The Museum of the American Cocktail

...our fair city and is rumored to be opening a San Pedro venue next year. I’ve attended two free events in downtown LA, one a tasting of the spirits made by a Central Coast distillery, Calwise Spirits, and another tasting of the many offerings of the venerable French distillery Combier which still uses a facility designed by Pierre Eiffel. Note to self: remember to spit out the spirits when you do a tasting of 20 bottles or the next day won’t be all...

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The Wondrous 1-2-3 Block

...world of machinists. One such tool is the 1-2-3 block that I’ve found many uses for in woodworking. These blocks of metal, sold in pairs, are named after their dimensions, one inch by two inches by three inches (they also come in larger sizes such as 2-4-6). Mine have both threaded and un-threaded holes allowing you to attach and pass through bolts. You can bolt them together square or at an angle. They have a million applications: To see if a too...

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Saturday Tweets: Dogs, Land Use, Kale and Rocket Cats

...Efk — Joe Parris (@KTVBJoe) August 3, 2018 Fascinating look at how America uses its land https://t.co/H1eP86WWXq — Root Simple (@rootsimple) August 2, 2018 This project proves that a better world is possible: https://t.co/lmj0mFzqd1 — Root Simple (@rootsimple) August 1, 2018 Holy Kale, what is going on? https://t.co/8FYmqzkSMh — Eric Rochow (@GardenForkTV) July 30, 2018 My co-editor @Jenny_L_Davis has a write up of the three of the most important...

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124 Adam Brock on Forming Nurtured Networks

...ps I got an email from Adam Brock, author of Change Here Now, a book which uses architect Christopher Alexander idea of a “pattern language” to find solutions to the many challenges in front of us. A large section of the book develops a pattern language for what Adam calls, “nurtured networks.” From his bio: Adam Brock is a Denver-based facilitator, entrepreneur and designer. His work lies at the intersection of urban agriculture, sustainable busi...

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Curing Boredom with Solenoids

...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcgFfY4fVqU Sixteen year old Brandon Switzer came up with a way of dealing with boredom: build a player piano. The project uses a humble Arduino and a whole lot of solenoids. It took six months to finish. I’ve come to see the value in taking on a project that’s out of your comfort zone and this is a great example of learning while making....

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