It's always encouraging to see our elected leaders setting a good example. I hope we see more of this sort of thing.

A very common vehicle on the streets of European cities, mostly used for commercial purposes, is a kind of tricycle: basically a motorcycle, with a small cab over the handlebars and seat, and an axle supported by two wheels in the back, over which is set a storage compartment.  So it sort of like a very small pick-up truck.  Presumably the engines are not praiseworthy with regard to efficiency and pollution.  But that can be fixed, and the over-all design is practical.

On CFLs: Many people rightly complain that the light from fluorescents is too blue, not red enough, hence unattractive.  But that can be mitigated by the external lamp.  In Kate's last photo, the creamy-yellowish glass fixtures of the chandelier seem to cut the fluorescent glare very nicely.

Chickens are our cousins! So are other sensitive animals! Enough is enough! No more factory farms!