Posted by Dave on March 7, 2010
It is probably not a new revelation to most of you that hemp once grew tall and proud throughout many regions of the United States. Before bored advocated of Prohibition teamed up with politicians and others seeking to push mostly Mexican immigrants back South of the Border during the rise toward the Great Depression and eventually leading to the “Reefer Madness” era, hemp was widely grown and used for dozens of applications in the U.S. including paints, cosmetics, fabrics and foods.
It seems, after many years of difficult struggle, groups such as the Hemp Industries Association and Vote Hemp might finally be gathering the momentum to bring hemp back into the mainstream of American society. These two organizations are teaming up this Spring to bring us Hemp History Week, May 17th-23rd. This is not the same thing as, “Smoke a Doobie, Attention Deficit Day,” or “Bake a Ganja Brownie for your Favorite Earth Sprite Day.” Continue…
Posted by Dave on February 28, 2010
As I metaphorically dug this last week, flipping participles and pretense skyward over my head and up to the sunny surface of my thoughts (and out of the maddening depths of confusion) the revelation suddenly dawned on me while seated and flying with Southwest somewhere over the eastern half of Utah.
I will call upon someone with a modicum of professional talent in Salt Lake City to make the prototype of “One True Pants.” Yes, the pair of pants that all others will one day bend the knee towards and acknowledge as king. How could I expect this pair of pants to be found wondering the savannas of retail America? No, the one true pants has yet to be woven together in the womb of its father’s mind. Too far? Yeah, I don’t even understand myself anymore.
Recently though, I found more helpful insight from Eric VandenBerg, the founder of the Hemp Barn. What will really blow your mind about a place called the Hemp Barn is not that it is primarily an earth-friendly upholstery store, or that it was founded by a young, non-hippy male, but that it is based in Salt Lake City. I know. Miracles never cease. Continue…
Posted by Dave on January 30, 2010
The quest continues. Yes, I am wearing my hemp pants as I type, but my hunger for answers has not been satisfied. Why are nice, hemp pants (other than meditation pants for the mamby-pamby metro-sexual type) so hard to find? Is it possible that they don’t exist, or exist only like world peace and low fat cream?
Well, I have unearthed a hidden realm where hemp clothing abounds. Well, it is more of an unincorporated settlement than a realm, and by “abounds” I mean exists. But that is good news! Continue…
Posted by Dave on January 19, 2010
U Car Share, a division of U-haul, has arrived in Salt Lake City. I know, I know. I hate U-haul. Talk about a company with horrible working conditions and nightmarish service. But try to put all that aside. Rather than pump more black smoke from poorly maintained moving vans, U-haul is trying its hand at appealing to the student, the office jockey and the granola urbanite.
U Car Share provides another alternative, alongside riding a bike or taking a bus, to individual car ownership. This sort of thing has been going on for years in romantic locals such as McMinnville, Berkeley, Portland and Madison. But, alas, I have never lived in any of those places. I do, however, live in Salt Lake City. Thus I should be thrilled to have access to car sharing. Yeah! Woohoo. Yep. Hizzaa. Woopty doo. Continue…
Posted by Dave on January 9, 2010
In my last blog I chided hippies and granolas for not having the business sense to provide the world (or at least me) with a swell pair of hemp pants 34X34. Finally I found my savior, well within the bosom of hippie-womping hicks and sensible country folk, Orvis Clothing.
Orvis is the only clothing store with a website that sells hemp pants in size 34×34 for men. I know. A powerful statement made by a man wearing cannabis crafted clothing, but true. Nowhere else could I find my coveted pants. Orvis had two colors to chose from in 3 different inseams and several waist sizes. Continue…
Posted by Dave on December 21, 2009
How can all we progressive, earth-friendly do-gooders ever expect anything we believe in
to happen if none of us can learn how to leverage free market economies? If all granolas are either anti-social, self-righteous and/or too touchy-feely (interpret flakey) to run a business, how the hell am I supposed to find a good pair of hemp cargo pants that fit me?
