The last time I rode the Orange bus on a Saturday - same bus stop, same time - it was 15 minutes late. So I thought there was no harm in now showing up 10 minutes late and still catching it, but it would appear that I missed it. Shucks. And one time, I was… Continue reading The Concord, NC buses are not always 10 minutes late
Author: mh
I learned something new about writing grants
First, the "something old": what did I already know about writing grants? It's miserable and soul-sucking and the work of the devil. And the "something new"? I learned that you should make yourself the 'Founder and Executive Director' of something, it doesn't matter what, in fact, it can be something stupid and just hot air,… Continue reading I learned something new about writing grants
Books I didn’t finish
I've decided that one New Year's resolution should be the prevalence of grumpiness and bitterness throughout my days, that way I can ensure one resolution will come true. To start: I keep a list of books that I've read, but let me also keep a list of books that were so bad I just gave… Continue reading Books I didn’t finish
First viewing party – Butterfly story
It was really nice! The kids in the two classrooms said their movie was 'amazing', 'awesome', 'terrific', etc, etc. This was all in front of their parents. I was really happy with the number of parents who showed. In one of the classrooms, there were like 10! I got surveys from each and every one.… Continue reading First viewing party – Butterfly story
Other animation software
I've heard of AfterEffects, and it just struck me I should search for some material that shows what exactly this software can do. I found this video on YouTube, it was pretty cool. It looks like AfterEffects doesn't do the exact sort of 3D computer animation that you can pursue through Blender. But on the… Continue reading Other animation software
How to make a crescent moon in Blender
I've been wanting to do this for a while, but I googled "crescent moon in Blender", and there wasn't a whole lot of help. There was one tutorial that purported to show how to make a full moon, with all the craters on the surface. I'm not sure if it actually does because I didn't… Continue reading How to make a crescent moon in Blender
How to gently give kids feedback
Over at McAllister, we have already made the drawings for their animation project. That means we have about 45 illustrations floating around, from 3 second grade classes. We're doing the preliminaries before winter break, and then we'll do the animating afterwards.They're going to make two different stories in between them. On the first day of… Continue reading How to gently give kids feedback
Caterpillar in Blender
I had to make a caterpillar for our Butterfly animation. I couldn't find a tutorial online, but I found this short video of a finished caterpillar, and modeled mine off of it. This is mine: And I got it to scrunch itself up, as well, it just doesn't look as clean as in the video:
Teaching kids animation
I've taught computer animation (in Blender) with the first classroom at Irvin, and today I go back to teach the second classroom. The kids ooohed and aaahhed the whole time. I hope it goes as well today. First, we all made an animation together, so they could get the hang of it: the kids made… Continue reading Teaching kids animation
My best tips for your AAAS Mass Media Fellowship application
I was a fellow at WIRED magazine this past summer, so for any of you applying now, here's what I remember from my own application process. 1. A lot of the final selections are down to fate. Last year, I worked on 2 fellowship applications. I really wanted one of them. I spent 5 months… Continue reading My best tips for your AAAS Mass Media Fellowship application
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