Recent Posts

The Final Tally
September 23, 2018 By kerryveenstra
Mike Case and I installed Bluster on August 25 at 7:00 pm. Then on September 3 at 10:00 am, 8 days and 15 hours later, I took the installation down. During that time, the column of air that blew by was 8,148,257 feet long. The top wind speed recorded was 38.5 … [Read More...]

Bluster’s Comment Book
September 22, 2018 By kerryveenstra
At Burning Man I mounted a small twin-wire bound notebook on Bluster along with a Sharpie. Participants completely filled the notebook. Here is a PDF scan of its contents: Bluster Comment Book … [Read More...]

Bluster’s Lamppost
May 27, 2018 By kerryveenstra
Bluster's lamppost is much taller than I had imagined! I'm very happy that I bought this instead of a short residential lampost from Home Depot. And buying a lamppost was much smarter than trying to build one. … [Read More...]

Cupcake Cafe 2018 Milestones
May 20, 2018 By kerryveenstra
Here's what's left to prepare for Burning Man 2018. Last update: August 24, 2018. 16-foot Trailer I bought a new trailer to dedicate to Burning Man events. In the past I've used a 10-foot trailer, but because I use that trailer for other purposes, much … [Read More...]

Bluster’s Milestones
May 15, 2018 By kerryveenstra
A simple project always looks more daunting after one lists its detailed milestones. Last update: August 22, 2018. And it's done! Anemometer I'm using a modified Adafruit Anemometer to sense the wind speed. The "zero-MPH" value of the original … [Read More...]

Burning Man 2018 Project
May 7, 2018 By kerryveenstra
At Burning Man some participants bluster that they experience 60 to 70 MPH winds every day. "Bluster" is an anemometer constructed from a 13-foot commercial lamppost. The piece has an illuminated bargraph that shows the current wind speed and the peak wind … [Read More...]

Dusty Diner’s Juke-O-Matic
December 15, 2017 By kerryveenstra
The Dusty Diner needs music! Diners of the 1950s had juke boxes filled with single-play records. "Wallboxes" on the tables of each booth let you play any of the songs by inserting a coin into a wallbox and pressing a pair of buttons corresponding to the song … [Read More...]

Dusty Diner Progress
December 10, 2017 By kerryveenstra
Many thanks to Stacy who suggested the project name "Dusty Diner"! Platform Trike Options. The Worksman Cycles Model STPT front-loading Platform Trike has several options. I'm considering these: Parking Brake — to prevent it from rolling downwind … [Read More...]

Retro Pedicab
December 5, 2017 By kerryveenstra
I'd like to bring an art car to Burning Man that looks like a 1950s diner and that will let me transport people on the playa while listening to popular 1950s songs. However, having an art car at Burning Man requires dealing with the Burning Man Department of … [Read More...]

After Burning Man 2017
September 10, 2017 By kerryveenstra
Well, that was quite an adventure! After nine days in the desert running the theme camp "Cupcake Cafe" at Burning Man, I returned to the house exhausted but satisfied. I need to say that having excellent campmates makes it easier to run things. Here's how … [Read More...]