What we think about when we try not to think about global warming

...ers–look at CostCo alone! How could we not be doomed? And then I read this book–and now I’m not so sure anymore. Because Stoknes addresses the realm of spirit in Part 3. Given the PowerPoint-ready stolidity of the first two parts of the book, it really surprised me that he went there. And at the same time, it was exciting to find an ally in an unexpected place, to find these more radical notions rising out of such a practical footing. What does he...

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Compost and Pharmaceuticals

...omposting technique is effective in reducing salinomycin in manure. Another 2010 study looked at the composting of sewage sludge containing fluoroquinolones (broad spectrum antibiotics), The concentrations of pharmaceutical residues in compost were significantly lower, if compared to the relevant concentrations in sewage sludge . . . It is concluded that before using the sewage sludge compost as a fertilizer it should be carefully tested against t...

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Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up

...praise be–diagrams of her arcane folding techniques. These things made the book worthwhile for me. The book itself is interesting as an object. It’s smallish, and pretty. Inside, the illustrations are Japanese-cute line drawings. It doesn’t look like any cleaning or organization book I’ve ever seen, and that is what makes it special. Kondo understands that tidying is a spiritual activity, not an organizational activity. The same week we got this b...

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Book Review: An Everlasting Meal

...also on track with last week’s posts about cheap eating and beans. Adler’s book is not a cookbook. It has recipes throughout, but its mission is more about imparting an attitude, a style, a way of thinking in the kitchen, than delivering recipes. In fact, the core of her message is that you don’t need a recipe to cook. I was attracted to this book because it is reportedly inspired by M.F.K. Fisher’s book, How to Cook a Wolf, which is one of my fav...

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What’s Buried in Your Backyard?

...e’s a handy page for dating bottles, scans of antique bottle catalogs, and page after page of bottle types. My unintended archaeological efforts have yielded no Spanish doubloons, viking graves or Anasazi ruins, but I have found lots of glassware, mostly broken milk bottles. I’ve also discovered what I think are cheap perfume bottles like the one above. If you know what this bottle contained please leave a comment. I suspect perfume, because this...

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