A Big Push and a Big Life Update

The blog archive is back, and I talk about where the last 9 years have taken me in really broad strokes.

So, back in October 2016 I took a long hard look at this blog and pulled it back off the shelf.

I rearranged some stuff, removed other things and generally updated the look. In the process that broke a lot of my old posts. As I wrote in Rebirth/Reinvention at that time I took a lot of the old posts and made them private. Over the course of the last almost year (11 months) I have been slowly fixing the old posts and making them public again. This process took a lot longer than it probably should, but today I decided that I just wanted to done. So I pushed through editing the remaining 160 posts and in that process I read a lot of what I wrote during 2008 to 2010, and not all of it made its way back into the blog.

160 posts is a lot of introspection, let me tell you.

I’ve been using this site lately as a means of pushing out some of the big ideas that I feel need a more formal space than a Facebook or LinkedIn post. One of the things that struck me as I was finishing the blog housecleaning is how it’s been 9 years since I was laid off as a part of the recession. In that time I’ve:

  • earned my license
  • worked for three different companies
  • opened and closed my own small design firm
  • became involved in AIA Northern Virginia and AIA Virginia and continue to serve on the boards of both organizations
  • got married to my husband
  • started a fiber business with my husband curating and dying yarn, spinning fiber, and related products – The The Fiberists, LLC/li>
  • was diagnosed with adult onset diabetes and made some drastic life changes to improve my health
  • and as of this past March, been laid off again

This puts things into an interesting perspective. These all seem like really big things, yet I’m back at a place not unlike where I was 9 years ago. I’m unemployed and have been for a long time; there doesn’t seem to be work in my field in my area for people with my range of experience currently. I’m trying to survive on a shoe string budget: I’m sharing a car, so while I am more mature and experience than in 2009, I feel less independent because everything revolves around when I will be able to run errands or otherwise. I’ve been writing a number of longer form posts on facebook which may make their way here at some point. I’m also dedicating most of my non-job search time to working on my fiber business, which I love, but is not at a place where it can support me as a full time job. Take all of that together and add in that I’m once again wondering if there is a place for me in Architecture and it really feels like deja-vu. The setting and characters have changed, but the themes are the same.

I’m not promising regular posts at this time, because we know how well that always turns out, but I find that I process things better when I write. So, I’m hoping over the foreseeable future to come back more regularly to this digital space and work through some of my career/life issues.

Architect as … Political Thinker

To my friends who are suggesting we get rid of the electoral college. I get it, you are pissed. I’m pissed. This sucks for me and it sucks for you, that said, we shouldn’t dismantle the machine just because we didn’t win. The electoral college plays a valuable role in the checks and balances of our federal government.

But before we can talk about that we need to talk about our government for a bit. We like to think of ourselves as one country. But when the constitution was written, people thought of themselves as citizens of their state first, if they even though of themselves as “American” and not “British,” and our country second. Because of this, our system is pretty much created as if we were a federation of independent but united nation states with an overarching representative government that represents states interests and the interest of the people.

Most of us when we hear that phrase “checks and balances” think of two very specific processes – the presidential veto and potential congressional override and judicial review (the courts declaring a law unconstitutional). What most people don’t realize is that almost all processes put in place by the constitution have a system of checks and balances. A lot of these are not between branches but between the people and the states.

What do I mean by that? Well our government while it is “of, by and for the people” it really is a balance of citizens and states interests.
Take congress. The system is meant to check the will of the people against the will of the states. The House of Representatives is directly elected by congressional districts that are all supposed to represent a similar number of people. This means that each member is a representative of the their specific constituents, which, in theory means that they are beholden to the will of the people. Think of them as the representatives of the citizens of the United States.

The senate on the other hand is different. Each state gets two senators. Originally these were chosen by the state governments. This was supposed to represent the issues of the state and not necessarily its people. Now they are also directly elected, but they represent the whole state, so they have a wider focus. Think of them as the Representatives of the member states of the United States.

