Lamp down, exams to go

Today I handed in my lamp! It worked great and finished up really nicely. There is just one more thing to hand in for that subject, and then it's over. Design subjects dont have exams, thankfully. The other 3 subjects do have exams though, and are not going to be fun. All my exams will be done by my birthday, and I will be able to relax.

I still havent organised all my work things, my boss at the post office said she has to get back to me about my proposal to consolidate some of my shifts down to one or two. I should know by next week.

I attended the Wheelers Hill SC art show, it was alot of fun, and all the artwork was of a very high standard. It's good to see that the arts are so strong at my old high school. :)

-Andrew

Nearly there!

Today marks a milestone in the lamp saga, with all work being complete on the exterior, and now I can focus on the electrics inside the lamp. Only 2 more sleeps till it is due, and I get the feeling that they could turn out to be 2 very short sleeps! lol. I still have to make packaging for my lamp, so today at work I will have a look for some cardboard boxes, if I cant find any the right shape, I might have to modify one from some boxes we have at home. Mum will be glad if I manage to get rid of some of the cardboard cluttering up the garage. lol.
Right now I am on my way to work at the post office. Today I plan to ask my boss if I can consolidate some shifts so I don't have to travel so much. As it is at the moment, I travel 1hr each way to get there, which is ok while uni is going, but in the holidays, it seems kind of pointless travelling 2 hours a day just so I can work a 3 or 2 hour shift. So I hope it all works out ok.
Yesterday I had the last of my confirmation classes, and we plan to have the confirmation service on the first Sunday in advent. That would make it the 28th of November I think. Sometime around there anyway. Tim and I are getting confirmed together, but I'm not sure if Daniel will, he's still making up his mind about who Jesus is and what he did for us. So I think he could get confirmed later, maybe in the next group. We'll see how it all works out.
-Andrew

This is what the final product looked like just before I placed it into the box i modified for it.  

I used beads to soften the LED light source. 

Jaycar are LIARS

Well, it's Monday yet again, it is hard to believe that this is the last week of the semester! I can count my projects and tests on one hand, as the year winds up. It's a good feeling, but I am not looking forward to one of my exams. Mechanics of structures is not one of the funnest subjects, but my other 2 exams shouldn't be to bad. So as the year winds up, I am putting the finishing touches on my lamp project. This weekend I painted my lamp some more, and managed to get a color coat onto one part. I'm really happy with the color, and with all the layers of primer I sprayed on, the fnish is almost flawless. I think Dad is surprised at how much time goes into finishing and spraying every part. There is one more part that has to be made for my model to be complete, This is to be made from clear plastic, and this morning dad has gone hunting for the material to make it out of. I went hunting for the perfect variable resistor, but had no luck. I even called ahead to the electronics shop, and they said they would have them, but as soon as I got there, they all denyed having any knowlege of my phone call, and as it turns out, they don't have what I need. I was not very happy with that, but Dad recons he knows a place that sells ones like I need, and so he's going to have a look there later today.
-Andrew.

The mad rush.

Well, just under two weeks of Uni classes left, and someone has pushed the panic button. The past couple of days have been a blur of part time work, and assignments and wood shavings. Perhaps I should explain, I had my first shift at Kmart in my department, 'Sound and Vision'. It's really cool, we get to choose the music to play in the area where the cds are, instead of 'kmart radio' like the rest of the store. And also, we get to play with all the cool new expensive gadgets. Unfortunatly, a large portion of product from our department gets stolen, so we have to carefuly put security tags on everything, or put a dummy product on shelf. More thought goes into shoplifting prevention than I expected. I have another shift this coming Thursday.
Uni work is reaching fever pitch, and every week it seems we have assignments due in and tests to study for. My biggest assignment is my lamp, I've posted some concept illustrations up here before. Now I am working on building a working model out of HDF, it's very time consuming, but it's going well, and the results are impressive. I'm really quite lucky to have a Dad who can help me out with this kind of thing. Dad has worked on it with me, and I've learned a lot about how to use the lathe that Grandpa owns. At the same time, at uni we have been completing a unit of work about internal strains and stresses, and I can just imagine the stresses we are placing on the wod to shape it correctly! One part broke off, but is able to be fixed, another part also snapped off, but will be harder to fix. I'll try and post some photos.
I've also been going to these confirmation classes for church, which have been interesting, and I think my confirmation will be fairly soon, though a date hasnt been set,
-Andrew

Verners in Melbourne!!

