Category: Blog

Categories
Blog Life

Ripping good times

Thursday, January 26, 2006

So Buendia got me a turntable for Christmas, and I’m having much fun converting my vinyl to MP3 format. The records seem to have survived 18 months in the garage without too much trouble.

I’m struck by the way technology has influenced the creative process. Albums used to have sides, and artists would use the limitations of the medium to their advantage. So you’d have an up side and a more reflective side, or you’d have to make sure you started side 2 with a killer track.

Often, when I’d first buy an album I’d spend a couple of weeks just listening to the first side, to allow myself to really get it before turning it over.

And now all this analogue mechanical stuff is being filtered through my trusty PowerBook at home, and ending up on my iPod and the Mac Mini in the office. When we tell Finn that music used to come as an object, not just a data file to be accessed whenever and however we like, she’ll just laugh. But then I’ll show her the vinyl.

Posted by David in • Life

Permalink
Categories
Arts reviews Blog

Blubbering fool

Thursday, January 05, 2006

Since Finn’s been born (and also before, truth to tell), I’ve been very easily moved to tears.

Sometimes a news item will see me crying, especially if kids are involved somehow. But most of my tears are shed over movies.

This week, the great documentary Mad Hot Ballroom did it for me. 

It traces the progress of three sets of 11-year-olds from different New York public schools as they learn ballroom dancing and then compete in a city-wide dance off.

It’s thought-provoking, funny and ridiculously cute, and there are enough ‘aaahhhh’ moments to see me crying.

Worth a look (and you probably won’t cry).

Posted by David in • Arts reviews

Permalink
Categories
Blog Life Santa Fe and New Mexico

Ho hum

Thursday, January 05, 2006

Is it wrong that I loudly shout ‘Wanker!’ at every Hummer I see?

Whether I’m walking or driving, it’s most unlikely the driver will ever hear me (although I’m careful to enunciate carefully, to help them lip-read).

Buendia points out they might not know what a wanker is, and even if they did, might not associate the criticism directly with their choice of vehicle. But I think anyone driving one (there are a distressing number around Santa Fe), is always thinking ‘Don’t I look great in this vehicle?’.

So I’m answering the question that’s in their head.

I”m just not as committed as these guys.

Categories
Blog Mississippi book

Plan B

Saturday, December 03, 2005

plan B in the planningSo with some help from Buendia (who reckons she should have been an editor, not an architect), I’ve come up with something of a plan for the Mississippi book: less Mississippi, more David.

I’d thought I would have something important to say about the red states, and urban decline and all that, and while I did see some interesting stuff, most of my conclusions could have been reached in the comfort of an armchair a long way from Iowa or Arkansas.

Also, how much does any travel writer really get inside a place that they only visit for 24 hours, before heading off to the next target?

I realised that the more interesting topics were more personal – how I came to have this troubled but affectionate relationship with America, and what I’ve gleaned from living in 3 different parts of it, not just drifting through.

The photo shows part of the planning for the next draft – some Mississippi stuff is still there (in pink, if you’re interested) – but there’s a lot more Kansas, San Francsico and Santa Fe in there (green post-its), and some broader themes (the yellow stuff).

Now all I have to do is write it (again).

Posted by David in • Mississippi book

Permalink
Categories
Blog Mississippi book

The difficult second album

Monday, November 28, 2005

So you might have been wondering what’s happening with the second book, the follow-up to The Accidental Pilgrim. You’re not the only one – I’ve had to tell my Dad to stop asking about it, because it upsets me to have to report every week that I’ve done nothing on it for months.

But I’ve finally sorted out some time to stop being a full-time half-time web designer, and take a look at what I’ve got, and what I want to do with it.

And it’s not a pretty sight. I feel like a rock band settling down to make their second album: the first was well-received, but since then everything’s changed and they’re not sure what the hell’s going on.

First, some back story. I cycled all the way down the Mississippi in the summer of 2003, just before I got married. The decision to go down the river was partly one of expediency, and starting it I was underprepared and less than completely enthused. Cycling across Europe had at least ended up as a sort of a pilgrimmage; this felt like a business trip.

