Author: Catherine Hofmann
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My first SketchUp!
..and now presenting, sketchup #001, Table #01 I downloaded it a few days ago (free from Google), watched a few tutorials and made a table last night! It stands at 6’6″ x 1’6″ x 3’3″. Not too bad for my first try, if I say so myself.
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Mc SuperSized – McDonald’s Commentary
This debuted back in ’09 but seeing how McDonalds sales are increasing it is (sadly) still relevant. Ron English (the artist) is a subversive genius and his commentary on consumerist culture is spot-on. It’s creepier in color and the extended right pinky is a great touch. Let’s see Wendy and Colonel Sanders next… The OG – Ron […]
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Alternatives to Plastic Water Bottles
This illustration has been making the rounds on the internet and I thought it was a great informative illustration for those that don’t realize how wasteful and harmful plastic bottles are for our resources, including financial. Here are some alternatives: The Muji keeps a liquid hot for 7+ hours and cold for 12+ hours – […]
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Joan of Arc’s Feast Day
FORWARD BOLDLY Jehanne d’Arc, The Maid of Orléans Born 1412 | Burned 1431 | Canonized 1920 Patron Saint of Soldiers, France and Me One life is all we have and we live it as we believe in living it. But to sacrifice what you are and to live without belief, that is a fate more terrible […]
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Readlists & Readability: create better reading experiences
I stumbled across readlists.com and readability.com, two apps that allow you to save articles for later, store and share collections of articles, sync articles across devices and create a better web-based reading experience. Readlists stores articles and allows you to create reading lists to save or share and readability has apps to make your reading […]
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Escher
Would M.C. Escher have become the artist he was if technology was what it is today? Doubt it – this would have been shared on Instagram and Facebook instead of drawn and published.
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Elevator motors…
Elevator motors consume more energy than any other single piece of equipment in a high-rise building.
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Thoughts on Digital Photography
A photographer once told me, “not everyone who owns a piano is a pianist”. With the rise of digital photography the number of horrendous pictures of pets and food on social networking sites has increased exponentially. The excitement and anxiety of opening the 24 pack of developed pictures from the Kodak store has been replaced by instantaneously accepting […]
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Organizational Development
While donig some research I came across a the term “Organizational Development”, which immediately intrigued me. Organizing is second nature to me, it is embedded in my thoughts and actions and is acted upon unconsciously. The field itself is multi-disciplinary, viewing the organization holistically instead of in segments. An organization is more than a business plan, […]
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Pink Slime: Using Waste and Chemicals in Food
Watch the video to see how food processors and manufacturers can lower their cost of meat for a larger profit margin. Waste products from the cows, which can be made into dog food, is separated from fat, cleaned with ammonia, turned into a pink slime and put back into ground beef. The USDA allows companies […]
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Vonnegut’s Tips on Writing a Great Story
Vonnegut has been one of my favorite writers since I was a child, his non-linear and fantastical stories always captured my imagination and his straightforward cadence and sobering realizations wizened me, as did Kilgore Trout. After leaving Indiana, I realized how the Midwest had shaped both of us (Vonnegut was also a Hoosier). Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 Tips on How to […]
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LEGOS!
Rainy days are always good for building something. I have this set at home but won’t be following the instructions — gotta update for new technology. Will show pictures of modified ship later. Black Seas Barracuda #6285 – gifted to me in 1993.
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Open Doors
I didn’t get the job with the SBTDC but during the process I met a really great guy, Mike B., who has been more than supportive and wants to help me in any way possible. He and Dave P. (both in divisions at the Small Business Association) are great guys and I will definitely be […]
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Rear Window (Movie) Time Lapse
Rear Window: Director- Alfred Hitchcock, Starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly. A housebound photographer carefully watches the going-ons from his rear window. It was the largest indoor set at the time and Hitchcock directed the entire film from the photographers (Stewart’s) apartment. This was stitched together by Jeff Desom – he made a panoramic image […]
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Using Green Roofs to Build a Better City
An architect in New York City wants to build mountains for skiing and hiking on top of big box stores, which I think is a great idea although rife with problems. I think the unused space on top of these mammoth buildings can be utilized for better purposes than HVAC systems and gravel. In some […]
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the War Machine
Below, a picture of Hiroshima post-atomic bomb and a report on similar damages in Nagasaki. Afterwards, the United States funded more programs to create “better” weapons.
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VanDusen Botanical Garden, Vancouver, BC
Designed by Perkins + Will, the Visitor Center achieves net-zero energy by using solar panels, a green roof, using on-site dry wood waste to heat water with a biomass boiler and conserving rainwater. the building is LEED certified and is part of the Living Building Challenge, which is the “most advanced measure of sustainability in the built environment”. […]
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NC Amendment One negatively affects ALL Relationships
The proposed amendment to the NC Constitution in its entirety: “Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this state.” Facts about this amendment you should know: 1. This amendment is not needed to prevent gay marriage: there is already an NC law forbidding gay marriage. 2. This […]
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Francis Masse
A French painter and comic – he was very active in the underground press in the 1970s. Many of his drawings are absurd and full of black humor. Unfortunately, the majority of it passes over me because of my gap in late twentieth century French culture.
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Bowerbirds
I went to Chapel Hill for the Bowerbirds album release show at Cat’s Cradle (whose layout has changed significantly since the last time I was there). The music was beautiful and it was great seeing friends and neighbors in the crowd and on stage. The Clearing, their 3rd album, is much more powerful than their previous albums, has […]
Catherine R. Hofmann 