Monthly Archives: March 2013

Hexaflexagons Part 3: Kaleidocycles

A friend just sent me the link to one of the other coolest things ever.

Let me guess: More cute owl photos?

No. And those qualify as cute, anyways, not “coolest thing ever.”

Rather, the link is to a 3D version of a hexaflexagon. So it’s, like, got dimensionality and stuff. It’s a toy called a Kaleidocycle. And they are really cool. You should definitely check it out! I definitely want to make one.

So… how does this qualify as “fluff”, exactly?

Uh, no discernible use?

…I guess that works.

As with hexaflexagons, if you get one working, do let me know?

Book Review: Dealing with Dragons

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Just to make sure I don’t make a tradition, I’m reviewing one of my favorite books today. 🙂

That sounds dangerous…

Dealing with Dragons is actually well written! And intentionally funny.

As opposed to…?

Alibi Jr. High, for example. Basically, books that are so bad that they are funny.

Ah.

But yes. Dealing with Dragon, by Patricia C. Wrede, is intentionally whimsical. It starts off with Princess Cimorene becoming a dragon’s princess.

I should have known. Let me guess, some knight in shining armor comes and rescues her? Typical fairy-tale fluff?

Well, sort of. Actually, Cimorene volunteers to be the Dragon’s princess. It’s a way for her to escape being normal. So the knights come, but she sends them away. And other stuff. It’s brilliant!

I guess I’ll take your word for it…

No, really! And there are amazing characters. For example, there’s the princes Alianora who’s also a dragon’s princess, but also not quite normal. For example, apparently at Alianora’s christening, an evil fairy comes-

-and curses her? That’s actually fairly common.

No. She doesn’t. And things keep on going not-quite-normally for that princess. It’s amusing.

Also, the Society of Wizards are the badguys. And Wtiches are the goodguys. (Not evil witches, of course, which do exist. No, there are some that are just magically inclined, and have their own natural magic which makes them witches. They’re nice.) And furthermore, witches can’t be melted but- Oh, I’m not going to spoil it for you. You should totally read it. And the sequels. Basically, Wrede does a masterful job of taking fairy-tale elements and twisting them. In other words I highly recommend it.

It twists traditional fairy-tales? I might actually like it, then… Maybe some day I’ll be able to read it.

If you can, you should!

Anyways, have a great day!

Street Pad Thai

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Greetings, Readers! Sorry for my absence the past couple of days!

Oh, you’re back. Where were you? I needed to write the posts the past couple of days, even though I was really tired!

You mean to tell me you missed me, Webmaster? I am touched!

…

That doesn’t answer the question, you know.

I know.

As it so happens, though, I was going to create a Daily Fluff about where I was anyways.

I have been spending a lot of time with my friend YouTube, recently. I have found a lot of information about your world’s cultures!

Oh? like what?

Cooking. You have some amazing recipes and cooks! Street made Pad Thai, for example. There are some people who can cook an entire delicious looking meal in just over a minute! Is that not amazing?

…

You’re joking, right?

What?

You’ve been watching YouTube videos. Of Pad Thai. Street vender made Pad Thai.

…Is this a problem?

You really were around on March 7th, then, weren’t you? And just pretending you weren’t.

Now I am getting worried… I was not here; what happened?

So, you don’t know anything about my Daily Fluff about someone recommending Pad Thai as a good Daily Fluff?

Oooh, no! Who recommended this? I need to meet this person!

…You really had no clue?

No. I was with YouTube all day.

…Wow. I think I’m getting a headache from confusion about the fascination with Pad Thai. I think I’m going…I’m going to go now…

Ok, well, bye then!

Anyways, readers, I hope you enjoy. But really, does not Pad Thai look interesting?

A Picture of a Vacation, because Fluffy is Missing

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Hello, readers!

Unfortunately, I’m again really tired and can’t find Fluffy. This is slightly odd; she normally appears whether I want her to or not.

Anyways, I’m guessing that she’s on vacation. (My luck certainly isn’t high enough for her to just go away permanently…)

That sort of reminds me of my vacations, though. I went to Oregon once. I got some pretty pictures. 🙂

Dramatic Fluffy Clouds in Oregon

I wonder if Fluffy is having as nice a vacation as I did? I also wonder what her home looked like… Huh.

Anyways, have a good night, readers!

I Think Male Computer Scientists Might Not Think The Way I Do…

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A few minutes ago, I couldn’t find Fluffy anywhere, and I was having trouble thinking of a decent post. So naturally, when I saw a friend of mine, I asked him if he had any ideas for something totally fluffy, not related to animals.

