There is a pie and wine party tonight that I probably should not go to given the fact I am really behind on my studio design proposal. We have a preliminary pin up on Monday. But I will nonetheless venture forth toward fruit-studded baked confections and the sacred libation of Dionysus.
Today I spent most of the day completing a draft of an unrelated drawing assignment. It was beautiful outside and I should have been outside running, biking, or shopping.
Light at the end of the tunnel - Wednesday all I have planned to do is pack for my pending 2 night journey up north...and worry about what I have to get done for studio when I return on Saturday night.
I may try a vegan Japanese restaurant with Christina tonight. Not sure if I will end up full after that one, but then again, there is a pie n' wine party calling my name.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Naked people. Six hours of naked people.
Graduate school provides the opportunity to do things you haven't done before. You learn and grow from these experiences, thus enriching your educational experience. I myself have traveled three times overseas on the dime of the Beatrix Farrand fund, among countless parties, receptions, conferences, sponsored field and professional office visits.
Graduate school will also pay for nude models.
For the next two weeks, a nude model will visit my landscape drawing class and we will utilize her/him for three hours. There will be breaks. Apparently, nude models are traditionally given a five minute break for every 20 minutes of work performed. That means, collectively over two weeks, almost 70-80 minutes of breaks for the nekkid one while we gawk, stare and try to pretend we are only mildly amused.
Monday will begin with a female model. Our professor Chip claims that women are "easier to draw." I wonder what that means. He claims men are "difficult." I would like to know more details about that one.
Having never been in a class with a nude model, I have many questions about procedure, proximity, and expectations. I do hope this person is relatively in shape. Otherwise, I might as well just go hang out in the locker room of the Y with a tablet and charcoal. I am concerned about being too close that I may feel like I am staring.
My classmate Sara, who has taken figure drawing classes before, assured me that while it IS weird, you quickly acclimate to the environment. However, she told me that she's seen it all in terms of models, including a man who appeared to have visible STD symptoms. Ouch.
Oh, we were told that all cell phones will be collected into a box when we enter the classroom as a safeguard against unauthorized photos being taken. Also, there will not be drinking allowed that night in class (which goes against normal operating procedures). Wish us luck. And above all, wish us virile, attractive models!
Graduate school will also pay for nude models.
For the next two weeks, a nude model will visit my landscape drawing class and we will utilize her/him for three hours. There will be breaks. Apparently, nude models are traditionally given a five minute break for every 20 minutes of work performed. That means, collectively over two weeks, almost 70-80 minutes of breaks for the nekkid one while we gawk, stare and try to pretend we are only mildly amused.
Monday will begin with a female model. Our professor Chip claims that women are "easier to draw." I wonder what that means. He claims men are "difficult." I would like to know more details about that one.
Having never been in a class with a nude model, I have many questions about procedure, proximity, and expectations. I do hope this person is relatively in shape. Otherwise, I might as well just go hang out in the locker room of the Y with a tablet and charcoal. I am concerned about being too close that I may feel like I am staring.
My classmate Sara, who has taken figure drawing classes before, assured me that while it IS weird, you quickly acclimate to the environment. However, she told me that she's seen it all in terms of models, including a man who appeared to have visible STD symptoms. Ouch.
Oh, we were told that all cell phones will be collected into a box when we enter the classroom as a safeguard against unauthorized photos being taken. Also, there will not be drinking allowed that night in class (which goes against normal operating procedures). Wish us luck. And above all, wish us virile, attractive models!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
Next semseter
We've already signed up for classes for Spring semester 2008. Oh, how I wish it were my LAST spring here. Sadly, it is NOT.
Anyway, it appears as though I will not be required to take LA 202: Neighborhood Landscape Design. Under normal circumstances, this course is taught by my adviser Louise and I would jump to take it. However, this year she is on sabbatical and will not teach next term. The course this term is apparently going to be split between two fill in faculty members, one of which I am uncertain I like very much.