If I can’t find a good pair of hemp cargo pants that fit me, how am I supposed to rant to strangers on the bus about how evil cotton is? If I can’t rant then how will I devise the next clever and rankling debate point to slay the slovenly, money-grubbing, truth-ignoring participants of our downward-spiraling global economy? Continue…
Posted by Dave on December 5, 2009
Credit: Modcell
Avert the eyes. Yes, they are at it again. Brits hold no modicum of decency when it comes to their efforts at mating sustainable products with modern building methods. Hemp and straw are so pure and modest, while industry is so brutish and base. Will it ever work?
Modcell is attempting, in their Flying Factory, to create the illusive commercially viable, modular, super-insulated, high-performance, low energy ‘passive’ buildings built using renewable, locally sourced, carbon sequestering materials. I know, I know. Crazy. When will these money hungry, earth-lovers give up? Continue…
Posted by Dave on November 22, 2009
Good new desert dwellers. Although Utah is the second driest state in the U.S. (Nevada being the first) we don’t let that get us down. We still have the second highest use of water per capita. Nothing beats back the summer heat like a tall glass of cold water while you wash your car in the driveway at the same time your automated, leaky irrigation system waters your Kentucky Bluegrass lawn during the middle of the day. Ahhh, refreshing. And as long as there is an increasing amount of snow in the mountains every winter ad infinitum, we won’t ever get our comeupens. No comeupens, you here me!
St. George is located in the driest county in Utah and it has the highest per capita water consumption rate for an desert city in the U.S. at 335 gallons per person per day. Yeahaw! Now, I realize that it is of dire importance to all of us to keep those golf greens in St. George green, but explain that to a land that just can’t support such water usage. But what to do?
Over 100 years ago water in Utah became a for-profit commodity. Along with that came government subsidies historically around 50%. All of this means that Utah has some of the cheapest water prices in the country, and this in the second driest state in the Union. Common sense? or a disaster waiting to happen? or a disaster in progress?
Utah has been growing in population consistently for many years, and yet somewhere in the neighborhood of 87% of our water goes to agriculture. Farmers are important to our state, no doubt. But the crops that we grow, and the manner that we grow them in this state have to change.
The Utah Rivers Council promotes raising our conservation goal by 5% up to a 30% increase total. While realistic, this goal doesn’t strike me as sufficient. The Council has also been promoting practical steps like the “rip your strip” initiative. Water Wise Utah is promoting the use of an on-line water calculator. Utah needs much more severe legislation, using a creative combination of carrots and sticks, and a smarter, better educated public. But ultimately, Utahans simply haven’t cared enough about their precious water resources while living in a desert.
Good new desert dwellers. Although Utah is the second driest state in the U.S. (Nevada
Wyoming's Red Desert by Sam Cox
being the first) we don’t let that get us down. We still have the second highest use of water per capita. Nothing beats back the summer heat like a tall glass of cold water while you wash your car in the driveway at the same time your automated, leaky irrigation system waters your Kentucky Bluegrass lawn during the middle of the day. Ahhh, refreshing. And as long as there is an increasing amount of snow in the mountains every winter ad infinitum, we won’t ever get our comeuppance. No comeuppance, you here me! Continue…
Posted by Dave on November 19, 2009
I realize the title of this blog could go in different directions. That’s good for the
Reclining Toilet by Downtowngal
imagination. And a recent toilet snafu has left me exercising my imagination as well. I manage a house that has 5 toilets in it. That’s a lot of shiz, a lot of flushing, and a lot of things to go wrong. A couple of weeks ago the last of my “jet-pack” toilets (you know, the kind in public restrooms that would frighten the piss out of you if you hadn’t just voluntarily evacuated it) finally lost its flush and had to go.
The problem is, I don’t have access to the ranch truck anymore, I live in a city and I drive a Honda Civic. I can fit my tools in the trunk, but not a broken down toilet. Clearly you can see my dilemma. Continue…
Posted by Dave on September 29, 2009
America’s farmland has long been under siege by suburban development. This is nothing new. What is new is that a cease-fire has been called in most parts of the nation. And a conversation is developing about how to move into this new window of opportunity in a manner that not only restores the balance between urban demand and farm supply, but also helps to reenergize our failing economy heavily dependent on the construction industry.
This summer, Reburbia, a suburban design competition, was held by Inhabitat and Dwell Magazine. The competition set out to gather creative and imaginative ideas on how to go about re-visioning the American suburban sprawl that will almost certainly become our suburban wasteland without intervention. Several of the ideas were great, but one in particular caught my eye. Continue…
