I Never Promised You an Organic Garden

September 22 is World Carfree Day:

• A day to celebrate the fact that we don’t all have to own cars to live a “normal” life.
• A day to get out of your car and walk, take a bus, or ride your bike.
• A day to experiment with alternative forms of transportation as a part of your everyday life.
• A day to ask your local government to do more to make your city bike and pedestrian friendly.

World Carfee Day is sponsored by the World Carfree Network and is marked by celebrations and events around the world.  There aren’t any events going on locally, but I will be celebrating by riding my bike to work and encouraging others to do the same.

Richmond is a surprisingly bikeable city, and with the addition of some bike racks downtown it will be even more so.  There is definitely a lot of room to grow, but I am inspired by the small but growing bike community that is already a part of the city and the work that is being done to improve our local transportation plan to include bikes and pedestrians. We have a long way to go before we are a Portland, Or or Boulder, Co, but there is hope.

If you are local and would like to participate in making Richmond a more bike and pedestrian friendly community, attend the transportation meeting tonight at 7pm at the City Building.  The Planning department will be presenting the proposed long-term transportation plan to the Planning Commission.

What are ways you have found that your local community is friendly for getting around without a car?

What are ways you have found that your local community is NOT friendly for getting around without a car?

Group before the ride

We Did It! Matt and I biked to Oxford, Ohio and back this weekend, and we reached the metric century mark on the way.  For those you who don’t know, and I didn’t until Matt told me, a metric century is 62 miles.  We actually did 67 miles total, and it was quite an experience.  Five of us set off from Mark’s house at 7:30 Saturday morning, and we reached the Oxford Farmer’s Market at 10:30am.  After a tour of the farmer’s market, a nice lunch, and a visit to the Oxford bike shop, we got back on the bikes around 12:30pm and rode back to Richmond.  Matt and I got home around 4:00pm. (more…)

Photo from Reid Ride 2010

I am quite excited about this coming Saturday!

Matt and I are biking to Oxford, Ohio, with a group of friends, on our borrowed tandem.  It is approximately 60 miles round trip, and we will be visiting the Oxford Farmer’s Market and having a yummy lunch at one of the Indian restaurants.  We have been planning for this trip since the beginning of the summer, and we have been going out on long rides to get ourselves ready.  So far our longest ride is just over 30 miles, but I am told by local cyclist that if I can go 30, I can go 60.  Let’s hope they are right! (more…)

I am confounded!  Twice this past week I have read articles about individuals lashing out violently at people around them because they disagree with someone’s life choices, and in these cases, life choices involving the food.

The first incident involved  Lierre Keith’s author of “The Vegetarian Myth”.  So-called militant vegans attacked her at a recent speaking engagement and threw pies filled with cayenne pepper in her face.  A video of the pieing can be seen here on YouTube.  The second incident took place right here in Indiana, when a knife wielding vegetarian destroyed and contaminated packages of meat in a grocery store.  Police had to be called because the man threatened employees at the store with the knife when they attempted to stop him.  According to the article, his reasoning for the attack was “to save little girls from food he believes would make them chubby.” (more…)

I went to the eye doctor today for my checkup and to get new frames.  I have always had very unique frames, but I wanted to go with a little something different this time.  So, Matt, the very nice lady at the eye Dr’s office, and I spent quite a while whittling down the never ending selection.  I have come up with two options, and the eye Dr. was nice enough to let me take them home and get some opinions.

So here is where I need your help…  I will post photos of both options below ,and it would be very helpful if you could give me your honest opinion on which frame is the best.

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Whether you agree with Obama’s healthcare bill and the public option or not, the following video does a nice job of outlining what Obama’s plan is without the spin doctors from media.

If anyone in the Richmond, Indiana area is looking for something fun to do this weekend, the Richmond Fall Festival is the place to go.  The Festival combines several festivals into a single weekend of fun.  There will be a plethora of events going on throughout Richmond most of which are free and family friendly.

The events begin Friday afternoon and run through Sunday, and free parking will be provided downtown and at Earlham College with shuttle service.  Activities include but are not limited to:

• Karaoke
• Free showing of Gene Autry’s film “South of the Border”
• Free pony rides
• Art & Music Festival downtown, including book sellers row, great food, arts & crafts, and booths from local artisans including Unwind Yarn Shop
• Free Rock concert downtown featuring Soul Marrow Transplant
• Heritage festival at the Wayne County Historical Museum
• Tours of the Gennett Mansion
• Walk of Fame induction ceremony
• Community Orchestra concert
• Cope Environmental Center Fall Gala
• and much much more.

For a full schedule of events visit the Waynet website or download the pdf from Richmond Fall Festival.com

It promises to be a great weekend and Matt and I will definitely attend.

Matt and I picked up a mysterious “gift” from the post office today.  We received a note in our mailbox Friday informing us that there was a parcel at the post office for us to pick up.  Apparently, they had attempted to deliver it to our house, but it had to be signed for.  Both of us were quite surprised because we were not expecting any packages.

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Matt and I attend a 100 Mile Radius Potluck last night.  The premise is that everyone at the potluck brings a dish that is made from ingredients produced, grown, etc. within a 100 mile radius of the selected location.  It is quite a challenge and a lot of fun.  The potluck was sponsored by Progressive Wayne County.org, and the idea behind it was to get people thinking about where their food comes from and how Richmond can be more self sufficient.

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