Hansy Better has done it! Our first ever grantee of the Awesome Foundation was featured on the front page of Thursday’s Boston Globe for making the largest portable hammock in the world. [Thanks Reed for the picture] The hammock is made of 4,278 feet of rope made from recycled bottles inspiring both public and environmental joy alike. In a world where so much of the news consists of negative sensationalism it’s empowering to see this one, rather large, bright spot.

After being funded by the Awesome Foundation Hansy received gifts of materials and additional funds from Kickstarter, a site for funding creative and innovative projects, and countless man hours from volunteers who helped weave the hammock. What drew us as a group to funding the project was firstly, it’s a GIANT HAMMOCK, and secondly, it had the potential to bond communities together and allow everyone a place to feel how awe-inspiring the world can be.

Since then the projects we’ve funded have had a decidedly powerful aim of individual empowerment and public good. What we do together as a group is not anything secret or special- we are ten individuals who come together monthly and pool our own money into funding the next awesome project. Anyone can do it. Anyone. can. do. it.

I can’t speak for the others involved but I believe it’s made me a better person and I definitely feel that some of the awesome that our grantees have in spades has rubbed off a little and kicked me into action on other projects that help. And I’m challenging everyone right here, right now to look into their pockets or live a bit more simply and support the making of awesome in the world. I’m not suggesting diverting funds that would go to support other’s basic survival, but I think we all have the obligation to support our communal enjoyment of life. So, let’s go!

Lauren McCarthy, winner of the Awesome Foundation- Boston grant for December wants to teach you some manners. Specifically, how to improve your social interactions for the betterment of all. Through three different handmade devices she proposes that the wearer will be happier, more focused and more personable in conversation.

The Happiness Hat works by jamming a tiny spike into the back of your head if the sensor resting on your cheek notices you are not smiling. The Anti-Daydreaming Scarf creates an intermittent vibration on the back of your neck once it senses you are in close proximity with a person to make sure you are paying attention. The Body Contact Training Suit fills your head with white noise through headphones that stops if it senses you’ve come into physical contact with another person.

Lauren created these wonderful/terrifying inventions with arduinos, heat radiation sensors, capacitance sensing circuits and servo motors. If you suffer from a lack of social graces no need to rely on etiquette books or awkward self-attempts at forced interacting- now you’ve got a dedicated helper on your side that will keep the ladies/men coming in droves to be your friend/date/love you. Bravo Lauren!

What you are looking at here is the prototype for dynamic confectionery goodness. Made out of the extruding parts of an espresso machine, drill bit funnel, 1/2 soda bottle, 12 volt motor and a lot of sugar this machine is set to stun and compel the world into Type II diabetes. The machine is a working model that extrudes strands of cotton candy and propels it up to 3 feet away. Josh Gordonson, the maker of this fine device, hopes to add parts for coloring the cotton candy and a more directional focus along with spikes and a butter compartment for caramel (okay the spikes and butter are my addition) so that it can shoot up to 10-15 feet. Josh is the October recipient for the Awesome Foundation grant and will be using his massive check:

To ensure that future generations do not go without a solution to the 2AM problem of how one injects assorted colorful arrays of sugar fluff into oneself, roommates and passersby. Bravo Josh.

When Tim Hwang started batting around the idea of the Awesome Foundation for the Arts and Sciences 4 months ago I really didn’t know what to expect. Assembling 10 friends together to give $1000 every month in an elaborate ceremony to fund the start of some absurd or largely irrelevant project seemed, well, a trifle self-indulgent. Being a fan of self-indulgence and needing no further motivation to promote and propagate joyous absurdity in the world, I joined.

What has happened in the last several months is fricking amazing.

This beast of inspiration has sliced and diced the red tape, endless hoops and halts people face when trying to fund ridiculous or atypical creations. It has also revealed to us the overwhelming amount of ingenuity out there and shamed me into working on my own gratuitous displays of public and private joy.

Not that the foundation was set up with the aim of wasting resources and mental space; we are all now at the point when reading through the grant applicants that it’s an automatic delete on apps that try to knock-off someone else’s project or augment something already in existence. Who doesn’t take the time to at least google search an idea to find out if ten spot-on matches are not already out there done? Non-winning applicants.

That said, I’ve heartedly enjoyed the ride. Since the applications have no expiration date, we haven’t collectively decided to showcase any yet in case we choose to fund an older one. I’ve been assembling some data on the criteria and trends that have emerged but that will be for later posts. For now, I’ll leave you with a raptor-proofed pirate ship of a home looking at the stars and wondering when the first Native American woman will walk on Mars. Foo!

P.S. I can’t use awesome anymore as a word. It’s been like eating pizza for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

So went the evening of Friday August 7th 2009. The trustees and friends of the Awesome Foundation gathered at 50 Church St. to award Hansy Better $1000 to make a giant hammock for public use in Boston Common:

Our first ever awesome grant to an awesome lady. Dibs on the first swing!

What is this you ask? It’s a monthly no-strings micro-grant given to people making awesome things. Period.

Who is giving away this crazy amazing free money?

• David Nunez (Dorkbot Boston)
• Reed Sturtevant (Director, Microsoft Startup Labs)
• Emily Daniels (Dorkbot Boston)
• Keith Hopper (Public Interactive Group, NPR)
• David Fisher (Web Ecology Project, Development Ninja)
• Erhardt Graeff (The Berkman Center for Internet and Society)
• Evan Burchard (Developer, Rocker)
• Tim Hwang (ROFLCon)
• Jon Pierce (Betahouse) 
•  Matt Blake (ROFLCon)

Why are we doing this? Because it’s awesome!!!

How do you apply? Link!