So I just spent the weekend wandering Maker City, aka
Maker Faire Detroit 2010, the DIY extravaganza featuring everything from new Ford Fiestas and the US Army to the
Life Size Mouse Trap and the
Sashimi Tabernacle Choir. Maker City was set up little more than a mile from my house, so it was an easy walk in lovely weather. It was a nice antidote to my non-experience at the Steampunk Expo this spring. Anyway, I acquired several must-haves, including a crocheted Baby Cthulhu (with glow in the dark eyes), TV-B-Gone remote, and a genuine MRE from the Department of Defense. Most of the key members of my RL social network were either present at the Faire, had a booth at the Faire, or had friends with booths at the Faire, so it was a grand time with everyone from my spouse's boss to my father-in-law getting in on the fun. Also, I won the raffle for a drip irrigation kit, so hello tomatoes next summer.
[Note-- the food, like the food at any function involving The Henry Ford/Greenfield Village, was excellent and had a Local Roots focus. It wasn't cheap but it sure was good. The local-brewed beer was ace as well.]
Anyway, there wasn't any unifying theme to Maker Faire-- you had cutting-edge DoD technology, Steampunk wannabes, and genuine Luddites all on display. But the vendors were overwhelmingly local, which was really cool-- given the prominence of Maker Faire in the DIY circles, I expected a lot of vendors from Chicago and elsewhere, and while there were some, it was mostly local talent being showcased. My most excellent spouse and I might well get involved in some of these groups....
***
I have no ideas for the Vision challenge on
fe_contest . I think all the FE12-ness has mostly done my head in, though I sure have a new idea for the Mary Sue challenge thanks to the overwhelming self-insert creepiness of MyUnit.
( Some more FE12 spoilers and complaining )