Picture Sundays: Do You Believe In Magic?

June 23, 2013

...I really like this mural that just appeared in our neighborhood near the corner of Sunset and Coronado. Bunnies tumble out of a magic hat and there’s a silhouette of a coyote and crow (common urban wildlife here). The text, “do you beleav [sic] in magic” brought a smile to my face as I waited for the bus. My day had been re-enchanted by this symbolic bit of street art....

Read…

Climate Change and Personal Responsibility

Mrs. Homegrown

June 28, 2013

Age of Limits, Thoughtstylings

63 Comments

...en so much positive change on this front, even just in the last few years. Urban homesteading, slow food, organics, bikes, car share, DIY, all of it — it’s blossoming. It’s very hopeful. I’m going to put the next part in italics because it’s so important: The pleasure and satisfaction that we all receive from living this way is the positive counterspell to the dark enchantment of consumer culture. When we live this way, we become positive examples...

Read…

Saturday Linkages: An Egg Shaped Houseboat, Bamboo Joints and the Origins of Umami

Mr. Homegrown

July 20, 2013

Saturday Linkages

4 Comments

...ht-h-787841443 … #Williamsburg vacant lot transformed into bike course and urban farm: http://po.st/2c8dOu Japanese beetle traps—a reconsideration by James Roush http://gardenrant.com/2013/07/japanese-beetle-traps-a-reconsideration.html?utm_source=feedly … Lifehacking Whole Life Integration: Tips To Simplify Nearly Everything In Your Productive Home http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/NorthwestEdibleLife/~3/UC-3zsZ43pg/whole-life-integration-tips-to-si...

Read…

How Much Can You Carry on a Bicycle?

Mr. Homegrown

July 23, 2013

Bikes, Transportation

52 Comments

...s to climb hills even with heavy groceries. One need not be car-free to enjoy a cargo bike. For many years Kelly and I shared a car. The Xtracycle was a big part of making that car-light arrangement work. When people ask if urban homesteading saves money, the first thing I point to is the cargo bike, not the chicken coop. The problem? Cargo bikes are not nearly as sexy as the Playboy Land Yacht. That’s a problem I’ll get to in a future post....

Read…

I Made an Enzo Mari Table and So Can You

Mr. Homegrown

October 24, 2023

Design

6 Comments

...wood to make any dimension that I need, so we were able to make the 25mm x 50mm stock Mari calls for from our larger “2x6s”. But if you’re not fortunate enough to have these expensive tools, I think it would be easy to make this same table with slightly thinner wood, fresh from the lumber yard, without any significant sacrifice in strength. Mari’s designs take their inspiration from American house framing which replaced earlier timber framing met...

Read…