Source: http://www.eso.org/public/videos/eso1151e/

Materials
Fake Christmas Tree
Two colors of rope lights
Extension cords (ideally the colour of your wall)
Hooks for rope lights
Stronger hook for tree
Tinfoil
Zip ties or scotch tape
Fishing line
Green electrical tape
Wire
VERY LIGHT Tree decorations

Step 1: Choose Your Location

What’s great about this tree is that the top and bottom parts don’t have to be over top of each other. In fact, they can be a little offset so you can still decorate the top part without the bottom being in the way. We also toyed with the idea of putting the top part of the tree in a different room, and even considered making it having the top coming out of the wall horizontally. But in the end, I kind of liked having them almost over top of each other, but you can get pretty creative with positioning the two portals.

One thing to consider, however, is that you still need plug in the lights on the ceiling, so I would suggest placing it near a wall or in such a way that you can easily hide the cord. If you can get your hands on some lights that are battery-powered, that would solve a lot of problems too. The bottom has a little more freedom, but keep it near enough to a wall that you can use fishing line to secure it upright.

Step 2: Tie The Branches

This was probably the most difficult part, and it was certainly the most time-consuming. Many Christmas trees have branches that fold upwards (like a reverse umbrella) for easy storage. If your tree does this, your branches will collapse when you turn the tree upside down. Use the fishing line to tie secure the branches outward by tying each branch to a point further down the trunk (when it’s standing upright). Tie them as tight as possible to prevent the branches from sagging when the tree is turned over.

We also had problems with some branches sliding out of their slots when the tree was inverted. Some green electrical tape helped keep them in place.

Step 3: Measure Portals

The portals should be just a LITTLE wider than the diameter of their respective end of the tree, but not so wide that you can clearly see the backing, so we made the top portal just slightly smaller than the bottom. The rope lights were bound tightly with zip ties, with the excess tie snipped off, but you could also use scotch tape. Use at least 5, spaced evenly, to keep the ring nice and tight.

Although Ryan Kelly mentioned that he used black poster board for the backing of his portals, my project partner Oksana suggested using tinfoil instead. When lit up, the tinfoil helps reflect the coloured light of the portal, as well as the green of the tree, which helps it look more like an open, glowing portal.

The middle of the foil for the bottom part of the tree can be removed to help prevent the tree from sliding on the floor.

Step 4: Install Hooks and Ceiling Portal

Install the hooks in the ceiling, measuring their position relative to the circumference of the portal. You can use the suction cup hooks to hold the portal, but if you have a stucco ceiling or if you’re willing to make a few extra holes in your ceiling in exchange for stability, use ones that screw in (use plastic anchors for extra strength). You’ll need a minimum of 5 hooks to prevent parts of the portal from sagging due to gravity. Believe me, you do not want a saggy portal on Christmas. Rope lights are thick, so if your hooks aren’t large enough to fit, hook them onto the zip ties instead. Be sure to keep the power cord at the back, so that it will be hidden by the tree top. Use hooks to secure the power cord and extension cord to the ceiling and wall. Try to hide the cord as best you can by fastening it against the side of a window or door frame, hiding it behind a bookshelf, etc, etc.

The tinfoil can be placed such that it is sitting on top of the rope lights, and then secured in place by installing the hook for the tree in the centre of the portal. This should be a stronger hook (ideally one with a clasp) or ring, as it must be capable of supporting the entire top of the tree plus decorations. Use a plastic anchor for extra strength here as well if you can’t find a stud.

Step 5: Attach Tree Top and Garland

Loop the wire around the bottom of the top part of the tree several times, and then tie it to the hook/ring in the ceiling. Use fake garland that matches the colour of your tree to hide the stem/wire/hook as it meets the ceiling. This will also help the illusion that the tree is solid and continuous as it goes down through the floor and out through the ceiling. You may have to play with it a bit if it doesn’t hang straight, but I personally liked it having a bit of a tilt.

