Lightbulb Art - Window Hanging

Remember my fabulous TV Screen? Some of you might have been reluctant to get one for your home because you want to watch Heroes or Battlestar Galactica without distortion.
No problem.
Just hang your Lightbulb Art TV Screen in the window when those shows are on.

Uses for Binder Clips - Hallowe'en

Have I ever mentioned that I lead a charmed life?

The latest proof of this came yesterday when, not one, but two beautiful women came to my Hallowe'en party sporting binder clips as part of their costumes.

Perhaps you are thinking this could happen at any Hallowe'en party, and you are correct. However, in this case it was no accident. Each of these women, independently and without consultation asked themselves "What would David Scrimshaw want?" and came up with binder clips as the answer.

They were absolutely right. Of course.

The world would be a better place if more of you, before doing anything, asked: "What would David Scrimshaw want?"

(And for the record, guests at the party who and came up with "fishnet stockings" as an answer were not necessarily wrong.)

Links:

The mutually-adored Megan's take on the party

My Flickr set of party photos

Giant Pumpkin Race

Lake Pesaquid pumpkin paddlers

Although I've never tried to grow a giant pumpkin, I'm always interested in the news about them. This year, a new world record was set by a 1689 pound (766kg) pumpkin in Massachusetts.

I've learned a number of things about giant pumpkins and the people who grow them this year:

1. Growing a champion pumpkin is not an accident. People who grow giant pumpkins for competition are as obsessed as anyone you can imagine. They spend hours a day on their plants. It is nothing like growing peace lillies.
2. I don't know what they call their pumpkins while they grow them, but afterwards they refer to them by their weight in pounds (e.g. "I didn't do anything different for the 1446").
3. In an effort to get more entertainment value out of the pumpkins after the weigh-off, many communities now have pumpkin regattas in which the pumpkins are hollowed out and turned into boats. Most are propelled with kayak paddles, but some regattas also have a motorized class.
4. The nearest giant pumpkin regatta appears to be in Pembroke and occurred two weeks ago.
5. Although at least one grower has attempted to cross an Atlantic Giant Pumpkin with a Pink Banana Squash to grow a "sleeker" pumpkin. I have found no indication that anyone is working on a Zucchini Kayak.

Links

• Want to start growing your own? Maybe you should join the Giant Vegetable Growers of Ontario
• Don't believe me that the growers are as obsessed as anyone? Read this: Alan Eaton and his 1446 lb World Record Pumpkin
• Want to buy seeds? Seeds: World Record - Special Selections 2007
• Information on the the Pembroke Race at Hugli's Farm
• A Channel Video: WeighOff the day before the Pembroke race
• Excellent Story and Video about the race in Windsor, Nova Scotia where the pumpkin regattas started: Wall Street Journal: Out of Their Gourds? Paddling Pumpkins On Lake Pesaquid
• Local coverage with video from the Windsor NS Regatta: Regatta 2007 a wild ride in Windsor!

The Stolen Angels Launch Party

Those of you who weren't able to make it will be happy to know that the Kathy Cook's reading on Sunday and her launch party tonight for Stolen Angels were both well-attended successes.

The reading had a nice feel to it. After Kathy read, she was interviewed by someone who knew how to do a good interview and then the audience asked good questions. It was like a really good university class without an exam or paper requirement, and much, much less costly.

Tonight in the Market, the launch party was all about schmoozing with journalists, politicians, writers and activists. There was also the weird part when all these very young women in slinky dresses showed up. They had helium ballons and gift bags and only seemed to be interested in speaking with the women at the Launch.

I believe they had started with their own private gathering in another part of the Foundation, then moved out to promote one or more local women's clothing shops, and later left for other fashionable Market venues.

I don't think they deliberately chose to start at the event where Kathy Cook was selling and signing her book about girls who were kidnapped into sexual slavery.

Link: Previous posting with more info on Stolen Angels: The Kidnapped Girls of Uganda

Openings: Erin Robertson and Stefan Thompson

Response by Erin Robertson.

In my younger days, Friday nights were all about going to live music clubs and dancing. Now Friday nights are about catching up on sleep. But if I wind up just watching TV all evening, I feel depressed. This is why it is great that there are often art openings on Friday night. Yesterday, Art Guise had Erin Robertson and Invisible Cinema had Stefan Thompson. Both shows were wonderful and if I didn't have a big loan to pay off, I would have bought paintings from both of them. Robertson's paintings were emergency scenes, impressionist acrylic with thick layers of resin over them that made them look wet and shiny.

The Shepherd and other works by Stefan Thompson.

Thompson's are playful and sometimes creepy. He paints on re-used materials and advocates environment friendly methods.
A big Thank You! to Zoom for recommending the Stefan Thompson show, I would have missed it otherwise.

Uses for Binder Clips - Pocket Replacer

Tiana of Strangers in the Background writes:

Attached you will find a photo of a coworker of mine (face obscured because he fears the internet). His wife lays out his clothes for him and he was upset to arrive at work with no front pocket for his pen. I helped him work something out for the day as seen in the photo.

Giving Thanks with Sally

Sally in her shirt from Jody and $8 autumn pants

Sally hosted a wonderful Thanksgiving supper for a whole bunch of us on Monday.

One of the things she was grateful for was the blouse that Jody gave her because it saved her from trying to figure out what to wear. Someone commented that Jody seemed to often help Sally with clothing.

Jody thinks the hat is acrylic, not Phentex

"Jody's my fashion consultant," said Sally, "and here she is now!"

We all admired Jody's handmade hat and layered look.

More panorama fun:

Lightbulb Art - TV Screen

I am happy to report that I can now show you another thing to do with burned-out lightbulbs.

