A photo gallery of Book Mashes.

I first met Karen Skowron just after I started Living Gently Quarterly. Our conversations led to several articles and poems by Karen published in past issues. Karen has many wonderful ideas on how to live a gently lifestyle. She is a lifestyle consultant with a background in psychology, and a superb writer. In addition, Karen, the originator of the term Natural Habitat Houses, has turned several urban properties back to a more natural state and advises others on changing lifestyles.

Home sprouting can supply a delicious, varied fresh harvest quickly and inexpensively without the environmental disadvantages of commercial agriculture and shipping. Sprouts are easily grown and easily digested, and contain an abundance of vitamins and minerals as well as simple sugars and amino acids.

It's about time we declare war on food waste -- and none too soon, if you ask me. According to US Department of Agriculture figures a few years ago, American households are responsible for 14 million tons, or 28 billion pounds, of food waste per year. That's 280 pounds of food per household tossed into the trash annually.

Summer time is a time for a variety of outdoor tasks and pleasures. Here are a few hints to help you.

Winter is a good time for hearty and simple meals. The following are suggestions for a meal or two which can brighten even the coldest day.

In most of North America, cold and wintery weather are common. Our home is our refuge from the cold outdoors, its basic function to maintain a comfortable thermal environment for those living within. Comfort against the winter cold requires using some energy consumption. But energy consumption is expensive both to our bank account and to the environment. If we can reduce our level of energy consumption without sacrificing comfort, we will not only save ourselves money but also reduce our environmental impact.

Thermal comfort is a very subjective feeling affected by the physical laws of heat transfer. While we cannot strictly define what exact combination of environmental factors will produce comfort for all, we can define what the major contributing factors are and act to alter their influences.