who will save your [sole]

i have issues with letting things go.....

i hate throwing things away.....

i was taught this from and early age. everything can always find another use. just ask me about bread sacks and "math" paper. in my apartment, i have movie stubs from high school, as well as a pair of argyle socks my grandfather gave me in middle school, and i'm almost certain i'll be the only person returning to the 10 year reunion in the same car they drove in high school.

it's one thing to reduce, reuse, and recycle, but it seems the "reusing" part of the equation leaves a lot of items laying around waiting for their coveted "second use".

is this wrong? it seems we live in such a throw away world, it's almost contagious to start thinking nothing has value. what happened to quality, what happened to craft?

well, last week i came across an article discussing the salvaging of dress shoes. the article stated most people rid of their dress shoes after a little wear and tear and go out and by a new pair reflecting the latest style. very few people take the time to get shoes repaired by a shoe smith.

no joke, a few days after reading this article, pondering how to make a blog out of it, the heel feel off of one of my work shoes. seeing the irony in the situation, i was not upset, and used the time it took me to hobble home to think about the title of this post.

looking through the yellow pages i found the address of a little shoe shop my family has gone to for years. i was pumped, i finally i had my own broken dress shoes to take! it was exciting.

it was only nailing a heel back on....nothing even close to refurbishing a pair that might have seen the inside of the dumpster, but it's close, and sort of ties into the article. so, like always i took some pictures to add some visual interest to this blog, and because i was in a refurbishing mode tonight, i polished up another pair of shoes.

but what is the line? when do you decide to try to mend the repairs? when is it time to throw away? when will i be able to wear my sweater vests again, and not get made fun of?

[wright] here in wichita

well, because i'm a huge "archi-geek", and had nothing else to do saturday morning, i decided to enjoy an open house of the corbin education center which is one of two frank lloyd wright structures we have here in wichita.

now, to say that i only went because i was bored, isn't totally correct. having missed the first year of architecture school, i lost my chance to join in the fun filled tour that takes place that year of wichita. i had driven by the building a number of times but i had never had the chance to get inside.

so armed with my camera, i joined a tour. it was filled with most of the same information you get on every tour of a wright building, hidden entries, courtyards, compression, release....there were however some very unique facts that i really enjoyed. the curved mullion detail on the windows was only use in one other building which is the guggenheim in new york, and the building was finished after wrights death.

after finishing the tour, i did what one is suppose to do in any great space....take pictures. while snapping away, i wondered around, lost in thought, thinking about architecture, the profession, clients, ideas, legacies, details, ...where to place this new information in my personal guided tour of wichita architecture for out-of-town guests.

one thought that kept coming back to me however, was the idea of discovery. in my current job, i work with a lot retail, and commercial spaces, where you want the public to know where the front door is immediately upon exiting the car, usually with huge signage above it. however this building, like so many others of his, discovery of the entry is part of the journey. the front of the building is actually rather boring and you're not really sure where to go, but with a little patience and searching, you soon find yourself in a fountain filled courtyard. you go through the mundane, to find something wonderful. which can be said about the city as well. there's a lot of mundane around, but with a little searching you can find something wonderful, pleasant, and inspiring.

true in life as well....

prairie[fire]

now, i'm very well aware that the start of the new year was over three months ago, but really, when you think about it, isn't that a bizarre time to have a "new year". it's right in the dead of winter. every thing's cold, grey, dark...and cold.

what brought me to this conclusion was driving past a prairie fire late the other night, which is always a sign in kansas that spring is here. what an impressive and powerful image of clearing the old to make way for the new. now i don't know much about maintaining a prairies, since i've never owned one, but i do know that the general idea is that it helps clear the old grass and shrubs to allow newer and healthier grass to take it's place.

driving around late that night, a number of fires could be seen in the distance. seeing one relatively close, i followed a dirt road until i came across it. i got out and sat on the hood of the car and watched it with the same thoughtful look one would have staring into a bonfire. i sat there thinking about life, pondering, wondering, analyzing my place in in this crazy world.....you, know all standard bonfire thoughts....air supply may have been playing softly in the background....i'm not sure....but i digress. the only downside i noticed after getting back into the car was no that the interior smelled like a koa campsite. but that was nothing a little window-down driving couldn't fix.

i suddenly have a craving for some smores...