On The Mind

Some stuff I’ve been checking out

The Happy City: Paris goes happy, and discovers interacting with people (even strangers, even just enough not to collide while walking down the street) makes people happy.

SAN FRANCISCO IN 2108? - The Hydro-Net Vision of the Future: A plan to transform San Fran (yeah I said it) into the Ecotopia we all knew it could be. Really pretty pictures.

Sk-interfaces (Part 1): Sounds like a really interesting exhibit in Liverpool. Immolation, which explores the US’ use of incendiary weapons (think fire bombs) on civilians, through both the macro (landscape) level and the micro (cells of skin) level.

Cool Videos

Scribemedia.org is a really cool organization producing videos (of impressive quality) of speeches in a wide range of subject. I really like this one that us(es) text/typography and a spoken audio track… to visually express the emotion/thought/intonation behind… Vince Vaughn’s monologue of ‘The Perfect Girl’ in Wedding Crashers.

Brilliant Design

Some brilliant adds from the World Wildlife Fund.

Christmas Giving Your Great-Great-Grand Kids Will Appreciate

I have decided to take Christmas a little bit more seriously this year than in years past. Meaning I’m going to go to the cheap DVD store the day before Christmas and buy all my family DVDs, it is just a little to tacky, even for me.

So, I have been trying to get on ball with my holiday gifts. It is also important to me to put in the effort of giving responsibly. So here are a few things I have come up with. Warning if you are in my family you may be about to read what you are getting for Christmas. Do you really want to ruin the surprise???

The first idea I had was homemade Kahlua or infused vodka. While looking for a recipe online I came across a nifty sight Wikihow and its recipe for homemade Kahlua. Warning I have not sampled the Kahlua, as it takes a couple of weeks to infuse properly.

Another idea I’ve written about before is Etsy, an EBay for homemade goods.

The last tip I have is to check out Inhabitat’s Green Gift Guide. Here are a few interesting gifts I saw. There are many more and are worth a look.

Stocking Stuffers

GIFT TREES
Great things come in small packages, and these vials of tree saplings from Arbor Day Foundation make the perfect gift that grows. Choose from Redwood, Pine, or Spruce, and give the gift of flora.

$3 from Gift Trees

PLANT-ME PETS
These quirky little creatures, made of decomposing natural latex rubber, sprout into melons, tomatoes, and pumpkins. So cute you may not want to plant them, Plant-Me Pets make great desktop companions and are the ideal gift for that impossible-to-buy-for individual on your list.

$20 from Branch Home

Gifts That Give Back

BOGO SOLAR FLASHLIGHT (Buy One Give One)
Give the gift of light this year with the BOGO light - a fabulous solar-powered flashlight that costs just $25 - AND with your purchase of the flashlight, one is donated to someone who needs it in a developing country. We’ve written about it before because we love the product and the idea. Give the gift of light!

$25 from Bogolight

ONE LAPTOP PER CHILD XO COMPUTER
Here’s a gift that truly gives back. The beautifully designed One Laptop Per Child computer is the greenest computer around - combing education and social development with ingenious energy efficient product design. Best part? When you buy one of these beautifully designed uber-green computers for a needy child in a developing country, you get one for a little one in your life as well.

Donate-One-Get-One offer lasts through Dec 31st

(Picture credit Inhabitat)

Green Building 101... .2

“GREEN BUILDING 101: Indoor Environmental Quality” is the latest addition to the “Green Building 101” series from Inhabitat. Although the article points out an important aspect to environmentally sustainable construction, namely that if done right it makes people healthier and more productive, it does not have nearly the breath of useful resources for implementing its own suggestions. It also does not site any specific scientific studies proving the impact of inside spaces, which would be really helpful to people having to justify to a penny pinching boss why s/he should make indoor environmental quality a priority.

Green Building 101

I saw this neat series on Inhabitat.com, called “Green Building 101: Materials & Resources, Part I & II.” It is a very informative and concise summary of how to build more environmental buildings. It is very easy and clear to read, obviously written for people who are actually doing construction who need some help being green.

One of the things I have not seen a lot of consciousness about in the art projects I have been apart of is the environmental impact of the materials used. This was certainly not one of my top priorities when I was directing The Laramie Project. However, as we move into a time when artists are going to be forced to respond to the impacts of the environmental degradation humans have caused, it would seem only logical to practice what we will have to preach.

I will let you know when the next segment of the series is posted.