FADING INTO BLUE

See on Scoop.itAvant-garde Art & Design

“According to PANTONEVIEW.com contributor OLTMANS VAN NIEKERK, the digital universe is vast and impossible to pin down. Its pervasive force has had a major impact on the way we live and work. It seems that everything that people think is important is virtual and everything and everybody is in a hybrid, digital state. The digital is invisible and everywhere. No hard disks, no desktop computers, no fixed place. The asset-light generation embraces simplicity in order to gain freedom.” 

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

I am not especially fond of the blues show here. Nor am I excited about ‘these new waves of blues trending for 2014 and beyond.’

See on www.pantone.com

Continue Reading

Sherpas, Death, and Anger on Everest

See on Scoop.itThe Cultural & Economic Landscapes

The worst accident in Everest’s history underscores an unfortunate reality: ascents have gotten safer for Westerners, but not for Sherpas.

Alison D. Gilbert‘s insight:

The tragedy on the recent Mount Everest climb injured nine. I addition, it took the lives of sixteen Nepali guides.

"Although many news reports indicated that all the victims were Sherpas, the legendary mountain people who comprise just half of one per cent of the Nepali population, three of the sixteen were members of other, much larger ethnic groups: one was Gurung, one was Tamang, and one was a member of the Hindu Chhetri caste.

All, however, were employed as high-altitude climbing sherpas, with a lowercase “s”—an élite profession that deservedly commands respect and admiration from mountaineers around the world."

See on www.newyorker.com

Continue Reading

Alison*s Back to Basics Journal: Getting in Touch with My Ikigai

Lately ‘Back to Basics’ A Simple Healthy Green Natural, Relaxed and Thrifty Life has become my Ikigai, my reason for being. Ikigai is a Japanese word that roughly means what motivates me ‘to rise and shine’ each day. My Back to Basics projects certainly qualify as just that. On a daily basis, I rise and head for my laboratory (also my kitchen) to see how something is fermenting, gelling, infusing or whatever process is used as a back to basics alchemist.

I am not very good at remembering things. I have numerous paper recipe notebooks. But I either forget to write things down or do a terrible job of it. On the other hand, I love to blog. So I decided that Alison*s Back to Basics Journal, an online collection of blog posts, would be the best way to go. This also provides a recording of my current Ikigai and an archive of these activities.

MY BACK TO BASICS JOURNAL

Back to basics is my Ikigai
Journal notebooks. Photo credit: notebookstories.com

Here I am at a new beginning. I have completed a few ‘Back to Basics’ projects. So before I forget what they are and the details, I better get going with this journal. I have been working on five projects that are at various stages of maturity. They include:
• orange essence infused vinegar (not shown)
• homemade apple cider vinegar
• Kombucha
• Kefir water/Kefir milk
• homemade laundry detergent
(not shown)

 
HOMEMADE APPLE CIDER VINEGAR

Making Your Own Apple Cider Vinegar
Making Your Own Apple Cider Vinegar, Photo from JanellaPurcell.com

I have already written a blog post about homemade apple cider vinegar. Ironically, it is the last project to be started and the first to be written about. I have followed Janella Purcell’s instructions as indicated:
“Here’s what you need –
cores and peels from 6-8 (preferably) organic apples (colour not important)
2 tbsp organic sugar or raw honey
filtered water to cover

Return the liquid to the jar and cover it again with a paper towel and band. Leave it for 4 more weeks, stirring daily.
Taste it and see if it has the acidity you would like. If it does, transfer it to a bottle with a lid for storage. If not, leave it in the wide-mouthed jar for a little while longer, checking every few days.” ‪#‎applecidervinegar‬ ‪#‎janellapurcell‬ ‪#‎fermentedfoods‬”

Since I just started yesterday, I have to wait until the 28th to remove the scraps. Then I have to wait another 4 weeks to taste it. I am going to have to be very patient with this project. Next, I think I will explain how to make orange vinegar. It is easy, fun and great for house cleaning. It also smells great.

KOMBUCHA

Why You Should Be Drinking Kombucha from www.positivehealthwellness.com
Why You Should Be Drinking Kombucha from www.positivehealthwellness.com

The most involved are the Kombucha and perhaps the Kefir. They involve not only fermentation but also a special mushroom to transform the ingredients added to them to give them probiotic qualities for consumption. Both Kombucha and Kefir have links to them so you can learn more about them. In fact, if you can’t wait for me to include them in my Back to Basics Journal, you can learn how to make them from watching YouTube videos and asking lots of questions, yourself.

