Ouchita National Forest

Field trip to the Ouchita National Forest on the eastern edge of the state and running into Arkansas just South of I-40. Magnificent place to visit and I highly recommend it.

Touring OK

There is a great source of Oklahoma pictures at flicker And a whole list of photo communities at BlogOklahoma

The Cutting Edge

February 15th-17th
Check it out: aggieworkshop

Adaptive Reuse

We seem to be a throw away society. Here is a great example of adaptive reuse. It reminds me of Van's Pig Stands in Norman. According to Roadside Architecture of old gas stations reused, Van's in Norman use to be an old Sinclair station.



p.s. Van's is one of my favorite bbq places. Check out roadfood.com for some added info.

Design at its finest

I love this, and I can't resist sharing. Notice our obsession with fences and boxes. Check out Sunnydale Trailer Park . Is there any difference between a trailer park or a high end neighborhood?

Green Industry

I find it really hard to separate green industry from green-washed industry. Sustainable Industries has a source book that looks interesting. I am always interested in realistic solutions and truly green solutions.

Wichita Mnts

These photos are from two trips. One trip with my family and a later trip with class. The Wichita Mountains wildlife preserve is beautiful. Make the time to get down there.

Craigieburn Bypass

I have an old post of the Craigieburn Bypass, and it is worth checking out.

Home town photos

I got these pictures in the mail tonight from my sister. These are pictures of my home town in north central Washington.

Thanks Jan







Hardly Oklahoma. That is the mighty Columbia, tamed by Azwell dam, and officially called Lake Pateros. Lake Pateros for the prosperous town that was buried.

Cartograhpy

Eric a blogger from LA kind of kicked off this post. I like to cruise other blogs, and a link to Cartifact was incredible--homeless maps and more. I love maps, especially good maps. This all seems a little disjointed but it is interesting seeing how the rest of the world lives. Both Eric and Cartifact have some interesting finds.

Of course interesting and relevant are two different things. Oklahoma. Google Earth is the free download and you can get a pretty good idea of the state with this.

I like the department of wildlifes site for Oklahoma's mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibion information.

The USDA Forest service has some maps (roadless maps). Too bad they don't have a more extensive collection. Becareful, this site can bog your machine down.

Today Water watch is showing normal precipitation. Water watch is a map of real-time streamflow compared to historical streamflow for the day of the year for Oklahoma. Also at the USGS water site is
Map of flood and high flow condition
Ground water watch
Water quality
Drought watch


Seismicity of Oklahoma and other quaky info from USGS

Terraserver has a great aerial and topo map site

The USGS national map viewer

Oklahoma's Aquifer info and maps

NOAA's Weather map

NOAA's serious data tables on average everything to do with climate

Make a map with National Atlas.gov This is a great source.

OTC hiway bypass info--I've not quite figured this map out, but it might come in handy for something


There is an endless supply of maps on the web. I'm signing off for the night. I'm sure I'll run across more to add at a later date.

More Ice storm pictures

I love patterns that can be found in nature. This ice storm changed the structure of the dormant and dead into dazzling displays of light. As the sun got higher in the sky the fields sparkled as if bejeweled for a lavish celebration. The storm is so destructive. Trees groaned under the weight and the architectural stalks of the prairie grass bent low to the ground and some were even crushed. As destructive as an ice storm is, it is absolutely breathtaking in beauty and splendor. It looks otherworldly.

I grew up in apple country, and the fall and early spring orchard sprinklers would sometimes turn the trees into spectacles of ice or the pastures into fields of glistening crystals. It is no wonder that their are so many odes and poems written about the hoar frost and the ice crystals of jack frost.

Beautiful. Would it be wrong to design a winter garden that the hoary frost could frolic in? Or to leave misting sprinklers on to accentuate the natural structures and baroque patterns of nature. Add an overhang long enough for the ice to melt and freeze into glistening sickles.

I'll have to remember and design me a winter garden. One that builds on the natural structure and shapes of plants and the winter pods and berries. One that invites that dreaded but beautiful ice.

Stream Team Conference

Here is a conference I would love to attend. After my work this semester on stream and river movement, I find fluvial geomorphology (I think I have that name right. Try saying that fast, 10 times.) a fascinating subject.

Christmas break work

Well I kept busy this break. It feels good to finish up this design. It was a design for a pool and kitchen activity area, a new memorial garden and pickleball court, a guest house, garage, tractor shed and greenhouse. This is one of the elevations I just finished up. Ironically this design is for north central Washington, on the dry side of the Cascades overlooking the lake. (I have no idea why the picture below turned out in those colors when I posted it, but I'm going to let it happen.)

School has started and because of the ice storm, transportation snafu's and my children's school being cancelled I've had to miss the first two days of class. What a way to start the semester off. I'm sure it gives a good impression to the professors too.



Hopefully, I'll be able to focus a little bit more time to my blog. I'm really looking forward to my LA History and Theory class.

Ice storm

Looks like we survived the ice storm of 2007. It has been a rough winter. It is bitter cold this morning and just last week the buds were swelling on the trees. I don't know how the plants survive this kind of weather.

"Oh, what a beautiful mornin'..."

The U.S. Postal Service releases its centennial stamp. Big sky, beautiful water, horizontal and gentle lines. It is beautiful and it does say something about Oklahoma. I think it does a pretty good job of representing Oklahoma.

With the issuance of this stamp, the U.S. Postal Service commemorates the centennial of Oklahoma's statehood.

The stamp design features an evocative painting by Oklahoma artist Mike Larsen. The painting shows the morning sunlight touching the waters of the Cimarron River, one of several rivers that meander through the state. Also included in the design are the words "Oh, what a beautiful mornin'..." - recalling a popular song from the musical Oklahoma! By Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II.

African American plaza--Capital Complex

The State is seeking more applicants for an African American plaza to be located north of the Capital on Lincoln Blvd, according to OkInsider. Currently 8 firms have submitted applications and 6 are from Oklahoma: Beck Design, CLS & Associates and Elliott and Associates Architects, all of Oklahoma City; EWCI of Tulsa; The Mckinney Partnership Architects of Norman and The Small Group of Edmond. No money yet, but should be a project to watch.

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Make a walk your New Years resolution

Holidays, family and traveling has consumed my vacation, and it has been a great vacation. I’m ready to get back to school. I’m looking forward to a semester of planting design and other technical issues. It is hard to get away from the computer, but it is so important to get some fresh air and allow the mind to think. I try to walk, and so I have included pictures from my walk. That is one of my new years resolutions, to get out more and experience more. The computer can be such a black hole when it comes to my time.

These pictures I’m sharing were taken just down the road on one of my walks. Oklahoma has such great character, even in the winter. It is not as green as Seattle in the winter, but it has life. The deciduous trees take on new forms that accentuate their skeletons, and the horizon changes because of the lack of leaves. We see the woods in a different light, because of the lack of color and lack of leaves.

I run across a great winter path shot at Landsessions. Check it out.

Here are my shots:

prairie in sepia

imposing cottonwoods

black walnuts and pecan embracing the road

mistletoe in the elm