Day 303: Rubber Bands Like Halloween Too

Today I gave my rubber band ball a Halloween costume.


Yay for post-its, highlighter, and Sharpie.

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Day 302: Helmet Head

Today I decorated the helmet for my costume using graphics designed by Mat.








I can't wait to put it all together.

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Day 301: I Hate My Voice

This week's web design assignment was kind of fun and kind of terrifying. I had to make either a podcast, a video, or a screencast. Video was out, because who has time for makeup? A podcast could conceal my unsightly features, but it seemed to rely too heavily on the sound of my voice, which sounds so much better inside my head than out. So I did a screencast, which combines audio and visuals. It's really a fascinating tool that I never would have tried without being forced to by a professor.

If you don't know what a screencast is, I don't have time to explain it, so watching my screencast should fill you in.

So watch my screencast.

And be thankful I don't have dreams of pursuing a career in voice acting.

Day 300: Spine Breakers

Today I transferred the graphics onto my roller derby costume shirt.





Thanks, Mat, for making the super graphics.

I bet I can stretch out this costume into a few more makes this week.

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Day 299: Craftapple

Today I made a little paper apple thing with no purpose, but I like how it looks.


It's a bunch of pieces of paper cut in concentric sizes and then stitched together.


I picked random pages from a discarded library book that's apparently about someone beefy and young.



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Day 298: Going Batty

Today I managed to squeeze in a small Halloweeny make.


It's a little paper bat thing. It doesn't really have a purpose, other than to be cute, but maybe you can think of one.

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Day 297: Halloween-Bound

Today I decided on a new costume for Halloween. I always seem to pick a costume when I have a week or less to make it. Last year it was the Zom-bee. This year, it's roller derby girl.

I had amazing luck at the thrift stores and came away with roller skates, elbow, knee, and wrist pads, a helmet, and a long plaid skirt that I converted to this much shorter skirt:


I have my derby name and number all figured out, and Mat's working on a logo for my fictitious derby team.

It's a librarian-themed thing, of course. So my team is the Spine Breakers, my name is Dewey Decimator, and my number is 796.21.

Now I have a week to learn how to move around in roller skates on non-carpeted surfaces without killing myself. It's only been like 25 years.

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Day 296: Mommy Dearest

Today's my mom's birthday, so my make is the beautiful art I drew on the box I put her gifts in. Classy gift wrap around here.


It's not a great picture, because it's dark and raining.

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Day 295: What's Worse Than Incest?

Apparently, it's gay marriage. I've made two maps to illustrate my point.

There are even more states that will let you marry your first cousin if you're really old and not likely to reproduce. Because having deformed babies is the only reason incest is wrong. Yeah.

And there are websites out there that defend the marriage of close relatives based on interpretations of the Bible and spurious birth defect statistics and the fact that we're all apparently at least 50th cousins with everyone else on the planet, so why should first cousin be any different? Um...because there's a big difference between 50 and 1, that's why. It's gross. I saw that episode of the X-Files with the family living under their house and inbreeding since the Civil War. No thanks. There's nothing that great about your genes that you need to double up on them.

Besides, with 6 billion people on the planet, you can't find a second cousin to fall in love with?

And with a final ew, I bid you adieu.

Day 294: Mashed Up and Twittered

It's Wednesday, so that means my make is going to be a web assignment for school. That's what my Wednesdays have turned into, and I have no intention of suffering alone.

This week, I learned how to make a mashup in Yahoo Pipes, convert RSS feeds into Java, and make a Twitter widget (a Twidget?) for a hashtag. Confused yet? Me too.

You can see all the (lumpy and tasteless) fruits of my labor on this lovely page and this fabulous blog.

Day 293: Ring Cycle Cycle

When you work in the processing department of a library, you realize just how annoying it is when the makers of music and film decide to go all cute with their packaging. Normally, when a CD or DVD is packaged in a normal way, I just have to slap on a shelf tag and move on with my life. Not so with more elaborate packaging that cannot withstand the unwashed library patron masses.

Here's a lovely million-disc DVD set of Wagner's Ring Cycle that just arrived. And I'm going to show you all the steps I get to go through just to counteract the fanciness of the people who packaged this wonder of inefficiency.



You see, it's a cardboard sleeve with four separate disc cases in it, each holding either one or two discs.



And this is the compact, efficient, mostly patron-proof multi-disc case it has to go into.



Each of the seven discs needs to have a "donut" sticker attached, with the last three numbers of that set's barcode on it.



If you stick on enough stickers, you no longer have fingerprints. True story.



Oh, did I mention that each of the four parts comes with a booklet? Those all have to find a home in the case too.



So putting the donutted discs into the new case is easy enough. Time consuming, but no big deal.



Since the new case hold 8 discs, and I will only be putting 7 discs in it, I have to add a sticker indicating that one of the slots is intentionally blank. Otherwise there is confusion and crying.


I also need to stick a little library sticker on each booklet, so it can find its way home if it get separated.



And thanks to the innovative strategy of only numbering discs within each of the four mini-sets, I have to assign numbers so that they are all part of one big set. Go Sharpie, go!



