Architecture Must Burn

This is perhaps one of the most influential books I read during my first thesis experience (gotta find my bilbiography and post it so as not to misplace it in the future). Of course the title is rather interesting. It has been three years since I last read this book but I do recall using quite a bit of information from it. The author is Aaron Betsky, director of the Netherlands Architecture Institute in Rotterdam.

***Another secret confession - I was once an architecture major as an undergraduate. I loved the design and drawing but did not like the model building part. This was before the widespread use of Microstation, Form Z and Maya.

Yesterday I worked a half day, then went out of town. First stop was business but after that was done, we all went to Chattanooga to visit the new exhibit at the aquarium. Eli wanted to see the sharks. The new addition to the Tennessee Aquarium looks like a smaller version of the original building. It is hard to believe the aquarium was built in the early 1990s - seems like yesterday BUT I guess that is what happens when you get older.

Parc de la Villette (bernard tschumi - architect)

Kanonicza Street

David Carson-esque Photo

WWII

Interesting conversation about WWII with colleagues at work. My father-in-law flew from India to China over the Himalaya Mountains (also commonly known as "The Hump") during WWII. One of my colleagues mentioned her father was in New Zealand/Australia during the war. My other colleague told of his father fighting in the European theatre.

Tiger.....

I did install Tiger OS on the G4 this afternoon. So far, I really like it. Definitely need more time to become familiar with it.

Now my PC laptop is having issues, such as the DVD/CD-ROM drive. Guess I will have to use the iBook again. I like it but it is really slow - I believe it is almost 3 years old and only has a 700 MHz processor! At least I am not working on any digital video/multi-media project at the moment, so I should be able to survive.

My day.....had breakfast at one of the usual spots near downtown. Eli accompanied me to my allergy shot - of course he gets the cool Ninja Turtle stickers and I get the shots -who gets the better part of that deal?! Cleaned house and folded clothes..... Then Eli and I went to the pool and had a great time! He is still learning to swim but has progressed quite a bit since the beginning of summer.

The burning question on my mind is.....will Michael Vartan's character on Alias (Agent Vaughn) be killed off early this next season since Jennifer Garner once dated MV and is now married to Ben Affleck? Will have to wait and see.....

Debating on whether or not to have a Guinness this evening.....From the sound of this post, one would think I have already had one ;)

AutoBlog....

Perhaps a better name for this blog should be The Autoblog since I have been writing about cars as of late. I will admit it - I do like really nice cars and have since high school. Today I had to drive through the 'burbs to go to a big box retailer. Along the way I had the opportunity to see some nice cars.

Cool cars spotted today::

'05 Mercedes-Benz SLK350
:: not thrilled by the front styling of the car (too much like the Mercedes-Benz 2005 MacLaren SLR, but love the performance of the Mac :: 0-60 in just 3.8 seconds!!!!!) but nevertheless has quite a presence on the road.

'05 Acura TL
:: ooh la la - 270 hp; sweet ride!

'05 Acura TSX
:: love the drive-by-wire technology - test drove one last year - great car!

Infiniti G35 sedan
:: 280 hp - test drove one last year as well.....

***one of the most intriguing cars I have seen around town over the past 6 months was a black Maserati Spyder GT speeding down the interstate.

Paris_Subway

Another Paris photo.....

CIA Covert Operative Fiasco

Keeping up with the CIA/Valerie Plame/Joe Wilson/White House/Karl Rove "stuff".....

MSNBC/Newsweek
Instapundit
Washington Post
Washington Times

And lastly, the MTP transcript.....

Hurricane Emily

Go here for NOAA updates on the storm.

Sex and the City?

Yet another secret confession.....I have been watching season 3 of Sex and the City. Never watched it while it was in production but for some reason I have become addicted to it - thanks Laura!!!!! Gotta love the fashion! Too bad there is nowhere to go around here and wear those kinds of clothes :( Although I admit I try to be fashionable regardless....

I forget that Kyle MacLachlan was on the show. Must admit I really liked him in Twin Peaks. Guess I will watch the last DVD later this week.

British Open

Of course, Tiger made the big comeback today to win. At least Fred Couples tied for 3rd!

Today I have successfully avoided doing any work on my thesis. Tomorrow I will have to do more research as I have an extremely important meeting on Monday morning.

This afternoon I took Eli swimming and we had a great time. For the past two hours I have been watching the third season DVD of a show to which I have recently become addicted.

Wish I were going here next week. I would love to get my private pilot's license but right now I really do not have the time.

The British Open

I am looking forward to the British Open this week. St. Andrew's is my favorite British Open course. Should be interesting.....

What a wonderful evening! Just returned from walking by the river on the boulevard. That is one of the things I enjoy about my neighborhood – living two blocks from the river. An interesting aspect of it is the park which is woven into the fabric of the neighborhood. Almost 1.5 miles along the river is public access. Also, a tree lined boulevard is a rarity in this town. The history dates back to the 1930s.

