Sunday
Sunday afternoons at Tinkering School fall in the gap between the real world and the big projects we live for. Join us as we explore the hydrodynamic characteristics of the $6 electric toothbrush and contemplate the nature of tomorrows undertaking. [diary entry]
Monday
There are four miles of southwest-running sand around Half Moon Bay, and it’s got Sail-carting written all over it. We’re halfway through the build-out of our most complicated project to date. [diary entry]
Tuesday
What appeared to be a simple matter of “finishing up” the carts, turned into an all-day affair, tying the rollercoaster project of two years ago for lengthiest build. But stay tuned, because tomorrow we ride! [diary entry]
And, because it’s just not late enough at night yet, here is a bonus video for your amusement. Wait, here’s another one.
Wednesday
It was a long day. It was an arduous day. It was a foggy day. But it was not a windy day. It was, however, almost windy, or seemed that it would be. So the sail-cart trials were attempted. Fortunately, there was enough daylight at the end of the day to prepare for tomorrow’s project, codenamed “Swiss”. Special thanks for today’s camera-work to Tywen, and to Julie for the diary help.[diary entry]
Bonus video of the sails: The Solids, The Steeves.
Thursday
The Swiss project, kept under wraps until this moment, finally sees the light of fog. What’s Swiss about it? Swiss Family Robinson! Many engineering, physics and math problems are solved along the way to realizing our very own zero-impact sky palace. Thrill to the trigonometry of calculating how much plywood to purchase! Marvel at the lifting power of leverage! Admire the sophisticated cantilevering! Or just look at the pretty pictures. [diary entry]
Bonus videos of platform assembly and Northern California Tinker Monkeys.
Friday
Despite the mostly present fog (we’re getting used to it by now), it was a busy day under the trees. Phase One of Swiss complete, Phase Two well underway, and Phase Three fully planned and half-prep’d. Of course this is all done at the expense of sleep. Today’s diary is done at least, and bonus videos will come later. [diary entry]
Bonus video of hoisting a Platform Support Module and Platform Truss Module.
Saturday
We built a 30′ tall zero-impact treehouse. What more is there to say? [diary entry]
(There will be bonus video of some key moments. Tomorrow. After some sleep.)
Sunday Supplement
Saturday’s feats of engineering and daring were well-documented, although next time we’ll give Val a few additional lessons in shooting video (such as maintaining the camera orientation). The footage presented us with an opportunity to learn a lot about QuickTime Pro’s capability to crop, rotate, and assemble clips. A glimpse into the day’s activities:
Ambidextrous Awkward Aerial Drilling
Cheese Stix (the making of TorqueStixMini(tm))
The Nest Takes Flight (raising the crow’s nest) FINALLY POSTED
Nest Rail Slide (note gever’s position under the nest)
Nest Tipping (upending the nest into place)
High-wire Power Tools (you can see the jigsaw blade in the side of the nest)
First Ascent
As usual, you can look behind the scenes at the raw photos here.
3 Comments so far
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Yes - hurry - we want to see their creations speeding across the sand NOW!
Comment by michael 07.24.07 @ 7:40 pmI’m assuming the wind was blowing all day today since you were all busy in the trees?
Comment by michael 07.27.07 @ 11:32 pmLeave a comment
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Hurry up and post already!! The world awaits today’s triumphs and challenges! Hurry UP!
Comment by Valerie 07.23.07 @ 5:37 pm