China's Eurodisney towns and Lawrence's dagger
Amazing content recently on Toynbee Convector.
1. Thames Town is one of nine new towns being built outside of Shanghai as part of the 1 city-9 towns initiative passed by the Shanghai Planning Commission in 2001. All 9 new towns are themed: Swedish, English, Italian, Spanish, American, Dutch, German, traditional Chinese, and an ecological town.
I knew nothing about this, but how can you not love these micro-farang suburbs of Shanghai? Especially given the history of colonial enclaves there (and I note the countries being replicated all have colonial histories, although Italy and Sweden are pretty small fry in those terms)... For my money this knocks those Dubai islands shaped like maps of the world and palm trees into a cocked hat.
2. The Arabs had found a better use for British sovereigns than that. So long as the gold remained in the form of minted coin, it might (they felt) slip through their fingers; so they had converted it into dagger handles, which were not only more beautiful but more secure, since they could be carried more snugly on the person and were riveted to an automatic caretaker in the shape of a formidable steel blade.
Today I am writing up the end of my introduction in front of open French doors looking onto a balcony, while torrential rain provides background chatter and barges slide by on the river. I don't know quite how I got here, but I'm glad I did. Time for a large mug of earl grey.
How I wish The Big Orange Splot were actually and explicitly a work of social environment history, as John Holbo of Crooked Timber (sorry st_rev: can we just take the howling as read?) briefly made me imagine. It would work great for a study of the environmental consequences of intensive sugar cultivation in the Netherlands East Indies. It reminds me that one day I must write up my brief thesis on Harold and the Purple Crayon as the quintessential architect's manifesto. The only thing it lacks is a 50 page appendix where Harold abruptly turns to the reader and harangues them about how they ought to be living. Maybe I'll call it Heidegger and the Purple Crayon. Sequels will be Heidegger's Wonderful Four-colour Spectacles, Mies and the Two Building Blocks, and finally Mies and Just One Building Block.
Still here? Here, have some hats. And Thor doggerel. And Flash Gordon miniatures/dioramas/snowglobes/whatever.
1. Thames Town is one of nine new towns being built outside of Shanghai as part of the 1 city-9 towns initiative passed by the Shanghai Planning Commission in 2001. All 9 new towns are themed: Swedish, English, Italian, Spanish, American, Dutch, German, traditional Chinese, and an ecological town.
I knew nothing about this, but how can you not love these micro-farang suburbs of Shanghai? Especially given the history of colonial enclaves there (and I note the countries being replicated all have colonial histories, although Italy and Sweden are pretty small fry in those terms)... For my money this knocks those Dubai islands shaped like maps of the world and palm trees into a cocked hat.
2. The Arabs had found a better use for British sovereigns than that. So long as the gold remained in the form of minted coin, it might (they felt) slip through their fingers; so they had converted it into dagger handles, which were not only more beautiful but more secure, since they could be carried more snugly on the person and were riveted to an automatic caretaker in the shape of a formidable steel blade.
Today I am writing up the end of my introduction in front of open French doors looking onto a balcony, while torrential rain provides background chatter and barges slide by on the river. I don't know quite how I got here, but I'm glad I did. Time for a large mug of earl grey.
How I wish The Big Orange Splot were actually and explicitly a work of social environment history, as John Holbo of Crooked Timber (sorry st_rev: can we just take the howling as read?) briefly made me imagine. It would work great for a study of the environmental consequences of intensive sugar cultivation in the Netherlands East Indies. It reminds me that one day I must write up my brief thesis on Harold and the Purple Crayon as the quintessential architect's manifesto. The only thing it lacks is a 50 page appendix where Harold abruptly turns to the reader and harangues them about how they ought to be living. Maybe I'll call it Heidegger and the Purple Crayon. Sequels will be Heidegger's Wonderful Four-colour Spectacles, Mies and the Two Building Blocks, and finally Mies and Just One Building Block.
Still here? Here, have some hats. And Thor doggerel. And Flash Gordon miniatures/dioramas/snowglobes/whatever.
