not much to say

I've started a couple entries today but scrapped them because I couldn't be bothered. I think I'll take a nap instead. Check back later.

In the meantime, brainstorm fun SuperBowl party food and drinks.
I'm thinking Bloody Mary's and Fondue. Maybe something from the Amy Sedaris cookbook.


Update on the reading list:

I finished Blue Like Jazz, which Jay had recommended a while ago (at least I think Jay recommended it) I enjoyed it, and it made me think about my own spirituality, which I believe was the point. I can't rave about it, because it isn't an earth shattering book by any stretch, but I identified with some parts of it, and as I said, it made me think.


I also finished The Great Trek, wherein a bunch of mennonites trek through Russia to Turkestan because they believe the second coming is nigh, and that Christ will establish a refuge for the believers. Somehow they thought this would be in Turkestan. (It should be said that they were also fleeing conscription into the Russian Army, and although Turkestan was Russian territory, it was divided into khanates, and largely ruled by the Khans.) Well my great-great-great grandfather led one of the the five groups. Eventually he split off from Claus Epp, the leader of the trek who became increasingly zealous and crazy. Its a fascinating story, which I will write about later.

I also read Demian, by Herman Hesse. That never made it onto the list, because I haven't been so good about keeping it up to date. Point being I read it. It was interesting, but certainly not his best. I would recommend The Glass Bead Game to anyone interested in a thought-provoking book. It won Hesse the Nobel Prize in '46, and was the last book I read that I actually thought might be life changing.


So there, I've posted something and now I will take a nap. Eventually I might get to the music meme (what does meme mean anyway?) that seems to be going around.

facial hair

So I've decided to have a go at the facial hair thing. Now those of you who know me well, know that I am a bit of a girly man when it comes to hair growth, which is to say what takes some guys a night to grow will take me weeks. Unlike Ed, who used to braid his goatee.

So the top picture was taken about a year ago, when I first got the new computer and was playing with built in camera.




this phot was taken a minute ago. note the scraggly pathetic growth. In my defense, I truimmed it down a bit this morning, keeping it short untill it fills in a bit.

Ready set grow!!!

Snow day revisted

Sorry Jeff, but once again we have snow in Seattle. (For those of you how don't know Jeff, he is currently in Oslo lamenting the fact that gloal waming has robbed him of a white winter, the snowmen in Oslo have finally had enough and are taking it to the streets)


This time I thought I was being smart, and brought work home on Tuesday night. However the snow didn't rally start up untill around 4:30 yesterday afternoon, and this morning the streets are a bit crappy. that means I'm taking a snow day and will end up making up for it over the weekend. No real problem, since i'm going to build a model, which I can do at home.

In the meantime, I'm going to and a few posts today that I've been meaning to get to, sort of blog housekeeping. Stay tuned...

What my friends are doing

I thought I would put in a few links to my friends various activities.

For starters, Edward: Ed is, among other things a painter (also a college instructor of various subjects and a track coach). Paintings seen here.










The Jay has joined the family business, off site construction of custom modular homes.







Adam is suffering through annoying co-workers (not including Harry) while building his portfolio for furniture design grad school applications. (he needs to update the furniture photos)









Liz is in Kobe, Japan, theoretically doing research. In reality she's just felting. I love Totoro!










Jeff, as you can tell my the earlier post, is in Oslo Norway, going sans beer due to the crappy value of the dollar vs Euro. He is also pretending to do research, on vernacular Norwegian architecture and its presence in the work of Svere Fehn.

Other people are doing other things, but don't have additional websites I can point you to. Or do they? Let me know who I've left off.

Work (which I'm not at today)

This is where I work, these pictures were taken on the last snow day, when I should not have gone in to work but did, and ended up leaving early because the snow kept coming. I can only assume that it looks like this today as well, but I can't be sure because I'm at home sitting on my butt watching the Daily Show. The office is the small black box with a shed roof on the hill behind the house. The green house under construction in the background was also designed by my boss, although the owners are making some changes to the design to cut costs.

These are the steps leading up to the office, treacherous when frozen, especially after sunset when I can't see where I'm going.

This is the view from the office, looking back at Seattle. Farther to the left is downtown and the Space Needle, to the left is Rainier.

My boss' desk has the money view.

