Public Spaces

Envoys extraordinary

In this more personal podcast episode, I speak with three envoys from our public God:* Bethany and I ride the bus and discuss interior design, urban planning, and her installation art.* A local paper objects to free bus service, despite its cost effectiveness, because some citizens might make buses their homes.* My neighbor admits to, on rare occasions, riding buses to keep warm. She teaches me how far we are from the new creation’s justice.* Bethany and I consider Le Corbusier’s solution to public spaces and to the spread of a future St. Paul’s doctrines among the poor.* A panhandler tells me why he parted traffic for me.And Victoria and I discuss Arlington drivers.Finally—to assure myself of my sanity—do you, too, hear the buses chuckle?My thanks to Carol and Wayne (not their real names), Victoria and Bethany for permission to record and publish their voices. Thanks also to Arend at Uppbeat for the licensed use of his “O, Magnificence II.” Get full access to Political Devotions at www.polidevo.com/subscribe

Stories & objects

Bryce and Victoria move from the suburbs to the city. Bryce sells his car and tries out the bus service by heading to StudioPAUSE. There he meets Sushmita Mazumdar, an artist and a poet, whose stories and curated objects hold a mirror up to support and celebrate Columbia Pike’s multiethnic community. Format: narrative with clips from interviews of Sushmita as well as of Lloyd Wolf, Director of the Columbia Pike Documentary Project. 8 minutes.Sushmita Mazumdar (foreground, folded hands) and other community members celebrate the grand opening of StudioPAUSE’s Columbia Pike location on October 7, 2023. Photos courtesy © Lloyd Wolf / Columbia Pike Documentary Project. Get full access to Political Devotions at www.polidevo.com/subscribe