Internet Commentator

Happy Birthday

To my daughter Zoe:

One year old today!

Work in progress II

It's quite a nice day today so I thought I'd take the opportunity to reassure 1) Chris that I'm still an architect and 2) Dick that my house ought to be complete before Dublin's greedy maw devours North Leinster, by taking a few pics:

Daddy Daycare

I might get an opportunity to correct my daughter's misidentification this weekend. Similar father-child bonding opportunities also present themselves for my brother and brother-in-law as all of our spouses will be in Brussels on a 'hen' weekend. I find it hard to muster up any apprehension or foreboding for this task - a diffidence my wife finds faintly alarming - although it may well be the case that my currently calm demeanour will be a distant memory come Sunday afternoon.

Note to my daughter

This, you know, the person beside you:

is Daddy.

This, on the other hand, is Greg from The Wiggles:

We are not the same person.

Work in progress

My new house, to which I referred previously (plans here) has (finally!) reached roof terrace level. Not that there's that much to see just yet but I thought I'd put a pic up:

Rome by phone

A few impressions of Rome as snapped by my T610:

TK5

Tomas Kohl has a nice post to mark his son's birthday including a quote from Lost in Translation (which also resonated with me when I heard it first):

Bob : The most terrifying day of your life is the day the first one is born.

Charlotte : Nobody ever tells you that.

Bob : Your life, as you know it... is gone. Never to return. But they learn how to walk, and they learn how to talk... and you want to be with them. And they turn out to be the most delightful people you will ever meet in your life.

Before you have kids you, sort of, know this, but you don't really appreciate this until it happens. Anyway, Tomas' cute picture of his son gave me the idea to (yet again) show off my own little "delightful people".

Zoe:

Isaac:

Plan A

Ciarán asked me to post plans of my house, referred to in the post below, so here they are:

"That's not a cartoon...

...it's a movie*" - my 3 year old niece, Molly, corrects me as to the designation of Disney's "Brother Bear".

[* also note: "movie" as opposed to "fillum"]

If Plan B fails, Try Plan A

It's been a while, but the construction of our new house is just about to start. This is what happens when an architect designs his own home:

1) It takes a few years, innumerable drafts, what-ifs and alternate versions before any kind of coherent design emerges. Let us call this design Plan A.

2) Planning permission is sought and obtained for that design. Note that the process of preparing that planning application occasioned many detours and refinements to the design. That this work is non-chargeable appears to have little effect in restraining employee-hours allocated to this process.

3) It is decided to change something about the appearance. This requires a new planning application.

4) Working drawings are prepared, a similar process to that to which point 2) refers.

5) Tenders are sought from building contractors. All tenders exceed ridiculously optimistic under-estimate budget. It is decided to examine where savings might obtain.

6) This process leads to a re-evaluation of Plan A and the emergence of a completely different design. Let us call it Plan B. Plan B's explicit purpose is to provide a slightly smaller house which should prove less expensive than Plan A.

7) Hey! if Plan B is cheaper, maybe we can have a basement.

8) See point 2)

9) See point 4)

10) Tenders for Plan B exceed those received for Plan A by a considerable degree, despite a reduction in floor area.

11) Hey! Maybe we will be able to see the sea from the roof terrace in Plan A.

12) Those who tendered for Plan A the first time around are either not in a position to stand over their tenders or not available. Tenders are sought (again) for Plan A.

13) A building contractor is appointed, foundations to be poured on Monday 10 May.

It is said that a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client. An architect who designs his own house has a dream client and a nightmare client wrapped up in one package and further, one who stiffs him on the fee!