christmas eve eve [tradition]

well, it looks like "public's" christmas eve eve party is a full fledged tradition now, as they hosted it for the third year.  i may be partial, since it's my favorite bar, but to me it's the perfect holiday party. everyone is usually back in town, but still has the night off from any family obligations. allowing you to connect with out of town friends. nothing seems more like the holiday spirit than enjoying good drinks with good friends....and "christmas vacation" on the big screen.

my favorite architecture and [non-architecture] bookmarks

i've been working in an architecture office for nine years now, usually at a computer. over that time i've amassed a large number of website bookmarks.  the ones i frequent most usually find their way to my toolbar.  i thought this was a standard practice but apparently i use this feature more than most people as the number of icons on the top of my browser usually draws sarcastic comments from co-workers.

listening to a recent archispeak podcast, the guys mentioned how google has replaced the office library, a spot to find reference materials, standards, details, products and other information. it occurred to me that my bookmarks toolbar had basically become my library; a digital spot i frequent everyday. curious what other architects might have in their "digital library", i thought i'd share my collection of sites.

reference material (stuff i should probably know by now, but don't)

international building code you'd think i would know most of this by heart by now. link is to the 2006 edition which our city still uses....for the next month at least.

2010 ada design standards - more information you would think i would know, but i still find myself double checking myself all the time.

ul fire resistance design wizard - a great way to find fire rated details or an assembly to use.

arcat details, info, products, drawings, overall great site.

revitcity for those few of us still getting use to revit.

profession related (information from great groups i belong to...which is nice of them)

ncarb - a site with wonderful articles related to architecture. also vastly improved from when i was an intern using it to record hours.

aia homepage - just because.

young architects forum their magazine "connection" is amazing, check it out. now.

architecture magazines (those things that sometimes still get delivered by mail)

 

architect magazine - the digital and better version of the magazine...in my opinion.

the architects newspaper - great articles, news, competitions and job postings.

dwell because there's just something about a "dwell" style photograph that makes me smile.

architecture sites (digital eye candy and information)

 archdaily - who doesn't check out this site everyday?

a daily dose of architecture - pictures of buildings that make you go *ahhhhhhh*

life of an architect -  the "fun" uncle of architecture blogging. with his insight and wit it's easy to see why this is such a popular site. he also started #architalks which i've enjoyed being a part of the last few months. *side note, i realize this entire post is similar to one bob does every year, but i thought it was varied enough and offered a different enough perspective to post...hope he thinks so too.

design related (sometimes about architecture but thankfully some other subjects too)

 design taxi - graphics, art, photography....all about design and all of it is wonderful.

design boom - architecture and various other well designed products.

co. design - articles about design and technology that make you "feel" smarter after reading.

 

 

citylab - i could read every article on this site, all day, err day.

music and sound (because sometimes you're a cad monkey and you just need to zone out)

 pandora - sometimes completely random music is fun, even though i think coldplay has a deal with them to play their music no matter what station you have it on. see my post about that here.

the current - the best variety of live internet music i've found on-line.

listen to a movie - just what it is, listen to just the audio of your favorite movies. if you ever find me giggling at my desk, chances are i'm listening to caddyshack.

products (because i can dream about owning fancy, well-designed objects)

swiss-miss - delightful little items, photos, quotes and products from around the internet that make you smile.

hi consumption - stuff i can't afford but love thinking about owning.

bless this stuff - more stuff i can't afford.

podcasts (it's like getting an education while you work)

 achispeak - priceless insight, information and "gen x" humor about the profession. *side note, the "gen x" comment was placed there simply to see if they'd read this.

