Citizens: The guillotines that I made were rather nicely crafted, if I do say so myself. The grasshoppers in our yard didn't have a chance - not even the Scarlet Pimpernel could save them. I actually built several versions, all from scratch. The last one stood about 18 inches tall and could easily dispatch any aristocratic rodent such as a mouse, but I never did catch one to try. I once accidentally released the blade when my finger was in the way, and it cut all the way to the bone. Monsieurs Guillotine, Danton and Robespierre would have been proud. Long live the revolution! I wasn't sophisticated enough to know what a Fresnel lens was. Besides, chasing the little critters with a magnifying glass improved my hand-eye coordination. I've outgrown such foolishness. My therapist says I'm almost cured. However, I must admit I do occasionally steer the car toward any jackrabbit that won't move out of the way fast enough. Obnoxious teenagers, though, are always fair game. -----Original Message----- From: utah-astronomy-bounces+kimharch=cut.net@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:utah-astronomy-bounces+kimharch=cut.net@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of cmh856@aol.com Sent: Wednesday, March 21, 2007 4:47 PM To: utah-astronomy@mailman.xmission.com Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] How not to install a mirror A magnifying glass? How cute. As a kid, I used a Fresnel lens, 18" on a side. It would melt asphalt! Thank you, Edmund Scientific. But I have to admit that the guillotine is a nice touch... In a message dated 3/21/2007 3:26:15 PM Mountain Standard Time, kimharch@cut.net writes: Did anyone else fry ants with a magnifying glass as a kid? Or am I just warped? (OK, don't reply to that question - I already know the answer.) I bet no one else built a guillotine to execute offending grasshoppers... ************************************** AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's free from AOL at http://www.aol.com. _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Visit the Photo Gallery: http://www.utahastronomy.com ______________________________________________________________________ This e-mail has been scanned by Cut.Net Managed Email Content Service, using Skeptic(tm) technology powered by MessageLabs. For more information on Cut.Nets Content Service, visit http://www.cut.net ______________________________________________________________________