Roger Wood's latest clock sculpture

I'm absolutely taken with the latest clock from master clock-sculptor (and my former neighbour) Roger Wood, Toronto's virtuoso mad steampunk genius. Link

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

MORE: Art and Design • Happy Mutants • maker • Steampunk

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The Snowden Principle

jenm

hey nomore, why so bitter? these clocks are truly amazing. i have the one that i purchased from roger and it makes me happy every single day.

keep’em coming!
KingOfCats

I haven’t crinkled anyone’s anything; these allegations are false. I don’t even know what “to crinkle” is. I would never hurt anyone.
Antinous

I would never hurt anyone.

So…’cockpunch’ is some other kind of thing that you do to your buddies? I’m confused.
KingOfCats

@ #14 antinous–it’s a figurative for “confront with the truth,” not a literal punch to the penis–consider it equivalent to when someone thinks they know the answer to a crossword you’re working on, and you’re like, “If you say the answer, I’ll kill you!”

The same way I’d never actually kill someone who tried to give me a crossword answer I was trying to figure out on my own, I’d never actually punch anyone in the dick rather than tell them maybe they needed to look at him-or-herself a bit more objectively.

To clarify–don’t ever punch anyone, especially not in the cock. Just be like all “hey, man…you should like maybe” or whatever.

So anyway no, I don’t think it’s some other kind of thing. I’m not sure what you mean.
the nicest guy in the world

sd: t ddn’t ccr t m t rn strp f gffr tp vr hs mth r t hv hrd gn jct hm t th bck dr.

ntns sd: nd f h hdn’t gttn th pnt nd cntnd ncssntly crtqng yr chcs? Dd y gv hm th ky t yr hs s tht h cld cm n t nytm? nyn cn gt n hr. Tht’s why thr’s blckjck n th mbrll stnd.

Cnsdrng md nly n cmmnt bt th clck, dn’t s hw tht’s rlvnt.

Tkn sd: Dd t ccr t y tht prhps y wr stndng nxt t chrnc trblmkr tht hd fnlly bn vctd fr th tnth cs f ntscl bhvr nd hd th msfrtn f pssng smlr nfrtnt rmrk?

Wll n, cnsdrng knw tht sn’t th cs hr t ll.
KingOfCats

Have a great night, all of you.
Takuan

RIGHT here no, but a lot of that has been going on for some time. Unfair? Yep. Unavoidable? Nope. Worth going on and on and on and on about? Whaddya think?
nomoreclockz

H Jnm, t’s nt s mch Rgr’s clcks tht dslk ['m bt f "frm fllws fnctn" gy s, n, thy dn't ppl t m s sch].

My mn bf s wth Cry’s < hrf="http://www.ggl.cm/srch?=TF-8&=TF-8&dmns=bngbng.nt&stsrch=bngbng.nt&q=rgr+wd&btnG=Srch" rl="nfllw">cntnl nd rpttv prmtn f thm.
dontdisemvowelmebro

Ds nyn knw wht xctly w cn dscss hr?
Takuan

yep, but it’s a secret.
Teresa Nielsen Hayden / Moderator

This may be a good moment to quote Niven’s first two laws:

1. Never throw shit at an armed man.
1a. Never stand next to someone who is throwing shit at an armed man.
2. Never fire a laser at a mirror.
Antinous

Hint: flaky crust
Takuan

migods, he’s developed a stutter….
Antinous

The comment system seems to be stuttering a bit tonight. Have you noticed that some of them are taking much longer to appear in the thread?
Takuan

here to Langley takes a moment
dontdisemvowelmebro

I’d just like to apologize for my comments [made as nomoreclockz] #2 and #4 – I did indeed register for the sole purpose of commenting on the Cory/Roger Wood posts – I have had time to think it over [as my previous account has been blocked from posting] and I guess I did overstep the boundary between author and audience. It’s weird/sad how access to a commenting system on a public blog can bring out the worst in people… of course Cory is entitled to post whatever he likes on his own weblog – I guess I just felt a little power crazed by having the opportunity to voice my own opinions.
shannonpatrick17

Those are some of the most brilliant clocks I’ve ever seen!
Are we in the golden age of clocks or what?

http://shannonpatrick17.blogspot.com/2008/03/etch-sketch-clock.html
Teresa Nielsen Hayden / Moderator

KingOfCats: sorry, but I disagree.

