Thanksgiving (Bryn)

I wasn't able to go home for Thanksgiving, but I did get to spend the holiday with my boyfriend and his family in Ogden. I haven't seen his eldest brother, or his girlfriend, or his parents since I moved to Utah in August. I missed them very much, and was excited I got to see them! This morning we woke up around seven thirty, and began cooking breakfast. Quaid's mom made everyone breakfast; we had biscuits and gravy.
Originally, we were going to eat Thanksgiving "dinner" at about two, but ended up postponing dinner until five. We began cooking dinner at around ten. I was excited to help make dinner for everyone! In all, we had turkey, ham, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, stuffing, tapioca pudding, stuffed mushrooms, deviled eggs, fruit salad, jellied cranberry sauce, rolls, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and turkey and ham gravy to top everything off. Everything turned out so deliciously.
It was so nice to be able to cook and spend time with everyone. After dinner, I helped clean up. Then, we all sat down around the fireplace with hot chocolate and watched a movie! After two movies, we went to bed, knowing we will be up very early for shopping tomorrow.
On Black Friday, I plan to begin Christmas shopping. I am also hoping to get a new iPod nano.

I hope everyone else had an awesome Thanksgiving! See you all on Monday!

Time Travel- Maddy Oritt

I really enjoyed our guest speaker last night- he was dynamic and interesting and I especially loved seeing his slides of Salt Lake in Stegner's adolescence. It is so amazing to imagine the U when all that existed were the buildings surrounding Presidents Circle. The pictures of downtown SLC during the '20s and '30s were enchanting as well. Seeing the photos gave me a fervent desire to be able to travel back in time and get such a different perspective on various places. I have always loved time-travel-y books and movies: Somewhere In Time, with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour is a great one. I admit to being a "Lost" junkie, although that time-travel business is so convoluted and confusing.. I also read Time and Again, by Jack Finney, last winter. It's an entertaining, light read and includes fascinating pictures of New York City taken decades ago. It's fun to indulge in thoughts about time travel, thinking about where and when you would go in time. In the last couple of years, though, theoretical physicists have been doing work which suggests time travel might in fact be a possibility, though not currently a practical one. Even Stephen Hawking has accepted its possibility, changing his long-standing opposition to the idea! And they always said anything was possible...

Thanksgiving - Slover

I'm going south to a mystical mysterious land over Thanksgiving break--Provo. Dunn, Dunn, Duuuunnn. Anyway, the point is it's a place I know very well. Nooks and Crannies, corners and alleys. All have secret names and associations. Since we've been learning all about those tricky frustrating concepts called nodes, paths, edges, districts, and landmarks--called imageability when you smash it all together--since we've been learning about those things, I'll be trying to apply them to Provo. Who knows? Maybe some grand new image of the city (ha ha) will come crawling out of the woodwork. At the very least I'll be able to give names (path, landmark, whatever) to ideas before mired in abstraction. Or maybe I'll just have some new vocabulary to slide into conversation over the grouse. Mostly I'm excited to get away from the H.C. food.

Final Project(Bryn)

My group and I are getting ready to go on a walkabout for our final project. We have decided to build our project around the question, "How have the torn down buildings impacted Sugarhouse and the surrounding area?" We have each come up with at least two interview questions so that we may interview pedestrians on our walkabout. This will be an important part of our entire project, influencing our map, presentation, and individual papers.

I am interested to analyze Sugarhouse more in depth. I have passed through paying little to no attention to features of the community or atmosphere. The walkabout will enable my group and I to choose stand-out landmarks for our maps and watch peoples' interaction with the area.

Remembering we are to build a layered map about this area, we must consider the basic structure of roads and buildings, landscaping, special features, people, and much more. We plan to be very creative with our map, including colors and possibly even texture. I am excited to witness our final piece! Once we have completed the map, we must move on to our presentation. This is an integral part of the project, and we want to portray knowledge and confidence in ourselves and our insight about Sugarhouse. While working on these steps of the project, we will all be doing our own individual papers as well.

As far as the paper is concerned, I'm a bit confused...Do we all write on the same topic: Sugarhouse? Or do we each choose different aspects of Sugarhouse to write about?

It is very important to see and feel the area before deciding what it is about. We will be going on our walkabout Friday, and I believe that is when we will concrete our plans for this project.

