Reporting Live from Green Building Techniques…Day One

I’ve just ended my first day in a three-day short-course on Green Building Techniques, given through the University of Colorado at Boulder. Our facilitator and main presenter is Dan Chiras, who, for many reasons, is fast becoming one of my personal heroes. He’s had a long and exceptional career, with roots in the biological sciences, and he is an expert in the fields of environmental science and green design. He is also living in a home he sustainably designed and built, and has lived off the electicity grid for over a decade.

Today’s lectures were nothing less than intense–A LOT of material was covered in our first session. We discussed topics on :

• The History of Green Building
• The Growing Popularity of Green Building (Guest Lecturer, Laura Bartels, GreenWeaver, Inc., Carbondale, CO )
• Why Build Green?: The end of cheap oil and natural gas
• Overview of Green Building Practices, Materials and Technologies: Part 1 (Site selection – Site restoration – Energy Efficiency – Renewable Energy – Healthy Building – Green Building Materials – Landscaping for Energy and Environment – Waste Recycling – Building a Healthy Home – Reducing Wood Use and Advanced Framing Techniques)
• Green Building Materials (Guest Lecturer, Jeff Scott, SolSource, Inc., Denver)
• Environmental Justice and Affordable Sustainability (Dignity Village, and The Intertribal Council on Utility Policy)

The class participants have arrived from all over the country to hear Chiras give this lecture; oddly enough, I’m the only one here from the engineering field (there were about 25 of us in today’s session). Most of the attendees are environmental designers, architects and builders, and several are would-be do-it-yourselfers who have dreams (or signed contracts!) to design and build green homes of their own. I fall into the latter category, as I’ve had big dreams of designing and building my own house for a long time. And this course is just encouraging me to dream bigger! Geez, just what I need! So far, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know a young couple from Colorado, who are renovating their existing home, an architect in Denver, who works in commercial government contracts, a young woman who just bought land in the mountains, and is looking to build her first home from the ground up , and a retired gentleman from South Carolina, who is just beginning the process of designing a vacation home for him and his wife in the mountains of North Carolina (who couldn’t find a contractor in his area that would touch a green design project–unbelievable!).

The course is certainly designed for the self-starter looking to bring green building techniques into their home; also pointed out, however, were several segues into commercial applications and professional considerations. As an engineering student focusing (in the larger scope) on space, environmental and biological systems, I am totally geeked over how applicable these techniques are in the areas of sustainable life support systems and habitats–the subjects of energy, air quality, lighting, waste/water treatment, and heating and cooling are all extremenly relevant to the design of well-contained, durable and healthy environments, whether built on this planet or circling above it.

More from the from the scene, as it happens, tomorrow…

Of raindrops and yoga.

It’s pouring rain outside! I had planned to be outdoors today, hiking around and taking photos, but the weather didn’t cooperate. That’s okay, we need the moisture. Already, the lawns out front are a lovely shade of bright green (smile). So instead, I’m inside surfing the web and watching the Thundercats on DVD (hey, it is a Saturday after all).

Since sitting on my bum isn’t really what I had in mind for today, my thoughts have wondered off to my long-forgotten yoga practice, and my desire to be active again. In a really nasty cycling accident 2 years ago, I flew (yes, flew, as in through the air…) off my bike and landed down hard on my right side. That accident resulted in a crushed elbow joint, cracked and bruised ribs and a badly bruised hip socket. At the time, I had been an avid yoga student for several years, but after injuring myself the way I did I couldn’t continue my practice. Even after a year, many postures that were weight-bearing on my arms or right side were too uncomfortable. I had pretty much given up hope that I could pursue yoga with the same enthusiasm I had before. What made it worse was that whenever I got too cold, or whenever it was about to rain, I’d wake up in the morning with a painfully stiff right arm and hip. Lucky for me, this is Colorado, and the rainy days are few in number. The discomfort has lessened with time, but it has left me feeling self-conscious and feeling like my body is older than it is.

