Old Star Wars Figure

January 22, 2016writingsStar WarsMike

“What is up Uncle Zack?” – Pole Position

January 20, 2016the mindlabPole PositionMike

This audio clip is from DIC’s Pole Position cartoon that aired in the ’80s. I canned it months back so that I could share it with a friend. At the time, it struck me as quite heavy and yet light in that ’80s way, when chatter turns to biological warfare. Mind you, this is Pole Position. With that said, “What’s up Uncle Zack?”

Pen and Ink

January 20, 2016the mindlabMike

Two pen and ink drawings.

Apes on ponies

January 13, 2016the mindlabTim

I think it was 10th grade English (maybe 11th) where we learned that back in the days of Shakespeare, one of the spectacles people used to attend for entertainment was ‘apes on ponies.’ I think the idea was that you tied an ape to the top of a pony and watched it destroy the pony.

The phrasing of this always made us laugh. I have never seen another reference to ‘apes on ponies’ in my life.

BREAKING UPDATE — Apparently I finally figured out what to search for. The ‘sport’ is horse baiting or bear-baiting.

A Spanish nobleman of the time, who was taken to see a pony baited that had an ape tied to its back, expressed himself to the effect that “to see the animal kicking amongst the dogs, with the screaming of the ape, beholding the curs hanging from the ears and neck of the pony, is very laughable.” (from Encyclopædia Britannica 3, 1910)

People have always been awful.

New Super 8 camera

January 6, 2016the mindlabFilmTim

I’m not going to write much about this other than to say it’s pretty cool. A new Super 8 camera from Kodak! It looks pretty neat with a lot of modern features.

Kodak Super 8 Camera

Looks like it will in the $400-750 range.

Hidden Falls Regional Park, St. Paul, MN

December 31, 2015mediaMinnesota, soundscapeMike

This audio of Hidden Falls Park in St. Paul was recorded on the afternoon of December 30, 2015. There are four locations. The first is by the Mississipi; the crackling sound is water lapping ice. The second spot is amid a circle/shit-ton of crows; some other birds attempt to join in near the end. The third and forth locations are, respectively, at the stream approaching the falls and then at the falls. The falls, it might be mentioned, appear to be the result of a drainage pipe. While Minnehaha Falls across the way is more parky-scenic-photograph-your-kids-by/in/etc., Hidden Falls is more St. Pauly-paul.

NE Minneapolis, December 29, 2015

December 29, 2015mediaMinneapolis, Minnesota, soundscapeMike

This audio of NE Minneapolis was recorded on December 29, 2015 between 7:45 and 8:15 PM. The neighborhood is pretty quiet, perhaps due to a snow earlier in the day. There are two vantage points in the recording: the first with me closer to a vent and the second with me further away. In addition to a couple cars, a plane or two, you can hear someone hammering on a house, a child, some dogs, and near the end of the track, rather excitingly, someone start a car and let it warm up for a minute-and-a-half before pulling away.