Pencils and Wood

MATR1291

2011-09-24T05:14:00.000-07:00

I just got back from Canada where I was working on a spurse project ( matr.spurse.org ). For our part of CAFK+A, we developed a new sense organ. This was in the form of a smartphone app (iPhone and Android) that reads data from your phone (light levels, sound input, compass heading, GPS location) and mixes it with data that we are traking having to do with cell phone production and destruction (trash and recycling). The data we are tracking include such things stock prices of metals that are mined that go into the phone and stock prices of the companies that make phones as well as GPS location of these companies and, when we could find it, where the mines are located. All of this information is then translated into a sound scape. We hope that people use this as they walk around and think about what they are hearing and how it effects them and their movements. The app went live on iTunes a day before the opening and was downloaded and used all around the world.

The part that I was more involved in was our physical presence at the site of the event. We have been toying with the idea of these mobile labs or sites for research for awhile. In the past we had purchased a shipping container and outfitted it as a research station; the idea being that you could ship this anywhere, set it down and begin to work out of it immediately. But this proved problematic in that it's expensive to ship a container and difficult to navigate borders with it.

So for this project, I designed a smaller crate that fits in the back of a station wagon. The crate holds the tent (10' x 20' outfitters tent) and breaks apart to become the furniture inside of the tent (2 tables, 4 benches, a chalkboard, a projection screen, and a work/projector table).

I build the crate down here in Brooklyn and drove it up to Canada. (side note: my parents were kind enough to let me use their car/s. Seems the crate still needs to be a bit smaller)

Here is the final packing of the crate:

We had to transfer the crate from one car into another:

The crate was delivered to Kitchener, ON City Hall Plaza

The tent set up only took a couple of hours...:

...including putting the furniture together:
The app is available on iTunes (search spurse or MATR) and on the Android Marketplace.

A Machine has Fallen

2011-09-05T13:55:00.000-07:00

I remember being asked once if I would sell the drawing machines themselves. My first thought was no...but then, well, come one why not. But luckily (?) I never had to make a real decision on it.

Well, recently the basement at the shop flooded. Sadly, this was the end of the larger machine that I had that fit in the back of my car and made some of my favorite drawings. Perhaps I could have shined it up a little but I'm afraid that Irene has spelled certain disaster for it. I should know soon as the basement is almost empty off all of the water from over a week ago.

Dogfort

2011-05-24T16:05:00.001-07:00

The most recent thing I've built in the shop is another piece for Andrew over at Standard41. It's an end table with a semi-enclosed bottom for the clients small dog to sleep in. Really what I've made it is a dogfort. A nice, walnut dogfort:

It was fun to build and to figure out in what order all of the glue-ups had to happen.

I haven't mentioned it to Shackleton and Stella...they'll never forgive me for not making them one.

Graduation

2011-05-18T05:40:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I went to Maine to see Molly graduate. It was a good weekend filled with friends and family and catching up. Molly's animation was great and the installation was full throughout opening night.Now it's on to the next great thing:

Congratulations Molly! I'm very proud of you and your hard work.

Kids of Kathmandu

2011-05-06T04:23:00.001-07:00

Perhaps you remember a few months ago when I posted about making a kids desk for a charity event? Well, the auction is up and running for all of the desks. Visit the site and look around.

http://kidsofkathmandu.org/projects/the-desk-project/

All the desks are really beautiful and the money goes to a great cause.

New Bike Machine Drawings

2011-04-10T16:21:00.000-07:00

With the weather changing for the better here in Brooklyn, it's been a pleasure to once again ride my bike everywhere. Along with that comes an ever growing set of new drawing machine drawings. Perhaps you remember this machine from late last year:

With new cranks put on the bike, I'm back to making drawings with this little machine. Here are a few recent ones:

Kids of Kathmandu Desk

2011-01-13T16:12:00.000-08:00

www.kidsofkathmandu.org is a non-profit that was started by a friend and his wife. Recently, I became involved in a fund raiser of theirs that involves designers/builders making kids desks to be auctioned off to raise money for...kids in Kathmandu. The idea is that each desk would sell for the amount of money it takes to fund one child's education for a year.Through work that we ( www.workshopdesignbuildllc.com ) did last year, I fell in love with this homasote material. I believe it is used for sound proofing, but when you slice it up and stack it it has this wonderful, velvety feel to it. I've tried to think of a way to use it in furniture for my apartment but always come back to the thought that my (best ever) cats will just sharpen their claws on it and rip it to shreds. This project seemed just the place for it...and to see how it plays against other materials. In this case that other material is cherry.

