Carnival Weekend

Well, I had a good Carnival weekend. 4 days of no work, got some things done on the apartment, and 4 days of riding.

Everyday I went out and rode from about 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM. Lots of sun, lots of fun. I rode the Litespeed exclusively. I don't ride it as much as the Merlin. It took me a day of riding the Litespeed to get used to it again. It is a size larger than the Merlin (19" vs. 18") and has flat bars as opposed to risers, and it has a full compliment of gears; XT-9 speed (34-11) in the rear and 3 in the front vs. the Merlin's 18T ENO and 32T Black Spire up front.

The latest mod on the Litespeed is I swapped the stem. I had the generic 100 mm stem from the Merlin available because now its sporting a new 100 mm (105 degree) Thomson. The stem on the Litespeed was a 130 mm (0 degree) Zoom. I felt too stretched out with it and wanted to try a shorter set-up. I like the 100 mm length. Now I'll have to buy a second Thomson for the Litespeed.

Saturday, an electrician came and installed two new light fixtures; one in the living room and the other in the kitchen. They are killer looking! He also installed 5 dimmer switches, so now all out main lights are on dimmers which is a nice touch. I need to find brighter bulbs for the kitchen fixture. I didn't realize it, but the fixture is European so it is set up as a 220 V (60 Hz) application. Venezuela uses 110 V (60Hz) like the USA, so my kitchen lights are dim. I am thinking of ways to solve this problem, maybe the best will be to see if I can swap out bulbs. Either that or modification.

My wife is starting to understand my vision of the apartment. It is starting to look pretty swanky. I like it a lot!

The rest of the 4-day weekend was low key. Just lots of bike riding.

This coming weekend; more apartment stuff on Saturday, maybe Merlin riding on Sunday.
MM

Whinner

I am such a whinner. I shouldn't complain so much about what happened. I've been at the Tigre school for a week now, and the students are way cool. I like them a bunch, especially my middle schoolers (but that is my favorite age group anyway).
I spent a weekend at my place in Lecheria. It is nice to have a place to go home to. I've never really have had a place like that before, owning my own place, that is. Its a good feeling. I love my little apartment.
Fred came down from New Mexico and headed to Margarita for the month. Hopefully, Tania and I will get over there for a visit. We don't do Margarita very often.
I am feeling much better!

Kite Boarding

I got a new digital camera at Christmas. I bought the latest Canon ELPH, the SD1000. It is the size of a tin of Altoids, so I carry it with me everywhere.

As you can read from my previous posts, I am not really living in PLC anymore until work is done in June (coming to El Tigre was a mistake BTW). This was what I watched everyday when I got home. I'd watch these guys skim back and forth on the water.

Anyway, what I enjoy about digital photography is the instant gratification and the ability to tweek images via computer. The images posted are from outside my condo. The first one was from the apartment window in which I had the camera on a color swap setting.

With the others, I went down to the beach and got some action shots of these guys having some fun with their kite boards. They do this everyday.

Life is too short to be stuck in Tigre.

Maldita Bicicleta!

Watched this great movie yesterday dubbed in Spanish but from Quebec (so Canadians help out here since I didn’t see the title credits) that was about a woman mtn bike downhill racer-turned-bicycle messenger. Through the course of the movie, she stumbles upon a curmudgeonly bike shop owner, Leonardo, an ex-pro from the Eddy Merckx era, who eventually becomes her mentor, teaching her things like; old traditions (wool), Campagnolo, and the beauty of a hand-built wheel.

The best scene is when she is suffering on her bike when on her deliveries, she goes to Leonardo’s for some comfort. They end up telling each other how much they have suffered because of the bike. The best line of the movie is when Leonardo points to the classic Italian road bike hanging in the rafters of the shop, and yells at it “Maldita bicicleta!” Which can be translated as “F***’n bicycle!”

How have you suffered because of the bike? Both physically and emotionally. Worst case is probably death, or crippled, but how has the bike shaped you?

