Pictures for now, its late and we need to sleep. Words to come. Love this.
Monday, December 26, 2011
10 Things About Kelly
Feelings on coffee
Love. Americano with whole milk.
Favorite color
All shades of grey.
I'm from
Raleigh, North Carolina. Not Canada, as some have speculated.
Previous life before architecture
Architecture, then briefly Art History, and now securely back to Architecture.
Favorite road trip foods
Goldfish (one bag down, two to go). Beef Jerky.
I'm looking forward to
Hands down the scenery. I love experiencing new climates/regions. Oh, and there might be this other thing called the Thorncrown Chapel.
At Forum, I'm looking forward to
Day trip to Sedona and Chapel of the Holy Cross. Although technically that isn't a Forum event. We also have started to plan our role call skits which hopefully will be pretty funny.
My preferred mode of road trip documentation
I'm really terrible at all of them. I find that if I try to take photographs, I don't actually see what I am experiencing. I am certainly not a disciplined sketcher, although I bought new pencils with good intentions.
I suppose that it is best to say that I collect things... with hopes of scrap booking.
Books I brought on the trip
This one's kind of bitter sweet for me. I checked out a bag full of books for the trip, mostly in preparation for the ULI Competition in January, and had to leave most of them at Shawna's to make room in the car.
Ultimately I chose one architecture and one non architecture read.
Jane Jacobs | The Death and Life of Great American Cities
Ken Follett | Pillars of the Earth
What would I do other than architecture
Teach. Art or Math at the High School level.
10 things about Jimmy
Feelings on coffee....
I'm going to be brutally honest, I despise the taste of coffee. When I go to Starbucks or any coffee place, I get mochas which don't really count as coffee. The more sugar and sweetness, all the better to cover up that horrible taste. If I drink coffee (black, straight up), its because I have to stay awake or I need to focus for some reason, not because I enjoy it. When I start to become dependent on the caffeine intake in order to function after days/weeks of regular consumption, I look forward to the times when I won't need it to form a coherent thought in my head.
Favorite color....
It was blue (not carolina blue, ugh, disgusting, boo Tarheels) but then I met orange. Now it is a combination of blue and orange. Think Boise State or the Denver Broncos. I don't get the whole architects' liking black. Its ridiculous, why would you wear black when its hot outside? Black is only good for fancy parties and funerals.
I'm from...
Greensboro North Carolina. Good place to grow up and to end up at. I'm not so sure about the in between.
Previous life before architecture....
There really was no before. I've known since I was 12 what I wanted to do. I just took a longer path to get here.
Favorite road trip foods....
I like driving to places but I like being efficient about driving times. I don't like to stop a lot and that means I usually don't eat and/or drink a lot either. If I have to, a bag of cheetos and a dr pepper.
I'm looking forward to....
The world's largest tree house in Crossville, Tennessee (which we saw today), the Thorn Crown Chapel, the Chapel of the Holy cross, and Taliesin....architecture that isn't a victim of globalization and modernism (its a box but is it a library, a museum, a school, a factory...a house?).
My preferred mode of road trip documentation....
I occasionally take amazing photographs, so I prefer a camera. I appreciate what technology has done for humanity but I still feel like digital cameras have cheapened the art of photography. Everyone is a photographer now. They don't even look at what they are taking a picture of, they just click a button several hundred times and then these digital images end up on a hard drive, where they stay forever and rarely take physical form. If you could only take 24 shots you'd be more thoughtful about what you were looking at and how a photograph was composed. Honestly, nothing beats being in a darkroom developing your own film and making your own prints. I'd take that over photoshop any day.
Books I brought on the trip....
Reading MVRDV
Folds, Bodies, and Blobs, Greg Lynn
Reinventing the Skyscraper, Ken Yeang
The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
The Ghost King, R.A. Salvatore
The Age of Darkness (Horus Heresy Series book 16), Christian Dunn
The Outcast Dead (Horus Heresy Series book 17), Graham McNeill (reading now)
I will read the at least three of these because we have a lot of driving to do on this trip.
What would I do if it had to be something other than architecture...
I would find work in the video game industry. I was raised by my nintendo and every subsequent gaming console after that. When we got enough money, I graduated to pc gaming. People hate on gamers but its no different from watching a movie or tv, even reading a book. Its better because you are in control...I'm not talking about crap games that last 4-6 hours. Electronic Arts, one of the larger gaming companies, has capitalized on a system of producing the same thing every year (madden football, heck any sports game, even modern warfare <- Activision) and charging $60 for it. That is a crime. I don't know why people continue to pay for that crap.
I like games with epic stories that help me escape to another world, a world that needs saving by me!... Mass Effect, Fallout, the Elder Scrolls series...blends of action and role playing. They also provide a different experience with every play through. I don't like to admit it but I've put in 150 hours playing Skyrim since it was released in mid-november. Some economists say this game is the sole reason why America's economy is in the toilet. I totally agree.
So the short answer would be working on games like that.
Seven Trees Support my Faith
"Where do we start?"
"Anywhere" said the volunteer at the world's largest treehouse in Crossville, Tennessee.
I began to climb the forty foot staircase that wrapped around a thick tree trunk.
Oh, I thought when I was about eight feet above ground. The treads were uneven, the floor was slopped and the floorboards were spaced very far apart, this is really not to code. The staircase lacked a handrail too.
