A Report from the 2014 Heirloom Expo in Santa Rosa

September 15, 2014

...ght grip on my wallet. Santa Rosa was the home of horticulturalist Luther Burbank and the local chapter of the California Rare Fruit Growers is particularly fervent and knowledgeable. I used the opportunity to chat up a CRFG operative and get all my quince and pineapple guava questions answered. You’ll be hearing a number of Expo speakers on our podcast and I’ll do some blog posts inspired by what I learned. If you didn’t make it this year, I hope...

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Take a Summer Viking Break

Mr. Homegrown

July 14, 2017

Design

...ng or canning. This means it’s the perfect time for a Viking break. Back in 2010 Norweigian oil tycoon Sigurd Aase funded the construction of a brand new badass Viking longship, the Draken Harald Hårfagre. It’s the first Viking longship with its own website and gift store. The ship made it to the U.S., a reminder that Columbus wasn’t the first European to make that particular journey. Please kick back this weekend and take your own Viking break. I...

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Your Open Floor Plan is a Death Trap

Mr. Homegrown

November 27, 2017

Design

23 Comments

...idential codes don’t require the same level of fire prevention through compartmentalization. In the interest of fire safety, perhaps it’s time we start requiring more walls in new homes and prevent those house flippers from removing walls in old homes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7T43OmErmU Synthetic Furniture Another big factor in house fires has been an increased use of polyurethane foam in furniture. It turns out that foam is more dangerou...

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Saturday Linkages: Garden Hoses, Planners and IKEA Hacks . . .

Mr. Homegrown

January 12, 2013

Saturday Linkages

1 Comment

...pleasures/ … DIY Barn Door Track Tutorail http://shar.es/47h3M How Google Earth Revealed Chicago’s Hidden Farms: http://ow.ly/gJRrS Bad News Department Florida couple may have to give up their vegetable garden b/c of city ordinance http://ow.ly/gIg4C Looney Gas and Lead Poisoning: A Short, Sad History | Wired Science | http://Wired.com http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/01/looney-gas-and-lead-poisoning-a-short-sad-history/ … Aquaponic hacks Ro...

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Let’s Talk About the Holidays

Mr. Homegrown

December 23, 2014

Thoughtstylings

18 Comments

...tension between tradition and its conflict with modern life (note Habermas’ 2010 dialog with Jesuit scholars if you want to fall down a ponderous and inconclusive philosophical rabbit hole). Then there’s what I call the fake snow on Hollywood Boulevard problem. Living in a Mediterranean climate, as we do, is confusing. The days are short, but the hills are green. The fake snow gets coated in smog. Here’s the problem. The Christmas story is overlai...

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