July 4th Cob making and Building of an oven

July 4, 2011
It was a workday for us, we made Cob all day morning and afternoon. American and Canadians singing, stomping and dancing side by side. Lots of political discussions and agreements. It was a hot sunny day and we were muddy and smelly most all day long. This consisted of mixing sand and clay and water to a ratio 2:3 then mixing by rolling it in tarps then stomping it with our feet. This was extremely labor intense….mean while there is another group building. They started with a stone structure that was filled in with slate and gravel to keep it from sliding, which did not seem to stop it. All I can say is that I am glad I was in the stomp and mix cob making process most of the day. When we would finish a batch I would go look at the builders and then go back to making cob. Despite Starhawk’s diligent staying power which amazed us all they had one problem after another. But we forget how her ability to withstand hours and even days of activist protest and stressful situations makes her who she is. I could just imagine what it would be like to be on a major campaign with her, after building cob with her. I have a whole nother level of respect for her. We did not finish the cob oven and hopefully we will before we leave, providing we do not have rain and it dries enough to complete it with out it sliding off the foundation. Normally you only build a foot a day in cob structures to allow each layer to dry. We made plenty of extra cob and covered it so we can continue to work on it over the next few days.
During lunch I went into town with Marilyn and we stocked up on chocolate and cheese for the gang. I shared cookies with the class during our evening session and stocked up on cheese in the frig. People have finely gotten their rides out of here straight and I am leaving on Sunday with a young woman who’s also a work trader. I wanted to make sure I fulfilled my obligation here and had a ride out of here back to Montreal or to catch a bus which is 1 ½ hour away then 3 hours back to Montreal. It is a little uncomfortable knowing how isolated we are from major transportation when most of us have planes or trains to catch. I will be going to either Sherbrook to catch the bus or with Shabina’s parents closer to Montreal where the bus is only $12 then I will go into Montreal to spend a day with my French roommate Louise. I are going to work in her garden and meet her family.

Our evening session was about Urban Permaculture and we watched movies and slide shown of how people apply permaculture in the city and are growing their own food in small community plots and in front yard gardens. This work is so amazing as it changes cultures of the people that work it and how land can be transformed into usefully food plots with something as simple as cardboard, compost and mulch. It gives you hope that with a little skill people could survive and feed themselves.
We were all exhausted and a little sore from a hard days work and people are ready to start wrapping up their projects and thinking of family and home. But the laughter is beautiful and the work is hard. The two little boys run naked through the barn and we are all taking our turns out in our composting outhouse, which has a beautiful view of the rising sun, if your up that early. I have accomplished a huge hill on my morning run and it feel great. But we still have projects and a few days to go.

July 3 Forest Day

Happy 4th of July!! I miss not being home with family and most of all could really could sink my teeth into some ribs!

July 3, 2011
Most everyone slept late since we were all either watching Lord of the Rings or hanging out in the hot tub that they just got going yesterday. We spent thee entire morning in the woods looking at plants and trees it was our forest day. Edible forest, herbs and mushrooms. We walked to the sugar mill and talked a lot about how sugar maple was collected and processed. I felt a little lost in the plant identification but was very interested since I have either heard of or used many of the plants at some time or the other. I enjoyed walking as a group through the woods but also enjoy just being a lone to listen to the birds and feel the energy of the land. We saw some interesting birds and a chipmunk in a tree, there must have been some nuts or berries they were both eating. Lots of wild strawberries that are delicious.
At lunch there was what started as a private conversation about our host, turned into some serious conversations of concern through out our group. Just before lunch she told us we were eating too much, that someone took food out of the kitchen and we needed to mind our sugar and salt intake because it indicates emotional eating. (WHAT???) We all feel we are being given very little food and asked for more food to graze on, it has not been provided. Then one of the students told me that she told her to get out of her kitchen twice, since her bedroom is behind the kitchen she must go through the kitchen to get outside. Strange vibes with that one, and I can honestly say that I have never had an issue with a host or a host site in all the years I have done workshops and camps. I think this is her issue of control, but we are here to learn about permaculture not to be psychoanalyzed or for treatment of addiction or emotional disorders. First off it is our food since we paid for the workshop and we are not eating on the top of the food budget by no means. And almost have to beg for eggs, cheese and meat which we have only had once. For me I am really tired of beans and hard flat bread.
After lunch it rained and was cold. We spent the entire day outside. We finished our aquapontics system and dug trees and replanted them on the roadside of the field for wind breaks. It was muddy and wet. I did a few slip and slides but met my challenge when we trekked through the woods and across a rotten bridge to dig trees in a high meadow. There are no snakes here but if there were I would have met one or two today, it was dangerous. I was tired of being cold and wet before we were done.
The evening session was all about natural buildings. A lot of slides about Cob. Which is a kind of adobe building with clay sand and straw. We have been talking about it all week and have the makings here. So tomorrow we are building a cob oven. I am very interested in these building options, some are made of hay or straw bails with cob on the outside. We saw photos of buildings that were hundreds of years old. I don’t know why it feels so unusual other than I am just not exposed to it as much as bamboo or palm from structures form our local area. It seems cob is used everywhere but most popular in the colder climates but doesn’t work well as thermal mass. I will find out.
　

