Built-In Obsolescence

Reading the New York Times this morning, I came across a few articles that spoke to a condition most of us have to put up with these days: obsolescence. The idea that all things, sooner or later (though probably sooner), becoming obsolete.

Look at Dubai. It turns out that until Dubai's recent debt trouble, homes that had been constructed a mere 3 to 5 years ago were routinely being torn down to accomodate newer projects. The city of Dubai reminds me of Shelley's famous sonnet "Ozymandias":

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away".

Dubai is fast becoming such a "colossal wreck, boundless and bare" perhaps because it was built to be replaced. Built-in obsolescence.

That's why I took great pleasure reading about Cormac McCarthy's Olivetti typewriter up for auction. McCarthy, one of our most celebrated novelists, wrote nearly all of his novels, including three unpublished ones, over a span of fifty years on this humble machine. What writer today will accomplish such a feat on his or her laptop? I purchased my computer in 2005 and it's a dinosaur. I give it another 6 months before it goes belly-up.

Now, undoubtedly great literature gets produced on laptops and maybe even on handheld devices, too. But to read that McCarthy has written his masterpieces on a single, solid, sturdy, mechanical machine that has lived on and on is an inspiration. His novels mourn the obsolescences around us, acting as a chorus to question the values of a society that eventually destroys everything it builds.

For fifty years at least, McCarthy showed it was possible to buck this trend. And his novels, unlike Dubai or Ozymandias's ruins or even the Olivetti typewriter itself, stand the true test of time.

The Evolution of a Front Yard

This is what the front yard used to look like--that is, after we tore out a gross, old, uneven, narrow, dangerous brick sidewalk.
Then we hired some dudes to bust up the concrete walk. We rocked the no-grass, no-walk look for a while, including during the Heritage Hills Home and Garden Tour. It was kinda embarrasing.
But last week, on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights from 9 to 11 p.m., I went outside and dug this trench. Don't ask me why I did it like that. I have homeowner fever. I'm nuts.
When the hole was dug, we ordered a ton and a half of crushed limestone. Can you believe this is a ton and a half? Me neither. Will it be enough?
Hell yes, it will! Look at Emily spreading it like a champ.
Then I came and tamped it all down. Memories of taking care of my high school's baseball mound. I was the starting pitcher and it was my responsibility. We had a nice mound.
Emily was the walk's chief designer. She decided on a herringbone pattern. Very glad she did. She also laid the whole walk. Except for a stretch when our second cousins (aged 14 and 11) came over and we put them to work. Nothing like child labor.
Speaking of child labor...just kidding.
Ignore the camera strap and focus on the attitude. Manual labor is fun.
Making progress!
Finished! Except for the irregular pieces. We had to buy an angle grinder to do that.
Oh, and where did we get all these bricks? We didn't purchase a single one. No, instead we salvaged them from our property. They came from the old brick walk in front and from a brick patio in back.
Some of the bricks are older than the state of Oklahoma. This one was made in the town of Chandler. "O.T" stands for "Oklahoma Territory." How cool is that?! Again, ignore the damn camera strap.
A lot of interesting bricks here.
But wait...there's more! We landscaped, too!
We put a dogwood tree in the backyard...
...and watered all the plants, shrubs, and trees we put in the front.
Tada! We did this in one weekend. Two full days of work. Boy, were we tired.
But we are happy. The end.

Halloween Special: Surf and Turf

Surf: Emmett "Lobster" Reynolds, born in Boston.

Turf: Josiah "Moo Cow" Daniel, born in Oklahoma City.

OKC House After (Though Not Completely After)

OKC House Before

Dan and Keira

I'm back in Boston this weekend after two intense weeks in Hartford for work. We're on the East Coast for another week and half, and in that time we have big plans, and none bigger than attending Dan and Keira's wedding. But I'll be more than attending...I'll be officiating! Yes, Dan and Keira asked me to officiate (or "solemnize," if you want to get technical) their wedding, and I am honored to do it. After all, I did introduce them! Click on the link above and then check me out in the "Wedding Entourage" page.

Dan and Keira at the Beach:



In other news, we miss our new home. We can't stop thinking of all the fun things we want to do to it. As promised in a previous post, I have some "before and after" photos for you. Wait and see the difference.

Our 101st Post

Rather than talk about how cool it is that the MAPS 3 proposal contains plans for a streetcar (yes!), and rather than mention how cool it would be if (assuming it passes in the December vote) OKC hires United Streetcar (the first American manufacturer of streetcars in 58 years) to build them, and instead of talking about how nice it is that the MAPS 3 plan includes a big central park and plans to finish bikes trails and sidewalks across the city, and even though I'd love to talk how the sun is out after three weeks of rain, or how we're heading to the East Coast for three weeks tomorrow (so Emily and Emmett can visit her folks and so I can attend a program in Hartford, CT), I think I'll stop rambling in this, our 101st post on Oklachusetts, and just give the people what they want: Mr. Emmett!