…seen from above this morning are a surprising grid of spinning fans swimming in the sea under the flight path out of Schiphol on my way back to the US for a first visit in..
Archives : April-2011
…including little tomato starts, bean seeds, eggplants, basil, squash, corn, and other future pleasures of the summer finally went in the rooftop dirt this week after much delay – and now we will wake up with an extra bit of curiosity each morning to see what they ..
…and plants growing out of and in to unexpected places is always a welcome surprise when turning any corner in Rome – as I did this afternoon in Monti to find my self biking under this hanging g..
…is the smartly-titled latest book by urban homesteaders Kelly Coyne and Erik Knutzen (previously mentioned here) – and designed by graphic designer friend Roman Jaster – which I can’t wait to dive into upon returning to a more thoroughly DIY, post-academy, life… (and check out their Root Si..
…was a surprise highlight for me (since it was a hometown project from 2009) tonight at the American Academy in Rome shoptalk by architect fellow – and fellow Angeleno – Joshua Stein of Radical Craft, which proposes a visionary 20-30 year plan for mass transit in L.A. by turning the urban area into a mega-hub ..
…was left on a garden post this morning – yes, that time of year to slough off the old scaly dead weight and just leave ..
…is what now occupies the small Roman village which was sacked and abandoned to malaria in the Middle Ages just off Via Appia Antica south of Rome – and here we are today for an Easter picnic surrounded by many extended Italian families with the same idea, shaded by the rustic rambling rickety timber picnic ..
…from the Roman rooftop – shelled twice and served fresh with pecorino are the classic May 1st Roman picnic dish – which we are enjoying a week earl..
…at Largo Argentina cat sanctuary (previously mentioned here) caught my attention while passing by this morning, with the feline residents seeming especially self-aware while posing for the increasing mobs of Roman tourists on the tops of the Ro..
…is upon us which means that I am often confronted by a table full of pea pods ready for shellers when passing through the cortile on my way out for some errand which gets distracted by the sirens of those bulging pods ready for that days soup, salad, gnocchi, risotto, pasta – and I find ..
…was a proud moment today, as Miles from the Rome Sustainable Food Project kitchen – which energizes us with daily meals of local, seasonal, organic and delicious food made from the freshest Roman stuff around grown by farmers they know by name – arrived at my door with two empty crates inquiring about the possibility ..
…today and frequent evenings around 17:30 is the great gift of warmer days, later sun sets, stone pavers that hold the days heat, and a critical mass of friendly yogis – especially newly arrived friend Gaby – willing to hoof it up to the top floor garden yoga studio overlooking the city for an hour ..
…yesterday morning – which I was only made aware of a few days ago thanks to an illuminating International Herald Tribune story by design journalist friend Alice Rawsthorn – turned out to be the highlight of my short time in the city overrun by crass corporate Salone Internazionale del Mobile madness – from which my ..
…a collaboration between Catalan designer Martí Guixé and Finnish food visionary Antto Melasniemi (the two fellows I was in conversation with at yesterday’s Domus conversation on food for the Urban Futures series) – was SO lucky today with the intensely warm spring Milanese sun we had beating down on us, and cooking the food with ..
…is the first thing I am noticing all over the city – with all manner of plant life crawling, branching, hanging down and growing up the cliff-like facades on this springy Saturday – while in town for a talk and conversation at the Domus pavilion in Zona Tortona for their Urban Futures series ..
…is the hilltop Asciano-adjacent Tuscan Benedictine monastery dating from 1313 we are visiting today, which features a very cool 1553 fish pond that would feed the monks during periods when Benedictine rule forbade consumptio..
…love it and actually lived in a farmhouse there from 1993-94 – but the local authorities exert such tight control on new development and changes to existing structures having an effect on the landscape – which only becomes truly apparent when you cross into Lazio to the south where it seems anything goes in some ..
…(for strawberries?) are the cool shocking shiny surfaces wrapping parts of the rolling spring green surfaces of southern Tuscan landscapes as viewed from my very slow one car train gradually heading from Grosseto to Siena – making every little stop on the way – with each quiet sun-bathed stuccoed station seeming to feature a single ..
…was conducted this morning with Livia and Franco – who met when they were 14 and have been married for 53 years – in their cozy long-time quarters (inherited from previous generations) in the Colosseum adjacent neighborhood of Monti where he used to own the local newsstand, so it’s hard to walk with Franco more ..
…is the breaking news from the Roman rooftop garden this morning – having never grown the favas, I’ve waited until they are as big as those I’ve been seeing at the farmer’s market (which is BIG) before picking – and as far as that worm compost is concerned, I’ve been waiting all year to pull ..
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