When you type the phrase “American consumers” into Google, you get 976,000 results. That two-word phrase is mentioned 1,494 times in Google News stories just today. I don’t know about you, but I’m a little tired of hearing about American consumers. I’m all for supporting farmers, booksellers, manufacturers, craftsmen, bakers, and artisans with my dollars…
Shareable.net published my article about Paul and Monica Adkins, who live car-free with four kids. Their enthusiasm for simple living is contagious. And the amazing photographer Jayce Giddens took beautiful photographs of the Adkins cycling through fall leaves to accompany the story. The article begins: Paul Adkins rode a Yamaha 60 motorcycle when he was…
There’s nothing like a sunny day at the farmer’s market to make you forget weeks of drenching rain.
My husband and I don’t collect many things, but our house is full of books. I love to read fiction, but I tend to collect more practical books, ones that I’ll look at hundreds of times – almanacs, reference books, plant-identification guides, cookbooks, and how-to guides. My husband’s into the decidedly unpractical – first edition…
The little things? The little moments? They aren’t little. ~Jon Kabat-Zinn Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage – to move in the opposite direction. ~E.F. Schumacher Maybe a person’s time would be as well spent raising food…
Last week my son and I spent a couple of nice, leisurely days at the Oregon Coast with my mom and sister, who were visiting from out of town. I’m always amazing by how recharging even a short time away from work, emails, phone calls, and social networking can be. In the last few months,…