La Defense

When I was in landscape architecture school, I did a precedent study on La Grande Arche de la Defense in Paris, France. The assignment was to do a precedent study on memorials in preparation for a redesign (at least a student version of redesign, not a real world project) of the Holocaust Memorial in Philadelphia. I understand why memorials happen, but I don't love them. I think they are overly common in today's world, which causes the whole idea of the memorial to be lost. Not to sound unsympathetic, they have their place, but I think we need to think before we add another to the world. Certain situations, like Maya Lin's Vietnam Veteran's Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, they make sense. Anyway, I chose a non-traditional memorial to study. And I had been there before. Bonus!

When I was an exchange student in Denmark during high school, I took a trip around Europe for a month. One stop, of course, was Paris. But it was towards the end of my 363 days abroad and I was low on funds. So I scoffed at the ticket price to go up the elevator in La Grande Arche and instead admired it from below and afar.

But La Defense is more than just the Grande Arche. It is the high-rise office district located several kilometers west of center city Paris. It is home to the tallest buildings in Paris and is a striking part of the skyline. The region was once home to warehouses and factories and was considered the least attractive part of Paris. Redevelopment of this area began in the first half of the 20^th century in order to create a business district for the city. This resulted in the extension of the Axe Historique and Voie Triumphale and provided a place for expansion of urban public space.

The district is named for a monument, La Defense de Paris, which is a memorial to the soldiers who fought in the Franco-Prussian War in 1870-71 (www.wikipedia.com). This older monument has since been relocated to another site near its original location (www.paris-pass.com). La Defense has been very controversial. The architectural style of this area is in stark contrast to that of the rest of Paris. La Defense is modern, consisting of tall buildings constructed of concrete, glass and metal. This is the only region in the Paris vicinity to have such tall buildings. Critics have described La Defense as “a forest of buildings”. The buildings are all lined up in 2 rows, one on either side of the street (www.wikipedia.com).

So as a grown-up, I went back, in July, 2009, and spent a rain-filled afternoon wandering around La Defense with my husband. In fact, I think it was the first thing we did after arriving and checking in to the hotel. My husband is a trooper for tolerating and even showing enthusiasm for my crazy landscape architecture-related antics. I took hundreds of photos in just a few hours, so picking which to post was difficult. Here are just a few.

a Miro sculpture and a very funky paving pattern

La Defense's take on vertical growth

a tiny vineyard in La Defense

my photo from the museum, www.grandearche.com

Here are the specs and more history in a nut shell, please skip if you feel the need. If you want more on the history, contact me and I would be happy to share.

Construction of La Grande Arche de La Defense began in 1982 and was completed in 1989. Inauguration took place in July, 1989. La Grande Arche, also know as Le Grande Arche de la Fraternite and La Toit de la Grande Arche, is situated on axis with many of Paris’ famous skyline sights, 4 km west of center city in La Defense district (www.wikipedia.com). La Grande Arche was designed by Danish architect Johan Otto Von Spreckelsen of Denmark. Spreckelsen died during construction and the monument was completed by French architect Paul Andreu (www.denmark.dk).

• 100 square meter footprint
• 110 meters high
• 108 meter width
• 112 meter depth
• Prestressed concrete frame
• White/gray marble cladding with glass windows on exterior and interior facing walls
• Fabric canopy under archExterior tube elevators

(www.greatbuildings.com)

Marmoleum and Cabinets!

We installed the flooring over the weekend, only to find that we were 2.5 12" x 36" pieces short of finishing! Ugh! And that included ordering 10% more than we expected to need. So more was ordered and will be finished this week. In real life, it is more gray-black than blue.

Cabinets were installed yesterday. The lighting in there sucks right now, so hence the bad coloration. And they are completely covered in dust at the moment, too.

The New Design Assistant

Garlic is helping with the design choices on the kitchen remodel. She seems to really like the new Marmoleum flooring in Volcanic Ash. Now, if she would just point to a paint color.....

My So-Called, Dust-Filled Life

We are in the middle of a kitchen remodel, not to mention a few other projects. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it), I am at a time and place in life where I get to supervise the General Contractor. Fun, fun, fun.

The house is about a century old. Day 4 and here is what I have learned:

I learned on Sunday the the kitchen radiator, which needed to be moved, was probably installed in 1948. The plumber, at that time, left us a March 1948 calendar under the flooring at the radiator.

We learned during demolition that the cabinets were probably original. Built in place boxes. Maybe the doors were painted and hardware replaced since. We salvaged both and will reuse them on newly constructed boxes in Garage Mahal in the future (yes, I mean Another project!).

I learned that it hurts a little (ok, a lot!) to hear the GC ripping away at old brick in the name of new chimney hood duct work.

