Kerry Trueman, our friend of Eating Liberally fame, wrote an excellent piece on the Huffington Post yesterday, warning that our current economic woes are a chilling reminder of former President Jimmy Carter’s call to buckle down and bundle up just like the Waltons.   Encouraged by the renewed popularity of DIY efforts such as gardening and canning, Kerry observes:

We’re reverting to old-timey modes of transportation, too–there’s been a dramatic spike in bike sales and train travel in recent months. And many of us are buying less, learning to make do, and turning off the lights when we leave the room. We are, at last, achieving Jimmy Carter’s dream of a simpler, less-stuff driven life–a dream, by the way, that he shared with another recent U.S. president, George H. W. Bush.

Read Kerry’s blog to learn more about the Bush connection.

And takepart by learning more about Jimmy Carter Man From Plains and staytuned for some DIY tips from takepart.

Last night on “American Idol” the judges’ held their critiques and praises until every contestant had a turn, which is different than the usual AI format. As you’ll see in the video below, judge Paula Abdul offered feedback for two songs by Jason Castro when he only sung one. Of course this has now become all the buzz and people are asking straight up now tell me what’s up with Paula Abduls behavior?

Whatever. People make mistakes. However last week after Brooke White stopped and re-started her song, Paula said something to the effect that one cannot make mistakes on live TV. Hmmmm…

None the less I do love that Paula, mistakes or not. I mean she did a duet with a cartoon cat. Not only that, but it was a cat that was cool enough to explore his relationship differences in a mature manner paired with a snazzy upbeat tempo.

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Idol Gives Back is on tomorrow night and celebs coming our more than ever. this annual event is causing an online stir, here are just some of the many mentions of Idols efforts:

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I think it’s safe to say most folks are a bit sick of hearing about blogs. My blog, your blog, that blog, the blog, blogging, bloggy, bloggers.It’s quite an ugly word too. Blog. So harsh. Blog. Sounds like the name of a dungeon or a scary killer reptile.What is a blog? And should we be happy or terrified that anyone, anywhere can start one? (And why do all my blogs always site Wikipedia as a source of valid information when entries are often created by anonymous users)Some blogs are simply rumors and gossip disguised as “news.”Other blogs are endless ramblings about ones personal drama, the shit that belongs in your diary, shoved under a mattress, never to be shared with anyone, ever, let alone online and accessible by your mother, father, lover and boss.But of course for every lame blog there are many blogs are mindful, awesome, entertaining, witty, and plain ol’ cool.And with that, I’d like to direct your attention to this silly video about blogging created by HuffingtonPost Associate Living editor E.A Hanks and resident HuffingtonPost video guru Patrick Waldo.Enjoy! Better yet, blog about it!