NoMoreClockz/DontDisemvowelMeBro: Now, that was handsomely done.

One small quibble: people voice their own opinions on Boing Boing all the time. That wasn’t exactly the problem.
Teresa Nielsen Hayden / Moderator

Let me get this straight, Prince NoMore: you registered as a user for the sole purpose of telling Cory not to talk about an artist whose work he loves; which he talks about in his own weblog; which you voluntarily read? And this is the best thing you can think of to do on a Friday night?
the nicest guy in the world

Lt m gt ths strght: ‘m frbddn frm rmrkng tht thnk ths clck lks gly?

Tht s sch n ffnsv sttmnt tht t mst b dltd?
Antinous

#19,

If you were invited to the house of someone whom you didn’t know, would you remark on how hideous their furniture was? If no, then please don’t do it here. If yes, then please discuss this with your therapist or probation officer. The basic rule here is pretty simple: If you wouldn’t say it to someone’s face, don’t type it and hit ‘submit’.
arkizzle

hmm.. I don’t really like these clocks myself.

They are a bit too spindly/Dickensian for my tastes. For me, they kind of take their lead from a victorian-steampunk-gothic-TimBurton-baroque thing, and come up with something slightly less than the sum of it’s parts. To be fair, I’m not a great ‘wacky’ fan, although I generally do like the other genres I mentioned.

They seem well designed and engineered, and a lot of people obviously get great pleasure from them, but they are not really my cup of tea.

Of all of them, I liked Clock in a Glass Box and Big Wall Clock most. The most understated ones, I suppose.
Takuan

oh – my – god….. a reasoned critique. An expression of a value judgment based on clearly stated esthetic values without any personal slander attached….. with manners yet…

could I have Arkizzle’s post preserved in alcohol please? To use as a teaching specimen for the kiddies?
arkizzle

Or, maybe not so much “understated”, as ‘considered’.

I’m sure each one takes a vast amount of consideration, but the two I mentioned seemed to make more ‘sense’ to my eye, or at least not feel so random (in outcome, rather than application).
padster123

Yk yk yk. Rplsv ncrsttns f pntlss rstz nnsns.
arkizzle

HA HA HA!
the nicest guy in the world

#20 My plgs. ws nwr tht th rls nd/r prvlng cltr hr dctts tht ccss t ths pblcly vwbl st shld b trtd s n wld prsnl nvttn t prvt rsdnc.

nd f tht’s th wy t wrks hr, thn fr ngh. spps ‘m jst mr ccstmd t vstng wht cld bst b trmd “th rst f th ntrnt.”
Takuan

the same way art can be created by drawing a frame around anything,

community can be created by mutual consent to a framework for that community

this “private residence” has room for visitors and family both

Doesn’t your house?
the nicest guy in the world

s sd, f tht’s th wy t wrks hr, thn fr ngh.

n fct, n th pst hv hd vstr t my hm blntly crtcs n f my frnshngs. thnkd hm fr hs npt nd ssrd hm wld cnslt hm bfr prchsng ny mr tms fr my prsnl cmfrt r njymnt. H gt th mssg nd kpt ny frthr crtcsms t hmslf.

t ddn’t ccr t m t rn strp f gffr tp vr hs mth r t hv hrd gn jct hm t th bck dr. Prhps shld hv cnsdrd tht. Prhps tht wld hv bn th mst pprprt rspns.
Takuan

Did it occur to you that perhaps you were standing next to a chronic troublemaker that had finally been evicted for the tenth case of antisocial behaviour and had the misfortune of passing a similar unfortunate remark?
Antinous

It didn’t occur to me to run a strip of gaffer tape over his mouth or to have a hired goon eject him out the back door.

And if he hadn’t gotten the point and continued incessantly critiquing your choices? Did you give him the key to your house so that he could come in at anytime? Anyone can get in here. That’s why there’s a blackjack in the umbrella stand.
KingOfCats

I’ve had a good look at Roger’s site previously, and today also, and will enthuse that he makes neat stuff that should be appreciated. I know that solely due to Cory’s posts here, and I mean no ill-will to Roger–or to Cory.

