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

rocky mountain [sick]

boulder is an absolutely beautiful city...to be sick in.


the end of october found me and my girlfriend traveling to boulder for a quick three day vacation, a city neither one of us had been to.  we drove all day, listening to podcasts and albums until we ended up at our airbnb.  a wonderful little guest room a few miles outside of town, close enough to enjoy the vibrancy of downtown, but secluded enough to feel like you were camping.

ten minutes into our stroll down pearl street we knew we loved this city. amazing food, quaint little shops and friendly people!  we spent the whole day downtown enjoying coffee, food, wine and various appetizers, all the while enjoying the perfect fall weather.  i absolutely loved the pedestrian and bike friendly downtown with everyone so active, and the restaurants were a perfect fit for my girlfriend who enjoys eating gluten free and healthy.

however friday night took a turn for the worse.  i had a fever, chills and other various flu-like symptoms.  saturday morning came and i was in terrible condition.  not improving much, my girlfriend drove me to an urgent care.  after filling out forms, waiting, getting checked out, waiting, getting tested and more waiting, it turned out i did not have the flu, the diagnosis rather was food poisoning!

how could you do this to me boulder!  i was in love with the food fare you put before me. your farm to table attitude had me in hipster heaven! now this? was my body unable to handle a lack of gluten? was the food too fresh for me? what could have done this?  had it been the fresh red trout with castelvetrano olives at salt? maybe it was the curried cauliflower and carrots at the kitchen? please don't tell me it was the cedar plank salmon at riff's!  the car ride back to our place had us trying to figure out what food had done me in. the caveat to this meal mystery was the fact my girlfriend an i had shared every meal since arriving in boulder. so what could it be?  in fact, the only thing she hadn't tried of mine was the gas station breakfast sandwich i had eaten on the drive....

as soon as i thought those words, it all made sense. i had suddenly remembered the sandwich had been oddly cold...even for a gas station sandwich.  looking up food poisoning on my phone, it turns out eggs are one of the biggest culprits.

the day wasn't entirely wasted however, as we had an amazing view, and both of us had the chance to simply lay around and be lazy, a rarity in our lives.  by the next day i was feeling much better! just in time to meet up with some friends for brunch and prepare for the 7 hour drive back.

boulder is an absolutely wonderful city and i can't wait to visit it again. walking it's streets you can't help but think this is the way all cities should be; pedestrian friendly, bike friendly, pet friendly, everything friendly with a walkable downtown with local shops with amazing food.  i would recommend anyone taking a trip out there. although....i'd skip the gas station breakfast sandwich.

hotel boulder ado

the kitchen

corner bar at hotel boulder ado

urgent care

sick in bed...but with a view

the cup expresso cafe