Break has been a bit stressful in the past few days. I have been trying to get my work done for the Ardsley Park project, I put up Christmas decorations on my Grandma's house, and finally I've been trying to get packed for my trek. More later.

Both grandmas made an amazing spread, and my Thanksgiving lunch and dinner were over the top . It's one of those very awkward American traditions to get together and eat too much, when I doubt the first Thanksgiving was anything like the warm gluttony that most indulged in yesterday. Rather-perhaps it was based more around survival and just the satisfaction of living. My brother in law brought up a great point yesterday in the lounge-time that followed one of our meals. He said, "We should probably switch to a skinny Santa to send a healthier message to the kids." I had never really thought about this. Should Santa Claus be skinny? Are the national trends of obesity due to a few bad example setters? Perhaps too then the center of the Thanksgiving holiday should be giving, and physical acts of charity, rather than just having a big meal with the family? This could really change somethings, if rather than going all out with the Turkey with all the fixin's we did nothing but community service, and charitable projects on Thanksgiving. How does eating food 'give thanks'? Usually giving thanks consists of some act of giving time, money, or just thought-Not mass consumption.

I missed a lot of my family members this thanksgiving. Perhaps my parents made a mistake raising my siblings and I too close to our cousins who now are scattered throughout the country. It actually took some time before i realized how fortunate I was to have all of my siblings, and my new nephew-who is now a butterball himself-all together eating food. We all live in different cities and have jobs and crazy lives. I am no doubt thankful for the time we spent together, and now am looking forward to the travels that I have coming in the near future.

Jefferson, palladio, and the Fine Arts in America.

I was asked a number of times by friends and fellow students at SCAD why I would go to a symposium on my first weekend off. It really made me think....In fact the questions I received really bugged me because at the time I couldn't answer them. Why would you travel all that way? Why are you attending a school event at a school you don't even go to? Why would you want to set around with a bunch of old guys and hear them read about their research?
It wasn't for my health(I can think of better activities than sitting in one place all day), nor was it for my graduate school applications (again I can think of many better ways to build my resume)
It wasn't until after I went that I understood fully. I heard a wide range of papers from ones that focused on the University, to Palladio, and a wide range of topics in between. I saw presenters from younger than me to ancient(not that I consider that bad). I had questions in my mind and even got ideas for papers I personally want to write now. I got a better grasp on the 19th and 18th century, and still feel like there is soo much more I have to know.
If I had the opportunity to be asked those questions again I would have to answer with the following: symposiums-every one that I've ever been to have done nothing but inspired and motivated me, and though there are moments that I feel like I might fall asleep(like when discussing the complex styles of Thomas Jefferson's Chair collection)(if you're reading this I apologize), the overall feeling of love for the field and it's broad range of investigations makes it worth it. As I sit at my sister's tonight with a mind that is buzzing to research and do more...For both the understanding of the world, but more importantly to put my own mind at ease.

UVA Symposium

The Symposium is going well...Thought I'd pass this photo along. :) More details Sunday.

And So It BegIns...

Winter break has officially begun! Although I have a few assignments to take care of it feels good to be out of Savannah for a break. I traveled today to my sister's house in Charlottesville, Virginia and the University of Virginia. I will be attending 'An Interdisciplinary Symposium at the University of Virginia'. Lecturers will be expected to address a wide range of topics including topics in Architectural History, Decorative Arts, Landscape Architecture, and Art. From the looks of the lecture titles there is going to be a lot of Jefferson, a lot of Palladio, and a lot of McKim, Mead, & White....[With that said, The University of Virginia is a prime place to learn about all of them, and I feel like they have a strong lead in research of the above listed people.] I'll be sure to pass on my thoughts. -Oh, and I forgot just how cold it was up here. :)

Relient K Christmas!

I am absolutely obsessed with this new CD! It's a great contemporary sound for Christmas-check it out!

Worth a double take.

The green movement has been effecting everything in today's world. This is extremely true in the way new architects approach design, but not all of the designs are truly being designed to be energy efficient, but rather just to emphasize or fit in with nature. This is a phenomenon that may someday be a good paper topic. Here are some pictures that were taken very near my hometown in West Virginia, and I have heard that these 'tree reception towers' are popping up in different places throughout the country. My finals are almost finished, but the A.P./C.C. project is in full swing!Updates to come.

SCAD packed heat @ SESAH

I stole this photo from the department, but here is a group picture of all of the faculty and students from SCAD that went to the 2009 SESAH conference in Jackson.I think we were a very good looking group, and represented the school well. Finals are killing me--enough procrastination--back to the papers.

Duany Talk: New Urbanism and Atlanta.

Andres Duany Closing Presentation on 2/17/09 - Part 2, Site Designs from Atlanta Regional Commission on Vimeo.

Auldbrass Plantation

I know I said I was taking a break to get work done, but I spent the weekend at the biannual tours of the Auldbrass Plantation where I worked as a docent. Here are a few pictures of the Plantation and grounds designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. This was his only plantation. It's owned by Joel Silver, and in amazing condition. I think we are very lucky the house has fallen into the right hands, and kept up so well. The pool and hot tub. ^
The Barn^

The sprites in the garden^ are from the demolished Midway Gardens in Chicago.

I had a great weekend. The grounds, and complex of outbuildings began to grow on me the longer I was there. I look forward to seeing future improvements to the project, and the realization of FLW's master plan.

I'll be taking a break from the blog for the next three weeks. There are so many papers that I want to devote my time to writing and researching. I feel like Winter break is so close yet so far away. Remember to keep checking the ArdsleyPark/ChathamCrecent blog here:Ardsley Park-Chatham Crescent Centennial Booklet Project for updates on the progress.

BACK From Jackson [Part II]

The Mississippi State War Memorial^.Possibly the best building I saw all week.
(from the exterior at least...)
This shot of the 'new' MS capitol building screams classicism.^
Yet another column hugged by me.^ This is the Governor's Mansion.
Prof. Williams and I take a minute to sit in the Senator's seats^-I love the signage.

BACK From Jackson[PART I]

I'm back in Savannah. Happy Halloween By the way. Here are some pics from my trip to Jackson. The Governor's Mansion ^. Historically it hasn't been taken care of much. A bit of a disappointment.

The Old Miss. State Capitol^.I loved this building simple and classy.!It's positioned at the end of this massive boulevard. I love it.
The new Very colorful Beaux Arts Capitol building^ from the early 20th cent. It was something...It had a ton of color, Very high style, but hasn't been taken care of over the years very well....
One group of touring architectural Historians...^ I'm sure we were a tough crowd. When it comes to a building's care, history and style-we know enough to be critical..