"I've got a great idea! Now what?” Make Salt Lake helps answer that question. The collective at 663 West 100 South has a wood shop, metal shop, electronics bench and textile room that allows its 260 members to incubate their ideas in a communal setting. One member is Billy Barghahn, who has created a company called Vertical Vans. He takes Mercedes and Dodge Ram vans and … [Read more...]
Gold Prospecting in Utah: How to Find Gold in Utah’s Mountains
There's gold in them thar hills, and the 150 members of the Utah Gold Prospecting Club (UGPC) are celebrating the club's 40th anniversary by looking for, and in some cases, finding it. Gold and the West are inseparable. Pioneers did not journey to California to look for silicon. No, the valleys they were seeking had nuggets of shiny paydirt, and Utah is part of this … [Read more...]
The Power of Orchids
Orchids … exotic, beautiful, mesmerizing … and thriving in Salt Lake City. Although far removed from the tropics where they bloom in thousands of varieties, orchids are abundant here in the high desert of Utah. Both the flowers and those who fancy them were at the recent spring showing of the Orchid Club of Utah held at Red Butte Gardens. "Orchids are so varied no matter … [Read more...]
Lassonde Studios Helping University of Utah Students Make their Business Dreams a Reality
The future is today at Lassonde Studios on the University of Utah campus. The student lounge has the normal dorm stuff such as a pool table, video games and comfy chairs. But that is where similarities end. How many other dorms have a fully-equipped tool room and access to patent attorneys? Lassonde is more than just a dorm housing 400 residents. It is a center for student … [Read more...]
Electric Porsche in Salt Lake: Current Exchange Converts Classic Roadsters to Electric Collectibles
The Porsche 911. A driver eases behind the wheel of this classic 1980s sports car. While shifting gears, the engine roars its approval. At the Current Exchange in Salt Lake City, it is the same clean-lined Porsche, but with an electric engine that will purr its approval. Martin Prouty and Kyle Palmer started The Current Exchange to convert Porsche roadsters into electric … [Read more...]
CAN A NUCLEAR EXPLOSION SAVE THE GREAT SALT LAKE?
Is the "bathtub drain" linking the Great Salt Lake and the Pacific Ocean a reality? This winter, a bush pilot flying to spot brine shrimp blooms for shrimp trawlers spotted a sinkhole one mile in circumference on the far west mudflats of the lake. Receding water levels made the once-submerged landform visible, lending credence for the first time to the early pioneer … [Read more...]
Strum Your Way to a Sunny Day: It’s Easy to Learn the Ukulele
So you have run out of videos to watch, books to read, friends to text and new recipes to cook. May I suggest discovering the ukulele? Learning how to play this simple stringed instrument may make the corona lockdown all seem worthwhile. You can actually learn the necessary chords and play your first song within 30 minutes. Yep, I'm not kidding. What makes the uke so … [Read more...]
Assistance League Boutique
As thrift stores go, the Assistance League boutique on 2090 E 3300 S has class. Items range from designer wedding dresses to signed artwork. Then there are the clerks—ladies whose sole purpose is to help customers. Classy stuff and classy clerks supporting a class act—the Assistance League of Salt Lake City. Most people only know about the store. But its proceeds support an … [Read more...]
Street Tai Chi Helping Homeless in Salt Lake City
First comes the coffee. Next comes the quiet. Then comes the tai chi. It is a combination that could change the world. Three times a week, a group of about 40 houseless people gather in the plaza of the Salt Lake City library. Houseless perhaps, but not homeless, because this tai chi community has been their home for the past three years. Men and women socialize and then set … [Read more...]
Here Comes Santa Claus
Being Santa Claus at Christmas means more than renting a red suit. It is a calling that transforms a person. Each Ho, Ho, Ho nurtures a spark that will twinkle the eye and warm the heart. Ed Keller knows this spark. He has been Santa Claus for the past 50 years, starting out in Helper and most recently journeying down from the North Pole to take up residence at the Santa … [Read more...]