Step 6: Stand The Bottom Part

Turn the bottom of the tree over and position it in the centre of the bottom portal. Use fishing line and more hooks to secure it to the wall. We found it remarkably hard to find just a stand for a fake tree that didn’t also include the rest of the tree, so we didn’t use any kind of stand. I’m sure someone out there can come up with a clever idea for a stand, but I just didn’t have the time. Comments and suggestions on this are welcome for next year’s tree! Even without a proper stand with the hole in the tinfoil prevented the tree from sliding around on the floor, and the fishing line kept the tree quite secure. Also, if the top of your tree is a little slanted, try to slant the bottom as well so their angles match.

Step 7: Decorate!

Carefully decorate your assembled tree. You can either take down the tree top and add the decorations, or you can add them while it is hanging. If you’re worried about your tree top looking straight, it will be better to add your decorations while it is hanging so that you can ensure it is balanced correctly. Use wire to attach the star/angel/whatever to the top of your tree. Also, be sure to use the LIGHTEST decorations you can find on the tree top. More weight means more danger of the tree top coming down.

To be honest, I’m a little impressed that people are still talking about this. I’m happy that this achievement has not been easily forgotten as quickly as many of the other internet sensations have over the years.  I’ve been following the Red Bull Stratos for quite a while now, and it was truly breathtaking to finally watch that madman Felix Baumgartner jump out of a perfectly good space capsule and plummet towards the earth a 1300 km/h.  Wearing a special pressure suit, this man broke the sound barrier without the use of a vehicle – a first for human kind – by leaping from a capsule at an altitude of 128,000 feet.

In case you were wondering, he was able to achieve these speeds because the air pressure at 128,000 feet is far less than at the earth’s surface.  Had he jumped from a normal sky-diving height, his terminal velocity would have been around 200 km/h due to the drag caused by all that air he has to move through.  But the lack of air at such a high altitude allowed him to reach breakneck speeds from a height that only two other human beings have ever successfully parachuted from.  One of them, Joseph Kittinger, was even on the ground guiding him on the mission:

First of all, this man JUMPED from higher than I sent my balloon last summer.  He saw with his own eyes something that my project partner and I were only able to capture using the meagre electronic equipment we could get our hands on.  I have nothing but respect and admiration for this man.  His jump broke several records, including highest altitude skydive, highest altitude manned balloon flight, longest free fall without a drogue chute, and becoming the world’s first supersonic skydiver.

Interestingly, it also set the record on youtube for ”live stream with the most concurrent views ever on YouTube”.  Between this and the Curiosity landing on Mars, it warms my heart to see that topics relating science and space travel are becoming viral topics on the internet.  What I like even more, is that millions of dollars of corporate sponsorship money was put towards sending something to space (or close to it anyway).  I even thought that Red Bull handled their branding of the project rather tactfully.  There were no flashy Red Bull ads interfering with the streams.  No constant in-your-face reminders that a faceless corporation had shelled out the cash for this thing.  Just a few surprisingly not large, smartly placed logos – one on the capsule, one on his helmet, and one on the website. Rather than overload us with messages about how Red Bull gives you wings (I have a suspicion that a lot of people spent a lot of time trying to figure out clever ways to be funny with that line), they put a serious focus on a dangerous and potentially death-defying stunt being watched live by millions of people.

And as if they couldn’t sweeten this project any more, the data that was collected combined by the research and development for the jump itself will be invaluable in the creation of the next generation of space suits, help us better understand the effects on the body at supersonic speeds, and aid in the development of emergency bail-out procedures for astronauts and pilots.  Felix Baumgartner is a new personal hero of mine.  And Red Bull gained some serious respect in my opinion for contributing so such an insane and scientifically beneficial feat.

Oksana thought this was funny because I have a ball pit. I did not. Why does Felix have to do everything better than me?

This project was inspired by Ryan McFarlan’s fantastic Instructable on how to create a wallet from an old computer keyboard. He explained it best in his article:

In all likelihood there is a keyboard within a few feet of you. Inside that keyboard there probably is a circuit sheet that makes for a surprisingly durable and thin material for making a wallet.