IP21 Single/Group Work Table

2010-10-31T07:50:00.000-07:00

The fourth piece of furniture to build for IP21 was a desk that would fit in a space that is about 6 feet wide, but could extend to seat groups of people in a larger space. The idea is to design furniture that is multi-purpose and can grow and change along with the company.
I did some exploring and found a lot of different table leaf hardware and long drawer slides I could use, but in the end they seemed like more of a hindrance than a help. So, I designed a system that would work, using three tables of descending size nested together:

I liked the idea that, if needed, you could have three completely separate tables. But, once I got them all together, the legs of the smallest table got hung up on the legs of the biggest table, and it wasn't able to extend as it needed to. I had to cut two of the smallest table's legs off to allow it to glide all the way out. This eliminated the possibility of having three separate tables, but it does allow for a 5 foot wide table to extend to 14 1/2 feet, as you can see below.

This table was a challenge to figure out, but I am pretty happy with the way it turned out.

Second IP21 Desk.

2010-10-25T14:01:00.000-07:00

The second desk for IP21:

These images are pre-sanding and finishing. The top still has the protective paper on it, but it's 3/4 thick plexiglass. As with the other table, this one has no hardware holding it together...just the pressure of the joints.

Magnetic Storage

2010-10-18T13:21:00.000-07:00

I just epoxied the super strong magnets into the storage boxes for IP21. And I only got my fingers pinched in between them once.

The plexiglass proved much harder to work with than I expected and for a short bit I thought that I had ruined a $500 sheet of material. But when all was said and done, the plexi looked great and I had only a slight pulled muscle in my right arm (that 3/4" thick stuff is HEAVY). The edges buffed out nicely with 400 grit sandpaper and some steel wool.

I'm sure the images of them magically hanging from the ceiling will be much more dramatic.

IP21 Desk v.1

2010-10-14T16:34:00.000-07:00

The first full scale version of the IP21 desk I've been working on*. There is no hardware holding it all together...just pressure fit joints and 3 grooves in the underside of top to keep it in place.

*All these images are pre-sanding and waxing...that'll really make that grain color pop.

Bike Drawing

2010-10-14T06:01:00.000-07:00

I'm currently working in collaboration with composer David Jensenius. The plan is for me to make 10 drawing machine drawings that he will than compose music from.

Here is the machine strapped to my bike before the maiden voyage (please note the beautiful rug under the bike):

I rode this trusty bike to work today to make the first drawing:

...and here is the drawing it made:

Reverse Order

2010-09-29T16:27:00.000-07:00

I was recently hired to build a cherry bookcase for a renovation going on in the Upper East Side. Along with that came a few other things to build but I was most looking forward to making the bookcase. Not that it was a fancy or crazy design...maybe the opposite. It was straight forward rectangles which to me meant that the lines had to be nice and straight or else they would stick out like a sore thumb. I put a lot of time into it and was very happy with the result, as was the general contractor that hired me:

But alas, it was never destined to see a single book. It seems the client walked in and felt that it closed the room in too much. By all accounts they thought the work was good...it just wasn't what they wanted.

So this is how I left the job site on Monday afternoon. Out it came, leaving only a plaster wall that needed a lot of repair work...

It was disheartening to say the least. But those are the breaks I suppose.

One more thing...

2010-09-13T16:29:00.000-07:00

I built this great house for a client...but he still seems to prefer the pool house:

Table Thought

2010-09-13T16:22:00.001-07:00

The challenge is to make a usable, stable table (and maybe a chair) out of one piece of plywood that uses no screws or any fasteners to hold it together...just a series of cuts and grooves to allow the wood to be banged together with a mallet. This is one idea for it. It seems like something that could allow for added pieces to create L shaped desks, multiple desks, longer desks, etc...

New Set of Floating Box Drawers

2010-07-26T12:12:00.000-07:00

Oh it's been awhile. I've been working away down here in hot and humid Brooklyn...a bit of studio work and a bit of shop work. This is what I have to show for my efforts for now:

A few other things are in the works, including but not limited to, a few scale models of ideas and a bit of drawing. More to follow when it cools down.

Great...Lakes.

2010-05-30T20:49:00.000-07:00

Today was a bit slower...I guess I mean less traveling. We tried to skate a park in London, ON but they were doing work on it and it was fenced off. After walking around and looking at it, we weren't supper sad to not skate it.
After that we moved on the Chatham, ON. This park was a bit of a street-plaza type thing...so I was a bit out of my element. But it was still a lot of fun. When we were sitting in the van after skating, just about to leave, I watched a little kid roll his ankle pretty good. Being the nice guys we are, we brought him a bag of ice fresh from our cooler.

