Summer and Spring 2010 Classes!

Picture of the Day] Roosevelt Road at night.

Mood] Excited and worried

Weather] Sunny with a high of 77

Currently] In my room

Quote of the day: "You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you."

So, I have figured out what my classes will be like for the summer and for the fall! I decided to take summer classes once again because they really help me out during the year. Even though I feel like I have a lot of work, I think I might have less. I managed to register for the IPRO I wanted this summer, so hopefully that will lessen the load in the school year because otherwise I would have to take the IPRO during the year along with studio and I think that would be murder! I think I will try and do another IPRO during the next summer as well.

For the fall I am also taking classes that only meet for once a week. Usually I take classes that meet two times a week, on Tuesdays and Thursday, but now I won't have to take those unless they are humanities because the ones I have now that are like that are Structures and MechElec, which do not continue into the fourth year. I am kind of excited about having fewer meeting days for my classes, but I hope that means that the work hasn't doubled!

School Year 2010

Here is my Summer Lineup: (2 Classes + VanderCook Voice Lessons possibly)

Monday

Chicago Landscapes - LA 497 - 01
Class 10:00 am - 12:40 pm

Tuesday
Interprofessional Project (IPRO) - IPRO 497 - 329
Class 3:00 pm - 5:40 pm

Wednesday

Chicago Landscapes - LA 497 - 01
Class 10:00 am - 12:40 pm

Thursday
Interprofessional Project (IPRO) - IPRO 497 - 329
Class 3:00 pm - 5:40 pm

Friday - No class

Here is my Fall Lineup: (5 Classes + VanderCook Voice Lessons)

Monday

Architecture VII - ARCH 417 - 100
Class 1:50 pm - 5:50 pm

Tuesday
Historic Landscape Preservation - LA 516 - 01
Class 10:00 am - 12:40 pm

Wednesday
Prairie School and Naturalistic Landscape Design - ARCH 445 - 01
Class 10:00 am - 12:40 pm

Architecture VII - ARCH 417 - 100
Class 1:50 pm - 5:50 pm

Thursday
Visual Training I - ARCH 331 - 01
Class 8:35 am - 11:15 am

Topics: Shakespeare: Film, Text, and Stage - LIT 380 - 01
Class 6:25 pm - 9:05 pm

Friday
Architecture VII - ARCH 417 - 100
Class 1:50 pm - 5:50 pm


If you have any questions, totally hit me up.
Over and out!!!
Jaye

P.S. Arch VII is Studio

Preview Weekend and Spring Formal!

Pictures of the Day] Spring Formal at the Museum of Science and Industry!!!

Mood] Springy

Weather] Sunny with a high of 71

Currently] In my room.

Quote of the day: "A man may be so much of everything that he is nothing of anything."

Short post today! Not much to go in depth about. Well, I mean I could, but it was be too long then!

Spring formal was a great time! We had a total blast at the Museum of Science and Industry. If you've never been there, it was a grand experience. If you have been there, we were in the rotunda, so you probably can feel how awesome that is from the high vaulted ceiling. I have a lot of pictures of the awesome exhibit that we were also allowed to see! The museum was exclusive to us, and it was so much fun. The new exhibit is called "the Science of Storms" I think.

Dinner was chicken stuffed with something. I don't know quite what, but it was good. The salad was romaine lettuce with some cheese on top and a huge crouton. Dessert was an apple sort of tort with ice cream. There was a lot of dancing that I did not partake in, and of course, an assortment of nerd-tastic songs. It was a lot of fun. I am sooooo glad it was at MSI.

Preview Weekend was pretty great too. We had a lot of people show up and some stayed over at all of the different dormitory options, like the fraternity houses, the sorority houses, MSV and SSV. Our home base was once again, Perlstein, where we met up with different students and just sort of checked out what they were interested in. It was fun times.

Out out out,
Jaye

P.S. I also put a cover on the Ambassador Scrapbook! My goal is to upload it to our admissions website this summer!

Work Work Work and MORE

Picture of the Day] And now for something completely different. Bridge at Roosevelt to Target overlooking train tracks.

Mood] Distant

Weather] Sunny with a high of 55

Currently] In the Ambassador cube

Quote of the day: "My passions were all gathered together like fingers that made a fist. Drive is considered aggression today; I knew it then as purpose."

