wowo. that is a lot rfuller. lifestyle change?

my wife and i are trying to just stay trim as we get older. cant imagine actually taking weight off. that much is huge achievement.

Just stopping into say hello, busy as hell, congrats rfuller on your weight loss, and ...... OH MY GOD, did liberty bell say sucks the big donkey dong? That was enough to make my evening!

ahah. shit i missed that. wicked funny, LB.

just saw in cdn news that jeff healey died of cancer. he just 5 years older n me. amazing musician and super cool dude. heaven just called another blues player back home.

if ever I have to change my name....good one Liberty

sucks to be me right about now. Our illustrators are fucking up our aerial images, the guy doing the virtual walk through is about to be fired cause he can't finish, and I am being dragged to different meetings instead of getting the chance to print the drawings for prince chuck's arrival over the weekend.

but in good news, the archi-chicks are coming to visit. Yippee. These are some of the ladies I went to school with who rightly dubbed themselves the archi-chicks. We've done competitions together, I hired them on the first private job I ever had, oh and they are my former drinking partners. So fun times ahead

- you disappear from TC and disappear in reality too 42lbs is plenty. Congratulations..how'd you do it?

It snowed last night! Two inches worth actually stuck to the vegitation and cars. WTF, it was 81 degrees on Saturday!

Oh wait, I live in Texas, thats right.

Sarah - that sounds like Ohio weather.

minimize stress. outsource what you can to competent individuals.

so now I have 1.30hrs to work on my house - still can't figure out the bathroom but I've decided to add a courtyard for the entry.

A-philia,

does the courtyard include an outdoor shower?

do you have plans for a rainwater cistern or other water harvesting schemes?

Thanks everyone. I lost 25lbs when I was sick around Thanksgiving. The big challenge was keeping it off. When I graduated suddenly I had time to eat right, sleep enough, and squeeze in a little time at the gym. I've also been working construction. Some days I just draw plans for outdoor kitchens, some days I'm a trim carpenter, some days I'm an electrician, and some days I dig ditches. It keeps me on my toes, and mostly off my ass. I think I'm gonna try for another 20 lbs or so. Maybe I'll finally get rid of the rest of those love handles.

Techno, you need to go lay in a hammock and take another picture of your feet. Sip on an adult beverage while you're at it.

SH, That storm hit us yesterday. Sunday in Lubbock it was 80. Yesterday morning I woke up to a "Blowing Snow Advisory". They weren't kidding. 50+mph winds and snow. Today, its back up to 65 already.

Well, I've gotta get back to the shop. We're trying to finish building all the cabinets for our parade house. I hope everyone has an excellent day.

i have gained some of the weight i lost back as i am on a cheese and bread and wine and biscotti diet these days. i mean who wants to eat a salad for dinner when its 35 degrees out with freezing rain? wtf. gimme some beef stew!

Finally i get to do the image!

Whoa, did the banner ads suddenly become much less banner-like and much more billboard-like?

rfuller, that is a major accomplishment. My weakness for girl scout cookies has kept me from dropping those last couple pounds recently. Damn those cute little girls, damn them!!

I've lost 20 lbs in the last two weeks!!!

Ok, so it sounds better than it really is, considering 10 of those pounds were someone else, and his bagage, but it still sounds impressive!

yeay for sarah and rfuller- texas is shrinking!

LB- google must be having a bad day.

SH, that's so funny. "...considering 10 of those pounds were someone else..." Tee hee. How's the little dude doing?

PS. I have been eating horribly lately. I'm stress eating and I know it. Plus I have visitors and that's hard too. Good thing I biked today....

WTF IS up with those banner ads? That's really annoying.

I've lost some poundage since Xmas which makes me happy as my clothes fit again. I think it has something to do with the fact my typical dinner has consisted of something like string cheese, peanut butter on saltine crackers (or bananas) and salad and/or some other veggie for the past month. It's really quite sad actually, but I'm in this rut where frankly I'm just sick of eating. It tends to happen about this time every year b/c I LOVE grilled food and cold weather doesn't really facilitate that all too well. Come warmer weather though, my appetite will be healthy again. Even better when tomato season is in full swing.

treekiller, the courtyard won't have an outdoor shower but the pool deck will. It is likely to look like this

speaking of weight and food | I was sick for most of the evening post dinner. I think I ate too much. So did puppy. We were both on our back waiting for tummy rubs that didn't come. I did get a chance to finish watching No Country for Old Men, which I thought should fall in line with Fargo, and What to do In Denver when you are Dead. Following Vado's advice, we picked up In the Valley of Elah - but after two attempts to watch it we kept falling asleep. I suspect it was post dinner rather than the movie.

Presently we are ripping the IT guy doing our walk-through a new one. He's dropped the ball big time, which is putting egg on our face. A loss we cannot endure atm. I wish I were in my now with an adult drink.

Why does everyone keep talking about the ads?
I don't notice anything different.

As for outdoor showers. Wish i had one..

i think because they've doubled in size.

Ack there's a huge bleeding hand at the top of the page!!!

More Adventures in SketchUp today. Oysters and Trifle, I may be sending you a question-filled email!

argh!!!! I need to start a lawyer thread. Again (the third time) the client's lawyer has stepped on our toes and is messing with our relationship with our consultants. I don't want to consider another proposal for work we've already selected a the sub-consultant for. So why does this esquire think it is in the client's best interest?

So as I was talking to a co-worker waiting for my lunch to warm-up, she stirred her lunch with one plastic fork, threw it a way and got another plastic fork to eat it. WTF?

heated plastic can give you cancer - use metal, glass/ceramic or wood utensils and dishes! so you can either scare your coworker or appeal to her to save the environment/improve office profits by not wasting silverware....