Construction- Maddy Oritt

It seems like ever since the years leading up to the Olympics, construction has been omnipresent in Salt Lake. Trax comprised a lot of that construction, as well as work on the freeways and now the looming City Creek center. Also, walking around campus, construction always reroutes me. I don't like living with all this construction: part of it is the hassle of walking or driving through areas under construction, but I also don't like the constant newness. It seems as though our knee-jerk reaction is to tear down and build up bigger or better. The result is an ever-expanding city of ever-growing buildings, and a seemingly incongruous jumble of architectural styles. To me, Salt Lake doesn't visually feel harmonious or fluid; every building is very different in appearance, and very few are aesthetically beautiful. Sometimes rebuilding is an important thing, such as when retrofitting for earthquake safety or becoming more environmentally friendly. As far as personal enjoyment of the city goes, though, I don't like the constant reconstruction. A large part of the reason that cities in Europe are so charming is that so many of their buildings are old and beautiful; instead of tearing buildings down, perhaps they reconstruct from the inside, but preserve the historical facade. Also, we Americans love our skyscrapers, which are not often found in old European cities. All in all, I wish I could look at our skyline once in a while and watch the beautiful sunset without having it obstructed by building cranes, but I don't see that happening anytime soon.

Going to Ogden (Bryn)

Although I really enjoy Salt Lake, I believe that experiencing a city also includes exploring the surrounding area.
Almost every weekend, I travel to Ogden to see my boyfriend and am able to explore its downtown area, mountains, side streets, and Weber State University. In comparison to Salt Lake's downtown, Ogden's is very small and quaint, but similarly, it still has a family-friendly atmosphere. Salt Lake's downtown is that of a metropolitan city on the rise, with lights that cover the city like a blanket. Ogden's downtown is not nearly as lit up, yet I find it very beautiful. The buildings have flashing multi-colored signs, and the streets are lined with trees wrapped in white lights. The movie theater has a variety of colorful lights and screens outside, and the surrounding buildings are home to some very unique activities. Ogden's downtown offers indoor skydiving, indoor rockclimbing, indoor surfing, laser tag, an arcade (similar to Dave & Buster's or Boondocks), restaurants, and much more.
The mountains are beautiful, as well. In the summer, Quaid and I took a hike up Mount Ogden to the waterfall at the top! It was so much fun, and a refreshing walk. The mountains are situated similarly to Weber as the they are to the U.
Weber is also an incredible sight at night. Different from the U, Weber has a very compact campus. At night all the lights combine to create a campus that stands out against the night sky as a massive star.
I'm sure I will continue to explore both Salt Lake and Ogden, as well as other towns nearby. An important part of learning about a city, is to analyze every aspect of it, including outside pieces.

Hmm...

This is a difficult blog for me to write. I haven't spent much time in the city, lately, and because our last walkabout was two weeks ago, I haven't put any time aside to explore. The most recent place in Salt Lake I have visited, besides Central Station, is the Gateway. Can I just say I am in love with this mall?! It is so fantastic! It was a bit of a whirlwind trip, but I was able to go to most of the stores that I wanted to. I found the cutest jacket at Forever 21. Ellie, my roommate talked me into buying it. I also went to Old Navy, but I didn't make a purchase there. I visited a few other stores, and bought some clothing at Wet Seal.

I took the trax to and from the mall. Each time I take public transportation, I see so many interesting people. The one thing I love most about public transportation is that I am able to watch the city pass by; I'm not distracted by driving.

Some pictures to go with my post- Maddy

Maddy- Rooftop Green Space

I was flipping through a National Geographic from May this afternoon, learning about Shangri-la and the possibility of cloning extinct species, such as a wooly mammal. Also in the issue was an article and accompanying photo essay about rooftop gardens and green space in large cities. I only knew a little about them- they are environmentally advantageous because they improve air quality and reduce the urban heat island effect, as well as reducing runoff and having a cooling effect on the building. The pictures showed such amazing and intricate types of gardens that I hadn't expected! For example, one hotel had a garden on its roof which provided about $16,000 worth of produce every year for the hotel restaurant. What a great idea! Also, some larger buildings are creating parks on their roofs to provide green space that was gobbled up by the construction of the building. These are havens within large metropolitan areas where people can enjoy the outdoors, greenery, and nature, but they are several stories above the ground! It seems like such a novel idea and something that should be implemented in a much more widespread way than it is currently. Hopefully we are moving in that direction. These rooftop gardens also improve the aestheticism of an urban, dirty metropolitan area, especially for residents or office workers whose views are changed from those of buildings to those of green grass and flowers. This would probably improve morale! It seems like the only structure in SLC that has implemented a rooftop garden is the downtown library- I hope to see the idea catch on more!