Ironically, I credit yoga with helping me to walk away from the accident like I did, literally. Yoga is known for its capacity to strengthen and lengthen the muscles of the body, keeping one who practices regularly in a constant state of muscular fitness and relaxation. I’ve heard many doctors say that a lot of injury to the body is caused not by the impact itself, but by the body’s reaction to the impact–that is, it’s tendency to tense up and block blood flow. After being hit and sustaining the injuries I did, I was still able to get up and walk the mile and a half back home (the person that caused the accident left the scene without offering assistance). I certainly had my share of injuries as a kid, and that may have had a lot to do with my ability to manage the pain, but I really believe my physical fitness had much to do with it also.

This morning, for the first day in years, I had to look to the sky to tell the rain was coming–my arm and hip didn’t ache at all! That feels really good, and it’s encouraged me even more to be proactive and get back into a good practice again. Unfortunately, I’d forgotten how expensive yoga classes can be! The yoga studio closest to my home would cost over $100 per month if I only attended 2 classes per week! Geez! I don’t live near to the center I attended 2 years ago, but it looks like there is a rec center nearby. Hopefully they have yoga instructors, as I’ll need help getting back into proper form with many of my postures, and hopefully the prices are more affordable–family-centered community programs usually are.

Well, I should get back to watching my cartoon; the Thundercats are on the move again, and this time there’s an evil talking oooze…

New, Like a Shiny Penny.

New is good, so go to the sidebar and check out these new buttons on my page…

Reading List On this page, I’ll periodically write mini-reviews of books I’ve really enjoyed reading. Click on the link (under Pages) and check a couple out for yourself!

MORE music! Check out Sonific Songspot’s latest groove in the top right corner…just hit play.

Coffee Shop Reader Under here you’ll find random links of interest to me, and maybe to you too. A little funny here, a little political there…

Think About It. Okay, I’m an activist. So how can I not have a have a little somethin’ that challenges people to think about how they live their lives? That just wouldn’t be normal.

West Side Story

Yesterday afternoon I had the pleasure of seeing the University of Colorado at Boulder’s production of West Side Story: The Opera (written by composer Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, directed by William Gustafson and Nicholas Carthy). It was so much fun! I have to admit, this production took me by surprise, as it did not follow the more traditional operatic style of voice–we left feeling more like we’d just watched a musical for three hours, instead of an opera–but it was very enjoyable, nonetheless. Hey, different is good!

I do actually believe that this production is the first opera I’ve seen that wasn’t written originally as an opera–WSS was composed by Mr. Bernstein for Broadway in 1957. The “light opera” style was great, as the background to WSS is very animated and passionate and is based on Shakespeare’s timeless story of Romeo and Juliet. Mr. Bernstein brought current the often told themes of love, family, feuds and youthful passion with scenes of gang life in the streets of 1950’s New York. The story begins with a brawl between two local gangs: The Sharks (a Puerto Rican gang) and The Jets (a polish gang). Likened to Tybalt and Mercurio, the gang leaders, Bernardo and Riff, want nothing but respect and are so blinded by their rage and hatred for each other they are willing to murder to get it. Of course, a romance ensues between Maria (Bernardo’s sister) and Tony (Riff’s right-hand man and most-trusted friend). Their love is forbidden from the beginning, but it only serves to fuel their passion. Ultimately, each must face a decision–loyalty to their families or to each other.

I was especially delighted to see and hear the performance of Katherine Miller (Maria), whose talented acting and girlish, soprano voice stole the show. In the last act, as she sang an extremely heavy lament over her murdered lover, I looked around and was unable to find a single dry eye near to me. Such regret and sorrow came through in her singing–such love and such remorse! Another delightful performance was that of Meg Marino (Anita) whose sultry alto voice and stern words made an ideal street-wise and protective companion for Maria. The well-balanced synergy between the two was intriguing to watch.

Between the acting and singing talent, the stage production (awesome lighting and props!) and the well-known musical score (“I Feel Pretty”, “Tonight”, and “One Hand, One Heart”, just to name a few…), WSS will go down in history as one of my favorites!

And, to make a fun evening even more fun, there was dinner at the Mountain Sun afterwards…

My Mountain Sun Take-Away Dragon

Why playing the cello ROCKS…literally.

