Well goodness

John Meada wows me again with with an excellent TED talk on simplicity.

John Maeda

I haven’t felt compelled to post very much in a while.

Is it possible to reach a point where you are too analytical to appreciate? To be surprised? To even enjoy the world around you?

I can’t buy a watch because I can’t find a watch I like. It’s not that there aren’t “good watches” out there it’s that literally, the watch I want doesn’t exist as far as I can tell. (oh how I have looked.)

The nice thing is, that if the thing you need doesn’t exist, you are not trapped as a consumer- well some are- but I am a maker of things. Maeda was a nice reminder of what that means.

It was nice to find John Maeda toying with the world. Thanks John Maeda. For being downright playful with that stodgy, clumsy, learning curved thing called technology that defines so much of what  we need and how we come to it.

Maeda: “… I actually don’t like technology very much… but it’s not about how to make the world more technological…it’s about how to make it more humane…” Right. Technology can help that happen.

Now I’m back on track.

Where is 100 Days in the News?

Dear readers: 100 Days in the News has taken a step forward by getting a nifty little site of it’s own apart from the In Lieu blog! What does this mean? Several things:

1. Yes Oh Yes the project is still kicking. >>>kick!!!<<<

2. If you subscribed to In Lieu like a faithful reader, and you would still like to receive 100 Days in The News updates you will need to subscribe to the new site. Visit the site and look at the column on the right. There you will see a place to jump on the RSS feed that you can attach to Google Reader. Easy right?

3. In Lieu is going to sway back towards my general writing. I hope all of this isn’t too much to follow but 100 Days needed some space of it’s own. It’s independently hosted now and that gives some added flexibility that was much needed.

Join me on the new site!!!

100 Days in the News: update update update

Yes, fine friends some of you may have noticed a slowness in my posting and it’s time to fess up and make amends. I have had a touch of the flu over the past few weeks and while I completed a number of projects, at the end of the day I was too pooped to post.

The whole experience made me question whether or not I should press on with the “consecutive” part of the 100 days project. I’ve decided to stick with it though- realizing that I am a creature who needs structure:)

It has been very meaningful to read the news to know I need to respond to the material at hand. I am more alive in my reading now. Hopefully I will acquire this disposition permanently.

Here we go with a barrage of posts! Each will be posted to the day it’s inspirational articles are drawn from.

100 Days in the News: day thirteen project: Bling Natural

Welcome to day 13 of the 100 Days in the news project. For 87 more days I will be pulling news stories from my Google reader and making artwork about it!

Today’s news inspirations are:

from Tree Hugger:

One Small Step Away from Extinction: Polar Bears to be Granted ‘Critical Habitat’ by Department of the Interior

by Matthew McDermott, Brooklyn, NY on 10. 7.08

from boingboing:

One in four mammals facing extinction

Posted by David Pescovitz, October 7, 2008 9:30 AM

and from Born Rich:

Too Hot To Handle: Diamond Encrusted Earplugs

Atul | 16 hr. ago 10.7.2008

In the face of hardship nature must adapt. With two articles in one day warning about the not so bright future our four-legged friends face it’s time to talk strategy. Fluff and whiskers just isn’t cutting it anymore. This year’s cute and furry is Bling Natural. Keep an eye out for squirrels burying designer acorns: platinum and emerald with sapphire-topped white oak acorns;perfect squirrels with modern, elite tastes- or bronze and sliver acorns topped with diamonds for winter snacks that last “forever”.

total amount of time spent: 2hrs.

cost of materials: $0

amount of fun had: $10!!!! Yee Haw! I love these things.

100 Days in the News: day twelve project: I’m a Maverick too!

Welcome to day 12 of the 100 Days in the news project. For 88 more days I will be pulling news stories from my Google reader and making artwork about it!

Today’s News Inspirations are all from Boing Boing ( thanks BB!):

The Maverick Family in Texas Asks: “Who You Callin’ a Maverick?”