I feel like we paid it forward a bit with the bag of ice and were rewarded with a very smooth border crossing...the guard even liked out drawing machine decks we are making. Although, he had very little good to say about Detroit...even using a bit of cursing to describe it.
The first stop in Detroit was a little skateshop on the outskirts of town called Refuge. It's a good shop with a ton of product. And enough non-leather shoes that I just couldn't help but buy a pair. We asked the guy about skating in the area and he sent us to a park that we think was called Riley (?). A pretty great park with bowls and street stuff...and it's on Rich's favorite street in America:So it's been a good trip so far...a good amount of skateboarding today even though it's been incredibly hot.
Tomorrow we're off for Chicago for most of the day.

Well Isn't That Just Great Lakes Tour

2010-05-29T18:42:00.000-07:00

Well the semi-annual skateboard trip is back on this year after a brief lapse last year. Blame the economy...blame Rich's new job...blame Canada...last year we just didn't pull it together. But this year is starting off with a bang.
We met up in Portland on Thursday night to pick up a little retirement gift for my parents:

I put a lot of time over the past year into making this strip canoe...it's too much to go into in this series of entries. So I'll save them for another week.
To our surprise, the boat stayed on the roof for the entire ride back to Syracuse and proved to be a conversation piece at rest stops...making me want to stop less.
It was good to get to my parents house and celebrate 24 years of hard work by my mother...I think they liked the boat. Good food was eaten and tasty wine was drunk.
This morning, before leaving Casa DeRosia, we took a walk back in the woods to Brickyard Falls. An old favorite swimming spot from my childhood, it was a good warm up for Niagra Falls.
Rich had never seen Niagra Falls. It's a pretty amazing sight. 675,000 gallons a second pour over the Horse Shoe side...too much to fathom.

Customs has never been my favorite part of going to Canada. Two trips ago I was accused of being a male prostitute. But today wasn't too bad. Sure the van got searched...but I kind of expected it after Rich told the agent about the knives in the van...oh and really, who's not going to search a dented, white package van with two guys in it and don't know where in Canada they are going to that day/night.
Oh well, it really didn't take that long. Now we're in lovely Woodstock, Ontario for the night. Tomorrow beings the actual skateboarding part of the trip with a few stops in Ontario before venturing back across the border to Detroit. 8 mile?

How to Make an American Rug

2010-04-01T05:56:00.000-07:00

I finished my rug yesterday. It was a long process and I learned a lot...like to buy all the yarn at once so that it matches (rookie mistake)...and don't plan to dye the rug to match the yarns. This second one resulted in about 10 inches or so tearing away from the rug. So now I have a 4' x 5' rug. It was a bit heartbreaking for a moment...but I recognized it as a good learning moment...something to take note of and not repeat.

I plan to make another one...different skateboard drawing and slightly different colors.
So here's to 4 more months of latch-hooking.

I Made New Handlebars for My Bike

2010-02-27T07:05:00.001-08:00

New Website

2010-01-26T18:40:00.000-08:00

www.workshopdesignbuildllc.com

Sourcing Out the Work

2010-01-11T18:08:00.001-08:00

My new assistant hard at work on the rug:

Rug Making

2009-12-15T05:06:00.000-08:00

It occurred to me one day that a drawing I'd made would make more sense as a rug. So I've been working on turning one of my Skateboard Drawings into a rug. It's taking longer than I had thought it would, but here is where I'm at:

Time Capsule Lightbox

2009-12-10T16:58:00.000-08:00

Made to mark the occasion of a friend's baby being born:

Pressure sensitive switch turns the light on as the box is opened.

10.27.09

2009-10-27T16:30:00.000-07:00

A new machine:

11" x 16" x 4"

Globe Drawing Machine Lamps

2009-10-17T15:17:00.000-07:00

A recent experiment to find a way to make clear globes to draw in with Drawing Machine 12.

The globes are made with epoxy resin and fiberglass cloth (learned from some boat making).

A Couple of Recent Things...

2009-10-17T09:12:00.000-07:00

Shelves in Boston:

Table and Benches/Bookcase in Brooklyn:

Spurse Event

2009-06-06T05:43:00.000-07:00

Tiltfocus

2009-05-31T17:04:00.000-07:00

My new favorite site allows any image to be turned into a tilt focus looking miniature. Very addictive.

This is a quick test from an image from Rome.

