WYEP: Yes, we know the music matters, but what about the glass?

By Lorin Hancock, chief consultant on radio station glazing/assistant editor*

This weekend I had the chance to travel to Pittsburgh to visit my famous friend, radio personality Cindy Howes. Cindy is the Morning Mix DJ for WYEP, and you can listen to her show here from 6-10 weekday mornings. I’m listening to it now, and the entire Glass Magazine staff is rockin’ along.**

Now that the plug is out of the way, I can get on with the rest of my important piece of journalism.

I rode my bike from DC to Pittsburgh, only stopping six times to sleep for the night. Honestly, in the time since my last post, I did regret abandoning my Hummer. However, upon tracking it down I learned that it had been turned into a Filene’s Basement, so I just counted it as a loss. Too bad I still owe $50k on it.

Pittsburgh is an exciting place, full of fun people and even better food. The only thing they don’t have is a locally published magazine about glass. They do, however, have a kick-fanny radio station in an awesome LEED certified silver building. And oh, the glass!

Cindy and production director Brian Siewiorek showed me around, pointing out the wheat board furniture, the milk cap carpet, the blue-jean ceiling, the corn floor, and yes, the glass! Ninety percent of the light in the building comes from daylighting. Even on a cloudy Pittsburgh day the office was a bright, shiny, happy place. Brian mentioned how great it is for someone with Sun and Seasonal Affective Disorder. Yes, I thought, suddenly realizing that my caustic nature has nothing to do with my personality and is due entirely to the fact that I work in a windowless office. Sahely, please take note of this.

Cindy and Brian take time out of their busy schedule to pose for this photo. Notice how bright it is, with no overhead lights. That's no flash; that's daylighting!

The sound booth looks pretty cool, too. “How does this work?” I asked.
“Well the plastic—“
“Oh, then I don’t care.”
“There’s glass, too.”
“Oh, ok! Go on!”
As it happens, the window to the booth is glass, and the inside is lined with curvy, camel-hump-like plastic (and yes, that is the technical term) to um, do good acoustical stuff.***

Cindy went off to program her show and I had fun pretending to be a DJ (see picture above). And only one person asked me what I was doing there, so I must have looked pretty natural. If only there was a radio station that broadcast material related to glass and glazing, I would consider switching professions.

Although Pittsburgh was fabulous, it’s nice to be back at Glass Magazine. We don’t have 90 percent daylighting and we don’t have blue-jean-ceilings, but we do our part. For example, I took the initiative and turned off the AC that was running all weekend in the kitchen, despite the fact that it’s 40 degrees outside. Because we all have to help save the environment.

PS- to James Bogdan, if you’re reading this: next time I go to Pittsburgh I’m going to want a tour of that fancy PPG building. Got it? Thanks.



*note the promotion!
**Cindy did not pay me to say this. Also, glass media professionals do not really rock; they sway.
***I am a glass media professional, not a sound media professional.