On the townhouse

For architecture, NYC history and Louis CK geeks, check out my article on the history of the New York City townhouse -- as well as a slideshow of five different townhouses. (The one in Park Slope actually looks like a real bargain.)

I never quite understood why the filthy rich opt for glass condos over those Federalist and Anglo Italiante houses. (I suppose if I was one of those "masters of the universe" I might consider a Candela building or the Dakota ... but even then, I think I'd prefer a Greenwich Village townhouse.)

They're the city's most beautiful architectural marvels.

Moreover, in doing the research for this article, I got a chance to speak to Charles Lockwood, author of the classic Bricks and Brownstone and Columbia's Andrew Dolkart. (Any time I get a chance to speak to someone with serious scholarly training, the nerd in me starts kvelling.)

Schlub versus nerd

Well, you have to give it up for Benjamin Nugent. The guy has come up with a seriously funny title for his book: American Nerd: The Story of My People. And the book sounds intriguing.

While there is certainly some overlap between schlubs and nerds, I don't think that the two are exactly the same thing.

Schlubs are certainly a bit clueless about social norms (I give you, as an example, me), but we care about social norms a bit more. We can fake it when we want to. (Certainly better than nerds can.)

And, unlike nerds, we do in fact know something about art and culture. (And sometimes even pop culture!) Certainly, we both care about, say, The Simpsons. But I'm not sure that a true schlub could ever like something as dull as Dungeons & Dragons. I'm not sure that a true nerd could really care about somethign as bizarro (and cool) as the Flaming Lips. The way a nerd dresses is very different from the way a schlub dresses. And if you need someone to fix your computer, you're way better off calling a nerd than calling a schlub.

Still, there is plenty of overlap. I'm intrigued.