Physical Pain and Suffering

- Broken wrist from crashing my Schwinn Stingray when I was about 9 years old.
- Left index finger: nerve damage…from when I was about10 years old. Doing maintenance on the front hub of my Stingray, when I cut my finger bad, never told anyone, just put the skin flap back on, wrapped it real tight to stop the bleeding and then put a band aid on it. It still bothers me to this day…kind of tingles and itches, and doesn’t have the sensitivity of my other fingertips.
- Heavy scarring of both elbows from multiple crashes on the Stingray and other bikes…especially a bad crash on the first road bike in the early 70’s.
- Permanent trucker’s and cyclist’s tan.
- Chipped tooth from face plant on my new Fisher ProCaliber summer of 1988. Still have the emergency bonding on the tooth 20 years later, and it is starting to wear down, so one tooth looks slightly longer than the other. I need to get it capped some day.
- Sever concussion and neck injury. I woke up in the hospital…cost me over $3000 (at time when I had no insurance) in 1995. I don’t have full range of motion in my neck when turning my head to the left.
- “Cyclist’s neck”…a physical therapist pointed this one out. My head is out of normal alignment from my body. It kind of juts forward because of the muscles in the neck are over developed due to riding posture.
- Hyper-extended right elbow about 3 years ago when I crashed on Steiner’s Rohloff-equipped bike (steep head angle plus twist shift made for twitchy ride and an unfamiliar grip on the bar) on the Quaking Aspen Trail in Gallup. Rode back to the car using only one arm. Never went to the doctor…it still hurts when I ride…a dull pain in my right elbow.

Emotional Suffering and/or Guilt Feelings
- It is mostly what I think about…my bikes, wanting to ride my bike, where to ride my bike, etc…
- Alone time…I like being alone. The bike is perfect that.
- Relationships have suffered. My wife is understanding but still doesn’t get it. She got up out of bed and went to watch TV when I started writing this…(it was 2:00 AM when I started this)
- My professional career. I became a school teacher so I could ride my bike. My grandfather told me one day in 1982, “Boy…The only job what I can think of where you can ride that bike 180 days a year is school teach’n.” Good advice, so I took him up on the offer. I like my job, but sometimes I think I don’t have the passion for it like some teachers and I feel guilty about it. My real passion is still my bicycle.
- Sleeplessness…see above.

Out of the Frying Pan...

Yesterday was my last day. It was okay. The students made a surprise party for me during the last period of the day. I knew something was up but not the whole school. I was speechless...literally.

My former high school students were great! They hugged and cheered me. They made me posters. The best poster, I am going to frame. It was made by Nestor, Miguel, Eduardo, Andres, and Adam. It is a collage of everything they learned from me. There is a drawing of me in a lab coat riding a bicycle in a kayak with Tio (my parrot) on my shoulder while holding test tubes. There is a drawing of me in the bow of the boat for the Project b-Eagle. There is a drawing of my Leatherman, the ultimate science tool. There are photos of the Earthdial, me in wearing a PFD (personal floatation device) on our way to the Beach Olympics. A photo of me giving Carlos a certificate for winning the science fair. There is a drawing of a water rocket and a photo of me launching the rockets. They drew Chinoto (named for Venezuelan version of Sprite softdrink) and Hit Naranja (named for an orange soda like Orange Crush), our fish who died. We had a dramatic funeral for Chinoto when he died. I had it on video on my other computer. Hilarious! They remembered reading Abel's Island. They say it is the only book they have truly read and remember. They learned to love that book as much as I do.

When I could finally speak, we started reminiscing on all the cool projects we did. I told the students I learned right along with them. I came to ELA with science credentials, but I learned right along with them, i.e. when we built the wind tunnel. I had never built one before and it was fun figuring out how to do it. I also pointed out that so many projects we started had become traditions; water rockets, ice cream, etc. I thought the Project b-Eagle could have become big, but the school changed and we couldn't continue. But I feel it could have evolved into a huge, major, on-going project.

During this reminiscing, H. (the director) interrupted me, but I ignored her. I just kept talking. She doesn't have a clue what we did as ELA. More and more today, I saw that she viewed me as some kind of threat and was in a hurry to get rid of me. Petty woman!

I am frustrating by this BS of teaching...especially corporate thinking of teaching. I am not a corporate type thinker and least not education company XYZ type thinking. You should read some of their policies...they border on ridiculous! Example: 1. Teachers are not allowed to smoke at work, in public, or at home. 2. XYZ only hires non-smokers. What? What are they? NAZIS? I don't smoke, I don't like smoking, but what right do they have to say what I do in my house? There is nothing about drug abuse, pornography, or alcohol abuse...only smoking. That's nuts! During the interview (I wasn't interviewed, I was grandfathered in…) I have been told, they ask you if you believe in God. I don't know how I would answer that question. That's a very personal question to ask.

Anyway...I think I'll wrap it up with them at this outpost school and figure out what to do from there.