The whole thing was a bit of a slog, and I didn’t enjoy it that much. I saw some interesting stuff, and had a few scrapes and adventures, but my heart wasn’t really in it. So not a great start.

Then back in Dublin after we got married, I never really got down to the writing. I was working 4 days a week, and never found (or wanted to find) the time to devote to it. The Accidental Pilgrim came out around then, so my extra-curricular activities were devoted to going on TV3’s Morning Ireland, or talking to Marian Finucane or whatever.

Moving to Santa Fe finally freed up time to write – while I was waiting for my work permit – and I dashed out a first draft in the summer and autumn of last year. I wasn’t really happy with it, but at least it was a start.

That I promptly ignored for a year – I started Moore Consulting, got busy, and then Fionnuala arrived. Since then, Buendia and I have each been working half-time running our respective businesses, so it’s taken until now to grab some space to think about it.

All of which sounds like a string of excuses and self-justifications for inactivity. Writers write – and even within some pretty tight constraints I could have done a lot more. But my sense of why I didn’t gets to the heart of the problem – I’m just not that excited about the project as it stands.

Expediency is not a great well to draw from if you’re looking fo creativity, and wanting to write another book was more important to me than wanting to write this book. So now I’ve got a first draft I’m not that excited about, on the subject of a trip I wasn’t that excited about in the first place.

But there’s some good stuff there, and I’m keen to turn into something I actually like. So now I’m batting around all sorts of unlikely ideas – fictionalize it, turn it into a performance piece, or a series of essays, or set fire to the whole lot . . .

What’s crucial is that I find a way to turn this amorphous bunch of stuff into something I’m interested in working on. Cranking out the Accidental Pilgrim 2 by rote won’t really cut it. I’ll let you know what I come up with.

Posted by David in • Mississippi book

Permalink
Categories
Blog News

Exploring the lesser-known parts of New Mexico

Thursday, November 17, 2005

off the road websiteI don’t normally talk about work stuff over here – there’s plenty of room for that on the Moore Consulting site – but I though you might be interested in the latest site I’ve built for the NM economic development department.

Off the Road is “a transparently opinionated website focusing on shopping and dining in the downtowns of all 21 New Mexico MainStreet communities. Here, we show you where to find bargain collectables, a cute pair of shoes, or a piping-hot plate of green chile enchiladas – all from locally owned businesses found on main streets, town squares, and plazas across New Mexico.”

There are slideshow and a quiz to tell you where you should visit based on your personality, and with the help of my friend Dana, the design has a suitably quirky feel that I couldn’t have managed on my own. 

Posted by David in • News

Permalink
Categories
Arts reviews Blog

‘Arrested Development’ arrested

Monday, November 14, 2005

Say it isn’t so. Fox have cancelled what I have no hesitation in saying is the funniest TV comedy I’ve ever seen – ‘Arrested Development’.

I came late to the party – the show is starting its third season (one that it won’t finish), and we started watching part of the way through the second – but it’s innovative and flat out hilarious.

It’s been honored with Emmys, and lauded by the critics, but it seems the viewing figures at the beginning of this season were poor. I partly blame baseball. Having moved the show from Sundays to Mondays, Fox then broadcast most of the playoff and World Series games, essentially wrecking the schedule for a month.

When things returned to normal last week with 2 back-to-back episodes, the viewing figures were down (unsurprisingly, as no-one knew where to find the show any more).

So to avoid losing viewers for ‘Prison Break’, which follows, they canned Arrested Development.

The only bright spot is that there are 40-odd episodes so I’d recommend doing what we’re doing: working through them at your own pace, and savouring the fantastic scripts and great acting.

Get ‘em while they’re hot (and if you’re in the UK or Ireland, just hope Channel 4 or someone still buys the episodes that did get made):

Posted by David in • Arts reviews

Permalink
Categories
Blog Santa Fe and New Mexico

The day the (gospel) music died

Sunday, November 06, 2005

dining utensilsOne of the problems of living in a tourist town like Santa Fe (and especially having an office downtown) is that there are precious few places for locals to eat in the heart of things.

