Gail Ingis's Blog, page 21
March 2, 2016
SEVERE WEATHER
Snowy squall in New York City
Weather fascination supersedes fashion, food, and festivals. While in sunny Florida, severe weather covered the northeast. What is severe weather?
According to Wikipedia Severe weather refers to any dangerous meteorological phenomena with the potential to cause damage, serious social disruption, or loss of human life. As we know, the types of severe weather phenomena vary, depending on the latitude, altitude, topography, and atmospheric conditions. High winds, hail, excessive precipitation, and wildfires are forms and effects of severe weather, as are thunderstorms, down-bursts, lightning, tornadoes, waterspouts, tropical cyclones, and extratropical cyclones. Regional and seasonal severe weather phenomena include blizzards, snowstorms, ice storms, and duststorms.
Each phenomenon is a history lesson. It is interesting to note that forty-mile an hour winds caused the collapse of the Tacoma Narrow Bridge roadway in 1940. With bridge building lessons learned, it was rebuilt in 1950.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tacoma_Narrows_Bridge_%281940%29
For the tri-state area, below zero temperatures in January/February shocked everyone. And then at the end of February, hurricane force winds, sixty-five mph, knocked down trees, power lines and blew shingles off roofs like they were sheets of paper strewn in the wind.
Sunset . . . from the 19th floor of our condo in peaceful contrast. Sun streams at the entry. Florida is the place to be in January and February, even with chilly temps, rain and wind, it’s delightful. The sun sometimes lurks behind the clouds. Did you know that you could still burn when the sun is hiding?
What’s next on the weather channel? Will you tune in?
Dancing in Florida . . .
February 17, 2016
HIGH ABOVE ORLANDO
Orange County Convention Center
Design. A crucial element of architecture. On a recent visit to Orlando, I discovered the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC). The building inspired me to step back into my training as an architecture and design critic. Hence, today’s blog!
Sunset
Disney’s happy, fantasyland permeates Orlando. So many buildings reminded me of Disney, with arches, pyramids, turrets, moving walkways, and gorgeous, glowing sunsets draped over buildings. 
In particular, the OCCC. Locals call the twin-arched convention center, the “Center of Hospitality”. The convention center is one of the largest in the country, second only to McCormick Place in Chicago. Organizations like American Institute of Architects, AIA, and American Society of Interior Designers, ASID, secure spaces there for their conferences. Vendors exhibit the latest in building materials and design for architects and designers.
Arches culminating into a crown
I fell for the elaborate designs of the convention center’s arches that spike above the building. Curiosity got the better of me, and I had to explore. The parts relate to each other. Smaller arches grow into the final crowning arches that tower over the building. Adjacent to these arches, there is a glass pyramid, similar to IM Pei’s pyramid at the Fontainebleau in Paris.
IM Pei
Solar World
Yes, it’s GREEN! Orange County Government, who owns and operates the center must be proud of its place in power savings with solar panels on the roof on the South Concourse. On April 18, 2012, the Architect’s Florida Chapter placed the building on its list of Florida Architecture: 100 Years. 100 Places.
I-360 changing colors, all 420ft, it’s gorgeous. It can be seen from almost everywhere around Orlando!
For another thrill, there is the I-360. At first you think it’s a Ferris Wheel. It does move, but it takes 22 minutes from start to finish. Besides being a ride, you can hire the whole thing out for a party or wedding. The wheel changes colors, as shown here. I hear the view from the top is astounding day or night.
Indigo Sky
If you like to read, my book, Indigo Sky is waiting for you. I hope you will read it, and I hope you’ll adore it. I’m going to choose three of you from my newsletter list to win a gift of my book on March 1st. Dash over to Facebook and say hello, and you’ll be entered two times.
You can order the eBook on Amazon and read it on Kindle. Download the Kindle App for free from Amazon for your device.
February 10, 2016
VALENTINES RECYCLED
The trip to get a card for my sweetheart is as far as our old cedar chest in our bedroom. Saved Valentine Day cards spill over the chest that hardly closes anymore. When the other isn’t looking, we choose one of the past precious cards for the current event. We giggle when we open our cards, and no, neither one of us remembers the card. We have begun writing in the date, just because it’s fun to know the year. Finally fooled those retailers that have priced cards too high for the paper they are printed on. Use your money to take take your Valentine dancing!