Other news from Friday…
Today I talked to a Ms. V., the new principal at my first school. She was very friendly to me. I told her who I was, that I was researching their website and that I was proud to see that Kialo F. was now the Gifted and Talented teacher. Kialo was one of my students from the 1980s and still to this day, he was one of my most outstanding! Ms. V. said Kialo was wonderful. She told me the school has changed status, a grant school, but also a magnet type school, and they want to make the school an innovative and special place. I asked if I could apply and she said by all means. I told her to talk to the "old people" who are still there from the days when I was there, especially Kialo. She said she would. So maybe...If I teach in the USA it will be back to some place like Torreon. Going back to Torreon (see Matthew’s blog on the GDR about the lawless reservation) could be interesting. I am hoping to get Kialo's e-mail so I can get the scoop.

As far as other jobs go, I am seriously thinking of it. I am thinking more and more about the bike industry again. I am making more and more contacts via the Internet. I am getting my name and the Mimbres Man name and logo back out there...who knows. I am getting all sorts of encouragement from all sorts of people to come back and work in the industry. Still scary but maybe…

Yep, Steiner is right…limitless possibilities.

ELA is Dead...Long Live ELA!

Teaching is hard. I am in my 20th year of doing this…not counting a 4-year break. It never gets any easier…

My situation has been somewhat unusual. The last 8 years have been overseas. I have been working in a school that gives only one-year contracts which is not unusual. What is unusual is my school was bought by an international corporation 4 years ago. This corporation has several dozen schools in dozens of countries around the world. They have their own brand of curriculum and own brand of assessment. All schools are supposed to be on the same page at any given time. To me it is a very inflexible way of thinking, but that’s just my opinion.

This corporation also prefers teaching couples over single teachers. They don’t even provide basic insurance for my wife.

Last year they hired a new teaching couple. The wife was hired as an English/language arts teacher and the husband was hired as a math/science teacher. Funny thing was, I was already was the science teacher, so I was moved to teach 5th and 6th graders. This was mainly due to a large drop in the student population. It has steadily shrunk since the corporation bought the school.

We’ve also had 3 directors in 4 years. The latest director, a woman, is nothing but trouble. She is at her level of incompetence. I got word from her last Friday that I would not be getting a new contract for next year. I don’t know if she got orders from above or if she was acting on her own, but anyway, in the place where I have bought a home, have a residency visa, I will no longer be working.

To complicate matters more, our sister school, 80 miles inland, needs a science teacher and math teacher, since their previous science teacher/director was recently deported, and took his math teacher wife with him. So as of Monday, I will be the math and science teacher at this outpost school far away from the coast and my home. My wife is pissed.

The real losers in this are the students. My class will have to adjust to having several teachers covering them. The 3rd and 4th grade teacher will take over reading and language arts. To teach 2 grade levels at once is difficult, but to teach 4 different levels, has got to be almost impossible. The other teachers, who need their prep-times to prepare for their other classes, will now be teaching math and science to my old class. So, everyone suffers.

What I have found the most insulting from this, is the cold nature in which my current director has treated me on jumping on this grenade. She comes out smelling like a rose in this.

This morning she had snacks in the teacher’s workroom for a “Bon Voyage” for me. It was so lame, it was insulting.

1.) No staff was aware of this. We are a very small school, it would have taken no effort to rally the staff to have a little impromptu gathering in the morning. At least I could have said a few things.

2.) The presentation was totally half-ass. The “sign” above the snacks said, “Good Luck Barin” written with a used-up white board marker, so the ink was barely legible. It was so insensitive. It was just one more slap in the face with this. It was as if the director was saying “Don’t let the door hit you in the ass as you leave!”

I am glad I am leaving this school. I made this school a part of my life for the last 7 years. I defended and cheered this school. I was proud to work here, and now I am being treated like rubbish and being tossed out as such. I will finish up the school year at our sister school and I don’t know what’s in store for me after that. Maybe I’ll be heading back to the USA or staying here and taking a year off. I am uncertain of many things right now, but what I am certain of, I will be okay.

No worries.

Weekend Rambles

Saturday morning I rode my Litespeed for the first time since August. What a blast! That bike still amazes me. Everytime I get on it, it amazes me how silky smooth it really is. The Merlin is harsh and tight in comparision.

