Author Archives: odinspawn73

A Little Adventure in Hickory

A couple of weekends ago we were able to enjoy a small grasp of sanity and normalcy, as we took advantage of a rare 85 degree late October Saturday.  We enjoyed a scenic drive up and around Charlotte and up towards Hickory, NC.  The goal was just to enjoy a little bit of foliage viewing,Continue reading “A Little Adventure in Hickory”

Optimism for the Week – Great Solutions to Wicked Problems

It has been a bit tough trying to focus on the positive and finding optimism in the current climate.  While I am certainly hoping for a specific result from the upcoming election, I will be as equally happy when we get past it as the hourly doom cycle of news and reports is enough toContinue reading “Optimism for the Week – Great Solutions to Wicked Problems”

Scandinavian Sustainability

The Norwegian city of Oslo has set an ambitious goal to cut their total emissions by 95% by 2030 according to this great article in Fast Company. They are “attacking” all of the various elements that result in emissions as they work towards meeting their goals.  Oslo does have a bit of a headstart inContinue reading “Scandinavian Sustainability”

Rethinking Success and Subscription Shoes (Plus other cool ideas)

I apologize for the long gaps between posts lately, but I have definitely been fighting a lack of motivation as this stretch of being at home has stretched past six months.  I am hoping we can get out for a little road trip next week to shake things up and hopefully generate some stories andContinue reading “Rethinking Success and Subscription Shoes (Plus other cool ideas)”

Housing Options for the New Century

Hotels as Affordable Housing Real estate developer, Repvblik, takes unused commercial spaces and lets people live in them.  A former Day’s Inn in Branson, Missouri sat vacant for eight years, until a LA-based development company converted it into affordable housing.  The project combined rooms to create studio and one bedroom units with rents starting atContinue reading “Housing Options for the New Century”

Impact Everywhere You Look

Sorry for the long gap between posts, but even mostly confined to the house there are still crazy periods.  2021 planning sessions at work and the start of softball season entails a lot of preparation and a lot of coaching.  I have been collecting some interesting articles in the meantime and wanted to share threeContinue reading “Impact Everywhere You Look”

Scottish Beer & 15 Minute Cities

I came across a great article from Fast Company detailing the the Brew Dog Brewery in Scotland and their sustainability efforts.  Anything involving Scotland is going to grab my attention, throw in brewery and sustainability and I’m definitely going to dig in for my details.  The brewery runs on a combination of wind power andContinue reading “Scottish Beer & 15 Minute Cities”

Going A Little Stir Crazy – Food Wall of Fame Phase I

I would never have believed that I would find myself missing work travel, but after almost six months it is starting to kick in.  I am lucky that I normally work from home when I’m not traveling, so at least I was fully set up and ready to go when the pandemic started.  Plus, bothContinue reading “Going A Little Stir Crazy – Food Wall of Fame Phase I”

Innovative Approaches to Big Challenges

There were three articles that grabbed my attention this week that I wanted to share and which will hopefully be of interest. What if Central Park was an Urban Farm The idea is based on the historic presence of Seneca Village in part of what is now Central Park in Manhattan.  In 1850 Seneca VillageContinue reading “Innovative Approaches to Big Challenges”