An Early Resolution

December 8, 2014

...all back at my feet–how high would the pile be? As big as my house? So I’m making a resolution. Instead of berating others, I’m declaring a personal moratorium on to-go cups–all disposable cups for both hot and cold drinks, actually, because why not? I banned plastic water bottles from my life long ago. Why it took so long for me to eschew the cups, I don’t know. I guess I was always able to mutter, “Well, at least they’re paper.” Denial is a beau...

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026 Riding a Bike in Los Angeles with Colin Bogart

Mr. Homegrown

November 26, 2014

Bikes, Podcasts, Transportation

...bout how to ride a bike in the city, commuting by bike and the politics of making our communities more bike friendly. Colin shares his experience of growing up in the suburbs and how he got back into riding a bike. During the discussion (fueled by a bottle of wine, I’ll note) we discuss: Aids Lifecycle Bike Summer Riding to work Is riding a bike in the city safe? Riding slow Keeping cool when you’re being honked at Lane positioning Avoiding the do...

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Diyas: oil lamps from India

Mrs. Homegrown

November 12, 2014

Domesticus

3 Comments

...gular scheduled Wednesday podcast, below.] As readers of this blog and our books know, I’m a big fan of little vegetable oil lamps–the type that can be easily improvised with any shallow vessel, from sea shells to Altoid tins. If the tabletop aesthetic of oyster shells and recyclables doesn’t quite appeal to you, may I interest you in diyas? Diyas are little clay lamps used in India. They usually burn ghee, but any vegetable oil works well in them...

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Behind the Scenes at Root Simple is a World of Big Pumpkins, Pomegranate Catapults and Man Crates

Mr. Homegrown

October 7, 2014

Thoughtstylings

7 Comments

...ocation for this annual event. “The available space and the City’s help in making the event happen really creates the perfect environment for the Pomegranate Festival,” Debi Bray, president and CEO of the Madera Chamber of Commerce says. Returning to this year’s lineup is a display for various aircraft as well as skydivers from Madera Parachute Center. New to this year’s festival will be a children’s stage featuring local dance, karate and other t...

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Will 3D Printing Save Us From Bad Garden Sculpture?

Mr. Homegrown

February 13, 2015

Gardening, Thoughtstylings

2 Comments

...s are plagued with bronze, smiling, hyper-realistic statuary. For me these things evoke a visceral uncanny valley horror response. Perhaps 3D printing is the answer. In 2012 artist Oliver Laric approached a museum in the UK and proposed scanning objects from their collection and making the files available for free. You can see those scans, which include Dante, Roman and medieval objects and a few 19th century British mayors here. You can also see...

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