Springfield

This isn't where the Simpsons call home, but Springfield, MA is close enough for me now.

Konogo Market

A market in Konogo, Ghana. This place was pretty intense. And being a foreigner (among 10 others) we attracted a big crowd of people who were as interested in us, as we were in the them. Especially when some members of the group started purchasing cloth.

It's not always like this though, most every other day of the week is an empty space. Very similar to how a Farmer's Market in the US comes together and will be a different landscape the next day.

Energy Demand

Earlier this year, I participated in the SF to LA Aids Lifecycle. It was seven days of cycling with about 2000+ people, that meant camping in public parks every night. This photo was a common sight every night as everyone's energy starved gadgets searched for as much replenishment as the riders themselves. There is an opportunity here, as there are few affordable and well disseminated solutions to this problem.

Second Look

This is a street vendor's setup in Adum, a main section of downtown Kumasi, Ghana. I was impressed by the organization and stacking of all the items. Upon re-inspecting the photo, I found myself asking a number of questions that I had not thought of while in there. The first question, which leads me to to many others, is: does the vendor set this up every day? That prompts a number of other thoughts, such as the care and dedication that must be applied if it is set up everyday. The other option is equally compelling, because if it isn't set up everyday, who watches it every night? There is another alternative to watching it every night, which is that most everything is sold each day. In which, it is set up everyday with care and attention.

Street Conditions

This is what a typical street in Accra looks like. There are a numer of paved streets in the city, yes. In my experience in the city, more than 50% of the streets look like this. It makes simple things like traveling 5 miles by car take that much longer than someone from the States might think. Streets like this also results in more wear-and-tear on the cars (one driver of a Tro-Tro, taxi/bus, said that these vans last about 5 to 10 years because of the roads). Unpaved roads also makes the ride that much bumpier, and at some points a 2 car road narrows to a one car road because of street conditions.

This is something I never considered until arriving there and realizing it in person. I was told that in the 19402 the road from Whittier, California to Los Angeles was in similar conditions. Meaning a trip from the farm (yes, farm) to deliver produce to grocers was a 2 hour trip, rather than the 15 to 20 minute ride it can be today (ideally, over congestion has managed to expand the time this trip takes. Amazing what can happen over the course of time, and the cycle of objects moving through space.

Photo from Old Memories of Los Angeles

Blanket Advertising

When I got to the T station this morning, Flip had bought out the entire Harvard Square Inbound station advertising banners. A few weeks ago, Adidas had done something similar (though they bought out the entire station). I really didn't care for the Adidas Ad, in fact, I found it offensive and was glad when their lease was up. These Flip Ads are going to make for some interesting mornings with their bright blues in the fairly muted subway. I've read that Apple may subsidize Chicago CTA's remodel, which won't be such a bad thing by my standards (I find the simplicity of Apple Ads bearable and preferable to alternatives). I am fine with these steps being taken for cities to continue to offer public transportation. Not sure what to do when the advertising is offensive as with the Adidas experience.

Obama Condoms

I bought the deluxe pack of three. Will share the photo later. It turns out, the girl selling these originally started out by buying three herself. Then after looking the condoms up online, found out she could become a seller, and the pay is quite good. It is an interesting market niche.