New York - Slover

Okay, so fall break was a long time ago now, but I remember my last post promised a vivid account of my time in New York. The recollection's a bit blurry now, but I'll try my best. Sooooo, the accommodations. We--my family, of which there are four of us--stayed at my aunt and uncle's super super uptown apartment. 215st. Way up there. It was a little crowded, to say the least. Two medium sized families. One apartment. But it was blast, too. I don't see these cousins too often, so the squishedness was really pretty welcome, if you ask me. I can't speak for my parents; they need their space. So we did lots of the touristy things, of course--went up to the top of the Empire State--crazy view. Checked out Grand Central Station, one massive room. I don't know how they get away with that in New York: it's really compact, even the outer burrows. Unfortunately I didn't go to Central Park, which was where I really wanted to go. I passed it plenty, though, on the bus. Speaking of which, the public transportation was really exciting for me, maybe one of my favorite things, especially when I went out on my own and had to get the hang of the system. All the trains and busses are named with numbers or letters--get on the 1 train, switch to the m4 bus--I think real names would've been easier. Like the Piccadilly line, or something. Stayed a night with a friend who goes to Barnard, Columbia's all women sister college, around 116th street. Super fun. Out late. I didn't bring a camera for any of this, so no pictures. Sorry. Went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art the next day. I'm a walking zombie staring at The Death of Socrates around now. All the same, I guess it's just one of the things got to do. And it was worth it. Also saw The Cloisters, where the Met chucks all its medieval art. I liked that stuff a whole lot. Those were the only pictures I took, but I took them on my phone, and they certainly don't look very New Yorky. More like, I don't know, Venice or something. Went to some improv on the last night. One of my cousins arranged it. That was probably one of the more local things we did. Real citizens come forth and laugh merrily. We did. Then flew home. Left grandmother in the care of cousins for a few days extra.

Tomorrow (Bryn)

I have really been looking forward to going to the Gateway Mall and Walmart! I have so many things to get, but I haven't found any time to put aside. Tomorrow I am finally going to go! At Walmart, I'm going to get some groceries, and little things, like sports bras, and yarn to crochet scarves! At Gateway, I'm going to get some undershirts, a really cute brown shirt to match this new wool wrap my aunt sent me, and possibly some jeans. I have to write out a list of things tonight so I am sure of what to get.
I have begun to feel like Salt Lake is becoming more of a home to me than it was when I first arrived. I am starting to pinpoint streets and their names, navigate, and remember landmarks more easily. It's interesting to me how I have begun to go to Smith's like it's the local grocery store in my hometown. It no longer has a new, unfamiliar feel. Gateway and Walmart are the same things. Gateway is the mall I shop at now, not the Boise Towne Square. I'm realizing how familiar I am getting with the city. There is so much more to learn, but I feel completely normal going to Smith's or Walmart or Gateway. When I first moved here, everything still appeared foreign, but I'm happy things are no longer feeling that way for me. I know where all my favorite stores are in Gateway: Express is on the lower level, while Pac Sun is on the upper, etc.
I am amazed that each place I have lived has felt like home after some time, yet never the same as the other. For instance, Pennsylvania doesn't at feel like Idaho, but I recognize different parts of each as my home. Now, Salt Lake is beginning to mold into a home to me, too. I know that eventually I will probably end up somewhere else, and that place, too, will become home to me in some other way. In each I have and will change, and I will have memories unique to each location. In one place, I remember my childhood. In another, I remember my adolescence. In another, I will now remember my undergraduate college years. The cycle is endless.

Date (Bryn)

Every year my boyfriend plans extravagant dates for me, and this year I want to do something extra special and extraordinary for him. Don't worry, we have been dating for almost 3 and a half years, so it's not like I'm super head over heels for someone I don't know. I have started by making a list of ideas, and eliminating those that are too ordinary or that we have already experienced together. I don't have an unlimited supply of money, either. I have a few ideas so far, and am looking to continue to build my list until I find that one perfect idea! He's super romantic, too, so he won't think anything is corny. I'm looking for an activity/date that I can plan in Salt Lake or the immediate surrounding area--he goes to Weber, so I wouldn't mind doing something in Ogden. Him and I dream of going skydiving, but I'm nervous this might be too expensive. Snowboarding would be fun, but I want to make it super special, so I'm trying to think of a way to really make it amazing! It would be awesome to integrate things like our song or names to personalize it. A scavenger hunt might be fun, but it's been done before..so it might not be as original as I would like. If I plan a dinner somewhere overlooking the city (like the "U" or a tall building), I could possibly make it really awesome, too! It might be neat to use X-mas lights to spell something sweet on the hill? I thought of driving to the outdoor hot springs.. but again, maybe too ordinary. We have been wanting to go rock climbing at a facility, but is that special enough? I'm so confused. If anyone has any amazing, do-able, cute ideas, do tell! In the mean time, I will keep thinking, so my date can be absolutely wonderful!

Going Home... (Marie)

I went home this last weekend for a friends farewell. Its weird because the more time I spend up here the sharper the contrast between my hometown and my collegetown becomes. I'm starting to think of Monroe as more of a podunk town than I ever have. Which I know that it is, but deep down I've never really seen it as such.

