Diversions

• Blogging: It's a guilty secret of mine that I seriously considered becoming a science journalist after getting my degrees. My blog has allowed me to scratch that writing itch without having to meet a deadline should I not have anything to say that day. I'm sticking mainly to subjects I know like media technologies, the nature of intelligence, and intellectual property, but sometimes I just feel compelled to rant about politics for a while.
• Piano: After putting it off for 20 years, I finally started piano lessons around February 2003. I'm now the proud owner of a Yamaha P120: small enough to fit in the apartment, great feel for an electronic piano, pretty good sound quality, and much to my neighbors delight it has headphones.
• Poi: Poi is a combination of juggling, dance, and pyromania all set to music, so it's no big surprise I've taken a liking to it. As I'm writing this (April 2004) I'm about three weeks away from doing my first burn, and am both looking forward to it and trying to figure out how best to wet down my hair before I try it. I've been taking classes in Fremont from Firepixie, a professional princess by day and firespinner by night.
• Trap making: For over fifteen years my friend Jay and I have exchange trapped presents at Christmas. When I say trapped I mean it in the classic Circle of Death game style — if you open the present carelessly a buzzer will sound or explosive cap will trigger. It all started when we were designing traps for live-action role-playing games, but quickly became a challenge to one-up each other each year. We often start planning our traps many months in advance (usually long before we worry about what gift to give), and I've also started trapping nice wood-inlay boxes that I just keep around the house to surprise unwary visitors. I've put up a gallery of some of our more recent traps.
• Lindy Hop: For many years I've been a lindy hop addict. Lindy Hop, for those of you who weren't paying attention in either 1927-1947 or 1998-2000, is the original form of swing dancing. It can be fast or slow, sultry or acrobatic, and the music is fabulous. I've cut way back from my previous five-night-a-week habit, but still go out occasionally. If you're ever in San Francisco check out the Lindy List for venues. Remember, it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that certain je ne sais quois.