Duluth charrette

Here's a summary article from last year's Knight Foundation charrette in Duluth. I'm beyond psyched for this year's charrette in Memphis, July 16-23.

Circus

City Hall plaza update: the circus has come to town.

After review of my comments about the suffering plaza (yeah right), there has been action. The stupid mini-ampitheatre on Cambridge Street was filled in over the last couple months, making me quite curious about the plan. Well the plan, for now, is to shift this year's Big Apple Circus visit to City Hall plaza!

I'm sure this isn't the first time "circus" has been associated with City Hall.

Photo of the week

Taken at a jobsite on the Mass Pike. The beauty of utilities.

But at what cost?

Mayor Menino announced his vision for a new skyscraper downtown in the Financial District last week. He's calling for what would be Boston's tallest building on the site of an existing City parking garage at Winthrop Square.



Globe critic Robert Campbell wrote this viewpoint about the plans which I completely agree with. The idea of a new skyscraper mixing with the old Boston architecture is seductive and I'm all for it if the market can bear the additional office space, but in this location, without people living nearby to create 24 hour life, a skyscraper will overwhelm this little square and reinforce the canyon-like streets where everything closes at 5 and the world moves on leaving nothing but trash blowing like tumbleweeds in the streets. I say this from experience, because anytime I walk from my office to the gym past this garage at night I'm just a little freaked out.

Half birthdays and sick days

I had never celebrated my half birthday until last week, to tell you the truth I never actually knew when it was, but now I'll never let a March 16 go by without suspicion of everyone and everything around me. Heather planned a surpise party, I thought we were heading out for a relaxing dinner at the Summer Shack and a whole group of our friends end up walking in the door and sitting down for dinner with us! We ended up moving downstairs for bowling at Kings, my second time ever with the normal size non-candlepin setup. Good times.

Unfortunately Heather and I seemed to be cursed on "holidays", because I felt myself coming down with something near the end of dinner and I knew it was going to be evil. By about 11 pm it had evolved into the worst stomach flu & fever nightmares I can remember having. I wouldn't wish my Thursday night through Saturday on anyone. But thanks for the pre-flu party!

Observations from a 48 hour sickness:

- 12 hours in front of the NCAA basketball tournament on a pull-out sofa bed in a delerious state due to a high fever makes time pass in a very very bizzare way.

- Two straight 12 hour stints on a pull-out sofa bed in front of the NCAA tournament with a high fever eventually makes your back hurt. A lot.

- Two straight 12 hour stints in front of the NCAA tournament doesn't burn you out, it actually makes you want even more NCAA tournament.

- Red Gatorade is better than blue Gatorade.

- Jello is highly underrated.

- An all-toast diet makes you appreciate good jam.

- The Applebees shrimp commercial with those two nitwits playing the Gilligan theme not only convinced me never to spend my money in Applebees again, but almost caused me to turn the tv off entirely. Almost. I saw (or otherwise registered from my limbo half-sleep) that damn ad at least 25 times.

- Indiana has the best warmup pants in the history of college basketball. The program must have inherited them from either the local hospital or a circus.

- College coaches wearing sport jackets in their university's color sometimes looks good (North Carolina) and sometimes doesn't (Tennessee, Alabama). But it's always cool.

CT & RI

Just when it seems like things are easing up a bit, work and CNU committments get turned up a notch. I'm losing control of my to-do lists.

What a great weekend visiting with the Wrights, Heather and I spent time with Joaquin (and Julie and Juan, of course) and took Diego to the aquarium on Saturday. Here's a better picture of the new guy:


Diego and I had a few jam sessions over the weekend, he's picked up the harmonica. Here he is playing the harp in his pjs.


Poor Diego, life for him is one big quiz show. Diego, how old are you??? One! Diego, who's that?? Little bruddah! Diego, what's his name??? Jahchin! Diego, what did you see this morning?? See ehyuns! Diego, what else?? Boo-gah whales! I guess that's how you communicate with someone who can only answer with two words at a time, max.

When he tries to communicate with us, it only gets through about half of the time. On the way to the aquarium, for 15 minutes straight, he chanted "Ta-guh, ta-guh, ta-guh, ta-guh" for at least fifteen minutes while pointing out the window and occasionally letting lose a big tiger roar and laughing. Who knew the southern CT/RI region is infested with tigers only visible to one year olds?

On our way to the hospital on Saturday we stumbled across this jewel of a street in New London, CT. Apparently the entire street is a historic preservation area, resulting in careful upkeep, architectural harmony, and incredible streetscape. The only drawback is the fact that the street is perfectly straight, it could use a slight bend or some variation in the curb line to keep it from becoming monotonous.

Knight Fellowship article

Here's a good overview of the Knight Fellowship program and the annual charrette.

My former self

Lombard sent me a lovely picture this morning:


The gravestone reads:

JF
In memory of
JONATHAN FORD
who departed this
life July 12, 1817
Aged 83 Years
8 Months
& 3 Days

There's also some kind of Revolutionary War plaque on it. Lombard, I don't know how you found this...I know you've always wished for a grave with my name on it. Pretty damn cool (and weird). My former self lived from 1734-1817 and participated in the Revolutionary War. Probably as a cook.

Sounds of the week

I have been on a cd-buying binge lately. That's how I operate. Months with no new additions to the iPod, then cd purchases at an alarming rate, repeat as desired. Here are capsule reviews of a few of the latest:

Dandy Warhols - Odditorium
***
You have to be in the mood for the Dandy Warhols too cool slowed-down party music. Odditorium is not up to the standards of "Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia", but way better than "Welcome to the Monkey House". Solid Dandy Warhols.

Gavin DeGraw - Chariot
***1/2
The double album is great roots rock, and rises above the cheese factor that turns me off from most albums of this genre. Very cool combo of the original studio album and loose 1st & 2nd take 1-night re-recordings of the songs between tours.

Queens of the Stone Age - Over the Years and Through the Woods (Live CD/DVD)
**
QOTSA are one of my favorite eccentric, "stoner" rock bands. This live album is missing the wild energy of bootlegs I've heard from their tour with Dave Grohl on drums, but still proof that their ferocious sound is legit. Live recordings show what a band is really all about, and this one adds to the overwhelming evidence that they are the real deal. Any newcomers to QOTSA should buy their first 2 studio albums first.

the Dirtbombs - If You Don't Already Have a Look
****
Detroit's ass-kicking fuzzed out 2 drummer 2 bassist punk outfit somehow combines 2-minute hardcore punk songs with soul/r&b influences. Some songs were written & recorded in an hour, and they sound it. Not a bad thing.

Danger Doom - Mouse & the Mask
****1/2
Crackling-smooth beats heavy on the hooks from Danger Mouse combined with playfully clever rhymes from MF Doom and cameos from cartoon characters. Brilliant!