The following video, titled A Cello Rondo, was performed and produced by Ethan Winer, a wonderful cellist. There are 37 cello parts–from the main melody to the percussion–and each is performed using only the cello. The video is fun to watch, but even better is Mr. Winer’s creativity and style. Hats off to him and his crew for an enjoyable performance!

A little BSG rant…

(For those of you still catching up, this is a Battlestar Galactica plot spoiler!)

Okay, now that I’ve had time to recover from the shock, I need to commiserate with all of the BSG watchers out there–WHOA!! Can you believe this latest plot arch??? I’m sure we all saw a plot-twist coming with Starbuck’s character, but the writers managed to take my expectation, roll it into a ball and slam-dunk it through the hoop. I never imagined they’d kill the girl! I know, I know, she’s probably not really dead, but the myriad of scenarios explaining why this could be so form a black hole of speculation from which one could never return!

“Maelstrom”, for several reasons, was very difficult for me to watch. I was extremely relieved to see it end, having cried through most of it. Now I want to know, Where is this arch going? And when will it get there??? Being the insanely curious and impatient person that I am, this rates very poorly on the Meter of Contentment!

Also, while barely being able to bring myself to watch “The Son Also Rises” on last Sunday, I thought I saw something. Did any of you notice that the population count in the opening credits was down by ONE? I hadn’t paid any attention to it before, so I’m not sure if this is significant.

So, what are your theories on what happened to our beloved character (who has always, by far, been my favorite)? I haven’t decided what I think yet, but, there are a few scenarios swimming around in my head, most of which lean towards a human-cylon hybrid messiah figure.

And what’s up with Baltar’s Puppetmaster/clepto attorney??? He’s an interesting character…I kind of like him!

300 at midnight

A friend and I went to see the midnight opening release of the movie 300 this morning! Wow, what a show! The theater was completely packed, and it was worth every sleep-depriving second! The story follows a Spartan king named Leonidas’ battle against the invading forces of the Persian god-king Xerxes:

In the ancient Battle of Thermopylae, King Leonidas and 300 Spartans fought to the death against Xerxes and his massive Persian army. Facing insurmountable odds, their valor and sacrifice inspire all of Greece to unite against their Persian enemy, drawing a line in the sand for democracy. –Yahoo! Movies

It’s obvious from the cinematography and sound effects that the producers were going for an epic event. The battle scenes were amazing to watch, bringing to life the power and determination of Leonidas and his soldiers. There were many familiar faces in the cast (think Troy, LOTR, Gladiator, Enterprise…), and the acting and dramatic effects were superb. The Queen (Gorgo) was by far my favorite character, as her character is intelligent and passionate, and her wisdom and strength win several battles of their own throughout the movie.  I left LOVING the movie and thinking to myself, “I am so gonna get that on DVD”.

Alas, there is a good deal of sex and violence so this one is NOT for the kiddies!

Main themes: power, glory, honor, duty, valor, truth and love–everything a great story needs. Go see it NOW!

When too much is just enough…

I posted this photo on my Flickr page several days ago, after spending another of several weekends away from home in the last couple of months.

Despite the minor frustrations frequent travel can create, I’ve always found the change of environment refreshing. Quite simply, the more of it I get the better I just “feel”. I’d even go as far as saying that not traveling enough leads to feelings of restlessness.

It’s been a number of months, six or more, since I’ve allowed my schedule to take me away from home for extended amounts of time. Getting back into the habit of regular travel felt good. And with Spring about to be upon us, there’ll be many opportunities for fun and sun.

List #3

Video Games that are on high rotation in my system right now:

1. Myst V: End of Ages (a wonderful finale; I might just have to start the series again from the beginning)
2. The Longest Journey (it has, indeed, been a long one!)
3. Metal Gear Solid (I just won’t let Snake retire)
4. EVE Online (a MMORPG, very addictive, great graphics and sound!)
5. Syberia (an oldie, but goodie)

Obviously, I’m a big fan of the adventure genre. I also dabble with Second Life every now and again, but, besides being a lot of fun, it gives my machine a big headache, so I’m not as geeked about it as when I first logged in.

And, I wait with bated breath for the release of Genesis Rising this month!

I am trying to graduate this year, aren’t I?