I learned that plumbers are notorious users of profanity. I wonder if Mr. 1948 Plumber used the same profane words when he installed it as Mr. 2010 Plumber used when he tried to remove it.


I learned that arguments are bound to happen between spouses when remodels happen.

I learned that maybe the previous owners weren't as stupid as I thought. They just didn't remodel because they weren't as brave. They didn't want to tackle the challenges that we have or will need to overcome before this is through.

I learned that designers do not always explain all the flaws in a design, whether it is their fault or not and that at least 4 sets of eyes are not enough to catch all mistakes. This one hits particularly close to home, as I am a designer and I frequently am responsible for quality control on drawings.

I learned that no matter how much you plan, there will always be more work and money involved. If you accept this theory, life will be easier.

I learned that this will not be easy, clean or even accurate. That me and my spouse will have to both realize that we are not always right and that the designer, contractors and everyone else cannot be either. That just sucks, but it is what it is. That is the 'joy' of updating a century-old habitat. The house has an attitude that will not be suppressed through saws, PEX and paint. That attitude should be honored to some extent.

I learned that beer is the beverage of choice during a remodel involving a kitchen. It is in a self-contained, small necked, reusable bottle. This reduces dust floaties in your beverage, such as one encounters with wine, which will continue to catch the still-settling floaties, which are constantly in the air. Stick with beer, stay safe from floaties and get some sleep in the process.

I am only 4 days into this process, 2 for us and 2 for the contractors. This process will go on and on because we are not independently wealthy. We cannot just hire someone to do it all. Nor are we the type to do that anyway.

More to come...

Bring on the Equinox!

I have been stuck at home sick for the past few days. Apparently, I don't do feverish and sleepless very well.

Scott is away and hopefully will escape my contamination. I have exhausted all daytime television options. I started with The Galloping Gourmet, which was probably produced before I was born. Next, Julia Childs. These were both pretty entertaining. For a while at least. Then I moved on to HGTV. Finally, around midday today, the Benadryl-induced fog lifted, the headache faded and I decided it was time to turn off the TV and open the curtains.

My sister and I were discussing yesterday about how when we are sick, we would LOVE to just lay around and get some reading done. But that never happens, because you are so sick. Medications, headaches, all that stuff takes away from the reading option. But I opened the curtains and grabbed an old magazine that I have been meaning to read for, oh, 3 years or so.

I moved hesitantly from the comfy couch nest that I had constructed of blankets, Apple products and remote controls to Scott's big leather club chair. The light shining through the window was great. The angle of the sun has changed and it wasn't in my eyes, making me feel like a potato baking in the oven. Fall is here!

Summer of 2010 will go down in history books for the never-ending heat. It all just supports my need to move farther north. I am convinced that sometime in my life I will experience an 80 degree average winter in an area that I used to ski and that scares the crap out of me.

So the promise of cooler, cozy autumn weather and sun rays that I actually welcome instead of shrivel back from is a good thing. Maybe tomorrow I will even feel well enough to go outside.

My Love of Stone

I love stone, boulders and rock in a landscape. If you read my recent post about fences, you will see that others do not share my enthusiasm for rock piles. When I was able to source the reclaimed stone locally and discovered that they were all part of a local barn and were mined locally, I felt like I hit the reclaimed materials jackpot. I liked my pile of stone even when it was just a pile. Now it is a pile in transition. Each piece is slowly making its way to the front yard. Little by little, piece by piece it will make a massive difference in curb appeal and is already making me want to spend time in the front instead of the back. It is a work in progress.

Occasionally, I contribute to Landscape Architecture magazine's Riprap section. I just read a piece about this guy in the July 2010 Riprap. Check out the 16 minute film and see how other people feel about stone. All the credits and info are right there.

http://vimeo.com/7653628

Jon is no Andy Goldsworthy, for those of you familiar with Rivers and Tides. He talks way too much to be compared to Andy. But, his Stone River is pretty inspirational and impressive.

With that, I will head back out front. More weed pulling and soil turning before I can add more stone.

2009 Tour de France

Week One of the 2010 Tour de France and Lance's last one (supposedly) is now finished. Today was an exciting day. Lance had a bad one, though, announcing that his tour bid is "finished." That just makes me sad. I like Lance. At least I like what he does. Who knows whether the drug allegations are true. I don't care. I am more impressed about LIVESTRONG. That is what makes him great to me.

I must do some explaining. I am not a sports enthusiast. I know nothing about football, baseball, basketball or soccer. But I do love me a good Tour. It all started years ago...

My dear husband was once a big cycling enthusiast, long before we met, when he was a teenager. He told me all about how he used to ride all over Western NY and Vermont, as a youth. One day, when we were excelling at Dink-hood (double income no kids for those of you who aren't hip to acronyms) while living in Kansas City's River Market area, I realized the Tour was on TV. This was also just a few months after my first cable TV experience. I grew up in the country and cable wasn't available. So I probably had done some cable newbie surfing and found the Tour.