It has gotten to the point in the semester when you just feel so bogged down, tired, frustrated, and irritable that you just want to throw something at a wall, eat your heart out, flop down on a bed and lie there forever. At least, that's my general reaction. Of course, listening to the comforting sounds of The Fellowship of the Ring, V for Vendetta, Pride and Prejudice (2007), and many more, playing in the background as I try and work through Structures and Studio is a perk, especially because it has become such background noise to me that fills the white noise I can't stand. Pure silence or movies is the way to go. I am so difficult to work with. T.T

In other news I had my meeting with Dr. Sennott about my classes for this summer and the following semester. I think I'll try to take my first IPRO this summer, if I get permission to that is. All the IPRO projects can be found online at our website, but I'll spare you the trouble and explain the one that I want to do. The description from the IPRO website is as follows:

"The Village of Oak Park is seeking to dramatically reduce carbon emissions, water usage, and source energy usage throughout the village. Currently, Oak Park residents either lack an understanding of or feel overwhelmed by what they should do to meet these goals. In addition, most residents do not have the financial wherewithal to pay the large up-front costs of implementing conservation technologies. Oak Park is researching what it would take to implement a long-term community-financing program that would provide residents with the up-front money for energy efficiency and water conservation improvements, allowing the resident to repay the loan through a monthly assessment that is less than the savings generated. The Village of Oak Park is seeking to engage a multidisciplinary team to assist with identifying the specific technology measures and implementation approaches that will produce a 20% reduction in energy usage, water usage, and carbon emissions. The results of this project will provide the technical foundation for implementing a community-financing program that provides residents with the capital costs for deploying energy efficiency, renewable, and low carbon distributed generation technologies."

I think it sounds interesting! Hopefully I will be accepted. Since I am an architecture student, that means I need to get permission from the professor heading the IPRO in order to join. I think they do this as a measure to make sure that the team is balanced with people from all majors.

Anyway, that's all for now! Got a lot of catching up to do!!!
Up, up and away!
~Jaye

75% and Field Trip

Pictures of the Day] Drawings at 1/8" = 1'-0" is ridiculous. On the other hand, feeding a horse is worse.

Mood] Delirious. Spring fever.

Weather] High 68 Degrees. Sunny and clear.

Currently] In the cube.

Quote of the day: "I'm an idealist. I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on my way."

So we had a quick pin up for 75% which turned out to not be as big of a deal as they worked it up to be. We talked a bit about structure, and how it effected the building, but because I didn't have a solid plan really there was no conversation about structure. The structure for my building has always been very straightforward. Now I need to focus on how to think about the "skin" of the building. The "skin" is referring to the facade, the envelope, the system that sort of wraps around the building and not only gives it its outer appearance, but also enhances the relationship between the public and the private spaces. This will take research I think, and distinguishing also what important factors need to be emphasized. It could be that I focus on only all the northern facing parts of the building. It could be that I look at how two systems could work together. I am not sure yet, but that is definitely the next step. I am working toward getting a solid plan down, so hopefully I will be done with it tonight (my professor dictated that I need to be).

For my Vernacular Landscape class, I went to Wagner Farm, which is a pretty cool place. You can check out their website at wagnerfarm.org. Basically it is a farm that is now preserved by the park district of Glenview. There is an old barn, some animals like cows and horses and a even a pig (which I sadly did not see). The most important part though was the lay of the land. You can tell even now, how the land must have been used before all the developments began around it. There are flat portions for farming, a huge hill for grazing that led to a sort of draining ravine, and other pockets of space for a cloister of buildings. For the most part, it is just a nice place to bring children for some play on old tractors and educate them about the different elements of the farm. I enjoyed it. I fed a horse, which was one of the most exciting things I think I've done for a while. I was so scared it was going to bite me, that I tried to pull away at the last minute and the horse took my whole hand in its mouth. GROSS!!!!!! Then I dropped the apple slice I was trying to feed it, so I picked it up again and offered it again. The 2nd time, the horse picked it up from my palm with its lips. They were huge horses too because they were draft horses. It was neat though! I can check that off my life list.

Now it's back to work and drawing up some more diagrams to figure out where the heck I'm going with my project! The end is definitely in sight! Spring is up and lively and there is WORK to be done!

Have a fantabulous day!
~Jaye

50 % Midterm Review

Pictures of the Day] My set of drawings for Midterm Review. They were okay. :/ Very unorganized.

Mood] Highly stressed.

Weather] High 50 Degrees

Currently] In my room.

Quote of the day: "Nothing is really work unless you would rather be doing something else."

It is really difficult for me sometimes to feel as though what I'm not doing is work. I enjoy a lot of what I do, but it's hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. There always seems to be something more to do and with that, comes a lot of stress. I guess I just have to keep reminding myself that there's a reason why I enjoy doing this, why I see that what I am doing is important. I have to look back a lot of the times at the accomplishments of those before me and feel that same awe like when you're a child and you inhabit a place for the first time, experience the amazement that proportion/scale can bring, and enjoy the beauty that light has in a space. So many of these elements are taken for granted, and I really wish that I could be more conscious of them all the time.

The 50% review was difficult. I was the first to go, and I have never gone first in any presentation before, so I really had a hard time getting started. I am not normally too nervous of a speaker. Once I get going, then I find a way to keep moving, but I kept on getting tripped up by words. Words are something that I also think people take for granted. We use words so differently now than we did before. In architecture, as in any other practice, the use of words is very important to really communicate exactly what you mean to say. We also have a completely different set of vocabulary words that parallels words typical to every day conversation, but have totally different meanings. Homophones if you will. Usually they are adjectives. I would give an example now, but I am very tired and my brain is overtaxed! So sorry. Just trust me though. It's true.

