techno if it helps the room where we had our reception was strikingly ugly, but a fun time was had by all anyway!

The historic hotel was under renovation when we signed up, and I had seen the room before, but somehow didn't recall the magenta wallpaper and cream draperies that subsequently showed up on our wedding day. Oh well! The view of the lake was beautiful, and all anyone remembers from that day was how yippy-skippy goofily elated I was, which I'm sure you and your bride will be too.

hi tc, been sooo busy, I need a vacation. but that's part of the problem - trying to tackle next semester early, so I can have a vacay. My big project just finished hiring RAs, so we'll have a website by the end of next week, so we can issue the press release, which means I can tell you all about it! *sigh* I need to clone myself.

i get to meet another archinector (smokety mc smoke smoke) in the flesh today...

morning all,

Phillip I am jealous... Still waiting for my first meetup.

ah....beer thirty time....I think I might have actually met Donna Sink...but I'm not sure...we were both much younger than.

Ok, so about that interview I had...

It was a student teaching position. I was trying to create a position for myself in the class I'm hoping to take over. I made some calls, and made it happen. I've never actually been a make-something-happen person. Well, they interviewed me, and have placed me with a teacher! Thing is, it's not with the teacher I was trying for. I actually have no idea what this guy teaches. I'm gonna have to send some emails, and do some research. Allthe same, though, I will have my teaching certification in the end.

Do you have to take classes for your teaching certification? Like get a Master's, or a teaching certificate? How did you find out about all this stuff? I've been trying to investigate this process myself and it's incredibly opaque.

Briefly met Philip Crosby today .... our archinecting world keeps getting smaller and smaller!

i like this one techno

Hi all...

Taking a break from studying for my next ARE. With the last one I went overkill on the studying, so this one I decided I would under-study for. OK, not really, but things have been so hectic for me I just haven't had the time, so I'm cramming now.

Slart didn't you take an exam recently? What's up next for you?

I am perpetually amazed by the avenues away from traditional practice that those of us on Archinect in general, and on TC in particular, have taken in lieu of the economy. I am glad that those of us who have found life outside of architecture, so to speak, are finding career satisfaction... and I am frustrated when those of you who are still working so hard at it are frustrated, too. It's like we are writing our own history, right here on TC, and I think it's almost literary, as if we could go back years from now and reflect on how we all dealt with the times.

OK, enough philosophy for now. Back to studying. Hope everyone is having a good weekend...

There are classes, and tests. But it's not too difficult. If you're really interested, call your local ISD and ask them.

so I just came from what could be described as the worst indo-asian fusion restaurant. My entrée' arrived and it was in primary and secondary colours... wow that was bad. But the company was fantastic what a great way to start restaurant week!

This is for all the Chicken Lovers!



you might want to go visit: http://www.chicken-revolution.com/

morning all,

I had a restful weekend that included going into work for 4 hours on Sat..

Then watched U S Carolina beat up on Florida... And working on some writing.

Emily, i think that this t's like we are writing our own history, right here on TC, and I think it's almost literary, as if we could go back years from now and reflect on how we all dealt with the times. is very cool. And i myself can't wait to come back and read our shared "journal" 20 yrs from now.

OK, you know who is a total genius? Mike Judge, of Beavis and Butthead/King of the Hill/Office Space/Idiocracy and now Extract, which I saw last night (on DVD). Totally delightfully silly movie. I hated Beav/Butt when it was on TV, but now I see its brilliance.

It's going to be PITA of a week, y'all. Dealing with lots of loose ends I've been ignoring for too long, plus a pre-bid meeting that I'm just dreading.

things looking up in tokyo. suddenly busy with people WE DON'T KNOW coming in to office looking for us to build stuff (this is actually a first for us - up to now it is friends of friends or else work we initiated), and research project just getting started at my new university.

also just asked to join as studio professor along with some very cool architects next spring. very excited about that. much as i love academic research, teaching grad school studio is much more fun.

fingers crossed all of the above actually turns out. after the last few years i am definitely more cautious about hatching chickens and counting the eggs and so on.

in 20 years could be a very cool diary indeed

the question i have about how this will read in 20yrs is: do we, in 2010, write in such an idiomatic shorthand specific to this time that the tone and content will sound completely different in 20yrs?

i think of this because of the feeling of foreignness i get when i read my sketchbooks from 10-15 yrs ago.

You know who is brilliant? Tina Fey.

A friend of mine passed away over the weekend, he was only 41. Way too young to go and we will miss him and his stories dearly. Please be healthy, friends! Eat right and excercise!

Good Morning, everyone!

Hi All, I'm re-posting this from Facebook so forgive me, FB friends, for the repeat, but it's a bizarre enough story I want to share again!

Sadly, it's a horrible story: we lost a chicken, Venus, to a hawk this evening. I had to chase the hawk off by throwing sticks and rocks at it, and 5 minutes later while I was trying to soothe the remaining chickens and herd them into their coop, the damn predator came back and ATTACKED ME! Grabbed the back of my head, knocked the barrette out of my hair and caused me to toss the cell phone hard enough it broke open. I screamed bloody murder and quite a few expletives - surprised (and somewhat disappointed) the neighbors didn't come running to see what was happening.