The other options are to take either Peter's Advanced Urban Design studio (CP 248) or Randy Hester's Environmental Planning studio (LA 205). I decided to enroll in Randy's studio. I haven't had Randy as a professor since Spring 2006. He's a big reason I came to the department, so perhaps this will reignite my enthusiasm for studio. Lately, I just feel pooped because we've had to crank out obscene amounts of work the last three weeks.
That stuff is pretty mundane, though.
Things to look forward to are Thanksgiving. I will be a basket case trying to get out of here. The good news is that Chip cancelled class on Wednesday night, so I will be able to meander on home before midnight to pack for the mad dash home. I will spend two nights at home and there are already plans in the making to see the Chuck Close exhibit at the Portland Art Museum.
Anyway, it appears as though I will not be required to take LA 202: Neighborhood Landscape Design. Under normal circumstances, this course is taught by my adviser Louise and I would jump to take it. However, this year she is on sabbatical and will not teach next term. The course this term is apparently going to be split between two fill in faculty members, one of which I am uncertain I like very much.
The other options are to take either Peter's Advanced Urban Design studio (CP 248) or Randy Hester's Environmental Planning studio (LA 205). I decided to enroll in Randy's studio. I haven't had Randy as a professor since Spring 2006. He's a big reason I came to the department, so perhaps this will reignite my enthusiasm for studio. Lately, I just feel pooped because we've had to crank out obscene amounts of work the last three weeks.
That stuff is pretty mundane, though.
Things to look forward to are Thanksgiving. I will be a basket case trying to get out of here. The good news is that Chip cancelled class on Wednesday night, so I will be able to meander on home before midnight to pack for the mad dash home. I will spend two nights at home and there are already plans in the making to see the Chuck Close exhibit at the Portland Art Museum.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Night Falls on Kortedala
This is Jens Lekman at Bimbo's in San Francisco on Friday,
November 9. Photo credit to Jason.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
One powerpoint, two powerpoint, three powerpoint - bust!
Come 11am tomorrow, I will have had presented three Powerpoint presentations in one week. The topics have been diverse, yet interrelated as most things happen to exist in this world:
1. An Introduction to Three Watersheds of Contra Costa County
2. Sustainable Storm Water Case Study: The Mount Tabor Middle School Rain Garden, Portland, OR
3. Mending a Divided Watershed: Rodeo Creek
Despite the flurry of practice, I have not learned how to animate slides yet. That function is generally overused and abused in presentations - we've all seen that circle that flys spinning counterclockwise onto the screen - but it is a good feature to use when you are displaying plans or maps with layered information. So while I do not claim to be a PPT guru, I do have some formidable skillz with this application.
I better sleep, I have to get up in three hours. I really need some damn sleep.
1. An Introduction to Three Watersheds of Contra Costa County
2. Sustainable Storm Water Case Study: The Mount Tabor Middle School Rain Garden, Portland, OR
3. Mending a Divided Watershed: Rodeo Creek
Despite the flurry of practice, I have not learned how to animate slides yet. That function is generally overused and abused in presentations - we've all seen that circle that flys spinning counterclockwise onto the screen - but it is a good feature to use when you are displaying plans or maps with layered information. So while I do not claim to be a PPT guru, I do have some formidable skillz with this application.
I better sleep, I have to get up in three hours. I really need some damn sleep.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Prevailing over blockage
All I needed to get over this writer's block I've had was to go visit Whole Foods. That place is a cluster fuck of pretension, urban vanity, and irresistable boutique chocolate bars.
I went there with the idea I would spend $10 on dinner and I spent $34. Half of that was spent on some good EFAs from the ocean swimmers. I am almost out of the Walgreen's brand I currently use. These things cost $17 and claim to be derived from "Wild Caught Small Fish" with "No Mercury, PCBs and Lead." Hmm, funny thing but I thought most consumables we buy lack these elements. I love unheeded advertising! Looking at the label more closely, I see that this is a product from Norway or Iceland. I guess they fish on the international boundaries of these Scandinavian countries and can't 100% guarantee the nationality of their net's catch.
