Green buildings: 18 examples of sustainable architecture around the world, is an news report that CNN did. Given the topic of my last blog post I thought it appropriate to share image’s of green architecture around the world in the hopes to get the Mesozoic destructive powers at city hall who are waging war on the homeless persons to create a real destination for the world to visit.
Here is as the caption below says ” one of the most intensive green buildings in the world.

As one looks at the innovation plan one see’s green okay, sure but to fulfill the “destination”,  location part of this new revamp downtown it is not so green after all. Think about it, one is giving to build a section of town a new, from the ground up. Ask, Mr & Mrs public,  to leave their homes in Windom, or Brandimill get into a vehicle that omits X, pounds of greenhouse emissions,  all the while the tires on their vehicles go round and round, leaving a thin trail of micro plastics that rub off their tiers. So, when they get to this destination, they are gonna most likely pay $10.00 or so, to submerge their vehicle in an subterranean parking deck, so that they can participate in an outdoor event that sells beer, leaving behind plastic cups and food wrapping to be clean up. Which, brings out an interesting question to me for that entertainment section of the report are there going to be adequate public restrooms for all to use? Moreover,  who’s gonna pay to maintain and clean said bathrooms. I hope if they do that they build more ladies stalls than men’s,  and not the male prospective architectural flop of bathroom design.
I got nothing. Do you?

Virginia Commonwealth University,  has a great arts department so why not ask the different disciplines, such as sculpture,  painting,  photography,  engineering ect to submit plans to design these buildings. A contest of sorts where teams of students are given a particular building to design. A real world teaching opportunity for them. Moreover, they are the ones who are going to look at this section of town in their old age not the mayor, the city council or even myself will not be the long term beneficiaries of this project, they are. The only thing that could stop this idea is the fragile narcissist at city hall egos.

The past weeks that I have been struggling with this unimaginative infernal report. Also I have been keeping notes on the events around me with the homeless’s. These events are starting to put closure on people and events that put me down this strange path. But,  first a rather surprising surrealistic event occurred yesterday. I was sitting at my “spot”, with my diet coke , orange hoody , jeans ect doing my thing. In front of me is the underpass to I95 and Arther Ash Boulevard, okay. Now a tall African American man in a long blue woolen coat, blue and gray skull cap steps out into the road. Okayyyyy, the next thing I know the music from the Nut Cracker suite pops into my head while this man was dancing Ballet in the middle of road.
 In another event a car drove past me. And the woman looked like a man , and the man like a woman and they where both butt ugly bless their harts …that is the trama that happens, as one panhandle ‘s
Again,  I got nothing.

One of the events that I am going to share with you is how 70 men in one room said WTF, at the same time. Now, I usually don’t share “hear say”, events from the shelter but the source was a person I believe,  moreover,  the entire day was filled with did you here what happened from everyone. A man was woken up in the big room with 70 others. He threw off his blanket, spread eagle, put some lubricant on his hand and went to “town”, on himself. At which time 69 other men gasped and said “WTF”, at the same time. I really got nothing for this one.

I find myself in a strange place right now. I am walking that thin line between being helpful for the homeless and hurting to them. Some of the things I have seen, feed right into the “I told you so”, type of people.  However,  the objective here is to selfishly dig myself out of this situation so anything goes I guess.

  Frist, let me say clearly that I am leading you to a point to be made.  On Sunday,  unbelievably & Great fully,  one of the readers of this blog stopped by the place I panhand and gave me enough money for brunch. It was Sunday I was a hungry predator and wanted brunch. So, I broke off thanking the lady and my lucky starts and went to my stash. The place where I put my stuff because it’s a pain to lug 10-15 pounds of stuff around with me. Unlike the shower gimmick that ccc, used to get the homeless to come to the shelter. (they lied and had no intent to provide showers). I took a homeless person’s version of a shower. A little Fabize and Ax deodorant dose wonders. And like an ass I went to the restaurant and for that brunch.

