2022 in Review: Cats, Mushrooms and Politics

December 31, 2022

...tables. On a trip to San Francisco, I noted that they keep the philosophy books locked up at Green Apple books. Our Saluki Ivan likes to go out and lay on the hot pavement even in the middle of summer. Plane spotting has become a boring new pastime. Kelly and I have hundreds of photos of our cats snuggling together. Our friend Daniel used my shop to make frames for a show about his desert lighthouse project. It was one of the best art shows I’ve...

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Dystopia Report: The I-710 Corridor Aesthetic Master Plan

Mr. Homegrown

January 11, 2022

Design, Thoughtstylings

2 Comments

...may be the best ever proof of the thesis of David Graeber’s Bullshit Jobs book, that perhaps half of all people in Western countries are engaged in useless, soul-sucking office work. I mean, spend a moment appreciating the visual chaos that is this image. Ask yourself if it has any purpose whatsoever other than fulfilling some checkbox on a list of meaningless public engagement metrics. What possible purpose does this slide fulfill? Then apprecia...

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William Morris is the Marie Kondo We Need

Mr. Homegrown

June 30, 2021

Design, Thoughtstylings

4 Comments

...er an object “sparks joy” or not. The slogan reminds me of David Graeber’s book Bullshit Jobs which shows in sometimes funny, sometimes gut wrenching detail how much of the work done in our time is meaningless, unnecessary and destructive of the planet and the mental health of so many people. A common misunderstanding of Morris message is that he thought that we should all go back to hand work. It’s clear from reading him that it isn’t a matter of...

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Art and Grains

Mr. Homegrown

April 1, 2021

Design, Food, Thoughtstylings

5 Comments

...Grain Revolution. Just in time for Easter she has posted a recipe from the book for hot cross buns with marzipan crosses. Roxana was a big supporter of the Los Angeles Bread Bakers, a meetup group that I co-founded. It’s been a rough year for restaurants, so consider picking up a copy of her book or, if you’re a local, getting some takeout. Meanwhile, friend of the blog Federico Tobon is launching a new zine, has completed 100 days of small drawin...

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Happy Cranksgiving

Mr. Homegrown

November 25, 2020

Thoughtstylings

10 Comments

...n offer a Butterball hotline. How about we skip this particular holiday permanently? Who’s in (or out) on the cancel Thanksgiving idea? At least this year, a pandemic seems like the perfect excuse not to fly somewhere to eat dried out turkey. My New Hustle I was joking with a friend about writing a book called “Rhetoric for Families: how to have an argument at the dinner table.” Talk about creating an anxiety and selling a solution! Who wants this...

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