Maplewoodshop: Saving Shop Class

August 24, 2018

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=148&v=JDVJS7xDA2E In U.S. schools shop class has been sacrificed to the Moloch of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). Ninety percent of shop classes have been eliminated with the exception of a few robotics programs. The result, ironically, is STEM graduates so out of touch with the physical world that they design things impossible to build. Image: Maplewoodworking Maplewoodshop seeks to r...

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A Brief History of Cat Art

Mr. Homegrown

July 15, 2019

Animals, Cats

3 Comments

...60-1849) painted a lot more than just cats. His work reached the West at a time when there was an interest in all things Japanese. Cornelius Visscher 1629-1658 was a Dutch Golden Age engraver. His 1657 print Cat Sleeping has a bit of an Albrecht Dürer vibe. Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863) is the most famous of this short list of cat artists. He liked to fill the margins of his sketchbooks with cats and, as you can see from the examples above, his wor...

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Megabus: Like a Cruise Ship on Land

Mr. Homegrown

September 17, 2018

Transportation

12 Comments

...ak. I didn’t test the WiFi, preferring instead to use my 8 1/2 hour travel time tackling Matthew Crawford’s anti-Kant rant, The World Outside Your Head (review forthcoming). The bathroom was clean and as pleasant as any bus bathroom can aspire to. The bus was near capacity but I was able to claim a row for myself. I suspect there would be more room on a weekday. Note that there is no overhead storage so you have to check your baggage. The LA to SF...

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Support the Master Gardener Program

Mr. Homegrown

November 28, 2018

Gardening

1 Comment

...am. I would have not been able to attend, even if accepted, as I am a full time student and work to support myself the rest of the time. Basically, I live paycheck to paycheck. Now, I’m starting a community garden at my school, work for a non-profit educating students on gardening and am connected with an incredibly supportive community of volunteers and knowledgeable individuals. You can make a contribution to the UCCE Master Gardener Program her...

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The #700 Bookshelf

Mr. Homegrown

December 3, 2018

Design

17 Comments

I’ve been fortunate to have some spare time in the past year to be able to raise my rudimentary carpentry skills to a level where I can make some rudimentary furniture. And, as you might have guessed, I have an obsession with unfashionable Arts and Crafts furniture and art. The #700 bookcase as seen in the 1909 catalog. My latest project was making a copy of Gustav Stickley’s #700 bookshelf, originally manufactured in 1904. The $30 price in the 1...

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