Thursday, June 30, 2011

June 29 Compost toilets and Activism

June 29, 2011
I got an e-mail from Noah today that Trent went home and one from Jamie that Wiley was ok too other than teething. So now that the family at home is OK for now I can get on with the work I am up here to do.
This morning we opened our daily circle with a water trance. The one that I did in Texas in 2000 that lead me to the Reclaiming Tradition, I have done this trance many times and each time it is like the first, it awakens me to the magic I have committed my life to, very powerful.
In our morning session we talked about and discussed designs for gray water systems and black water systems and how to clean water to use on plants and for drinking water. It was very interesting and informative with very practical applications that I am sure I will use in the future as a designer/
After lunch we talked about building a composting toilet and the actually built one for the house since we are having serious problems with the plumbing. But we didn’t just build a composting toilet we build a outhouse with a seat and curtains, a compost bin and a stone path, the little house was a storage shed but we also put a water catchment forhand and bucket washing station. I am totally amazed how much work we can do in just a few hours working together. The composting toilets are very useful in situations where you do not have water or indoor plumbing and after a year of composting it can be used for the garden. Unlike what people think it is safe and odor free when you do it right. Our teacher Brook, bought one from England and spent $1200 on it and it broke in a few months and they went back to using their bucket.
The food has improved and the coffee is running freely. The mood of all the campers has heightened and everyone is happier some one is sing and playing the guitar or banjo, you hear a lot of laughter through out. There are two little boys here and their mother is in our class but they are only with us at night and meals. We have an internet café in one of the up stair rooms, the connection is iffy. For breakfast we had coffee and of course now eggs and cheese! We were all up this morning early and Charles taught a workshop on communication with birds, it was really cool to understand what they were telling you in the woods.
Our evening session was on activism and how to organize a campaign. Of course it is an activism workshop and I am with Starhawk. I have been working on the fringe of activism for many years but this is the first time I have ever actually had training in how it is constructed. Using the concepts and applying them to permaculture principles and improving the quality of life for people is so very important. There are a lot of activist here that are currently working on huge projects and some on an international scale. I feel very passionate about the work we are doing and how we are taking this out into the world. .

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