The latest release of rush sports a handful of convenience methods on the top-level module for local access:
Rush['/etc/hosts'].read # read from an arbitrary file path
Rush.processes.size # number of local processes
Rush.my_process.mem # memory use of the current process
Rush.launch_dir # equivalent of Dir.pwd
Rush.bash "rake -T" # like backticks, but throws exception on error
In practice, I’ve found rush to be more useful for manipulating a local machine (files, processes) than a remote one, so these additions reflects a subtle shift in the emphasis of the library.
As always, “gem install rush” to grab the latest stable version, or go bleeding edge.