2025-04-15 00:00:00
Organic gardeners, both backyard and commercial, know this mail-order outfit as the premier source for organic farming supplies. They’ve got everything: Natural pest controls, insect traps, cover crop seeds in bulk, sticky tape in all varieties. I mean where else can you buy a gallon of milky spore disease (for Japanese beetles), or white fly parasites in quantities of a thousand, or red worm *eggs*, with a side order of bat guano? Not only do they carry mulching film in standard black, but they also have it in innovative silver, green or red colors as well — each spectrum producing different effects for different plants.
But this catalog is also useful in other ways. Non-gardeners and green householders will find hard-to-find products such as poison-free cockroach traps which use cockroach pheromones.
Best of all, Peaceful Valley collects the best gear for growers of any type. Here is your source for plastic deer fencing, the world’s best walk-behind Italian tillers, superlative hand tools, the best selection of drip irrigation supplies, and — my favorite — reusable foam seedling trays. You’ll find this source absolutely essential if you grow anything.
This catalog is a throwback to the mail order catalogs of old. 1) They tend to only sell the best stuff, not just the best-selling or most profitable , and 2) they still print it on paper. You can spend several evenings reading it with great profit. You get a short course in state of the art practices for small time farmer and serious gardening.
They have a pretty good website, too (but not as informative as the paper catalog). And they are easy to work with. — KK
Gardening catalogs are the very epitome of dreambooks. Some are quite beautiful, all ripe with the promise of fulfillment in a slightly other universe, but here are the three that make late winter in the heartland a little less bitter:
Seedsavers Exchange puts out a gorgeous catalog and promotes Earth-respecting attitudes with no preaching or guilt-laying. Their online version is, to my mind, among the best designs of its kind. Their descriptions usually include a few words about the histories and sources of their heirloom varieties — makes it hard not to feel involved with the ancient epic of how “weeds” got turned into the exquisite diversity of crop plants we take for granted these days.
Johnny’s Selected Seeds is a commercial version of a labor of love. It’s a real working catalog with limited color photos but a large and well-selected inventory of standard, heirloom, and organic veggie, herb, flower, grain, and covercrop seeds. What makes the catalog special is its generosity with information. If you need a tomato that resists some particular kind of rot, you’ll probably find it here. You’ll probably find it in other catalogs, too, but won’t necessarily know it. There’s extensive cultural, climate, and harvesting info that makes me resent almost all other catalogs for their lack of same. Johnny’s really wants their seeds to grow strong and prosper.
Gardens Alive is a southern Indiana seller of products for organic/”environmentally responsible” gardening and growing. Natural fertilizers, biocontrols (they grow critters like parasitic wasps and nematodes themselves), natural lawn magic, redworms, composting accessories — a fairly thick little catalog with basic graphics and all kinds of dreams for the garden geek. Dozen-page guides to plant diseases, nutritional lacks, bugs. I get the same kind of thrill pawing through this jammed volume that I used to get with Edmunds or American Science and Surplus or the fireworks spreads, or, well, Whole Earth Catalog — It just makes my hands itch to get out there and tinker. — David Walker
Ever since I encountered fingerling potatoes in European restaurants I wanted to grow some of my own. I find these small fat-finger-shaped tubers have a nuttier, richer taste than regular potatoes. Potato Garden in Colorado is a mail order source that sells a dozen varieties of fingerlings and it’s been fun trying various breeds. Potato Garden also introduced me to scores of strains in “main” potatoes. And they offer an exotic variety of live starters for other root crops, such as garlic, onions, and sun chokes. Their catalog provides enough basic info about growing and storing roots that it serves as a one-stop short course. For spring delivery you need to order early. — KK
Once a week we’ll send out a page from Cool Tools: A Catalog of Possibilities. The tools might be outdated or obsolete, and the links to them may or may not work. We present these vintage recommendations as is because the possibilities they inspire are new. Sign up here to get Tools for Possibilities a week early in your inbox.
