Making The Most of Our Lemons!

The sun came out, and we opened for business! Maria's Lemonade and Bake Sale, with a mini-demonstration of our Young Makers Club, Love and Rockets, was a delightful success. It was fun for Maria to get this chance to explore her entrepreneurial interests and for all of us to share what we love about Young Makers, and the Maker Faire.


Thank you, generous and curious friends, and family! We had a steady stream of visitors, and it was a lot of fun sharing Lavender, the parade robot, the egg-bot, wool felting, and our hula-hoops! The fun lasted long after dark, when we lit a fire, roasted dinner, and had a live concert from Eli and Paul.

Though I was supervising activities, making shave ice, and simply enjoying everyone's company, I did manage to take a few pictures...


Chango, the cat, with Lavender!
Everyone had a chance to take over the cool controllers that turn Lavender, and open her jaws. She moves with the aid of pistons, which sound soft and hissy when they compress.


Here is the core work force behind the success of the day + Geoff keeping the egg-bot busy and operating smoothly.


Oh, one more thing: besides demonstrating robots, and selling homemade cupcakes, we were also on tooth watch. Maria had been hanging on to this loose front tooth for a really long time, but today may be the day it finally pops!


It's Corina! It's Sophie! It's Caia! And Henry, too!
It was so much fun. Every time familiar faces arrived we had a new thrill!
And I admit: we were heavily marketed. I didn't let this lemonade-stand go on chance alone, which was a good idea, because all those invited friends gave a great party-feel to the day.


Lisa, Michael, Carol, and Leo are getting a good close look at the egg-bot.


And here are Teresa, and her ducky little friend, Christina Canard-Diable.
They're Devil Duckies. It's a FIRST thing.


It's not uncommon for FIRST robotics teams to party together. FIRST 2102 Team Paradox loves getting spirited with Team San Diego, and all of their FIRST friends!


Any Dr Who fans reading this post?
Maybe you recognize that this is a Tardis?


Tooth check... oh, whoa... it's all wibbly-wobbly!


More friends, and some new helpers. Some school friends came to play!


Filippo and Karen came, and brought their children, Luca and Cecilia, and Alex C.
And the beautiful fruit pie Cecilia baked... with preserves from their very own garden! Deliziosissima!


By now, we had our fire ring lit, and the lemonade stand closed, but friends were still dropping by, and we loved the interest in Maker Faire that was building! I think we may even have won over new members!


And. You guessed it! It Popped!
What a full day!


Bambi and Alex, fireside.

We roasted hot dogs, and veggie-dogs, enjoyed salad and crudites. Then Paul arrived and he brought a Mediterranean feast. Just fyi: hot dog wrapped in warm flat bread, with fresh, leafy tabouli, and hummus = a super satisfying dinner.


Eli brought his uke, and the guitar came out, for Paul. The sun went down, we feasted, reflected, laughed at Maria's new grin and lisp, and listened to music and singing...


Max, our CFO, assures us, it was a success. And if "F" stands for Fun, he could not be more correct. The Lemonade and Bake Sale, and Mini-Make Demonstration were a huge success!

Make Hoops and Music!

Last summer we made hula hoops, and music.
Maker Faire is coming up. I wonder what new inspiration we'll bring, and come home with!

Where does inspiration begin?

And where will it take you?


In May we went to Maker Faire, and ten feet through the entrance gate we were already fully immersed in Maker Faire fun... namely, the hula hoops. Someone brought giant hoops to share and sell. Have you ever seen them? They are heavier and larger than the typical toy store kind. Whenever I saw them, and the gifted women who were whirrling and twirling in them, I always thought, those must be for good hoopers. It turns out I was not understanding the physics. Hula Hoop physics. Suki is a good hooper, and she was having a great time. Maria picked up a hoop and lo! she was pretty good too! The greater mass of the heavy hoops keeps them in motion, so they are easier to use than skinny-cheapie hoops! I thought this was very promising... and then I thought about all kinds of other things, and sort of forgot all about my future as a stunningly gifted hula-hooper.


::Cody and Tamsyn::

Until... until Elizabeth Mitchell was a guest blogger at Soule Mama, and suddenly I was utterly smitten and captivated by hoops all over again! And this time, I learned that not only are big hoops easier to use, but that they are easy and fun to make at home!

JOY!
Inspiration!
Party.


