The Blurgh

Last night, Gretchen and I went to the opening of a new Artist’s Marketplace location, this one in the Strip.  That’ll make three locations so far, and if the new one’s anywhere near as successful as the past two, there’ll probably be at least one more popping up in the next year or two.

The first location was setup in the South Side about 10 years ago in the old South Side Market House building (off of Carson on Bedford Square), and I’m totally in love with the concept.  Artist co-ops have been popular in the city for a while, and some of them even provided spaces for artists to display and sell their work.  Pittsburgh’s also been known for its neighborhood arts festivals, and the booths that get the biggest draws in those festivals were always the ones where an artist was actively doing work.  A group of artists decided to combine the elements of those different ideas and put it all in one place.

The building is divided into 20+ studio/gallery spaces with a large central open space down the middle.  The studios/galleries are large enough to provide an artist with enough room to have a full-size workspace and also have a place to display their pieces.  The open space down the middle gives the building a very old-timey marketplace feel–almost like something out of the Middle Ages.  People love coming to watch the artists work, especially those doing metal and woodwork, and the artists get to interact with people and give their work a lot of visability.  It also provides artists with a productive setting to interact with each other, and many of them end up working together on different projects.

Pittsburgh is also a terrific place for these types of attractions since there are so many old warehouses and factories that lend themselves well to studio renovation.  A few years after the South Side location opened, one opened in Lawrenceville in one of the old buildings by the river.  At that point, people knew what the marketplaces were all about, and it was an instant success.  The opening Gretchen and I went to last night was a big event, and we have no doubt that it’ll take no time for it to become yet another attraction in the Strip.

Sorry for the lack of posting during the last week, Gretchen and I have been busy entertaining family. We convinced everyone to meet in Pittsburgh like we did over Thanksgiving, although it was a little more difficult this time around because the Florida and California family were scared of the snow! The big event was held at my parents’ house, and it went really well. It really was big, too–besides immediate family, a good chunk of both of our extended families came to town.

On Christmas Eve, we all went down to the Strip for the annual activities. Most of the extended family that came hadn’t been in Pittsburgh for decades, and they were amazed at all the differences. They really enjoyed taking the train to different places, and they kept commenting on how they don’t remember seeing so many people out, especially so many families with young children. The Strip was a madhouse, but everyone there was in such a good mood that it felt more like a party. There were a couple people playing music in the streets, including a guy playing an accordian, and Gretchen and I had a little fun and started polka-ing. After a little bit a few more couples joined us, and our families started snapping a crapload of pictures, many of which I’m sure will embarrass!

One thing about getting together with family is that you get the inevitable questions on what you’re doing with your life. I’ve always hated those, but now that I’m a senior, the questions seemed a little more pointed. When I’d try to give the old answers of, “Oh, I’m not sure, maybe I’ll go on to grad school,” they just didn’t seem good enough, and I guess when it comes down to it, they really aren’t. I’ve been trying not to freak out about graduating, but it’s starting…what the hell am I going to do? I feel like I should have a good idea of what I want to do if I’d go to grad school, and even if I did want to apply for next fall, I’m already late. I hope having a few days off to think about it before the semester starts will help.

Gretchen and I decided to be a little adventurous this Thanksgiving and do something we’ve never done before–have both of our families over to our place. Not only was it the first time our families did Thanksgiving together, but it was also the most people we’ve ever cooked dinner for. My parents volunteered to make dessert at their house and bring it over, which helped a lot, and Gretchen’s family helped us a lot with the turkey and stuffing. It got a little cozy in our one-bedroom apartment, but in the end it was a great time.

Gretchen’s parents flew up on Tuesday, and if it weren’t for the yellow line, we would have been stuck on the Parkway for over an hour. Instead, we caught one of the express trains and arrived only a few blocks from our place downtown in less than 20 minutes. Gretchen’s parents still get a kick out of taking the train…it’s cute.

Today we’re planning on heading to the Strip to enjoy the sights. About 10 years ago the business owners in the Strip and Lawrenceville came together to organize “Black Friday on Penn & Butler,” which is a several mile-long street festival going from the Strip all the way through 60th street open only to pedestrian traffic. Besides the shopping, there are tons of street performers, great restaurants, games and other assorted ridiculousness.

My grandma is especially looking forward to it, and she promised me that she will FINALLY try a sandwich at Primanti’s–somehow she’s managed to live in Pittsburgh for almost 50 years and she’s never been there, which has to be a record. I’ll let you know what she thinks!