An Outside Chance

quiet passage

PHOTO POST We’ve slipped into a new year, but perhaps not yet into a new winter. With no ice on the lake and patchy ice on the marshes, moisture rises to the sky and cloud mutes the light of many sunsets and sunrises. The morning of January 2nd was one glorious exception, as … Read More

at the end of december

PHOTO POST With the longest nights behind us we await the crisp clear days of winter. But wait we must – the Christmas morning snowstorm gave us just a thin crust of white and temperatures right at the freeze/thaw mark. Fortunately we’ve had a few hours of bright sunshine recently, when frost glitters on every … Read More

Celebrating the cargo bike revolution

A review of Motherload Also published on Resilience “Do you remember when your central purpose was to explore this world with your body? The sun and the wind, your legs, your breath, the water and dirt? This is how we understood the environment, and our place in it, and what it meant to be alive.” … Read More

How we went from “makers” to “trash-makers” – and how to get back

Also published on Resilience Why do we have so much stuff? Why is it so hard to find good stuff? And when our cheap stuff breaks, why is it so hard to fix it? These questions are at the heart of our stories in 21st century industrialized nations, and these question are at the heart of … Read More

the woodpecker’s tongue

PHOTO POST If I hadn’t gone grocery shopping on bicycle, I probably would have missed the oversized woodpecker checking out some local trees. But as I pedaled down the street towards home I heard a bird speaking a language I didn’t recognize, and I turned my head just in time to spot the flashy red … Read More

october’s glow

PHOTO POST It’s the time of year when the afternoon sun feels as warm as summer – and then darkness sets in when the evening has barely begun. One last ray of light steals into the secluded cove where mallards are settling for the night. Just minutes of subdued light remain as a Great Blue … Read More

summer’s flight

PHOTO POST In the shadowy woods autumn has already arrived, while sunshine on the marsh still reflects summer’s heat. The striped berries of Starry False Solomon’s Seal – if that’s too much of a mouthful, just say Smilacina stellata – make good food for birds, mice, and perhaps for a plump-cheeked chipmunk. Migratory birds are … Read More

putting your best foot forward

PHOTO POST If you were a beautiful Mallard you’d probably be happy to stand on a pair of coral-orange webbed feet … and perhaps you’d take care to keep them clean. A mallard’s webbed feet are great for swimming along the surface of a pond. But if you eat by beating fish at their own … Read More

The Hundred Years’ War for Safe Streets

Also published on Resilience.org Should safety standards for new vehicles take into account the safety only of the inside passengers, or also the safety of others on the streets? When economic circumstances force large numbers of people who can’t afford cars to move into suburbs, should traffic policy on suburban streets still prioritize the unimpeded … Read More

gazing into the reeds

PHOTO POST On an evening in late April as I walked along the road, my eye was drawn to a bird swimming across the marsh in a peculiar, herky-jerky fashion. When I zoomed in with my camera and saw the distinctive black and white markings plus the brilliant red beak, it was clear that this … Read More

Transition to a Low-Energy Future

One project has taken the lion’s share of my work time for the past year, and it has been a project close to my heart. As long-time readers will have noted, my writings frequently concern the intersection between energy and economics. I was honored and grateful, therefore, to be asked to serve as guest editor … Read More

watching the web

PHOTO POST The onrushing summer engulfs us with new blooms, hot winds, welcome rains, and a procession of insects that each play their role in the march of seasons. Milkweed leaves, above, may soon be eaten to shreds by monarch caterpillars. Meanwhile a Black & Yellow Mud Dauber Wasp uses the vantage point to look … Read More