After I procured my oil allotment (sp) I got in line near the express area. This area has a clear view of the salad bar and pastry case. I began musing over several of the elaborate confections, one a variation of a Boston Creme, the other a more traditional, yet vegan, carrot cake. In the glare of the case, I saw a man put his hands into the candied pecans container of the salad bar. He continued to crush the nuts in the palms of his hands (it looked like he was warming his hands by the fire) and then sprinkle the crushed contents onto his salad box. The remainder crumbery, not desirable by him, was returned to the greater nut box. The first thought through my head was "Gross" but the second thought was something along the lines of "if you act like this in a public place of relative scrutiny, how in the world do you behave once you get home?" Good lord.
Time to nap. Stay out of the candied pecans.
I went there with the idea I would spend $10 on dinner and I spent $34. Half of that was spent on some good EFAs from the ocean swimmers. I am almost out of the Walgreen's brand I currently use. These things cost $17 and claim to be derived from "Wild Caught Small Fish" with "No Mercury, PCBs and Lead." Hmm, funny thing but I thought most consumables we buy lack these elements. I love unheeded advertising! Looking at the label more closely, I see that this is a product from Norway or Iceland. I guess they fish on the international boundaries of these Scandinavian countries and can't 100% guarantee the nationality of their net's catch.
After I procured my oil allotment (sp) I got in line near the express area. This area has a clear view of the salad bar and pastry case. I began musing over several of the elaborate confections, one a variation of a Boston Creme, the other a more traditional, yet vegan, carrot cake. In the glare of the case, I saw a man put his hands into the candied pecans container of the salad bar. He continued to crush the nuts in the palms of his hands (it looked like he was warming his hands by the fire) and then sprinkle the crushed contents onto his salad box. The remainder crumbery, not desirable by him, was returned to the greater nut box. The first thought through my head was "Gross" but the second thought was something along the lines of "if you act like this in a public place of relative scrutiny, how in the world do you behave once you get home?" Good lord.
Time to nap. Stay out of the candied pecans.
Writer's hesitation
I've had a few free hours since our doosy of a presentation at 2pm today. I thought about posting a run down of the day's events, but it just isn't terribly interesting to describe. Then I thought about posting some announcement about the tailless raccoon I saw outside of Wurster with my friend Tim on Saturday night, but I realized I've already done that before (it's weird...the thing looks like a odd-shaped bear with no tail).
Still, no spark of inspiration from that either.
I then thought about just going on strike for a little bit, hoping that interesting writing topics may just need some time to ferment and ripen.
It's hard to say what will happen. Maybe it's the lack of sleep causing this streak of uninspiration. Who knows.
Still, no spark of inspiration from that either.
I then thought about just going on strike for a little bit, hoping that interesting writing topics may just need some time to ferment and ripen.
It's hard to say what will happen. Maybe it's the lack of sleep causing this streak of uninspiration. Who knows.
Monday, November 05, 2007
When weekends aren't weekends
School is great and everything but it gets tiresome when you log in more than 36 hours there over the course of a Saturday and Sunday. Today I arrived at 8:30am and I just got home (it is 2:46am on Monday). The day before was about the same.
Things in my group are good. We left our building tonight in high spirits after plotting out our presentation board, which is more than 6' long. Whenever you plot anything more than 48" long, you always risk having graphics go astray or print out blob-like. By the graces of all that is holy, the 72" board printed out complete and pristine. The colors weren't half bad, either. Our 30 slide powerpoint presentation is also in top form. We run through at 10am tomorrow, and then do the presentation at 2:00 in front of a selected panel of stakeholders and critics. Shall be interesting. I cannot wait until we are done so I can catch up on all the other crap I've ignored for days.
I had a nice catch up with some friends from Oregon on Friday night. We went to eat at Sam's Place, some seafood joint in the thick of the financial tourist trap district. Can't say I adored the neighborhood, but the fish wasn't half bad. This restaurant is one of SF's oldest, apparently. The service is alright, if a little slow but it was a Friday evening.