My Kitchen Floor

2009-04-05T17:15:00.000-07:00

Walked on for two days and drawn on for 80+ hours:

(5' x 11' ballpoint pen on paper)

Finally!

2009-03-26T13:58:00.000-07:00

It's about time art makes it into the financial news in this country:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/nyregion/27indict.html?_r=1&hp

Grand Arts Video

2009-02-12T17:21:00.000-08:00

deeptime rapidtime from spurse spurse on Vimeo.

deeptimerapidtime

2009-02-08T15:39:00.001-08:00

Back from Kansas City. The show looks really great. Lots of work went into it with many 5am bedtimes, but the result is really great. We're all very proud:

(This is the last time I'll use this image, I promise)

Back gallery (Felt Room with Pivot Wall)

Hydroponic Growing System with plants from the Land Institute

metal again

2009-02-02T16:26:00.000-08:00

Have you seen Heavy Metal in Baghdad? Well, you should. But if you haven't, NYTimes.com has an article about the band in the film.

Wha huh?

2009-01-31T22:17:00.000-08:00

This is incredibly interesting (but substitute the hydrogen fuel cell with a rechargeable battery):
http://www.5min.com/Video/The-Future-Car---Skateboard-6475583

work01.29.09

2009-01-29T17:05:00.000-08:00

The globe machine has begun production:

Look at Him Go

2009-01-28T17:26:00.000-08:00

A bailout plan I can get behind.

Metal

2009-01-23T04:30:00.001-08:00

2009-01-16T08:38:00.001-08:00

Grand Arts as it stands...01.12.09

2009-01-12T18:05:00.001-08:00

spurse event 12.18.08

2008-12-20T10:38:00.001-08:00

I swear people were there.

Last Day.

2008-12-18T10:39:00.000-08:00

Today is the last day of this wonderfully tiring week. Things have progressed nicely, albeit a bit slower than I think we had hoped. But that is the nature of working with groups.
I've heard I missed tough weather back in Portland, but that this guy has reset the clocks in anticipation of my arrival. He sent me this image to back up his email:

Grand Arts 12.16.08

2008-12-16T06:32:00.000-08:00

2008-12-11T16:43:00.000-08:00

BLOGday Night Lights

2008-11-11T18:39:00.001-08:00

There are many things to write about from Texas and all will come in due time. For now just know that it was not all art. There was time to take in a highschool football game, also. The Marfa Shorthorns were well attended despite the chilly temperatures.

2008-11-05T05:44:00.000-08:00

I was happy to get to the airport this morning and be greeted by this news:

vote

2008-11-04T05:25:00.000-08:00

Crit Cat

2008-11-02T07:40:00.000-08:00

I've been through my fair share of rough art-school critiques. I remember always wishing, when they were over, that I had formed my thoughts and responses better. It's not that I think I do bad work or not enough work or not the right work. I just seem to have trouble, at times, rolling with the conversation and defending what I do to a room full of people.
But all those tough times were put to shame last night when I returned to my studio to this:
Shackleton has upped the ante of art school critique.
As they say, I guess it's back to the drawing board.

2008-11-01T19:58:00.000-07:00

"Let this be my annual reminder...

2008-10-24T14:17:00.000-07:00

...that we can all be something bigger".

Latex Casting Went Well in Kansas

2008-10-18T06:34:00.000-07:00

2008-10-05T09:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the first paddle in the ocean. Some good times and good stories to be described in a later post (with drawings to help). For now, a picture of the kayak approaching Fort Gorges.
When all was said and done, we think we paddled about 5 miles or so. It turns out that is quite a workout once the wind picked up.

2008-09-29T13:39:00.000-07:00

2008-09-27T13:40:00.001-07:00

Rich Rad

4, 298, 543

2008-09-22T06:02:00.001-07:00

drawing machine #12 (globe)

2008-09-20T09:06:00.000-07:00

2008-09-20T05:51:00.001-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5RVRbLgGo0

2008-09-19T04:38:00.001-07:00

This week was the annual Mill Creek fishing trip. I don't fish, so the highlight this year was Miles feeding this Harbor Seal some bait fish when we got back to the dock:
Yesterday, I left the house with the yard looking like this:
And returned to it looking like this:There is now some clean-up to do and a stump to figure out what to do with, but I get a lot more light in my apartment, now. And things that seemed perpetually damp already seem dryer.
And I also had a nice view of my neighbor as she angerly threw some fallen branches not only over the fence, but all the way into the middle of the backyard. "We only did this so that the tree didn't fall on your house," I thought to myself she stomped around her yard. Middle-school teachers are angry.

