I woke up this morning to find a leaky roof. As if an act of God the leak was Directly above my laptop. That red square is where I generally leave my laptop, that thing has a puddle of water on it. The dry square is where I had a pile of books. the books soaked up all the water there. Bye-bye computer and files. Laptops are required in my major. I usually backup my files at the end of every quarter, our quarter ends in two weeks. so everything in the last three months is gone, like homework. A good number of my homework files I've e-mailed, so those are retreivable, But none of them are the original raw files, I won't be able to edit them, which I need to do for my final project. I'm using my girlfriend's computer right now, she's sleeping and still doesn't know yet.
This also means I probably won't be blogging for a while, so get used to seeing this not updated. sorry folks.
despair, Tomorrow's thanksgiving. I refuse to let this bring me down! (too bad you can't build laptops out of bamboo)
So along with this blog, work, and school, I've got a lot of other projects going on. Learning how to work with bamboo is one of them. There are a lot of resources I've found on the internet and I've also been able to ask a Japanese craftsman some questions I had.
This bamboo grows in my backyard, It's black bamboo (this one hasn't turned black) and it's very strong. The first photo is of some bamboo that is dry on some culms but not ready on others.
Here's a photo of heat treated bamboo. The top two pieces are heated treated and are thus shiny and polished. The bottom piece still needs to be heat treated. The top piece is of black bamboo that had actually turned black before it was harvested. Heat treating does two things. It melts the white waxy stuff and with a cloth you can polish it, and second the interior starches are broken down so that bugs won't eat the bamboo. Here's a closeup of how different it looks after heat treating. one culm shiny and one culm not shiny
Bamboo is a grass so not all grasses are bad. BUT, with bamboo being considered a highly sustainable product be careful! Not all Bamboo products are sustainable. For example most(90% of) bamboo clothing products use a lot of chemicals to break bamboo down into usable threads. So unless that bamboo shirt you're wearing was turned to thread mechanically it is NOT sustainable. (there are no legal restrictions for calling something sustainable). The more the bamboo sticks to its original form the more sustainable it is. Here's a single shot of a Bamboo pipe I made. It's the first thing I made with bamboo because it's very simple. I don't have much use for it so I might sell it on ebay.
And I just made this right now it took about two minutes. It's a bottle opener I learned how to make from Home Grown Evolution. scrap bamboo and a screw. I used it and it works wonders, MUCH easier than using the edge of my cel. phone
With the growth of new businesses in Pomona including nightlife I figured it's important we all know the bus routes to and from Campus to Downtown. After all we want everyone traveling safely and responsibly that includes financially and environmentally.
For you living on or near campus the latest bus to leave downtown back to campus on weekdays is the 490 it leaves at 12:28 am (the earliest if you're willing to wait is 5:38am) HOWEVER on weekends that last bus leaves at 10:00pm There are no stops in between and the route is direct.
I live in the city so I'll be riding my bike, so for those of you that ride bikes remember you CAN get a DWI on a bicycle.
There is another bus that goes through Phillips Ranch the 195 but the latest that leaves is 6:15pm but it goes a little out of the way and has five stops in between. On weekends the last bus leaves at 6:35pm route and schedule for 195
On my block, the sidewalk ends abruptly. Why? I don't know. It sure is a lot softer to walk on especially in the rain! There are also a number driveways that are just dirt.
Will this ever get fixed? It's been like this for a while. Does anyone care? Is this the image of Pomona? Where does the money for Pomona's infrastructure go? Come on council people, FIX OUR INFRASTRUCTURE!
BUT, What if Pomona isn't paving this stretch of sidewalk because they understand sustainable practices, conrete increases water runoff, makes water dirtier and doesn't recharge our groundwater(which would help us in times of drought like now). Maybe Pomona wants the water that lands here to percolate back into our groundwater! HA! Yeah Right! Then where's the Decomposed Granite? Why is the surface a layer of dust? Talk about mud on a rainy day!
Instead of getting a traveling Vietnam war memorial in our town, why not stop wasting water and fix broken irrigation?
Instead of military banners why not fix the potholes in the roads?
Not that those causes aren't admirable causes but shouldn't we be focusing on our infrastructure first? Shouldn't we be fixing our city first? It's like cleaning your house before inviting guests over. It's courteous. We should have a clean city and functioning infrastructure before we invite the Memorial to stay in our town or post up military banners in our town, we should be treating our guests, heroes, families, and friends with respect.
This stretch of sidewalk is a perfect OPPORTUNITY for Pomona to use some BMP's (that's Best Management Practices) and use PERMEABLE paving. It's already permeable but in this case that means mud for pedestrians or you'll have to walk in the street. At the least can we get some Decomposed Granite? How about some permeable pavers? It's not a problem it's an OPPORTUNITY!
It looks like no matter where you live in Pomona there is a local walkable place to get fried chicken, so my girlfriend and I have been testing them out. So far we've eaten at Pittsburgh Broasted Chicken and Subs at Indian Hill and Holt, Louisiana Fried Chicken and China Bowl at Garey and Philadelphia to the south and Donahoo's Golden Chicken at Garey and Alvarado to the north. (There is a Church's to the west on Mission Blvd. even.)
Donahoo's is a staple in Pomona so that was easy to find, It is perfect for those in the historical district, it is take out only and it's very close to homes to walk to. Louisiana Fried is right next door to Food-4-Less where we shop sometimes, It is definitely close enough to walk to for us but I'd rather ride my bike. Pittsburgh Broasted we found through Inland Empire Restaurant and Food Reviews, it is close to Claremont and Montclair, it is more surrounding by businesses than homes but for those that work in that area it is a great place to eat.