Posted by Xeni Jardin, October 6, 2008 9:49 AM

and

Old timey Halloween photos

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, October 6, 2008 9:34 AM

and

Life Incorporated

Posted by rushkoff, October 6, 2008 6:02 AM

Today’s project is a real mash-up of reading and experiences of the last 24 hrs.  I’ve had the flu lately so I’ve been a bit slow about posting things- I’m not so much dying as I am generally slowed down and dealing with several projects at once.

Coming over to a friend’s house last night a neighbor heard he and I complaining about being sick and quickly offered us Airborne and Emergen-C. (note: She is an amazingly sweet neighbor the likes of which I only wish I had) This got me thinking of the vast array of flu cures that have circulated through out the centuries, and about western medicine in general which often treats symptoms rather than causes.

Last year I started thinking about health in a more holistic way and have really felt differences in mental and physical capacities. While I used to see food in terms of a simple fuel to keep me moving I’ve started trying to remind myself that whatever I’m eating will have a broad impact on how I’m feeling, thinking, and moving not only today but potentially weeks or years from now.

What if instead of handing our friends an Emergen-C when they aren’t feeling well we handed them oranges,

mangos or papayas every now and then? Maybe fruits and vegetables need labels too, or school teachers bragging about how gosh-darn good they are. Today’s project gives credit where credit is due.

total time spent: 1hr.

cost of materials: .50

amount of fun had: 6

100 Days in the News: day 11 project: Campaign Poster

Welcome to day 11 of the 100 Days in the news project. For 89 more days I will be pulling news stories from my Google reader and making artwork about it!

Today’s inspiration comes from the Psychology Today blog:

The power of yard signs I: Goal contagion

By Art Markman, Ph.D. on October 05, 2008 in Ulterior Motives

My roommate went to get an Obama yard sign yesterday only to find that they don’t exist in our state. Apparently yard signs are being reserved for states where spending a few extra bucks on a sign will hopefully sway some of the more reluctant voters. We put campaign signage up on our door instead but I was still aching for a yard sign- what can I say? I haven’t been rooting for a candidate this much in a long time.

I was trying to think about how to make a sign more interesting than the predictable schtick of campaign colors and symbolism. I decided to go with a Rubus puzzle in hopes of confusing my neighbors just enough to force us to have a conversation about it.

My original intention was for the sign to read: “I vote for change”, with the word “change” repeated four times to prompt “for” but as I made it I realized it could also read: “I vote for change again and again”

amount of time spent: 1.5 hr

cost of materials: $3

amount of fun had: 7

100 Days in the News: day 10 project: Frontal Cortex Cheesecake

Welcome to day 10 of the 100 Days in the news project. For 90 more days I will be pulling news stories from my Google reader and making artwork about it!

Today’s project is inspired by a blog from the Science Blogs Channel re: a blog called The Frontal Cortex:

Calories are Rewarding

Category: Brain & Behavior
Posted on: October 4, 2008 9:52 AM, by Jonah Lehrer

Today I stumbled across Jonah Lehrer’s blog and appreciated his personally driven interest in understanding what pushes us to eat something even when we are sated. I am always looking for ways to help myself memorize and understand new information and find the best way to do this is to figure out a way to make the information a more elaborate sensory experience i.e. not just sight or sound, but sight + sound+ taste+ touch+etc. I like to figure out how to create these circumstances for myself and am even more interested in passing them on.

Today’s project is proof as to why I would be an amazing parent: a cheesecake boasting an image of the very brain region that tempts us into wanting it in the first place! The brilliant little cheesecake seen below sports a spicy brain of cloves with light brown cinnamon filling in the frontal cortex-the brain region involved in your experience of motivation, reward, attention, cognition and learning to name a few of its many roles. Could it be that this sweet treat could be a quick way to lure a snacker into memorizing valuable information? Can I take a class where my lessons are contained within a meal?

It was as tasty as it is clever if you must know. I doubt this nugget of information will be slipping out of my mind any time soon!

Total amount of time spent: 2hr

total cost: $4

amount of fun had: 9! Because I got to share the cake with my roommate and the dopamine flowed like wine.

100 Days in the News: day nine project: Personalized Currency

Welcome to day 9 of the 100 Days in the news project. For 91 more days I will be pulling news stories from my Google reader and making artwork about it!

