Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream 47 years ago today

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves, who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so we have come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if  the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must ever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecutions and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I will go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. And this will be the day, this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning, "My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!" And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

And so let freedom ring -- from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.

Let freedom ring -- from the mighty mountains of New York.

Let freedom ring -- from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring -- from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring -- from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that.

Let freedom ring -- from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring -- from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.

Let freedom ring -- from every hill and molehill of Mississippi, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!

And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual,

"Free at last, free at last.

Thank God Almighty, we are free at last."

--Dr. King delivered this speech on 28 August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C. Never forget what he said, when he said it and why he said it.

Wood floors, Australian style

Reader Elisabeth (who's from Melbourne) and I had a small sidebar conversation in the comments after yesterday's post about wood floors.

Wood floors tend to be pretty regional and I asked her what were popular woods in Australia. She responded that she thought Spotted Gum's the most popular wood floor in architect-designed homes. I was intrigued by her description and I'd never heard of Spotted Gum. So I dug around and learned a thing or two.

What's called Spotted Gum is actually Corymbia maculata, a kind of eucalyptus that grows in Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales.

It makes a beautiful floor.

Thanks Elisabeth!

What other regional hardwoods are lurking out there I wonder.

Back to work: I need to specify a new floor

I'm back to work as of today and I'm picking up a project where I left it last weekend. I'[m working on a design for a large, historic home in an old neighborhood in Tampa. It's a pretty grand home and it was built some time in the 1920s. The renovation centers around a kitchen but it involves the entire first floor.

Over the course of the last 90 years, the home's endured some pretty unfortunate revisions and renovations and at some point, someone thought it would be a good idea to remove its original heart pine floors.

Heart pine

I am recommending that we use another wood for the floors and since the home had heart pine in it originally, it would make sense to use heart pine for the new ones. However, the original heart pine on the stairs and on the second floor is 90 years old. It's also cut to an unusual dimension and matching it would be a whole lot more trouble than its worth. I'm recommending that we use a different wood species all together. But which one?

It's a somewhat formal space and my impulse is to go for walnut immediately. I'd love to see a really wide, like 18-inch-wide, plank and our pals at Carlisle Wide Plank Floors will go up to 20" wide on some of their species. Wider plank floors will open up the rooms affected by this renovation and since their scale is rather large, using a wide plank will allow more emphasis to be placed int he coffered ceilings and other wood details that are original to the home.

I know I don't want to use an exotic so much as I want to use something unusual but still in keeping with the character of the house. There are a host of other traditional species that get used so rarely any more that their effect is pretty arresting.

Here are some highlights from Carlisle Wide Plank Floors.

Antique chestnut

Ash

Birch

Hickory

Eastern white pine

Quarter-sawn white oak

Rift cut and quarter sawn white oak

Rift cut white oak

Is there a particular kind of wood floor that resonates with you? If you could pick any wood species to use in your home, what would it be?

Sub-Zero/ Wolf plant tour and seminar day two: I don't want to leave.

As was the case yesterday, today was a whirlwind of activity. Only day two was dedicated to Wolf Cooking appliances.

The people on this trip with me are all designers and all of us know the product line pretty well. So we didn't spend a whole lot of time reviewing model numbers and hearing product descriptions. That was good. So since everybody here has a basic understanding already, we could talk about more advanced uses and installations and then talk with the engineers and developers about what Wolf has planned in the coming model years. I'll be talking about some of these new products as they get closer to their release dates but suffice it to say that there's some pretty cool stuff coming from Wolf in the near term.

To get the day started though, we did a thorough walk through of the Wolf plant. The Wolf plant was a real education and for me, the real highlight of this trip. I know already that Sub-Zero refrigeration is the best in class. It was great to see up close how Wolf earns and maintains its reputation for stellar quality. Each and every component that comes out of that factory has been built from the first screw with the end user in mind. Everyone in that factory is fully aware and committed to making the best ranges there are. Their pride in their work shows through.

As an interesting anecdote, a Wolf range, as heavy as it is, never touches the ground as it's being made. They are born on the wooden pallet they're delivered on. Despite the fact that the ranges are on casters, they never use the casters in the factory. What I found interesting too is that each and every cooking appliance that comes out of that factory has been turned on and run through its various cycles at least once before it leaves the factory and Wolf keeps a record of each of those tests. Fascinating.

I met with a few members of the marketing department today including Paul Leuthe, Sub-Zero/ Wolf's Marketing Manager. Over the course of the next few weeks and with the marketing department's help. I'm going to be writing about the specifics of why a Sub-Zero/ Wolf appliance package is such a smart buy and what makes them such good appliances. This is a company that won't cut corners as a matter of principle and it makes them a very welcome anomaly. It's kind of inspiring to have been immersed in a company for the last two days that knows that there's a right way to build something and then just does it.