My take home message of the evening was that people who have jobs have it easy. They have time to dine and socialize, plan morning outings to the spa, and even exercise. People like me barley have time to get 3.5 hours of sleep a night. A condition which I am currently headed toward if I do not wrap this message up soon.
Things in my group are good. We left our building tonight in high spirits after plotting out our presentation board, which is more than 6' long. Whenever you plot anything more than 48" long, you always risk having graphics go astray or print out blob-like. By the graces of all that is holy, the 72" board printed out complete and pristine. The colors weren't half bad, either. Our 30 slide powerpoint presentation is also in top form. We run through at 10am tomorrow, and then do the presentation at 2:00 in front of a selected panel of stakeholders and critics. Shall be interesting. I cannot wait until we are done so I can catch up on all the other crap I've ignored for days.
I had a nice catch up with some friends from Oregon on Friday night. We went to eat at Sam's Place, some seafood joint in the thick of the financial tourist trap district. Can't say I adored the neighborhood, but the fish wasn't half bad. This restaurant is one of SF's oldest, apparently. The service is alright, if a little slow but it was a Friday evening.
My take home message of the evening was that people who have jobs have it easy. They have time to dine and socialize, plan morning outings to the spa, and even exercise. People like me barley have time to get 3.5 hours of sleep a night. A condition which I am currently headed toward if I do not wrap this message up soon.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Only 27 min left of my favorite month
Well, the bell is about to toll the end of the fine month of October.
No other month compares in my opinion. October is the time of year you truly feel the day's length fleeting and your senses become awakened to a new palette of smells and colours. The sun begins to set around 5:00pm and soon the dinner hour is completely black, suggesting a different variety of foods should also be introduced. Thinking back to late June, when evenings would often trail along until nearly 10:00pm, the evenings of October seem entirely longer and dominant to the days. Something nice about this October is that it was essentially a dry month, too, allowing me to bike to school and back without cursing Mother Nature.
Now just 21 minutes left in October 2007.
I should take a quick moment to commemorate the birthday of my father and three uncles, who turned 61 and 59 last Sunday (28th). Happy birthday, Pops.
Tonight is Halloween. I am without costume, still at school, and I just finished coloring these perspectives I promised my studio group all weekend. I will now go scan them and head home.
Here is one:
Oh. Here's to a rockin' November.
No other month compares in my opinion. October is the time of year you truly feel the day's length fleeting and your senses become awakened to a new palette of smells and colours. The sun begins to set around 5:00pm and soon the dinner hour is completely black, suggesting a different variety of foods should also be introduced. Thinking back to late June, when evenings would often trail along until nearly 10:00pm, the evenings of October seem entirely longer and dominant to the days. Something nice about this October is that it was essentially a dry month, too, allowing me to bike to school and back without cursing Mother Nature.
Now just 21 minutes left in October 2007.
I should take a quick moment to commemorate the birthday of my father and three uncles, who turned 61 and 59 last Sunday (28th). Happy birthday, Pops.
Tonight is Halloween. I am without costume, still at school, and I just finished coloring these perspectives I promised my studio group all weekend. I will now go scan them and head home.
Here is one:
Oh. Here's to a rockin' November.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Shellac = shiny fun things
Our midterm for my Landscape Drawing and Painting class is to make a weird proscenium and memory chamber for two soon-to-become threatened species: Apis mellifera (common honeybee) and Quercus agrifolia (Coast Live Oak). It is a strange project but it is very doable because there are only a few guidelines we must follow. Above all it should be interesting to look at. I think I succeeded.
Look inside the boxes:
Required parts were two matchboxes and one cigar box as the base for the assignment's elements. I didn't want to bother with procuring a real cigar box, so I made one using museum board that I found in a drawer. The matchboxes were easier to come by.
I used a lot of shellac-varnish on my box. Everything is eerily shiny and decoupage-y looking. It would probably go up in flames if one of those matches was lit. I am exhausted from all this craft making. I shall now sleep.
Look inside the boxes:
Required parts were two matchboxes and one cigar box as the base for the assignment's elements. I didn't want to bother with procuring a real cigar box, so I made one using museum board that I found in a drawer. The matchboxes were easier to come by.