Photos

 Kim Butterfly New Moon Ritual

 I do not speak French!

 Wild flowers Oh.......

 Creek and beaver dam

Spiral Herb garden built July 1

July 2 Day OFF trip to town and walk in the woods

July 2, 2011
Our day off and well needed and deserved. I did not go to the crystal mines with Iris and the boys. Everyone was running late, I fed the boys breakfast because she was camping outside and they were hungry. Everyone was sleeping in. Iris looked up the mine and it was going to be at least two hours drive and she was dealing with the boys and they wanted to go swimming. I just wanted to go to the market. So I ended up riding with Dawn, our host and a few others. We had a good time in town. For a little while I walked the streets alone and talking to people, the town is on the US border and several people speak English but most did not and I found my way around and was able to find what I wanted and needed. I bought a silk and linen scarf since everyone here wears them for $9. I bought some chocolate and picked up an ace bandage for one of the campers that hurt his foot and a French magazine about flowers. We had lunch at the Passion Chocolate Cafe which was very good and had French ice cream and coffee. Then I sat on a bench near the street and took photos of the town and motorcycles since there seemed to be some kind of rally going on. In Canada this is a holiday weekend too but July 1^st is Canada day and according to Louise, it is the day to move from one house to another. She said in Quebec the moving vans line up on the streets and move house after house and it is a good time to find furniture, hope you don’t find bed bugs.
We came back to the farm and I had a nice walk through the woods. I hiked a logging trail and saw prints of wolf or coyote and moose, but did not see any animals. I followed an animal trail through the woods and sat by a small stream listening. The flies were very bad but not biting just buzzing and irritating. I took a lot of photos and found some crystals, some I left for the Faery, others I gave away, I will find what I need for myself later but not today. I went back to the barn and took a shower and a nap did some housekeeping and we had movie night watching the Two Towers, Lord of the Ring and aat popcorn. So that was the perfect way to wrap up a nice day off.

July 1 New Moon

July 1, 2011
Today was a little different than the last few days. We are half way through the course and we have covered a lot of material and did a lot of improvements on the land. Today the reason we were all here started to come together, or at least if did for me. I had some major Ah Ha moments today.
I slept late because we were up so late last night and I was cold. At 6:30 I crawled out of bed and dressed for my run went to the house When I can outside it was raining, justb that fast. And that just set the mood for the day. I felt a little lazy anyway.
Our morning session started out with cover crops, green manure, living mulch. Then went into food crops, forest gardens and guilds or groups/companion planting. This is where I just started my own brain storming for what I wanted to do in Florida. Since we were talking about a whole different kind of crops and growing conditions. As a permaculture designer using the principles that I am learning and adapting them to my area is going to really make a difference. I need to apply my specific knowledge and skills as a gardener in my local area and be creative.
Then we talked about farm animals. Did you know that pig hate rattle snakes? Or should I say love to kill and eat them. I was interested in grazing habits of mostly farm animals and some wild animals. And management of grazing pasture land which I hope to try in the future on our land for the horses.
After lunch Dawn the farm owner talked about this land and the crystals that are on the land. According to her this land was a meeting place for the natives Indians, there were four different tribes that would come here because they were called. She talked a lot about her connections to the tribal elders and the work she did with other natives here including sweat lodges and hosting of gatherings. She also talked of others in a negative way that had owned the land and what the buildings had been used for, it was a retreat or treatment center for people with mental issues that needed therapy. And that explains a lot of the energy we were all feeling and dealing with when we arrived. She actually said, "people come here feeling distress and leave here shiny and polished" but I was not distressed till I got here and we are the ones doing the shining with our work and magic.
We chose our master projects, which means that five small groups will survey, plan and design in specific areas on the farm for future use and development. Our group will interview, draw up the permaculture design plans with detail for use and application and summit to our client (and the class) in a 30 minute presentation next week. That will be our final, we do not have to do the work, just the design.
But the rest of the day was all about RITUAL! YES! New Moon! We co-created a beautiful ritual. Our intent: Transforming our despair into rooted action. See… I told you we were not the only ones feeling the energy on this land, and I thought it was my coffee addiction I was dealing with….
I called in Gaia, needing some Divine intervention We did a brief tour through the property. Starting at the driveway where we all arrived on Saturday, remembering how we felt. Then walked through our completed projects. We could all feel a difference in the energy. We sat in a rock pile and chose a rock to dump our despair into. And went back to the barn area where we built a herb spiral with the rocks.

