Frank Lloyd Wright’s Westcott House, built in 1904 in Springfield, Ohio (Photo by Brandon Smith)

Here’s an update on me: two pieces of mine are sitting in a queue to get onto a local satire site; I’m looking for a writing or researching or restaurant job; I’m waiting for my student loan to come in so I can stop eating just rice and pita and almonds.

I did, however, purchase a 12-person table and set it up last week. The restaurant thing is on its way. Pictures soon.

This post is to share some of today’s favorite articles.

This New York Times piece talks about a construction practice that uses whole trees (albeit dead trees) instead of milled lumber. Not as much waste is generated there—just the bark. Also, using whole trees can hold 50 percent more weight than the same amount of lumber, so less is needed in the first place.

I like it most, though, because it’s true to the material. (This is a time-tested architectural maxim; Frank Lloyd Wright was all about it.) When you look at this wood you know it comes from a tree, something once living. It’s easy to forget when you look at a plank.