May09...the date I've been writing on paperwork for years...the month I would defend my architecture graduate project, create a book detailing the research and design process, and wear a funny black gown and square cap with a dangling tassel...and it's here!!
The last 12 semesters of my life really have been those "best years of my life" that they say college is...although I fully intend to try to outdo them for the rest of my life! I know I will really miss the change - the new subjects to learn, professors to learn from, and friends to learn with - that came each semester. I will miss being surrounded by hundreds of ambitious people from many walks of life striving to build a future for themselves in a field they excel in. I will miss walking across campus on those sunny days, getting caught up in the rhythm of 3 different songs coming from the on-campus housing or a passing car, and seeing all the students out on the lawns enjoying life between classes. I will miss the guaranteed weeks off for spring and fall break, and I will certainly miss the feeling of accomplishment at the end of each project.
I chose to focus my final graduate project on affordable housing in Moscow. It is an issue that has interested me for years, especially when Andy and I were house-hunting and could not find what we needed in town. Last fall, I had a seminar that helped to identify a specific problem and focus my research in order to build up to the first steps of the design process. Then, this spring semester was spent designing a solution to the problem we identified in the fall. We had critique sessions throughout the semester: one-on-ones with the professor, in small groups with our peers, and a mid- and a final-critique with guest professors/architects, peers, and bystanders.
Over the years, the professors were always building up to this grand finale - encouraging us to go watch the grad students each year and laying on the pressure. What they didn't tell us is that this project is the one we would know the most about when we hung our work on the wall. That we would have spent at least 9 months building a knowledge base and working and re-working the solution in our minds. That when we stood up in front of the panel of critics, peers, friends, family, and underclassmen, we would be the current expert on the subject and we would have the answers. Sure, they would critique the fine points of our design and point to holes in our research, but when it's all said and done nobody had spent the time and effort on it that we had and they'd acknowledge that our solution might not be the only one, but that it would certainly be a viable one. It was really not as scary as I expected it to be! And, now that it's behind me, I can't believe the hours I spent preparing for that hour in the spotlight!
So, here are some images from the final presentation to spark your imagination:
The site plan is the 3-acre site developed into a community land trust housing project, where residents own their homes but lease the land. There are community garden plots, fruit trees, covered parking, etc. and different housing types to choose from (condos, rowhouses, and detached single family homes).
The north end of the lot has a kid's play area in a park setting and a sport court.
Here is the view as you drive into the site.
The building above is the housing center. It has the management office, mail room, laundry, indoor bike storage, party rooms for reservation, and guest rooms upstairs for those who may not have spare room in their home for guests to sleep.
Pictured above are the community garden plots, terraced because of the slope of the site. The little garden shed has compost bins along the outside wall that are set up for the method where you move the compost along the line as it decomposes so that the first bin is always raw goods and the end bin is always ready to use. The building to the left is the back of the housing center and then you can see some detached single-family housing on the right, and garages with apartments above in the distance.
And, this is the overall bird's eye view of the design. Mission accomplished!
And, now I am free to go play in the sunshine!
President Daley-Laursen described the day as a graduation, or completion, of one phase of life and a commencement, or beginning, of a new one. Even with a bleak economy, I still say that the commencement is what I looked forward to the most. It feels good to put some things behind, but even better to put energy into future possibilities.
The building I've spent the last 2 years of schooling in is undergoing an intense remodel now, so here is a shot of the sign with a hint of construction in the background!
Thank you, dear sister-friends, for being that giddy energy for me to get me thru long nights of homework, for making the most of my vacation/breaks, and for at least acting as excited as I felt!
Thank you, Andyman, for being my constant, my coach, my listening ear, my needed distraction, and even my chef. Definitely could not have made it thru so happily without you!
And thank you, unpictured family and closest friends for believing in me. That is the fuel that feeds the fire. With you behind me, I know I will eventually accomplish everything I aim for on this road ahead.
photos courtesy of Margaret and Andy
