Archive for the ‘Commentary’Category

False Conclusions

White Buffalo - The Lancaster

White Buffalo is one of our Micro Unit Projects (Fort Worth)

The news source Mother Jones, whom I enjoy reading a lot, today posted and article “Report: Mansions Getting Bigger, Rental Apartments Getting Smaller” in which Erika Eichelberger notes this is a “metaphor for the lopsided economic recovery” and that “many younger and minority Americans have not experienced any recovery at all, and some are still losing wealth. Hence the need for more shoebox apartments.” Read the rest of this entry →

06

06 2013

And…We’re Back.

NO_CISPA

Not that I contribute to this blog enough to have had any impact yesterday, but I did shut it down in a show of solidarity with the other thousand or so websites protesting CISPA with a blackout of the internet.  It wasn’t a huge impact, but I felt it was important.

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23

04 2013

Architecture and Basketball

basketball

You might ask, “Why do you have a picture of a crusty old basketball official on your architecture blog?”.  It’s a fair question.  To explain, we need to go back a few years.

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09

01 2013

Late Nights

I hate working in the office.  I never seem to get nearly as much done in the office during daylight hours as I do when  no one is around. You will almost never find me working late at the office or coming in early, and the times I’m in the office on the weekend probably coincide with the solar eclipse.  Now, don’t let that fool you into thinking I don’t martyr myself for the architectural cause with the best of them, I just don’t do it in the office.  I seriously love some of my coworkers as if they were family, but nevertheless, when I need to get things done I much prefer isolation and in this age of technology, with smartphones, VPN connections, and remote desktops, I frankly see spending any time in the office outside of normal working hours cumbersome. Read the rest of this entry →

13

04 2011

Japan

In 2009 I was privileged to visit Japan as part of a HOGI Fellowship traveling scholarship.  My heart goes out to the people of Japan through this tragedy.  In my short ten days there, I was shown an impeccable level of warmth and hospitality that I will treasure for the rest of my life.  The Japanese people are an amazing nation, and they will surmount this. Read the rest of this entry →

15

03 2011

The Expense of Logic

Figure 1609 from the 2006 IBC

I recently did a design for a project in South Carolina, and as is always the case when we do work in areas that are hurricane prone, we researched the need for impact resistant windows.  The building code is pretty clear on this, consulting section 1609.1.1 it reads: Read the rest of this entry →

12

01 2011

A Recipe for Good Design

My wife and I are avid [forgive the overused term] foodies and we watch a lot foodie television programing.  I like it for the recipes, and my wife would say the same although I think she really enjoys indulging in the drama.  It’s in this that I came to think that architects and chefs have a lot common, which is evident in the learning of the trade, mastery of the craft, creativity in the product and the need for individuality and personal expression in what we do. Read the rest of this entry →

03

01 2011

My New Years Resolution

I will post in my blog once a week.

I will post in my blog once a week.

I will post in my blog once a week.

I will post in my blog once a week.

I will post in my blog once a week.

I will post in my blog once a week.

I will post in my blog once a week.

I will post in my blog once a week…

[and this doesn’t count]

03

01 2011

I Work for the City

“Often the perception within the city is that the public thinks we are too stupid, crooked or lazy to work in the private sector, and that can lead to a defensive posture.”

Last Friday I had the opportunity to take part in an intimate forum with the Dallas City Manager Mary K. Suhm.   Mrs. Suhm is serving her fifth year as city manager for the City of Dallas. As city manager, Suhm is responsible for the daily operations of the municipal organization. She manages a staff of approximately 14,000 employees and a budget of nearly 3 billion. She was appointed city manager in June 2005 by the Dallas City Council. Prior to her appointment as city manager, Suhm served as interim city manager, first assistant city manager, assistant city manager, executive assistant director of Dallas Police, director of courts, assistant to the Mayor, and branch library manager for the City of Dallas.

During her three decades in municipal government, Mary Suhm has earned a national reputation among public administrators for creativity and innovation. Suhm, who earned master of business administration and master of library science degrees from the University of North Texas, has introduced performance measurement, customer service, benchmarking, strategic planning and other common business practices into municipal management operations to assure that Dallas city government runs efficiently, economically, and effectively. She received praise from all levels of government and the community for her leadership during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita after managing a large scale evacuation effort by establishing and operating two major shelters and a Disaster Recovery Center in Dallas.1

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16

08 2010