Now all the booklets get crammed into the front of the new case.



And I get to fiddle around with it until it will close.



And this whole process gets repeated over and over again until all of Wagner's Valkyries and fat ladies in viking helmets are safely in their happy little patron-proof cages.



But I didn't even take any pictures of the really fun part. Because the box set is not the same size as the new case, new cover art has to be created, which requires scanning and moving around all the bits and pieces from all sides of the original box until it fits into the shape and space of the new case. Then that gets sent to graphics where they make color copies for the new inserts. When those are all done, they get barcoded, spine labeled, and inserted into the cases, and the world of entertainment can finally be sent on its way. The complete library processing life cycle of the Ring Cycle.

Next time you're going to buy one of those fancy CD or DVD box sets in the cute and oh-so-destructible packaging, consider checking it out from the library instead. It would be a shame for all my work to be for nothing.

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Day 292: Octopus or Squid?

Today I used my iPhone to draw an underwater scene including an octopus (or maybe it's a squid), some coral, and a few starfishes.


I want a Wacom tablet so I can see what it's like to draw digitally without using my stubby fingers.

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Day 291: Snickerdoodley Perfection

Today I baked some snickerdoodle cookies.


They were deemed perfect by the snickerdoodle connoisseur.



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Day 290: Stupid American Origami Instructions

I much prefer the origami instructions written in Japanese. The American instructions make no sense.

Here's what I ended up with:


I think it's some kind of arrow. Whatever it is, it's not a pyramid-ish container like in the instructions:


But mine is more stabby.





Useless, but stabby.

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Day 289: Eye Eye, Cap'n

Today I learned of the passing of Dr Davida Teller. She was my teacher, boss, and mentor when I was doing infant vision research at UW. She co-authored the paper I had published in Vision Research. She was a pioneer in the field and a great person, and I'm sad that she's gone.

In memory of Dr Teller, my make for today is a polymer clay eyeball.


I wish I were a better sculptor.



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Day 288: Whoopie! (Pie)

Today I decided to use every dish and utensil in my kitchen to coat every surface with flour and marshmallow fluff. Kind of a weird thing to do, but I ended up with some whoopie pies to show for it.



They're not as pretty as the ones made in fancy little Williams-Sonoma whoopie pie baking sheets and then filled using some kind of frosting application device, but I don't have those things, and I doubt it affects the flavor much.

I thought they were pretty good, but I've never had a whoopie pie before, so I have no basis for comparison. In fact, I'd never even heard of whoopie pies until I came across this book at the library.

They're kind of a pain to make, especially in my tiny kitchen, but it would be neat to try out some of the other flavors combinations. Not that I'm complaining about chocolate and marshmallow. Add a graham cracker, a fire, and a bucket of sangria, and I'm ready to go camping.

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Day 287: Bibliophile Not Found (Again)

So are you sick of my using school projects as makes yet?Yeah, me too. But when I spend many hours per day making stuff for school after many hours working in a make-free environment, I don't always have a choice.

So today I give you a blog I made for my web class, in partial preparation for the final project. In case you're wondering, my final project will be a library site focusing on a specific cultural group, and I've selected Israeli-Americans. Hence all the stuff about Israel and Judaism.

I've recycled the blog title from a blog I set up a couple semesters ago, because it's so awesome, but I'll probably be changing it to something more appropriate to the topic of my blog.

http://senna.sjsu.edu/lmain/melleny/blog/wordpress/

And I had to set up the real Wordpress, which requires connecting to servers and FTPing and all that junk, not the easy point-and-click Wordpress that normal people use.

Maybe tomorrow I'll have a real make that I make for myself and not for school. Wouldn't that be crazy?

Day 286: ¿Dónde está la biblioteca?

I was going to actually make something interesting today, but I've been mired in homework since I got home, so you're going to get the dialog in Spanish I had to write. Apparently, I'm advanced enough that I need to be given extra assignments, and this is the first of them. It's a really dumb dialog, because my vocabulary is limited and I only know present tense and I had to include a whole bunch of junk that sounds unnatural, but here it is anyway.

FYI, it's a conversation between a librarian and a patron who needs help filling out a form.

La bibliotecaria:           Buenos días, señor. Bienvenidos a la biblioteca. ¿Cómo puedo ayudarle?

El usuario:                   Buenos días. Yo no hablo ingles y necesito ayuda con este formulario por favor.

La bibliotecaria:           Bien. ¿Puedo ver el formulario?

El usuario:                   Sí. Está aquí. Deseo vender las manzanas y los espárragos en el mercado.

La bibliotecaria:           Estoy feliz de ayudarle a llenar.

El usuario:                   ¡Muchas gracias!

La bibliotecaria:           Entonces…¿Cuál es el nombre de su empresa? Ese nombre va aquí, donde dice
“Business Name.”

El usuario:                   Es “Pedro Delicioso.”

La bibliotecaria:           Bueno. Y “Name” es su nombre, con apellido. Tiene usted un socio?

El usuario:                   Sí, mi esposa me ayuda.