And this situation has been made worse by the closure of Carlos’ Gosp’l Cafe, a regular stop on our lunctime circuit. No more Miles Standish sandwiches for us, and it’s goodbye to the green chile turkey melt.

Aside from the Subway and the underwhelming and slightly overpriced Plaza Cafe, the pickings are slim for a cheap quick fill up (if you want upscale dining, that’s a different story, and there are enough cafes to keep you in lattes – it’s just the space in the middle we’re lacking).

The good news is that there are excellent locals’ options a little further away from downtown: Harry’s, Dave’s, Counter Culture, Cloudcliff . . . If any of these establishments were magically transported to Dublin, they’d wipe the floor with almost every place you can think of.

But getting to them means driving, and one of the attractions of life here is the smallscale nature of downtown life. Except if you’re hungry.

UPDATE: The Santa Fe Reporter (situated even closer to Carlos’ Gosp’l than our office is) ran a cover story on the subject, entitled ’Requiem for a Sandwich‘

Posted by David in • Santa Fe and New Mexico

Permalink
Categories
Blog Santa Fe and New Mexico

Autumn in Santa Fe

Monday, October 24, 2005

We’re getting some bright crisp days now – perfect autumnal cold mornings with brilliant blue skies.

First is the street the office is on, and below is a view of the cathedral (just across the road from the office too).

E. Palace autumn - large
image

Posted by David in • Santa Fe and New Mexico

Permalink
Categories
Blog Life

Hit with the ugly stick

Saturday, October 22, 2005

The news that fewer Americans are now buying SUVs is welcome – especially in these parts, where the 400-year-old roads aren’t built for Chevy Suburbans (so called because they’re the size of a small neighbourhood) or Nissan Armadas (named for the fleet of ship required to bring all the petrol they need).

But the cars people are buying instead are fugly.

Exhibit A – the Chrysler 300.

One of the more successful US-produced cars of recent years. It looks so square and squat it suggests it was sat on by a giant elephant.

Exhibit B – the Dodge Magnum.

There’s no angle from which this doesn’t look clumsy and malformed.
Plus it’s named for a choc-ice or a cheesy 80s detective, neither of which are that good.

Exhibit C – the entire Cadillac range.
The CTS, DTS and STS all look a lot like those fake luxury-barges Kia and Hyundai make. You know, the ones that if you squint at them in the distance you can see the Mercedes and Lexus shapes they ripped off, but when you get close you see how all the changes they’ve made have ruined the lines and overall effect. But the cadis are super expensive.

Exhibit D – the Buick Lacrosse.

Only old people buy Buicks (except in China, where they’re seen as hipster – go figure), which explains why you have to be partially-sighted to think they look good.

Special mention has to given to the estate or wagon versions of many of the US-produced cars which are even worse than the saloons. The 300M in particular resembles nothing so much as a hearse. Not such a stylin look. Add in the usual complaints about interior quality, hulking inefficient low-tech engines and problems going round corners, and I’m not sure why anyone would want one.

The US motor industry has partly been sheltered from reality for last few years while people bought big SUVs and didn’t care about fuel consumption. But now petrol is more expensive (relatively) here, European (and espeically Japanese) car markers must be rubbng their hands (except for VW, who can’t seem to buy a sale of their cars over here recently, for some reason).

Next year we’ll probably get a second car – Fionnuala will need increasing amounts of fetching and carrying, and we each have jobs to go to and all that – so I’m beginning to look at whats available right now.

For a start, we know it will be small and a hatchback – say the size of a Golf or Peuogeot 307 – which makes us weird here, but whatever. The new Golfs (available in Europe for some time) won’t make it here until the New Year, but I’m not so sold on them. But there are still a few options for something that looks less like than the back of a bus.

The Mazda 3 looks smart and is getting great reviews, while the Audi A3 4-door hatchback they’re offering here looks fantastic, if pricey: 2.0 litre turbo engine generating 200HP, great auto/manual transmission with paddle shifters, bombproof interior and great handling.

We’ll see what eventually happens, but one thing is sure. We’re not getting a Yankowagon that’s taken a bit hit with the ugly stick. And don’t get me started on Hummers.

(thanks to NewCars.com for the images.)

Posted by David in • Life

Permalink