So stay tuned, I'll have more substantial information in the coming days and weeks. I promised. In the meantime though, I have some more shots of the Westye Bakke Center where this seminar's been held. Yesterday I showed some of the test kitchens, lounges and lobbies. Most of the public spaces in that building were designed by Jamie Drake. Jamie Drake also designed the main dining room where we've been having meals since yesterday. And man, what meals! I haven't eaten this well since... well... ever.

The building itself was designed by Zingg Design, Inc. A Madison-based architectural firm. The marketing department also promised me some of their real photos of this place and I'll run them as soon as I get them. The scale of this building is such that it really does need a real camera to photograph it. So without further ado, here's how it looks to a point and click:

After I get home tomorrow and consolidate my notes, I'll be writing more about this experience in Madison. In a lot of ways, it confirmed a lot of what I already knew about sub-Zero/ Wolf. It wasn't without its surprises though and I learned a good deal more than I thought I would.

I can't thank Cathy Bame from the Westye Group enough for nominating me. I need to mention Janet Salls, also from the Westye Group, for being such a great guide during my stay. And of course, the entire group here in Madison. It is always a pleasure to meet the people behind the brands and in this case even more so.

If any of you out there have any specific questions about either of these great brands you'd like to ask, please leave a comment here or send me an e-mail, I'll get back to you with specifics as soon as I can.

Again, the websites: Wolf Appliance and Sub-Zero Food Preservation.

Sub-Zero/ Wolf plant tour and seminar day one: Wow.

I spent almost the entire day yesterday at Sub-Zero/ Wolf's Westye Bakke Center and at the Sub-Zero plant itself. I couldn't take photos of the production floor and although I understand the reasons why, it's an amazing place. It was heartening to see an American factory staffed with enthusiastic people who were committed to the products they make and who were treated as valuable assets by their employer. Sub-Zero's daunting reputation for high, high quality starts on that factory floor and everybody knows it. It was inspiring.

Next door to the factory is Sub-Zero/ Wolf's Westye Bakke Center, a training facility and kitchen appliance wonderland that I couldn't quit photographing.

Between their high tech, multimedia showcase auditorium and more fully connected and fully staffed kitchens than I could count, I was on sensory overload all day. Never have I eaten so much good food to absorbed so much information in a single day. Tomorrow's all about Wolf cooking so it'll be more of the same I'm positive.

Being here in Madison completes a bit of a circle for me. Six years ago, I had the honor and pleasure to meet and get to know (and work with) Bill Draper from Draper DBS. Bill Draper is a cabinet and furniture maker without peer so far as I'm concerned. He was also the first member I'd met of a very small group of kitchen and bath people who've achieved superstar status. Draper's an inspiration and he was the first person I'd ever known who encouraged me to treat my career development as a true brand development. I took his advice to heart and look at me now. Hah!

Anyhow, when I met Bill, he had just finished a big project here in Madison. It was a lounge and dining room in Sub-Zero/ Wolf's Westye Bakke Center. He showed me his drawings and showed me some photographs and I was amazed by what I saw. It was an Art Nouveau lounge featuring some of the most amazing hand carved wood I'd ever seen. At the time I thought to myself, "Man, I would kill to see that lounge in person, but I'll never get to Madison." Never say never kids. Never say never.

I spent about an hour running my hands all over the most incredible hand carved wood I'd ever seen this afternoon and I was pinching myself the whole time. Six years after having seen the plans for the place, I was finally standing in it. Here are some photos of the lounge and the formal dining room attached to it.

I really need a decent camera. Oh well.

There were two really dynamic and huge kitchens that Sub-Zero/ Wolf use for training people like me hands on. The two kitchens are adjoining and although they are done in really radically different styles, I knew immediately that they were Mick De Giulio projects and sure enough they are. Mick's another of the handful of kitchen and bath people who've achieved superstar status. I haven't met him yet but there's plenty of time.

I noticed that in the lobby and in one of the De Giulio kitchens there were some tell-tale glass sculptures that I couldn't help but recognize as Chihuly and sure enough, that's what they are. I keep running into his work. I have to admit that it took me a while to warm up to him but after having spent so much time at the Chihuly Collection at home, I'm really warming up to him as an artist.

I had some really high expectations for the Sub-Zero portion of this seminar and I wasn't disappointed int he least. Sub-Zero is best in their category by a long shot and they are that for a very good reason. Nobody does refrigeration better.

Tomorrow's all about Wolf cooking appliances and I'm looking forward to it. I get to cook my own lunch tomorrow and I'm sure it'll be the highlight of this visit. Although, strange though it may sound, I'm really looking forward to touring the Wolf factory tomorrow too. So on Wednesday morning, I'll post about my day with Wolf and I'll get some more shots of the Jamie Drake-designed portions of the Westye Bakke Center too.

So many thanks to My amazing Sub-Zero/ Wolf rep Cathy Bame for nominating me for this trip and thank you Sub-Zero/ Wolf for showing me such a good time since I arrived yesterday.

If you guys have any questions you'd like to have answered about Sub-Zero/ Wolf, ask them here in the comments or drop me an e-mail and I'll take it from there. Once again, those websites are Sub-Zero Preservation and Wolf Cooking.