After the bike ride and lunch, Tania and I drove to Anaco to take her sister and infant niece back. Things went pretty good. For the most part, I ended up hunkered down in the air conditioned bedroom watching pirate DVDs. That said, things are getting worse in Anaco economic-wise and crime-wise.

On our way back home, we decided to take a different route. We returned via Araqua de Barcelona where we had lunch, then drove on a questionable "highway" that was potholed and dirt for a 6 km section. After that it smoothed out okay. It was a scenic drive, but I was tired when we got back.

Friday Afternoon

Just about to head out. Not sure what the plan is...Probably more of the same. Just another weekend in paradise.

Went for a bike ride with Jacques yesterday. I, of course, rode the Merlin SS. I was able to clean some stuff I hadn't before, plus when sprinting for beers, I was able to suck his wheel for a ways. I was doing 40 kph (25 mph) on my SS! Fast for a 32:18 gear ratio.

Yeeha!

More on Single Speeding

Boy howdy, now every time I ride the Merlin, I just get all spacey and zoned out. I come back from a ride feeling euphoric and happy, but there are chunks of the ride I can't account for. Certain parts of my latest rides are just total blanks. It is really strange. This used to happen every so often, but now it’s almost an every ride event.

I don't know if this is because the bike is so familiar and now so simple I don't have to think about anything. No anticipating a gear change or anything...its just pedaling. Now I think I am seeing the true appeal of single speeding.

Another aspect of single speeding is the weight of the bike. The Merlin probably weighs less than 22 lbs. I think it weighs about 20 lbs now. It is feathery light…less than 10% of my body weight. It is so fun! I did an out-and-back section yesterday, and when I turned the bike around, just lifting it up between my legs and doing a 180, it was incredibly light feeling. It is fun to flick the bike around. I can easily make the rear end fishtail around a bit.

Lots of fun for sure!

Happy 100th Birthday Grandmother!

My grandmother turns 100 years old today. She was born in Arkansas on September 26, 1907.

My grandmother has been very important in my life. She is the matriarch of the family. Anything I did in my life, I felt, in my own way, I needed to keep her proud.

Her husband, my grandfather, was a great man too. He was an educator in Arkansas for something like 60 years! He's the one that influenced me in going into education as a career. Granddaddy was born in 1903 and died in 1990. He lived a good and full life.

Grandmother is still sharp for a woman of 100. Though now blind, she still lives independently in a small house across the street from my mom's in New Mexico. She even enjoys a belt of Wild Turkey Kentucky bourbon every now and then.

Anyway, I just want to wish my grandmother the happiest of days!

(the photo is from July 2006)

A Flow State

I had the strangest bike ride yesterday. I was riding with a friend (a newbie), a guy I work with. This morning I told him something like this..."I don't remember our ride from the point just after passing the Corsa till we reached the exit of the tree tunnel. What happened there?"

He was surprised! "You don't remember?", he asked. "We were racing! You were spinning out on your single speed. I looked over at you and your legs were spinning really fast. I was getting tired trying to keep up. We slowed down at the tree tunnel."

I have been riding my Merlin SS (single speed) exclusively for a month now. My Merlin is old (as far as mtn bikes go), a 1996 frame. Its fully rigid (no suspension) and its like an old friend. It fits me like a glove. I converted this bike to single speed about a year ago.

More and more I seem to be reaching this flow state which did happen before, but now it happens very often on this old single speed. This was the first time it happened while riding with someone else (I think). Usually I am alone when it happens. It is a trip! I don't know if its the bike since being a single speed, I don't have to think about shifting and so on.

Does this happen to anyone else?

Latest Book...

I am currently reading Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded; August 27, 1883. Written by Simon Winchester, its a book about geology, economy, politics, and religion. Very interesting. Highly recommended.

Scotland!!! Bridge of Allen and Stirling

I milled around the village of Bridge of Allen for a few days. I had planned on going south to ride the Seven Stanes, but the rains returned, I was freaked about hunting for a place to stay, worried about getting back to the Edinburgh airport on time, and I was generally concerned about my expenses. I decided to lay low and just wait till my return trip.

John Will was with me a few days. We stayed at a couple of B & B's, hit the pubs, and after a couple of days, he flew back to the USA. I also had to find a new place to stay and ended up at a cheap hotel.

I walked around a lot. I walked to the Wallace Monument. I climbed the stairs, I walked around part of the University of Stirling, then I discovered the bus line that would take me downtown Stirling.

