Thanks to Google, the Popular Science magazine archives are available free! (Hat tip to WattsUpWithThat for the alert.)The cover of the July 1977 issue is shown because it includes a wonderful piece. Click here to see it!
What makes this item so great? Well, I wrote it and it shows our three daughters, Rena, Lisa, and Sara, with their stuffed animals, on a bed/bench I designed and built for our van when we did some camping.
It also includes a photo of me when I was about half my current age and a nice do-it-yourself construction diagram. (The piece includes some other photos, not shown here.)
[For larger images, either hold CTRL and press + or click on image.]
You can page through any issue and see not only the stories but also the adverts, which are often more interesting.Ira Glickstein
2 comments:
Thanks for the reprint, Ira. Your daughters must have gotten a kick out of seeing themselves in the archives. What gave you the idea of sharing your van modification with the world? How did it work out in practice? I never could get my daughter to enjoy camping and the great outdoors. I think that's one of the problems of travel and an only child with no one to play with.
We had a massive Chevy Impala to pull our trailer at one point. I conceived, but never carried out, a plan to remove the back seat and install a queen (king) size bed all the way from the back of the front seats through the vast trunk. That would have been fabulous for quick and wide ranging trips.
Thanks for bringing back some memories.
In answer to Joel's queries:
1) I only got about $100 from Popular Science for the story and I gave part of it to my friend who took the photos - so it wasn't for the money. While in college I had published a piece in Popular Electronics magazine about "Binary Dice". I had three asynchronous neon-bulb oscillators that would flash until you pressed a button. The "dice" result was a random binary number from 0 to 7. I guess I just like to see my name in print!
2) The bed/bench pictured above was a very comfortable queen-sized bed. My wife and I slept on it while the children slept in a pop-up tent trailer. We camped mostly to save money when we went on sightseeing vacations, including a trip to Disney World. In the olden days before everyone used seat belts, the bench was handy for carrying passengers.
When we bought our next car, we sold the van privately to an older couple who loved the bed/bench. I made a xerox copy of the Popular Science story and autographed it for them!
Thanks for sharing your memories with me and allowing me to do the same!
Ira Glickstein
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