I used a lot of shellac-varnish on my box. Everything is eerily shiny and decoupage-y looking. It would probably go up in flames if one of those matches was lit. I am exhausted from all this craft making. I shall now sleep.
Happy Birthday, Janine
Today is Janine's birthday. Here's to you!
I sent her a card from this cheeky site I just found. Some of these are pretty damn hilarious.
I sent her a card from this cheeky site I just found. Some of these are pretty damn hilarious.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Another gratuituous link...
Click here for Swedish people. I shall be enjoying this performance very soon.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Going too far
I found this item on one of my classmate's desks this morning. I believe in haute cuisine and all that junk, but I think this case of fusion has overstepped some delicate boundaries.
The kicker is that this particular person has in the past claimed to be a vegetarian.
The kicker is that this particular person has in the past claimed to be a vegetarian.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Board
This is my board that I will present in 20 minutes for LA 111: Plants in Design. Just posting an entry here while it plots.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
D-day is Thurs. 11am
All evening I have been (re)designing the Wurster Light Court. Non-Wursterites will not be familiar with this space. It happens to be an interior courtyard of our monster building which is home to the College of Environmental Design. On the UCB campus.
The design is for my Plants in Design course, so most of the intervention has to do with (you guessed it) plants. So far I like my plant palette. There are many ferns and clumpy grass thingies. Oh, I plan to better articulate this information when Thursday morning rolls around.
We were only given 10 days to do this project (the first 7 days of which I was completely focused on studio and not thinking about plants in the very LEAST). So that gives me less than three days to complete a 10 day long project. Sounds like a typical situation for most misbegotten souls here at Wurster Hall. In between now and Thursday's presentation, I have exactly 8 hours of classroom time and two additional projects to turn in.
I plan to be here until 2:30am. I have class at 8am today, so I need to get at least 3 hours of sleep. I must be well rested, for tomorrow I will be watercoloring this enormous Light Court design.
So that means I must sign off immediately and return to my plant mode.
The design is for my Plants in Design course, so most of the intervention has to do with (you guessed it) plants. So far I like my plant palette. There are many ferns and clumpy grass thingies. Oh, I plan to better articulate this information when Thursday morning rolls around.
We were only given 10 days to do this project (the first 7 days of which I was completely focused on studio and not thinking about plants in the very LEAST). So that gives me less than three days to complete a 10 day long project. Sounds like a typical situation for most misbegotten souls here at Wurster Hall. In between now and Thursday's presentation, I have exactly 8 hours of classroom time and two additional projects to turn in.
I plan to be here until 2:30am. I have class at 8am today, so I need to get at least 3 hours of sleep. I must be well rested, for tomorrow I will be watercoloring this enormous Light Court design.
So that means I must sign off immediately and return to my plant mode.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Hasta luego, Jean Paul
Jean Paul's last week in Berkeley is nearing its end. Last night marked his farewell party on Grove Street. Things began around 9:30, when JP and his crew (Pete, Ingrid) were the first to arrive. It was nearly 11:30 before a critical mass was established. Many, many people were in attendance; some people we met off the street even dropped in (I warned them not to steal anything). Particular highlights:
1. Michael Gougherty head-butting our dining room door and cracking it.
2. Drinking from the tequila bottle at 3:10am.
3. Realizing, for the second time in a calendar year, that crumbly chocolate cake is not a good party food if you have beige carpet.
4. Waiting for a cat fight to break out between roommate's love interests
5. Watching a guy that brought a bucket of chicken to our party consume nearly every piece of it.
6. Drop in visit from the neighbor at 2:50am.
There are certainly more highlights to be added, but my brain is slow tonight. I've been looking at numbers too long on a spreadsheet.
1. Michael Gougherty head-butting our dining room door and cracking it.
2. Drinking from the tequila bottle at 3:10am.
3. Realizing, for the second time in a calendar year, that crumbly chocolate cake is not a good party food if you have beige carpet.