His answer?

Pad Thai. Not just Pad Thai. Videos of Pad Thai being cooked. By street venders. (He was quite emphatic on that point.)

I don’t know quite what I expected, but that certainly was not it.

You know. Personally, when I think fluffy, I think of Google Image Searching either “cute owls“, “pygmy owls“, kittens, or puppies. (Seriously, you should try this.)

Anywho, have a great day!

Reflections on Reflections

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Do you want to know something that’s been slightly bothering me?

Probably no-

Good! Reflections. And deepness.

People who reflect on things appear to be deep, right?

Probably…

Certainly in some cases. Anyways, that got me thinking… How did that happen? Because I mean, let’s face it. Deep things don’t always reflect things as clearly.

Bwa?

Think about mirrors. Mirrors reflect as close to perfectly as is possible, right? But how many truly deep mirrors do we see? And think about the atmosphere. When looking into space, that’s one of the deepest things we see. And that doesn’t reflect well at all.

So this leaves me with one conclusion. And I’ll work up to it:

Oh dear… I don’t think I want to know

“Deepness” as a person is determined by ability to reflect. Shallow things are able to reflect better than “deeper” things. So the only logical conclusion is that the only truly deep people are shallow people.

Yup, definitely didn’t want to know. How do you even come up with these ideas?

I’m just talented, I guess!

Anyways, here’s a nice shallow/deep/reflective picture just to finish matters:

The shallow deepness of a tree reflection

Distracting Pictures

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So, Webmaster…

Yes, Fluffy?

Given that you haven’t written the post for March 5th yet, does that mean I get to again?

Oh, right! I haven’t written anything yet. Hmm. I mean…

LOOK! A DISTRACTION!

SQUIRREL!!

So, even though you didn’t write anything, you won’t let me write actual content for the post?

Nope.

Hmpf.

Ooh, I’ve got another perfect image for that!

Fluffy Owl is not Amused

Really, you even decided to name the owl after me?

Well, doesn’t he look a bit like how you feel?

…

Ok, fair enough. But this still doesn’t make up for the lack of content.

Maybe not, but it worked, didn’t it?

…

Anyways, have a great day, folks!

Easy Medieval Dorm / Room Decorations: Fantasy Banners

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I’ve mentioned that I like fantasy, right?

A few times, yes. Please don’t tell me we’re going to get a rundown on what the “anti-mermaid” is or something like that.

Ooh, I hadn’t even thought of that!

But no. Not this post. No, this post, I’m just showing off a bit.

You see, a couple of summers ago, I decided that my room needed to have a fantasy theme to it. So I made some really easy banners.

red phoenix on a white background banner

Phoenix red & white banner

Crown Banner

As you can see, they add a nice fantasy flair into the room. (I have several others, but they’re either not hung, or they’re in areas of my room that aren’t quite photo-worthy in terms of tidiness…)

Anyways, they’re really easy, and fairly cheap too.

I will hopefully upload a more complete tutorial soon, but here are the basic instructions:

Cut a rectangle of fabric
Fold fabric in half length-wise
For a shape similar to the green: from the open end, cut diagonally up towards the fold. (approximately 15-degree angle. ish. Really, I just did it by eye.)
How to get a green-banner-like shape
For a shape closer to the phoenix banner, cut from the fold up towards the outside. (Again, I eye-balled it.)

Cut along the dotted line to get a shape similar to the white banner’s.
Cut a shape you like from another colored fabric
Stitch to center of fabric.

Yay! You’ve now made a banner.

I used blue-tack to stick mine to the wall. Hypothetically it’ll come off without too much trouble, and it’s working for right now. The banners, after all, aren’t too heavy. Just some fabric and stitching.

Happy decorating!

HexaFlexagons, part 2

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I did it! I made a Hexaflexagon!

Pictures, or it didn’t happen.

Will wonders never cease? Fluffy is actually asking for pictures?

Well, as you wish!

Closed green hexaflexagon

Hexaflexagon about to be opened

Look! It opens!

Hexaflexagon that has been opened all the way

Flexed Hexaflexagon

Isn’t it purdy?

You are easily amused, aren’t you?

You have no idea…

Oh dear…

Well, happy Sunday, everyone! I hope you have a phenomenal week. 🙂

Hexaflexagon Fascination

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Hello, everyone!

Since there’s not much for a website to do except be online, I have recently started exploring the home of my friend YouTube. And I came across one of the more amazing channels out there: A channel devoted to fun math. If you don’t believe me, check out these links. (Even if you do believe me, you should still check them out.)