Seriously?

Sorry for my absence in the past months I had to work on my real job... life happens - oh well.  The Tianzi hotel in China is a good reason to come back though! Take a look at this SHIT! I have a hard time talking my clients into doing things like having a slightly more contemporary building by having cleaner lines or simple forms - this talented architect actually talked his client into building giant China Men to sleep in! This is a hotel!  I just love to think of the conversations that took place in the architects office when they first presented this idea - "Yes it is genius -the diagram will  be so simple, we can put the business suites in the heads and we all know where the service core will go"  and the bank actually financed it! Now if this can get built that leaves the rest of us NO EXCUSES! As this project has proven - where there is a will there is a way :)

You have to ask the question - Is there a garbage shoot?  is it where you would think?  Lets look at the back of the building.... ahh too bad these little men are whereing such modest clothes, no defined wedgie to help us out here... Do you think they have funny names for the floors such as the shoulder level, or check in at left foot number 2.  WHO BUILT THIS SHIT?

An Oldie But Goodie.... The Client... or rather EVERY CLIENT

Dear Architect:
Please design and build me a house. I am not quite sure of what I need, so you should use your discretion.
My house should have between two and forty-five bedrooms. Just make sure the plans are such that the bedrooms can be easily added or deleted. When you bring the blueprints to me, I will make the final decision of what I want. Also, bring me the cost breakdown for each configuration so that I can arbitrarily pick one.
Keep in mind that the house I ultimately choose must cost less than the one I am currently living in. Make sure, however, that you correct all the deficiencies that exist in my current house (the floor of my kitchen vibrates when I walk across it, and the walls don't have nearly enough insulation in them).
As you design, also keep in mind that I want to keep yearly maintenance costs as low as possible. This should mean the incorporation of extra-cost features like aluminium, vinyl or composite siding. (If you choose not to specify aluminium, be prepared to explain your decision in detail.)
Please take care that modern design practices and the latest materials are used in construction of the house, as I want it to be a showplace for the most up-to-date ideas and methods. Be alerted, however, that the kitchen should be designed to accommodate, among other things, my 1952 Gibson refigerator.
To ensure that you are building the correct house for our entire family, make certain that you contact each of our children, and also our in- laws. My mother-in-law will have very strong feelings about how the house should be designed, since she visits us at least once a year. Make sure that you weigh all of these options carefully and come to the right decision. I, however, retain the right to overrule any choices that you make.
Please don't bother me with small details right now. Your job is to develop the overall plans for the house: get the big picture. At this time, for example, it is not appropriate to be choosing the colour of the carpet. However, keep in mind that my wife likes blue.
Also, do not worry at this time about acquiring the resources to build the house itself. Your first priority is to develop detailed plans and specifications. Once I approve these plans, however, I would expect the house to be under roof within 48 hours.
While you are designing this house specifically for me, keep in mind that sooner or later I will have to sell it to someone else. It therefore should have appeal to a wide variety of potential buyers. Please make sure before you finalize the plans that there is a consensus of the population in my area that they like the features this house has.
I advise you to run up and look at my neighbour's house that he constructed last year. We like it a great deal. It has many features that we would also like in our new home, particularly the 25 meter swimming pool. With careful engineering, I believe that you can design this into our new home without impacting the final cost.
Please prepare a complete set of blueprints. It is not necessary at this time to do the real design, since they will be used only for construction bids. Be advised, however, that you will be held accountable for any increase of construction costs as a result of later design changes.
You must be thrilled to be working on as interesting a project as this! To be able to use the latest techniques and materials and to be given such freedom in your designs is something that can't happen very often. Contact me as soon as possible with your complete ideas and plans.
P.S.: My wife has just told me that she disagrees with many of the instructions that I've given you in this letter. As architect, it is your responsibility to resolve these differences. I have tried in the past and have been unable to accomplish this. If you can't handle this responsibility, I will have to find another architect.
P.P.S.: Perhaps what I need is not a house at all, but a travel trailer. Please advise me as soon as possible if this is the case.
[Author unknown]

Vdara Death Ray, Duck, Billboard Thing...

Every now and then a story comes along that just makes me laugh. This is definitely one of those times! This building BURNS people - okay its not that funny, sorry but actually it is! If you are sitting pool side in Las Vegas at this hotel you get extra heat due to a reflection off the curved glass facade.  The heat has been measured at 160 degrees! Yes we have a bunch of sitting ducks! Vegas is already as hot as hell - add to that the death ray and a few margaritas and it is literally death by architecture. 

Look at this picture! it is a plastic bag with the name of the hotel SINGED right into it!  I do not make this stuff up, the actual building reflection melted through this bag. Talk about branding - this marketing department took that term a bit too literally, Wait a minute - Maybe it is  GENIUS, I never thought of using the actual building to brand my clients - Ha ha ha....  I wonder if anyone has actually gotten a burn with the name on their back- that would be awesome! Numerous guests have complained about the problem and the folks that work there jokingly call it the "Death Ray".  I wonder how Venturi would categorize this new Strip Phenomenon, you have the duck, the billboard and now drum roll please..... the Laser- Think it will catch on?  Maybe I can have a symposium at Yale about it! Come on folks you can allocate some of the project budget to shade structures at the pool.... Who Built This Shit!