Wish me luck

So, if you know me, you know that I'm a little disenchanted with my career choice. Therefore, I'm trying to change it. Below is a copy of the statement of purpose letter that I'm submitting to the geography department at the University of Washington tomorrow, 1/15. Who knows what will come of this? Not me. I'm excited to find out though.

Statement of Purpose
A step in this direction is somewhat daunting but I am embracing it nonetheless. I was trained as a Structural Engineer at Texas A&M University where I took two courses in geography to fulfill my undergraduate social science requirements. I originally chose geography over the more popular economics pairing because, at eighteen years old, I thought maps were more interesting than money.

I cannot say that we talked extensively about maps in either my Human Geography class or in the Political Geography class that I took two years later. I do, however, remember the professor telling the few engineers in the latter class, “you are not here to be educated; you are here to be trained.” Upon hearing this, I reflected on the narrowness, or maybe more of a specialization, of my curriculum and realized that I was enjoying this particular class so much because it covered so many different areas: history, economics, political science, and physical geography.

Thus the foundations of my career plans were formally shaken; here was a subject that interested me more than the path I had chosen. I had previously considered changing the focus of my studies but I hadn’t had a clear idea of what would better suit me. Being the pragmatic Texan I was, I chose to continue down the road that I had nearly completed traversing. A semester later I graduated with a Bachelor’s degree and continued on to a graduate program. I continued to spend my days learning the intricacies of Structural Engineering and my nights searching for meaning in novels.

Upon graduating, I accepted a structural engineering job in Denver, Colorado where I decided that philosophy was the path of study for me and audited a course at the University of Colorado at Boulder for part of a semester. Less than two years later, I accepted a similar position in Seattle, where I took an English literature class as a non-matriculated student at the University of Washington. Alas, both of these areas were at the opposite end of the spectrum from engineering: too abstract, not technical, not always logical, etc. I enjoyed the subject matter, the discussions, and the opportunity to use the right side of my brain, but I realized that I would be unable to apply any of these newfound skills to the physical world.

As these conclusions were gestating, my interests in the physical world had begun to develop in areas that I never would have imagined possible as a youth in Texas; mass transit, urbanization, and sustainability are words that have gone from the periphery of my vocabulary to the core of what I believe is important. I find myself spending evenings at Town Hall listening to researchers discuss the merits of replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct with surface streets and increased transit; I initiate conversations about the merits of urban density; I make it a point to read articles such as a recent one by Elizabeth Kolbert in The New Yorker about the oceans becoming a massive sink for atmospheric carbon dioxide; I send emails to my friends in Texas urging them to watch An Inconvenient Truth and Who Killed the Electric Car?; I help my fiancée pay for a Toyota Prius so that our one-car household can be as green as possible. Rather than focusing on the Professional Engineer’s exam, I am studying for the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) accreditation exam, which is a program implemented by the United States Green Building Council to encourage and reward environmentally friendly development.

All of this attempted activism satiates my immediate desire to improve the quality of the environment but it is immediately reversed, in my mind, every morning when arrive at work. As I sit down at my desk to design shopping malls and parking structures to be built in Anaheim, California or Honolulu, Hawaii, I feel like I am directly contributing to part of the problem rather than the solution. I would prefer that my creative and intellectual energies be directed toward a progressive end that I can support as a citizen, rather than a rebuilding of the status quo.

Geography interests me because I feel it spans the gap between the technical aspects of my current career path and the people that are ultimately affected by these developments. The path of study that I feel suits me the best would be an area that straddles geography and a branch of civil engineering. Relationships between LEED accredited buildings and traditional buildings would be an area that piques my interest; transportation issues and resulting effects on public health, mobility, and psychological phenomena is another.

The University of Washington’s department of geography would suit me for myriad reasons. Upon browsing the website and speaking with several professors, namely Dr. Tim Nyerges in the geography department and Dr. Scott Rutherford in the civil engineering department, I feel like research is being conducted in the areas that interest me and that the mindsets of these two faculty members parallel my own. I also feel that the community at large has the same concerns as I do and that living here has nourished this part of my identity. Furthermore, and more personally, my grandfather earned his doctorate from the University of Washington about forty years ago.

Keeping in mind my interests in the quality of life in the urban environment and the effects of the constructed environment on nature, I came across other faculty members whose current research and research interests lead me to believe that I would be a good fit. Dr. Sarah Elwood’s current project using GIS as a tool for urban planning and revitalization certainly piques my interest. Dr. Suzanne Davies Withers’ interests in quantitative methods and urban housing are also areas that I find very interesting. A few months ago I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Tim Nyerges in person about his work with the civil engineering department and the medical school and found this interdisciplinary research effort especially captivating.

