Cactus Thief Strikes Again

...cactus thief with free flats of baby cacti. The latter strategy could even lead to the first ever Root Simple Upworthy style clickbait headline, “Thief Steals Cactus and the Thorny Response Will Have You in Tears.” Stoic philosopher Epictetus set me straight on what I should really do. He says, “Stop admiring your clothes and you are not angry at the man who steals them . . . our losses and our pains have to do only with the things we posses.” (Di...

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Rain Garden Update

...out the ocean. And I like the little bridge I built over the pit. The path leads to Kelly’s shed and something about crossing the little bridge adds some interest to a stroll in the backyard. Here’s our original post on the rain garden. I haven’t mentioned this in awhile but it’s worth repeating. The reason I include the scientific names of plants is not to show off but because this blog has international readers and the common names for plants ca...

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Saturday Tweets: Mobile Markets, Big Oil and Public Transit Seat Covers

...inLA) March 21, 2019 An incredible piece of storytelling on the dangers of lead paint—and how difficult it can be to know when it’s lurking in your home—by @awalkerinLA https://t.co/DSHpj2IAjX — Amy Plitt (@plitter) March 20, 2019 Super bloom creates new California natural disaster: tourism overflow https://t.co/adHKn7Wl3O — Root Simple (@rootsimple) March 19, 2019 “We come into this life with nothing and we go with nothing.” The owner of beloved...

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Backyard in Progress

...I made a bridge so that when it rains water will flow under the path that leads to our shed. This is why you hire an outsider expert: Kelly and I would never have thought of this rain garden or the idea of running the flow under the path. Yes, one of these days I’ll remove the bar code from that pipe! We plan on planting this area with native plants in the fall. Laramee and his crew also hauled up some rock to better define the paths in our yard...

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On the 100th Birthday of Our House: The Past and Future of Housing in the U.S.

...ncrease in square footage and more consumer electronics. These differences lead to a difficult discussion about what a more energy efficient future might look like. Our future might be less about energy efficient tiny houses and more about sharing an apartment with relatives. Or getting your not-in-my-backyard neighbors to agree to a bus-only lane on an already congested boulevard. Or democratizing the workplace to ask for fewer hours for more pay...

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