Critical Exponent

We have formed a team, The Calftones, to participate in The Big Climb, a fundraiser for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Please consider sponsoring me as I climb the steps to the top of the Columbia Tower:

• 69 flights
• 1,311 steps
• 788 ft elevation

Last month, The New York Times had an article on ultra-small houses. Worlds apart from the McMansions infesting suburbia, these dwellings appeal to those who seek an inexpensive, sustainable solution (either for a primary residence or a vacation home) with minimal impact on the environment.

Small footprint and simplicity? I can get behind that!

An interesting read from Salon. I don’t follow Oprah or her reading list, but a lot of the facile self-help, intellectual laziness, and emotional insularity described in this article jibes with anecdotal observations of prominent aspects of popular culture. Whether this is a new trend is debatable; self-improvement has always been a part of the national ethos, and is often made to sound easier or more effortless than it truly is.