Stirling was/is a nice city. Very clean, very friendly. I stumpled upon a genuine Scottish pub, The Claymore. Being the only "Yank" in the place, I was treated with curiosity and friendliness. I met some real Scottish characters. Lots of fun! After 3 pints, I decided I better leave, and I meant to return but I never did. Instead I walked to the castle.

That is how I spent my days in Bridge of Allen and Stirling.

Scotland!!! The Bike Trip, Part VI, 10 Aug 2007

It’s the last day of the bike tour and kind of a sad day. This day we rode pavement all the way to Montrose. It was a short ride, but scenic. We were out of the Highlands and into rolling farm country.

In our exuberance and competitiveness, we missed a turn, so we approached Montrose from slightly north instead of from the west. I guess it worked. We found our way to the beach on the North Sea. Took a few photos, packed the Litespeed in its box, ate some lunch at a local diner, and eventually loaded everything into the van, then loaded ourselves onto a small bus for our trip back to Stirling.

Scotland!!! The Bike Trip, Part V, 9 Aug 2007

From Garnshiel, we did a great section of pavement to the town of Balleter. It was a beautiful place. After visiting the local ATM (cash supply running out), we continued down the road to a "royal horse trough". I don't know what else to call it. Apparently Queen Victoria loved riding her horses through the Scottish glens and mountains. Scattered here and there are horse troughs for her majesty's mounts.

From the royal horse trough, we off roaders took off up Glen Tanar. Story goes, that Glen Tanar is the most pristine glen in Scotland. It still has all of its trees! The owner of the land, bought his trees back from the government during WWII. He saved the trees so they wouldn't be made into troop carriers or Mosquito fighter/bombers.

Up the glen we rode, and on the shoulder of Mount Keen (939 meters), Scotland's eastern most monro (a monro is a mtn that is over 3000 ft or 918 meters). It was about a mile of hike-a-biking then onto top. The ride across the heather was fairly easy, then a screaming descent! We rode pavement (ugh) into Edzel for our last night on the bikes. One more day to the North Sea!

Scotland!!! The Bike Trip, Part IV, 8 Aug 2007

From Tomitoul, it was a nice ride up one glen, over a divide and down another. We ended our day at a nice hunting lodge at Garnshiel.

Scotland!!! The Bike Trip, Part III, 7 Aug 2007

Day three, we rode from Kinguisse (famous for its shinty championships) to the whisky town of Tomiltoul. This was technically the most demanding of days with a lot of varied terrain. We rode through the heart of the Cairngorms; forded steams, climbed hills, blasted down two track, rode single track across heather-filled bogs, and up and over a technical scree slope (I almost cleaned it, but bobbled near the top in the brick-sized/shaped rocks). The town of Tomiltoul the second highest village in Scotland and is on the Whisky Trail. I bought two bottles of single-malt (one was given to my mother's husband, and other was enjoyed at the SPC...but more on that later).
The bikes were pretty thrashed after this day. I had broken a spoke on the Litespeed, plus my brake pads were wearing down quickly. Darn those V-brakes!

Scotland!!! The Bike Trip, Part II, 6 August 2007

Rode through a beautiful glen to Kingussie. Kingussie was a nice place.

Scotland!!! The Bike Trip. Part I, 5 Aug 2007

I signed on with Wildcat Adventures out of Stirling for a Trans-Scotland mountain bike trip. It was a good outfit, very professional. We started in Strontian, a small village on a western inlet. From their we pedaled along Loch Sheil to Glenfinnen by lunch, then finally to Spean Bridge for our first night. I was bonking by the time I reached Spean Bridge, but a pint of Guiness at the Commando Bar solved that problem.

Scotland!!! (Edinburgh)

August 1, I flew to Edinburgh. I actually arrived on the morning of August 2.

Summer Update Part I

July 12: I flew to Miami direct from Barcelona, Venezuela via Avior Airlines! No need to deal with Caracas anymore! Yeeha! It was a great flight on an older 737. In Miami, I cleared customs then checked my bike and my bag onto Continental Airlines on to El Paso, TX. It was a very quick and smooth journey from my place in Lecheria to El Paso.

July 13 - 31: Hung out in Silver City with friends and family. It was too muddy to mtn bike but I did do some road biking and got my butt kicked. Drove to Fence Lake to look at property but decided it was too expensive for what and where it was. Drove up to Gallup to see Stan-the-Man! He's one of my favorite friends. Great guy! Then over to Corrales and Albuquerque to see Jim, Roma, as well as my son Kyle.