Tht sd, Cry, frm tm t tm, cms ff s slf-bsssd, slf-ntrstd prck d t th fct tht h’s shmlss bt pstng bt hs dly ntrsts/sccsss hr. Hwvr, t’s hs bslt rght t d s, snc Mrk llws hm t, nd ths by prxy t’s hs st. f y dn’t lk t, cnsstntly, thn g wy r jst skp ths lnks.

Wth tht n mnd, whn sm jckss lk myslf cms rnd t prs by fnt dmnng, xpct thckr skn.

T rmv cmmnt tht’s ffnsv s ndrstndbl; t rmv cmmnt tht <>cts nfrndly bt s bvsly tryng t hlp gv th H8rz nw prspctv, ths rdcng cmmnt spm nd sbsqnt ffrt nvlvd wth dsmvwlng, s jst wk. xpct hghr tlrnc fr crtcsm, srcsm, nd tmflry frm ths grp f nsdrs nd xprts.

Prhps th Bng Bng crw thmslvs shld rstrct Cry’s (c th pc f th bkn-cld wmn dng hndstnd n th bch wth th cptn “Lk t m! ‘m n ttntn whr! j/k ll) psts t ths tht r rlvnt t Bng Bng, whch <>s gnrlly drctry f wndrfl thngs.

Cry’s psts bt hw h wn th 7th grd pplrty cntst nd ws vtd Mst wsm Dd n Crtv Wrtng Clss shld prbbly g n hs ” wn th 7th grd pplrty cntst nd ws vtd Mst wsm Dd n Crtv Wrtng Clss”/nws-bt-hm st, < hrf="http://www.crphnd.cm" rl="nfllw">crphnd.

mn n ffns, nd s sd lk Cry. Bt ‘m mr thn hppy t cckpnch my bdds whn thy ct lk dts, nd bsclly t sms lk Cry s ttl gmnc f n knws hm nly frm ths st s d (wht? <>M rd scnc fctn? <>bwhhh!)

Anyway, great site, and best wishes to all.
dontdisemvowelmebro

f nyn wld lk t rd my rgnl cmmnts [#2, #4 s nmrclckz] t s wht th fss s bt thn hv rcnstrctd thm n th cmmnts sctn f f frnd’s blg < hrf="http://ntpd.cm/2008-03-15/17.12/" rl="nfllw">hr. shld pnt t tht lthgh my cmmnts r qt tm th blg pst tht thy r ttchd t s qt “clrfl” n t’s lngg. ntr t yr wn rsk.

f pstng hr s vstng smn’s prvt rsdnc thn cnsdr ths n nvttn t th lcl pb.
Takuan

well, read it, but the ambience was more like a really uptight, cliquey bar than the homey, slightly smelly BoingBoing.
dculberson

So.. let me get this straight. Someone posts on their web site about something they like, and you think he’s deserving of a cockpunch? No. You are actually wrong. Once you figure out how, you’ll have grown as a person.
dontdisemvowelmebro

Wll, fr ngh Tkn bt th pnt ws tht ppl hv bn skng wht my ntl cmmnts wr s jst flt tht thy shld hv chnc t rd thm – jst sd th mtphr/wrnng s lghthrtd wy f kpng mr snstv typs frm gttng pst.
Takuan

Mr. Cats:

I just read all your posts. When I read Cory’s, my forehead does not crinkle. You, on the other hand, crinkle.

Please.
Takuan

I never worry about sensitive types. The real ones spook at first whiff of blood or shit and the others that hang around bellowing about their wounded sensibilities- don’t have any.
Antinous

You, on the other hand, crinkle.

I’m getting more of a pucker, and not on my forehead.
KingOfCats

dculberson, I see what you are saying. I am speak as good as you once I figure out how; you are right. Yes. Then grow as a person.
nomoreclockz

Cry, whtvr Rgr Wd hs n y cn’t b wrth ths ttl nd trlss ddctn t hs prmtn.

f y gnnly njy hs gdy pstch [nslt t hrlgy tht t s] thn t lst hv th dcncy t qtly plc hs dvrtsmnts n th sdbr.
Takuan

Get thee behin- no,no,not that one…. uh, OK!
Then quit sucking lemons!