Although I am currently applying for acceptance into the Master of Arts program, I hope to continue on at the Doctoral level. I realize that in coming from a different background there are many basic literatures pertaining to geography that I am not yet familiar with and, thus, there are certainly fascinating areas that are still unknown to me. The opportunity to take a few classes as a nomatriculated student, at the undergraduate or graduate level, in order to help construct the foundation I need as well as giving me a chance to meet some faculty members and prove my worthiness, would be greatly appreciated. I am very excited by the potential opportunity to work and research in an area as compelling as geography and feel that I have a deep-seeded interest and desire to further advance the discipline.

Premier Post-Holiday Posting

Christmas has passed and so has the New Year. My Birthday is coming up shortly (January 11th) and I plan on spending it as follows:

First, a celebratory Italian dinner and Machiavelli, on Capitol Hill...

Followed by an evening at Town Hall to see Matthew Stadler and his presentation entitled, "What Has Become of Cities?" I have never read one of this gentleman's books though I have read his pieces in The Stranger. For more info, check out: http://www.townhallseattle.com/calendar.cfm



And while we're on this subject, let's talk about the viaduct debacle.

As many of you know, Seattle has a butt-ugly, multi-level, relic of the 40's (or so) jammed between our downtown and Elliott Bay called The Alaskan Way Viaduct. It was severely damaged in the 2001 Nisqually Earthquake and is in danger of collapsing during another seismic event, so they say. Our mayor wants an overly expensive tunnel. Some people lacking in intelligence or creativity want to rebuild the behemoth that is already there. The smart, progressive crew over at the People's Waterfront Coalition want to tear that sucker down and improve mass transit in Seattle. Check 'em out at http://www.peopleswaterfront.org

Governor Gregoire decided that we were going to vote on this so now is a good time to read up and tell your friends.

I'll close with a quote that is somewhat related:

"The monuments of learning are more durable than the monuments of power. Have not the verses of Homer continued 2,500 years or more, without the loss of a syllable or letter, during which time inifinite palaces, temples, castles, cities, have been decayed and demolished." -Francis Bacon

Culture Overload

Purchased for myself this last week of the Christmas shopping season:

Ego & Hubris: The Michael Malice Story (Graphic Novel by Harvey Pekar)
Tom Waits' Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers, and Bastards
The Basic Eight by Daniel Handler
Two tickets to the Seattle Public Theatre's Christmas Eve performance of The Santaland Diaries by David Sedaris
Two tickets to Night at the Museum which I saw at the IMAX theater with my nephew-to-be, Coby, on Friday night (actually purchased by Risajoy)

Extravagant Travelers

Shall I go in chronological order? I guess so...

Portland

Last weekend Risa and I took our Prius (name drop) on its first road trip. Our destination was the lovely city of Portland, Oregon and the purpose of the trip was to see my long time friend, Wayne Reed, and his special lady friend, Sheila Modi, both visiting from Galveston, Texas. Sheila, being the bright young gal she is, is due to graduate from medical school in May and is canvassing the country in hopes of landing a residency in a desirable locale. We explored the town as best we could in about thirty-six hours, making two book related stops. The first was the world-famous Powell's City of Books which was nice and lived up to its name and the second, and only place I made a purchase, was a small bookstore about a block away called Reading Frenzy where I picked up a hardback copy of Charles Burns' graphic novel Black Hole. Risa and I were introduced to him at Bumbershoot this year when he did a reading with Chuck Palahniuk and you may know him as the resident cover artist for The Believer. The graphic novel is somewhat twisted but in a healthy way. Our visit also included some late night Cajun dining, a French breakfast, and an indie arts fair at the lovely Crystal Ballroom. Thumbs up on all three counts.

Hotel Mark Twain

This summer while visiting Risa in San Francisco I was taking an early morning walk and laid eyes upon a gem in the city: The Hotel Mark Twain. Sure, we were staying across the street at the Hilton but this charming early 20th century boutique hotel captured my heart. Now, as we are planning a return trip to visit two of Risa's best friends and their daughter, that currently reside in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, I have had the "pleasure" of making a reservation there for a two-night stay. According to tripadvisor.com, it could be a mistake (review titles: "Oh Dear. Dear, oh dear" and "Don't stay here") but I'm going with my gut on this one. Plus, for $80 a night, why wouldn't I give it a try? I already have visions of it being like the apartment building in Naked Lunch, but in a good way.