2025-04-14 00:00:00
Andrej Karpathy’s guide to digital hygiene has practical steps for protecting your privacy and security. Here are the essentials: Use a password manager (like 1Password) to create unique strong passwords for every service; get a hardware security key (like YubiKey) as your second factor authentication instead of text messages; and use Privacy.com to create credit card numbers that are locked to one specific merchant and can’t be used elsewhere, preventing unauthorized charges. — MF
Many people are having trouble wrapping their heads around the fact that global depopulation and not overpopulation is our challenge. The childless trend has been underway for 50 years but has accelerated dramatically recently. We are at the cusp of deaths outnumbering births on the planet, with no change in sight. I recommend this very, very long New Yorker article – “The End of Children” – as the very best introduction and explainer. It focuses on particular programs, people, and events in South Korea, which is leading the world in depopulation, much faster than the Japanese. The piece is beautifully written, expertly reported, and informed. I think everyone should read it; paste the article url link into 12FT to read it in full. — KK
This two-part talk, How to Navigate the Weirdness by Erik Davis, gave me such great comfort and clarity on how to ground myself in the complexities of our current societal consciousness. The intention behind these talks is to honestly assess the present moment and share navigational tools for sanity, sense-making, and creative engagement. Davis gives historical context and talks about the transformative cultural shifts that have led us to this point, while also addressing the psychological impacts of media saturation, among other things. His strategies emphasize flexibility, mindfulness, and critical thinking. Here is part one and part two, and here is some of his advice (paraphrased):
—CD
I love multi-day walks, but not hefting a loaded backpack the whole way. The solution is to have my luggage bag forwarded each day, so I only walk with a tiny daypack. This liberation is heavenly, and makes me glad to walk a week or more. Luckily there are outfitters that will arrange luggage forwarding in great places to walk in the countrysides of Europe and Asia. There are no guides; you pick the route you want, and the dates you want. They arrange modest lodging, the luggage forwarding, and then give you a map on your phone. The fees are very reasonable, not much more than the lodging itself. For example, last week I used MacsAdventures to help me walk the last 100km of the El Camino de Santiago in Spain. I’ve used the same outfitter to walk several self-guided week-long rambles in the Cotswolds, England. The arrangements and luggage pickups were flawless. — KK
In Kevin Rose’s recent newsletter, he shares the results of his semi-annual survey of Favorite Things. With more than 27,000 votes across 24 categories, the results paint a clear picture of the top tools people are favoring right now. Kevin runs this survey to track the rapidly evolving AI landscape and keep his community informed on emerging trends and products. Like the results reflect, I still use most Apple and Google products for things like email, calendar, and browser, but I’ve permanently moved on from Google Search to a paid Perplexity plan, and I can’t imagine ever going back. — CD
These tiny Syntech USB-C to USB-A adapters let me connect my older USB devices to my newer laptops. The pack comes with two adapters that plug into the computer’s USB port. — MF
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2025-04-12 00:00:00
The Alchemist by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho is a mystical story about a young shepherd named Santiago who embarks on a journey to find his “Personal Legend” — his true purpose in life. Through his adventures across the desert, encounters with mysterious characters, and lessons in alchemy, Santiago learns profound truths about listening to his heart, reading the signs of the universe, and pursuing his dreams despite obstacles. This short book has inspired millions of readers worldwide with its simple yet powerful message about having the courage to follow one’s destiny.
Four key pieces of advice from the book:
“When a person really desires something, all the universe conspires to help that person to realize his dream,” said the alchemist, echoing the words of the old king. The boy understood. Another person was there to help him toward his destiny.”
“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”
“Because I don’t live in either my past or my future. I’m interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you’ll be a happy man. You’ll see that there is life in the desert, that there are stars in the heavens, and that tribesmen fight because they are part of the human race. Life will be a party for you, a grand festival, because life is the moment we’re living right now”
“Before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World tests everything that was learned along the way. It does this not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we’ve learned as we’ve moved toward that dream. That’s the point at which most people give up. It’s the point at which, as we say in the language of the desert, one ‘dies of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon.'”
2025-04-11 00:00:00
*We recently hit two big milestones. This is the 150th weekly edition of the newsletter. Also, we won a “Best Travel Newsletter” GOLD award earlier from the North American Travel Journalists Association. Thanks for your support in getting us here!
In another example of politics impacting travel, we’re now seeing international headlines like “Has the USA Become a Hostile Environment for Tourists?” and “Police State Immigration Intrusions Deterring Travel to U.S.” Flight bookings from Canadians are down more than 70% on some air routes and we’re seeing research studies saying the U.S. will probably lose at least $18 billion in tourism revenue this year alone due to political factors. The latest immigration actions aren’t helping: every major media outlet is reporting on phone and laptop searches when entering the country and advising people—even natural-born citizens—on how to avoid the snooping. This Wired article is the most comprehensive I’ve seen about what to do.
If you’ve been watching White Lotus and are thinking of flying over to Thailand where it takes place this season, you might want to wait at least another month. Throughout Southeast Asia, farmers burn their fields after harvesting crops and it’s especially bad in Thailand. Most of the burning is in the north but when I was there once at this time of year, the haze extended all the way down to Malaysia, spoiling any island views on either coast. Here’s a rundown on the timing from Nomadic Notes.