Tell your story . . .
Check out some interesting facts.
11 Hilarious Valentine’s Day True Stories
The only good time for love to hurt is when it’s funny enough to split your sides. Make your sweetheart giggle this Valentine’s with these real-life hilarious Valentine’s Day stories.
Compiled by Amy Zerello From readersdigest.com
Do you have a favorite Valentine’s Day tale?
This bentwood chair was originally created by Michael Thonet in 1859 without the heart. It was called the studio chair, popular in coffee shops. Today, it is still in production and toyed with, adding the heart and red covering. Perfect Valentine chair.
February 3, 2016
CRYSTAL PALACE: HISTORY OF IRON
NYC SoHo Green Street
Fire burned down architect Joseph Paxton’s Crystal Palace. It was built in London’s Hyde Park to house The Great Exhibition of 1851, the first all glass and iron modular structure built at the time of the Industrial Revolution.
U Tube Crystal Palace fire: http://yhoo.it/1Sup13R
Crystal Palace Lithograph
In the 1850s, the cheapness and availability of cast iron led James Bogardus of New York City to advocate and design buildings using cast iron components. Cast iron could be cast into a wide array of shapes and designs, allowing elaborate facades that were far cheaper than traditional stone carved ones. These facades could also be painted in desirable colors. If you’ve been to New York City, you’ve seen and know the elaborate neo-classical and Romanesque designs.
The designs were used pervasively on commercial and industrial buildings. Surviving examples in SoHo and Tribeca areas of New York are vast. One of the most intact ensembles in the American West can be seen in the Skidmore/Old Town Historic District, a National Historic Landmark, in Portland, Oregon. In the old cities of the southern United States, the use of cast-iron in architecture was popular in the 1800s. Cast iron columns had the advantage of being slender compared with masonry columns but capable of supporting similar weight. That saved space in factories and other kinds of buildings like theaters, churches and synagogues.
However, cast iron has some architectural weaknesses. It is strong in compression, but weak in tension and bending. Its strength and stiffness deteriorate when subjected to high heat, such as in a fire. In the early era of the industrial revolution cast iron was often used in factory construction, in part owing to the misconception that such structures would be fireproof. Inventor William Strutt pioneered this innovation, building a number of industrial buildings using cast iron supports. Cast iron was strong enough to support the heavy machinery but was vulnerable to the frequent fires that would occur in such factories.
Dee Bridge Tragedy
Cast iron was also used in bridge construction for the new railway system, sometimes with horrific results, especially when cast iron girders were used instead of arches. Engineer Robert Stephenson (not the author) built a bridge over the river Dee, mistakenly adding wrought iron trusses to strengthen the structure. This led to the Dee bridge disaster of 1847, which killed five when the bridge collapsed.
Tay Bridge disaster
Following the disaster, such trussed bridges were demolished and cast-iron was replaced with wrought iron composite beams formed by riveting sheets together, and then steel rolled beams when steel became available in the late 1860s and 1870s. Cast iron continued to be used in railway under bridges, and there were a number of serious failures involving loss of life. The most serious accident occurred in 1879 with the Tay Bridge disaster when the center part of the bridge collapsed in a storm as an express train was passing over. The whole train was lost with more than 75 passengers and crew. The weakest parts of the bridge were cast iron lugs holding tie bars in place, and cast iron in new bridges was effectively abandoned after the disaster.
In the late 19th century modern steel was developed, and it proved more suitable than cast iron for structural and support purposes. Many of the innovations of the cast iron period were carried over to the new steel frame buildings, and were essential to the development of the modern skyscraper. But in 2001, the disasters of the World Trade Center proved that structural steel melts under intense heat and fire. We are reinventing the wheel over and over.
Thank you to Wikipedia for components of this blog.
Are you familiar with those 19th century architectural Victorian works in your hometown?
