my hotel

The Art of Letter Writing

I miss mail.
I miss the anticipation of a weeks wait for that box of cookies from my mom, or the love letter from a college boy in the next state over. I am proud to say that I experienced, at least part of, college without a cell phone, and actually had an answering machine in my dorm room. Although technology is inevitable and integral to our future, I am proposing a slow down from the rush and rat race of our modern society's communication fascination. I am not the first to suggest this, and certainly not the first to write about it, but it takes a great deal of people to create a movement of change and to spread the word.

I want to be surrounded by those that are interested in connecting with friends,lovers, peers, colleagues, and random inspiration on a personal level. Physically putting in the effort to build a network of creativity and knowledge that is directed towards individuals that we directly want to affect and inspire.
I want to read books, and use card catalogs, I want to go to libraries and write letters. I want to grow gardens and walk to work. It's maybe why I still prefer film. I want to appreciate the things that have helped make me who I am today, not forget about them. Love the sustainable, the heirloom designs in communication that are going to keep our grass green, our dirt pure and our emotions and spirituality healthy.

It tests my patience to have to wait for information and good word from the people in my life, but I believe that it instills confidence and motivation in myself to have to wait and work for the goosebumps that come with the arrival of physical mail. This patience seems to be dying a slow death with the wild popularity of technology like text, social networking sites, and twitter. But I am happy to not have to check my phone or my email every eight minutes because I know it's going to take days to get my message. And when I finally do, it's a crazy good day.

I realize the hypocrisy of the forum in which I choose to write to you. It has many benefits that I love and it's easily accessible to the masses, but the point is... I would like to start writing letters, making mix tapes, sending photographs, article clippings and random discoveries of the day to anyone who wants.
So who's in?

Caddywhompus Architecture, In Love With Knowledge

The euphoria that my brain feels when I breathe in recent crazy amounts of knowledge, because it's so damn easy to get high these days, has been making me dizzy. With school on the horizon I cannot get enough information lately. Checking out articles, blogs, papers, and artists, I've discovered an overflowing treasure chest. ...One that is surely soiled with other grabby hands, but I still love it nonetheless.
What a unique gem I was immersed in while living in Rocinha. It's only now that I am understanding the great urban planning miracle that favelas like Rocinha really are. Traditionally built climbing up mountainsides, with winding streets and precariously placed houses, these micro-cities are surprisingly incredibly strong and resilient. Daniel, who grew up in Rocinha, told me that his house, originally built out of wood decades ago was rotting away from the flow of water that runs wherever it wants to due to their unique sewer system. When they saved up enough money they replaced one wall at a time, generally one wall per year, with cinder brick. These small changes are an illustration of time and patience in urban planning.

More to come...

pairs come in threes

a man in a hallway with dark sunglasses; i prefer sunlight