 

KEFIR

The Difference Between Kefir and Yogurt from CulturesforHealth.com
The Difference Between Kefir and Yogurt from CulturesforHealth.com

Kefir water can look very similar to Kombucha. But Kombucha has some effervescence and Kefir does not. They are both supposed to be very healthy. So I guess it is a matter of taste preference. I actually prefer Kombucha to Kefir water and Kefir milk to kefir water.

 

 

 

HOMEMADE LAUNDRY DETERGENT
Last but not least is my homemade laundry detergent. I am having lots of fun working on perfecting the consistency. I may wash all the clothes in my neighborhood by the time I perfect it. One bucket goes a long, long way. But I am going to wait for another day to go into detail on that project in my Back to Basics Journal. Suffice to say, I have grown to love it. The savings makes it even more desireable. There is a blog with a recipe in the additional resources below.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Why You Should Be Drinking Kombucha
Kombucha Health Benefits
What Is Kombucha
How To Make Kombucha
Making Your Own Apple Cider Vinegar
The Difference Between Kefir and Yogurt
Back to Basics Laundry Detergent For Only Pennies A Day

Continue Reading

Welcome Back to Basics: a simple, healthy, green, natural, relaxed and thrifty life

Back to Basics has become a necessity for many of us. For some it may be a trend, a fad, even an adventure. It is all of those. But at the same time, it is an imperative for those of us who:
• Need to simplify our lives
• Become healthy
• Live a green life
• Live naturally
• Relax
• Practice thriftiness

What started out as a project called, The Middle Class Poor and Resources for the Middle Class Poor, is evolving into a whole lifestyle, Back to Basics.

Let’s examine each of the above points to get a better understanding of the Back to Basics Movement.
• Need to simplify our lives
One need look no further than the skyline to see the proliferation of self-storage facilities. We have so much stuff. How much stuff do we need? How many cars? televisions? Internet devices?
How many of us have gone into debt, maxing our credit cards, to have the things that we keep consuming to fill the hole inside us?

• Become healthy
We are a nation of sick people. We have been led to believe that disease is inevitable. We are committed to a deteriorating life-style as we age until the point that we die an unnatural death.
Disease is not our birthright. Wellness is.

• Live a green life
We suffer from allergies. We can’t breathe. We get headaches. These have become the norm. They are not normal. Due to all the chemicals and toxins in the air and in the food we eat, we are being poisoned. Our very immune systems are being compromised.

• Live naturally
How great it would be to live free of allergies, breathing difficulties, headaches, other symptoms and illnesses. Imagine that as well as not having to take a cabinet full of medicines for these ailments. Living more naturally can go a long way in helping to bring this about.

• Relax
Our lives are very stressful. We work longer and harder than ever before. We have tremendous financial pressures. We have lost the ability to just be. We are always having to do something.

• Practice thriftiness
Increasing numbers of people are having to be very thrifty. In addition, the number of people who need government assistance are employed. But the money earned is not enough to live. We need to be thrifty, very thrifty.

The intention of going Back to Basics is to recapture something good that we have lost while seeking more. We need to surrender the glut, greed and self-destruction. It requires letting go of the baggage that weighs us down by literally and figuratively. We live lives based on immediate gratification and ‘gimme-gimme-gimme’. The idea is to regain a good life, a really good life. Slow down. Get back to basics and let’s see what happens. The results may be very pleasantly surprising.

Continue Reading

Back to Basics: Making My Own Apple Cider Vinegar

I have been buying and using Bragg’s apple cider vinegar for years. It has many wonderful properties and uses. Here is a link to the Bragg website to learn more about this live food. When I found the following recipe by Janella Purcell, Nutritionist, I decided to give it a try.

“Making Your Own Apple Cider Vinegar – with the Mother.
The ACV available in supermarkets is refined and distilled, over-processed, over-heating, and filtered. DIY vinegar is easy, and cheap.

By making your own ACV you’re boosting the natural fermentation qualities of the apples. When the vinegar is ready, it contains a dark, cloudy, web-like bacterial foam called mother, which becomes visible when the rich brownish liquid is held to the light. The mother can be used to hasten maturity for making more Apple Cider Vinegar. Natural vinegars that contain the mother have enzymes and minerals that other vinegars in grocery stores may not have.

apple cider vinegar
Back to Bascis: Homemade Apple Cider Vinegar. Photo credit, Janella Purcell

Here’s what you need –
cores and peels from 6-8 (preferably) organic apples (colour not important)
2 tbsp organic sugar or raw honey
filtered water to cover

Method – After you’ve dried apples, made apple muffins or fruit salad etc, place the cores and peels in a large, wide-mouthed jar. Cover the scraps with water and stir in the sugar or honey.Place a paper towel on top of the jar, and secure it with a band. Let the mixture sit for 2 weeks at room temperature, then strain out the liquid. Discard the solids. (compost or worm farm.)
Return the liquid to the jar and cover it again with a paper towel and band. Leave it for 4 more weeks, stirring daily.
Taste it and see if it has the acidity you would like. If it does, transfer it to a bottle with a lid for storage. If not, leave it in the wide-mouthed jar for a little while longer, checking every few days. ‪#‎applecidervinegar‬ ‪#‎janellapurcell‬ ‪#‎fermentedfoods‬”

The above photo shows what is should look like when you start to make it. I started today, Monday, April 14, 2014. I have to wait until April 28, to discard the solids. Then I have to let in stand for four weeks at room temperature, stirring daily. This is a fun back to basics project. But it does require a lot of patience. We’ll see if it is worth it. More to come.