::Emma is softening the end of the 10' poly pipe by holding it in boiling water::

The video that Elizabeth Mitchell and Storey made is charming and sweet, like their music. I just wish our neighborhood hardware stores were as well stocked as theirs is. I had to visit four stores before finding one that could order the supplies for me.

This is what I bought:
100' of 3/4" Polyethylene Pipe, ideally at least 100 psi, and I wish it were a bit higher and also 1", but what we got works!

10 Internal couplers... they connect the ends of the poly pipe

Duct (Duck) tape and or electrical tape... for prettyness.

This grocery list will get you ten hoops, so call your friends and invite them over. The cost for poly pipe and couplers came to thirty-six dollars... not a big total per happy-hooping friends!

You will also need a pot of boiling water, and pipe cutters. Watch the video... it really is that easy!


::We did figure out that holding the poly pipe in the hot water for at least a minute and then forcefully getting the connector in is key to a good tight fit::


::Always Paradox, Andrea is preparing her hoop::

We basically cut everyone's ten feet long, because I was worried about having enough. I made mine last, and there was plenty extra, so I asked Suki to advise me about the size. Her suggestion is to make it taller than from the ground to your waist. My hoop I measured from the bottom of my ribs, which was a little more than ten feet.


::Cristina came from the beach... she had a total Aloha day!::

One more thing! Rice. For the fun swish-swish-swish effect we funneled in a generous tablespoon of rice. Simple trick with a lovely sound, like a rainstick.


::Emma and Lonnie and Andrea::

I dunno... I seem to make things big. Know what I mean? Like, okay, I want to make a hula hoop, but why not ten hula hoops and friends, then we can play ukuleles, and make shave ice with homemade strawberry and lemon syrups? Big, like that. And why not? Sometimes just sharing with a friend or two makes a simple something, something special.


::Alex went for sweet coffee over his shave ice::

I made strawberry syrup, and lemon syrup... pureed fruit, sugar, water, and sugar. As they say in Hawaii, It was ono. This is a NO DYE zone, and having dye free shave ice is a real delicious treat.


::Jess likes the strawberry::


::Lemon and strawberry for Jesse and Jacob::

::The strawberry syrup tastes like strawberries! Ono!::


::Maria covered her hoop in all kinds of electrical tape colors::


We made our hoops. We decorated our hoops. We played with our hoops. We ate shave ice, and had seconds, too, and then we kicked back. The rest is just memories of hauoli.
















::WOW... Word of the Week: Hauoli means Happiness::

Flaming Sound Waves

We made a Ruben's Tube! This movie shares some of our first two tests. We have things to work out, but I am loving what we have so far!

Love and Rockets at Maker Faire 2011

We were at Maker Faire, Bay Area!
Who?
Geoff, Natalie, William, Alex, Max, Maria, Eli, Suki, Michal, Helen, Grant, Isaac, Hannah, Zoe, Kevin, Dannie, Sean, Steve, Rick, and Amy caught up with us for dinner!

Whoa!
I know, right? So many friends gathered together. It was a dream come true. When we went last year, I knew that I wanted to convince as many people as possible to join us at Maker Faire in 2011, because the experience must be shared. My second wish was to become involved, to participate: One year later and we succeeded in making two dreams come true... we brought friends, and we are Love and Rockets~Art of Engineering :: Makers Club!

As you might imagine, I took some pictures. Seriously, not as many as I would like to have taken, but I am OK... given the choice between playing or taking pictures, I am happy to have chosen to play.


Today's post will reflect happily on the joy that is SteamPunk, our artful engineering.

Natalie, Suki, Maria, William, Alex, Max, Eli, Isaac, and Grant came to Maker Faire in some retro-futuristic-airship-Edwardian-Wellsian-Vernian-Victorian attire and accoutrement. Thrifted, crafted, stitched, and glued... our ensembles reflect the art of dress, the play of every day, the incarnation of literature and fantasy that makes our creative reality.


The moment we stepped out of our Green Goose Airship our enjoyment began in earnest. It is impossible to not find something pleasurable at Maker Faire. Whether you want to engage in a discussion about physics, or simply apply the laws of physics to play... you will find a way to enjoy the day!






Except for food, and merchandise, once you get in everything is free. Pay your admission, step in, and participate... touch, engage, play, interact, sample! I can't think of many places where the expectation is that you will be an active participant, that you will (in the words of a friend) think, make, tinker! People there want to share what they made, what they are thinking about, and they are as curious to learn about your projects, your creations, and ideas.


