Two's company, 80,000's a crowd. Photos: Sarah van Schagen.  For most of the year, this 700-acre farm in Manchester, Tenn., provides open, grassy pasture for a herd of cows. But for a short time each summer, the idyllic setting is taken over by a different kind of herd: the tens of thousands of fans who descend for the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival. The now-legendary event features long-haired musician-types, massive stages, sprawling campgrounds, and vendors hawking all manner of food and crafts. As Thom Yorke -- the frontman for this year's headliner, Radiohead -- put it to the writhing masses …

Dear Umbra, I am reluctant to switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs because that means tossing out not only used-but-still-working incandescent bulbs, but also the brand-new bulbs I have waiting in the closet. Is it really a positive effect overall when we're reducing our carbon emissions but adding to landfills? Julie Pittsburgh, Pa. Dearest Julie, Damn fine idea ... don'tknow why I didn't thinkof it myself. The gummint says, if every American household replaced five incandescents with higher-efficiency fixtures or bulbs, it would keep a trillion pounds of greenhouse gases out of the air. You tell me: would you rather …

Dear Umbra, Do organic grocers take food stamps? Do farmers' markets? If not, what do ecologically/health-minded people on fixed incomes do? David Burch South Bend, Ind. Dearest David, Did you know that in many states food stamps are no longer stamps? Plastic cards similar to ATM cards have replaced the paper coupons. Electronic Benefit Transfer, it's called, and it's not dissimilar to a bank card with a finite, monthly replenished amount of money. Out of reach? Photo: iStockphoto. Any store that wants to accept food stamps or EBT can apply to do so. To qualify to accept food stamps, a …

Well, folks, my time here at Bonnaroo is coming to a close. Today, I got the chance to chat with head trash-picker-upper Anna of Clean Vibes, Atlanta-based band the Codetalkers, and a number of eco-booth staffers and everyman 'Roo goers. I also listened in as Bonnie Raitt chatted with Marc Ross of Rock the Earth about her work on social issues. She truly believes in using her music to inspire change -- and hopefully her hour-long interview on the Solar Stage will inspire 'Roo fans to make changes in their own personal lives. I fly back to Seattle tomorrow, so …

More scoop from 'Roo: Funny man Lewis Black, laughin' it up at 'Roo's comedy tent, says he's on tour so much that he isn't in one place long enough to be harming any environment. Ha ha. But seriously, he's looking into biodiesel for his tour bus. My interview with Lyrics Born went very well. Turns out he's very much into raising awareness about eco-issues. And he's psyched about 'Roo's eco-efforts because, he says, he knows how trashed a festival can get.

Another dispatch from Bonnaroo: I've got scoop that Jon Gutwillig of The Disco Biscuits is a big supporter of wind power. He pays his energy company a few extra dollars per month for wind power because he knows it's a better deal in the long run, considering the true cost of our oil economy.

Sometimes a basin is just a basin Personally, we don't see anything unusual about the shape of this Des Moines, Iowa, water detention basin. Nope, not a thing. But apparently, some locals have started saying it looks like -- well, you know. That's bollocks! Photo: Polk County Assessor's Office. It's not that easy being red Say you've got a campaign to win -- would a lime-green eco-bus get you there? Ahnold's betting on it. "You don't see that bus saying, 'Vote for Arnold Schwarzenegger, Republican,'" says the Governator. Ouch. Photo: AP/Paul Sakuma. Book 'em, diver Friday night, about to close …

By the time you read this, I'll be at a comfortable cruising altitude -- and spewing CO2 into the atmosphere at an alarming rate. (Calm down ... I've offset the flight. Thanks, Native Energy!) I'm on my way to the Bonnaroo music festival in Manchester, Tenn., and not for the reasons you think. The four-day, multi-stage festival is cleaning up its act -- like a number of music festivals this year -- and making a real effort to be as green as possible ... no, not that kind of green ... Anyway, I'll be rockin' the scene all weekend: interviewing …

When my husband and I moved back to Montana three years ago, I fantasized about living far from town. We'd settle outside the city boundaries, where the Milky Way sparkles clear as a river and red-tailed hawks bank over bunchgrass meadows. My (imaginary) dogs could run over our five acres, frolicking in the ponderosa pines. That was the plan. But we didn't do it. And it's my father's fault. He kept me on track. Photo: iStockphoto. Before he retired a few years ago, my father spent more than 30 years as an electrical engineer for Bay Area Rapid Transit, the …

Vindication is a strange animal (like unto a marmot, or maybe an echidna) creeping up where one least expects it. Such as the BBC yesterday. A fan, nay, a necessary devotee of natural-fiber clothing (see: Multiple Chemical Sensitivities), I often get flak from fellow outdoorspeople for outdoorsifying in non-synthetics. Especially so on high-altitude peaks in Colorado. But, newsflash, people: natural fibers like wool and silk, when worn correctly in layers, can hold up to just about everything synthetics can, even on Everest.  Or on 14,000-foot peaks in the U.S. Or in the high Sierras. Of course, no material is perfect …