I’ve driven by Sunset Magazine‘s offices in Menlo Park many times, but never considered visiting them. Little did I know that more than 100,000 visitors make the pilgrimage each year to see the buildings and gardens of “The Magazine of Western Living.” I also did not know that the magazine was concieved as a promotion for Southern Pacific Railroad and named after the Sunset Limited train which went from New Orleans to Los Angeles. Its original subtitle was “Publicity for the Attractions and Advantages of the Western Empire” so you can see that the premise of its founding was far away from the current audience of people who already live here and want to know how to keep their (hopefully drought-resistant) plants healthy, correctly cook their nutritious farmer’s market produce, decorate their Craftsman bungalows and ranches, and properly visit the plentiful national parks.