One More Reason to Vote for Barak O-Blog-A

2008-09-03T13:47:00.000-07:00

Palin Supported Penalties for Using Skateboards on Public or Private Property in Wasilla.
“Beginning Oct. 15 — after the expected opening of the $233,000 Wasilla Skate Park — skaters will be breaking the law if they use their skateboards, in-line skates, bicycles, scooters (or any other recreational, non-motorized wheeled device) on public or private property where signs are posted forbidding their use.”

The Frontiersman added, “In the ordinance approved Monday, the penalty for first-time violators of the ordinance is a written warning and the skate device may be confiscated for 10 calendar days. For a second offense, a $50 fine shall be paid and the skate device may be confiscated for 30 calendar days. A third-time offender will have to pay a $100 fine and will lose his or her skate device permanently.” [Frontiersman, 9/18/98]

new site

2008-08-22T18:51:00.000-07:00

A very long story that I wish not to go into leads to the happy announcement of the launch of:
www.11lp.org
spurse is now officially a part of dialog:city. We have websites to prove it. And if it's on the internet, it must be true.

Rush LimBLOG

2008-08-05T06:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was driving back from a little weekend jaunt/work session and was in the mood for a little talk radio. I usually listen to NPR, but the local station was playing classical music (which always makes me feel uneasy as I feel like I should like it, but in reality I have no interest in it) so I began to flip through the stations. I came upon this one show that was just going into break but claimed to be the "center for news". I kept it there waiting for them to come back when they did I was greeted by “You are listening to the Rush Limbaugh Show". I quickly changed it while muttering something when it occurred to me that this is the exact behavior that has led to many a misunderstanding between political viewpoints. “Why not listen to what the ‘other’ side is saying?,” I thought to myself. So I turned it back and listened in for at least a good 30 minutes. And I must say, there is a lot of hate in that man, more so than any of the music in my car. He went on a point-by-point breakdown/attack of Barack Obama’s talk about the oil/energy situation. I admit I haven’t listened to the talk aside from what I heard yesterday, but Limbaugh’s points seemed way off the mark and so filled with anger and hate. It makes me a bit sad that he is the highest paid radio person and has such an impact on so many people. Such slanted viewpoints are best suited for blogs and even more lowly means of information dissemination.

ICI Cabinet

2008-07-29T15:19:00.000-07:00

I just finished this cabinet for a friend of mine:

I went together nicely after being expertly cut by a friend in Maine. The top is painted Starry Night Blue to reference the evacuation route signs in Boston. The sides of the closed structure are Foil Gray and the rest is left as raw birch (waxed). The biggest difficulty I had was finding hardware in Providence. Cabinet building/builders is not the circle I run in down here. I asked around RISD and the advice I got was "Lowes or Home Depot". It seems that everyone orders online down here. Oh, well. Lesson learned.

A Few Randoms

2008-07-24T12:49:00.000-07:00

Recently, it occurred to me the large number of actors that got their start on 90210. It's funny that it seems that only the bit part actors went on to do anything. Hilary Swank is arguably the best known but I had no idea that Nate Fisher (Peter Krause) from Six Feet Under was on in the early years. Just for one or two episodes but he was on it none-the-less.
And then this guy showed up:
I'm pretty sure that this was very early on in his "career".
My other fun game is to find where the boom mic enters the top of the screen in each episode. Really, after 3 seasons you still can't hold that thing up out of the way? Or even, say, re-shoot if it does? The show was clearly a success at that point and money was being made. Let's look professional, eh?

On an unrelated tangent, I went with my international friends to see The Dark Knight at the IMAX theater last night. And I feel it safe to say that it's incredible. It is beautifully shot, well written, and extremely well cast (with the exception of that Batman voice). Heath Ledger was amazing. I vote him for awards for this.
But the most amazing parts were the clips that were shot with the true, 2:3 IMAX film. The first scene in the film had us all gasping at the crispness and "real-ness" of giving the feeling of diving off of the top of a building. I'm not sure how to describe it...My only complaint is that it's odd to keep switching between 2:3 IMAX and 16:9 aspect. For the most part it's pretty seamless, but there are a few points where it's just too obvious.

Rarely Do I go This Route...

2008-07-17T09:20:00.000-07:00

"Goodbye from the world's biggest polluter." --George W. Bush, in parting words to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and French President Nicolas Sarkozy at his final G-8 Summit, punching the air and grinning widely as the two leaders looked on in shock, Rusutsu, Japan, July 10, 2008.

