Photopost: Cooperstown

My son and I took an overnight trip during spring break to Cooperstown to visit the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.  This is my fourth trip to Cooperstown and the Hall of Fame.  I have mixed feelings about Cooperstown.  On the one hand, Cooperstown is an absolutely gorgeous village and its fun to drive the winding roads through scenic farmland to get to the town and its excellent museums.  On the other hands, the story of baseball being invented in Cooperstown is completely fabricated, and places with much better claims on being the place where baseball was invented in New York City, New Jersey, and New England would be a lot easier to get to for most visitors.  Cooperstown needs the Hall of Fame more than the Hall of Fame needs Cooperstown.

That being said we had a great time walking through the town that was largely empty of people, visiting the baseball memorabilia stores, and taking in the exhibits at the Hall of Fame.  I took a lot of photographs including the plaques of all my favorite Hall of Famers and posted them in this web album.

A stately church building.

A cheerful yellow house.

All-American Girls Professional Baseball League uniforms.

The hats worn by Nolan Ryan for each of his no-hitters.

Statue of Ted Williams.

The Phillie Phanatic trapped in a glass box.

Peter pays due reverences to the 2018 World Series Champion Red Sox exhibit.

 

Podcasts of the Week Ending April 27

Fresh Air :: Actor Glenda Jackson Is King Lear

Glenda Jackson is an experienced actor who talks about her long career.  She’s also a former Member of Parliament who spoke the truth about Margaret Thatcher after the latter’s death.  She’s now portraying King Lear on Broadway and I want to go see that now.

99% Invisible :: Play Mountain

Isamu Noguchi was a sculptor and designer with an interesting life story.  He designed an abstract playground structure for New York City but was rejected by Robert Moses, who became a lifelong enemy (and this makes me love Noguchi more).  During World War II, he volunteered for internment in order to design a humane camp for the Japanese-American internees, and then found himself both unable to influence the design and unable to leave.  Today, his legacy lives on in unique, abstract playgrounds.

More or Less :: The economic impact of mega sporting events

Proponents of the Olympic Games claim the event can bring great economic benefits to host cities, but the numbers show otherwise.

 

Running tally of Podcast of the Week appearances:

• Afropop Worldwide – 1
• The Anthropocene Reviewed – 1
• BackStory – 1
• Best of the Left– 1
• Code Switch – 2
• Decoder Ring  – 1
• Fresh Air – 4
• Hidden Brain – 2
• Hit Parade – 1
• Household Name – 1
• Hub History – 1
• Memory Palace – 2
• More or Less – 1
• More Perfect – 2
• 99% Invisible – 7
• The New Yorker Radio Hour – 1
• On the Media – 2
• Planet Money – 1
• Planet Money: The Indicator – 1
• Re:Sound – 1
• Radiolab  – 1
• Radio Boston – 2
• 60 Second Science – 1
• Smithsonian Sidedoor – 2
• This American Life – 1
• Throughline – 4
• To the Best of Our Knowledge – 1
• Tomorrow Society – 1
• The Truth – 2
• Twenty Thousand Hertz  – 2
• The War on Cars – 1
• WBUR News – 2
• We Need Some Milk – 1
• What Next – 1

Book Review: Designing Disney by John Hench

Author: John Hench
Title: Designing Disney: Imagineering and the Art of the Show 
Publication Info: Disney Editions (2009)
Summary/Review:

John Hench joined the Walt Disney Studios animation department in 1939, became an Imagineer in 1954, and continued working up until a few days before his death in 2004.  So there’s no one better to write about how Disney Parks are designed with an emphasis on detail and drawing the viewer in as an active participant.  I particularly like how he talked about a three-dimensional cross-disolve, using a film term to describe the ways in Disney Imagineers design transitions between different lands and attractions.  Hench also goes into great detail about how different colors are used, and how he gave a lot of thought to the color of the sky in Anaheim, Orlando, Tokyo, Paris, and Hong Kong.  This is a nice, richly illustrated dive into the world of imagineering, although I admit I’m still looking for the book that will really get into the nitty-gritty.

Recommended books: Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind the Dreams Look At Making the Magic Real by The Imagineers and The Disneyland Story: The Unofficial Guide to the Evolution of Walt Disney’s Dream by Sam Gennawey
Rating: ***1/2

Podcasts of the Week Ending December 15

99% Invisible :: The Accidental Room

The absolutely true story of a community of artists secretly building a condominium in a vacant space within a shopping mall.

WBUR :: Hundreds Buried In Nameless Graves In Waltham ID’d By Local Historian And High-Schoolers

High school students work to identify the graves of people who had been kept in institutions for people with mental and physical disabilities from the 1940s to 1970s.  A horrifying glimpse into the recent history of the mistreatment of people with disabilities.

WBUR :: What A Boston Student’s Deportation Reveals About School Police and Gang Intelligence

Of course, injustice is still with us today, as this story of school policing and discrimination against immigrants demonstrates.

