Taos: A Solar-Powered Radio Station, a Frog, a Marmot, and Flaco Claus

(To properly experience this post, click here to stream the radio station featured.)

On those rare occasions when my wife and I vacation, we try to find a small piece of art to purchase as a momento of our trip. On our recent trip to New Mexico, we went all crazy - we bought a tiny painting from a man who called himself "Ray Suncatcher" and we bought two photos from the Field Institute of Taos. Those photos arrived in the mail this week. I opened the envelope and had the opportunity to re-live a great day in Taos.

The frog is my wife's (a great irony considering her thoughts on frogs) and the marmot (impersonating a walrus) is mine.

Before leaving for Taos, we were given a phenomenal gift. Our good friend Keith, whose name shows up on MH often, wrote out a very informal travel guide of things to do (and eat) in Taos. He sent us many places and never steered us wrong. If you ever get the chance to get your own Keith travel guide, jump all over it!

From Keith's Guide

·         KTAO is a solar powered radio station that also has a very informal bar inside where you can sip your beverage and watch the dj put on music.  I mean. . . . he's a few feet away and if you yell profanities, it will go over the air.  They also have a stage outside and a small stage inside.  It's a really unique place, and I highly recommend it on your way out of Taos. 

After reading that, we knew we had to go by KTAO.

View of the front door

The place was a madhouse. Before we made it through the front door, a really skinny Santa Claus pulled up in his sleigh followed by a few dozen Harleys. Lots of other people were there for the local ski equipment swap meet, and the Field Institute of Taos was having a fundraiser in front of the DJ booth. (This discouraged us from yelling profanities, snagit!)

The view behind the place

But the Field Institute is pretty darned cool! They are a non-profit that offers camps and programs to teach kids about nature and fitness. They even teach photography and mountain biking. One of their fundraisers at KTAO was the sale of photos the kids had taken, which is how we ended up with a frog and a marmot to hang in our house.

You can check them out here: www.fitaos.org

The view from inside the bar

The view of the massive solar carport - what could be cooler?

(Okay, having the largest broadcast area of any solar-powered radio station in the world is a bit cooler than having a really big solar carport.)

Some random tourists smiling near the logo

May you find yourself in a great place buying frog and marmot photos to send a kid to camp. I highly recommend it.

Electric Scooter News: Fido Grows Up and Scoots to Italy

Check this cool canine out at fidomotors.com!

Here at the Mesquite Hugger Hangout, it's always an exciting day when an email rolls in from the Fido Team. So, yesterday was a good day!!!

The email had two pieces of info - that Fido is being unveiled at EICMA - the international motorcycle exposition in Italy - and that the new Fido was unveiled on the new Fido website.

I went straight to the website. (The MH budget doesn't really support paddling over to Italy to see it in person.) I love the new Fido with its obvious improvements over the prototype model. I want mine in blue with the wood rack on the back! I will shut up now and let the photos do the talking.

May you be fortunate enough to have green transport this cool!

Bonus link: The last MH post about the Fido: http://mesquitehugger.blogspot.com/2014/05/electric-scooter-news-fido-i-am-excited.html

Tiny House Articles: A Year of Tiny and USA Today heads to Spur, Texas

A young married couple with the run-down on tiny house living after their first year.

Take special note of the bathroom fan advice and the importance of planning for ice cream!

Favorite line: we have found that our friends now introduce us as “these are the tiny house people we were telling you about”

A Year of Tiny

Back in August, USA Today reported on the phenomena of tiny houses and started the piece with info about Jeremy Hensley, the first person to accept Spur, Texas' invitation to move to town to live the tiny house lifestyle.

Favorite line: Owners of tiny homes "aren't people who are going to be spending money on their mortgage." Jeremy Hensley

Building communities one tiny house at a time

And here is the Spur tiny house blog: Small Footprint, Big Freedom

May you dream big and live tiny, or something like that.

Tiny Post: Fun with Bike Racks

So, there I was in Taos checking out a cool bike rack to share with all of you, but I really needed to have what the young'uns are calling a bio break these days. After the break I came back to snap a pic, but I had to wait a while. The bike rack had become a playground. After a few minutes, a father figure said, "That's enough! Let's go." Kids scampered away, and I snapped the pic.

So today I am checking out a blog entry about a family that has two cargo bikes and no car, and off to the side I notice a link to Kids on Bike Racks. I clicked on it, and now I am smiling.

May you click onto a smile today too!

Holy Stalactites, Batman! There's Corvette Glue in the Batcave!

Calling all Batfriends!

Bats in North America are in trouble. White nose syndrome, a fungus-based disease is killing a large number of bats in the Northeast, and there are signs that the disease is spreading significantly. WNS is already affecting a number of endangered species and has the potential to be cataclysmic for bat populations. To learn more about WNS, visit this site: whitenosesyndrome.org

And, if you would like to know more about bats in our part of the country, visit our neighbors a few hours east of here at the Bat World Sanctuary.

This morning, I was checking out AutoBlogGreen and ran across an article about GM using adhesive from Corvettes and battery boxes from Volts to help create healthier conditions for hibernating bats. These healthier conditions would allow bats to have more space which can slow the spread of the white nose fungus.

May our dream cars become superheroes, and may we do all we can to stop the destruction of our endangered neighbors.

PS. It's election day - get out and vote! (For info on locations and candidates, read yesterday's MH entry.)

Combating Lubbock Boringitis: Urban Tech

Imagine living in a place where there is always something to do.

In case you haven't heard, our fair city has once again been voted the most boring town in America. And it is not hard to see why we have such a reputation. If one is not interested in going to a movie, attending a sports event, or heading down to the Depot District to drink a lot of alcohol, well, you are going to have to do some digging.

Don't do it!

But there have been many glimmers of hope in the last few years. Two that stand out happen in the downtown area: the LHUCA First Friday Art Trail and the Lubbock Downtown Farmer's Market. If you have been fortunate enough to visit either of those recurring events, you've had the chance to see local folks out enjoying the place we call home and the company of our neighbors. And it's pretty darned awesome.

Another group that is working in the same direction is Urban Tech. They are an offshoot of the Texas Tech College of Architecture. In their own words:

A place for students to think, draw, design, model and create.
A product of ideas and information in public exhibition in the form of drawings and models and transportable information via digital media.
A process of civic engagement and exploration.
Urban Tech will clarify the public benefits of architecture, promote the creation of new knowledge and serve as a laboratory for ethical professional behavior where community needs supersede private agendas. (I really like that last sentence!)

Urban Tech has been stepping away from the drawing board lately and taking their work and ideas into the street downtown. And if you have not made it out there, you still have time this week to head over to Avenue J to see what's up and to support the idea of resurrecting our downtown to create an area where people would love to live, work, and play. Besides the cultural events, you can check out the functional art, the pocket park, and the prospective graphics on the windows. You can even pick up one of the cool t-shirts for $10.

Bands on Friday Night

Coffee in the morning and live music during the lunch hour and after work

Last night's Broadway & Gourmet on Ave J

If you are one of those who keep complaining about how boring our town is, here is your chance to truly be the change you wish to see in the world. Get out and support a future that can be.

May you live in an interesting place that inspires you!

PS. Be sure to check out a few of the other projects on the Urban Tech website. BIKE!

Lubbock: Get Out and Vote!

Tomorrow is the day for mid-term elections.

Voting information and candidates can be found here: The League of Women Voters of Lubbock County Voters Guide.

May your vote point to a better world for us and for those who follow.