Project Athena - Day 49 (Old Technology)

Brand New Key

“I got a brand new pair of roller skates,
You got a brand new key.
I think that we should get together and try them out, to see ... ”

— Melanie 1971

I learned to skate on a pair of metal clamp-on style roller skates exactly like this. They were so noisy with the metal wheels that everyone could hear me coming down the street from blocks away. They also probably heard me cussing up a storm in the frustration of trying to keep the damn things on my feet. These were adjustable for your shoe size by using the special key (missing from this picture) which, as a six year old, was lost more often than found.

I was so thrilled when my parents upgraded me to my white, derby-style boot skate with rubber wheels for my 10th birthday. Those were skates that made me smile.

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Vintage Wards Steel Skates

Nikon D3200 • Nikon 18-55mm lens • 18mm • F/8 • 1/360s • ISO 100 • Flash

Project Athena - Day 48 (Old Technology)

Back in the Day....

“Life would be so much easier if we only had the source code.”

— Geek

Before computers and "command z" became my way of life, these technical pens were a mainstay to my craft. There was a punctilious pride among designers and illustrators who mastered these finicky little pens. They demanded constant care, routine cleaning and a delicate touch when disassembling and reassembling. In order to achieve a smooth, continuous line, one had to have a steady hand and lots of patience. Weird, I miss them.

In expert hands, these pens can still make an ad or drawing magically stand out against the bland precision of a computer rendered graphic.

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Koh-I-Noor Rapidograph Pens

Nikon D3200 • Nikon 18-55mm lens • 45mm • F/8 • 1/30s • ISO 800

Project Athena - Day 47 (Old Technology)

Nostalgic Ski Fence

“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Although I grew up in the Fort Collins area as a child, it wasn't until I was 17 years old that I began exploring and falling in love with the Rocky Mountains. I have hiked many a trail, four-wheeled into places I probably shouldn't have, backpacked across the continental divide and driven almost every available road in the hills to the west of where I live.

During one of my excursions into the hills back in 1979, I came upon this ski fence. Today, it looks  almost exactly as it did thirty five years ago. It seems that I have driven by this handiwork now hundreds of times over the years and every time, I smile and still take a picture. I fondly remember that first impression as a young woman: what a creative world this is that I get to live in.

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Ski Fence, Rist Canyon, CO

Nikon D3200 • Nikon 18-55mm lens • 18mm • F/14 • 1/80s • ISO 200

Project Athena - Day 46 (Old Technology)

BEHOLD. The Chemex® Coffee Maker

“With the Chemex, even a moron can make good coffee.”

— Inventer Peter Schlumbohm

This sensually shaped hour glass vessel enticed me back in the 80's when I didn't even drink coffee.  Now that I am a coffee purist and design geek, I find that this elegant, pop culture, iconic brewer still makes the best cup of coffee EVER...clear, pure, and without the added flavor of metal or plastic.

I love the uncomplicated polished wood collar and leather tie that corset the curves and serve as the handle. Design and function! That makes me smile, always.

BTW - the original design was by a German inventor named Peter Schlumbohm in 1941. You can still buy the Chemex today! They haven't changed.

Chemex® Coffee Maker

Nikon D3200 • Nikon 18-55mm lens • 18mm • F/4 • 1/8s • ISO 200