At dinner we talked about important issues in our lives. Our table including Starhawk was talking about Mothering and several women talked about not being able to have children, including Starhawk. I took that moment to tell Starhawk how I much appreciated how she had mothered so people and many things in her life. That her work had changed my life and many people, through her courage, creativity and inspiration. Kim Butterfly also expressed her feelings with Star. It was a beautiful moment for me to have the chance to tell her this because I have always wanted to.
We closed our ritual after dinner, writing our intentions for transformation on a piece of paper and putting it into a closed metal can where we made Bio-char. A type of charcoal made from Organic Matter that changes the structure of soil, actually an easy process with the right tools. We closed with a beautiful chant as we planted the spiral with herb.
Tomorrow is our day off!! I am going to town with Iris a beautiful French woman and her two young sons. We are planning to go to the market and the crystal mine!!

As I was about to post this Noah sent me an e-mail that our neighbor Serene Collins was hit by a car and killed. David her husband is a lawyer in Monticello and she was crossing the street near their office, the man that hit her was a rival of Davids. Please send healing prayers to her family.
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photos

June 30 Soil, more compost and hands on the land

June 30, 2011
Today is Soil Day working with Earth. We did the Earth Trance today that is in the book The Earth Path and it was powerful. We will not be doing trances everyday but I love it when we do. I did some tance tending since some of the younger students have not had the type of intense trance experiences I have and they appreciated a chance to process the power of Starhawk’s magic. I thought it was a little interesting that the teachers left the room right after the trance but sensed there was a need to stay.
This morning we talked about soil from the biological creation of the earth to the make make up and the components, sorta like a biology class but much more interesting. Then we started talking about composting and different ways to break it down and the many kinds of compost and its components. We also talked about vermaculture, worm bins and I got to share my experiences with that. Starhawk gave us the basic of bio-remediation, which is breaking down chemicals contamination in soil from household products to radiation.
Our afternoon session started with distributing our biobrew on to plants that will be planted in our new gardens. Building an aquaponic system for plants and fish, which we did not finish. And building self watering Earth Box style planter out of 5 gallon buckets. Then we weeded the spiral garden, built another one beside the old one with cardboard sheet mulching, cleared an area for a third, made a compost pile in the center, hauled many wheel barrels of horse manure up the hill. And then we made an area for the hammock, the most desired and loved permaculture tool.
The weather today was cold rainy and wet but it never really rained. It was a good day for physical labor. I am on Potty Patrol and we shut down the second of four today. Before we are done I am sure we will be totally on compost toilets. There is only one real toilet in the house the others are camper or RV toilets and the flappers are broken, several removed and that is what is causing the stink. With this group we will all be much better with composters. Eggs for breakfast and happy campers and if we are really good we might get salmon for dinner one night this week. We are all talking about what we want to do on or day off on Saturday. Louise has asked me to go to the market in town with her if we can find a way to get there. That really bothers all of us here. There are only a few vehicles and more than 20 people, we are very dependent on others to take us or provide for us, it is not a comfortable feeling, but one that is important to validate. It also has made us concerned that we need to leave this place in a week. How are we going to get to point A or to connect up with point B. I am seriously considering leaving and going to Montreal with Louis, instead of staying for the three days after the workshop. Because I am afraid I will not be able to make my flight if I stay and get stranded here. I feel obligated because I agreed to stay a few days but I am not comfortable with staying either. We will see how this works out..
Our evening session was about meeting structure in consensus. Now this is a subject I have a lot of knowledge and experience in but we had a great time role playing and laughing. We were really a silly toxic group and laughed so much class went to till after 10 pm. But it was part of our community building work too and in permaculture we are building a community here, even though it is only for a few weeks, we still use the same components and structure. Starhawk just finished her book in community building and it will be out in the fall and she has a lot of experience as an activist on doing this with people with a cause and action, even under the most extreme situations. It was a good day.