Some Stuff

(Disregard the date. I started this post on Friday, posted on Monday.)

Hi all. We are dealing with no Air Conditioning in my studio at the moment. Blinds are drawn, fans are blowing. Dealing with maybe the most uncomfortable run of weather this Summer. Playing soccer at 10:00 pm on Friday was unbearable, with no subs. And playing street hockey Sunday morning was maybe worse. You could feel the heat coming up from the blacktop, through my two socks, into my feet as I drank down to Nalgenes of water. Didn't help that we lost both games . . .

Great to see my sister over the weekend. Happy to see that she is hanging in there with the Teaching Fellowship and is adjusting to life in New York. Proud of her, that's for sure. Good food at La Palapa. If only they could do something about the noise . . .

I am off to Charlotte later today for a one-day trip for one of my projects, then back to New York to have a little Umphrey's time. Next week, a big charrette in the office. The following week, a trip to Austin for another project.

Last week, L and I had a nice trip to the Midwest to spend time with her family in Minnesota. You can't beat living on a lake in the Summer, taking a boat out, grillin'. We spent about five days and it can be called a Vacation for all of the sitting around and reading that was accomplished. (Made for a crazy Thursday and Friday, though.)
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Just a couple of links:

WNYC: Pre-Fab House show at MoMA
NYTimes: 36 Hours in Pittsburgh
NYTimes: After 3 Climbs, Facade at Times Building is Altered

Two-wheeling to Sustainability

My brother has written another essay for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, focusing his efforts this time on the benefits of bicycling around Pittsburgh. Great stuff from Josh, once again.

A smoky old town
(You kind of wish they would have picked a different title for a more positive looking article.)
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On a related note, I think this recent post by David Byrne to his blog nicely dovetails with Josh's article. Especially the last paragraph:

This sounds depressing and ominous, but I sense that one’s quality of life is not actually tied to these goods, and is certainly not tied to the automobile and all the roads and services it’s demanded for almost a century. US commuters, for example, will probably blame the Arab world, but will also look for alternate solutions, like decent public transportation, and living closer to their place of work, which is also a good thing. In fact, after some very nasty times we could — if we don’t let our anger and pain get the better of us — emerge with a better quality of life than what we have now.

Weekend of Independence

I hope everyone is able to have a relaxing and long Weekend of Independence. I, for one, am quite happy I can sit here relaxing, watching clips from Fuse's Bonnaroo broadcasts that I taped with my DVR. The smell of brownies is filling our apartment, and I am quite content. Yesterday featured a trip to J.G. Melon's for my favorite burger, followed by a piece of chocolate cake to fill a craving. We spent the night with two good (new) friends and enjoyed celebrating their new engagement. Today will be filled with more relaxing, and some barbecue north of the Bronx at a fellow ND Arkie's house. Perfect way to celebrate the day . . . Saturday and Sunday will be more of the same. Relaxing, that is. Much needed, if you ask me.

Carlin and a Cat Named Frodo

I realize I might be a bit late in offering some thoughts on the death of George Carlin, but yesterday, WNYC reaired an interview with Carlin from earlier this year, and it got me thinking. Carlin and my appreciation of his humor are directly tied to my family, particularly my mom's brother Larry's children. A bit convoluted, I know, but looking back, it is interesting to think about Uncle Larry, Aunt Judy, and Aaron, Rachel, and Mara's influence on my appreciation of culture.

Related to Carlin, I can clearly picture a few of us grandchildren sitting in the TV room at my Grandparent's house on Exeter Road in Erie. I am going to guess it was Christmas, and that the tape we were listening to was a gift (I may be wrong, here). I don't remember how old I was, but there was a definite mix of laughter and gasping as we all sat around listening to the Seven Deadly Words. Aaron and his sisters were always on top of humor, whether it be movies or TV shows or, in this case, commedians. While my own (milquetoast?) tapes included Bill Cosby and Steven Wright's I Have a Pony, Carlin's voice and words from that day at Gram's made an indellible impression on my consciousness.

And their influence can be seen past my sense of humor. Sitting in a cabin at Clear Creek State Park, I can still remember the fear and suspense and interest I felt listening to the music, and the voices, of their recording of The Hobbit. While I can't whistle the melody, the music is still ghosted in my head. And to stick with Tolkien, the living room of their house in Erie featured these two large built-in book shelves on one wall in their living room. On the left shelf, near the bottom, I can picture the white spines and black lettering of The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Tolkien's books had power just sitting on their shelves -- the stories I knew were held within, brought to me in that cabin in the woods. They even had a cat named Frodo.

I don't want to read too much into the difference between parenting styles or something, but just the fact that I was made aware of these treasures of our culture through family members was enough to mold my early self. What I valued, and was excited by, and could lose myself in. And I still appreciate that . . .