Ohhh I'd of said something tunamelt. I was actually mulling over an idea that they should make plastic forks out of post-consumer plastic and issue one to each person in this population of 5,000. Consider it our small part in the big solution to fix the world.

Wow that article was interesting. I'm going to start bringing my own non-plastic dishes and utensils in now. Usually I just warm things up in my plastic ware, wash the plastic utensil I use and put it back in the cabinet and take the plastic ware home for re-use. Oops.

Atechno - I think we should do something like that for all the damn plastic bags people use. I just about went ballistic on some poor young bag-boy the other day when he started to put my gallon o' milk in a plastic bag. Idiot. Not only could I actually use the handle to carry it out, but there were four of my canvas bags sitting right in front of him if he felt so behooved to use a bag. GRRRRRR!!!!

lol - I do use plastic bags though. But I don't buy garbage bags (unless its a big job). I think because I can't seem to work out which is better for the environment (create no waste).

My biggest problem is paper usage...I wish I could break that cycle. But I reuse about 60% of paper used. I only wish I had a third usage - maybe to create mulch or fertiliser

That's a good question Atechno -

TK or WK we need your expertise. Is this this safe to do? I have a plethora of paper bags I have no idea what to do with. If I could throw them in my soon-to-be-started compost heap, life would be good. Okay back to work.

I know you can use newspaper as weed barriers in gardens, so I figure you could use paperbags the same way. I think its a thickness thing more than anything. Seems to me, though, that if composting was how you wanted to go, as long as you shred the paper first, it should work; right?

paper will decompose/compost slowly since it's mostly cellulose (like wood) that's why folks use it in the garden as a weed barrier. shredded paper will compost quicker - just don't want to destroy our shredder on the pile of newsprint. (my lawn mower sort of worked as a shredder but it didn't make the yard look nice).

I threw some nytimes in my compost last year and they were still recognizable after 6 months. not sure what they look like now, but we get the paper on the weekends. at least they are typically recycled and shipped to china when I'm done reading.

i normally look forward to wednesday because i have tennis lessons in the evening but sometimes, like today, it just makes for a very long day...yuck

Can you use your paper bags for carrying recyclables, or for trash bags even? I usually put my recyclables in paper bags, because I figure of all people, the recyclers probably know what to do with them.

I just found this on Treehugger and it's made me a happy dubK.....now let's see if I can hold out until it makes it to the US market.

i think plastic bags stuck in trees is beautiful don't you?

here, vado, for you:

dubK I saw those earlier and blogged about them. I've been a VW fan for years but have never been able to make that german leap. One day...one day soon I hope

I have 118,000 miles on my little Jetta so VW has until it dies to get to the US ;o) Now get a move on it folks.

In other news I have lost my confidence as a space planner/designer today. I just hope I'm good with materials selection, otherwise my whole world might crumble. There's always tomorrow. I just have to believe it'll be better, right?

thanks aml :)

dubK - I want one too!!! 69 mpg and a 7-speed tranny sounds way more fun then the civic hybrid.

tuna, there is always tomorrow. hang in there!

aml, nice, very nice.

some new mdler construction photos...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mdler/sets/72157604050086864/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/mdler/sets/72157604054202043/

I just figured out who Hussain is, my neighbor and the most vocal barak supporter.

Vado and AMl...

What exactly are we looking at?
They look pretty. Willows in cloth?

Also Mdler,
like the construction pics? Your site?
Takes me back to my days doing construction labor..

aml, that tree image is beautiful.

So does the VW hybrid Golf have a clutch, or not? I can't tell from the article.

I imagine I won't have a new car for at least ten years. I'm so in love with my Miata, unless there is some kind of government-mandated recall of all internal combustion engines, I will drive it until it turns to dust. Then maybe I'll convert it to a hybrid diesel engine so I can keep driving it. I love driving an OLD, customized car - I've never felt comforable driving something new and flashy, only old and custom.

tuna, some days we can design, and some days we can't. It's like writer's block. You'll be able to tackle it tomorrow, or a week from now, with fresh eyes. Good luck!

Mdler - Nice I-Beams

Thanks for the positive words both TK and LB. It's been so long since I've done any space planning that I've become very rusty and out of practice. Hopefully the next project won't have an impossible column grid and a million structural walls I have to contend with, and have a budget of more than $5 (okay not really but it sure as hell feels like it). Tomorrow is another day... and a day for picking out pretty finishes, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed my design mojo returns.

aml - that really is a lovely photo. Brings me peace.

@namhenderson: wrapped trees, by christo. glad you enjoyed.

I need help. Someone please tell me what to do:

Tomorrow evening I signed up for an event with the local Architecture Guild. I am supposed to be watching a USC basketball game, it's basically a networking thing. Well, I didn't realize it starts well before the end of a class that I'm in, plus the class is taught by one of my thesis committee members and he wants to talk to me about it tomorrow. Then I find out one of my best friends here is going out for her birthday after my class gets out.....so basically it's either A) schmoozing and blowing off important professor/friends or B) skipping the potentially important new professional connections in favor of prof and friends.

I am leaning towards B) because I am already making connections in other ways so that I don't feel like it's a huge loss. But I need second opinions....I'm stressed....not enough time....did I mention I was supposed to be in 2 other places right now? Ahhhhh. I need a hug :o/

send the puppy in your place...

Go for B. There will be other formal networking opportunities, and as you say the informal ones seem to be happening anyway. And you don't want to blow off a good prof.

Take a breath, DubK. Take a few.