1. Empty and clean out the lightbulbs.
2. Take an old picture frame that is the same size as your TV screen and rig something along the back at the top to hang the lightbulbs from. (I had a piece of plastic grating that I think came from a flourescent light fixture, but you could use a stretch of binder wire or a coat hanger.)

3. Cut different lengths of binder wire and bend them to hang the bulbs from the frame.
4. Hang the bulbs in a way that you find pleasing.

5. Fill the bulbs with a clear liquid. I used a clear soap in the big bulbs. My theory on the soap is that it will have a higher index of refraction than water, thus giving more magnification and light-bendiness, but I could be wrong. Also, I figure bacteria will not grow in soap. On the other hand, it may all crystalize in an unaesthetic way. Because I could not find my syringe to put the thick soap into the little bulbs, I filled them with very old hydrogen peroxide from when I wore contact lenses. (That was like 1991.) While hydrogen peroxide solution should also not grow bacteria, I suspect it will have a highly corrosive effect on the binder wire and bulb sockets, and is probably a bad idea. But I was impatient.
6. Cap the bulbs with silicone caulking.

7. Attach the frame to a heavy piece of wood on top of the TV set.
8. Cover the wood with a dark cloth and weigh it down with a large fossilized dinosaur egg to hammer home your philosophical point about technological consumer obsolescence.

Links:

• Lightbulb Drying
• Bud vase
• Bud vase [Make]
• Lightbulb Acquarium [Make]
• DIY Hollow Out A Light Bulb [TeamDroid]

Cozy Art from Karina Bergmans

I'm reluctant to suggest a trip to Nepean to the bulk of my readership, but if you find yourself near Ben Franklin Place in the next little while, you should go in and see Karina Bergmans' exhibit in the Atrium Gallery. I found it to be full of things that made me smile and want to live in a Dr. Seuss world.

Sitting in my living room this evening, I found myself looking at the couch and the chairs thinking... how could I make all this be like Karina Bergman's art?

Vernissage: Sun (Oct 7) from 2:00pm to 4:00pm.

Atrium Gallery 101 Centrepointe Drive, Ottawa Monday - Thursday 8:30 a.m. – 9 p.m. Friday 8:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m Sunday 1-5 p.m The show runs until November 7th.

Uses for Paper Clips: Hanging Binder Clips

I'm entirely pleased to be back at work using my vast legal knowledge for the betterment of society, not least because I have a new opportunity to create an efficient workspace.

In this case, the previous cubicle denizen left a bent paper clip hook hanging that has made an excellent mount for my collection of binder clips.

[Another reason I am happy in my new workspace is exhibited with that pushpin I did not crop out of the photo. I have more than enough pushpins! This is the first time I have ever started a new job and had more than enough pushpins. It is so nice to not have to sneak around stealing unused ones from other peoples' work stations or stapling things to public bulletin boards so I can remove the pushpins that were originally holding them there. This leads me to the observation that I find myself enjoying jobs far more now than I did twenty years ago. This might be because I no longer care much if my work is interesting. I mostly just want to spend my day around nice people and not have to struggle too hard to get the things I need to do my job.]

Lightbulb Drying

Here is a useful tip.

When you rinse out your emptied burned-out lightbulbs it is helpful to have a drying rack.

If, like me, you do not have such a rack, just take chopsticks you've been saving from Asian takeout and stick them into slots in your salad spinner.

Lonesome Paul, neither down nor out

It was wonderful to see Lonesome Paul playing at Irene's on Friday night. Also wonderful to see lots of old regulars in the audience.

Two weeks ago, we were surprised to find him watching the door for Ball and Chain's Hank Williams' Birthday Bash. He'd take ten dollars from people coming in and click the counter. Now and then, he'd lean out the door and sing something to encourage people to come in.

One of the guest performers on the stage started singing a Hank song that Paul does. "I could sing that," he said.

"Gee, Paul, for years you were the headliner here and now you're taking money at the door," I said.

"Yup," he said. "Lonesome Paul, Down and Out... We'll put that on the posters."

Uses for Binder Clips - Zombie Killing Weapons

Our friend Kaye is preparing for her next movie and writes:

...though my energy canon and nuclear bomb are not quite finished ( I will send you pictures when they are) I have another prop that may interest you.

Upon looking at the first picture it looks like a cool, sophisticated crossbow. However, it is just a thrown-together prop which barely needs to work and I only put together for a few scenes. It does function however and its firing mechanism is: yes, a binder clip.

So there is another use for binder clips for you: "Crossbow Firing Mechanism"

JK Shorts on Youtube.

Manon at Stones Cove

Manon at Stones Cove
Originally uploaded by Dave Scrimshaw.

One thing I miss about being a student is all the drawing I managed to do during lectures. Perhaps I'll try to become one of those people who draws on the bus.

Kathy Cook's Stolen Angels out soon!

I am happy to report that Kathy Cook's new book Stolen Angels: The Kidnapped Girls of Uganda will soon be in bookstores. I have two selfish reasons to be happy about this. The first is that Kathy may now have more time for hanging out with her friends. (Although I suppose there is an equally likely chance that her newfound fame will give her even less time for us.) The second is that a long, long time ago, Kathy let me read the draft of a chapter. My hair stands up on end when I think about what it described.

After the girls were kidnapped from their boarding school by soldiers of the Lords Resistance Army, a nun and one of the school workers followed the trail into the bush in order to confront the soldiers and bring the girls back.

The soldiers of the LRA are not known for their compliance with the Geneva conventions. I cannot imagine what sort of nerve following them must have taken. I really want to know what else happened.

There will be a formal book launch at the Writer's Festival on Sunday, October 21 at 4pm. I've put details on Google Calendar.

Links:

• Writers Fest
• Penguin Books
• You can order from Singing Pebble
• Order from Indigo