when you're here, you're [family]

this summer, my wife and i went to the annual st. peters italian bazaar festival and had a wonderful time.  it was a perfect summer weekend to be outdoors.  we enjoyed a few games, some absolutely wonderful cannoli's and witnessed one of the crazier events i've ever seen, the greased pole competition.  as much as we enjoyed the day the best moments were later that evening.  we ran into the wonderful lady who helped coordinate our wedding with the church, who lovingly asked us how the first two months of marriage had been.  later on, as i was trying to purchase my third cannoli of the evening, the lady taking my cash recognized my wife from being an anchor on the local news.  that led to a wonderful 10 minute conversation discussing how much she enjoyed watching my wife on the news and how much we had enjoyed the festival, putting smiles on all our faces.

we not only left the festival that night full of the absolute best cannoli's i've ever had, but also realizing that after a year and a half in our new home, we were starting to feel a part of the community, which is a wonderful feeling.

also did i mention how great the cannolis were?

gropius [live]

a couple years back i wrote about the worst crit i ever had in architecture school.  the crit was for a case study of the gropius house.  fifeteen years after that fateful day, i had the chance to visit the house in person.

the gropius house holds a special place in my architectural heart.  coming from engineering school, i entered the college of architecture without fully "understanding" architecture, and my first crit proved that.  however after it was explained to me exactly why this house is special, i slowly started to understand the magic of good architecture and thoughtful design.  lessons learned during that crit are represented in every project i work on.  i will be eternally grateful to the gropius house for that reason.

living in portland maine, i'm now only 2 hours away from it's location.  this  past  summer, as we were heading to massachusetts to visit friends, my wife and i made a stop in lincoln to visit it.  it was incredible!  it's a strange feeling to have studied something so well and then see it in person.  it's similar to seeing your favorite band play your favorite song live.  no matter how many times you've played that song it will sound better live.  it's the same thing with architecture.

i know an architect writing about "how there's just something about being in the space" is nothing new....but for me this visit was special.  this house represents the reason i love architecture and why i enjoy being an architect.  i got to see gropius "live" and it rocked!

 

  

 

 

easy as 1,2,3, fore!

getting back into golf is a easy as ridding a bike.  if it's possible to ride a bike really incredibly awful.

this summer i went out golfing for the first time in over a year, and it wasn't pretty.  in my mind there are a million different reasons why i was so bad, but the simple fact is golf makes you work for it's affection.  to play well you have to practice and play a lot.  golfing only once a year will make you look like a golfer that only golfs once a year.  thankfully i had a few shots that proved to my group i had indeed picked up a golf club before.

although my score was higher than i would have liked, it was still a great morning, and i got to cross maine of my golf list.

time traveling with [wilco]

i don't go to wilco concerts to listen to the music...

i go to time travel.

i discovered wilco in the fall of 2002 with their album "yankee hotel foxtrot."  i was twenty one, in college and had just switched majors into architecture.  i was at an age where i started to feel like i was thinking for myself. my tastes, style and preferences on everything were changing.  in a way, i felt i was shedding the shell of my youth and looking ahead to a whole new adult life in front of me.  it was new, it was confusing, it was exciting and a little scary.  yhf couldn't have been a more perfect album to discover during this time.  i've been a fan of wilco ever since hearing the opening song to that album "i'm trying to break your heart" and they've been a huge part of my life soundtrack since.

when i go to a wilco concert and they start playing my favorite songs, i'm immediately transported in time and taken back to different spots along my adulthood timeline.

when i hear "jesus etc." i'm taken back to late nights in studio working on architecture projects with my best friends.

when i hear "heavy metal drummer" i think of my friend beth when she lived in chicago, talking to her on the phone about relationships and getting her female perspective on any crazy situation i was dealing with.

when i hear "humming bird" and "handshake drugs" i think about living in san diego away from friends and family.  i think of my co-worker scott and how after discovering i liked wilco as well, he gave me a bunch of old wilco albums and other bands like uncle tupelo, golden smog and loose fur to listen to.

when i hear "either way" i think of my first break-up.

when i hear "impossible germany" i think of living in my very own apartment by myself.

when i hear "sky blue sky" i think about walking in downtown wichita.

when i hear "one wing" i'm taken back to friday nights hanging with friends at lucky's.

when i hear "art of almost" i think of taking one last trip to kansas city before moving away from the midwest.

when i hear "if i ever was a child" i think about planning my wedding and picking music for the reception.

i realize none of these memories mean anything to you and they're not suppose to; they're mine, but maybe you have different songs from different bands that take you back in time...and that's what makes music absolutely magical. it really is the best form of time travel i know.  all you have to do is put on headphones and press play.

thank you wilco for being the doc brown to my marty and helping me go back in time whenever i hear your music.

play it again [clam]

the difference between last summer and this summer?  last summer i was discovering events, this summer i'm looking forward to events.

one of those events is the yarmouth clam festival.  we had a blast last year and couldn't wait to attend this year as well.  it's not so much about the clams as it is about just being outside and enjoying the summer and maybe enjoy some lime rickeys!  to be honest i'm not exactly sure what it is, but i do know they taste great on a hot summer day.

summer is a sacred season in maine and the yarmouth clam festival seems to be one of the more sublime celebrations to attend.