January 27, 2016
FLEDGLING LOVE: a short story
Crowds for Steeplechase Oil-on-Aluminum 12×24″ by Ingis Claus
Undertow rush of wave
Breathless, Emma dragged her disheveled self from the water’s edge. Her hair dripped sand into her eyes. She clawed herself away from the drag of the next wave that crashed on the rocks. It broke into softer splashes over her. She stared into the water’s foam and listened to the sounds of waves crashing and colliding near her. She stood. She shook. The wind whipped at her wet and sandy body and wrapped around her like a blanket. She couldn’t get her mind out of those eerie waves that pushed her down, down, down. She lifted her head up to whoever would listen. Her voice, a scream, filled the night air. She gritted her teeth, sandy enough to file them down . . . and gagged. Her tears mixed with the salty water. “Never again, she cried out, “The Ocean is not my friend.”
Steeplechase Park Entry
“Emma, Emma.”
Voices carried with the winds of the night air. “Emma, come on, come here, come join us.”
Emma turned to the voices.
“Where are you?” She did not dare rub her eyes. She could not tear herself from the blurred vision, silhouettes against the moonlit, yet dark sky. It looked like two figures of disputable character. They shouted to her.
Steeplechase pony ride
She swallowed, “Please,” she said in a timorous voice, “I can’t see you. Wave.” She squinted, but the darkness shrouded the figures, what did she see?
She walked toward the sound of the shouts. “Maybe I should run?”
In the distance she could hear the trumpet of the elephants. She could see the tower, the elephant hotel. The sand, cold and damp, tickled her toes, and hampered her run. But run she did, when an arm came out of nowhere and grabbed her hair. He turned her around, threw her down, and took her mouth in a searing kiss. She struggled to no avail.
Coney Island is not known for high waves, but this evening, the smell of storms permeated Emma’s nostrils. The ocean waves, big enough to drown, headed this way.
“You dimwitted girl, were you swimming tonight?”
She stared into Wil’s face. A friend? She lifted her hand and ran her fingernails down his cheek. Blood oozed out of the long red scratch. The sticky stuff dripped into his mouth.
“Ouch, damn, why’d you do that?”
“I just came out of the water after almost drowning, and you scared me half to death.”
“You didn’t have to get violent.”
“Violent? Me? What do you mean? And what was that, a kiss? Go into the water and wash your face. There’s blood all over the place.”
“Look Emma,” Wil lowered his head, blood dripping into the sand at his feet, ran his hand through his hair, his dark eyes widened, “I’m sorry. I did not mean to scare you.”
Emma, now shivering from the cold, said, “Go wash your face, then we’ll talk about this idiocy.”
Bobby, a friend in the crowd they hang with, stood by watching all this said, “Emma you are cruel. Wil won’t ever do anything to hurt you. He loves you.”
“You’re crazy as he is Bobby. Never play a game in the dark like that, I couldn’t tell who you were, and where your voices were coming from.”
“Hog wash, Emma. Who else would it have been calling you? The gang were all waiting for us, we didn’t know where you were, but then we saw you come out of the water, and called to you.”
“You go tell everyone we’re coming. I’ll wait for Wil.”
Now Wil was trudging through the sand, his head hanging. He became more and more interested in Emma and couldn’t resist teasing her. The scratch on his face gave him the thrill of her touch. He’ll treasure the mark forever. It was a simple flirtation, this roll in the sand. After all no great harm had been done. He hoped Emma would forgive him. He’s saved up all the money his Uncle Henry and Aunt Lucy had sent him for his birthday in January, so that he could take Emma out to Steeplechase Park, that new playground. Even buy her a Valentine’s Day present. Some chocolates in fact. Maybe something more.
“Well, you sure took your time. What were you doing, drinking up the ocean?”
He looked at Emma, who stood in place with a grin on her face. “Emma, are you still mad? Don’t be mad, please.”
“No, I’m not mad anymore. I hear all the laughing from the Steeplechase, let’s go Wil, just never scare me like that again.
He offered her his arm, she tucked her arm into his, and off they went getting the sand between their toes as they walked the beach to the Steeplechase pony ride to join the gang.