Unfortunately, from a fashion standpoint, wallets are bulky and can give your pants and unattractive bulge in far-from-flattering places. For men, particularly men who wear suits or dress pants, we want straight lines going from foot to waist. And when you start stuffing a bulky wallet, a phone, car keys, change and whatever else into your pocket, it hurts your look. I personally like to carry my cash in a money clip and carry the least number of cards I can. For most people, the bare minimum you really need is your ID/Drivers License, a debit card, a credit card, and maybe a health/insurance card to get by with during your day-to-day or, if you enjoy the nightlife like I do, your evening adventures.

A card holder, then, made much for sense for me. It combines the cool aesthetics of the wallet, only thinner and smaller. It also requires far less material, so you can make one with only one circuit sheet.

I’ve also created an Instructable for this!

What You’ll Need
Pretty much the exact same as when making the wallet.

• A desktop computer keyboard (for the circuit sheet and a metal piece as a straight edge) A screwdriver to open the keyboard
• A ruler or tape measure
• A cutting board or cutting mat
• A razor knife
• Sharp scissors
• A roll of clear packing tape

P.S. If you’re going to repost this, please be sure to include a link to the original post on my website: http://kevinjameshunt.com/other-projects/credit-card-holder-made-from-a-keyboard/ – Thanks!

Step 1: Open the Keyboard

There will be a series of screws on the back of your keyboard which should be easy to remove with a small screwdriver. You should then be able to separate the top and bottom portions. There will sometimes be additional screws inside that need to be removed in order to free the circuit sheet.

You should only need one circuit sheet for your card holder, but there will sometimes be two circuit sheets separated by a clear piece of plastic. These are sometimes melted or glued together at several points. Be careful when separating these, as the plastic can sometimes rip.

Step 2: Plan Your Card Holder
Given that I only need to carry about four cards with me at any given time, we only need two slots on either side. So to make a four-card holder you will need:

• 1 8.5″x2.5″ piece
• 1 8.5″x2″ piece
• 2 4.125″x1.5″ pieces

Depending on how the screws were laid out in the keyboard, there may be a lot of holes or indents around the edges of the circuit sheet. Feel free to cut around and trim these areas.

Step 3: Taping It Together
I thought that McFarlan’s taping diagrams we’re very useful, so I made something similar:

Step 4: Trim Unsightly Edges

Trim any unsightly bits of tape anywhere on the edges. Any bits sticking out will get black very quickly and will make the card holder look dirty. They can also catch on things as you move the card holder in and out of your pocket and will eventually start to peel.

Step 5: Recycle Remaining Materials

Feel free to use the remaining materials to make others for your friends, family, or people who you are too cheap to buy real gifts for. Depending on the keyboard you can probably make two card holders per circuit sheet. And if you’ve got two sheets then you’ve got a whole bunch of gifts already taken care of this year!

McFarlan also has some great suggestions for recycling any leftover materials:
Keys – make magnets, clocks, or notes to loved ones (I Ctrl U!)
Plastic casing – If your area accepts #6 or 7 plastics for recycling do that.
Metal – Recycle as scrap or use as a surface for projects that use glue, solder, or other messy activities.

Audio removed because my roommate Alicia was talking the entire time.

UPDATE: Apparently they were actually swarms of insects. Youtube user JeeKayak sent me this:

They arent clouds..Most likely midges (insects) doing their mating ritual. I posted this on a storm forum thinking they were cold core funnels from the angle youre shooting at. but someone corrected me with this info.
youtube this : Midges (Chironomidae) Aerial Mating Dance and you will see.

Read all about it here.

As girly as it sounds, this is one of the most delicious mixed drinks I have ever tasted. It is NOT the kind of drink you want to drink a lot of though, as the large amount of sugar involved is pretty much garanteed to land you a hangover in the morning. But if you want to tastes some chocolately, marshmallowy, alcoholic joy, give this little mix a try. The working name is a “Smirnoff S’more”. Enjoy!

1.5 oz Smirnoff Fluffed Marshmallow Vodka
1 oz Creme de Cacao (be sure to shout “Ka-cow!” when you pour this)
Fanta Cream Soda

Note: Fanta Cream Soda or other CLEAR cream sodas are best for this, as other pinker cream sodas tend to have a more cherry-like taste that overpowers the chocolate and marshmallow.