Posts from the ‘Fun and Games’ Category

Building a Nest

I’ve known Anne and Richard for a long time. And Arciform’s been working on projects at my house for well over ten years, so I’m pretty comfortable stating that they, as a group, can do anything. Any crazy project I dream up, they can do it. Perhaps you’ve experienced this yourself?

Recently I read this article about human nests in the NYT, and it got me thinking. Personally, I don’t want one of these nests, because I’m more of a hedonist than a roughing-it kind of gal. If the nest had a good mattress and a reading light, maybe, but it’s doubtful. What would be really cool, though, is if one of my friends built a nest, and I could enjoy it and then go home. Kind of like how I feel about children.

But how much would a nest cost? Whom could I con into building a nest? Richard came to mind first, and I think I know why. For years I’ve spent July 4th with Anne and Richard. They have a big camping trip for the 4th, with fireworks and campfires and all that type of thing. I do not camp, of course, but I love to drive over from the local motel, freshly showered, with a coffee and some donuts, and check on the festivities.  Scoff at the campers, sip my coffee, watch the bonfire.

The bonfire. This is probably why I associate a nest with Richard. Every year he makes a HUGE funeral pyre / mountain of driftwood on the beach. He salts the interior of the pyre with fireworks; the goal being to light the bonfire and start the festivities with a bang.  But this is Oregon on July 4th. The driftwood is always soaking wet. How do you start a fire with wet wood? Well, Arciform guys can do anything. Richard pours a gasoline trail to the bonfire and throws a match.

Unsafe you say? Well, it’s just a fire and gasoline with a bunch of families sitting around. Nothing to worry about, right? The first year I participated, I was so scared I almost wet myself. The children were generally just excited at the prospect of fire, the dads thought a gasoline trail was a fantastic idea, and the moms? Well, after a few days camping with husbands and kids, without a shower, the moms are drunk. So they’re all calmly watching Richard pour the gasoline while I’m halfway up the trail to the car, 9-1 already dialed on the phone, with my thumb over the last 1, waiting to call the paramedics, fire department, whatever.

And of course, the gasoline lighting goes off without a hitch. No injuries – year after year. And then one year the wood is so drenched that even the gasoline isn’t doing the trick. Richard is laboring away, perhaps getting frustrated (hard to tell), when a ten year-old boy looks up at him and says, Too bad you don’t have a flame-thrower.

Richard looked down at the kid with a speculative look in his eye.  I do have a flame-thrower.

That’s Arciform – always prepared. Getting the job done. Here’s a pic of Anne and the pyre before the lighting ceremony. If Richard can make this every year just to burn it down, don’t you think he should make a nest? How about in your backyard? He can leave the flame-thrower behind.

About Nancy Ranchel

Nancy is an accountant who offsets the practicality of her day job with extravagant and outrageous remodeling projects, often involving massive amounts of scrap metal.  In her free time she can be found dreaming up new ways to turn her house into an art installation, digging through scrap heaps, and contemplating a world without plastic. Check out Nancy’s blog here: www.replaceinpdx.com/

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Arciform’s Summer Reading List

One of our favorite design blogs, Remodelista, recently inspired us with a post of their summer reading suggestions. Arciform’s design team have a few ideas of their own- feel free to borrow a few of your favorites for your next “lazing about in a sunny corner” afternoon.

Senior Designer Kristyn Bester has an ambitious nightstand. Here’s what she’s reading this month:

Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed…..by Jared Diamond.
She explains, “It’s about the fates of past societies that have collapsed for ecological reasons, and how the collapse might have been prevented. I’m a non-fiction junkie so it’s been really interesting.”

On the Road….by Jack Kerouac.
“Good ol’ classic American fiction. Can’t go wrong. I’m reading the original version.”

Outliers: The Story of Success….by Malcom Gladwell.
“Love anything by him.”

Junior Designer Jeffrey Kelly reveals some hidden talents in his reading selections.

The Complete Book of Western Hatches by Rick Hafele.
What’s this? He explains, “Entomology for fishermen and how to mimic regional and seasonal insect hatches to catch more fish.”

Now you know who to invite as your ringer on your next Deschutes River trip…

Next on Jeffrey’s list?

The Spider’s House by Paul Bowles.
“A novel set in 1950’s Fez, Morocco, that explores the social impact of the French occupation during this era.”

Charred and Scruffed by Adam Perry Lang. A revolutionary approach to cooking methods regarding the grill and cooking by fire.

Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris.
“This man and his musings should need no introduction,” says Jeffrey. But just in case you need a bit of an explainer, see Portland Center Stage’s annual production of Sedaris’ The Santaland Diaries.

Design Assistant Marty Hegg‘s daughter Brigitta does most of the reading selections for her, making her the office’s reigning expert on all things Beatrix Potter.

“I’ve been trying to finish Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie since Birgie was born,” she explains. But when midnight is the earliest you have any time to yourself…

Should she get a moment to spare, she’d love to revisit some of her favorite magical realism classics. Here’s what’s next in her queue:

The House of the Spirits by Isabelle Allende

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

Senior Designer Chelly Wentworth just joined the team and we are so happy to have her!

She’s evidently experiencing some wanderlust… and her summer reading list is giving us wanderlust too!

She’s reading In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson
Her take: “A very entertaining armchair travel book about Australia.”

Next on her list is The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin, which she describes as “a historical novel that takes place in the Pacific Northwest”

Last, but surely not least, she’s picking up some travel books about France and Scotland, “since I am going there in September.”

Maybe we can sneak into her suitcase and hitch a ride?

Senior Designer and co-owner Anne De Wolf seems to be prepping to go undercover with her cloak and dagger themed list:

She is currently in the midst of Gang Leader For A Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets (by Sudhir Venkatesh) and will read Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything (by Steven D. Levitt) next.

“Very interesting,” she explains, “They were both recommended to me by (Arciform client) Jim Hardison.”

Hmm. We wonder what roguish impulse inspired those two selections?

Anne continues, “I also read The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, and am planning on reading The Man Called Intrepid which is a book about the actual James Bond.”

Anne’s husband, Arciform co-owner Richard De Wolf has one brief but telling suggestion:

Erik Larson’s Devil in the White City, a true story about the architect behind the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair and  the serial killer who used the fair for his own nefarious ends. Richard relates to the architect, of course- not the serial killer!

What’s on your nightstand these days? And how can Arciform help you ready your perfect summer reading nook?

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