Keeping those parallels in mind, in our congress we have a built in balance between the people (the house) versus the member states of the United States (the senate).
There are certain powers that only the people (the house) have: money bills must start in the house, the house impeaches, and the house elects the president in a tie. On the other hand, the states (the Senate) have their own powers: treaties are ratified by the senate, appointments like Supreme Court justices are approved by the senate, the senate holds impeachment hearings, and the senate elects the Vice President in a tie. All of this is a way to check the will of the people against the will of the member states.

The electoral college system is not actually name checked in the constitution.
What Article II section 1 states is:

Section 1. The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.

To parse this down, basically it says the President and Vice President hold 4 year terms. They are elected by a number of electors that are equal to each state’s senators and representatives in Congress, but not by the senators or representatives. This left the matter of choosing electors to each state.

This section of the constitution was amended a number of times, first to specify that electors voted for a president and a Vice President separately and that the winner of the electoral college needs a majority, not just a plurality, and if there isn’t a majority then the congress will select the winners. It was then amended a number of times to clarify specifics of presidential succession, term limits, qualifications and voting ages. But, the selection of electors has not been addressed since.
So, what does this have to do with checks and balances? Well, first, since electors are apportioned by representation it balances the interests of urban versus rural states in the number of electors for the states. The more populated states have a lesser say than if it was a popular vote, which is the system they would prefer, and the less populated states have a greater say than they would in a popular vote and a much reduced voice if it had been a vote with each state’s selection of president carrying the same weight, which is what they would prefer. So it is a compromise of the state’s desires.

The second thing it does is provide an avenue for no clear winner to be elected. By making the system possible for no one to win it allows the representatives of the people to select the president from the top three candidates and the senators (representative of the states) to select the Vice President from the top three vice presidential nominees. This is a check against the state’s by making the voice of the people select the office with any real power and a check against the executive branch by having the legislative branch choose the top office holders.

By allowing states to decide how electors are chosen the system provides an opening for the people to have a greater say. Currently most states have a statewide election where the winner of the popular vote in the state gets all of the electors. But that doesn’t have to be the case. Two states divide up their votes. In both of these states, the winner of the popular vote gets the equivalent of the two senate seats and then each House of Representatives district is apportioned by its own popular vote winner. These are not the only options out there. States could divide all votes between all candidates (proportional voting) or, as some people have suggested, they can assign their votes to the winner of the popular vote.

Each of these systems has problems. The current system has the potential for the popular vote winner to lose the electoral college (which has now occurred 5 times: John Quincy Adam, Rutherford B Hayes, Benjamin Harrison, George W. Bush and now Donal Trump). In the split vote system used by two states there is the issue that excessive gerrymandering of districts will result in state winner who lose the state popular vote. In a proportional system there is a greater chance that no one will win a majority and instead congress will have to decide. And lastly in a national popular vote we lose the compromise between rural and urban America.

So, do I think the electoral college needs to stay as it is? No. I think there are issues and it will need to be resolved with a number of changes. One of these issues is that we stopped using one of the checks and balances in the constitution.

Previously after each census in addition to reapportioning seats in the House of Representatives there were seats added to congress to account for the growth in population and creation of new states. From 1789 to 1843 the ratio of people per representative grew in size with each census, but the growth was small for less than 30k to just under 50k. There was a gradual increase in constituents per representative until the 20th century (from under 50K to 210k in 1923). Since that time the size of congress has been capped. What that means is that as of the last census there are now over 700k constituents to each representative. So, how does this play out? Well in the House of Representatives it means the smallest state, Wyoming, with a current population of just under 568,300 actually has a slight edge in the house – it’s one vote represents less people than California’s 37,347,989 constituents with 53 representatives. This doesn’t mean a whole lot in the house, but in the electoral college that means that California’s influence is even less than intended. To put this in real world terms, this is as if a dollar spent buying juice in the house cafe was actually worth $1.23 if the person spending it was from Wyoming but only $0.99 in if they were from California. In the electoral Congress this disparity get worse – $3.70 for Wyoming versus $1.15 for California.

The easiest solution is to add members to the House of Representatives to bring our ratio of people to Representatives back to where it was when the number of seats in the house were capped, 210k. This means we would add approximately 1,036 additional seats to the House of Representatives. Now that’s a lot of people, but we are a much more populated country, so there is some logic there. The problem would be logistics. Our government is just not set up for that many representatives. That’s a lot more offices, a lot more salaries and a lot more physical space for a house chamber.