The San Francisco museum, the Exploratorium is a wonderful example of the hands-on attitude toward learning. The museum of science, art and human perception is a collaborator with The Young Makers Program. They had a great booth at the Faire, including this musical bench, whose notes were made by the contact of the occupants with each other, the seat and arms of the bench.


So, where do you begin?

Arriving at the Faire, we were overwhelmed with opportunities, but consensus was pretty high...our first stop would be beneath the trees where other SteamPunks were gathering.


And as soon as we arrived, we found Crackitus Potts was preparing the H.U.G., a net propulsion device, in case of zombies...


Some zombies can be, with appropriate restraints applied, relied upon to do service for the LEAGUE, but first the zombie must be captured, restrained, then trained...


And what?! Baron Von Fogel has spied a zombie in our very midst...


When a zombie is spotted, Crackitus grabs the net propulsion device, and prepares to do battle...


Look out Zombie-boy!


Nothing can stop the super accuracy and efficiency of Crackitus Potts and his H.U.G.


My children have interesting desires, and this turns out to be a dream come true for Alex, who, on his way to Maker Faire, was discussing his hope to be recognized as a zombie and captured by LEAUGUE of S.T.E.A.M.




Maria enjoyed the demonstration, but she was looking for someone in the crowd. She was looking for R.O.S.E.. Maria met R.O.S.E. last year, then was crushed when she missed her chance to say good-by. Luckily, she and R.O.S.E. were able to exchange emails. Of course a lot of anticipation had been building since last year, and Maria could not wait to see her friend again. It seems R.O.S.E. has taken a break from her duties as a Reanimate Optimized Search Engine.


Maria went directly to the St. Claire Aeronauts, so she could pen her friend a love letter. The good Captain St. Claire and his generous crew were there, and they provided all of the supplies and encouragement necessary for writing letters, making envelopes, and delivering messages at the Faire.


Suki took pen in hand, and wrote to her own true love.


Maria filled the page with her message to R.O.S.E., including a garden of flowers, and lots of pretty stamps.


And then Captain St. Claire himself, taught Maria and Suki the art of envelope making. Thank you St. Caire Aeronauts!


Captured and trained, Alex is put into service right away. The net must be properly stowed, and reloaded into the H.U.G. You never know when uncivilized zombies will come around, or when there might be some monkey business... ever have trouble with phantom monkeys?!



Sir Conrad Wright III knows the importance of keeping equipment in good condition... safety too concerns him, and for his particular specialty he dons protective clothing around his neck.



With a device more futuristic than retro, Crackitus Potts and Baron Von Fogel are able to capture an image of Maria with her letter for R.O.S.E., instantly transdigiporting the message directly to R.O.S.E..


Hopefully R.O.S.E. got both the transdigiported image and Maria's actual love letter.


We certainly appreciate the sincere and gracious attention The LEAGUE of S.T.E.A.M. gave Maria, and she loves her special R.O.S.E. pin.


More friends arriving! Using my own futuristic hand held mobile device, I was keeping everyone posted on our movements, and that is how Isaac, Hannah, Zoe, Kevin and Dannie were able to track us down. Isaac came with his cousin, Hannah, and friend, Zoe. His own school project was on display at Maker Faire. Maybe he was writing to Grant about the CalSol UC Berkely Solar Vehicle. Kevin and Dannie rode over from Davis... it was looking a bit like a FIRST 2102 Team Paradox reunion!


Or maybe like a Sky Consortium Ball!


The LEAGUE of S.T.E.A.M. with Love and Rockets, this is a special occasion indeed.


With one hundred thousand people in attendance, it's no surprise it was a while before we caught up with Grant! Well worth the wait. Maria had more hugs to dispense than minutes in a day, and she made Suki and Grant solemnly vow that the three of them were buds for life!


Hugs!


Many of us met at Saphira, the fire breathing dragon from a Bay Area Young Makers Club. We were also introduced to a new Young Makers Club project, Fire Jam... more on that in a later post!


Twelve hours of amazing sights, artful attractions, and engineering marvels, and a lifetime of great memories. I think Max's favorite moment may have been the Arc Attack concert, when Alex shouted to the band a request for the theme from Doctor Who. An electrifying performance, best enjoyed in person.


Is it any wonder we spent the ten hour drive home talking about next year?