Mary got married
written 11/28/2009 07:23:00 AM
State of the Art
written 11/21/2009 12:16:00 PM
Rebecca recently inherited the following piece of furniture from her grandma:
Do you recognize it? That’s right, it is a Victrola VE 9-18X, built by the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1928. You can read more about it on the Victor-Victrola Page.
I didn’t know what it was when I first looked at it. I assumed it was just a cabinet. When I opened it I noticed the shelves were in strange places, and most of them had holes precisely cut for no apparent reason. Then I found the brass label on the inside of the cabinet, complete with model and serial number.
Unfortunately, all the electronics were pulled out of this cabinet a while ago. But I appreciate that the purpose of the piece is to provide a decorous way to conceal electronic equipment. So I did just that: I used the cabinet to conceal my cable modem and wireless router.
Do you recognize it? That’s right, it is a Victrola VE 9-18X, built by the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1928. You can read more about it on the Victor-Victrola Page.
I didn’t know what it was when I first looked at it. I assumed it was just a cabinet. When I opened it I noticed the shelves were in strange places, and most of them had holes precisely cut for no apparent reason. Then I found the brass label on the inside of the cabinet, complete with model and serial number.
Unfortunately, all the electronics were pulled out of this cabinet a while ago. But I appreciate that the purpose of the piece is to provide a decorous way to conceal electronic equipment. So I did just that: I used the cabinet to conceal my cable modem and wireless router.
I lied about the Windsor knot
written 11/15/2009 02:36:00 PM
If, sometime in the last five years, you asked me what kind of knot I used to tie my tie; and if, in response to your question, I answered, “Windsor;” then I regret to inform you that I lied.
I do not exactly remember where or how I learned the knot I had used for the last five years. I have vague recollections of a set of instructions that came bundled with a tie I received as a gift, but I cannot, with 100% certainty, claim said instructions as the source of the knot I had used for the last five years.
So, somewhere along the way, I convinced myself that I was tying the Windsor knot. “But why?” you may ask. “Perhaps because it sounds impressive,” I might reply.
This weekend I found instructions for The 85 Ways to Tie a Tie, including the Windsor knot. I learned, sadly, that I had not been using the Windsor for the last five years. “But what knot have you been tying for the last five years?” you may ask. “The half-Windsor,” I would reply (to be brief).
To be more accurate, yet long-winded, I would reply, “The co-half-Windsor, a cousin of the half-Windsor, but with the added benefit of being a self-releasing knot.”
However, if you happened to see me at church this morning; and if, upon seeing me, you happened to notice the subtle robustness, balance, and style of my tie knot; and if, upon such notice, you asked me what kind of knot I used to tie my tie; I would, with confidence wrought of diligent research, answer, truthfully, “Windsor.”
I do not exactly remember where or how I learned the knot I had used for the last five years. I have vague recollections of a set of instructions that came bundled with a tie I received as a gift, but I cannot, with 100% certainty, claim said instructions as the source of the knot I had used for the last five years.
So, somewhere along the way, I convinced myself that I was tying the Windsor knot. “But why?” you may ask. “Perhaps because it sounds impressive,” I might reply.
This weekend I found instructions for The 85 Ways to Tie a Tie, including the Windsor knot. I learned, sadly, that I had not been using the Windsor for the last five years. “But what knot have you been tying for the last five years?” you may ask. “The half-Windsor,” I would reply (to be brief).
To be more accurate, yet long-winded, I would reply, “The co-half-Windsor, a cousin of the half-Windsor, but with the added benefit of being a self-releasing knot.”
However, if you happened to see me at church this morning; and if, upon seeing me, you happened to notice the subtle robustness, balance, and style of my tie knot; and if, upon such notice, you asked me what kind of knot I used to tie my tie; I would, with confidence wrought of diligent research, answer, truthfully, “Windsor.”
