blog

I am addicted to Espresso and a night person. Recently I had to pick up an undelivered package at the post office. It opens at 8 so I had to leave later than usual. I got up only half an hour later and couldn’t believe how much better it felt. Maybe it’s only psychological, but I am truly convinced I am not made for morning. Today I was working late and I had the impression I achieved during the last hour more than during the whole day before. Maybe it’s also psychological. But I think I will adjust my schedule to a more comfortable one. Not so crucial but of similar importance the Espresso. The day always starts with an espresso, now at a café in Silverlake. I come in and I don’t have to place an order or anything, my habits are known and the espresso is served. Always. The same before in Culver City. In the office we have an original Italian espresso machine. I have about 4 or 5 a day. I don’t know if you can drink too much espresso. It doesn’t feel like.

By the way…the post office: one guy served a line of 50 waiting customers. and what is he doing? He gets up to change the channel of the always running tv.

tired…enough work for the next week, I guess I won’t have too much time to write. work is pretty intense, the proejct getting interested. michael maltzan is probably the most interested architect, also as a person, I have ever worked for so far. Somehow I never had so much trust in the design process of a project. I am sure, it will be excellent, no matter what. It’s motivating to work in an environment like this, obviously, despite some circumstances I am not very happy about. I had bad sleep last night, one reason I should go to bed now. As far as I can remember it never happened to me that constantly so many thoughts crossed my head and kept me awake. I feel like living extremes I never experienced so far. I am curious how time will move on. to be continued.

good night, and good luck.

Yesterday – I was at a party. I only mention that because I became aware once more of my shirt. n big letters it says on it: Berlin. I had it on and of course someone was there who approached me with the question if I was related to Berlin in any ways. She was from Hamburg, originally. After studying at sci-arc she is now working for Gehry. It seems like the obligated place architects pass on their way, at least a significant number of them. Anyway, I thought of my shirt and how you get the attention you might looking for. The hosts of the party, a former co-worker of mine and his girlfriend, they were visiting Las Vegas a few weeks ago and spontaneously decided to get married. They had to appoint witnesses, two people they asked on the street, never met before…Something to do in Las Vegas, the place is made and known for it.

Today – Oscar Night, and I went to see a movie. Far from being noticed by these guys, but, of course, more significant and therefore much more interesting. ‘Unknown White Male’, a documentary about a young man, Doug, who lost is memory. One day he woke up in the subway in Coney Island of New York and didn’t know anymore who he was, where he was, what he was doing etc. All these fundamental questions the film followed in Doug’s recovery or better reinvention of a new identity. A social, ethical, and philosophical very interested and intense exploration of what you simply would call a person. The Oscar was awarded to ‘Crash’, of all nominated films the most political correct one and easiest to adopt. Not really surprising.

A lot of bus driving I today, it was raining in the morning. People in the office think it’s absurd without car in L.A. I think I always had a problem to imagine you’re so depending on one means of transportation. And I don’t think a city can exist on a basis that the car is the only possibility to move, even if it seems like it. At least there are ongoing politics about establishing a metro that deserves this name. You see more and more cyclists on the road. And people are constantly annoyed and frustrated about the traffic. It’s a paradox situation. How can you restrict yourself so hardly.

It’s actually interesting to think about this commonly used saying. Especially when you are in Los Angeles. There was a film called ‘Los Angeles plays itself’. A documentary about the different interpretations, notions, translations, and creations of Los Angeles in films. Although it’s the most photographed city of the world nobody really knows Los Angeles, different than we know it from other popular pictures like the skyline of New York or similar landmark views of big cities. Regarding Los Angeles the last thing films transform is a focus on such a specific view, widely and repeatedly represented in a matter it turns in a well recognizable feature of the place, a highly visual identity. The lack of identity of this sort is the notion ‘like in the movies’. Our daily live in an environment we are used to is part of our own identity and how everyone of us understands live in the broadest sense. A movie creates another world in its own entity, is it appealing to us or is it rather distracting or somewhere in between, either way it is to a certain degree opposed to ourselves since we look at it from the outside starting from our own understanding. This constant distance between the own mind and observations translated through a movie refers to situations where there is a clear sense, a reality, and therefore it allows adaptation, but something is missing that provokes a kick to a slightly different perception than what leads us usually through life. It’s on the very small edge between the obvious and the absurd. I think in Los Angeles you can develop very strong feelings about these different realities since this city is so hard to find. The documentary ‘Los Angeles plays itself’ revealed a good understanding about this distance and fascination at the same time. Reality doesn’t really exist, but realities.

Again I was thinking about it this morning on the way to work. I usually take the bus in Beverly Hills on Santa Monica Blvd to Silverlake. I pass Beverly Dr, small nice shops, cafes and restaurants and the usual businesses in a rather posh neighborhood. It’s early in the morning, shortly past 7.30am. Everything beside the cafes still closed. There is one particular location not too difficult to miss. An all shiny black metal panel, dark tinted glass building and store front with big silver letters indicating the company’s name: XIV KARATS, LTD. As all others still closed except there is always a group of a few men waiting at the entrance. They are all in their 50-ies, 60-ies, men only, I never saw a woman. I don’t know what kind of place it is. Just driving by you can’t see anything from outside. It looks like something related to jewelry or similar. Not only the name seems to indicate it. I don’t think it’s a café or this sort of establishment. But that’s how it looks like when you notice the group of men. As if they can’t wait to see each other every morning, spending some time at their preferred meeting location. On the other side, what should they be so desperate entering a jewelry store that early in the morning as soon as it opens? It’s a weird situation I couldn’t make any sense of it yet. I am tempted to say it’s like in a movie. Maybe one day I will enter that store and maybe reveal the secret. Or I keep the mystery about it.

It’s raining. Weather other than sun a subject to notice in California? Yes it happens there’s rain in L.A. Spring rain in february. Cherry blossom in january. Sometimes I miss the seasons. The snow and freezing temperatures versus the heat of the summer. There is no winter here, and summer close to the sea with a constant breeze is quite comfortable. So the rain is an exception. It’s especially painful since I had to travel bus from work home. A two hour trip. But doing the cycling I would be soaked after a few minutes. A street in the neighborhood turned into a river. The good thing of this rain: you know it will stop. That’s why I have problems with the bike during rainy weather: I am not equipped. Nobody is. You see everything but an appropriate answer to rain. Floods of water coming down the streets because the drain system can’t take it anymore, leaking roofs, windows and cars. Because you see all this unprepareness – it’s like on a camping site where you improvise through the worst – you know it’s not a steady thing. So I’ll take it, thinking of last year when I saw rain in quantities I could hardly remember at that time. Sun will shine again.

Good night, and good luck.

i met Gabriel today, the architect i was working for before I started the present job. i had to bring him some notes and he owed me last payment. he is not part of the ambitious group of architects, he is doing whatever the client is asking for. Mostly just service oriented drawing sets and filing for permit. Susan always speaks bad about his practice (she worked for him temporarily before I took her place). With little respect she just put it in the category of developer projects with no visible attempt to do something good. Or at least try to. It’s a sort of resignation, I think. The business being an architect is extremely demanding and complex. Integrate, direct and accomplish an outstanding design in the construction, planning and real estate environment we have is a nightmare of some sort. I can understand everyone who keeps his live out of it. I didn’t so far, and I don’t know why, because it’s very hard at times and it seems there is no stop. Every time you see a building that looks like something you should honor the architect. Contemplate for a second. I can truly understand someone’s hesitations going through all this.

Good night, and good luck.