Month: October 2012

It’s the Beer Can House in Houston!

So glad we got to see this. From the site: John Milkovisch, a retired upholsterer for the Southern Pacific Railroad, started his project now known as the Beer Can House in 1968 when he began inlaying thousands of marbles, rocks, and metal pieces into concrete and redwood to form unique landscaping features. When the entire front and back yard were completely covered because he “got sick of mowing the grass”, he turned to the house itself and began adding aluminum siding – aluminum beer can siding, that is. Over the next 18 years the house disappeared under a cover of flattened beer cans for both practical and decorative reasons. Garlands made of cut beer cans hanging from the roof edges not only made the house sing in the wind, but also lowered the family’s energy bills. Ripley’s Believe It or Not estimated that over 50,000 cans adorn this monument to recycling.

It’s run now by the Orange Show.

How the house looked originally

Because Houston doesn’t have zoning laws, there aren’t problems like what have come up with art environments elsewhere.  And the terrific thing is, the beer can house gives this largely non-descript neighborhood so much character:

We saw this over the weekend in Tuscaloosa:

What a gorgeous campus.  When I think of university architecture, the first thing that comes to mind is Greek Revival.  But at LSU, there’s this terrific mix of styles, and so much of it is Italian Renaissance, Beaux-Arts.

And then there’s the Maravich Assembly Center (below, white, round, very late-60s/early-70s mod):

We also went to see Mike the Tiger in his very nice environment, and the Indian Mounds on campus:

One of the things I’d really like to see is something that most people don’t get to see very often — the Huey P. Long Fieldhouse Pool (pic of it here).  Many more pics from inside here, and there’s been a movement afoot to Save the HPL.

“The fieldhouse was the original student union—with a ballroom, soda fountain, post office, beauty parlor, barbershop, and outdoor swimming pool (180 ft. x 48 ft.) that was, at the time of construction, the largest in the country.”

And since we’ve mentioned him, and if you’re a fan of politics (but only if you’re a fan), here’s HPL in all his glory.

—
The same site above that had the pics from the Fieldhouse has pics from the Bellemont, and wow.

This weekend: Kentuck!

—
In Newport News, from the Virginian-Pilot:
Friends and fans of Anderson Johnson congregated on Saturday in his honor to witness a miracle: The nick-of-time rescue of his Faith Mission folk art environment so many years ago had finally resulted in a bona fide art gallery.
……….
The gallery contains much of Johnson’s Ivy Avenue home, which was scheduled to be torn down in 1995 to make way for a recreation center.
……….
His family’s longtime home was a key part of Johnson’s art output. The self-taught artist painted pictures of Jesus, angels and scripture on boards and other materials and nailed them to his home’s exterior. Besides covering holes, his point was to lure people to his makeshift church, and to God.

Those works are incorporated into re-creations of the home’s facade. He painted the walls throughout his home, and most of those are on display, too. His entire bedroom was reassembled, including a startlingly lifelike sculpture of the artist seated on the side of his bed, painting.

The sanctuary also was re-created, from the worn wooden pews to his Hawaiian guitar and keyboards. Besides preaching, Johnson sang and played passionately for the tiny congregation that showed up for his Sunday services. His self-taught blend of blues and gospel was so appealing that recordings were made of him, including some by the BBC.

—

The AJC gives The Colonnade a little love (I love it for having aspic, and chicken livers).

I made the mistake of reading the comments — but did find that in response to someone complaining about the price of the fried chicken plate ($14, half a chicken, with sides) someone else correctly asserted, “You’ve also clearly never been to The Colonnade…their platter of chicken would easily feed Scarlett, Rhett and Miss Melly.”

—

Delta State, the W, and some other colleges in Mississippi are waiving or otherwise reducing out-of-state fees for students from elsewhere.

—
‘A Trip to Oxford‘ (slideshow) in the WSJ, article here.
…But with a country band playing for tips and produce—you might see carrot greens spilling out the top of the tip jar—it’s a scene you won’t want to miss.

—

(used with permission for publications)

Sidon Plantation in Leflore County (2600+ acres) is now in the hands of Mississippi State after a graduate left it to the university in his will.

—

The Onward Store (Onward, Miss. — it commemorates the famous 1902 Teddy Roosevelt bear hunt which took place nearby) has reopened after a renovation; …the dining room of the store has been refinished with wood from the iconic Red Barn in Rolling Fork that collapsed in 2011. The dining room also features artwork and photos depicting Roosevelt’s bear hunt.

—

Three Blount County covered bridges are set to reopen soon (two open to traffic this coming week).

Treme 200 is this week, through Sunday.  It celebrates 200 years of Treme being part of the city of New Orleans with all kinds of different events.

One business in the neighborhood is Manchu — and I think its full name is Manchu Food Store and Chinese Kitchen — it’s just that:

Kind-of a mess (see above image, shelves), you place your order through plexiglass, and you may get asked for spare change outside (on this particular visit, I was asked twice by two different people. But you know. Whatever.). The people inside are friendly and I like this neighborhood no matter what.

Po boys, seafood, chicken wings (pic’d above — very, very good — they’re very well-known for them) eggrolls, and…

Yakamein (say ‘yaka-mee’) is broth, meat, spaghetti noodles, scallions, and seasoning. And a hard-boiled egg.  While some people think of it as specific to New Orleans, it’s a dish known in other parts of the country too.

And in those containers, it stays hot for *hours* just on the counter. The yakamein at Manchu…pretty good.

Sunday’s event during Treme 200 — would love to go to this:

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2012 – JAZZ MASS AT ST. AUGUSTINE CHURCH
9 a.m. at 1210 Gov. Nicholls St.
Founded in 1841 by free people of color, St. Augustine Church in Tremé belongs to the oldest African-American Catholic parish in the nation. The congregation is known for its sociopolitical activism, its community support, and its music. As part of Tremé 200, Father Moody will host a traditional Jazz Mass in remembrance of the War of the Pews, in which the free Blacks of Tremé provided the first exclusive place of worship for the enslaved in America.

In the Quarter: