happy birthday patrick martin quinn

my brother was born on this day. happy happy patrick. happy happy mom and dad for having him and for doing such a good job raising him and us. i have gotten way too much mileage out of stories about my brother, but i tease because i love. and i tease because i can, older sibs have relatively fewer privileges. i wish i could be toasting you on snyder lane right this very moment. instead, i sit in my office overlooking the surface market as the sky changes from snowy grey white to pinkishorangebrightblue. it's very snowy and very cold and very windy here in ann arbor. all the better to take students on a walking tour of flint michigan tomorrow morning. i have long rolled my eyes at all of the directives of new urbanists to build walkable places. it seems like a sensible idea when one is perched in miami like DPZ or in the bay area like peter calthorpe and associates. but, how and why build pedestrian-friendly places when it is 7 degrees and there's a heap of snow and white-out conditions. okay okay, i know why, but really.

yesterday i went to a dreadful panel on shrinking cities at the michigan with christina. then she and edward and i went to grab a quick dinner and then off to a dance recital. i am not really one for dance. and by this i mean, wow! it is so far out of my repertoire. i have danced. i will dance. i enjoy dance. but i was pretty blown away by some basic things last night. like how does one teach such complicated choreography to a troupe? how does one note the steps? how is it archived?
we went along last night because christina's pal robin premiered a piece on memory in honor of her mother who is slipping into dementia. robin's piece was set to john cage's music. hence the photos of the piano.