"Yep," I heard the volunteer tell another visitor "Horrace built it all himself, we help maintain it, but when it comes to anything structural he wouldn't let anybody touch it, yep the whole thing is supported by seven trees"
Great.
Rachel
AIAS|NSCU Member
Rachel
AIAS|NSCU Member
I-40? Right?
I-40? Right? Asked Shawna on day one of our trip. I could only respond with laughter knowing that we would be taking 40 West for three days, all the way to Phoenix.
I would say we had a successful first day. We all had a chance to try out the rental, a Dodge Journey, a pleasant surprise considering we requested the smaller ford escape. And it's a good thing because we need EVERY inch of space we have. It's a daily game Tetris loading us into this car. Apparently, us ladies need to learn how to travel a little lighter.
Our only sightseeing for the day was the worlds largest treehouse in Crossville, TN. What a pleasant surprise. It was creepy, as expected, but I wasn't aware of the religious associations. It has a very well articulated chapel inside, with pews, choir, alter, and balconies all inside an unexpectedly dramatic three story space.
An added plus was that the act of climbing ten stories while circumambulating the building at each level was a great way to stretch your legs. Congrats to Jimmy for making it all the way to the top! (I just wasn't brave enough to climb the ladder suspended over two flights of stairs). Thanks Horace, for building it, and inviting all of us to visit.
We also stopped in Nashville for dinner at the Whiskey Kitchen, a great suggestion by Rachel, our director of activities and recreation. My overall impression of Nashville is a good one it seems to have an active nightlife, which is more than I can say for Memphis which seemed to be completely abandoned, so much for partying on Beale Street.
Our drive to Memphis was tough one, hopefully the worst of the trip. It rained the whole way. Thanks to Jimmy for being brave through all of that. And thanks to Verizon unlimited data and Netflix instant streaming for keeping us well distracted through the whole experience. Thankfully we finally figured out the windshield wipers when we got to Memphis and it stopped raining.
I would say we had a successful first day. We all had a chance to try out the rental, a Dodge Journey, a pleasant surprise considering we requested the smaller ford escape. And it's a good thing because we need EVERY inch of space we have. It's a daily game Tetris loading us into this car. Apparently, us ladies need to learn how to travel a little lighter.
Our only sightseeing for the day was the worlds largest treehouse in Crossville, TN. What a pleasant surprise. It was creepy, as expected, but I wasn't aware of the religious associations. It has a very well articulated chapel inside, with pews, choir, alter, and balconies all inside an unexpectedly dramatic three story space.
An added plus was that the act of climbing ten stories while circumambulating the building at each level was a great way to stretch your legs. Congrats to Jimmy for making it all the way to the top! (I just wasn't brave enough to climb the ladder suspended over two flights of stairs). Thanks Horace, for building it, and inviting all of us to visit.
We also stopped in Nashville for dinner at the Whiskey Kitchen, a great suggestion by Rachel, our director of activities and recreation. My overall impression of Nashville is a good one it seems to have an active nightlife, which is more than I can say for Memphis which seemed to be completely abandoned, so much for partying on Beale Street.
Our drive to Memphis was tough one, hopefully the worst of the trip. It rained the whole way. Thanks to Jimmy for being brave through all of that. And thanks to Verizon unlimited data and Netflix instant streaming for keeping us well distracted through the whole experience. Thankfully we finally figured out the windshield wipers when we got to Memphis and it stopped raining.
10 Things about Rachel
1. Feelings on coffee?
It's a love/love relationship2. Favorite Color?
NC State Red
3. Where are you from?
Raleigh, NC
4. Previous life B.A. (before architecture)
Creative Writing at UNCW
5. Favorite Road Trip Food?
Wasabi Peas
6. What are you most looking forward to on the road trip?
Kimbell Art Museum, The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, and the James Turrell "skyspace" at the Nasher Sculpture Center.
7. What are you most looking forward to at Forum 2011?
Taliesin West
8. Preferred mode of road trip documentation?
Stories
9. What books did you bring for the road trip?
Genius Loci and Harry Potter
10. If you couldn't do architecture what would you do?
Something else that deals with big ideas and communication
10 Things About Shawna
Feelings on coffee
I run on Dunkin.
Favorite color
Depends on the day, mood, happenings, and planetary alignment. But, in general, I love shades of blue, gray, and purple. I wear black when I'm being serious.
I'm from
A small city southwest of Syracuse, NY called Auburn. But I've lived in Raleigh for 8 years now and consider it my home.
Previous life before architecture
See Kelly's post (our backgrounds are surprisingly similar).
Favorite road trip food
I don't know what I would do without my Hot Balls (more commonly referred to as Fire Balls). Kelly says mine are larger than she is used to.
I'm looking forward to
Las Vegas, oh wait, we aren't going that far west.
For the road trip, I'm looking forward to
experiencing some of the architecture we learned so much about in school.
For FORUM, I'm looking forward to
the firm crawls and to seeing our AIAS family.
My preferred mode of road trip documentation is
by scrap book. I am an aspiring scrapbooker. I like taking pictures, doodling, studying details, and collecting information then bringing it all together in one place. I just wish there were more time to actually compile the book.
Books I brought on the trip
12 audiobooks - all sci fi and fantasy
Design Matters // Portfolios by Maura Keller
No Plastic Sleeves by Larry Volk & Danielle Currier
If I couldn't do architecture
I could see myself being a master chef or college dean. And, like Jimmy, I could definitely do video games.
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