I heard this on Wait Wait Don't Tell Me and thought it was one of their jokes. Turns out it's fact.

How much longer?

Fusion Arts

2008-07-14T11:17:00.000-07:00

Well, the summer here at RISD has begun. The students have been here for a week and we've had a first day away in Boston. Above in a conversation that took place in the first few days about the idea of home and what it means to students. We visited with some really great people there including a gentleman that is part of a company that is developing multi-user interactive touch screen tables. Pretty amazing and fascinating.

It Floats

2008-06-29T06:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the big day and all went fine. We went to a nice lake just outside 0f Portland. The weather was not the best, but the mist gave the lake a nice, mysterious look and the cooler temperature made the water seem not too cold.
The kayak floated fine and paddled nicely (not that I have anything to compare it to). The only complaint it the lack of seat padding. An hour or more of sitting on thin, wood ribs gets a bit uncomfortable. But padding will be easy to add.
It was very satisfying to see this project all the way through, from lumber yard to water.

kayaks

2008-06-27T15:41:00.001-07:00

The exciting news is that the kayaks are done:

Not to pat myself on the back too much, but they're pretty cool looking. Once the poly is spread on the nylon (which took about five hours of hand sewing to put on), the skin takes on this beautiful, translucent look. Where it stretches around the cutwater, it looks so thin and delicate, like a membrane stretched over bone. Finally the framing is visible again. After all the work that was put into the woodworking, it was sad to cover it.
My paddle is made and I've purchased a spray skirt and life vest. Tomorrow is the big launch and it feels like that will be the end of this project.
This has all been a really great introduction to boat building. I've learned some great skills and my woodworking abilities have certainly improved. I'm looking forward to the next steps to be made when I return to Maine and the days once again get shorter and colder.

BLOGerly Hills 9021update

2008-06-16T06:44:00.000-07:00

PS. This is a crying, 45 year old highschool student. Can you believe Ian Ziering didn't win awards?

I know...I know.

MonBLOGen Island

2008-06-16T05:26:00.000-07:00

This week, I had the pleasure of going out to Monhegan Island with a group from the University of Minnesota and Mr. Kerr. It was a wonderful trip. I learned a lot about Rockwell Kent and we were able to tour his home that he built and his studio. The hope is that this will lead to a project involving a short jaunt to Greenland where Mr. Kent spent some time living.
We also learned that Kent was a vegetarian. This is the first glimmer of hope I've heard in reference to my diet and the arctic.
In kayak news, I spent the day yesterday making my paddle and bending the hoop. Tomorrow, we'll bend the hope flange and sew it on in hopes of being able to skin the boats next weekend. We're in a big push to try and launch them before I leave for the summer. We'll see if that happens.

"Just because I'm popular doesn't mean I have to like everybody"

2008-06-09T17:24:00.000-07:00

Every now and then I find something online that allows me to re-live parts of my life. Usually it's music or skateboarding related; the deck graphic I remember from when I learned how to ollie and not just bounce off a crack in the sidewalk or that one song I remember listening to over and over again as I drove out to Toggenburg after school to snowboard. But this recent discovery might be the crown jewel:
cbs.com has the first three seasons of Beverly Hills 90210 free for the watching. I started high school with them (well, David Silver atleast). And sure, they beat me to the punch of graduating college, but they remained on TV to coach me all the way through until I caught up with them. I remember watching this show at home in highschool. I remember watching this show when I took my break from college and lived in the mountains of CO. I remember watching the final episode at Ryther's house in Killington, VT. And I certainly remember watching the reunion the night before I moved from Denver back to the east to go to grad school. I think I might have even pushed the drive back a few days to watch it with a long time lover of all things "Kelly", Matt Kitt.
This show will stand the test of time as thee single best teen soap opera. I salute you "Bev 9'r".
(Please note above that Steve Sanders is wearing a blazer with shorts. Dude's about 45 here, yet still in high school.)

