Lost Bike

The small and quiet side street on which I live is just of Allen Street, which has a lot of bars that are open until 4am. Every so often I’ll find remnants of the night before that may have spilled down our street…here’s an example. It’s a Trek bike (a nice one, too); it’s obviously stolen. The seat and front tire were most probably quick-release. I can only wonder why the owner locked the rear tire (note the lock on the rear tire) but failed to secure it to something stationary. At any rate, I phoned the police and they came by and picked it up…hopefully it will make it back to it’s rightful owner.

>Lost Bike

>The small and quiet side street on which I live is just of Allen Street, which has a lot of bars that are open until 4am. Every so often I’ll find remnants of the night before that may have spilled down our street…here’s an example. It’s a Trek bike (a nice one, too); it’s obviously stolen. The seat and front tire were most probably quick-release. I can only wonder why the owner locked the rear tire (note the lock on the rear tire) but failed to secure it to something stationary. At any rate, I phoned the police and they came by and picked it up…hopefully it will make it back to it’s rightful owner.

Savage Victory Garden

It’s early July and my vegetable garden has already become pretty wild…almost feral (despite our somewhat gloomy and overcast summer thus far). Every year I tell myself that I will weed better and not plant so close (they look so tiny when I put them in the ground)…and every year it becomes something past my control. None-the-less, I’ve already begun eating from it…a couple more weeks for tomatoes (my favorite) and at least a month for corn. Plenty of teeny peppers already, and Swiss chard, spinach, broccoli, and herbs…cucumbers and beans are on their way. Anyhow, here’s a few pictures of my front yard garden…and believe-it-or-not, there is some order to that chaos.

>Savage Victory Garden

>It’s early July and my vegetable garden has already become pretty wild…almost feral (despite our somewhat gloomy and overcast summer thus far). Every year I tell myself that I will weed better and not plant so close (they look so tiny when I put them in the ground)…and every year it becomes something past my control. None-the-less, I’ve already begun eating from it…a couple more weeks for tomatoes (my favorite) and at least a month for corn. Plenty of teeny peppers already, and Swiss chard, spinach, broccoli, and herbs…cucumbers and beans are on their way. Anyhow, here’s a few pictures of my front yard garden…and believe-it-or-not, there is some order to that chaos.

Things That Can Be Carried On A Bike (#42)

A big cardboard box full of hardwood scraps.

Someone must have put in a new hardwood floor (oak, I think) and put the scraps in a box at the curb…perfect kindling for later this year. And yes, I realize that it is in the middle of summer, but this was just too good to pass up…and when you live in a region where the cold season can sometimes last for 7 months, heating your house is never far from your mind.

>Things That Can Be Carried On A Bike (#42)

>A big cardboard box full of hardwood scraps.

Someone must have put in a new hardwood floor (oak, I think) and put the scraps in a box at the curb…perfect kindling for later this year. And yes, I realize that it is in the middle of summer, but this was just too good to pass up…and when you live in a region where the cold season can sometimes last for 7 months, heating your house is never far from your mind.

Living Simply and Simply Living

The act of living simply in an urban environment is trying at times to say the least. There are so many distractions. Like faith, it takes work. I find that reading what others have to say inspires me. As the author of this book points out, living simply does not necessarily mean that you have to live in a cabin in the woods (though some people choose to do this)…it means living simply where you are (I’m paraphrasing)…inwardly and outwardly, harmonizing your life. With that thought in mind, I bought a used copy of this book last week at The Strand Bookstore. I read most of it on the train ride home. Like most simple living books, a lot of it is common sense, but there are many good and inspiring tidbits in here as well. I particularly like the way she weaves testimonies of other people’s experiences throughout the book. At any rate, it’s a good book and I recommend it. If you’d like to order it from Amazon, click here; If you’d like to order a used copy from The Strand, click here; if you happen to be in the NYC area you should find more copies in the basement…in either the religion section, philosophy, or self-help…can’t remember (there were a half-dozen when I was there a few days ago). If you want to read a Wikipedia post regarding The Strand, click here.

>Living Simply and Simply Living

>The act of living simply in an urban environment is trying at times to say the least. There are so many distractions. Like faith, it takes work. I find that reading what others have to say inspires me. As the author of this book points out, living simply does not necessarily mean that you have to live in a cabin in the woods (though some people choose to do this)…it means living simply where you are (I’m paraphrasing)…inwardly and outwardly, harmonizing your life. With that thought in mind, I bought a used copy of this book last week at The Strand Bookstore. I read most of it on the train ride home. Like most simple living books, a lot of it is common sense, but there are many good and inspiring tidbits in here as well. I particularly like the way she weaves testimonies of other people’s experiences throughout the book. At any rate, it’s a good book and I recommend it. If you’d like to order it from Amazon, click here; If you’d like to order a used copy from The Strand, click here; if you happen to be in the NYC area you should find more copies in the basement…in either the religion section, philosophy, or self-help…can’t remember (there were a half-dozen when I was there a few days ago). If you want to read a Wikipedia post regarding The Strand, click here.