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Dad's Paintings
After my first week of life, I finally came home from the hospital and my Dad's acrylic and watercolor paintings hung in my childhood bedroom. I remember actively looking and examining one of the paintings (of a purple iris) sometime in first grade (6 years old, '93-'94) . Over the years, that particular painting has moved with me from room to room, and continues to hang in my apartment in Middlebury to this day (Feb. 2010). -
Granny Ellie's Pots
In my grandmother's home in Greece I played with painted beads, sculptures, and ashtrays my Great-Granny Ellie had made. I would return to this house every August (since being 10 months old to this past summer). Every year I would notice more of her artwork around the house and appreciate the skill, energy, and time she must have put into each piece. -
My Recorded Self
My parents would let my sister and I watch ourselves on video recordings, from a VHS player and on the TV in the living room. Most of the video is of my sister and I rolling down a grassy hill with a little red and yellow 'Fred-Flintstone' style car with our feet dangling out the bottom. My Dad remembers that we loved watching ourselves, and would want to watch the recordings again and again. -
Watching VHS Bambi
Watching the Disney movie of Bambi on a VHS player at our family's apartment, before my sister was born (in April 1989). -
1st Remote Control
Used remote to change TV channels when my sister and I were watching TV. -
Accidental? 9-11
I was trying to call my friend Christian Henze, his number began with 611 (or was it 661) and I think I had the phone upside down, before I finished dialing his number, someone said something on the other line, I was surprised and hung up. 15 minutes later police showed up at our front door. When the policeman came to front door, my worst fears had been realized. He sat me down and explained that 911 was for emergencies ONLY. -
Z for Zorro
When I was 6 years old I saw the "Mark of Zorro" (an old film from the 1940s). I thought I was Zorro that year and drew Zs of various sizes on everything. I think this began in the fall, when I would use a long stick and draw Z in the dirt in the backyard, and evenetually to using a Sharpie Pen to draw black Zs all over my pet rocking horse that winter. -
Water Map from Aunt May
My Great Aunt May (my Dad's aunt) put a map of US Water Resources up in my room when I was 6 years old. I didn't understand it all at the time, but I remember examining it quite closely in an attempt to figure it out. Aunt May continues to stress the importance of water and she hoped this map would spark my interest in the subject. It was formative in shaping my interest in both the resource (water) and the media (maps). -
Grand Central Light Show
Christmas laser lightshow on the ceiling of Grand Central Terminal (GCT). This was the first time I was exposed to projected abstract light shows. Various Christmas themed images (Snowflakes, Santa Claus, etc.) were projected with blue lasers on the domes ceiling of GCT. -
1st Laptop
Something like a "LeapFrog", simple, two-tone, clunky. This was a "learning tool," where the computed asks questions and I was able to pick the answer from a series of options. -
Tall enough Open Garage Door with Code
I was tall enough (at 10 years old) to type in the code for my home's garage door. The panel had a simple four digit code, this was the first code that I ever ha to remember. -
1st Family computer
I played simple adventure games on it with my friend Max DeCastro, one game with a little army guy that would run around and had to complete different tasks. -
1st AOL login
Beeep-bzzzzz-uuuggggg-bzzzzzzz. I remember waiting for sooooo long for the little man to connect and call in to the AOL server. During the first few years I was using the internet to send instant messages (with middle school friends like Morgan Breck and my cousin Andrew) and look up the movie timetables. -
First Nintendo Gameboy
Played my first Gameboy ALL THE TIME, in the morning before breakfast, at breakfast, on the way to school, in recess, waiting for my parents to pick me up from school, in the car home, before dinner, after dinner, in bed, etc. Used little cartridges, Mario & Luigi games, carried it in car trips, summer vacations, etc. -
Talking Globe for 12th Bday
I was given an interactive talking globe for my 12th birthday from my Dad. The globe asked you to touch a country or city on its surface. Then when you found the right place, it told you basic info. about that pIace. I enjoyed holding something familiar (a globe) and having it now speak to me and tell me information that I would otherwise have to look up in an encyclopedia. My interest in maps was quite strong by now, and I began to collect cool maps and globes, but not yet make my own. -
Uncle Redisigned Website
My uncle was redesigning the website for the family business (airshipman.com). He would send me links through AOL Mail for me to check out. I simply watched as he came up with new designs, tried out different things. He would come over for dinner, talk about a new idea with my dad, and the next week he would send me a new link with the changes. I didn't learn how to actually do what he was doing, instead I just was interested in watching him come up with cool ideas and then make them happen. -
Playstation 2 (DVDs!!!)
