translucent eyes so that the lights from the LEDs would make them glow.

I’m really happy with the result. It looks great with the lights on… and it looks great with the lights off! The sequencing LEDs make the eyes glow and it makes the space behind the sculpture glow as well. It sequences between dramatic lighting, gentle fading, and blinking. It’s really cool!

There are 6 LEDs on the board, and 2 for the eyes. This give off a lot of light in a dark room and the effect is mesmerizing. It runs on 3 AA batteries. The board is homemade with an attiny22/44/84 chip running the LEDs.

The board is held in with a homemade bracket. The bracket allows me to remove the board in case I need to fix anything. The stone head is removable from the wood. I did this so that I can replace the LEDs, if they ever quit working.

I got to play with so many tools when making the different elements for this guy. Table saws, files, moto-tools, drill press, and various sanders and grinders. I even got to use an angle grinder with a blade that looks like a chain saw! What started as neat natural objects (stone, twigs & rock) are now a fabulous sculpture.

To see another video of the lighting effect, please watch this below or here: