Imagineering my Future

Tonight was the night that my biggest opportunity came to fruition.  I was ecstatic when the museum invited me to travel out to LA to help setup and run the Nao robot performance at the Marty Sklar fundraiser.  I've been working day and night on the robot's performance to start the evening, and the chance to be there rubbing elbows with the who's who of Imagineering has been the icing on the cake.

First, let me start off by thanking Mr. Sklar for his generosity, not just hosting the event, but also being so welcoming to those of us working and volunteering in his house the whole day beforehand.  I had a few chances to talk with him, and he is full of great stories, encouragement, and advice.

I'm also happy to report that the performance went flawlessly, without any network hiccups or stumbles.  Knowing that I'd be there in person, I actually ended up building messaging to the robot so that I could control actions discretely with my phone.  This worked like a charm.  I was able to start the main presentation on cue so that it seemed like the robot was really just starting up on its own.

I also put in a couple Easter eggs like having the robot fidget a bit after his spiel while others were talking and even sneezing at one point.  I also gave myself controls so that I could have him clap along as other guests were introduced.

It all worked exactly like it was supposed to, and it was great watching the room full of theme park, robotics, and museum professionals hang on each sentence.  Mr. Sklar had very kind and complementary words for me afterwards as well, so it's safe to say I was on top of the world.

To celebrate, since I was already in LA spending time with Imagineers, it seemed appropriate to spend a day in Disneyland, having never been.  Tomorrow, more adventures!