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So, yeah, the NYC trip was over two months ago. I guess I should post some pictures finally!
The Pan-Am (now Met Life) building as seen from outside Grand Central. Not a shot that will mean anything to most people, but I was very happy to get it.
Yes, I actually paid to go up the Empire State Building. And as cheesy and as horribly over-commercialized as the experience was, I'm really glad I did. The view was simply stunning, a real world Sim City.
Could I visit NYC without seeing the UN? A resounding no.
I took this picture just for the excuse to say "Secretaries General". They were a present from Iran.
This tapestry was a present from Ukraine, in commemoration of Chernobyl. I really want one.
On the tour, we got to sit in the back of the (empty) General Assembly hall. And we got to put on the translation headsets, omg. This picture made my entire day. I was positively bouncing on the way out.
Mailing postcards with UN postage at the UN post office didn't hurt either.
The Edison Museum, not open to the public. (Except it is, now.)
This is the Black Maria mentioned in the TMBG song. Early sound stage (not that they were recording sound then), designed to rotate to follow the sun for natural lighting.
Miniature wax cylinder player for the world's first talking doll.
The old shop was very impressive, of course. We kind of got adopted by a highly enthusiastic volunteer at this point, once he realized that we all had some amount of machining experience. In that slightly frantic must-encourage-younger-people-to-join-my-hobby way that seems to happen so often to me.
These were made to amplify and direct violin/viola sound for recording purposes.
We also got the tour of the Edison mansion.
The world's first home theater system. Literally.
The Transit Museum is really aimed at kids, but on the lower level (it's built into an old subway station) it has a bunch of old subway cars. They're filled with (reproduction?) old ads, some of which are pretty awesome/scary.
Belvedere Castle in Central Park.
Across from MoMA is the entrance to Moria, turns out.
Found at the Met, a combination knife/pistol with a calendar inscribed on the blade. There have always been geeks.
Likewise, this stone knife comes from the Egyptian neolithic. It's not much more than a centimeter thick, and it is absolutely gorgeous. I found it very emotionally moving. It is a highly impractical item, far too delicate for real use. This was made by a craftperson at the height of their skills, for the sole purpose of creating something beautiful. Whoever made it, all those years ago, I wish I could have known them. Despite only having 2.5 hours for the entire Met in order to make my flight, I actually came back to look at this a second time.
The Pan-Am (now Met Life) building as seen from outside Grand Central. Not a shot that will mean anything to most people, but I was very happy to get it.
Yes, I actually paid to go up the Empire State Building. And as cheesy and as horribly over-commercialized as the experience was, I'm really glad I did. The view was simply stunning, a real world Sim City.
Could I visit NYC without seeing the UN? A resounding no.
I took this picture just for the excuse to say "Secretaries General". They were a present from Iran.
This tapestry was a present from Ukraine, in commemoration of Chernobyl. I really want one.
On the tour, we got to sit in the back of the (empty) General Assembly hall. And we got to put on the translation headsets, omg. This picture made my entire day. I was positively bouncing on the way out.
Mailing postcards with UN postage at the UN post office didn't hurt either.
The Edison Museum, not open to the public. (Except it is, now.)
This is the Black Maria mentioned in the TMBG song. Early sound stage (not that they were recording sound then), designed to rotate to follow the sun for natural lighting.
Miniature wax cylinder player for the world's first talking doll.
The old shop was very impressive, of course. We kind of got adopted by a highly enthusiastic volunteer at this point, once he realized that we all had some amount of machining experience. In that slightly frantic must-encourage-younger-people-to-join-my-hobby way that seems to happen so often to me.
These were made to amplify and direct violin/viola sound for recording purposes.
We also got the tour of the Edison mansion.
The world's first home theater system. Literally.
The Transit Museum is really aimed at kids, but on the lower level (it's built into an old subway station) it has a bunch of old subway cars. They're filled with (reproduction?) old ads, some of which are pretty awesome/scary.
Belvedere Castle in Central Park.
Across from MoMA is the entrance to Moria, turns out.
Found at the Met, a combination knife/pistol with a calendar inscribed on the blade. There have always been geeks.
Likewise, this stone knife comes from the Egyptian neolithic. It's not much more than a centimeter thick, and it is absolutely gorgeous. I found it very emotionally moving. It is a highly impractical item, far too delicate for real use. This was made by a craftperson at the height of their skills, for the sole purpose of creating something beautiful. Whoever made it, all those years ago, I wish I could have known them. Despite only having 2.5 hours for the entire Met in order to make my flight, I actually came back to look at this a second time.
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Also: you *are* them. :)
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That radial drill is amazing.
So's the stone knife. Knappers unite!
I was talking to a coworker the other day. He spent a lot of time picking up stone tools in southern Nebraska, as I did in mid-Colorado when I was a kid. He said one way you could tell a scraper, if there was doubt, was how amazingly well they fit your hand -- right or left, as depends on the person who made it. He found three, close together in a low area near the Platte, that didn't fit either hand, but were clearly worked, and they all didn't fit in exactly the same way. He's come to the conclusion the person who made them was born without an index finger. That's a lot fancier knappery than I will ever manage.
The Black Maria is interesting. In some places that's slang for a cop car/paddy wagon.
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Hooray! I have now seen the postbox!