Today’s inspirations both come from Boing Boing:

Comfort Dollars

Posted by rushkoff, October 3, 2008 6:21 AM

and

Mackerel economics in prison

Posted by David Pescovitz, October 3, 2008 7:53 AM

Today’s news brings thoughts of alternative currency as the dollar weakens and small loans become unavailable. One of the first few posts I ever added to this blog was about creating local currency so it’s nice to return to this subject. While in some cases local currencies can weaken or isolate a community, in some situations it seems like a useful way to create a more fluid method of bartering among small businesses.

I thought I’d take a shot at creating a currency of my own. Wonder if local coffee shops might give it a try?

total amount of time spent: 1.5 hr

cost of materials: $0

Total amount of fun had: 5

100 Days in the News: day eight project: Floppy Flash! How to make your own!!!

Welcome to day 8 of the 100 Days in the news project. For 92 more days I will be pulling news stories from my Google reader and making artwork about it!

Following yesterday’s post I had some pretty good responses from friends about the snappy concept of the Not So Obsolete project that I’m now renaming the Floppy Flash!

Skimming today’s news I just couldn’t let go of the idea that everything about today might be a message to modify yesterday’s attempt at a cool crafty way to house my boring flash drive!! How to keep to my new project a day requirement?  Beginning grad school several years ago I wrote an essay after my first theory class extolling the virtue and necessity of PLAY as a means to not only learn but to be refreshed as well. I proposed that through play we find space in our lives to not only be creative, but to re-create things which seem fixed and resolved in the world around us. So today’s project is a yesterday’s project with a more informed twist- an effort not to just make something but show how it is made!

Today’s project is inspired by:

The Varieties of Play Match the Requirements of Human Existence

By Peter Gray on October 01, 2008 in Freedom to Learn

and

from Craft Magazine blog:

Pencil and Drawing Pad Holder from Old Jeans

Posted by Natalie Zee Drieu | Oct 1, 2008 08:00 AM

and from MAKE:

Making Austin Weird: Viking Road Boat

Today you have the opportunity to make your very own Floppy Flash!!

You will need:

A flash drive that’s easily opened. I used a 4GB Lexar flash.

Black foam core.

Shiny silver, white, and orange paper.

Glue

Set of keys- err.. you really only need one key.

An x-acto knife- useful for cutting materials, opening flash drive, and hollowing out space in foam core.

LET’S GET STARTED!!!

*Just to help you out I suggest looking at the real 3.5 floppy as you do this or pulling up an image of it as a visual aid yo help you as you work.

Step 1:Crack open that Flash Drive! It feels really good to have the sensation of breaking something when you’re really not. That naked little Flash Drive body is pretty amazing…

Step 2: Cut a 3.5 x 3.5 square out of black foam core. I rounded my corners with an x-acto knife and sanded the edges for smoothness. Measure the body of your naked flash drive and let that tell you how far you want to cut into your square for the part of the Floppy Flash that will be hidden under the faux metal part of the disc.

Step 3: This is where you get to use those keys! I started hollowing out a space in the foam core (carefully!) with an x-acto knife and then finish by pressing down some of the hardest to reach foam with a key. This worked great for me and made sure that the path was clear so my flash drive could slip right in. Start with hollowing out the space for the flash in the small cut-away part of the foam core that will house your flash body.

Step 4: Take small plug-in of your flash drive and push it in to larger part before you begin to cut a place for it. This will help you make sure to put the hole in the right spot. Remember to press down the foam with the key before shoving in your flash- you don’t want to get a bunch of foam up in your flash drive!

Step 5: Now for the fun part. Cut and glue on a fake label for your Floppy Flash. Cut and Add the “metal part” at the top and the certifiably real metal circle of the  back of your floppy disc. Yea! It’s looking really swank at this point!! Write something witty on the label part like “Floppy Flash” or ” Not Obsolete”

Step 6: leave it on your desk and wait for the fun to begin.  Someone wanders by and asks

” Whoa- are you still using these?”

At which point you crack that puppy open and show them the relevant data storage inside!!! Blam!!!

Total Time Spent: 2hrs.

Total Cost of Material: $0

Amount of Fun had: 9!