Reference@TBML

Summertime and the Travelling is Fine

Thinking of getting away for the weekend?  Need an escape that will be easy on the pocketbook?  Perhaps it is time to start thinking of in-state exploration.  Here are a few online guides and resources to fuel your ideas for your next trip:

Start with the basics.  The New Mexico Tourism Department has an excellent but general site that can help narrow down your choices.  Explore by region or by type of activity.

If you are a history buff, check out the Census Finder's Historical Museum Guide for New Mexico.  Museums are organized by county and contain links to the museum website.

Those of you who like to plan your road-trips around your appetite, will find Gil's Thrilling (and Filling) Blog to be immensely inspring.  Created and maintained by a northern New Mexican, this blog offers thoughtful and mouthwatering reveiws of restaurants both in New Mexico and further afield.  Definitely worth a look.

And finally, if you want to explore the southwest (or any other place in the country, for that matter), the New York Times has a generalized but up-to-date Travel guide (use the search box to navigate).  Although publishers of books, Rough Guides has published some of their content online (use the search box to navigate).  Similarly, Lonely Planet has provided some of their book content online (again, use the search box/map to navigate).

Where ever you go (even if it is in your mind and physically no further than your armchair), have a wonderful and enriching summer.

BES

A Look Inside

I recently came across fascinating feature at the Guardian (UK) Newspaper's online site.  It is called Writer's Rooms and it periodically features snapshots of prominent writer's (both contemporary and much earlier) workrooms.  There is usually a first-person account by the writer of their chosen workroom.  It is an intriguing feature that in some cases provides insights into the writer's process and in other cases serve as inspiration for home offices.

In a similar vein, the British blog Shedworking, is self-described as a "lifestyle guide for shedworkers."  Dedicated to the multitudinous forms in which home offices or sheds may take, the blog runs the gamut from extremely functional to wonderfully whimsical.

And finally, for a wonderful survey of tiny homes throughout American history, check out the book, A Little House of My Own: 47 Grand Designs for 47 Tiny Houses by Les Walker.  Whether you are a writer interested in creating a little hide-away or someone looking interested in the small house lifestyle, Les Walker's book will provide inspiration for all.  BES   

Tiny Green Footprints

It seems that living a green life has become popular (again).  While choosing to purchase environmentally-friendly cleaners and installing compact fluorescent light bulbs are wonderfully important steps, some of you may be ready to take your commitment to sustainability to the next level.  A great new book called Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints On a Finite Earth by Jim Merkel supplies a terrific argument and detailed plan for reducing your footprint.  Your footprint is generally identified as the amount of energy and resources you use in your daily life put through a formula to determine how large or small you are living.  As Jim Merkel states in Radicial Simplicity,

"Ecological Footprinting is a technique used to track the many flows of nature that support our daily life.  If your bag of life's goodies comes from around the wold, the footprint adds up your share of the oil rigs, roads, wheat fields and forests that go into your goodies.  Can nature keep pace with your consumption?"

  For an online calculator, visit the the Nature Conservancy's Carbon Footprint Calculator to get a rough idea of your carbon footprint.

Another new book designed to help you (yes you, in the middle of town) move toward sustainability is Urban Homesteading: Your Guide to Self-Sufficient Living in the Heart of the City.  Written by a couple living in Los Angeles, Urban Homesteading offers many strategies for living off the land--no matter the size of your yard.

And finally, if you really want to reduce your footprint, consider going teeny and tiny.  Check out the Tiny House Blog for an array of beautiful but itty-bitty houses. BES