Not so much view for me. That's the reward of being the boss.

a sad day in the culinary world

Sadly, the inventor of cup noodle died. We can all thank him for keeping us fed during our college years. OK, sure, I tended towards the top Ramen myself, but the pantheon of instant noodle might not exist if it weren't for Momofuku Ando, dead at 96.

New Books

Christmas brought an influx of new books, both as gifts and through raiding my mom's bookshelf. I have posted most of them on the reading list sidebar. I am particularly excited about The Great Trek, a religious pilgrimage into the desert where a group of mennonites believed Christ would return. My mom's great grandfather was part of the trek. Obviously the second coming did not occur, and most of the mennonites were sent money by relatives in the US and Canada so they could immigrate.

I also received the fabulous entertaining guide I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence by Amy Sedaris and I'm Just Here for More Food, Alton Brown's book on baking (it's more than a cookbook, it's about the science of baking at a non-scientist level)

I finished Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro and can highly recommend it to all. Leah hasn't let me down yet.

Home Again, Again

I never really know how to use the term home... Fresno (now Auberry) is home because its where my family is, even though I've never actually lived in the new house. Maybe it's because it is almost the same as the old house, and my old room is still a bedroom, that it still feels like home. I will say that the scenery around the new house is much nicer. I understand why they would want to move out of the city (understand, but I wouldn't do it myself)






I enjoyed seeing so many friends and family, and the trip to San Francisco was a good time. Adam, Ed, Heather and I went to the DeYoung, in Golden Gate Park. It has been a while since I've been to the park and the Haight Ashbury District. The new De Young has a great perforated metal facade (possibly Cor-Ten) and the tower is much less obtrusive then I had heard. In fact the whole thing reminded me of a Mayan Temple complex.


The circulation through the museum was unclear, particularly since so many of the rooms opened on to each other. this seems like a good idea, as it allows flexibility for curators and visitors, but it makes it difficult to follow any sequence. On occasion I would find that I had overlooked a room, or that I had inadvertently jumped from one collection into another. Still the museum had some very interesting moments, such as views into the atrium, or out to the sculpture garden. Also the galleries were fairly straight-forward, with well diffused lighting. The art was not overpowered by the architecture, which I feel is important in museum design. I didn't get a chance to visit the cafe, since it was a fairly short visit.

There were a couple notable exhibits, such as the Ruth Asawa collection (above) most of the work was her woven wire sculpture, along with some photos and drawings. Ed took several photos (both openly and later surreptitiously) so I recommend his blog if you are interested. He should be posting them soon. Adam took photos of the small but interesting furniture collection. The furniture was spread out through the museum according to period, which makes sense but also suggests that the furniture is secondary to the paintings. Perhaps that show my bias.


The museum was also hosting "The Quilts of Gee's Bend" a fairly well know collection of quilts from an African American community in Alabama. Some day I want to take up quilting. I'm particularly interested in the adaptations of traditional patterns, which was a theme among many of the quilts on display. Perhaps there will a longer post about quilting in the near future.


But now I'm back in Seattle, my other home. Holiday was good, but it wore me out and I had to have a day alone walking the neighborhood, getting an overdue haircut, that sort of thing. Next post, New Years day reflections and that sort of stuff.

Home again, home again

Yes I made it home, and once again managed to score a free travel voucher by detouring through Portland and arriving 6 hours after my original itinerary. Hell, for a free flight anywhere in the US, you bet I'll volunteer to get bumped. Now the question is where to go? Last years free flight took me to Colorado to visit Jay and Becki, this years has a good chance of landing on the East coast. Philly is high on the list, and when I'm that close why not go to New Jersey? Who in their right mind could pass up a chance to go to Jersey? Of course nothing is set in stone, so let the bribing commence. I invite my far flung friends to compete for my affections. Unfortunately I Horizon Air will not take me to Oslo or Kobe, so Jeff and Liz are out of the running (although still welcome to compete for my affection/ care packages).

Holiday Plans

OK, here are the preliminary plans for the holidays:

I fly in on the Thursday 21st, mid morning.

Saturday - Monday family

Fly back to Seattle Friday (29th)


I still want to go to the DeYoung in San Francisco (Ed said after Christmas works best for him.) Other than that I am open for anything. I'm thinking drinks, movies, horrible TV...