The food at this restaurant is great and the staff that I know are a lot of fun and do their jobs very well. It’s a great neighborhood place to go. Except for this time. I walk into the door and noticed that the regular staff was not there. Not really concerned with that, I was on a mission to have brunch nothing less would do. Walking over to the bar, I sat down at the last seat and order the drink as one normally dose and looked over the menu. Then ordered the steak and eggs, (in the image above). Waited, for it, then it was at this time my radar went up out of the corner of my eye. The homeless themselves have a heightened sense of there survival and are always aware of there surroundings. I am no different now. My eye caught a gentleman at the end of the bar staring at me. He, was someone I had seen before,  on the 14 bus and walking past me as I panhandle almost every day. To myself the look on his face was one of confusion,  anger, and discomfort. I had just shattered his stereo type of me. Knowing that I was homeless and why had I dared to come in the door at all. Moreover if he had seen me come in the door I’m sure he would have stopped me from entering. The food arrived, and I truly enjoyed it. However,  a quazi game of eye ball ping pong started with this person. The look of surprise and concern that I would leave without paying was notable. Finishing the meal I thanked the bartender paid my tab and tip. Leaving the place I walked over to the I 95 grassy knoll area lay down and proceeded to have one of the best naps I have had in a long time.

Good ending right here I guess but, it’s not. The true stories of the man dancing in the road to my brunch experience are tragic result of people having stereo types about each other and particularly the homeless. For about a week or two before I was sitting in the line waiting to get into the shelter. Master Sargeant Smith (I don’t know his name), was bitterly telling everyone he could how that same restaurant stopped him at the door and told him he could not come in, to order fish sandwich for him and his wife to go. There are several differences between him and myself, he’s older, he served his county, he is a marine, he is African American and I am not.

Sadly, because we live in Richmond Virginia which is in the Jim Crow South this is an stereo type that still exists and quietly acted upon all too often, especially on the homeless.

One of the topics that I did not cover in my last blog about the unimaginative district plan was waste and fraud that will naturally occur with a project this size.
Concrete trucks weigh an average of 25,000 lbs. by themselves and up to 40,000 lbs. when carrying a full load. Their capacity is around 8 cubic yards, but can be up to 10 cubic yards if fully-loaded. So what? Well on a project this size you will need X, number of trucks with Y cubic feet of concrete. Again so what? Cement + Aggregates + Water = Concrete. Keeping the numbers simple I will try to demonstrate how someone could make a killing in this construction sight. It’s been done before.
Well here’s the thing on a project this size you need 10000 trucks. With 10 cubic feet of stuff. It cost $50.00 per cubic foot. If 10% of the trucks have a lower standard of mix in them that costs only 25 dollars to make instead of the 50 dollar one you would make a killing by pocketing the difference wouldn’t you?
Other factors that contribute to waste and environmental damage during construction are the actual materials one uses. One has a minimum of 3000 doors that will be covered with a thin blue plastic. That plastic has go somewhere. Then miles and miles of fiber optic lines electrical wire, pipes,  and dry walls that have be installed. They are all gonna get cut to fit what ever they fit and the trimmed is discarded. They are a natural cost of doing business.
It is also the same reason given why the ccc’s new shelter is not done by now the contractors haggle over details such as how many plugs are going be placed in a room. Because that equals cost over runs and more money for them. The c.e.o, of the ccc is probably saving money by limiting the number of shower stalls that building will have.

So, the next mayor of Richmond aka, Mrs, Rhonda Sneed, of Blessings Warriors charity, where texting each other, she came by the conclusion that if, I ever wrote “allegedly”, all these blog entries, on a laptop instead of a cellphone, I would become a weapon of mass destruction.

Ture.

The mayor a person whome I have seen but, never met, and only told that he is intelligent and astute person, would have found a photo shop image of himself on this blog.

Shoe boxes with various foot sizes printed on them would be in the background of this image, instead of buildings. The mayor would be receiving a shoe box from AL Bundy from married with children fame. And engraved on the pedestal would be “The mayor stony shoe plaza. Or would he prefer to have an real innovative, creative and destination downtown as his legacy.

Thank you for your time.