I want to kill that damn hawk - but on the other hand, I know I really don't. It's a wild creature, it (he? she?) and I looked into each other's eyes and saw an opponent, and I respect its right to live - plus I know I would feel terrible if I caused the death of another creature. But why can't it eat the damn chipmunks - the ones who steal my tomatoes!! - and leave my chickens the %$#@ alone! (I'm on a tidal wave of adrenaline, here, obviously!)

In the meantime I took a shower - can still feel some little scratches on the nape of my neck - and I've had a bourbon but man, I'm still totally amped up. The hawk came back AGAIN and I threw things at it and yelled, it flew away but I have no doubt tomorrow it will be back. The four remaining chickens are safely in their coop for the night, and tomorrow I'm leaving them locked in their run only - it's roofed and covered in hardware cloth - while i go to the building supply and get some cable and some kind of netting to hang over the entire yard - about 30' x 15'.

Fucking nature.

Strawbeary I'm sorry to hear about your friend - I do know that people can die very young and unexpectedly, even of things like heart attacks, but still so sad whenever I hear about it.

Donna, why didn't I get your FB account of the story? I thought we were friends.

holly shit Donna. Amazing story. night all

Donna I'm glad you are okay. I have no knowledge of this kind of behaviour mostly because our hawks are much smaller than chickens and would get their asses handed to them. Would a scarecrow work? I would think there would be enough political effigies lying around the place from previous elections (sorry poor attempt at humour). Also check out your scratches - you may need a shot or something.

Sarah, I don't see jump's FB updates and maybe some others - I don't know why some show up and some don't - in fact, I've not seen you on FB in awhile, I better check my settings?!

techno a scarecrow of Sarah Palin would scare the tail off a hawk, yes?!

Donna, apparently roosters (still) have an instinct to continuously scan the sky for any imminent dangers, and will quickly order chickens to run for cover.

Sadly (or rightfully so) roosters are banned as backyard pets in some cities. They are loud afterall.

My friend's neighbor has a bunch of chickens in his yard. A storm blew in a chunk of styrofoam into their yard. I observed the chickens eating the said piece of styrofoam for an entire afternoon. Dumbest animals ever.

Donna, now that the hawk knows there's food in your yard... it will continue to keep coming back. And since it was brave enough to attack you... I'd assume that hawk is determined. The hawk will more than likely stay near your yard for anywhere from 2 to 3 weeks upwards of 3 to 4 months.

Unfortunately, there's not much you can do to deter a determined hawk.

There's only two plausible and feasible ways of keeping the hawk at bay:

1) Get a big fast dog. Like a greyhound, a schnauzer or a weimaraner. Anything over 20 lbs.

2) Visual distractions and interference. Hawks hate shiny things. They hate moving things.

You can try putting up christmas tree balls-- preferably silver or gold or really anything with a mirror finish. Glass beads and crystals also refract light pretty well and can compliment them. Try putting up some large shiny garden pinwheels.

Looking glasses, mirrorballs and gazing globes are known to work the best.

Another option it to put up some tall poles and run fishing line (preferably a clear line that has a fluorescent quality to it) from the poles to the edges of your house and to trees.

Prayer flags and steamers also work well.

crazy, donna!

my uncle used to have his wee goats taken by wolves and kept a loaded rifle or two at the front porch for when he heard a ruckus. he lived in the back woods though, where it made more sense. i wonder what your neighbours would say if you started shooting? think they would come out of their homes then?


i almost never update my fb status thing donna, so may not be a glitch. i realised early on i have time in the day to visit archinect or FB, but not both. so FB is my lurker site. i guess i should feel guilty somehow for that. i bet there is a word for that kind of behaviour. false face-r or something...

i wonder what your neighbours would say if you started shooting? think they would come out of their homes then?

It's illegal to kill any predatory or migratory bird in the U.S. (outside of a handful of duck and geese species.)

You can't even cage a pigeon!

maybe it's time to give up chicken farming and take up falconry!

Update: Girls are still panicky and staying inside their coop - came out briefly, but as soon as I started laying down some hay in the run for them they flipped and squawked and ran back up into the coop - now they won't even look out the coop door. I'm leaving the run door closed today, so they are fully enclosed, while I go to the building supply for some netting or fishing line or something - could be a frustrating day.

aaah, the life of an architect in the big city!

I've got my cowboy boots on, and boy did they give me the perception of toughness while battling that attacker yesterday!

OMG Donna I am so sorry to hear about your chicken and your attack. That's absolutley horrible. Glad to hear you are okay. Hope your girls settle down soon.

My weekend was nice and relaxing. Went to one of the state parks with my two friends, hung out, did some hiking and ate. Unfortunately one of my friend's might have herniated a disc trying to lift the tub of food into her car. It really sucks getting old.