 

Double Dose of Walking Tours: Boston’s South End and SoWa District

Are you interested in exploring two different parts of Boston’s historic South End neighborhood?  If yes, come out and take two Boston By Foot walking tours I will be leading.

First, tomorrow night, Thursday, September 20, 6 pm-7:30 pm, the South End tour leaves from the plaza opposite the Back Bay MBTA Station on Dartmouth Street.

Next, there are two opportunities to explore SoWa: South of Washington on Sunday, September 23, 2018 (a members preview tour – you can become member online or in person) and Sunday, September 30, 2018. Both tours start at 2 pm from Broadway Station on the Red Line.

Tickets are $15/person ($5 for BBF members) and can be purchased online or in person before the tour begins on Sunday.

Travelogue: Chicago

We spent the last full week of summer traveling to Chicago where we visited with cousins, watched baseball games, and enjoyed the art, architecture, and culture this great city has to offer.  Mind you, we didn’t get to far out of the Loop and the adjacent areas, so we basically scratched the surface of what Chicago has to offer, but it was a good introduction for the kids first visit. Aside from some sibling bickering, everyone had a great time.

Tuesday

• We arrived early in the morning at O’Hare International Airport where I was delighted to see Michael Hayden’s Sky’s the Limit neon light display that I first saw back in 1991 is still gracing the pedestrian walkway with the accompaniment of “Rhapsody in Blue.”
• We rode the Blue Line into the city and checked into the vintage hotel Inn of Chicago, that stands among the fancy stores, gleaming hotels, and massive hospitals of the Near North.
• The bell staff recommended eating lunch at Giordano’s, so we settled in for some Chicago-style stuffed pizza.  It was yummy.
• Despite being tired and cranky, we went to the Field Museum to see the dinosaurs and mummies.  I felt the museum was slightly overwhelming, looking a little rough around the edges.  But the Evolving Planet exhibition is very well done, and although Sue the T Rex was officially supposed to be off exhibit, I was delighted we got to peak through a window to see her in her new exhibit space under construction.

Wednesday

• Peter and I picked up breakfast at Stan’s Doughnuts whose super healthy baked goods were sold in the lobby of a hospital.
• Next came one of the highlights of our trip, a sort-of double header between the Mets and Cubs at Wrigley Field.  Full report here.
• In the evening, we rode a free trolley bus (much to Kay’s delight) to Navy Pier. Kay and Susan rode the swings, and Kay and I soared above Lake Michigan in the Centennial Wheel.  We finished the day with the weekly firework display.

Thursday

• We walked up the Magnificent Mile and passed by the Gothic Revival structure of the Chicago Water Tower, one of the prominent survivors of the Great Fire of 1871.
• We ate delicious pancakes and omelets for breakfast at Wildberry Cafe.
• Peter wasn’t feeling well, so I took Kay Millennium Park where we explored Cloud Gate and the Crown Fountain.  And then Kay played and played and played (and Daddy pushed the swings harder) in Maggie Daley Park. We also strolled through Grant Park to see Buckingham Fountain.
• We met up with Susan and Peter for dinner at Miller’s Pub in The Loop. The restaurant had kind of an old-school feel to it in the fact that the tables and booths were arranged in a way I  haven’t seen since I was a kid.  The food was good, but I wouldn’t go out of my way for it.
• We finished Thursday with more baseball as the Red Sox and White Sox played a night game at Guaranteed Rate Field.   Full report here.

Friday

• We once again started the day with doughnuts for breakfast at Do-Rite Doughnuts.  They were delicious.
• We sailed on the Chicago River on Wendella Boats to explore the architecture and history of the city.  Chicago is known for it’s intensive architectural tours, but this 45-minute cruise was just right to satisfy a geeky Dad without testing the kids’ patience.
• While the rest of the family rested at the hotel, I took myself on a self-guide art and architecture walk of The Loop, where I could admire the works of Jean Dubuffet, Pablo Picasso, Joan Miro, Marc Chagall, Alexander Calder, and Daniel Burnham.
• In the evening we ventured out on the Brown Line to visit with Susan’s cousins. The kids got play, the adults got to talk, and we all enjoyed authentic Mexican takeaway food!

Saturday

• Our final meal was brunch at West Egg Cafe, once again recommended by the bell staff at the hotel. It was both tasty and filling.
• Riding a double-decker Big Bus Tour around any city would not make my top 100 list of things to do, but Peter’s always wanted to take one of these tours, and since he was still not feeling well it was a good way to see the city without too much exertion.  Peter and I did the full loop, while Susan and Kay hopped off so Kay could play some more at Maggie Daley Park.

 

Maximo shares a smile.

Spinning cogs on the Navy Pier.

The Hancock Center needs some crenelations.

Chicago skyline bent by the “Bean”

Glowing Cloud Gate

Floating Kay.

Swing out sister.

Spitting face.

Jeanne Gang’s Aqua Tower peaks out around another building.

A play city within a city.

Rainbow over Buckingham.

