making toys for a living.

well, technically it's not for a living, since i [still] have my day-job (but it sure sounds cool to say it that way). this weekend i began volunteering with Happen Inc's ToyLab (see previous post on my first experience there).

Saturday morning, i got my 101 on actually making toys (which is what i'm there for) - where i donned by labcoat + tie (as "Professor Raman" - the easiest professional degree i've ever obtained) to learn the fine art of drilling, filling, + gluing the parts together to last (much harder than it looks). Happen Inc founder Tommy Ruoff says it best when he explains, "you have to be like a duck" - calm on the top (interacting + engaging with the children + their parents), and busy on the bottom (behind the glass, making the toy + trying not to injure yourself). post my training, i joined Tommy + another colleague at an art event at the museum. from there i decided to head BACK to ToyLab to make my first toy for a kid.

my inaugural toy from the morning, which i got to take home:
dino-BobbleBuzz (w/ hat). powers: "he spins his octo-hat & kicks his legs high!

the first toy i made with a child (5-year old Riley):
the ZooPlane. powers: "it flies animals in the sky day or night with its special candle on top."

i've got to tell you, this was one of the more fun + fulfilling things i've done in a long while. i returned Sunday afternoon to work a birthday party where i made toys for the birthday girl + her kid brother (pictures are pending as they have yet to be posted to the ToyZoo).

given i've found myself with quite a bit more free time over the coming months (given my better half is living on the east coast), i plan to find myself getting more and more involved with the crowd at Happen Inc.

that, and read more [comics].