Back

2008-06-01T18:14:00.000-07:00

We are back from our long journey. The last few days were spent in Brooklyn with bbq's, big buck hunting, and a lot of skateboarding. Our friend Shawn brought us to a little private (kind of) bowl in Williamsburg which, according to me, was one of the best things we got to skate. Big thanks to him for taking us.
On the drive back to MA, we stopped to see our friend Doug who, despite being in the middle of uprooting his life and moving, took some time out to share in a beer with us. It was great to see him after all these years. Still as positive and happy as ever.
It's always good to get back home after being away for awhile. But a part of me (a big part) is a bit sad to realize that the trip is over. Last night, Rich and I joked about getting back in the van and continuing on. We were able to see so much great stuff and skate so many good places in such a short amount of time. I can only imagine what could be seen and done in months/years of this lifestyle. It has finally become clear to me that Kenny Reed has it right.
A large and loud "thank you", Rich. Every year you make this trip something to look forward to. I swear next year I'll drive more. Look at how well I do with the cooler now. Think of the possibilities if I apply that to driving a van.
A equally large and loud "thank you" to Jenny and James for hosting us for a few days and taking time out of your busy lives to show us around and spend some time with us hobos.

I'll miss the daily updates, but I can only assume that Rickville is still THE happening town online.

BLOGlyn Banks

2008-05-29T21:00:00.000-07:00

Sure...we skateboarded a bit today (alot)...took the train to the LES skatepark(a fun little piece of Chinatown with a little pyramid and flat bar and some ledge/manny-pad things)...kicked our way up to the banks (so very hard to skate but a must-go-to spot each time we are here. I mean really...push, push, push, push, push, push, push, push...all for a 4" high wallride? Really?) and back across town to Red Hook...did some shredding.
But let's get to what is really important. Did y'all see LOST?

Rickvillage..."I mean, they all know I'll bring the noise. I'm the man. You saw what I just showed you...all those people around me are my b&*@#!s. I could unleash the fury at any moment. I'm a virtual planetoid."

No BLOG 'til...

2008-05-28T19:40:00.000-07:00

We made it a point to wake up a bit early today to hit the road. The hope was that No-Show would come through in the clutch...but no. So we drove for a few hours to Sayerville, NJ, home to NJ Skateshop and a wonderful cement park. I'd never been there before so it was a real treat...despite the fact that the park is located across the street from the high school and we rolled in as school was letting out. The bowl there is the right combination of open space and hips and pockets. The downfall is the waxed coping. Oh, well. Overall a good place. After all this driving, the van has earned a few days off.
Now we're in Brooklyn. Rich greeted James with a wonderful new facial hair configuration. It truly is a sight to behold. All are well here.

Rickville..."Pretty quiet. Actually, a few of my European people are giving me props...European Props."

FredericksBLOG

2008-05-27T17:51:00.000-07:00

Today felt like a turning point. We're right about half-way through the trip and we've begun to head north. Really, nothing to report. We skated a not-so-good park in the out-of-way town of Williamsburg, VA. Same kids as every park doing their snowboard fly-outs and the one park champ that 360 flips things yet can't do a simple trick. Oh, well. We still had a good time.
We are now in Fredericksburg, VA. The plan has been to visit No-Show Joe in NJ tomorrow. But, as shocking as this may seem, Rich emailed him a few days back to get his phone number and he hasn't responded yet. Is he trying to up the No-Show ante? Taking it to previously unforeseen heights? I nod to you, No-Show. You have outdone yourself.
What do you think this guy is reading to Stella right now?:
This just in. Rickville update..."Ya know what? I didn't check it. But I have a feeling that the village is blowing up. I made some moves yesterday that I think are going to pay off."

The Legend of Ricky Prouty

2008-05-26T18:03:00.000-07:00

Birmingham wasn't really what we had hoped for (bad timing I believe with the holiday and all), so my hobo friend and I got up this morning and promptly left. We headed towards Atlanta and found one wonderful stop off:
We took some pictures and looked around as much as we were allowed. The track isn't really that close to the actual town, so I say might be a bit off. But, we saw no hotels or motels are anything that would resemble a hotel/motel. What we did see was about a hundred empty RV lots. Come October, that place must be Crazytown, USA. But on this day, it was calm...some might even say empty. Rich posed by the sign with the van (pretending it was broken down) and then we were out.
We continued on through Atlanta (which seems like a good city...good size...some nice buildings...not nearly as bad as David Cross makes it out to be in his rant about Light Up Atlanta) and found our way to Duncan Creek Skatepark. This park opened within the last month or so, I believe. It's pretty good; Four different bowls (all of which have many pockets and hip), a bowl/street type area, and a few legit looking sets of stairs and rails and ledges. As far as Wally Hollyday built parks go, I think it's the best I've skated.
We're now in a little town in South Carolina.

Rickville.."Yeah. Ya know. It's fine."