99% invisible if you care about design at all, listen to this podcast. topics i had no interest in at the beginning end up fascinating me by the end.

song exploder - it's like hearing about how a building goes together, but with great music.

there you have it, a few "books" in my online, digital library.  i'd be curious to any links any other design professionals find interesting, as i'm always looking to add to my ever growing bookmarks toolbar.

giving thanks and [wine]ing

for this edition of #architalks we were asked by bob borson of "life of an architect" to provide a recipe from your typical thanksgiving meal line up, with the title being "...from an architects table"

only problem is, i don’t have a very large table.

also...

i don’t really have any casserole dishes to place on said tiny table.

also...

i lack cooking skills that would allow me to use pots and pans to cook and fill the casserole dishes i don’t have, to place on my tiny, little table.

i am very much a bachelor. a bachelor with minimal cooking skills.

i know many architects who are phenomenal cooks, able to whip up fantastic dishes with perfectly cut and prepared ingredients. it seems cooking and architecture go well together; it’s cultural, it’s artistic, it’s educational. there are architects who can prepare beef bourguignon while discussing le corbusier with a vintage vinyl of edith piaf playing quietly in the background.  i, however, am not one of them. i’d like to be...i yearn to be....i think i might eventually be...but as of the writing of this post, i am not.  that being said, i didn’t want to pretend i was any sort of chef and post a recipe of something i‘ve never made or was planning to not make, so i didn’t.  however, wanting to be a proper guest and bring something to our #architalks thanksgiving, i thought i’d bring one of the two things you can always count on at an architects thanksgiving. 

wine.

(the other item being a black mock turtle neck)

wine is an interest i’m slowly getting more acquainted with.  one of the principals at my office firmly believes architects should know about wine and over the years i’ve been slowly gleaning information from him. after doing a bit of research i have picked out two wines to bring to the #architalks table. two wines i will also be bringing to my actual thanksgivings.

first a red.

legado del mancayo grancha 2013

supposedly deep, assertive, zesty and spicy.  i’ll be taking this to the thanksgiving i’m spending with my girlfriends parents.  her father likes malbec’s, and with my limited wine knowledge this seems like a natural fit.  supposedly it also pairs well with cranberry sauce with i absolutely love.

now a white.

airlie 7 2014

the descriptions on this wine included fruits such as melons, pears and pineapples.  with my mother enjoying sweeter wines, this is what i’ll be taking to my family thanksgiving.  it also said it goes well before, during or after the meal, with a variety of foods.  just the kind of loose criteria a day with my family requires.

so there you have it. i’m the architect who didn’t bring an actual dish to the table, but i hope you all enjoy the wine, as well as a little holiday music thanks to bing and frank...on vinyl of course.

i'd also like to give a huge "thanks" to bob borson and all the other architect bloggers i've met through #architalks.  not only have i learned more about the profession from a variety experience levels and perspectives, but i've been able to digitally network and connect with several of you. architects i've never met but who, in there own way, make this profession richer, stronger, more eclectic and wonderful. thank you all!

to check out recipes from the thanksgiving tables of other architects who are better cooks than me, please follow the links below. happy thanksgiving everyone!



Bob Borson - Life of An Architect (@bobborson)
http://www.lifeofanarchitect.com/margaritas-especial-del-arquitecto-de-texas/

Matthew Stanfield - FiELD9: architecture (@FiELD9arch)
Thanksgiving Feast...

Jeff Echols - Architect Of The Internet (@Jeff_Echols)
This Thanksgiving: Something New

Mark R. LePage - Entrepreneur Architect (@EntreArchitect)
From My Table To Yours

Lora Teagarden - L² Design, LLC (@L2DesignLLC)
ArchiTalks: Bourbon. Every architect's friend.

Eric T. Faulkner - Rock Talk (@wishingrockhome)
Archi-Table - Any Berry Salad

Rosa Sheng - Equity by Design (@EquityxDesign)
Hacksgiving - A Hacker's Thanksgiving

Michele Grace Hottel - Michele Grace Hottel, Architect (@mghottel)
"From an Architect's Table" Dolly Brown's Pumpkin Pie

Meghana Joshi - IRA Consultants, LLC (@MeghanaIRA)
Archtalks from an Architects Table

Michael Riscica - Young Architect (@YoungArchitxPDX)
The Architect's Postmodern Thanksgiving!

Brian Paletz - The Emerging Architect (@bpaletz)
All In the Family

Emily Grandstaff-Rice - Emily Grandstaff-Rice AIA (@egraia)
Unplug Tradition

Jarod Hall - di'velept (@divelept)
UTAH = JELLO