I suggested that we watch it for a while and he agreed. The rest is history. He patiently explained and re-explained the rules to me. I learned about the polka dot jersey and the green jersey as well as the maillot jaune. Slowly, I learned. I was hooked.

I can't tell you what it was that hooked me. It was all so exciting. Some of it was the guys in tight pants with great asses, I admit. Some of it was the wonder that was Lance. Most of it was the intriguing helicopter shots of the French countryside. What a beautiful place. And a lot of it was Bobke, Phil and Paul! How many times could Bob Roll mispronounce Le Tour de France? This was some great entertainment, people.

Much of the fun was that it was something fun for Scott and I to experience together. I think he was entertained by my enthusiasm and I by his knowledge. It worked for both of us. The next year, I determined that 3-4 hours of Tour watching after a full day of work and school, plus an hour commute required more to keep my attention. I don't do the sitting-still thing well. I was too tired to keep up. Then I started knitting along to the Tour. It gave me something to keep my hands busy while watching. Lets face it, not every minute of the Tour is exciting and this was pre-Tivo. No fast forward option back then. I remain knitting-challenged. But I have whipped off some cool stuff during the Tour.

Fast forward a bit. Scott's birthday falls in July, always near the end of the Tour. As you devoted readers know, I love mountains. So we dream about the idea of seeing the Tour de France for his birthday sometime. Do you see where this is going yet?

Years later, we move to Switzerland. It happens to be when Scott is turning 40 years young. Paris is just a 3 hour train ride away. What an opportunity this is! Seeing as I spent so much time in Switzerland planning travel, I plan the ultimate birthday trip to Paris, too see the final stage of the Tour de France!!!!!!

Scott has never been to Paris. I have, but I was sick when I was there. So we go and have a great time. We stay in some funky Art Deco hotel. We do all the non-touristy things because Scott can't handle lines and crowds and I have already seen much of it. We go to E. Dehillerin, where Julia Child used to shop. We see some great parks that I studied while in landscape architecture school. But most importantly, we see the final stage of the 2009 Tour de France!!!!!

Rewind a bit. In 2009, several stages of the Tour were in Switzerland or in the Alsace region of France, which was very close to Basel, where we lived. So we were lucky enough to see 3 stages of the Tour last year. First, we went to Dannemarie, France, less than an hour from Basel to see Stage 14. It was a sad, rainy day, but we had a blast. I was so happy because I saw George Hincapie up close, he went right by us.

Next, on Scott's actual birthday, we drove to Annecy, France to see Stage 18. It was incredibly hot as we wandered around town. Finally we found a spot in the shade near the 1 km line. If I looked in front of me, I saw the Tour. This happened to be the individual time trial day. If I turned around, I saw a beautiful lake, with people in paddle boats and the mountains beyond.


The next morning, we left for Paris! The Tour is crazy, really, it is a circus followed by some bike riding. Before the riders come through, the advertising posse comes. They throw stuff from their crazy cars and hype up the crowd. It is all about the entertainment factor. Next come the helicopters. You know when they come that the riders aren't far behind.

The riders come by in a blur. Maybe you are lucky enough to identify one or two of them. Before you know it, the peloton has passed you by and all you are left with is the smell of 150 or so sweaty guys. The hard part is that you don't know who is winning. You have no access to English-speaking commentary. The names you do hear don't sound the same with a local French dude reciting them. It is a challenge that involves lots of standing around waiting for a few brief moments of excitement. But it is an exciting one.


I watched the bulk of the 2009 Tour on Eurosport in Basel, with English guys commentating. Not the same as what I was used to. I missed Paul Sherwen and Phil Liggett. But I did get to have dinner with them. Well, at least next to them. The quick version is that we went to Bern to see the final stage of the Tour de Suisse. As the server seated us, I realized that they were sitting next to us. I freaked out like I had just had a Brangelina siting. Scott was pretty excited, too. I spent the whole dinner trying to figure out how I could greet them, without looking like a total moron. In the end, I decided they just wanted a quiet dinner and didn't need me pestering them. I still regret this. They are part of what makes the Tour great to me. I am happy to be watching them again this year, from the comfort of my own couch, with my cat and with the benefit of fast forward and rewind. Gotta love those great accents and their enthusiasm.

So whether Lance wins this year or not, we won last year. What a milestone of a birthday trip. The only way we could top that was to spend my 40th watching a mountain stage in the Alps with the luxury of an RV to provide cold wine and cheese and a restroom. So much more to experience, so little time. And you gotta love the Schloogs and the Danes. They always make their presence known.