Which do you think would be a better month to change the oil in ones backup generator, June or December. This is not a trick question. Only a moron, or the author of this blog, would choose to do this on a bitterly cold and windy day. Still, better to take care of this basic maintenance task than to be left without electricity in an emergency situation. I also ordered a thermostatically controlled battery heater from China which should arrive in a couple of weeks at which time I will pose the question; January or July.

Kyle called today to say that he had satisfied all the requirements for and has earned a bachelor’s degree from Santa Clara University. The additional semester he completed allowed him to major in Finance with a minor in Computer Science, a decision which should enhance his employment options in the future. We will celebrate with him when he returns next week and again in June when he participates in the graduation ceremony on campus. He has two job offers on the table now. Depending on which he chooses, he will either be heading back to California in 2 weeks or over to Thailand for an initial period of three months. More details to follow.

It has been more than a year since I placed a deposit with Tesla to reserve their just announced Model X electric SUV. This week I received an e-mail informing me that I could now place an order for one. Delivery is quoted as mid-2016 and it would not surprise me if I have to wait another year before receiving the red model 90D which I ordered. I love my BMW i3 but its range is limited to 81 miles compared to the Tesla’s 257 miles and a zero to 60mph time of 7 seconds compared to the neck snapping 4.8 seconds of the all-wheel drive Model X. Talk about an exercise in patience. Some times you have to wait a long time to go fast.

Maya, wearing her Elmo PJs, lavishes Nala with love. Soon there may be a cat in this picture. Jeanine and Maya are working in tandem to wear me down using the one tactic for which I have no defense. They are employing the doe-eyed, baby-talk “I wanna kitty” offense. Stay tuned to see if I can resist their charms.

I took a moment this morning to test my most recent tripod design.  If not for the challenge of balancing the dumbbells one atop the other, I am fairly certain this tiny tripod could support 100 pounds.

Over the weekend I purchased a good bit of new photography gear. Whenever I do so, I take a harsh look at my existing equipment and sell anything that is not getting consistent use. As a result, I have put a number of items up for sale on Craigslist including this remote flash trigger for my Canon Speedlites. I enjoy keeping my photography equipment current without increasing my total investment in gear. At the same time, I have been shopping on Craigslist to set up a rudimentary photo studio at work where there is a constant need for product and sample shots. So far I have acquired a camera, lighting strobes, a macro lens, and a normal zoom lens. Expect to see a photo of the new studio here once the final items have been added.

Maya returned from a shopping outing with her mother very pleased with the outfit they had created based on a jacket that was a gift from her grandmother. When asked to take a picture by one of my children (normally I have to fight them for the opportunity) I am quick to drag them into my studio and setup my lighting. Maya was very patient with me as I tried some new arrangements and together we produced twenty or so images that will be among my favorites of her at this age. I think she was very pleased with the results as well.

It is possible to do serious damage to one’s waistline during the holiday season. The challenge is even greater while attending a Christmas Dessert party, as was the case this evening. Jeanine prepared a lime mousse which disappeared faster than anything else and a chocolate slab over Kahlua custard.  The extent of my culinary contribution was to place the pomegranate garnish on the mousse.

It is hard to believe we are in the middle of December. The weather has been unusually warm and it feels more like autumn than winter. Please note, this should not be construed as a complaint. A very productive and exhausting week in the office, I am looking forward to relaxing over the weekend and this scene puts me in the right frame of mind.

Maya pauses briefly from her studies to check her phone for messages. She held still for the entire duration of this ten second exposure, not because I asked her to or told her it was a long exposure. She simply understood the mechanics of a DSLR and was listening for the shutter to close before moving. Only the child of a photographer and future engineer would be so aware and thoughtful. Thank you, Miss Maya.

A totally unexpected and most appreciated gift arrived today from my former colleagues at iRobot. The Roomba 980 is the company’s new flagship floor care robot and was one of the major projects being worked on by my team when I left the company. It features a sophisticated visual navigation system that allows it to systematically cover an entire floor of your home, a major advancement from the pseudo-random algorithm that was used in previous generations. I am very thankful for the present, but even more so for being remembered by a wonderful group of people that I had the great pleasure to work with for five years. I hope my iRobot followers will convey my deep appreciation for this thoughtful and generous gesture to all my friends that remain at the company.

Former President of Open Table, Peter Hilton, told Jeanine that I would enjoy this cartoon from the Concord Journal. He was right!

A 2 minute walk from the office, Fresh Pond Park offers a wonderful 2.25 mile loop trail which took me 40 minutes to complete over my lunch hour today. As long as the weather remains nice, I will try to walk this trail as often as possible. Not sure what the stone structure is all about and this will be worthy of future investigation.

I had some business that took me into the office today. There was very little traffic and I seemed to catch every green light. The 15-mile journey took exactly 15 minutes, a record which I suspect will stand for some time. In moderate traffic, I can make the trip in 25-30 minutes. My old commute was just two miles longer but averaged about 55 minutes and often took up to 70 minutes. Imagine getting an hour back every day.

I have set myself the goal of 3D printing an entire working tripod and head. Today I worked out the final details for the swivel head and quick release which I added to the tripod legs I designed a few weeks ago. I will print these parts at work tomorrow in Nylon before making final refinements and committing to a carbon fiber print.

One of the recently hired engineers at Markforged 3D printed an entire quadcopter for the inaugural Part of the Week (POTW) party at our new office. It is amazing how quickly we have settled into our new surroundings and equally amazing how much more productive everyone feels. The move has been a great success and marks a real milestone for the company.