Another interesting thing I thought about was how much the enviroment we live in affects our memories. Driving around in Sevier county this last time I was there, I couldn't help but notice all the changes. New buildings going up everywhere, they put a new street sign in the boonies along Brooklyn road. Stuff like that. I guess I was surprised at how annoyed I was about it too. I don't like coming back to somewhere and having it be different.

Walkabout #4 (Media)

It was a quiet afternoon when we all gathered to go on our fourth walkabout. Our destination: 15th and 15th, a place several of us hadn't yet been. It was a Sunday, so naturally, since this IS Utah there were a lot less poeple out and about. The overall feeling of the neighborhood was pretty peaceful, but maybe that's because Sunday always seems like a peaceful day to me. My first impression of the area was that, while it wasn't as nice as the Avenues, it still was a middle-class place. The shops were definitely prosperous, tucked away, with their signs and exotic wares for sale beckoned to us and we decided to look into the neighborhood a little more and discover the media at hand...
Albert Chloe and 15th Street Gallery represent the modern style among the eclectic shops and restaurants along 15th and 15th. The gallery has a very stark exterior, entirely grays and whites. that color theme is found withing the gallery as well, on the walls and floor and even in the pieces on display. the gallery feels colder than many of the other stores along the street; the modern style seems to clash a bit with the neighborhood-y, niche-y feeling of the area. Albert
Chloe is a modern, older women's clothing store ("A mom store, as Bryn put it)--the clothing was conservatively stylish and elegant. The facade was plain, with large, unadorned letters. This store didn't scream "neighborhood" either, but given that many of the restaurants and shops cater to a well-to-do crowd, the theme of the store does fit with the area.
There were some pretty fancy resturants around the 15th and 15th area. Many countries were represented. There was Mazza, a Middle Eartern place, and Italian Cafe called Fresco, and a place called The Paris Bistro. Mazza had their sign written in a sort of exotic and desertesque font that seemed to say, "Eating our hummus is as close to Saudi Arabia as your getting, my friend." Fair enough. Anyway, it worked on me. This is Tim, by the way. I wanted that Arabian hummus. Fresco was next door to Mazza. Hole-in-the-wall wouldn't be an accurate desription. More like a path-in-the-wall-that-you-take-to-the-hole-in-the-wall kind of placce. Although, it was still pretty pricey. We walked back there, hoping for Bruschetta, but it was closed. It was Sunday. What're you gonna do? Apparently Fresco was confident enough that is didn't feel the need to spice things up with special fonts. All the menus and things were typed out pretty plainly. Confident but not pretentious. We met a waiter, who surprised us when we pushed openn the wrong door, thinging it was empty. What was pretentious? The Paris Bistro, that's what. Decked out in curly-cues and cursive, it begged for our attention and turned us away with its price tag. The waiters laughed if asked for tap water;bottled water was abou twelve dollars a pop. Good riddance. Who needs 'em? I hope the locals aren't fooled. They probably know some secret lunch deal, though.
Peculiarly enough, all of these "hole-in-the-wall" shops and restaurants are home to this quaint neighborhood. The only two, almost over-bearing buildings, are the ever popular Einstein's Bagels and Starbuck's Coffee. Their presence at 15th and 15th dominates the entire street. It's obvious, like any other Starbuck's or Einstein's, that these two locations are hangouts for residents of the surrounding area. Their signs are as classic as the cafe-style food they sell. In addition, it is interesting how they are the only two middle-class style restaurants in that area. As mentioned earlier, although the neighborhood is made of fairly commonplace houses, most of the other stores, restaurants, and shops are tucked away along the street, yet still very ritzy and expensive. Starbuck's and Einstein's defy the unity of the other places found on 15th and 15th.
At the end of the block was a short,decently-sized blus building. At first glance, Alessandro thought it was a pub; it had a postsign that said, "King's English." When we were closer, we cuold see underneath the sign the words "bookstore." We went inside, hopeing for some inspiration for what a "signage of 15th and 15th" was. The store is your typical small-sized bookstore: bookcases are close together, everything has a wooden and brown feel, books are everywhere, on the shelves, on top of the bookcases, in piles. Looking around for signs, we ended up in the heart of the classic fiction section; we did not find signs, but we had found a magnificent niche. Each of us was at ease, remembering books we had to read in high school, pointing out books that moved us. Here, in this small bookstore, we could bond. When we had to leave, we had a solemn silence while our eyes re-adjusted to the sun.
Our experience was unique, as have all our walkabout adventures so far. We have been able to enjoy so much of this city we live in, and each time we discover something new.