Continue Reading

Spreading Joy : Posting some of my favorite things today

Spreading Joy from +Diply

Spreading joy is an essential component of a fulfilling life.

This statement may seem like a profundity. But is it one of the most basic elements of a joyful life. We are all so busy keeping busy. Social Media has become all consuming. It is a gift and a curse.

Today, I am inspired to share the joy I am finding on it. I have been drawn to Google+ lately. I am sure it has many more profound uses than the one I have just discovered. It is the Pinterest component. In face, I feel like I am on Pinterest when I use the ‘posting’ feature. So let’s pin some Google+ posts (from +Diply and +Fashion is my Attitude) as a way of spreading joy today.

These hydrangea cupcakes make the most appealing photo and irresistible treat. I smile every time I look at this image and the others that follow.

Continue Reading

Egg Labels: Everything You Need to Know to Unscramble Your Egg Purchases

“If you’ve been wondering what all those terms printed on egg cartons mean, this (Egg Labels Infographic) should clear things up.” from the post of the same title by Will Blackmore of Takepart.com.

A Guide to Understanding Egg Carton Labels
Via: TakePart.com

How much product information provided today to consumers is for educational purposes? And how much is merely the latest advertising hype filled with buzz words to grab our attention? We live in an age where the media mesmerizes us into buying a product. All too often the message is filled with misinformation.

We are forced to find out the facts for ourselves. There are often so many choices that it is dizzying. This is no accident. Millions of dollars are spent on product research. The goal of most food companies is not to produce what is best for us. It is to produce what makes the most money for them. But at least with eggs, now we can now be informed consumers. This is because of ‘The Egg Labels Infographic’.

In case you would like a translation of ‘The Egg Labels Infographic, read Jane Says: Here’s How to Unscramble Egg Carton Labels by Jane Lear also of Takepart.com. She goes into great detail to explain what all the terms mean. As consumers, we are entitled to know what the products we purchase contain. May this egg label post set an example for other areas in the food industry to become transparent. But more about that at another time.

Continue Reading

World-class architecture joins high-level sustainability at new Vienna university

This blog post is a reprint of an article by the same name, World-class architecture joins high-level sustainability at new Vienna university. It was written by Phyllis Richardson and appeared in Gizmag.com on February 19, 2014.

world-class architecture

The new campus of the WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) is a like a smorgasbord of 21st century architecture, with signature buildings by Zaha Hadid Hitoshi Abe and Estudio Carme Pinós, among others. But the world-class campus has equally high standards for energy efficiency and sustainability.

View all:

    Though the buildings of the 100,000 square-meter (1 million sq-ft) campus were created by a roster of international talent, the master plan was conceived by the Viennese office of BUSarchitektur in partnership with BOA (büro für offensive aleatorik, or “Studio for Offensive Randomness”). BUS also designed the Teaching Center.

world-class architecture

The school opened in October 2013 to 25,000 students and 1,500 faculty, but its green energy ethos was in place well beforehand, as work was carried out according to Guidelines for Sustainable Construction. These include environmentally-friendly logistics and the reduction of traffic, dust and pollution during building.

Energy and Sustainability
Sustainability and a holistic approach were key factors in the designs, as were “green building” guidelines, which follow international certification requirements. Since it opened in October 2013, the school has been meeting between 60 and 70 percent of its energy needs for heating and cooling through geothermal systems (which uses the energy produced by the change in temperature from water pumped from below ground). Heat recovery units in all buildings have an efficiency rate of 75 percent. Heating, ventilation and cooling are carefully monitored and calibrated according to demand. Green roofs were installed wherever possible.

The campus plan for ecological urbanism also includes 9,900 sq m (106,000 sq ft) of bushes and plants as well as 1,600 sq m (17,000 sq ft) of lawn, and 1,000 secure bicycle spaces. Lighting sensors in the university buildings not only detect whether rooms are vacant or occupied, but in some cases they gauge how much natural light is available, reducing the amount of artificial illumination being used. Classrooms and meeting rooms receive natural light from external windows and from interior atrium spaces.

