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Only the good die young

I do not know the man personally. Did. I did not know the man personally. I never even met him. Yet, learning about Jo Crepain passing away did make me shiver for a second.

Crepain was one of the most important (postmodern) architects in Belgium. Reading about his work and being confronted with his designs always lifted my spirits in some way. In an often uninspired surrounding, where run-of-the-mill architecture rules, that is not an easy thing to do.

For those who are not all that familar with his work: he is famous for house De Wachter in ’s Gravenwezel, a Watertower in Antwerp and many other projects, including  office buildings for Telindus as well as our new campus building at Kantienberg in Ghent, into which our department is moving in September.

Apart from that, Crepain was important in the first steps in sustainable building design (Renson office building) and a contributor to Last call for planet Earth, a documentary on ecological building.

58 years old: imagine the great things he still could have done. One thing is for sure: our country has lost a man with vision, something our often ugly land- and cityscapes so desparately need...

Shame on me

Walking through downtown Ghent yesterday, I stumbled upon a bookshop I had never noticed before: Paard van Troje. Excellently located in Voldersstraat, close to, if not right in the shopping area, it had managed to escape my attention until now. Asking the manager when they had opened, he told me the shop had been there for over a year now.

I felt my cheeks glowing with embarrassment and did not manage to mutter more than a few 'ohs'...

Next time you come to Ghent: make sure to pay it a visit. Great atmosphere, excellent prices and a reading terrace. OK, it is not the time of the year for it, but that's one excellent reason to increase your passing-by- frequency if you ask me... And if you're not into books, you should go and have a look at the lighting, designed by Arne Quinze.

To think I had it missed it until now? Shame on me!

[photo]

Hip 2.0

It's hardly a secret that I am not neutral or objective when it comes to The Tragically Hip. So I was kind of excited to find out they have been hard at work recording a new studio record, with Bob Rock at the helm again.

The band have also completed their brand new website, www.thehip.com 2.0 if you will.

New features include a new online storefront with an overall more user-friendly layout and navigation. On the music side of things, the site features the Live From The Vault series, combining archives to find performances from years gone by. The music is not altered, besides some basic mastering. The shows are available in two formats, and downloads come with complimentary Wil Ruocco designed artwork, for those who wish to burn their own cd.

Another new website feature is the Music Player that has been updated in both look and content.

The popular Song Of The Day feature remains, for both Regular Users and Registered Users. For Registered Users, the rest of the changes to the Music Player apply. The band’s entire discography is available to not only be streamed, but to be placed into customized Playlists. These Playlists can be can be shared, voted on and scrutinized for all to see.

What else? There is a new Video Player that allows for the playback of all of the band’s music videos. This playback features streaming content using mpeg4 files and allows for high-resolution full screen viewing. There is also the archive of webmaster MAv’s home movies from live shows, backstage and the studio.

A new Flickr application has been created to allow for a rotation of hundreds of photos. Almost every page of the new site contains this photo feature. There are tons of live concert photos, old promo photos and candid band photos. There is also a feature for fans to upload their photos of the band.

Finally, the Archive section features a variety of band information and facts, including a comprehensive list of past shows, set lists, a database of cities and venues the band has played and all song lyrics. Registered Users can keep track of all the shows they have attended and the songs they have seen performed. This is also where the Hip Story Project resides. The HSP allows fans to tell their personal stories about all things Hip. Great experiences from past shows, how certain songs or albums have helped shape them and a place to recite anecdotes and memories.

Definitely sounds 2.0 to me... So worth checking out, if not for the site, then definitely for hours of some of the best music canuck country has ever brought forth!

[photo via]

The Fat Cyclist

I'll admit: the title of this post could very well refer to me. It is, after all, winter. Or it sure feels like it. And what does a less-than-totally-devoted-cyclist-like-myself do in that period of the year? Right... Bike less. Eat more. More chocolate at least. And candy. Oh... and ginger bread. I just love ginger bread. Especially the one with sugar on top. (Note to self:  New Year's resolution should involve cutting down on the sugar)

But anyway, this post is not about me. It's about another fat cyclist. Or used-to-be-fat-cyclist-whose-blog-still-goes-by-that-name. He did not pay me to advertise his blog here. He did not promise me some of the cool bike gear you can buy on the site. Nope: this is a voluntary post recommending it to all of you who enjoy cycling and reading a good blog post from time to time. Or all of you who do not enjoy cycling but still like to read a good blog post from time to time.

And while you are at it, consider taking part in some of the fundraising he does too... As you can see: nothing but good intentions today!

PS: As over half the poll votes from the previous post indicate a preference for English, I'll try and refrain from posting in Dutch. I said I'll TRY. No promises, though. One New Year's resolution per year is more than enough.