Greetings from Alison Wiley here in Portland, Oregon. I'm a writer/doer/thinker who lives happily by putting people, nature and God ahead of accumulating more stuff. Read more →
Who read Moby Dick in the fourth grade, has a great-grandmother who starved to death in post-Bolshevik Russia, believes you should retire at night tired from honest work, and notes that many corporations exhibit sociopathic behavior? That would be Robert Leo Heilman, the author from rural Oregon I interviewed recently on the phone. I see [...]
Tags: art·autodidact·family·life·Oregon·Overstory: Zero·relationships·Robert Leo Heilman·transformation
Brief post today — My first thought when I learned of the death of Michael Jackson was: I hope he finds more peace now than he did in his troubled earth-walk. My second, actually ongoing thought as his life and death fills the airwaves and the front page of the New York Times is: wouldn’t [...]
Tags: celebrity·culture·life·Michael Jackson·New York Times·Portland
My sidekick Hanmi Meyer and I are pleased to be posting this morning our new page Resources For Good Living. It’s a set of links, well-labeled and organized, to cool sites that help us increase our happiness and lower our consumption. While this opening date is a bit behind schedule (the summer solstice had been [...]
Tags: bicycling·carbon footprint·consumption·contest·energy conservation·family·fun·gift certificates·green living·happiness·life·links·Oregon·outdoors·religion·renewable energy·resources·thrift·water
1.) Ads. Don’t want ‘em. I’m jonesing for readership, not dollars. 2.) Hatchet jobs on anyone or anything. I’m here to be constructive, not tear things down. I’ve angered some people with some measured criticism, but at the same time I’ve suggested a positive path they might consider taking. I’ve even rewarded someone who took [...]
Tags: ads·cars·consumption·fun·green living·happiness·life·rich and famous·technology·thrift·water
I got a valuable comment from Bob Johnson on my post The Fun Of Being In Training. Of course, your life style seems wonderful and enviable. It is truly admirable that you are working to reduce your carb0n f00tprint. But surely you realize that your way of living is completely inaccessible for most of humanity. [...]
Tags: Bangladeshians·carbon footprint·consumption·elitism·life·Oregon
This piece of mine was first published by the Philadelphia Inquirer on Memorial Day, 2003. I have some mixed feelings about Memorial Day. On one hand, I deeply respect people - in this case, soldiers and veterans - who work and struggle for causes larger than themselves, and are willing to die for their cause. [...]
Tags: BL1961·culture·life·Memorial Day·patriotism·war·witches
I cleaned up my desk at work right before leaving for Opal Creek Ancient Forest for the weekend, where I am now. I’m so proud of finally cleaning my desk it almost warrants a post of its own. But a single sheet of paper I found in that process vibrates with life and trumps all [...]
Tags: Colorado·conservation·development·environment·fishing·hunting·life·Oregon·outdoors·Tim Solley·wilderness Opal Creek Ancient Forest·wildlife
We have the power to be happy despite the recession we’re in, regardless of our nation’s economic troubles. Who says? Daniel Gilbert, an expert on happiness, in this article. Research shows that it is uncertainty and anxiety about the future, not loss of assets per se, is what brings human happiness down the most. So, [...]
A cool thing about vanpooling is getting to read things I’d never have the time to read otherwise.My latest favorite read is a Newsweek article about compassionate behavior. The big research finding is that emotionally secure people who feel safe in the world are more likely to help others and be kind to them. People [...]
Tags: consumption·culture·life·relationships
The many good Earth Day activities last weekend got me to thinking: we act as if the earth is separate from us, with a big boundary between us and nature. I suggest that’s not accurate thinking, and not very joyful, either. I admit I have done this, too. It’s easy to think that we are [...]
Tags: Earth Day·Flatbush Gardener·green living·life·nature·Oregon·outdoors·water
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