Blah, blah, blah.....

I have officially started the research for my thesis. Wait! I think I have been through this process in the past. Yep – two years ago BUT it was for my MFA in graphic design. During that process I realized I was in the wrong discipline as I enjoyed the research more than the design process. Whereas the first thesis focused on the built environment and suburban communities, this thesis will focus on the intelligence community, open source information (such as scientific and technical reports) and homeland security. Hopefully I will have the opportunity to interview several members of the intelligence community and go from there. So far so good with the literature search – just not as many resources as I had anticipated.

Nanotechnology Initiative Report

Found this report at Instapundit.com.

Bibliotheque Nationale de France

Bibliotheque Nationale de France, originally uploaded by zeroeffect.

Flowers

Flowers, originally uploaded by zeroeffect.

Taken in Krakow at an outdoor cafe near Kanonicze Street.

Layer Cake

I have wanted to see this film. Not sure if it is still showing at Cinema Art/Downtown West. Here is an excerpt of the review at www.knoxnews.com:


"Layer Cake" has the same ingredients as a host of other recent films about the British underworld, but it still manages to seem fresh.

It's not as frenetic as "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels" or "Snatch," which is telling, since Matthew Vaughn, making his directing debut here, produced those two. It's not as menacing as "Sexy Beast" or as antisocial as "Gangster No. 1."

What most of those films have that "Layer Cake" does not is attitude. Instead, like "Sexy Beast" - though not quite reaching the same heights - "Layer Cake" has atmosphere and insight.

I have seen "Sexy Beast" and menacing is an interesting way to describe the film.

Interesting Stuff

Just checking out Geointelligence.

Will this really make a difference?

For those who are interested.....check out the latest on the new BCS formula. I do agree with eliminating the pre-season polls. For some reason, UT is ranked as second in the nation in a pre-season poll released sometime last week - not sure which one as I did not pay too much attention to it.

Meet The Press

Unfortunately I missed MTP this week. Very interesting conversation about terror and homeland security. This book seems interesting.....Perhaps I will read it next.

I finally finished up The Pentagon's New Map by Thomas P.M. Barnett. I am looking forward to his next release due out this fall.

iPod Playlist.....

:: a very short list ::

Heaven or Las Vegas – Cocteau Twins
What If - Coldplay
Bullet Proof…I Wish I Was – Radiohead
Canary In A Coalmine – The Police
I Can’t Remember – Peter Gabriel
Coffee & TV – Blur
Counting Backwards – Throwing Muses
Cuts You Up – Peter Murphy
Different Day – DJ Icey & Jen Lasher
Ecstacy – New Order
Edge of the Ocean – Ivy
Life in Tokyo – Japan
Come On Closer – Jem
Getting Away With It – Electronic
From Rush Hour With Love – Republica
Glorious Day – Weezer
Something About Us – Daft Punk
Southern Sun – Paul Oakenfold
I’m Not Scared – Pet Shop Boys
Glory Box – Portishead
Ways & Means – Snow Patrol
Superfabulous – BT
Basement Jaxx- Red Alert
After – dZhihan & Kamien
Take Me Out – Franz Ferdinand
Hate to Say I Told You So – The Hives
Higher Than the Sun – Primal Scream
Do It Again – Steely Dan
I Fall For You – Fleming and John
Jetstream – New Order
Cross the Border – Icehouse
Break It Down Again – Tears for Fears
Judy Staring at the Sun – Catherine Wheel
Lips Like Sugar – Echo & the Bunnymen
Spitting Games – Snow Patrol

Zero Effect

Great quote from one of my favorie movies - Zero Effect:

"I can't possibly overstate the importance of good research. Everyone goes through life dropping crumbs. If you can recognize the crumbs, you can trace a path all the way back from your death certificate to the dinner and a movie that resulted in you in the first place. But research is an art, not a science, because anyone who knows what they're doing can find the crumbs, the wheres, whats, and whos. The art is in the whys: the ability to read between the crumbs, not to mix metaphors. For every event, there is a cause and effect. For every crime, a motive. And for every motive, a passion. The art of research is the ability to look at the details, and see the passion."

Paris Exurb

Paris Exurb, originally uploaded by zeroeffect.

Yet another image from the La Defense train stop in Paris.

Notre_Dame

Just going through my photos from my Krakow + Paris trip. I totally love this photo.

And now for something completely different.....

Latest update on Hurricane Dennis here.

Interesting image loops here.

I am totally diggin' this free mp3 website - and it is sponsored by Mercedes-Benz.

iPOD PLAYLIST.....COMING SOON! :)

London Terrorist Attacks and Blogs

Check out this. Interesting stuff about the coverage of the attacks via blogs....

Hurricane Dennis

Here is the NOAA link....