My thesis is done and I have my MFA, thanks to AW.org!

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volvoguy87

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As Will said in the 51 Westy Fridge thread, I finally got something I have been wanting for a few years, that is flat, my degree! I earned an MFA in historic preservation from the Savannah College of art & Design. There are no higher degrees available in my field, so I am looking for a job!

I am especially proud of my thesis, which could not have been done without AW.org. The title of my thesis is "Learning Sustainable Building Design and Use From Historic Buildings." I did not propose anything new, I just researched sustainable and energy efficient elements of historic building design and use and proposed that some of those elements could be used today and achieve energy savings and reduce waste without having to reinvent the wheel.

Much of the information about historic technology and appliances came from my reading AW.org for so many years. There's even an entire section about laundry, where suds savers play a central role. 1140 spin cycles also play an important part, as do clothes lines.

What better incentive to make good use of natural lighting and ventilation than when you're designing and using buildings prior to the introduction of electric utilities?
Dave

I thanked the people of AW.org on the dedication and acknowledgment pages of my thesis, but since it's now in the college's library, I wanted to extend my thanks to you here.

Thank you.
 
What are my plans?

My eyesight is poor and I cannot drive at night, therefore I need to both live and work someplace with good public transit. I'm trying to get a job in historic preservation (rehabilitating old buildings) in Boston, NYC, or Cincinnati. I can do tax credits, condition assessments, rehabilitation/restoration feasibility studies, rehabilitation/restoration planning, etc.

If any of you in Boston, know of any historic preservationists who are hiring, please let me know! The T is my friend.

I have been looking for a job for about a year with NO SUCCESS AT ALL!!! Not that I'm bitter or anything :) Hopefully, now that I have maxed out my formal education in my field, someone will call me back. I hope those of you who are looking for jobs are having better luck than I am.

Thanks,
Dave
 
good luck.....

that is awesome. I hope you get the job you're dreaming of in a city you really enjoy. Good work.
 
Dave, that's truly an admirable achievement. Good luck to you in your job search. When (not if) you find one you like, it will be a truly fulfilling experience and the rewards for all of your hard work will be endless.

Ralph
 
Way to go Dave!

That is a big hurdle for anyone. Would you ever consider living in Portland, Or? We are a very green city with wonderful public transit system. We also have Max, that is the light rail system that is ever expanding here. On top of that, we have alot of urban renual that is also taking place, even right in my own neighborhood. We are also a very green city that recycles 59% of all that we use, right behind LA that is at 61% recycling. I live the middle of the city. It never hurts to check it out. Let me know if there is any way that I can help. :)
 
Portland.

I would love to try Portland. That city is consistently ranked as one of the best in the country and their public transit is tough to beat. I was a student teaching intern in urban planning and I have a great deal of respect for Portland's foresight in their planning over many years. I have, however, heard that it is difficult to get established there. (Yes, I can teach with my degree, but I REALLY don't like it.)

Another upside, Portland has the highest per-capita ownership of old Volvos in the country :-D. In fact, Portland is the location of IPD, a pretty good source for Volvo parts.

If you know of anyone looking to hire a historic preservationist, please pass the word along.

Thank you very much,
Dave
 
Well Done

Congratulations Dave. Completing your thesis and earning your MFA are no small achievements. All the success to you in future endeavors.
 
Congratulations!!

Good! So I'm not the only one (I think the first one) to have completed a so hard work of resarch which consist in a thesis thank to Automaticwasher.org!!

How would we do wihtout it!?

Good Luck Dave for your future and may what you learnt here very precious for what you'll do.

GoodBye!
Diomede

PS: I'm trying to import here the appliances restoring... you cannot imagine how's hard to make people appreciate strongness, reliability, design and effectivness of vintage items... but I'm hopefull the same!!
 
I hope you get your job in Boston. I feel that I lived in Boston in a past life at times when I see movies filmed there. It just looks so familiar to me for some reason. The cuisine there is awesome as I hear. Wasn't "Goodwill Hunting" filmed in Boston?
 
Volvo, you would have a fun time here in Northwest Louisiana with all our Victorian homes and old Plantation houses. Have you ever heard of or read about in your studies about the secret spaces in the walls of old Plantation houses that were built into the house for the hiding of illegal slaves when Union forces would come near the house? There is a house here like that and it is said that there are still actual chains in the walls of this house that were used to chain the slaves during the hiding of them in these spaces.
 
So x, who lives in that house now? It sounds like the ideal home for the S&M or B&D lifestyle. Same chains, just an altogether different master and slave scene going on. A deviant and twisted selling point if there ever was one . . . for the right buyer.
 
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