WORK

WORK. It's what we do, what we obsess over, celebrate, complain about, get paid for. We may call it Art, but it's still work. Particularly for creative types, where we do our work must have something to do with how it turns out, for better or worse - yet we rarely get to see behind the curtain.

We would like you to share something about your special place where creativity blooms. So where do you work?

Saturday, June 4, 2011

The moveable feast, or nomadic workplace

 
raison d'etre
Russ & Laura are a hard-working couple. They run a cottage industry around bicycle travel and touring, conducting interviews, testing and reviewing bicycle products, creating art and books, making presentations and leading bike tours. Now they are entering the world of video production. And they do all this without an office or a home.

Amtrak as office
In January of 2009 they  " turned in their housekeys "  and hit the road on bicycles, carrying everything they need for living. They make frequent stops along their travels, for impromptu presentations in bike shops, hosting S24O campouts and generally promoting the adventure of bicycle living.

People love to hear their stories

Here's Russ describing their first season on the road:
  "After rambling across the country for 15 months, we feel like we’ve become hardened travelers. The idea of heading back out into nothingness isn’t something we need to steel ourselves against, and the details of life on the road aren’t overwhelming like they were two years ago. Instead of figuring out health insurance or a home for our couch, we can focus on how to structure our work flow on the road so that we can actually accomplish everything we want to do. We feel like we’re able to be much more pro-active in our plans for this next trip, and think about the bigger picture."




In the Spring of 2011, they are hitting the long road once again.  You can follow their progress at Path Less Pedaled. It makes for very interesting reading.

Friday, June 3, 2011

Working in a Secret City

Oakridge, TN - a prefab, secret town

Oakridge, Tennessee has an anniversary this month. In 1945, the Feds hastily created a city (planned by SOM Chicago) that would grow to 75,000 residents - all off the map, off the grid. People who lived and worked there barely knew what they were up to, only that they should keep their mouths closed and heads down. They were part of the Manhattan project, building the world's first atomic bombs. It's remarkable and difficult to comprehend in this age of Google maps that 75,000 people could hide in plain sight for several years.

Get the whole story here -
Secret City