Ms. Darby

Sy Safransky, the founder, editor, and publisher of the fantastic independent, ad-free magazine, The Sun, writes a one-page section (mostly) every month called Sy Safransky’s Notebook. Here are two of my favorite entries this month:

The Winter Solstice arrives, and not a moment too soon. These long nights stir up too many ghosts. I’m ready for the days to start lengthening again. But who am I to question the movement of the seasons? My wish for some kind of eternal springtime is laughable, like Bush’s plan to bring democracy to Iraq. As if we had a surplus of democracy here in the United States. As if all our democratic institutions were humming along to peak efficiency, and everyone’s basic rights were being respected, and we were all feeling so magnificently equal that we could afford to give some of it away. But I digress. Forget Bush. Forget the sad fact that the future hasn’t turned out the way my high school social-studies teacher predicted. The light returns – no matter how many times we’ve been wrong. The light doesn’t vote for president, or run for president, or care who’s president. The light doesn’t study itself in the mirror, compare itself to last year’s light, wonder how many light years it has left. The light isn’t afraid of darkness. When the light arrives, darkness flees.

Today I’m thankful for the word Gratitude, a word in which I can make myself at home. It’s not a prestigious Park Avenue condominium of a word like transcendence or a palatial mansion of a word like enlightenment. Gratitude is four walls, a ceiling, a floor. And a chair? Yes! And a window!

Filed by darby at 10:39 am under Arts
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While working on a project the last month and wanting some texture, I came across the Wolf Gordon Earth Safe books in the showroom, featuring rice papers, grass cloths, and wood veneers “manufactured with sustainable materials and processes that are environmentally sensitive.” I am interested in more specific information, like, “Do your wallcoverings include binders, inks, dyes, fungicides, pesticides, pastes, or flame retardants,” which all contribute to poor indoor air quality with the outgasing of VOC’s?

Unfortunately, none of that information is available, and when I had asked for a spec sheet, I had to provide a vendor number. I realize that this is par for the course in the world of interior design, but since the advent of these intertubes, I believe a company’s goal, especially if that company is touting “green” products, should be transparency.

While my customer service rep, Jose, was extremely accommodating, the only useable information I received, for my purposes, at least, was the permeability rating. It’s 147, for the record. Which doesn’t mean all that much, since there isn’t any standardized permeability rating method in the wallcovering industry. A positive exists in that this particular Wolf Gordon wall covering does not have a backing, making it less a factor in being a party to any mold issues.

Through research, I learned that the Earth Safe line is part of a what Wolf Gordon calls its Ecological Reclamation Program. At the end of the product’s life cycle, the wall coverings can be returned (for credit) and applied to a variety of alternative, secondary uses. This line is composed of natural, renewable or recyclable materials and cellulose harvested from managed forests.

It would seem that the representatives at Wolf Gordon would be eager to share this sustainability program information on its “green” product spec sheet. I’m not sure why they choose not to. Hopefully, as consumers get more savvy in the questions that they ask and designers become more insistent in transparency and full-disclosure when it relates to “green” products, we can all raise the bar and elevate what will pass for “green” in our respective industries.

Filed by admin at 10:04 pm under Walls
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I had the pleasure of visiting two dear friends this past weekend in Cincinnati. With my visit, I was also treated to seeing many other good friends who also live there. Oh joy!

And the one (major) factor missing in my life these days are just that – my friends. While I have so much that I am incredibly thankful for every day, my friends have always been my family, an ethos which was naturally ignited in high-school and reinforced through the world of the Grateful Dead and westward travel. To this day, my friends are as important to me as my family, and the titles are interchangeable among the two groups, making me the luckiest gal in all the land.

I made two new friends, too. They are young boys, named E and R, and they are four and two years old, respectively. They are, as you may have guessed, the beautiful children of my dear sweet friends, A and T. And beautiful they are. SO SWEET, and smart, and artistic, and sensitive, whilst still being full-on, running, jumping, yelling, wrastlin’ BOYS. They melted my heart, and I can’t wait for their visit down South; To hunt for ‘gators and play in the sand.

R, me, and E, at the Cincinnati Cinergy Museum, part of the Museum Center. Notice R’s Elvis coat? What a rock star.

Filed by darby at 11:36 am under raves, travel
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Between climbing around the attics of newly built homes applying mastic to ductwork and performing blower door tests, and touring the warehouse of one exceptionally organized, design and environmentally conscious swedish furniture maker, I have not had time to write. But that is OK, because I have landed what is – today- my dream job.

It all started months ago, and if anyone is really keeping track besides me, it began when my friend Matt and I commiserated about the incompetence of our then employer a couple of years ago. He and I both parted ways with that employer, but thanks to a recent introduction he made for me, I now work for a conscientious and cool alternative energy provider. This type of entity is NOT an easy one to come by in these parts, and it was not even three years ago when my former employer looked at me like I had two heads when I mentioned differentiating ourselves from the rest of the market by implementing some green design. Apparently, the word “green” threw him.

Since last week, so many strange things have come full circle, reminding me that the universe works in complete and perfect ways. Like the first client I did a energy efficiency upgrade for last week. I know him. Met him last month at a campaign drive. And that former employer? Well, he just called our company because he wants to get their existing inventory “certified green.” The list goes on, but the story is the same. Do what you love, and the circles start to close. Then, you are inside of the circle, instead of trying to figure out how to jump into it from the outside.

And THIS story would not be complete unless I told you about solar Bill. He is the person that I work with in this market. He is my teacher, my mentor. He is an engineer, a former oceanographer, a hunter, a maker of musical instruments, a leader of kids’ and their science projects; he is better than MacGyver when it comes to his ability to re-purpose items to create astounding workable solutions, and he is humble and mellow and old-school and conscientious. They don’t make them like this anymore, and I could not have asked for a better person to show me the ropes and work with every day.

And as for the company, well, they are committed to solar, wind, and micro-hydro energy and in helping people get their homes to be more energy efficient. And they are smart, wonderful folk.

So here’s to landing a gig that has purpose, is fulfilling on many levels, and hopefully helps to make the world a better place while we earn our keep. My glass is held high. Cheers.

Filed by darby at 8:44 pm under General, raves
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