Pilachi_Sketch [ BLOG ]

An empty glass of milk is such a wonderful conversation; because the moment you sit there, you are filled with the memory of the experience shared.

In this blue room, the windows are drawn closed and the curtain has started to fall. The afternoon light that penetrates the recesses, is no more prevalent than the reticient spider webs that for a moment glimmer through the stillness and the darkness of the adjacent crevice. There are only a few more moments for the encapsulated spider to ponder the fate of his pray.

The weight of the world is neither affected nor aware; as the fly begins to let go.

The curtains are drawn and the child is resting peacefully.

It is good to have ventricular cavities. What is a ventricular cavity, you may ask? Give me a minute to look it up.

From what I see… a ventricular cavity is a [w]hole in your heart where lots of stuff moves in and out. Kinda like pre-marital dating; yet for some, that distinction holds no credence.

That was not the point though. Read more

Reading the words in some of these blog entries, one might begin to assume that “this chico is loco.”

The odds on that horse are not bad; however it is better to step beyond the obvious and consider the alternatives.

Loneliness is a good one; the odds on that are not that bad either. Self Absorption is a popular one off the starting blocks; however there is a much much much better one.

Consider this… experimentation.

If a conversation can be documented in the third person description of a first person account with his or her own recollection of another person’s perceptions of him or herself… how would you present that in a sentence? Read more

Anger surrounds and subsumes the very essence. Without warning; the selfless self suppresses desire and blandly assumes the role of the profligate and purposeful parasite. [alliteration not withstanding.]

The words “erstwhile” were once used to describe things that lay outside of the realm of recollection. The self who abandonned dreams and became a vacuous remnant in the shadows of doubt. So much has happened since then. And yet, here we are again. Read more

Architecture in Jamaica is a profession that has limited opportunities for the local population of architects, and even fewer opportunities for the architecture students who graduate each year. I also understand that the Jamaica Institute of Architects is also no longer as cohesive as it could be.

I have not joined the association. I am not sure how I would join… who to speak to… nor why [to be honest]. Maybe they have good parties… but I neither drink nor socialize.

With hundreds of student applicants at the local architecture school, from across the Caribbean, The 50 or so accepted each year accomplish quite a feat; and with fewer than 3 or so employees in most prominent architecture firms in Jamaica, the graduating students find themselves in an ackward position. Are we training our students for export? If so, to where? The Eastern Caribbean? The US? Read more

It has been evident to me for more time than I have had confidence to accept it, that I am–or so I am told–a square peg trying to fit into a round hole. This is not that big of a problem for me these days; as I am trying to help others to come to terms with the continuing “quest for where [we] belong.”

We are all on that quest, searching in good and bad places as Tori Amos says “looking for a saviour in these dirty streets, looking for a saviour between these dirty sheets… raising up my hands, drive another nail in… just what God needs, one more victim…”

But that is not what this is about. Read more

Last night, quite by accident, I came across a news presentation on a local cable-access-television station by a lady who I grew up calling Auntie Barbara. She is a cultural icon, by the very nature of her contributions to the arts and by the frank, honest and decisive descriptions of the Socio-Economic [insert appropriate adjective] that Jamaica is and increasingly becomes, with time.

In her presentation, filmed at the Conference Centre, she told the story of a “Small Boy Selling Star;” which would appear to be quite a sensational news headline without a bit of context. The “Star” is a tabloid newspaper, which is in this case, was on sale by a minor: a common and unfortunate occurrence here in Jamaica.

In her account, she was quite celebratory about the innovation of this particular young man who through experience, adapted his method and approach to avoid the challenges and effectively sell the newspaper with surgical precision. In and of itself, this story was interesting; however the twist added a deeper level of appreciation, when she described that the young man proclaimed that he was failing at school, especially in math. Read more

The interplay that often results from professional or academic co-creation often leads to an emotionally charged moral grey area that quite frankly disgusts me.

What is the end goal of lateral pursuit?

Why is it that I am so very strongly turned off and feel this wretching feeling when I consider the ramificiations of student-teacher and boss-employee relations? I am not sure… but the very thought of either combination usually makes me want to extricate the inner recesses of the most vile and putrid sanctum of my bowels.

Is this ethical overload? Is it profligate self-righteousness? Is it the very bitter aftertaste of bad experiences, being the participant observer in failed relationships spawned by the vertically aspirational and laterally mobile and the decisions made by those who felt the need to sleep their way to middle management?

Quite frankly… I am the least objective candidate to evaluate this subject. Read more

At the start of the Spring Semester, a group of second year architecture students were given the grades for their work in the preceding semester. As would be expected, most of the students expected and hoped for higher grades. For the most part, the students were despondent after learning of their achievements.

How does one evaluate “design” with conventional grading structures? Does an “A” mean that you are a great designer and that you have demonstrated that you are more likely than anyone of your peers, to achieve great things? Unlikely.

So what is a more useful way to help students to understand their accomplishments relative to their strengths, weaknesses and potential for success? Read more