I received a Playstation 2 for Christmas in 2000, this was the first time I was able to play video games on our TV (favorite was SSX- a sweet snowboarding game) and watch DVD's (my Dad got me James Bond's Octopussy on DVD). -
1st Cell Phone
My Mom gave me first cell phone when I was 14 years old (a folding LG) because I was doing a highschool sport and practice would end at different times (so I would need to be picked up from practice at varying times. remember being able to call out and recieve calls, not texting. I used this phone a lot, to talk to friends (especially my first girl friend- Morgan) and my parents. -
IBM Laptop
I carried my new laptop everywhere in 9th and 10th grade. I would lug that computer to every class. We were meant to be using the laptops for school research and to take class "notes" (really most of the time, people would get distracted, would be checking email, playing games, not concentrating in class). With this portable computer meant I spent much more of my time connected to the interenet, exposing me to the fast growing breadth of the web. -
2nd Cell Phone
I wanted to be able to text my friends, classmates, and British cousins (was able to text to UK, not call). This phone was very simple (no camera, no color), but it was I needed from my phone. This phone proved to be extremely hardy and long lasting. -
Facebook Profile
Spencer M. invites me to join Facebook. I loved it right from the start. In 2005-2006, I used Facebook almost hourly to upload photographs, find "Friends," write messages, and write on someone's "Wall." My use of Facebook has gradually decreased ( roughly '05-'06= hourly, '07-'08= daily, '09-'10= weekly), I now use Facebook mainly to keep in touch with highschool friends (everyone's email changed when they went to college), meet new Middlebury friends, and see what is happening this weekend. -
Planning Trips with Google Maps
I use Google Maps to plot and plan out biking trips for the summer. I am able to check the terrain, road types, and number of miles I plan to cycle each day. This is my first experience designing a map/plan on a digital map. -
Gmail Account
I open my first Gmail account, at the urging of my friend Cloe and my cousin Andrew. Gmail offers me HUGE amounts of storage (so I never have to delete an email) and the ability to forward old email accounts to one Inbox. -
Digital Camera
I was given a FujiFilm SLR digital camera as a Graduation present. This allowed my to take lots of new photographs, store huge amounts of images (to later load on Facebook or for "travel albums"), and easily catalog my travels/adventures. The shear amount of images I could now take and store changed my experience, I took many more photographs & was able to delete the one's I didn't want. Facebook proved to be the most convenient place to store images (low-quality was not yet a concern). -
Mac Laptop
On the Monday before my first week of classes, I bought a MacBook laptop. I use this computer for the same basic functions as my previous IBM laptop (word processing, websurfing, photostorage, etc.). But this laptop has a built in Camera, which opens the world of Video Chatting and video Skype to me. I am able to Video Chat with friends and family from London to Thimphu to Tokyo. -
Cartography Project
Designed a map of US fatalities in Iraq war: "Hit the Hardest." I chose this project because I misread the title of a USA Today story about a "lost marine" (the real story was about a Marine gone missing). I became interested in visualizing specific states, counties, age brackets, and ethnicities have lost in the war. Visualization allowed me to present complex concepts efficiently and artistically. I could have improved the project by adding in more variables and change through time (dynamic). -
Learning InDesign
I had to do layout for an independent
project, so I taught myself to use Indesign. This was my first experience with large scale digital design project.This was also the first time I become really interested/obsessed with image quality (because the project was going to the print shop- Reprographics- at the end of April). This skill set encouraged me to think about to page layout and was the first time I thought about "balancing" each page, color schemes, font styles, and other layout elements. -
3rd Cell Phone
I dropped my 2nd phone for the Nth time and it was convinced that I had plugged a headset in (I had not). I purchased a 3rd phone (I was way over due for a Verizon upgrade). This new phone had a simple camera for still and motion images. I was using my FujiFilm camera less and less because of its clunkyness, the camera on my phone was simpler, faster, and more portable. A week after I had this new phone, I was bicycling in Manhattan and was able to take a one handed shot of Union Sq. @ sunset. -
Google Earth Design Work
I was introduced to Google Earth and I feel in love with the possibilities: I could move trips I had plotted on Google Maps to Google Earth as .KML files, I could "fly" over the earth's topography, and combine narratives into .KMZ files. I designed a .KMZ where a story was linked with specific locations on the Google Earth's surface. So as the user read the story and clicked on hyperlinks they would be brought to specific locations mentioned in the story. This was first experience writing code.
