Raglan and Jeans

This combination is the most comfortable one for me. One of the earliest T shirts that I own many many many years ago was a raglan and I have been a "raglaner" since then. Easily said, I am more of myself when I am in these, and with a comfortable pair of platform shoes...I am set to go free. Well, to answer your question Win, I guess those jerseys are also in the raglan cateogory, but maybe not the sweaters. But to me, a raglan needs to have that diagonal cut near the shoulders. It somehow gives the rugged and carefree look to the T Shirt and the wearer, at least physically. So now you wear to imagine huh.

A Pinch of Salt

A senior colleague of mine, during his working trip down under stopped to visit me. He said he wanted to check on me but I think he actually missed me. You see, he liked to provoke and annoy me and he probably missed doing just that. On one day during the trip, he had asked me to drive him to his old landlady's who he has not seen for umpteen years. He had once studied at this part of the world, you know.

So we went to see Maureen for a cuppa at Margaret Street; a quiet road at the Rippleside. As I stepped from the car, I could clearly hear the sound of waves coming from St Helen's beach at the other end down the road. It was surreal and my colleague was so excited to meet his Maureen. She is in her 70's but full of life and she has this lovely cosy house with knik knaks all over the place, neatly arranged as if they are telling a story. As I was admiring the little blue china sets on the white mantlepiece and pots of Azaleas and Forget-me-nots, the two were busy catching up and rekindling memories. Somehow, I couldnt help noticing the other part of this colleague of mine. The part that I wouldnt have known if I had not been here to witness.

It tells me that sometimes, we are just too easy in judging others, yet we know so little about them. And we easily welcome praises. Perhaps, we should learn to take them with a pinch of salt.

Aisyah does not want to brush her teeth

I had to find a creative solution since all normal efforts have proven failed. All the fancy toothbrushes; from glittery Sleepy Beauty to the fluorescent Shrek didnt help, and nor did the new bath robe with little fairies on it. Aisyah was really testing my creativity. Then I thought about the digital media. I have been looking at the potential of the new media to demonstrate the effects of certain actions on others, for example design decisions on the built environment. I have used it at three different offices and proven the impact in my lengthy report. I have also written about it in a dissertation.

Hmmm..I thought, why not use the same technique to show my dear little girl the effects of not brushing would do to her teeth. So, I started this little project and I did 2 sets, one on her and the other one on her elder sister Icha so that she wouldnt cry when she sees that she is the only one who gets to become ugly. In the first stage, I used Adobe Photoshop and it involved a series of picture of Aisyah with a wide smile, showing the levels of degradation on her teeth. The next step is putting it all together with some text and other photos in a movie maker to show the impact. However, I could not post the movie in this blog yet due to some technical problems with my laptop.

U know u are an architect when...........

U know u are an architect when...........
found it on a website......... i find it very true so it was interesting to share.... enjoy u know u are an architecture student when..... ...your roommates say "good morning," and you reply "good night." ...you carry a toothbrush in your backpack. ...someone asks you for your phone number and you give them the studios. ...you start paying rent for your desk space in studio. ...You total up 3 meals of the day to your breakfast. ...'Red Bull' is you favorite drink. ..you ask Santa Clause for architecture supplies ...after all of your expenses, you can't afford to pay attention ...you have 3 or more cups of double shot coffee espressos in one night ...you hear the same song on the radio 3 or more times in one night. ... You know the different taste between UHU and Pritt glue ... You can stay alive without sunlight, communicate with people nor having foods but you would commit suicide if the plotter doesn't plot your work out ...the only sleep you get is in your G. E. classes. ...construction workers are already working. ...You've lost your house key and u realized week later ...you sleep more than 16 hrs at weekends .. You are an expert and Photoshop, illustrator and auto cad but u don't know how to use MS excel ...you've got 2 subjects / day but u got to study it whole day ...you spend more time in studio than in your own bed. ...you only leave studio to buy supplies. ...you haven't taken a shower in a week. ...you see showering as a waste of time. ...you've ever dreamt about your models. ...upon hearing 'supermodel', you think of a nicely crafted-foam core model. ...you know how much a cubic foot of concrete weighs (150lbs). ...you slice your finger, and the first thing you think of is if you'll be able to finish your model. ...you know how much a cubic foot of concrete weighs (150lbs). ...you slice your finger, and the first thing you think of is if you'll be able to finish your model. ..you can listen to all your CD's in one night. ..Sister's favorite brand names are Prada DNKY etc... But yours are Mastex, Staedtler, pentel, rotring ..you can conceptually compose the food on your plate. ...you think the 'Weekender' happens every weekend. ...upon hearing 'Weekends' you think of sleep. ..you wake up to go to school and you're already there. ...you start wearing all black ...you say "It's only midnight- I have plenty of time to finish." ..you start to critique a radio selection's selection of songs. ...you bring your friends to studio to keep you company. ...you refer to outside studio as the "Real World." ..."going out to eat" is at the 'Shop Cafe'. ..you refer to outside studio as the "Real World." ..."going out to eat" is at the 'Shop Cafe'. ...going on a vacation involves going to 'Flax' or 'Pearl'. ...you confuse today and tomorrow. ...you tell time by when other people leave studio. ...you can write a 6-page term paper by procrastinating. ...you hear "Didn't you wear that yesterday?' followed by "and the day before that?" ...you roommate files a Missing Person Report. ...you count the number of days (not hours) you've been awake. ...you think days are 48 hours long. .you go to the store to buy a six-pack of 'Red Bull'. ..."Homecoming" happens once a term. ...concept of time is not forward, but a countdown from the time a project is due ("What time is it?""4 hours 'till"). ...you contemplate suicide 3 times a day. ...you contemplate dropping your major 3 times a day. ..you think "X-Acto Blade Throwing" is a sport. ...you have 3 or more 'Mountain Dews' in one night ...you use your T-square or straight edge as a baseball bat. ....the day has 2 sunrises. ....you test which glue will cause your model to burn faster. ....when you tell people you major in "architorture" ...U can't draw without listening to music! .. When the books that you read consist primarily of photographs and not so much of words ... When you have to ask your fellow architects to give you wake up calls ... When you have three or more alarm clocks in your room. ... When cutting yourself with an x-acto seems like a good idea because it will give you an excuse for not having finished your work
-- Mahrukh Mirza, August 28, 2008

U know u are an architect when...........
Thanks a lot, I think that it is great how all architects all around the world are united with the same circumstances, and the same destiny
-- Hiba Al Kadri, September 6, 2008

U know u are an architect when...........
Hehehe...so hillarious but true. For new comers to the world of architecture, reading this book will help, I reinstate, might help. Architecture 101: A guide to the Design Studio by Andy Pressman AIA
-- Mimi Zaleha Abdul Ghani, September 8, 2008