Alternatively, we could double the number of seats for each state in the house (add 435 additional seats) but instead of having districts these would be statewide at large seats. This could allow us to keep gerrymandered districts (which while skewing the vote, can help to make sure minorities are represented) and mitigate some of their effect by having representatives who are elected by statewide ballot. These seats could be apportioned proportional to party results or they could be an open field where voters select up to the number of seats (choose 5 of the following, for example). To use the example above, a dollar spent buying juice in the house would remain unchanged – each state would have the same buying power, just more seats, like a stock split; it is just that these seats would represent a more diverse set of interests. In the electoral Congress you would see a major shift – down to $2.46 from $3.70 for Wyoming versus $1.01 from $1.15 for California. California’s buying power decreases a little, but Wyoming is now only 2X, not 3X, more influential than California per capita. This would eventually need to be revisited and scaled up again in the future to maintain these levels of equity.

Is this the perfect solution, no, but it’s a good compromise. By increasing the number of seats in congress we make congress a better representation of the people while at the same time making the Electoral College closer to a compromise between Urban and Rural interests. In the process we re-assert an import part of our representative federal system and preserve an equally important check and balance.

Winchester

The Masonic Temple Building in Old Town Winchester, VA

I took a day trip up to Old Town Winchester, VA on Saturday. Winchester is what I would call a village, but i guess in Virginia’s terms it s a city. Old Town has a 3 block long area that is closed off as a pedestrian mall, which seems like it is the tourist focus for the whole city. The oldest buildings there probably date to the middle of the 19th century, with many of them having unfortunate 1950’s ground floor storefront renovations. But if you look to the second story you’ll be surprised by some of the wonderful architectural details.

The thing that I found as completely odd was that we arrived around 3 on Saturday of Labor Day weekend and most of the stores and restaurants were closed. In addition, there was a large number of vacant storefronts. There was quite a few people walking up and down the strip, but with only a handful of boutiques and two open restaurants there was a general feeling of disappointment. The strangest part about this was that as we drove away from downtown we started finding more and more open stores and restaurants.

Atlanta

I’ve gone down to Atlanta for an extended weekend. While I’m here I’m just planning on relaxing, and maybe getting a little studying done for my Building Systems exam. In addition, I figured I’d see what the Job market looks like down here, not that I’m seriously thinking of relocating, but hey, I can’t argue with the housing prices. I could like in midtown in a 2 bedroom 2 bath for less than my month condo payments.

While I’m here, is there any new architecture that I should check out, besides the aquarium of course? In the same vein, is there any good mid-century modern developments in the Atlanta area?

Structural Systems

I take the structural systems exam on Thursday and I am scared! I have no idea how to do earthquake or wind loading and just barely grasp the basic concepts, plus I’m still not sure how many formulas I’ll need memorized. My only real consolation is that the vignette seems really easy.

Add to all this that I haven’t gotten either of my previous tests results back, so I’m still in the dark as to how I’ve been doing.

On a side note, I’ve been busy working on freelance work trying to get new jobs. So maybe I’ll be able to pay my mortgage when my unemployment runs out in August. Here’s hoping.

Freelancing

Two colleagues of mine were let go a few weeks ago. Since then, the three of us have decided to pool our collective architectural resources and work towards developing a client base and a freelance design business. This sounds much easier than it actually is. The time it takes to find people to write or call is enormous, add that to my weekly writings for DC Metrocentric and my studying for my ARE exams, I am finding that I am busier than when I was working full time, or maybe it just feels that way.