4. Waiting for a cat fight to break out between roommate's love interests
5. Watching a guy that brought a bucket of chicken to our party consume nearly every piece of it.
6. Drop in visit from the neighbor at 2:50am.
There are certainly more highlights to be added, but my brain is slow tonight. I've been looking at numbers too long on a spreadsheet.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Corn maze = Good time autumn fun
My friend Andrew has proposed his annual escapade down to Fremont to the autumn corn maize (maze). Each year, he gathers together a group of people to carpool all the way down there to participate in the old-fashioned Halloween pre-gaming.
Seeing that this year there will be no official Halloween party in the Castro, I see the corn maze as a potential alternative venue for the crowds of San Franciscans looking to rabble rouse a bit amongst tall vegetation. With a little planning, beers and flasks can be smuggled in and enjoyment to be had. There are, however, no bathrooms at the corn maze (as far as I can recall) so drink with knowledge of that constraint. Otherwise, you will be wandering into adjacent corn fields to relieve yourself, and you know what can happen out there!
Bird's-eye view of the Fremont Corn Maze
One of the fun things I remember about the Fremont corn maze was the interaction between strangers. It is inevitable that within the group you arrive at the corn maze with someone is likely to go missing among the networks of winding paths and dead ends. If such an event occurs, you could try calling your friends on the cell. However, that route isn't terribly effective given that it's hard to give directions in a place such as this ("take a right at the big group of corn husks" doesn't quite cut it) and given the fact that cellular reception not as reliable as in the city. It is best to ask for some help: "Excuse me, but did you recently pass by a bunch of loud drunk people? One person would have smelled of bourbon. You did? Where were they headed?" Someone might even escort you to them and offer you a swig from their group flask. Good things come from asking for help in the corn maze. Really.
Oh, that reminds me of one important hint: don't wear any shoes that you would care about if they got submerged in mud/manure. I speak from experience. Same applies to your pants.
Consider visiting a local corn maze this autumn.
In other Halloween pre-gaming news, Jean Paul's going away party is this Friday, the 19th, right here on Grove Street. I am trying to figure out where my pad of colored construction paper is. I would like to decorate this place properly...in the spirit of the season.
Think this concept, but much better....
Seeing that this year there will be no official Halloween party in the Castro, I see the corn maze as a potential alternative venue for the crowds of San Franciscans looking to rabble rouse a bit amongst tall vegetation. With a little planning, beers and flasks can be smuggled in and enjoyment to be had. There are, however, no bathrooms at the corn maze (as far as I can recall) so drink with knowledge of that constraint. Otherwise, you will be wandering into adjacent corn fields to relieve yourself, and you know what can happen out there!
Bird's-eye view of the Fremont Corn Maze
One of the fun things I remember about the Fremont corn maze was the interaction between strangers. It is inevitable that within the group you arrive at the corn maze with someone is likely to go missing among the networks of winding paths and dead ends. If such an event occurs, you could try calling your friends on the cell. However, that route isn't terribly effective given that it's hard to give directions in a place such as this ("take a right at the big group of corn husks" doesn't quite cut it) and given the fact that cellular reception not as reliable as in the city. It is best to ask for some help: "Excuse me, but did you recently pass by a bunch of loud drunk people? One person would have smelled of bourbon. You did? Where were they headed?" Someone might even escort you to them and offer you a swig from their group flask. Good things come from asking for help in the corn maze. Really.
Oh, that reminds me of one important hint: don't wear any shoes that you would care about if they got submerged in mud/manure. I speak from experience. Same applies to your pants.
Consider visiting a local corn maze this autumn.
In other Halloween pre-gaming news, Jean Paul's going away party is this Friday, the 19th, right here on Grove Street. I am trying to figure out where my pad of colored construction paper is. I would like to decorate this place properly...in the spirit of the season.
Think this concept, but much better....
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
No-zones of victory
Stop the presses!!!! Something amazing has happened in DC! The end of a wholly corrupt system, resulting in millions of pilfered dollars going into the pockets of DC's cab drivers, is about to happen.
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