Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Electrifying to say the least

Next!!

Intro to AutoCAD class has bit the dust. As of Friday I completed my course and as of today got the results and maintaining my A grades. I wasn't sure about this course as it was taught from a technical aspect that includes engineering or the mechanical viewpoint but lo and behold it all fell into place in the last two weeks of the course. The nice thing about AutoCAD is that it gives you a text read out of your commands just by pressing F2. So you can see what you did wrong or in fact transport this to your own word program and have instructions on how something was developed. I loved that part. I am more into the automated program but in the Introduction and in the Basic AutoCAD classes you are taught by entering the specific commands at the command prompt that teaches you the internal workings of a drawing. Good plan, I think. Thanks to our instructor Ian McCallum, for his patience with us ID folks (5 of us) and for cramming so much information into 21 hours of classroom time to get us through it. Much appreciated.

This is my idea of studying- a little circle drawing that  I did
Today I signed up for two more Interior Decorating classes doubling the usual heavy load. Are you mad?  I am but for good reason. The final class, Advanced, is only held in the winter session (January) and I need 7 ID classes and 2 electives to take it. Right now I have 4 ID classes and 2 electives. Taking two in the spring session will give me 6 (all going well) and then one in the fall to complete the 7. I am a bit wary though as the options I have left are quite heavy. So taking two may send me over the edge. However I plan on a weekly blog demonstrating my progress and providing the highlights for those that are going to take these courses or others that can make some use out of the information and TIPS. I believe this will keep me on track and work out the kinks from time to time.
The King's Speech interior
Forizzer site
The two courses I am signed up for are Fabrics and Materials and Lighting and Accessories and both start the 2nd week of April. This week I will take all my sample boards for the other 4 courses ( Intro to ID, Floor Plans, Space Planning and Presentations, Materials and Surfaces, Colour & Theory) and review the colours, styles etc so that I can compile a more comprehensice sampling to complete my portfolio. I think I am capable of that but it requires some creative thought. Now the Fabrics class I have wanted to take for a very long time but it was not always offered when I was ready for it. Lighting, although I am seriously interested in it may not be the easiest with my eyes and lack of memory. However when I was a kid in UK I was the "electrician" in our house. When a "plug" broke for a household appliance it was my job to replace it. If we didn't have a replacement for a given time it was my job to change it from the radio to the iron and then back again when we used either by sharing one working plug.


Electrical Socket Electric Plug How To
Wiring a plug from DIY Basics
I also repaired electric fires in my teens out of necessity really. The little wires that create the bar, the "hot" part, would break therefore breaking the connection and the fire no longer worked. I would pull them out a little...or add another piece of wire (fuse wire) to connect them again and hey presto heat emerged once more. My mother used to comment that the fire in my room lasted the longest of all not knowing what I was up to. So you would think that I would be looking forward to showing off my prowess on this one. Not so when I came to Canada I wouldn't touch that stuff as it was different and the "plugs" were permanently attached...so I lost my practice dismantling or fixing the fuse. 
Not as modern as this one
My bedroom had a two bar wall mounted model
Picture from Luxury Housing Trends

I think this started when I was about 8 years old and the neighbours bought a new garden shed with interior lighting. When dusk was falling the teenager of the neighbour family would sit at the shed door and you could only enter if you touched the electrical wire (a mild shock ran up your arm) or pay a monetary fee. We kids did not have any money but to get into the shed you would have given your right arm and some may have been willing to do that as they had bunnies in there. So in the beginning it was a wee treat until the bunnies got taken for the pot …then it was just plain silly.


Similar but table model
Picture from Intute site
When my uncle repaired his own telly in the early days he needed someone to hold the wires together so that he could apply the solder...a small and steady hand was required and that happened to be mine. I loved helping in the garden, when he was repairing something like a door, so this was just one more task. However one that my mother did not approve of so it was short lived. He and I would sit with a cuppa afterwards watching some National Geographic show and comment on the great picture until he could think on something else to fix. I am sure this is where I learned to fix or change electrical plugs.

So instead of saying”bring it on” I will stay silent and hope I can remember the difference in voltage for Canada and not quote the UK requirements.
It is a beautiful life when the lighting is just right in a room, on your face or my favourite time when dusk is falling.

1 comment:

Starry-eyed stitcher said...

My dad was like your uncle. He was always thinking up new things to make, and quietly allowing me to do my bit too. I think that's why I can turn my hand to most things now, plugs, hanging wallpaper, painting. My dad made bird houses with picket fences, thatched roofs and plastic windows. He even put up a 'For Rent' sign on one, although he reckoned the birds were queueing up to move in already. I always said I would choose him as my luxury item on a desert island. Well done on your excellent results - onward and upward!! Love Irene xxx