Half Baked

Where have I been for the past month?  I have been building a giant moving brain.  No, really.  My good friend Jason decided to enter our company in the Baltimore Kinetic Sculpture race, and I offered to take on the logistical coordination for our team. Jason's reason for entering us in the race was to bring our company together in a unique way.  With over 400 employees of different roles and rankings, he thought it would be a good way to break down barriers and meet new people.  He was 100% right. 

A few weeks ago, one of my other colleges, came to me very overwhelmed and stressed saying he didn't think the mechanical team could finish in time.   I told him I had no idea how to do anything mechanical, but I was willing to help.  I was sucked in.  We have been working until the wee hours of the morning building this industrial strength, bullet-proof truck base that would hold a giant brain, equipped with a DJ, laser show, and LED's programmed to flicker to the beat of the music.  It has been my life for the past month, and we all abandoned all other forms of normalcy and housekeeping. There is nothing at all acceptable about wearing underwear that say "bride" in rhinestones across the bottom...to work...on a Tuesday...when you have been married for six months.

The big race was on Saturday, and our sculpture team "The Lobe Trotters" were exhausted, but ready.  We rolled up confident and strong.  We had brilliant scientists and engineers collaborate over this.  We were competing against corporations and groups of all ages.  None of them would have access to the resources and brain power that we had.  The race started and we were off to a certain victory...until we came across the grueling mile .25, where we lost our front chain making our 2000lb sculpture virtually impossible to roll uphill.

We were the proud recipients of the "Half Baked" award, which according to the official race page is defined as "Worst Honorable Mention. This is given to the sculpture who's "half-baked" theoretical attempt at "engineering" did not deter the pilots from entering the challenge of the race."

Despite our devastating blow, it was a great day, and I have a ton of new friends.  A loss well spent.