A double barrel shot gun does wonders! Just don't pull both triggers at the same time and do have the butt of the gun planted square against your shoulder....otherwise you will get knocked on your can!

soooo the governor of Louisianastan is all over the media these days promoting his book on how if the rest of the country followed his lead, the economic crisis would be over. of course, there is a homeless guy outside digging through the trash cans.the louisiana state college system was just told to cut 35 million bucks in an overall 240 million dollar statewide cut to adjust this years budget. the good news, no hawk attacks today.

can we get an archinect t with that donna quote? "Fucking Nature"

Vado, why are you down south, anyway?

Hi all,

A little feature I wrote on my experience in Dallas as both judge of KRob and my experience of new Arts District buildings has been published.

I would welcome any comments or constructive criticism.

donna, yes.;.) imagine wearing zaha hadid's plastic shoes while battling the hawk.. you'd be the meal already.. cowboy boots all the way.. sorry for venus..
the muslim eid is today. happy eid. except for the sacrificial massacre of all the abraham's lambs.. i dislike it for that reason. but, it is a traditional holiday and religious belief millions of people follow for centuries. either the lamb or the son. maybe the hawk was a muslim.

sorry to hear about your friend strawbeary. i lost a friend recently too. it is really painful.

Hi TC! my geek link of the day: starship size comparison.

if I make through the next few weeks, the worst should be over! got three guest lecture gigs the week after turkey day - why can't I learn to say 'no'?

Donna, 2nd the fishing line strung over the yard - but that mostly works to discourage geese, might not deter a hawk. Do you know what sort of raptor?

There is a pair of broad hawks nesting a few blocks from my house, but they don't seem to be keeping the rabbit or squirrel population in check.

sarah, i'm wondering the same thing...

Barry....they have to be: "Chicken Hawks" or they wouldn't be going after Chickens.

Orhan, can you tell us more about Eid? What does is commemorate/celebrate? I used to know more about it at one time, from spending time with my Persian friends, but unfortunately I've forgotten. I'd love to hear about via your experiences/stories rather than look it up on wacky-pedia.

Pretty sure it was a Coope's Hawk, barry. People on the chicken forums say they're brazen and often don't back down.

I'm with manta - more on your perspective, Orhan!

Oh noes, Donna! You've angered the ArcHAWK.

manta, gladly, but i could not describe it better or nearly better than wikipedia. it marks the end of the hajj and it is a tradition via abraham, torah and bible writes the same story as quran which is the final book of the trilogy.

"Eid al-Adha
After the Stoning of the Devil, the pilgrims perform animal sacrifices, to symbolize God having mercy on Abraham and replacing his son with a ram, which Abraham then sacrificed. Traditionally the pilgrims slaughtered the animal themselves, or oversaw the slaughtering. Today many pilgrims buy a sacrifice voucher in Mecca before the greater Hajj begins, which allows an animal to be slaughtered in their name on the 10th, without the pilgrim being physically present. Centralized butchers sacrifice a single sheep for each pilgrim, or a cow can represent the sacrifice of seven people. The meat is then packaged and given to charity and shipped to poor people around the world.[4] At the same time as the sacrifices occur at Mecca, Muslims worldwide perform similar sacrifices, in a four day global festival called Eid al-Adha.[17]"

I remember it as a most, for me, ambiguous of the holidays. in one hand it brought families, neighbors and friends together around wonderful feast and visits, on the other hand the blood of the animals, sacrificed/butchered on street corners of the neighborhoods in the open, saddened me to great degree. my family being mostly secular middle class, has never done it and still does not and we never accept any of it from neighbors. animal, usually a ram, was skinned, cleaned and portioned to be given to needy people and to the close neighbors.
today the new director of all the religious affairs in turkey made a statement that people should not slaughter animals in a showy manner and cautioned the society and outsiders not to turn this into an animal rights activism.
if it was up to me, i would ban it but it would equal it banning christmas... at least they should not do the butchering in the open and in front of the children.
this act has a whole ceremony of doing so by praying for the animal, thanking him etc.. i still dislike it.
my favorite time of it was rainy days when eid was matched with (it rotates a week or so every year according to islamic calendar which is slightly different) so the blood would be washed off and streets would be free of it. i saw many sacrifices and finally i chose to not look at it as a child. my family always bought new clothing and shoes for some needy peoples' kids in the neighborhood, instead of sacrificing an animal.

happy eid, nevertheless. it is a beautiful holiday minus the sacrifice part, that goes on officially for four days but usually people don't work or go to school for 9-10 days which was my favorite part.

Thank you for the Eid enlightenment.

Donna - I'm so happy that you are not seriously hurt! Count your blessings.

I'm falling far too behind in school. This quarter has been really (for lack of a better word) shitty. I've been going through personal stuff and am simply realizing I process feelings very, very, very slowly. My schooling has taken a back seat the past few weeks while I try to focus on myself and getting my life back in order. Oh, life can be so wonderful the majority of the time. But when it sucks, it can really fuckin' suck. Sorry for the downer, folks.