Tis the season of tool upgrades and organization. My new job has me spending a lot more time in the shop than I have at recent gigs. Prone to look for the most efficient way to do a thing, I am constantly refining my tools and how they are organized so that I can quickly accomplish the task at hand. Pictured here is a Markforged printed bit caddy that hosts my power drive bit collection. Generous spacing and logical layout make it easy to find the exact tool I need in no time flat.

With the move to our new facility, I once again have a window to enjoy (beats the hell out of sitting next to a CNC milling machine). It overlooks Fresh Pond Park and more importantly, allows me to bring my bonsai tree into work. This tree has kept me company at work for almost a decade. Unfortunately, the depth of the window sill did not really offer a good place for it to rest. Last night I built a sill extension, sized perfectly to the application, from scraps I have been saving from various past kitchen projects. It fits perfectly and most people at work have just assumed it was part of the building.

Last Christmas Kyle gave me a gift certificate to a bonsai store which I plan to redeem in the coming days so that my lone friend will have a new companion.

I returned from work this evening to find my recent order for a new set of Wiha pliers and cutters had arrived. They fit perfectly into the caddy I fabricated a few weeks ago and they make a colorful statement in the shop. My Craftsman set has served me well for over two decades but it was time for an upgrade.

After nearly half a year working in a dingy machine shop where the din of a milling machine, lathe and extruder made hearing yourself think impossible, Markforged moved into its new facility today. The contrast could not be more dramatic. The quiet, the space, the ambiance. Many of us worked over the weekend to ensure a smooth transition and by the end of the day we were essentially up and running.

I finally had time over the vacation to publish another photo journal, this time of my visit to Iceland.

https://www.blurb.com/b/6669871

The most used item in my photo studio is the camera stand. Far more convenient and versatile than a tripod it is the device that keeps my camera rock steady and positioned exactly where I want it. When I saw this stand on Craig’s List I decided to upgrade. My current stand also acquired on CL, will be donated to Markforged. Our new facility has ample space for a dedicated photo studio and it will be put to good use there.

Miraculously I was able to gather the kids for a portrait this afternoon. While it is true that I take many photographs of our family members, they are mostly candid shots and we actually have few formal portraits. Dressing up for a photograph is rarely tolerated. In this case, two of the three were already wearing flannel shirts so the third was persuaded to change into one. For Christmas this year I would like the following present from my children and spouse: a one-hour fully cooperative photo session with suits and ties and dresses and no grousing.

Joining the family for Thanksgiving diner this year are my mother and close family friend, Susan Reynolds, whose two daughters were unable to return home for the holiday this year. Jeanine and I completed the Concord 5K Turkey Trot this morning.  A portion of the proceeds and an on site food collection are for the benefit of Open Table. We ate earlier than usual so that we could all volunteer at Open Table to serve a veritable feast to a community of guests that rarely enjoys such an abundance of food.

Boy and dog spending time together after months of separation. Hard to tell which one was more content.

Having just sold my lathe on Craig’s List, it is time to sell my collection of turning tools. After taking the time to carefully photograph them, I have decided that I am only ready to part with one of them, the bowl hollowing tool on the far left. I have almost convinced myself that I am going to buy a new lathe (albeit a smaller one) to justify the retention of the remaining set.

My mom arrived by bus this afternoon and was collected by her grandsons from the station. We are thrilled she will be sharing the holiday with us and feel fortunate that she remains so healthy and full of life. She is seen here modeling a new full-length down jacket that Jeanine acquired for her.

The boys have returned to the nest for the Thanksgiving holiday. Nico arrived late last night and Kyle early this morning on the red-eye. Both looked pretty exhausted and happy to be home. Nico was in dire need of a haircut which I was happy to administer. He is pictured here before and after.

All three kids had homework to do and it was fun to see them gathered around the dining room table again.

At the risk of boring followers of this blog with yet another build project for my shop, here is a nice little holder for my pliers. For a change of pace, I resisted the temptation to 3D print this part and constructed it out of Baltic Birch plywood. I also ordered myself a new set of Wiha pliers to replace my aging Craftsman set, some of which I have owned for 30 years. Be forewarned that my soon to arrive bright red and yellow handled plier set will be featured in an upcoming blog entry.

The feather board I designed a few weeks ago has received 667 views and been downloaded 44 times on Thingiverse. It was posted there by our marketing guys. As a result of its popularity, they asked me to print and assemble another one for use at CES (Consumer Electronics Show) where we will be exhibiting in January. I decided to create a larger version and used Kevlar instead of carbon fiber for reinforcement.

When I designed the dust collection system for my shop I ensured that every major piece of dust-producing equipment had a dedicated drop. The one thing I forgot to provision for was a simple vacuum hose. Why not use my 3hp cyclonic vacuum with 55-gallon bin capacity instead of my 6-gallon shop vac with expensive bags for general clean up. In order to make this happen I had to tap into an existing 8″ drop that services my table saw. Normally this would involve a lot of shopping around and cobbling together the right combination of pipes and flanges. With access to a 3D printer, however, the entire project was a breeze. It took 20 minutes to CAD a flange that would mate perfectly with the 4″ blast gate I use to control airflow. I also designed a step-down adapter to interface the blast gate with my 2 1/2″ vacuum hose.  It took less than ten minutes to cut a hole in the existing pipe and install the components.  The new vacuum line works perfectly with no air leaks and could suck the underwear off a nun.