I have retreated, and now I am ready to charge.
The end of this semester was quite abstract. I worked extremely hard on my studio final, completing several plates of highly detailed black and white pencil drawings. My presentation was a success; the architecture it conveyed was only marginally successful. My reviewers variously had little to say on the subject, or they told me that it was “unconvincing,” “too polite,” and looked residential on one side and like a library or airport on the other side. My professor, however, seemed happy with it, and told me to be a little less self critical, so maybe it’s not so bad. I believe that the work will be displayed in the Hearth (the little cafe in the middle of our school) at the beginning of next semester, which is actually very flattering.
After the studio review, everything else I had to do seemed strangely removed. I think I was reeling a bit from the criticism at the review – I’ve become so used to the Oregon style of review that even though I was excited to get a critical review, I was almost completely unprepared for it. So, I wrapped up the Kahn seminar, the seminar on urban architectural ecology, and my structures class. I have to say, smashing the two foot tall balsa wood tower that Sarah and I tied laboriously together with hemp rope was the highlight of the week. All in all, though, even with the low level of energy I had at that point, and the horrible cough I’d picked up, the end of the term was pretty satisfying.
And this weekend, after I finally finished cleaning out my studio, I turned right around and headed to the retreat. We went up to Odell Lake, and in the lap of luxury we played a lot of games to “get to know each other” and then we organized the Environmental Control Systems class that we’ll all be teaching next term. Simultaneous to my retreat, the Vermont crew got together in Leyden and partied. A shame to miss it, but duty, and tuition, health insurance, a stipend, and professional growth all called.
So, I’m not sure that any of that information will be particularly exciting to my readers, who must be clamoring for something fantastic after such a long hiatus. But sometimes life is pretty much just surviving the wicked cough you’ve got.
I’m heading back to Florida in a couple of days. Perhaps life will be exciting there – I’m really looking forward to seeing the fam, especially the bro. I’ll try to get some excellent pictures. Speaking of which, I put a couple more photos of Finland on Flickr, and I’ll continue doing that over break; also, when I get my scans stitched together, I’ll put up my final boards from this term. Finally, If you’re feeling very generous towards me, please refer to my updated wish list page. There are many ways you can demonstrate your love for me materially, and I encourage you to do so.