almost goodbye/Skinner Box

[gfish]

So, yeah, I kind of switched to using Google Plus as my main blogging substitute. Look me up there, if you haven't already. I'm still not officially decommissioning my LJ, but it sure does seem inevitable at this point. Kind of sad, I was hoping to make an even 10 years.

But I can't resist posting this, the demo video of the Skinner Box I've been working on for the last few weeks. It is a new level of ridiculous contraption for me!

Comments

[slantiness.livejournal.com]

Woah, people are still using google plus? I thought that thing fizzled out. Haven't been there in weeks.

Box looks cool. And I like the sign.

[gement.livejournal.com]

Aw man. If you can see a way to keep x-posting, please do. I can only remember to keep up with one network at a time, which is why I'm only on Facebook when someone tags me in a picture. (I love being tagged in pictures; it keeps them where I can find them.) Most of my social network still has serious LJ inertia and I don't know how to jump without losing people.

[gement.livejournal.com]

Also I totally want a Skinner Box for my living room now. I will make it dispense cranberry juice or something.

[gfish.livejournal.com]

If you're serious, I'll be looking for storage space for it in another couple of weeks. I'd just need to be able to get it a couple times a year...

[gement.livejournal.com]

I'd actually like to try it out for at least a few weeks. I could feel my brain responding just watching the video, and I need more cardio and less time succumbing to Flash games, which push the same button.

[gfish.livejournal.com]

I did try to work in as many little addictive game tricks as possible. :)

We can work out getting it over to you after I'm back from the Burn and have had a chance to clean it up.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

I'm in the same boat; I thought Google Plus had yet to meaningfully find its feet, and I'm not all that interested in committing to another social network when so many of my friends have already tried it and rejected it as unsuited to their needs and interests. But I will really miss seeing what you're up to. This video certainly gave me a grin.

[gfish.livejournal.com]

I'll try to keep posting big stuff like this here. Do you follow the @attoparsec feed? I update it fairly regularly as I'm working on stuff.

[encapsulate.livejournal.com]

Hey! are you going to Burning Man this year?

If so: Do you know where you're going to be?

[gfish.livejournal.com]

I am! But I don't. We're camping loose this year, hoping to find space around 5:00 and F. We'll register at playa info under Camp Strowler.

[encapsulate.livejournal.com]

I just watched the video. VERY rad.

So I'm going... my ladyfriend has been passing words with Mssr. Hoit about where he can be found. I'll keep a lookout for you. We'll be around 8:45 and A with Blackrock Shuttle Cock. Most likely I'll be tooling around on a unicycle in a pith helmet.

This, from what I am given to understand, is a fairly accurate description of average people at Burning man. In that way, it's probably useless information.

Hope to see you there!

[gfish.livejournal.com]

Well, you won't stand out as much as you would in just about any other context, true. But I'll still keep an eye out for you. Would be awesome to meet up.

During the day I'll normally be on my electric-assist beach cruiser with solar charging panels. Or on the Kalamazoo hand car, which will be much more visible, but it's so slow I doubt I'll have it out too often. At night I'll be the guy with a helmet with 3-6 wobbly lasers mounted on it. (Unless I get copycats this year, then I'll be one of the people etc etc.) Or wearing a jumpsuit with 21 rings of el wire flashing up and down.

I like to be visible, I guess. :)

[gfish.livejournal.com]

I stopped by but I couldn't find your camp. Sorry. :(

[encapsulate.livejournal.com]

Turns out we were more at like 8:10 and A, we were hidden from the road behind our badminton court and neon lightup flowers. Across from Spanky's wine bar, and kind of nestled into the Playaskool RV tour group.

Oh boy, Playaskool. They're kind of like a high end Green Tortoise tour group. It was like being Jane Goodall, if she studied a weird race of super models. They would emerge from their RVs around 5. Then the two guys that were hired to tour them about on their two MVs would shuttle them around to parties.

One of them almost rode their beach cruiser into our grey water pond, and turned up their nose and said "Ew! What's that!"

It was very much like New Orleans where stratification doesn't happen by area, it happens block by block!

I tried to track you down as well. I totally failed to grasp that PlayaInfo was more than a big corkboard with flyers on it. I also came by your camp location and didn't see the C/S Kalamazoo or a lazerhat.

In fact, I was unable to track down anyone I set out to find, except for a friend that runs a placed camp in the 3 o'clock plaza. I was COMICALLY BAD at finding people. To the point where I was trying to find "Camp Cobra/Romper Shroom" to pass something to a friend of a friend to take to Chicago. I went to the address, saw a sign that said "CAMP DUSTY KITTY" next to a GIANT BOUNCY CASTLE WITH MUSHROOM TURRETS... I commented, "well, if anything is a 'romper shroom' that'd be it... but the camp name is wrong..." so I rode away. (That was totally them.) You'd think I would have radically self-expressed myself by participating in some HARD CORE ASKING/INTRODUCTIONS.

Also: I neglected to be prepared with Burner names. "Ranger Bumblebee" would go a lot farther than "Barnaby from Seattle". Though... I found his giant encampment, and had a long talk with the mayor who handed me her entire log of campers personal information to peruse at my leisure and then told me I needed to get to 3 Plaza to take a ride on the Nautilus to go on an art tour, and gave me a nice cheap light beer (Sadly: A favorite of mine).

But... I was a virgin and allotted some mistakes.

Also: The radial addressing system... such a great system (almost). There doesn't seem to be a nomenclature or accepted way to express if you're on a radial, or circle street. Like, if I say 8:05 and A... you'll be lead to believe that I'm ON A, a little west of 8 and A. On a circle. But, 9:30 and Divorce gives you an intersection with 4 possible blocks.

My mind wants to put rules to everything! Like, if you're on a circle you could express "On A, at 8:04" where even numbers express man side of the road, or further from the man... or "On 9:30, just before G" Not sure how to do West/East Addressing on the radials...

ANYWAY...

TL;DR - Sorry I wasn't able to cross paths. I'll be better at it next time.

Had a blast. I'm terribly in love with it. I'm repenting my darkwad ways and keeping Christmas in my heart all year long.

Also, I'll post some pictures, but my partner lost our camera for a majority of the event, so... I'm waiting for our camp to reassemble for a picture party.

[encapsulate.livejournal.com]

Jesus. I didn't realize I had typed that much until the page refreshed.

Sorry.

[mcfnord.livejournal.com]

oh that's top notch!