And finally we did see it...

Yeah! after a full day of talking, walking around with material, trying different styles of construction (got a nice cardboard modular construction kit now) we went outside to get to the shopbot... and there it was...
Pictures are taken by hand (no tripod, i'll get one tomorrow) so not so sharp... but hey! It's real polar light!!

Stiff

This morning we started off at a convenient 9.30... because people just keep on working at the lab, they go to bed really late and naturally we have to start later. Just how i like it really...

After breakfast we set down at one of the big tables in the lab, and had an introduction by Haakon (head of fablab, farmer, construction- and electronics-specialist and just general real-nice-person) and after that Neal spoke some time about fablabs and what they are about. We then all did a proper introduction of ourselves and when the time for questions came, Bas (my colleague from the Waag) suddenly came up with this idea to make a sort of 'modular house' with integrated power supply and network. This was received with so much enthusiasm, that we are now part of the 'stiff' team... 'Space, the final frontier' (yeah i know...).

We are already designing the way it should look and work (working with wood here, we are not going to use any steel, no bolts or whatsoever) and have have just picked up some lexan (don't know if the spelling is right, it's a sort of layered thin plexi) to use for tests with some light.

Yesterday, before we went to bed, we had a talk with two of the guys already working here (and they showed us the shopbot, talk about your cool tool). They were really surprised on the issue we had with the laser cutter back in Holland. They completely agreed that brand of cutter is not an issue, and for the matter of software compatibility, they said 'making sure that it is compatible is part of the fablab!' and they sort of laughed about the whole thing...

So for now i'll continue on our design rules of the house we are going to build (of which i'll tell more later on).
By the way, we had a nice walk in the snow, but no polar light yet, for it's clouded...

Snow!

So we have arrived in the lab! And there is snow, polar light (i have been promised, haven't seen it yet) a lot of beautiful wooden lodges, in one of which we can get to sleep this night.
About that, when we landed in Tromso (good flight by the way, no delays) the cabin crew said; "Have a pleasant afternoon" after which we walked into complete darkness... There is light here (pay attention, light, no sun) between 9:30 and 14:00... between that... complete darkness.

So here at the lab there are a lot of people from all over the world, and we have just been talking to some guys from Norway, who are planning to start a couple of labs further down... fun thing is, when we arrived everybody came to us, to meet and greet (and ask where we are from) and then just went on with whatever they were doing... really used to visitors i guess. But it somehow makes you feel at home, like, nobody tells you what to do (we had to ask for a place to sleep) or where to get coffee (found that soon enough tough).

So great place, really nice people, beautiful scenery (mountains, fjords, little lights on the sides between the threes...)
But now i smell pizza, so more later on...

loose ends

So. from here on this blog will be in english, for tomorrow i will leave for Norway to stay at the Fablab there for four weeks... and since all communication there will be english (or, perhaps, norwegian)...

Why, then, am i going to Norway for a month? Well, the Waag Society is sending me there to follow a course about all fablab related. So we will be learning about the machines, the material, various ways of construction and realization and of course things like human resources and communication with local institutions (schools, SME, etc.) in relation to the Lab.

here i will post all my experiences, together with all the technical stuff they (Americans, norwegians and i believe, some people from Kenia) will teach us.
So not all will be nice bedtime reading that is to appear on this blog. I will try, though, to include some stuff about polar bears, glaciers and darkness (of which we will have a lot).

Commenting (specially to things technical) is not frowned upon. It's always good to be asked for explanations, for it helps to put the matter learned in the proper context.

For now, i'll continue wrapping up here at Pakhuis de Zwijger... and probably laser some acrylic this afternoon... you just can't get enough acrylic with cool designs...

En jawel!

Wellicht hebben mensen deze vorige post van mij gelezen...

Wat blijkt? Ik heb het potverkaatje bij het spreekwoordelijke rechte eind!

google komt inderdaad met google health, or so they say op weer deze site...

Ben benieuwd waneer alle hypogonders onder ons kunnen gaan genieten van deze geweldige service.

Magistraal toch? Als je arts alleen maar loopt te klagen dat je niet zo vaak bij hem moet aankloppen met weer je nieuwe onbestaande kwaal, vul je gewoon bij google je symptomen in, en volia! je weet waar je bang voor moet denken te zijn de komende tijd! Last van hartkloppingen? kortademig? tintelende vingers? U gaat dood! Ja! Dood!

Maar dan ongetwijveld genuanceerder. Lijkt me heerlijk trouwens, genuanceerd dood gaan.

Zacht, bijna onhoorbaar, rilt de waterkoker op het aanrecht.
Iets tikt tegen de ruit.
Niet dat ik kijk wat het is.
Nee.
Niet dat ik kijk.

De onvermijdelijke zachte tik, klinkt als een laatste slag.
De oude klok.
Zal nooit meer lopen.
Te laat.
Is hoe laat het is.

Mijn pinkt tikt, zonder opdracht.
Een cashewnoot rolt op de grond.
Ligt stil en onopgegeten.
Vooral heel erg.
Onopgegeten.

Mijn glas dampende thee staart.
Pathetischer, zo mogelijk, dan ik.
Ik voel de ogen van mijn demiurg.
Prikken.
Vanuit zelfverzonnen kassen.

Ketens vormen zich alweer in de wolk boven mijn nek.
Als de achterkant.
Van een Morisot.
Leeg.
Maar, als alles, met een keerzijde.

En hee, bovendien, iedereen gaat dood, uiteindelijk. Duveltje nog maar dan.

Vroeger, en de daarbijbehorende onschuld.

Vroeger, en de daarbijbehorende onschuld.

Wat rolt het mooi! Als ik er tegen aan schop!
Heel diep zwart is het. Zwarter dan mijn moeder haar mooie jurk.
Aan een kant glimmen spikkels. Nat is die kant.
Als ik goed uithaal met de glimmende punt van mijn schoenen (nieuw!) dan spatten er kleine druppels weg.

Zal ik het laten zien aan haar? Mischien kan ik het wel naar haar huis rollen!
Zal haar moeder weer vlechten hebben gemaakt? Krijg ik weer ranja!
Zal ze haar jurkje dragen? Mischien wil ze wel meespelen!

Dan kunnen we allebij langs de straat staan.
En dan schop ik het naar haar. En zij schopt het dan terug.
En dan komen we onder de spatten te zitten. Haar jurkje diep rood.
Zo een mooie dode vogel heeft zij vast ook nog nooit gezien.