Saturday, May 3, 2008

After months of waiting, the project finally came to an end this week when at 12:12 p.m. James Hepokoski, a graduate student at Syracuse University’s School of Architecture, paid me a visit. He had heard about what I was doing after reading Chuck Shepherd’s article in News of the Weird, an online news journal. After visiting for the 48 remaining minutes of the session we took some photos and went our separate ways.



Thanks to James for ending my wait.

Saturday, April 26, 2008

I saw one of the first tell tale signs that spring has finally arrived here in Syracuse. I was reunited with some good friends of mine after their long winter hiatus. This only serves as a reminder for how long I've been waiting.

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Well this week's session was a busy one. I spent the first part of my hour talking to the folks at 95x. They were excited about what I was doing and did their best to help get the word out. We will see what comes of it in the next few weeks. 



On my way out of the door this morning, I received something in the mail that made my wait a little more bearable. A friend of mine in Michigan sent me a package of cookies for my birthday. They were chocolate and peanut butter chip, one of my favorite kinds, thank you Kristen.

Saturday, April 12, 2008

I just wanted to start out by saying that I thought Andy did a great job filling in for me this past weekend, it looks like he had a beautiful day to do it. From what he told me, it sounds like no one came by to see him. I tried to explain to him that I know the feeling, but he was still pretty upset. Also, I wanted to say thank you to Mike Towner for helping out by taking the photo of Andy sitting. I will be back this weekend, hope to see you there.

Sunday, April 6, 2008

It felt good to be back. After two weeks away, I was beginning to miss my bench. This was the first weekend in a long time that I did not have not to wait in the bitter cold or rain. Even though the skaters were gone, the square was full of people sitting out and enjoying the sun. I even ran into a friend who was taking advantage of the beautiful weather to do some reading of her own. It was nice to finally run into someone I know, though they weren’t there because of the project.

Saturday, March 29, 2008

Coleman’s was packed this weekend. About half of the dinning area was being used for a private party, so the bar was pretty full. Like always, the burger was phenomenal, but I had no one to share it with. I was sure to wear my coat the whole time so that I would be easily recognizable, but it was no help. It’s ok though, I was able to meet some people to shoot the breeze with while I passed the time. Except for the fact that they were Patriots fans, they were nice people.

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Sorry about not making it this weekend. I went to my brother’s house in Rochester to help him convert a spare room into a nursery on Friday. Unfortunately, it took until Saturday just to get paint on the walls. However, we were facing a deadline and it needed to get done. 



If anyone did show up and was looking for me, I would like to make it up to them. This week I will hold the project at Coleman’s Restaurant (a Syracuse landmark) on Tipperary Hill, where I will buy lunch for whoever shows up. Even if you weren’t there last Saturday, but thought about it. I will post more details later in the week.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

I hope you had a good St. Patrick’s Day. Mine was a blast. With the weather being so mild, it seems like everyone went downtown for the parade. Good thing I didn’t try to get to the square on Saturday, but I was able to get a picture of the green stripe they paint down Salina Street. It's a Syracuse tradition. Everyone, even the mayor paints a little bit.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Well it was a cold, wet, windy day in Syracuse, I even heard a little bit of thunder before I left. Not a good day for waiting. Even with the later start time this week, no one showed up. I don’t blame them; much of my time was spent under a building overhang trying to stay out of the rain. At least with March coming in like a lion we know it has to go out like a lamb.

Saturday, March 1, 2008

Happy March!

Despite getting an early start there was not much going on around the square. Only about five people were ice-skating and there was no chili cook-off taking place. Surprisingly, despite the article that was featured in last week's paper, no one showed up to introduce themselves. I guess they are interested in finding out who has been emailing me my challenges. Keep checking in with my website to see how that project is coming along.

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Well this past weekend was a busy one to say the least. There was a chili cook off across the street in Hanover Square and tree carving in the Clinton Square. Needless to say it was tough to find a parking space. I tried to get my picture taken with the bear and eagle that were being carved, but the artists must have been on a lunch break. What do you want to beat they had chili. 


Monday, February 18, 2008

Well I just missed it. This past weekend was Winterfest in Syracuse, and I was out of town. From what I saw in the paper it looked like it was a good time. With the temperatures getting above freezing during the day, most of the ice sculptures had started to melt, so there wasn’t much to look at.

Saturday, February 9, 2008

I had no idea what to except when I arrived at Clinton Square on Saturday. Last week’s failed Super Bowl Party left a sour taste in my mouth. However, after about ten minutes things started to look up. That was when the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile rolled into town. They were there promoting the American Idol Oscar Meyer Wiener Jingle contest. I think the actual contest was being held somewhere else, but they were letting people tour the Weinermoble! Let me tell you it is one sweet ride. After checking things out, I was able to get my picture taken with Caitlin who is one of the official drivers of the Weinermobile. It was an honor.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

What a game! I did not see that one coming. Even though it was low scoring, it was not short on excitement. Now this is in sharp contrast to the Super Bowl party I threw, that no one showed for. I had to sit and eat my chips alone, not much of a party when you think about. I understand that you might have been busy, and I realize that I wasn’t able to get my invitation out till Friday, but still? Oh well, I hope that you had a good Super Bowl, maybe I’ll see you there this week.

Saturday, January 26, 2008

It felt good to be back. There have been some big changes since two weeks ago. Most notably was the Christmas tree that had finally come down, along with the manger display. It was getting pretty obvious after two months that most of the needles had fallen off and the tree was looking pretty dead. However, I did enjoy having friends to read with, even if they were plastic.