I have some very exciting news, yesterday I visited a specialty lolly shop, which Andrew told me about. Andrew said he saw root beer in the window, and when I went into the store, they had sold out! The storeman did have cans of Verners available though, for $3 a pop. The shop is on Glenferrie road, just up the road from my post office. It's yuppie central there, so I wasnt surprised at the prices of candy. Hershy's products, milk duds, and reeces peanut butter cups were also for sale. I couldnt spot any tootsie rolls, but I'm sure the could find them for you. I'm so excited that I found a place in Melbourne stocking our favourite goodies from the US, and it's just around the corner from uni too! When I am feeling rich, I shall buy som goodies from there. I cant wait till root beer gets stocked again!
-Andrew

Howard's back.

The big news this week is that John Howard has returned for a fourth consecutive term in office. Our local member is Jason Wood, it's his first term. Jason even managed to get his photo in the paper above the fold, along with the PM. I imagine he would be pleased. The Liberal party also scored a majority in the upper house, so people are nervous that they will be able to pass any bill they want. The next couple of years should be interesting.
A little closer to home, Dad is helping me out with my model lamp. We have bought all the wood we need, and Dad has started laminating it together. Hopefully on thursday Dad can teach me how to turn it properly on the lathe at Grandpa's house. The wood we are using is high density fibreboard, or HDF. I have used MDF (medium density) before, and thought we should use that, but dad says that HDF will be easier to turn. It sure is alot heavier!
Last night I was 'squired' into rovers. It's kind of like being welcomed offically to the crew, then after you complete training, you are invested, and become a full member. Judging by how long it has taken to be squired, i'm not holding my breath to be invested. There are a few activities I have to complete before then.
The weather here is turning hot, the past few days have seen 30 degree days, and a hot north wind. There is alot of pollen in the air, and i hear quite a few sniffles on the train.
Only 2.5 weeks left of school! (but who's counting?) I spend so much of my time at uni or working on uni projects, I dont know how I will fill the holiday time. Maybe I should take up running, or fix up my bike and go cycleing more often. I realised how unfit I have become last sunday, when I got puffed out from walking 200m up a steep hill. I blame my car, it has stopped me from walking as much as i used to. lol.
-Andrew

Friday again!

The rest of my week went past like a flash! Every day this week I had something due in. It has been annoying to not be able to go outside and enjoy the sunshine. I like this time of year, because its warm and sunny, but not too dry and boiling hot! Anyways, I guess the countdown to my birthday is on, I've got a little over a month to wait until I turn 19. Some of my friends recon I should have a party, but I cant decide if I actually want to organise one. One suggestion involved going clubbing then having a meal in the McDonalds party room. lol. That would be so funny. lol. I'm not sure I want to drag a bunch of drunk friends to an organised gathering at maccas. lol... anyway, I'll see how it goes.
Tomorrow is the Australian election. It will be interesting to see who wins. It will be the first time I have voted, so it is very exciting. The only problem is that I havent decided who to vote for. According to something I heard on the radio, I am not alone. More than a million voters havent decided yet, I bet that makes the polititions nervous. lol. I'll keep you posted on the election results,
-Andrew

Back to school

Well back to school again. After one day, I feel really drained. Maybe I need to get some more rest, I seem really tired. Only 4 weeks left, then some exams. So that will be fun. lol. Nothing much else to report, Peter and Phil went back to school too.
Until next time,
-Andrew

Holidays just flew past

WOW! Where did the holidays go?! I've been so busy, but still I dont seem to have worked on much homework. Some of the highlights of this week include starting work at Kmart. I think it will be harder than I expected to keep up with 2 jobs and uni. depending on how many Kmart shifts I get, I may have to leave the post office. I dont know what I will do...
Anyways, another highlight of this week is that I managed to create aa computer model of my lamp. I still have to work on another mock up though.
Today I have to clean my room, so I can find my maths assignment.