I took Kyle on a little road trip up the Jemez Canyon, then over to Cuba, NM. Cuba was part of my old territory from 20 years past, then drove down to Torreon, NM to show Kyle my first community where I started my teaching career in 1985. It is still a beautiful place. I even ran into some of my old students! These guys were now in their 30's! Nuts!

Also during this time, I drove to Phoenix to see RUSH in concert. Stan gave me a free ticket and we met there at the Cricket Pavillion. It was a good show. The next day I drove up to Black Canyon City to see my good friend Mike. Its always good to see Mike. We did a couple of rides together then I had to get back to Silver City to get ready for Scotland!

Back in Black!

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I left for the USA on July 12 and returned to Venezuela August 23. While in New Mexico, my Internet access was marginal since my mom only had dial-up and it was frustratingly slow. My wife and I moved into our new place, but we haven't got a land line so no Internet access there either.

A quick update since its been a month...

Life is better now...summer vacation and a new place to live.

We are living in the new apartment eventhough we don´t have a functioning kitchen yet. We still love it! Its ours!

Lots of problems to solve here and there.

I leave for the USA on Thursday. Look for regular updates.

Condo Progress

I haven't posted in a few days so I thought I'd give an update of what's going on.

The condominium progresses...We actually started the process in getting it livable. New condos in Venezuela are basically empty shells and it is up to the owner to finish the interior.

There are several projects Tania and I are dealing with; 1. Central air conditioning needs to be bought and installed. 2. We needed to decided what type of flooring, buy the material and have it installed. 3. Design a kitchen, buy appliances, and have installed. 4. Closets need to be built and installed. 5. Furniture, we have very little of, and need to buy more.

Its seems, unfortunately, phases 1 and 2 have had a clash. Just as we get our expensive porcelin tiles being laid down, the air conditioning guys show up pushing down several tiles which needed to be replaced. Each tile cost $7.00.

We needed to buy our appliances by the end of the month and this is pretty much done. We have bought all of the major appliances; Whirlpool refrigerator w/icemaker, Teka (from Spain) 4-burner gas range top, Teka gas/electric oven w/rotisser, Teka exhaust hood, Teka SS sinks (below top design) and "Italian" faucet. We are still needing to buy a washer and drier. Looks like we mostly have a "Teka" kitchen.

The floor should be done this week. We asked the air conditioning guys not to show up until the floor was finished. The kitchen counter/cabinet/countertop contractor is scheduled to measure the area on Wednesday and it is scheduled to be installed the first week in July.

I need to head to the USA sometime in mid-July. We need to be out of our current apartment by Aug 1, but we plan to move as soon as the floor and a/c are in. The bathrooms are finished so we will use a hotplate and "camp out" for a while.

Video from Anaco rocket launch

Video from Anaco rocket launch. George and Gary took on the roles of the Soviets (a.k.a. Russian) in our space race. I took on the role of the Americans in the race. My rocket didn't work...it went up okay, but the parachute did not deploy. They had 5 out of 6 parachute deployments, hence the "superior Russian technology".

Parachute Failure

Had a water rocket competition today with another school. We decided to have an egg loft competition. The rival school had a simple gravity release, whereas I decided to go with a more complex chemical release which has worked in the past. (I'll be posting video later.)

My vinegar and Alka-Selzer release didn't work, so my egg-tronaut (Egg-ar Mitchell) had a rough landing, but still survived because of my cradle design.

I am going to redesign the same mechanism, instead of vinegar and antacid, I am going two other chemicals that should give a violent reaction.

Just more weirdness.

Scotland?

Well I did it...I used PayPal and paid the balance on my Scotland mountain biking trip. EGADS! Refrigerator for the condo or Scotland? Both! I'm going to Scotland!

Pinhole Photography

Pinhole photography is something that I've been interested in for a long time, but have never spent much time reseaching or practicing. I made my first working pinhole camera about 10 years ago from an oatmeal box and using photographic paper. My recent attempts have been associated with my physics classes. Two weeks ago, my two physics students and I made cameras. I had them do as much as their own work as possible. They made their own pinholes, we tried to determine the diameter and focal lengths, then tried take some pictures.

These images came from a camera with a pinhole diameter of about 0.3mm and a focal length of 5cm. I used Kodak 110, ASA 400 film. The shutter was heavy black paper hinged with scotch tape. All 24 frames had an image. These aren't perfect images but this camera has been my most successful to date.