I just wanted to finish by letting you know that I have posted an advertisement for this project on You Tube. You will find the link to the right. Remember to tell all your friends.

Sunday, January 20, 2008

Well it was a pretty hectic weekend from start to finish. After two twelve-hour days of back to back critiques I am ready to take a little time off. Sorry that I had to change my location, but I figured having been in Clinton Square for three months with nothing to show for it, what was there to lose? However, nothing exciting happened in Baltimore, it was like no one noticed I was there. I am just looking forward to being back on my bench this week.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

With the unseasonably warm weather continuing here in Syracuse, I was able to sit down and enjoy my hour a little bit more this week. Unfortunately, the speakers for the ice rink are located just above where I usually sit, making it impossible to read. After walking around a little, I was able to find a quiet spot in the manger underneath the Christmas tree. I was nice not to sit alone for once.

Saturday, January 5, 2008

Well, there were no political rallies this weekend, but I am sure with New York’s primary coming up, there's a possibility we could have another one soon. It will be interesting to see how all of the candidates will be doing at that point. Even though there was not much going on in the square today, I was able to take in the good weather. In fact, it was so warm that I didn't even need to wear gloves.

Saturday, December 30, 2007

Well, it was an exciting week in Clinton Square. You can definitely tell that primary season is right around the corner. I was greeted this week by a small group of Ron Paul supporters. Now, I am not a registered Republican, but I thought that I would include a link to his website for anyone who was interested, and remember to vote in your state’s primary.

Saturday, December 22, 2007

My apologizes to anyone who was able to make it on Saturday. My day was spent recovering form a bout of food poisoning. It must have been form the chicken riggies I had for dinner on Friday. I promise I will never go out for riggies the night before a waiting session ever again.

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Unfortunately I had to cut this week’s session short because my bench was pretty snowed in. After walking around for about 20 minutes I decided I would call it quits. I will have to remember to bring my shovel next time.

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

With the chaos of the holidays in the air, I had to schedule this week's session at an odd ball time. Since there was no one around, most of my hour was spent taking pictures in front of the different light displays. I think I will use one of them for the front of my Christmas card. Let me know what you think?

Saturday, December 1, 2007

Well winter finally arrived this week. I have gone from wiping down my bench after an autumn rain to brushing off a couple inches of snow. Despite the cold, I was able to get some reading done, as well as take a call from a friend in Washington D.C. He's doing fine, enjoying his mild forty degree weather, and planning a trip to Sweden for the holidays. After reading a few pages in my book, I watched the skaters before heading to my car to warm up.

Saturday, November 26, 2007

With Thanksgiving this past Thursday, the holiday spirit was in full swing at Clinton Square. The ice rink was finally frozen over and full of people; even Santa did a few laps. Behind my bench were two wire reindeer all lit up and grazing on some grass. Despite all of this activity, no one at the rink seemed to recognize me. I guess I will have to give my Craig’s List ad another week.

Sunday, November 18, 2007

I went away this past weekend to Beacon, New York, where I met some friends from graduate school and checked out the Dia Center. It was a really fun trip, with lots of art and some nice scenery to drive through. Since I knew I was not going to get back to Syracuse till later, I figured it would be interesting to do a session with the square all lit up. To my surprise, there was only a small patch of trees with lights and not a whole lot more. I guess they are going to wait till after Thanksgiving to light the big tree.



This Sunday night was also the big game on NBC, with the Buffalo Bills hosting the New England Patriots. The game turned out to be a blowout, but I still have a lot of hope left for the Bills this season. What bothered me the most about the game; was that the announcers would not talk about anything else but Tom Brady and Randy Moss. The only Buffalo Bill they mentioned was their injured tight end who is receiving rehab for a spinal cord injury. With the way the Patriots are playing, I am interested to see what will happen first; someone will read this blog and come to visit me, or the Patriots will lose a game?

Monday, November 12, 2007

Sorry I was late getting downtown this past Monday. I got caught up doing things around the house, and was not able to make it out on time. Hopefully, I didn't miss anyone who might have stopped by. 



Unfortunately, none of my pigeon friends were around this week, and the square was surprisingly quiet for a weekday. It was exciting to finally see the crews putting the lights up on the city Christmas tree. The ice rink looks finished and is just waiting for a good cold spell to set in. Pretty soon Clinton Square will be full of people, once that happens someone is bound to introduce themselves to me.

Saturday, November 3, 2007

I decided I was going to use my time this week to go through my mail. Being the first of the month, I had a few bills that needed to be paid. I was also interested to see if any progress had been made on the ice rink they started last week. It's hard to imagine that in a few weeks the city’s Christmas tree will fill part of the square.



As I sat there reading my mail, I was visited by two of my friends from earlier in the project. I figured by now all of the pigeons would have flown south for the winter. Apparently the warm weather we've been having is playing tricks on them.

Saturday, October 28, 2007

While things were a little wet at first, I was able to quickly dry my bench off and get some waiting done. The rain held off for the most part while I was there. Unfortunately, no one showed up. A crew of city workers were starting to put together the ice rink that goes in place of the fountain. I guess this is just another reminder that winter is right around the corner.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

This week was the Third Thursday citywide art opening; with dozens of openings taking place throughout downtown, I figured I stood a good chance of being found. However, with the sun starting to set, I sat there with nothing to show for it. While I was waiting, I noticed a gentlemen on a bench nearby; I am curious to know if he's doing an art project of his own.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Autumn was in the air this weekend, making for a pretty brisk Sunday afternoon. The square was pretty empty for the most part. A pigeon stopped by for a little bit, but didn't stay long. With not much going on around me, I made a few phone calls and spent the rest of my time reading.