So many options

I'm not accustomed to having a clean slate like this to work with...

My working life is divided up into carefully regimented portions that require me to do things methodically and with very little latitude or creativity. But here I am free to do as I choose and, I must admit, it is as daunting as it is exhillarating. I could write about Billie Holiday or my new Spanish tutor or the Alaskan Way Viaduct debacle here in Seattle. I could recommend that you watch Charlie Rose tonight (or any night) or listen to Christopher Lydon on Radio Open Source. I could reminisce on Arcade Fire's magical performance at the 2005 Austin Music Festival, in the 100+ degree weather, when I had yet come to fully appreciating the band. Or maybe the first concert I ever saw: 311 and Cypress Hill at the Bronco Bowl in Dallas, in 1996. I could write out a Christmas wishlist or write a review of the Diet Dr. Pepper I just drank (it was extravagant). I could brag about what I've read lately (John Updike's Rabbit books, all four of them, in a row) or muse over sub-par quality of the graffiti in Seattle.

But instead, I'm going to retire to the couch and listen to the wind. I'm taking the newest issue of The New Yorker with me and my half-read copy of Orhan Pamuk's Snow but those will just be part of the background. I like storms like this for the same reason I like the ocean: they both make me feel like the earth is alive. I find peace in that.

If this were jail, I'd find another new jack and break him down in the mess hall, just to show everyone that I mean business. But alas, this is the web and I'm a pacifist to boot. I'm also an engineer and "we" aren't usually much for writing things so I thought I'd add a little something to show that I, an engineer, have in fact contributed something to literary world...okay, that's a stretch but I did have the good fortune to publish the following essay in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer about a year ago.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/240075_firstperson12.html

Lamenting the loss of brick beneath our feet
Wish we could follow the red brick road

KEITH HARRIS

I haven't many things in common with Pulitzer Prize-winning authors, but I do suffer the same laments as one in particular. The thorns in our respective sides are probably somewhat common in people all across the land, although I have never met a kindred spirit. I would try to explain the ailment myself but, hey, when you buy one of his books, it has a little gold seal of approval on the cover. It's safe to say that his words are certainly more precise than mine and are, therefore, pilfered here for everyone's benefit:

I suffer intensely from bouts, at times almost disabling, of a limitless, all-encompassing nostalgia, extending well back into the years before I was born.

My most recent encounter with the debilitating condition, which I share with Michael Chabon, was while walking down Third Avenue in Belltown. Road crews have thoroughly stripped the upper layers of asphalt from the roadway and thus exposed the beautiful, yet faded red brick that once carried the load of my fellow townspeople. How long has it been since those bricks last saw the seasons? Why would anyone cover this red-brick road with asphalt?

I had an idea and it seems to be a recurring theme these days: Pragmatism versus Idealism, Cost versus Beauty. My initial reaction was along the lines of riotous acts, civil unrest and the like. I could picture the young urban dwellers, led by Chabon, up from Berkeley with a vengeance, storming through downtown toward Pioneer Square, where the newly reunited Rage Against the Machine would perform a set for the masses along the streets of the only remaining pure part of town -- and so on.

But as I returned to my office, I returned to reality. Rage Against the Machine is not getting back together and the streets of Seattle will most likely remain asphalt. It's a shame, on both counts, and I am sure there is utility in the use of asphalt. My tax dollars surely are going to street repair (I travel mainly by foot, on the sidewalk) and repaving asphalt is probably significantly cheaper and faster than having a crew of masons replacing cracked bricks.

It's the same old tune sung over and over again: another case of pinching pennies for the sake of convenience, modernity or just plain bad taste. It's a tired argument, I know, but anyone else who feels our pain should make their way down to Belltown and see what has been beneath our feet, or tires, all along.

"So much for days of old," I say to the author. "Some of us have been mistakenly placed in a time in which we don't quite fit."

Keith Harris lives in Seattle.


So there you have it. A piece of my mind from summer '05.

Welcoming myself to the fold

So, I threatened to start one of these the other day while complaining that there are too many websites that I visit. I felt like I needed a homebase for myself; a place to organize my links and so on. Risajoy suggested that I use the bookmark function on the browser but I, being slightly interested in broadcasting my "thoughts" to the world, had my eye on doing it like this. Welcome to my work in progress!