Back to the 50% review. I received a decent response. Some of the condensed comments/suggestions that I received are:

1> Can the circulation inside & outside relate to one another?
2> Form a hierarchy
3> Can interaction spaces vary in size based on the program?
4> What is the relationship between the two communal areas (garden and multi-purpose room)
5> Is the rigidity obstructive?
6> Is there another axis that can be developed?
7> Think beyond the classrooms. Like the small components of the classrooms, can you apply to a larger scale?
8> Can classrooms vary based on program?
9> What is a garden?
10> How do you collect light and diffuse it?
11> What is the public/private relationship?
12> Does the axis mirror materiality or vice versa?
13> Find depth in layering organization
14> Beware visual relationships of diagrams on the layout
15> Clean, clear diagrams are essential. Reduce reduce reduce.
16> Test size of images & lineweight
17> Always edit the story. Constantly revise the drawings.
18> Use colour accordingly
19> For sections, cut through the organization spaces
20>Always keep reviewers in mind
21> BEWARE! Misinterpretation of ideas!

Certainly a lot to think about, eh? I will be going back and revising my whole concept I think based on a new view. For now, sleeeep.

Overworked and underpaid,
~Jaye

P.S. Watched Boondock Saints II: All Saint's Day during spring break. AMAZING. A slightly different style than the first, and of course, the actors were 10 years older and LOOK IT, but still very entertaining.

50% Drawing FREAK OUT! Saturday Visit & Spring Break to Come

Pictures of the Day] My set of drawings that I submitted and will DEFINITELY be revising for the final 50% Midterm Presentation (Will post later. Having some troubles uploading)

Mood] Stressed!!!! But pleasant?

Weather] High 45 Degrees

Currently] Front Desk

Quote of the day: "When you drink the water, remember the spring."

I think you get to a certain time in the semester where you are entirely burned out with everything. I am definitely feeling it. I have been working really hard on trying to figure out what to do for my 50% review, and I am so worn. I have gone through several drafts, but nothing seems to be good enough. I will have to work through spring break to finish my work. I have come up with an idea of what I need to get done too.

Mechanical and Electrical Building Systems homework
Structural Concrete Analysis homework
Vernacular Landscape homework
Ecological Basis of Planning Research Report
Revising all the drawings for studio
Making 1-2 models for studio

That is the plan. I have to clean up and pack before I go home though,s o i need to make sure that I have all the materials I need for my studio project. I need to compose two models over the break and that is going to be a doozy. I think I might go by Michael's and buy some materials. I really want to spend time with my family and my friends though, so I want to get my homework out of the way. I have a sneaking suspicion I will be doing it throughout the week. I have to lug sooo much stuff back home!

At least the weather is getting better though so I can switch out my wardrobe and only keep a few sweaters here to make sure I can stay warm. I really hope things get pretty. Campus is livening up. There is more green than white now! I'm so excited.

Signing out,
~Jaye

2-Year and More

Picture of the Day] Morton's Steak House! We had some awesome food and the atmosphere was VERY interesting.

Mood] Full!

Currently] At the front desk.

Weather] WHY DID I WEAR A DRESS AGAIN!?

Quote of the day: "Who is rich? He that is content."

So my boyfriend told me about something called Restaurant Week and I am SO glad that I found out! This week only over a hundred restaurants in Chicago are participating! What they do is select a specific menu with maybe some options on it. Then, you pay a reduced price to have this meal! The goal is kind of to allow people to test all different kinds of restaurants and figure out which ones they like best. I think it's an awesome idea because then it allows people to eat within their means and broaden their horizons.

The restaurant that I went to was participating in this event, so I was very pleased with the meal!!! Morton's Steakhouse is an interesting setting. You walk in through what looks like an office building. Then, through a large wooden door down into a basement, where the restaurant is situated. Framed photos, magazine articles/reviews, and caricatures line the walls. There is a coat check and cubbies that look like wine holders in a cellar. The lighting is dim and the tables all have very strange pig-shaped castings as candle holders. Overall, the atmosphere almost seemed more like a secret club than anything. It was good service though and the food was amazing!

For my meal, I had:

- Bacon crusted fresh bread with butter
- Morton's Salad (Blue cheese dressing, ice berg and romaine lettuce tossed with egg)
- Filet Mignon (Medium Rare. BEAUTIFUL. It was perfectly done.)
- Crispy sour cream and bacon topped Potato Skins (So good!)
- Creme Brulee for dessert with a cup of coffee! (ZOMFG MY FAVOURITE)

He had the same, except for:

- Mashed Potatoes
- Chocolate Mousse for dessert with a cappuccino!

It was AMAZING, and at almost half the price, so I was thoroughly pleased! I think that my boyfriend and I are totally going to go out some more if I can manage with the work load to try some more of the places before this week is over! I'll keep you updated!

Good food and good company. :)
~Jaye