Carefully gathered everything up, remembered my light meter and the lamp slide for the fiber optic projector and headed to Norwich. I forgot how humid they keep the place.  It was like the ‘oven effect’, but with moisture.  I and the outside world are so dry, but the 65% (or so) humidity was palpable.  I went out to the dry rotunda where the bathrooms are and when I opened the door to enter the museum it was like a wall of water hitting me in the face.

I started with the fiber optic projector.  It ran fine and the fan turned properly.  So, yay, there.

Then Phillip showed my the school’s AV department’s projector.  As expected, fairly wimpy.  But I slapped the universal mount on it using screws out of my trusty blue case and hung it.  It didn’t fill the screen, but that’s as good as it got.

Next was the theater DVD.  I popped in the new DVD and reprogrammed the controller, having remembered to bring my 8″ monitor.  Then Phillip and I evaluated the video for a while.

Finally on to lighting. I started out by the front doors in the near glass case.  I went around and put in the UV filters where applicable, most of the ones that needed it were the area lighting that wasn’t on artifacts.  I relit the Partridge area using my light meter and the chart from NoUV/IR.

I also took a look at the Sullivan screen.  I can’t tell if it’s the DVD or controller.  I need to make a new DVD and test it.

Then I came through the Civil War exhibit that closes in a couple more months.  I was sweating now from the humidity and wished I had shorts.

I used 50 watt, 40˚, PAR 38, Halogen-Tungsten bulbs on the new papers. Not one was over 10 FootCandles.  I didn’t use as many scrims as I had expected.  I probably should have put them in, but I wound up just squeezing the barndoors together.

Finally I got the lighting in the new exhibit all done, and I installed the remaining UV filters in the unused lights and put them all away.

Finally I replaced the burnout bulbs and reset the display corridors dimmers.

But Candace and Phillip and I started a conversation about the light switches in the Rotunda, only to notice the fiber optics had gone out.

I got out the ladder and climbed up, and checked it all out.  Everything seemed fine, but it instantly blew a fuse when I reset it. I unplugged the lamp unit and even just the power supply blew a fuse.

Phillip was ready to go by this point so I’ll have to come back tomorrow.

I raced up to  Hardwick for the basketball game only to find it canceled due to impending freezing rain that wound up not being too bad.

I went home to find that Stephanie has moved huge piles of stuff around and our rooms are more empty now than full.