Communal spaces and interaction
According to the team from BUSarchitekten, the overarching aim of the concept was to create a campus that encouraged social interaction. This is why the new buildings are aligned along the central pedestrian boulevard, or “walk along the park.” Spaces between and around buildings have been designed with seating and planting, including several plazas and a light garden.

So determined was the team to ensure maximum personal contact that the underground parking was designed to expel people into the communal open spaces, rather than allow them to enter their own buildings, unnoticed, below ground. More than half of the whole area, about 55,000 sq m (540,000 sq ft), has been devoted to open or communal space.

The Learning Center, Zaha Hadid
The centerpiece of the campus is the Learning Center, designed by Zaha Hadid. The building is wrapped in Hadid’s signature sweeping curves with an upper volume projecting out toward the pedestrian path. In addition to holding the library, the building houses lounge spaces and various types of meeting rooms. These are contained in separate enclosed volumes that are similarly curved and transversed by angled walkways and lines of windows so that they resemble a group of cruise liners docking together around a towering center hall.

world-class architecture

Striking white and pristine formwork concrete make this a bright, rather majestic space, and certainly one that draws some attention to the overall cost of the campus, said to be around €500 million (US$ 685 million). What is less obvious is the fact that, according to the engineers, the building is about ten times more energy-efficient than standard buildings of a similar size.

The Executive Academy, NO.MAD Arquitectos
The skewed geometries of the Executive Academy by NO.MAD arquitectos (Image: Campus WU/boa…
The distinctive black and silver Executive Academy building for researchers and mature students anchors the western end of the campus promenade. Designed by Madrid-based NO.MAD, the building appears as an irregular stack of blocks. The facade is covered in glass and aluminum, materials used to create degrees of transparency and reflection. Window patterns appear to follow the lines of a maze, or a circuit board, but were calculated according to an algorithm program.
world-class architecture

Windows all have thermal protection and light-filtering systems. Inside, soaring window sections and pure concrete contrast with mirrored panels so that some rooms have a stark, cathedral-like atmosphere. The seven floors offer 18,000 sq m (194,000 sq ft) of teaching and learning spaces.

The Administration and Law building, CRAB studio
The Administration and Law building is a more lively and linear complex, designed by London’s CRAB (Cook Robotham Architectural Bureau) studio. However, this structure looks like it might have been conceived in the sunny climes of Santa Fe, New Mexico, rather than under the gray skies of northern Europe.

Administration and Law complex, by CRAB studio (Image: CRAB studio)
Painted vivid blood orange, which graduates to pale clementine, topped by lemon yellow and cream, the building wears a screen of rough timber planks. The planks are meant to act as sun screens and refer to the nearby Prater Woods. Sir Peter Cook, of CRAB, was a founding member of Archigram, the avant-garde British design group of the 1960s, and seems to have maintained his love of the visually provocative here.
world-class architecture

The Departmental building by Estudio Carme Pinós (Image: Campus WU/boanet)
No less striking, though less colorful, the Departmental building by Estudio Carme Pinós plays with rigid geometries. Windows and casements in gray metal flow in a zig-zag pattern over white walls. These patterned volumes alternate with solid gray orthogonal sections, all joined by a curved central form. Stepped and circular cut-out shapes are used throughout the interior, demonstrating some of Pinós’ trademark attention to quirky details. To help maintain internal temperatures, window shutters open and close automatically according to solar conditions.
world-class architecture
Teaching Center and Auditorium building, BUS architektur
BUSarchitektur won the competition, with BOA, for the master plan of the site, so it is probably fitting that their building is one of two forming the main entrance of the campus. With a skin of weathered Cor-Ten steel, it resembles a cake dusted in cocoa powder. The monolithic structure is broken up into sections of steel with layers of recessed windows.

Interior of the auditorium within the Cor-Ten steel building by BUSarchitektur (Image: Cam…
The Center is home to the main auditorium, which is also clad in steel and sits within a large atrium space, making a feature of the Cor-Ten cladding. Stairs and ramps run up through the atrium, lead out of the building and up to the roof garden, continuing gestures of social interaction and open access.
world-class architecture

The Student Center, by Hitoshi Abe (Image: Campus WU/boanet)
The elongated slender sections of the Student Center building were inspired by the layers of French millefeuille pastry, according to the architects, and are meant to give the impression of permeability. Ribbons of black and white sections (the darkened window glass alternating with thin bands of the facade) and the curved forms do give the building a delicate impact.
world-class architecture
Designed by Japanese architect Hitoshi Abe, the duo-chrome complex serves multiple functions, with long segments joined by long slender atrium spaces. These spaces are meant to promote communal activity, as well as providing corridors of natural light.

Source: Vienna University of Economics and Business

Continue Reading