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This weekend I was busy being the Good Spouse (TM). I'm okay with that.

Bryon has a mentor figure in his life who looms large, a gentleman named Wilbert Hutton. Dr. Hutton was Bryon's chemistry adviser during Bryon's time at Iowa State, and they both shared an almost insatiable love of Jim Henson's muppets. As a matter of fact, Bryon and some of his friends built imitations of the muppets and spent a good chunk of their high school and college careers doing shows with them. Bryon and our friend Paul were actually good enough that they were invited to audition for Henson after college, but Bryon decided he'd rather be a high school teacher, rather than a puppeteer. You know, for the glory.

So, Bryon and Dr. Hutton shared this love of muppets, and Dr. Hutton was a demonstration chemist, among other things. He suggested to Bryon that the two of them coordinate their mutual talents and liven up the old chemistry magic show (mix things together, watch them fizz and/or turn colors and/or explode) with the muppet performances. This they did, and the chemistry magic shows were easily the most popular attractions at the 1981-1985 VEISHA festivals. And the Iowa State chem students were invited to take their show on the road to the international ACS conference in that time frame as well.

This was mostly before my time. I helped with lights in the last incarnation of the show. Dr. Hutton never knew quite what to make of the English member in the chem club, but really, I wasn't trained to make things blow up, so lights, that was good.

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Mirrored from Writer Tamago.