This Hear Our Houston audio tour mixtape and contribution to Unexpected City is a glimpse into the minds of 7th and 8th grade writers who attended Writers in the Schools Summer Creative Camp this year. Breaking the form of the usual Hear Our Houston tours, this mixtape will only let you follow along in your imagination, but it is rich with the insights of young people who we don’t often get to hear from and well worth a listen.
Out of 921 students in WITS Creative Writing Camp this summer, this is a sampling of recordings featuring work by Yuna Booyoung, Leah Chemaly and Rachel Barnes, Wesley Pierre, Mia Simmons, Rose Li, Clint Ferrell, Julie Dietrich, Anna Demecs, Aerial Starks, Veean Chen, Emma Bolton, Melody Voo, Divya Jain, Katherine Walters, Irene Vasquez, and Albert who were taught by Casey Fleming, Deborah Wiggins, Van Garrett and Olga Feliciano at Annunciation Orthodox School. Stay tuned for long format tours made by more WITS students this Fall for a rich take on our city from a younger point of view.
So turn up the volume, crack a smile, and get ready to walk down memory lane. Listen by clicking on the link below:
Writers in the Schools Mixtape
by Students of WITS Creative Writing Camp at Annunciation Orthodox School
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In this Hear Our Houston audio tour and contribution to Unexpected City, writers Diana and Steven Wolfe stroll from their first Houston residence, a house in the Heights at 920 Ridge where they lived together thirteen years ago. Turning left onto Julian Street, they pass under the oaks and crepe myrtles to Bayland Street, where “if you look down to your right the streets just become this whole cathedral of overhanging oaks that are like protective Heights spirits, and they make it feel beautifully warm and welcoming.”
Listen by clicking on the link below:
Oaks and Crepe Myrtles in the Heights (mp3, 12 MB) by Steven and Diana Wolfe
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Indre Rapalaviciute on Indiana Street. All photographs by Rose Kuo
OffCite presents a new submission to Unexpected City, made by Indre Rapalaviciute and curated by Carrie Schneider with photographs by Rose Kuo. This piece is an audio recording of a stroll along Peden, Waugh, Nevada, Commonwealth, Indiana, and Dunlavy streets ending at the Pralaya Yoga Studio. Listen by clicking on the link below. For more information on Schneider’s project visit Hear Our Houston.
We Are All Weird Birds: A Stroll Through Montrose (mp3, 13.1 MB) by Indre Rapalaviciute
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Every Valentine’s Day, people in the US exchange 141 million Valentine’s Day cards, give 189 million roses, and shell out over $1 billion on chocolate. That’s a whole lot of tokens of affection, and unfortunately, a whole lot of unoriginality. Is your sweetheart one of millions, or one in a million? Doesn’t he or she deserve something special this year? Not to worry: we’ve compiled some gift ideas for you from stores and artists that are local to Houston. Your gift will be as unique as your relationship, and your sweetie will find your support of local business extremely attractive. It’s a win-win situation. So, without further ado, here’s our handy Valentine’s Day shopping guide:
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The Beer Can House. All images courtesy of the Orange Show.
OffCite presents the sixth submission by a commenter to the original Unexpected City challenge post. Click here to learn about making your own submission.
My favorite place to take out of town guests is the Beer Can House at 222 Malone. Begun in 1968 by the creator John Milkovisch, the house is a great example of dedication and whimsy. Walking up to the house, you can see the extensive number of beer cans that were used to cover the house. If the wind is blowing you can hear the tinkling of the wind chimes that were created with the tops of the beer cans. As you stroll down the driveway, there are quirky objects like marbles placed in the concrete.
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Morris Architects
If you thought that stylish living for pets began and ended with couture rain coats, high-design pet carriers, and organic day spas, you can now add innovative, state-of-the-art doghouses to the list. For years, creative individuals have been using their talents to design and build functional (and stylish) doghouses for their four-legged friends. Last year, Houston Pavilions hosted its first Barkitecture design competition, bringing together designers, architects, builders and artists who constructed dozens of unique homes for man’s best friend. Here are a few of the houses from last year’s competition:
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Joe Ross, designer with PH Design, holds up covers from Cite 81.
A new issue of Cite is currently at the press. Subscribe or join now to get your copy. For the last few days, I have been conducting press checks with graphic designers. I find the process so fascinating I would like to share some pictures and basic explanations of how offset printing works. As the sole full-time staff person with Cite, my understanding of production has become more intimate, though I don’t know all the terms and am more lay than expert.
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Pound of Flesh Paperweight by Walteria Living, found at Kuhl-Linscomb.
Get this: nobody knows which of three martyred St. Valentines we revere on February 14th – the priest from Rome, the Bishop of Terni, or the man of unknown rank martyred in Tunisia. But the darkest secret behind this celebration honoring the unique spirits of the ones you love? The Church can’t even recall the gifts of supreme sacrifice these poor Valentines offered up to achieve their holy statures.
But you, my dear sirs and madams, are expected to forge on ahead. To out Valentine the saints and deliver up gifts that are thoughtful and romantic. The kind memorable enough to remain rippling in the recesses of their recipients’ memories forever. Or at least until next year.
Oh, don’t worry: we’ll help you avoid the obscurity of being yet another person unable to deliver something with pizzazz on this special day with a few traditionally inspired, yet 21st century gift ideas designed to keep the love alive year round…
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