Here are our verdicts, placed by Rankings.
3rd. Donahoo's. I know there are many Pomona faithfuls who may disagree but my girlfriend and I both agreed that Donahoo's was lacking in flavorful content. HOWEVER their sign and recognizability in Pomona is unique and deserves credit for that, however their fried chicken doesn't live up to the hype, I haven't tried their biscuits yet, I've heard they are tasty.
2nd. Louisiana Fried Chicken. If Pittsburgh weren't broasted-fried these guys would have won. Louisiana FC has very tasty chicken full of flavor and the hot sauce definitely packs that extra punch we often crave. Plus if you have the hankering for Chinese food that option is present.
1st. Pittsburgh Broasted. Though more expensive then the other two, Broasted makes the chicken healthier, less greasy and more juicy while retaining fried chicken values (since it is technically still fried just under pressure). Lousiana Fried has slightly better flavor than the Pittsburgh Broasted Original, BUT Pittsburgh Broasted has other options! We also tried their Cajun flavored broasted chicken and that was exceptional! One other option we did not try was their lemon pepper broasted. They also have sandwiches and subs and EVEN Korean Bar-B-Q chicken (chicken Bulgogi).
Interestingly enough Donahoo's owners are Chinese-American (Mandarin speaking) Louisiana's owners are Vietnamese-American and Pittsburgh's owners are Korean-American.
Next to try are Popeye's (which I haven't had since I was a kid) and Church's we won't be considering KFC for contention (maybe). And then we'll be comparing roasted chickens e.g. Juan Pollo vs Macho Pollo. In the meantime, here's a link for your enjoyment about someone trying to find an ordinance for keeping chickens in Chicago.
Pomona isn't exactly known for its political activism, so when I see any sort of political activism of any sort that really draws any group of people together I get excited. On Saturday morning while riding my bike to Stater Bros. I stopped by the protest of prop 8 in downtown Pomona. Here is some footage, with a statement at the end.
From across the street along Garey. (Does anyone else agree that that massive parking lot at WaMu is a major waste of space?)
Crossing Garey on Second, protesters coming towards me. (please excuse the glare streaks from here on out. I don't have a real video camera)
Moving in the same direction of protesters Car/Bike's-Eye-View along Second st Antique Row. (note the police car keeping the peace, I actually caught one of them sleeping in his car with it on over by Sakura Ichi, must've been pretty boring for them. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me Mr. Officer. I don't want to get on his bad side and he clearly saw me.)
Protestors coming towards me at Second St. Antique Row, Cars are honking and people are on both sides of the street.
Wrapping the corner from Second to Third along Gibbs. The background is either crazy cloud cover or the Fires in Carbon Canyon. (this one's a little longer but the different chants are interesting, I'm glad they didn't rhyme 8 with 8)
Last Video, Corner of Garey and Third, being swarmed by protesters. After reviewing the video I spotted Bill Korthof the owner of Energy Efficiency Solar in Pomona(they install solar panel systems) He also owns the Regen Co-op houses in Pomona. If you don't know who he is, he's probably the most conservative looking one in this video.
Pomona looked different on this day. It was grand, and I wish there were more of this more often, about anything. The crowd wasn't that large, it was definitely minuscule only in comparison to the Anti-war protests just before the Iraq War in 2001/2 in Downtown LA, (I helped to film some of that for a documentary in China called "Run, China" with a real camera(please check it out, video is split in three parts)). The sound of the landscape was very different, the sounds of the environment seemed to have the most impact. If people were just marching, people would not be heard, it could be easier to ignore them if sounds were missing. In this moment people were in fact taking back Pomona. I'm almost certain that if this many people were out everyday violence and crime in Pomona would reduce. The presence of other people make people who are about to do no good more apprehensive. In this special case the presence of activists encourage others to be more active. I digress... Anyways, Pomona, Good job.
"M&A is a research center dedicated to pushing new and underused ideas for art, landscape and architecture into view." I'll show some photos of the place later on.
Time Banking is a very interesting concept developed by Edgar Cahn. Lisa Gerstein and Autumn Rooney explained to us the system of trade based on time. What you do is you work for someone for an hour and then you've earned a one hour time dollar which can be spent on having someone do something else for you! One issue of concern brought up was that some people may consider their time more valuable based on the work you do. Well, get over it! An hour is an hour. How many times have you helped a friend based on your expertise? Well that friend probably owes you a couple of dog walks, and with a time bank you can "purchase" an hour from anyone involved in the community! This system is not the same as bartering. The terminology is actually tax exempt, even the goods trading is tax exempt, but that trade is based on the honor system.
I think this form of exchange of services can be very useful, I wonder if it would work in Pomona. There is software to keep this all in order available from timebanks.org In fact if we had a time bank in Pomona I would offer my Landscape and Environmental Expertise in time dollars.
It's a great book (I haven't read it completely yet) about self sufficiency in the urban arena, It includes not just home gardening but also how to cook with passive solar energy, how to store food for the long haul, and also many other eco-friendly and cost effective ways to sustain oneself.
I had the chance to speak with Erik and he's a really nice guy, I asked him if he would speak at my school about his book at one of our community dinners. He said he has been meaning to come out and visit the Regenerative Studies Center, and well, this would be a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. I will keep ya'll posted as the events unfurl.
And about M&A there is an installation in the front called Yakuza Lou, I took some shots of the robotic ephemeral landform.
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