Marina City with seagulls.

Aqua Tower again makes everything around it look better.

A Picasso so-and-so.

Miro’s Chicago.

Calder’s Flamingo.

A city of towers and bridges.

Muddy mural.

Elevation.

Chicago is a great city! I must make sure to not wait over a decade before I return there again. I’d even consider living in Chicago, especially now that Rahm Emanuel is stepping down as Mayor.

Podcasts of the Week Ending August 18

This is a particularly fruitful week for podcasts with a bumper crop of excellent episodes!

Afropop Worldwide :: Skippy White: A Vinyl Life

Checking in with a legendary soul & R&B record shop owner and entrepreneur, Skippy White.  His shop is located in Boston’s Egleston Square, not far from where I live, but this is the first I’ve heard of him!

Code Switch :: Behind the Lies My Teacher Told Me

An interview with James Loewen, author of the seminal critique of American history education, Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong.

Hub History :: Folk Magic and Mysteries at the Fairbanks House

Daniel Neff, curator of the Fairbanks House museum in Dedham, talks about the house build by Puritan colonists that contains hidden charms and hex marks meant to ward off evil.

99% Invisible :: It’s Chinatown

The stories behind the origins of the distinctive architectural styles of American Chinatowns and the fortune cookie, neither of which actually originated in China.

Snap Judgment :: Talk of the Town

A local salesman, a fixture of his Oakland neighborhood, goes missing and is believed dead leading to an outpouring of remembrance in the community.  But one journalist digs deeper to find out what actually happened to the mystery man.

Tiny Desk Concerts :: Yo-Yo Ma

The famed cellist performs pieces of Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello by Johann Sebastian Bach, and talks about learning to play the instrument.

Twenty Thousand Hertz :: Loop Groups

The work of the hidden actors who perform the background sounds of crowd scenes in movies.

 

Podcasts of the Week Ending November 11

Mortified :: Kids Who Teach

Stories of kids becoming teachers, including a stunning musical defense of feminism.

Have You Heard? :: What We Talk About When We Talk About the Corporate Education Agenda

An explanation of why major corporations have become big players in education policy and what it means for the rest of us.

Planet Money :: Your Cell Phone’s A Snitch

What personal information is gathered by your cell phones, how it’s being used by law enforcement and others, and what rights do we have under the Constitution to privacy.

99% Invisible :: Dollhouses of St. Louis

The sad story of  St. Louis’ historic black neighborhood, The Ville, where old houses are being robbed of their bricks for resale to salvage operations.

Podcasts of the Week Ending October 28th

To the Best of Our Knowledge :: You Had To Be There

Stories of places that are gone that are difficult at best to experience vicariously – from movie palaces to a video game based on Walden.

Fresh Air :: The Life and Death of Eric Garner

The details of Eric Garner’s life and final moments when murdered by the police on Staten Island are filled in by Matt Taibbi, author of the new book I Can’t Breathe.

99% Invisible :: La Sagrada Familia

The ongoing story of Barcelona’s most famous landmark, the masterpiece of architect Antoni Gaudí, and the efforts of subsequent generations of builders to follow his vision.

The Truth :: The Decider

A mesmerizing audio play about how a woman’s life is changed by a device that makes decisions for her.

#TryPod Day 2: 99% Invisible

All this month, I’ve heard about the campaign to spread the news of podcasts called TryPod.  As I am a voracious listener of podcasts (you can see the complete list of my current subscriptions and other recommendations on my podcast page), I figured I ought to participate while I can.  So I will post about one of my favorite podcasts every day for the last 9 days of March.

99% Invisible is one of my absolute favorite podcasts.  It’s a podcast about design, which is kind of vague and misleading, because this podcast encompass a wide variety of topics.  Each episode, host Roman Mars leads the listener through the unoticed architecture and design that shape our world.

Some of my favorite episodes:

• “Frozen assets” – The story of Frederic Tudor, the Ice King.
• “Project Cybersyn” – Fascinating story of a futuristic room designed to be the place where the economy of Chile would be controlled under the Salvador Allende government.  It would be destroyed by the Pinochet dictatorship with only one photograph surviving.
• “On Average” – It’s a cliché to say that no one is average, but the science bears it out.  Not only that but it’s actually dangerous to assume that an average can define a human characteristic.  And who knew that the military was behind the sizing of everything?
• “Photo Credit” –  This episode is about the photographer Lucia Moholy who documented the architecture and designs of the Bauhaus movement basically keeping the style alive when World War II and the Eastern Bloc prevented access to the original works, but she received little credit for her art and contributions.
• “A Sea Worth It’s Salt” – The unlikely story of California’s largest body of water, created by accident in the early 1900s, turned into a tourist resort in the 50s and 60s, and today scorned for it’s unaturalness even within the environmental movement, despite being home to scores of unique species of birds.
• “Structural Integrity” – The story of how a New York City skyscraper almost fell over.
• “The Shift” – dissecting baseball’s defensive strategy.