Sixty Years Of Memories. For my dad's 60th birthday last week, I wanted to do something really fun.
My dad and I talk a lot about the past---nostalgia runs in our blood, I think---and we both love to reminisce. Inspired by Jordan Ferney's Postcard Birthday Poster, I started batting around an idea: what if I could get everyone from my dad's past to contribute a memory they had of him? What if I had all those people send their memories to me, and then I put each one into an envelope---sixty total, of course---and had him open them, one by one, on his birthday?
That would be a lot of memories, right? So I wrote an email. Hello everyone! If you're receiving this email, you probably know that our dad, Patrick Burns, is turning 60 next month (much as he would hate us to be reminding everyone, I'm sure.) And this is where you come in! If you have a spare moment in the next few days, we would be so grateful if you'd jot down a favorite memory you have of our dad and put it in the post. Thank you so much again. Turn a playing card into a solar charger for AA batteries. I own loads of rechargeable NiMH AA and AAA batteries, but most always seem to be dead when I need them.
So, I wanted a cheap and fast way to make battery chargers that I can keep on my desk, so that I could have an armada of charged batteries at all times. I didn't want to take up more outlets and have more wire spaghetti with plug-in chargers, so I settled on a solar charger. I'm in the solar business so I had stacks of small pieces of raw lasercut PV silicon cells (solettes) laying around, and I first made a simple battery charger with a few business cards as a backing. Then I found that playing cards were a more stable backing -- and besides, they looked neat. This instructable details my efforts to make a simple solar battery charger made out of a playing card, some solettes, some magnets and super glue -- if anyone has ideas on how to make this simpler and more effective, please let me know in the comments. No soldering is required for this project. First, check out this video.
Build Your Own Flashing, LED Light-Up Speakers from Clear PVC and Cheap Speaker Drivers. Trigger Fireworks Using an Old Cell Phone. There are many things that can potentially have many not so good uses if put into the wrong hands but that should not stop those that want to impress those around them.
In that case, just to be safe... Better not give people tips on being better drivers...they could use it to drive a truckload of explosives into something Better not show people how to get accurate traffic data...they could use it to get their explosive van to the destination on time Better not give people tips on cooking...they could use the food to poison someone Better not give people tips on searching for info...they could use it to find out how to *insert dangerous and/or thing you don't like here* Relax and stop being so paranoid and afraid. I was thinking the exact same thing.
Make Your Own Color-Changing Fireplace Pinecones. Man builds DIY Segway for $434, begins casting 'Arrested Development' fan film (video) Handheld Air Conditioner Unit. Block and Bar Vinyl Record Cleaner. If you're into vinyl records and you get yours at the same places I do, at flea markets, yard sales and Goodwill, you know how frustrating those "snap, crackle and pops" can be.
Trying to get the decades-old dust and crud that causes those noises out of the grooves can easily turn into an all-day affair. Here's a device you can easily make, that uses a remarkable polymer sold just about everywhere as "Removable Putty" that can deep clean your vinyl records and return them to their original state. I get my putty at our local grocery store. I like the blue color, as it's easily seen in case any is left behind. This stuff is tenacious, sticks to anything but it has a stronger bond to itself, so if you stick it to something, it will stay there until you pull on it. Well, almost... I decided to use that attribute to my advantage after realizing a $1000 record cleaning machine wasn't in my budget. Enjoy.