I was reading my favorite blogger, James Lileks of the Star Tribune‘s blog, and found some discussion about how journalism has changed over the years.
One of the commenters mentioned a Mark Twain short story lampooning the fiery brand of journalism practiced in the south, so I looked up the short story and gave it a quick read.
My colleagues have stopped wondering why I giggle at my desk so much.
Whew.
The inauguration is mostly over, and I am mostly finished putting up AP stories on the subject as fast as they were written. I was very surprised at the immense volume of stories on the inauguration, and although at first I tried to post them all, I soon found that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with it all, and then decided to post them all except the ones that were region-specific, unless the region had significance or the story was different.
For this reason, I included the Harlem one (because of the race story angle) and the Kansas thing (the legislature kept working through the ceremony) and the Hawaiian story (Obama is from Hawaii), and of course Minneapolis. There were quite a few other stories that covered regional celebrations in other states, but they didn’t seem all that relevant to us, so I left them out.
I put up 46 stories on the inauguration so far, and I am not done for the day.
None of them were written by us (the Globe wrote just one inauguration story yesterday), and none of them came
at the cost of local stories (which our reporters write) or at the cost of regional stories on other topics (which I put up as usual under the "Daily Updates" umbrella, from the Associated Press and from regional Forum publications).
I also tried to keep all the inauguration stories together, so that people who did not want to read them could ignore them more easily. I don’t know of any topics that every single person wants to read about, and I do know some people had inauguration fatigue as early as last weekend.
By putting them up in a massive volume, I hope people who wanted to read every possible thing written about it got their wish. By putting them up in a single portion of the site, I hope people who wanted to read something else got their wish too.
And now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go and check for more news updates on the inauguration and also, on everything else.
It’s not shaping up to be a slow news day.
One of the most surreal moments in my journalism career took place yesterday afternoon as I assisted in a bizarre science experiment, prompted by an online gallery of online soap bubbles.
Knowing that online sources are not always accurate, I wondered if we could replicate the experiment, given the painfully cold temperatures we’ve experienced recently.
I enlisted our photographer, Brian Korthals, to help me, since my photography skills regarding tiny fast-moving flying objects are not really all that good.
Brian was totally enthusiastic about the project and a couple of newsroom staffers gave it a shot right then with a small bottle of bubble solution I’d given a coworker as part of a May basket one year.
The bubbles didn’t freeze (as far as we could see) and quickly blew away; plus they were too small to make a really good photograph. Brian resolved to buy some bubble solution with a bigger wand and try it again the next day.
We also found online that the other frozen-bubble-makers had found it impossible to blow bubbles because their breath was too warm for them to freeze afterward, and wondered if that would prove to be a factor.
The next day, we also wondered if we’d have a large enough bubble wand, and experimented with using a bag tie and wire, but the wand was deemed good enough.
So Brian and I went into the Globe parking lot, and I blew bubbles while my teeth were chattering and he tried to get them on camera. The wind was the wrong way and we ended up moving first to the side of the building and then to the front entryway, which was somewhat sheltered from the wind.
The bubbles were still kind of small and hard to catch on camera, but they were indeed freezing and they did explode into tiny ice crystals when they popped. So the theory was sound.
We needed a larger bubble wand.
After Brian filled up his camera’s card, we went inside, where I eventually got the feeling back in my fingers. Meanwhile, Judy Johnson, who saw us blowing bubbles outside the office, asked us what in the heck we were doing (although she said it much more politely). When she found out she volunteered to bring us a larger bubble wand.
To my surprise, the entire newsroom was fascinated by the idea and by the pictures in the other online gallery and everybody crowded around outside to watch the bubble-freezing process, which we now knew to be successful.
It was very cold, so the second jaunt didn’t take longer than 15-20 minutes. We found that Judy’s larger bubble wand (which she very graciously did bring us!) and its bubble solution were highly superior to the cheap stuff we had been using before. It produced lovely, large bubbles and even though I still used my breath to create them, they did freeze, as you can see from the above photo.
Brian is an amazing photographer and he managed to nab a few of the bubbles on camera, including one that burst while he was taking a series of photos. That’s the one that ended up on the front page of the paper today.
The effect when they explode is extremely cool, especially in the sunlight. The little ice shards sparkle.
If you’re going to do this, find a sheltered spot away from wind and be sure to bundle up. Wear gloves especially; 
having bubble solution freezing onto your hands isn’t fun. It’s easier to toss soapy gloves into the washing machine than to have your fingers frozen together.
Also, use a large bubble wand. The one Judy gave us (thank you so much, Judy!) was several inches long.
If you’re going to try to capture this in a photograph… well, you’re going to need either a lot of luck or a really good photographer. It helps to have the larger bubbles and a dark background of some sort so you can see them.
I don’t know whether commercial or home-brew bubble mix would work best, but feel free to experiment.
I’m guessing if you use a bubble-making mechanism other than breath, you won’t get the air-poof (visible in the third picture) because there won’t be an unusual amount of water vapor or warm air inside the bubble, but that would require experimentation to find out.
Finally, have fun! This might make a good science experiment to share with a young kid, provided you bundle them up properly and don’t keep them outdoors too long in this icy icy weather.
Notice in the (more heavily photoshopped) version of the bubble to the right and above, you can see the stop sign as well as a few of the curious Globe newsroom staff watching the frozen-bubble process.
I found this list of Top 10 Worst Types of Blog Post a while back, bookmarked it and then forgot about it.
I have to say, I’m guilty of at least a few of these. But I don’t do #8, or #7. Hopefully not #5 either. Definitely not #3. And hey, I like #1. I think they’re fun!
I do promote Daily Globe type activities here, but I’ve never promoted anything I didn’t think was actually really cool. And I do disclose that it’s Globey.
Speaking of which, the Women’s Expo (a Globe event) is coming up again, and I expect to be liveblogging it again. It’ll go smoother this year, since I won’t be writing the story on it and since we’ve got more experience in liveblogging now. And I’ll probably stay a bit longer and do more posts, so you folks at home get a better idea of what the Expo is like.
I had a really great (and overcaffeinated) time at the Expo last year, watching Sue Doeden cook and seeing all the booths, and then working at the Globe’s booth too. You get to see so many people and then, they do your nails or give you a backrub or a cookie. What’s not to like?
Save the date: March 28, for the Expo. Bring your mom or daughter or random female friend! Or even a male friend. Tell him there’ll be bevies of beautiful babes there.
And the Bridal Fair (another Globe event) is coming up soon, made all the cooler by the addition of prom gear to the show.
The Bridal Fair will be Feb. 7 at the American Reformed Church.
I’ll try to get you a little more information on the Bridal Fair as it becomes available, but that show is absolutely full of gorgeous food for events and beautiful and striking gowns for weddings. It also offers formal event paraphernalia, like information from limo drivers, caterers, and the people who rent chocolate fountains and that sort of thing.