I was leading a group tour in the country of Georgia last month and spent a lot of time researching prices for food, drinks, transportation, and more while I was there. The country is a terrific value for travelers and if you decide you want to stick around, citizens of more than 75 countries can stay for up to a year on a tourist visa, no extensions required. See the details in my report here: Prices for Travelers (and Residents) in the Republic of Georgia.
From the northern hemisphere down to the tropics, late spring and summer tend to be rainy season and an umbrella is not going to help your feet much in a downpour. If you want to still pack light but be prepared for rain, get a pair of waterproof hiking shoes or trail running shoes that look and function the same as the normal versions but have a waterproof membrane to keep your feet dry. Common shoe brands making them include Columbia, Adidas, Keen, Skechers, Oboz, and Merrell.
A weekly newsletter with four quick bites, edited by Tim Leffel, author of A Better Life for Half the Price and The World’s Cheapest Destinations. See past editions here, where your like-minded friends can subscribe and join you.
2025-04-10 00:00:00
I’m a marketing executive who’s worked at Nike, Activision, Twitter and WWE currently consulting helping brands big and small. In my spare time I like to garden, spend time with my daughter, and build LEGO’s.
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2025-04-09 02:00:00
If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t!
by Elise Parsley
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
2015, 40 pages, 9.5 x 12.2 x 0.5 inches (hardcover)
When my kiddo really likes a book, she’ll ask to read it again and again and again, and she’ll only tire of it if something new comes along to replace it. The fact that my daughter has asked to read this book every night for the past two weeks – and still cracks up at the funny parts – speaks volumes.
If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t! is a wacky, colorful, and delightful tall tale for children ages 4-7. As Elise Parsley’s New York Times bestselling debut book, it tells the story of Magnolia, a unique girl who responds to her teacher’s request to “bring something from nature for show and tell” by – you guessed it – bringing an alligator to school. As one can guess, havoc ensues.
Magnolia tries to convince her teacher that alligators are “quiet and good” and that he “won’t eat anyone,” but then spends the rest of the story trying to avert certain disaster. The alligator draws funny pictures to make Magnolia laugh, creates paper-airplane origami that winds up in the teacher’s hair, almost eats a fellow student, gets chewing gum everywhere, and eats Magnolia’s lunch. In return, Magnolia gets her name written on the board, followed by several checkmarks and an underline, which guarantees a trip to the principal’s office after school.
If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t! is a delightful and silly read, especially for preschool or primary school children who have already experienced show and tell. Parsley does a magnificent job of capturing Magnolia’s frustration and exasperation with this misbehaving beast. The illustrations, which were digitally drawn in Adobe Photoshop and colored in with Corel Painter, are vibrant, imaginative, and spot-on funny. Magnolia’s exaggerated expressions, especially when she’s mad at the “innocent” alligator, are priceless and giggle-worthy…even if you’re a grown-up. – Jennifer Brozak
Everything Is Teeth
by Evie Wyld (author) and Joe Sumner (illustrator)
Pantheon
2016, 128 pages, 8.1 x 10.3 x 0.7 inches (hardcover)
Everything Is Teeth is an unsettling, autobiographical peek at a childhood obsession: author Evie Wyld’s fixation with sharks, and with a particular shark survivor named Rodney Fox. This is a small girl with a big internal life; pop culture and her imaginings about sharks are more vivid than real life.
Joe Sumner’s art is well matched to the mood of the text. The illustrations are spare, and mostly black and white. The images of books and sharks are vivid by comparison, especially the bright red blood that pops up periodically. And the humans are drawn with big heads and childlike features, which is appropriate for text that reveals an introspective child’s thoughts about grownups. The best lines are about Wyld’s parents, such as: “He hangs on to his jetlag like it’s the last bit of civilization he’ll see in a long while.”
Why sharks? One hard-to-avoid theory is that Wyld’s focus on blood is one sign of her apprehension about menstruation, and womanhood in general. She tells two especially memorable stories of washed-up sharks found and cut open. One contained a litter of shark pups, the other some expensive stiletto heels. Stilettos and offspring are potent symbols of womanhood, of course. Thus, becoming a woman, like facing off with a shark, inspires both fear and fascination. I was also a morbid girl who wasn’t so sure about this femininity business, so this odd book strikes a chord. – Christine Ro
NOTE: The link above sends you to the same book, different cover.
