Car Free in the City of Cars

...0-1608 This talk is sponsored by L.A. Eco-Village in association with: CICLE, the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, and CRSP in support of the Los Angeles Bike Summit planned for the fall by the Urban and Environmental Policy Institute at Occidental College. And a special thanks to Joe Linton and everyone at the L.A. Eco-Village for inviting us to speak last night!...

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Mulberries

...to croak. We wonder if this is a myth, like the story about boy scouts roasting hot dogs on Oleander sticks (yes, Oleander is very poisonous, but apparently the boy scout story is an urban legend). We found the Mulberries sweet and delicious. It’s a fruit that doesn’t ship well, hence its absence in our crummy supermarkets....

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A Bicyclist’s Bill of Rights Part II

...ns in all roadway projects and improvements. 6) Cyclists have the right to urban and roadway planning, development and design that enable and support safe cycling. 7) Cyclists have the right to traffic signals, signage and maintenance standards that enable and support safe cycling. 8) Cyclists have the right to be actively engaged as a constituent group in the organization and administration of our communities. 9) Cyclists have the right to full a...

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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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Something for Nothing – Wild Mustard Greens

Sometimes there is such a thing as a free lunch, which was the case for us yesterday after discovering a large stand of white mustard (Sinapis alba) growing at the end of a nearby dead end street. Mustard grows all over the neighborhood, but rarely in a place out of dog pee range like this little patch. Classified by the USDA as a noxious weed, the leaves have a pleasant and pungent flavor and can be eaten raw or cooked. From the Plants for a Fut...

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