what is [architecture]?

last week i had the opportunity to do something i’ve wanted to do for a while, host a trivia night.

now this wasn’t your normal trivia night, one of my friends who is in charge of the aia emerging professionals, wanted to put together a trivia night for all the young architects in town.  as an added bonus we invited the local graphic designers to participate as well.  not only did this keep our group from “geeking” out the entire night over architecture, but it mixed in some new and interesting facts.

talking with everyone who attend, the night was a huge success.  a good time was had by all and several new friendships were made.  thinking most people who follow this blog are into architecture or design, i thought i’d share a few of the questions, and see if anyone new the answers.

- who said, "less is more"

-what famous los angeles building is featured in the last scene of "500 days of summer."

-how many pica in 1 inch

-what is the name given to carved, full length female figures used like columns in classical architecture.

-name the four colors in process printing.

-how many square feet are in one acre.

congratulations to the winning team picture above in the first annual archi-design-trivia night.

[trivia] pursuit

wednesday's have become my favorite day of the week.

a little over a year ago one of our friends suggested we find a trivia night.  searching the internet we found a great little dive bar which hosts a trivia game every wednesday.  it was only a dollar to play, and with the special being two dollar beers we decided to try it out.

we discovered quickly our group had infiltrated a bar full of teams who knew each other rather well.  that night, and the weeks that followed, found our team getting "slammed" often.  a feature in the game where a team can force another team to answer a question, ideally one you they won't know.  being the youngest team by a decade, any question dealing with topics prior to 1985 would usually be "slammed" our direction.  we did stick with it however, and have attended almost every week since.  eventually the other teams started to realize what topics were in our [wheelhouse], and the "slamming" lessened.

fast forward 60 some weeks later and i  believe we can officially be considered regulars now; knowing the bartenders by name, and the weakness of the other teams.  on occasion the host will even cater a few questions to us, featuring a [pop music] category instead of the seemingly standard [seventies rock].

although we've lost a few of the original team members over the past year, we've added several as well.  you'd think this would have changed the knowledge base of our team, but it still seems to solidly rooted in 90's and 2000's pop culture, with sports and science not far behind.  our team also changes weekly depending on who can make it.  we've held our own as a booth of four, and have annoyed other teams with upwards of 12 people crowded around a table.  naturally a little bickering always breaks out, but they enjoyment wednesday night trivia holds far exceeds any arguments that happen.  if you ever find yourself bored on a wednesday night, hit us up, as we're always happy to have more people, especially if you're knowledgeable in literature...or anything from the 1970's.

 

 

gin and [sprite]

last year, one of our non-native kansan friends introduced our group to a new style of drink/party called a [gin bucket].  as this is the second year for our friends to partake in this type of party, i feel it's well on it's way to becoming a full fledged tradition.

basically it consists of a large bucket filled with gin, sprite, ice, lemons and limes.  the end result is a wonderfully refreshing and chilled beverage perfect for enjoying summer.  there is no need for glasses or cups as you consume this concoction with turkey basters.  sanitary? probably not. entertaining? definitely! apparently this all started as a tailgating tradition at indiana university and has slowly been working it's way through the midwest.  as it was our missouri friend who introduced this to us, i can totally buy into this theory.

now, even though this beverage began betwixt binge drinking college kids, this really is a wonderful way for a group of friends to enjoy a party due to it's very social nature.  with everything being contained in a bucket, it requires guests to constantly move and interact, instead of the standard, sitting in a chair, sipping your own solitary drink.  secondly, who doesn't like drinking out of a turkey baster?  it's like a spirit squirt gun-o-fun, so much in fact that when one person goes in for a drink, several other friends are quick to join.  this also allows you to cheers everyone by hoisting your basters up like the knights of the round table. [gin] soldiers if you will.

so whether your summer nights involve gin buckets, or something more along the lines of ice tea and lemonade, i hope everyone is able to venture outside and enjoy the weather with the company of wonderful friends.