Kobo, Quasimodo and ?

Meet Kobo:














Kobo is a 60 foot adolescent blue whale who puts the "scent" into adolescent. His bones weren't cleaned properly, and are still full of oil...so the gallery sort of smells like whale oil. And...cleaning staff has to wipe up when he drips. Every day. It's best to keep your mouth closed when you're looking up at him in awe.

The museum held a contest to name the new skeleton when he was first hung, and the winner, a fifth grader, came up with Kobo: King of the Blue Ocean.
















This is our sperm whale skeleton. He doesn't have a name, but he's still cool. We also have a small humpback whale skeleton hanging beside Kobo, acquired in 1935. He was the museum's first whale, inspiring William Tripp (then curator) to say:

We are no longer a whaling museum without a whale, as some in the past have chosen to call us.

Just a couple weeks ago, the NBWM put up their fourth skeleton. She started like this.














She required a bit of dental work.














I directed the construction.














Adjusting the ribs.




















This is how I know she was a she.














Raising the whale fetus. (Quasimodo can be seen in the background).




















Mother and child reunion, back view.















Bottom view.















Mother and child have no name yet--but there is another contest! That's right, you could name the whale (I think there may be a 12-year-old age limit).

Ask me in person, and I'll tell you some funny stories about these skeletons. A band camp story? Maybe.

And one time, and the whaling museum...

"Conservators make it last longer"

"He has a whiskey collection? Now that's something I could get behind. That's the sort of collection that deaccessions itself."

Glossophobia

Which do you fear more: public speaking, or death?

In just a couple weeks, I’ll be presenting a lecture on the research I’ve been doing to all my professors here at NBWM. The good news is I've got great material to work with, and there are no grades. The bad news is that, instead of teachers I've got professors watching me, and instead of grades, there is the serious possibility of humiliation. This will be my first real attempt at public speaking since high school, at which time I was devoting much more of my effort to making fun of the assignment/teacher rather than actually saying anything worthwhile.

I thought I’d copy over some of the tips from the book I’ve been reading, because they are brilliant:

First of all, don’t worry about being nervous—most experienced speakers are. If you are well prepared, this nervousness will feel like exhilaration instead of terror, powering your talk with energy that you can transmit to the audience. People who are too calm usually end up giving lackluster presentations. It’s like taking an exam—you do better if you are keyed up because the adrenaline sharpens your wits.

Nervous. I can do nervous.

Remember that, with very rare exceptions, the audience wishes you well, and that they are just poor mortals like yourself, in need of love and approval.

Love. They need my love.

Because you are onstage, you become in their eyes an authority figure, so it is up to you to make them them feel good.

Right. Make them feel good. I am an authority figure: respect my authoritah.

Try to feel affection for them, projecting as much warmth as you can.

Project warmth. Gotcha.

If you can forget about yourself and be genuinely concerned about the audience and their need for information and stimulation, you will not have time to be afraid.

...genuinely concerned...

Try to be the kind of teacher Carl Jung admired:
"One looks back with great appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child."

Warmth again. Must have warmth so my audience can grow, like the soul of a child. Yes.

Woodrow Wilson (another authority figure) was once asked how long it took him to write a speech. He answered, “That depends. If I am to speak in 10 minutes, I need a week for preparation. If 15 minutes, 3 days. If half hour, two days. If an hour, I am ready now.”

Luckily, I've still got two weeks.