A Visit to the Reversible Destiny Lofts

...erspacial character is echoed in the Loft itself and its surroundings. The urban hyperspacial maze that is Tokyo makes both the Bonaventure and the Reversible Destiny Lofts seem comprehensible by comparison. The Shinjuku train station, to take just one example, contains a dizzying number of public transit options on multiple levels connected to a massive shopping mall with escalators and elevators leading to what seems like infinite floors of reta...

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Bike to Work Week

...h our neighborhoods. A tip to the powers that be–first spend your money on making LA more walkable/bikeable and if there are any dead presidents left over for advertising at least try for some sexier imagery. Start with a look at Urban Cyclist–even the old codgers at SurviveLA know these hip kids at are on to something with their free issue #1. And while we’re not thrilled with the MTA ad campaign, we like some of the festivities planned for this...

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In Praise of Disorder

...club presents just the right level of civic inattention to allow the urban homesteader to get away with many of the illegal projects profiled in this blog: greywater, backyard poultry, and front yard vegetable gardening, to mention just a few. Ideally you have a balance between order and disorder–neither gunfire nor the prying eyes of city inspectors. Where I’m staying in Houston, with its flocks of loose chickens, packs of feral dogs, and broken...

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056 Winnetka Farms Part 1

...lian vegetables. In the second part, on next week’s podcast, we’ll discuss urban livestock. During part 1 Craig mentions: Spigarello as the new kale Radicchio di Castelfranco Red Pear Tomato Striato di Napoli zucchini Lunga di Napoli squash Making pumpkin syrup Candied fruits Cardoons If you’d like to stay in touch with Craig you can find him at The Kitchen at Winnetka Farms. If you want to leave a question for the Root Simple Podcast please call...

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An Echo Park Weed Salad

There’s nothing like a little urban blight to produce an excellent salad. While not impoverished (not unless you consider dilapidated $600,000 bungalows a sign of destitution), our neighborhood ain’t exactly Beverly Hills, meaning that in terms of landscaping it’s a little rough around the edges. And the edges–parkways, cracks in the asphalt, neglected plantings were, on this warm February day, overflowing with weeds. Edible weeds. We explored th...

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