Take the Good with the Bolt

I have been searching for an inexpensive way to visit my family in New York, and the express buses seem to be the best option. I haven’t taken Megabus yet, just Bolt (primarily for the use of wifi and outlets). So I have now taken three trips between NY and DC on the Bolt bus and while that is not a huge sample set, I have to say i have a 33% satisfaction rate. The first trip (from NY to DC) was great, it went fine and it wasn’t completely full (this is in my best interest, but not Bolt’s). The second trip (DC to NY) was packed and the air wasn’t working, but at least the bus stopped at a rest area for us to get food. Yesterday I took the bus (back from NY to DC) and it was again a mixed trip. I ended up alone in my row, but we didn’t make any rest area stop and the bus took almost 5 hours to make the trip. I have to say that as far as performance its been fine. I’ve gotten to my destination on time, I just haven’t been comfortable. There is just a huge difference in comfort between taking the train, plane, and taking the bus.

As far as waiting for the bus is concerned, the DC side has the NYC side beat. The Grand Hyatt at Metrocenter provides a convenient Starbucks and bathroom while you wait, and the parking lot with the sun-shaded “green walk” removes you from the general traffic. In NYC, there is a Sbarro, but the bathrooms are tiny and dirty, and they have a 30 minute eating/waiting policy. There’s always the Penn Station, but the bathrooms there are even shadier, and while there are lots of food options its really removed from the bus stop. Once you are outside you have to wait on the sidewalk in front of either the Sbarro or an adult bookstore; not the most comfortable options.

Financially, this is a vast improvement over the train. If I get a $25 bolt ticket plus $4 metro fare and $9 LIRR fate, it takes me less than $40 each way to visit my family. If I took Amtrak I would have the same metro/LIRR expenses but the ticket would be at least $90. On the other hand, if I can find air fare under $50 to NY from IAD the bus might not be such a good deal. The bus takes me about 8 hours of travel time, while an airplane would be around 3 (including my waiting in the airport). Of course it beats driving, which would cost me at least $30 in tolls not to mention gas.

Exams or DIE!

So my new plan is to cash out my safety net and spend the next few months studying for my ARE’s as a full time job and spend 1-2 hours a day doing job hunting. If I get any freelance work it can be like a part time job. But my real job is getting licensed. Once I am, there seem to be more opportunities for licensed architects than interns right now. Plus i can always strike out on my own and hang my own shingle so to speak.

The only real hitch is I cannot fail any exams. If i do i will need to wait 6 months to re-test.

So, look forward to a lot more ARE based posts.

Desk toys of tomorrow

[Siftables via Archipreneur.]

This would be such a great desk toy, not to mention the clinical and educational uses. I have to wonder about the obviously necessary computer interface required to change the content on the tiles. If this could interact with the new Microsoft Surface, then i could really see it gaining a foot hold in the high end lounge market.

These remind me of a bunch of content aware manipulative devices. There was a dynamic music device like this i remember seeing on Gizmodo a while ago, and there are all of those cube toys where you have pets and people that interact when they are stacked. Of course, this is different from all of those because, like the art.lebedev optimus maximums keyboard it can be any of those things.

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Magrathea, is that you?

I just read the headline that Foster + Partners will lay off 25% of their staff this follows on the heels of layoffs by SOM, Perkins Eastmen, and countless large and small firms around the country and the world. News articles talk about “hunkering down” and riding the depression/recession out and compare this architectural bloodbath to the job market during the recession of the 1990’s. Projects across the world are on hold, and the mega development of Dubai has virtually ground to a standstill.

All that I can think of in regards to all of this is Douglas Adam’s The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and the lost planet of Magrathea; this planet could be a parable for Dubai and Las Vegas. This was where custom worlds were created when the galactic economy was in a major boom cycle and there was plenty of cash to spare. Once the economy dried up, the planet shut down and went to sleep, literally. Everyone went into suspended animation/cold storage until the galactic stock market index rose high enough that their services would be affordable again.

I almost have to wonder if the practice of architecture and the current avant garde design trends will suffer a similar fate: I don’t think It will be as extreme as a shut down, but a transition to a non-built culture. These architects may not be able to find the kind of clients/patrons willing and able to pay for their brand of architectural exploration, instead they may need to move back towards a Learning from Las Vegas design culture, where architectural thought will occur within the confines of academia and the printed/pixellated page. If this is the case, we may be looking at the gestalt that causes architects to search yet again for more purity in form and less architecture of fancy and ornament; we may be looking at the pre-dawn of a new style of architecture.