Something to Dwell On

My dad and I have been looking for things to do together recently. We've taken a few great trips. Several years ago we took a trip to Alaska, which was a fun adventure. Recently, we met up in Paris for a week and explored the more cultured side of life. This past weekend, we stayed a little closer to home and visited the vast metropolis of Hillsborough, NC. As a graphic designer, I'm interested in lots of areas of design, one of which is architecture. Dwell is a magazine that covers modern home design. Steph bought me a subscription last year. The magazine sponsors a competition each year that promotes pre-fab home design. The magazine has a national market, but strangely enough, both winners have built their homes in NC, just outside of Raleigh. Since it was so close, I thought it would be worth checking out the open house. When we arrived, we listened to a presentation by a pre-fab architect who plugged his website. We grabbed a shuttle and walked through the nexthouse. It was a good time with pop. It's fun to be able to share some of my interests with him. I'm looking forward to a fun friendship with dad... ummm... Glen.

Tune your run

So I recently picked up a very cool little accessory for the ol' ipod nano. It's a sensor that you insert into your running shoes. It transmits a signal to your ipod that allows you to track your distance. The real advantage of this is that you can run anywhere you want and know how far you've run. The ipod even gives you audible status reports and you hit milestones of your run. It's pretty slick. If you want to see my progress, check it out below:

High Standards

I've recently had a few casual conversations at work about what women want in a guy. It suddenly hit me that high heels play a large part in the modern match-making culture. Women often choose men who are at least their height + the height of their heels. This way, when the couple is in a social setting, the woman can look fashionable and still have a man who appears suitably taller and masculine. I was blown away that a little piece of plastic on an incredibly uncomfortable fashion accessory can have that much of an impact on our modern culture. I'm hopeful that most people see past this superficial approach to dating. My guess is that it plays a bigger part then some would like to admit.

You've got to be Joking

After recently seeing spiderman 3, I decided to take a break from all the lame comic book movies that have been flooding out of Hollywood over the last few years. It was really boring... and there was way too much crying. Comic books aren't remotely interesting to me when they come to the big screen. The villians are too nice, too fantastic, too... silly. Then out of the blue, my friend Matt sent me this:


Joker from the next Batman movie.

Now THAT'S a VILLAIN. That image alone intrigues me enough to go see the movie. Finally an interesting interpretation. So, that's the answer hollywood. Make the baddies bad.

An American in Paris: Day 3

Pics are now at flickr

An American In Paris: Day 2

Today dad and I enjoyed a bus tour. Here are some scenes from the day.



Sidewalk artist



The Louvre



Gate



Pop



Penthouse



Sidewalk Vendor



They're everywhere



Police Caravan



Notre Dame



Bridge



Triumph



A nap in the park



The End

An American in Paris

Bonjour. It's the morning after my first day in Paris. I'm at my hotel, typing on a French computer, which is a cultural experience in itself. The keys are all indifferent places so I've returned to the hunt and peck method. When I flew in yesterday morning, it was very foggy. The sun was just rising and I could barely see down to the ground. Looking down, I saw lots of farmland, but unlike the US, the plots were all at angles.


Foggy morning

As soon as we landed, I found myself in another line. This one was for customs. I slowly made my way through bus trips, subway stations, and train rides, until I arrived at the hotel. I was early and my room wasn't ready, so I took some time to explore the neighborhood. There were all kinds of small meat, bread, and produce shops. I only heard French speakers around me, but was able to order a small roasted chicken and some bread by pointing. With a full stomach, I went back to the hotel and checked in. I was amazed at how small the room was, but at least everything was nice. I slept for several hours and then decided to go explore Paris a little bit.


Lovebirds

It really is all that people say it is. It's very expansive and beautiful. Since my dad was flying in later, I decided to just survey the scene. I walked along the river, saw the louvre, the eiffel tower, had lunch outside at a café, and took a nap in a park.



A walk along the river


River scene



Relaxing on the lawn



Reading a book



Peddlers in trouble


It was so nice to be in a different place. I'll be glad to have my dad around today. I haven't had a conversation with someone for quite awhile. I'll fill you in on today's events later.