I don't know why most memories in our lives are ‘lost' -though many are important-while a few remain, even though they're trivial. I remember-as if it were yesterday-looking down at my own handiwork, where I was trying to make clean cuts exactly along the printed lines of our holiday decoration art project, then up at how well other students in Miss Shell's class were doing, and asking myself "Is this the way 2nd-graders cut...?"
The thought recurred years later. Many times I'd advised much younger people-like nephews and nieces-that they should be grateful for the opportunity to learn at school: everything taught there would someday be of use.
Advice to myself, too... One of my past jobs was at a graphics/signmaking shop. A day came when the whole production crew was frantically busy printing a major lucrative job, and the only person without pressing duties was the Office Manager/Computer Guy. I got out scissors and began cutting cardboard trim pieces for the display signage, and the memory and question came unbidden into my mind: am I making clean cuts exactly on the lines? Is this the way second-graders cut?
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I belong to the NorthWest Scale Modelers, which meets at the Museum of Flight in Seattle and "pays" for the privilege by hosting a yearly model display, and keeping filled a set of display cases with models to tie in with major museum events. The most recent was for NASA's 50th Anniversary. Our organizer, Tim Nelson, was particularly pleased; he's so into spacecraft, his club nickname is "Rocket Man". Between his own collection, and contributions from other members, he gathered an impressive group of rockets, spacecraft, memorabilia, and even got our car guru to make a model of NASA's "hot rod", used to tow aerodynamic models aloft.
But as the display date approached, a ‘gap' was recognized: no experimental planetary robot lander, the kind so important to our current space technology. But there was just time for a paper model...if only some member could be found who'd admit to owning scissors and being willing to contribute a bit of time...
Back Then, I made paper airplanes, mostly the classic ‘dart', but real ‘modeling' was only with plastic (and later, balsa) kits. I don't recall ever even hearing of trying to do a full 3-dimensional representation of an airplane-or any other vehicle-out of paper cutouts. In fact, I never realized there was such a hobby till I saw a display of European card-stock ‘kits' at the Puget Sound Model Expo in 1982. There were cars, trucks, airplanes, castles, even birds...remarkably sophisticated and realistic.
So, with some misgivings, I took scissors in hand again, and the same thoughts and the same question went through my mind: am I making clean cuts exactly on the lines? Is this the way second-graders cut?
The result was a bit crude but-all things considered-didn't look out of place in the display case. I'd been to the opposite extreme in some of my scratch-built flying radio-control models: lathe and bandsaw and rotary-tool carving of wood components...elaborate jigging...hot-wire cutting of expanded polystyrene wing cores...fiberglass layups...heat-shrink plastic coverings. Now I know that one can model with no more than a pair of scissors and a small bottle of white glue. Which, in fact, fits right in with our basic philosophy here:
"Build what YOU want, the way YOU want to, and above all have fun!"
P.S. Readers who'd like a change of pace, and would like to try paper modeling: there's a lot to be had out on the Web. Some must be paid for, but a bunch is free...only that you have to have access to a decent color printer and some card stock to feed it!
And one more, with Links to an even larger assortment of space projects and the like:
http://www.ss42.com/pt-space.html
To the project creators and Webmeisters of the above sites: thanks! -I'll be ‘firing up' my scissors again soon...and you can be confident I will honor your designs by cutting them out like a competent 2nd-grader!