Ala..BAMA

2008-05-25T17:41:00.000-07:00

We skated the Nashville park one more time this morning before leaving. It's a pretty fun place. Not really a destination park like Louisville, but still a good time. It's also home to more head-bandannas than I have seen in one place before.
The drive down was uneventful. Not nearly the number of roadside attractions as KY.
Birmingham is hot and there are no people. It's like a set for "I Am Legend" downtown. We couldn't find one street spot or any signs that people even skateboard down here. I'm sure they do, but we didn't find anything. So we saw the sights and headed out of town to find a spot to skate...and we turned it out:
'Nuf said.

PS. RickVillage...fine.

2008-05-24T20:10:00.000-07:00

The rain let up sometime last night, allowing us to shred this morning. Good times. As I wrote before, I love that skatepark. Nice and wide open...doesn't feel cramped. But enough about that.
We've continued on south into previously (by me) uncharted territory. Once again, we were suckered off the highway towards the Bourbon Trail:Jim Beam was what we expected (shot glasses and bandannas). Heaven Hill was next (much nicer but more pricey than we were prepared for [I see no need to pay $350 for a bottle of anything, let alone whiskey]). Finally we ended and Maker's Mark (The biggest let down of the trip. Sure, if you buy a bottle you get to dip it in the red wax yourself.But you must wait for them to call your name before you get to put on the smock...and gloves...and protective glasses. All show with little payoff).
After this it was on to Mammoth Caves National Park. This place is amazing. It's a series of caves, all connected, that stretch for over 350 miles. We walked down to one of the mouths and was told by a park ranger that...well, we're not really sure what she said. But we took it to mean, "Sure fellas. Go in the cave and look around. It's nice". So we did. And it was nice. At one point we were about 140 feet into the earth in natural caves.
Upon walking out, however, we were informed by the afore mentioned Ranger that we were supposed to pay and that the people behind her (two serious looking gentleman that had driven their official looking vehicle [complete with lights on top] down into the woods to where we were) wanted to write us some tickets. But she was nice and reasonable and let us go with a slap on the hand (literally). It turns out that the National Park system is at risk for terrorism and under very close watch. Plus, they want money.
Now we're in Nashville...Grand Ole Opry and car fires...Skateboarded a bit...

PS. "The village is rocking out hard" -RLP

2008-05-23T20:16:00.000-07:00

Well, in an effort to send one out to "Barbarians At the Gate" we sought out some-out-of-the-way, non-skateboarding activities.
After this little stop, we moved onto Louisville.
After 17 or so hours of being in a van, our old bones moved slow. But me managed to skate for a couple of hours or so before being in need of food. And some site-seeing:After some food (Note:When moving away from the coast, sushi is not the best choice for food) we tried to skate again:

We'll try again in the morning before moving on to Nashville.
Despite the weather, it's really fun to be back in Louisville. The skatepark is a ton of fun...no pads...24 hours...full-pipe...just a lot of fun to cruise around. I could come back here every year and skate for 20 minutes and the drive would be worth it.

PS. Village Le Rick is still good and producing lot's-o-corn

Clarksburg's the new Flatwoods

2008-05-22T18:37:00.000-07:00

Well, we are on our way. A night stop off in West Virgina and tomorrow we'll be in Louisville. Then it's off to the glamor of Birmingham and Nashville. We stopped a bit earlier in the drive than in past years with the intentions of avoiding the $110 a night Holiday in in Flatwoods. And we realized that goal at the Knight's Inn in Clarksburg. Super.
Now back to watching a sport I know very little about...

PS. Rick's village is doing fine.

2008-05-17T18:03:00.000-07:00

Back from Denver.

2008-04-24T18:24:00.000-07:00

I guess the good news of the day is that we are safe from any new Wesley Snipes movies for the next three years.

2008-04-21T17:46:00.001-07:00

Usually house-sitting seems like a chore to me, but this time it has allowed me access to the shop whenever I like. Which means I've had a chance to get back to working on the kayak. It's very satisfying to see it come together and take shape.
The latest step required that I get into and out of the framework to check the height of the masik (the curved laminate). Now, I don't consider myself a large person. Nor am I overly out of shape (a bit beat up from a recent bout with skateboarding, but out of shape no), but this thing is hard to get in and out of. The Greenland Kayak was designed this way as to make it very responsive for quick maneuverability and rolling.
Here's to hoping that swimming comes back to me from my youth.

Capital Kitchen

2008-03-30T15:07:00.000-07:00

Just got back from installing the counter at Capital Kitchen in Montpelier, VT. It went together well and was good to see put together. It will also be nice to have the space back in the shop. Now maybe that kayak stands a chance of getting finished.

2008-03-12T19:26:00.000-07:00

Kayak before the chines and stem blocks were added.