A Low-Tech Experiment in Growing Oyster Mushrooms

February 3, 2022

My furniture making hobby produces a mountain of sawdust and wood chips. Some of it I give to neighbors who have cabins with composting toilets. A lot of it I have to throw out. A few months ago a light bulb went off. I mostly produce oak sawdust which just happens to be one of the ideal substrates for growing mushrooms. While I love looking at mushrooms and attending lectures about mushrooms via the Los Angeles Mycological Society, I don’t know...

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Community Power! Elect Hugo Soto-Martinez!

Mr. Homegrown

February 17, 2022

Thoughtstylings

1 Comment

...ary working people. He supports building social housing, jobs programs and making our streets safer for everyone. You can read more about his platform on his website. Electing Hugo is just the beginning. There’s a lot of work to do to turn this city around. Thankfully, more people are starting to pay attention to local elections. You can help out by going to my fundraising page for Hugo and chipping in a few dollars. Wherever you are you can be a...

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I Spent 11 Months Building an Uncomfortable Couch

Mr. Homegrown

August 29, 2022

Design

5 Comments

...houses, somehow just need to get built. Such was the case when he proposed making two reproductions of the obscure Gustav Stickley Divan #165, one for his house and one for ours. The couch dates from the summer of 1900, when Stickley employed, at great expense, the architect Henry W. Wilkerson to design a line he called “The New Furniture.” Wilkerson is probably best known as the architect of one of New York City’s few Arts and Crafts style apartm...

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Saturday Linkages: Quarantine Movie Suggestions

Mr. Homegrown

June 27, 2020

Saturday Linkages

3 Comments

...he Jacobin (behind a paywall but worth the price of admission). We’ve been making our way through Kilpatrick’s golden-age of Hollywood sub-list. So far we’ve watched: Scarface (the 1932 version) The Big Sleep (Don’t worry about the plot it makes no sense at all–just enjoy the scenery) His Girl Friday (You can watch this one for free on the YouTubes) The Sea Wolf (This one is kinda like a relentless, brutal film noir at sea and, remember, the sea i...

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A William Morris Pilgrimage

Mr. Homegrown

November 9, 2022

Design

12 Comments

...ievalism, attempts at wall murals as well as Morris’ greatest gift–pattern making. Webb had much to learn. The roofs are at a bad angle for the rainy climate of England and, as a result, there’s been a lot of leaks over the years. That said, the house is a masterpiece. You also can’t get more cottagecore than this. Just outside the Red House is a landscape Morris would, no doubt, be disappointed with. A few blocks down this prosaic road is the Can...

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