La bibliotecaria:           El nombre de su esposa va aquí, en “Partners/Helpers Names.”

El usuario:                   Gracias. ¿Cómo se traduce 'Business Location'?

La bibliotecaria:           “Dónde está su empresa?”

El usuario:                   Gracias.

La bibliotecaria:           “Mailing address” es su dirección…”Phone #” es su número de teléfono…y
“Vehicle Description” es la descripción del vehículo.

El usuario:                   Bien. ¿Qué debo escribir para "List Products"?

La bibliotecaria:           Escribe los productos que usted vende. Por ejemplo, las manzanas y los
espárragos.

El usuario:                   En inglés?

La bibliotecaria:           Sí. Para las manzanas, escribe “apples,” y “asparagus” para los espárragos.

El usuario:                   Gracias. ¿Qué tengo hacer después de llenar el formulario?

La bibliotecaria:           Usted imprime el formulario, firma su nombre aquí y manda el formulario a esta
dirección.

El usuario:                   Muchas gracias por su ayuda.

La bibliotecaria:           De nada. Buena suerte con el mercado.

El usuario:                   ¡Gracias! Adiós, señora.

La bibliotecaria:           Adiós.

I wonder what would happen if you put it through one of those online translation thingies. Or I could put it through Karol and find out how truly horrible it. 

Day 285: Elephant Origami

Another origami day. This time it's a slightly deformed elephant.


Not bad for using instructions that are all in Japanese.

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Day 284: Ready for the Future

Today I updated my resume. I'll be using it to apply for a permanent version of my current temporary job.

I don't have a lot of hope that I'll get it, because other people who have had the same temp position for twice as long are also applying, but I'm giving it a shot anyway.

And if I don't get this one, it's possible they'll open up another one at the end of the year. If not, I'll have to go back to pushing a cart around a library part-time and having a bit of spare time to do homework.

But I really want this permanent job. So please think happy, lucky thoughts for me!

And yes, this counts as my make for today. Deal with it.

For a consolation prize, check out the feedback I got on my Spanish midterm.



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Day 283: Pillow Fight

Even though I'm posting this on Day 284, I actually did this make on Day 283, but I needed a real computer to post it.

Here's an animated GIF I made of a pillow fight I witnessed between Mat, Kaidin, and Keagin.

Yes, it's fast and blurry and hard to see what's happening. That's how it was in reality. Just add some grunting and battle cries and you'll feel just like you were there.

Day 282: Rubber Band Ball Seeks Name

Today, I gave my rubber band ball some personality.


It's not much, but I'm working my way to margarita oblivion, so nothing else is gonna get made.

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Day 381: Tall Zombie

Today I wanted a treat. After taking my Spanish midterm today and doing a marathon of homework yesterday, I thought maybe I'd bake something chocolatey. Well, that didn't happen. My kitchen is too small and filled with dirty dishes. So instead I made a new drink.


It looks kinda disgusting, like I put a zombie in the blender, but it tastes pretty good. It includes the four boozer in the picture plus vodka and milk.

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Day 380: Another Pile of Websites

My marathon of homework for today was to do three multi-part assignments and then post my results on three different web pages of my own design, following assorted rules and including assorted tags and features. 7 hours of homework after 8 hours of work after 5 hours of sleep does not an overachiever make, so be prepared for mediocrity.

Fair warning: I doubt you'll want to read any of the text on the first two pages. I didn't even want to write that garbage. But the third page at least has some nifty pictures.

http://senna.sjsu.edu/lmain/melleny/assignment6a.html

http://senna.sjsu.edu/lmain/melleny/assignment6b.html

http://senna.sjsu.edu/lmain/melleny/assignment6c.html

Now I just have to study for my Spanish midterm tomorrow. Oh, and survive the other half of this semester.

Day 379: Fallout Jr.

Today I helped Mat make costumes for the little midgets who will be joining our Fallout band of costumed awesomeness.

I sewed a girl-scout-ish sash for Aislind's costume.


It's filled with buttons designed by Mat.


Then I sewed a furry belly onto a hoodie for Keagin's costume.


I had to hand-stitch this one, because the layers of fur and hoodie and zipper wouldn't fit in my sewing machine.

These are but trifling parts of the super duper costumes Mat has been crafting for the kids. They will debut this weekend at AkiCon in Bellevue.

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Day 378: Little Ball of Rage

Today I wasted over an hour carefully folding a piece of paper in a billion different ways to make a little snap-lock box. Of course, the origami instructions aren't very helpful when they basically go from an elaborately folded flat piece of paper to "collapse into a box."

Here's my elaborately folded flat piece of paper:


Guinness likes it.


After lengthy negotiations, we all decided to collapse it into a ball instead of a box.


I think I'm done with this origami book.

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Day 377: Peanut Butter Jelly Time

It's been a while since I did a drinksperiment. I was hungry for a bit of peanut butter and jelly, so I decided to do it up grown-up style.


Homemade peanut vodka (yes, I just keep my vodkas in canning jars now - don't judge) and grape juice.

Similar to the shot of peanut vodka and grape vodka, but more for sipping.

It's fun to sip a sandwich.

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