so today we had our first day of class! it was "applied sustainability" and went from 9:15 to 12:15 and 2:15 to 5:15. which was an EXHAUSTING day, since i have gotten used to being lazy and taking a lot of tea breaks. it was a pretty normal 'intro' class. we watched a movie (that i've already seen) about a small mountain town (Ladakh) in India near Tibet. it showed how 'modernization' destroyed the community's way of life. The town became 'modernized' so fast that it was easy to 'draw the line' between the causes and effects of such a change. The movie was called 'learning from ladakh'. We also went over the sylabus and discussed a research paper that will be 33% of our grade.
I'm very excited to write the paper. I'm going to write mine about food security. What makes it so interesting is that we have to write the paper as if if is an 'energy descent' plan; or how to wean ourselves off fossil fuels (down to 50% of what we are using now). I decided to write about food security at an individual level; as opposed to a city level or village level. Every man for themself! (but not really, because that's mean!)
A few days ago my roommates decided that they really wanted cookies, however we don't have flour or sugar in our house. they decided that if they mixed together a little bit of everything in our kitchen and baked it, then somehow, cookies would magically come out of the oven! They ended up mixing muesli cereal (oat flakes, chopped dates, raisins, sunflower seeds & almonds), a cut up apple, two mushy bananas, candy coated hershey kisses, eggs, cornflakes, milk, and cocoa powder. when they came out of the oven, they smelled exactly like a wet dog! We named them dog bars. (needless to say, they were not a hit) however, i did post a few pictures of the process at www.webshots.com/user/findascot
being here is exposing me to all of these wonderful ideas like permaculture, sustainable energy, alternative building.....there are so many things i want to learn and not enough time!
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Sunday, February 25, 2007
a sleepy sunday
so today i slept in until 11:00. (i've been getting up at 9) then showered, went to brunch and went BACK TO BED for a 1.5 hour nap. it was glorious. i met with my contact person Mo (short for Maureen) today. i brought 2 friends, seth and nicole. Mo baked us a date & cherry cake, which was delicious. she has traveled everywhere and is still very active for a 71 year old. she was telling us how she is against genetically modified crops/organisms (GMO's) and how she joins in protests against them and digs up fields of GMO crops with a bunch of other people in the middle of the night. crazy. she is a firm believer in working with the system for change instead of being angry and trying to oppose it (despite that previous GMO example) and referenced Joanna Macy quite a bit. (someone i will have to look into) Mo was also pretty into the Maya calander and the 'world is going to end in 2012' belief. you can't put stock in everything people say. still she was a very sweet woman and i am going to visit her next sunday for some tea and to do some weeding for her in her garden.
after that, was dinner. (dairy free mashed potatoes, cooked carrots, brussel sprouts and tofu slabs that somehow tasted really good) then most of our group watched a movie called 'waking life' it was amazing. if i tried to explain it, i wouldn't be doing it justice, but the following is copied word for word from the wikipedia entry on the movie:
"In a broad scope, Waking Life is about a young man in a persistent lucid dream-like state. The film follows its protagonist as he initially observes and later participates in philosophical discussions that weave together issues like appearance and reality, free will, our relationships with others, and the meaning of life. Along the way the film touches on other topics including existentialism, posthumanism, and the film theory of André Bazin. The young man eventually comes to the realization that he is dreaming and that he is unable to wake up. By the end of the film, he fears that he might be dead."
it definitely gave me a lot to think about. anyway, classes start tomorrow at 9:15 (!!) so happy dreams to all!
after that, was dinner. (dairy free mashed potatoes, cooked carrots, brussel sprouts and tofu slabs that somehow tasted really good) then most of our group watched a movie called 'waking life' it was amazing. if i tried to explain it, i wouldn't be doing it justice, but the following is copied word for word from the wikipedia entry on the movie:
"In a broad scope, Waking Life is about a young man in a persistent lucid dream-like state. The film follows its protagonist as he initially observes and later participates in philosophical discussions that weave together issues like appearance and reality, free will, our relationships with others, and the meaning of life. Along the way the film touches on other topics including existentialism, posthumanism, and the film theory of André Bazin. The young man eventually comes to the realization that he is dreaming and that he is unable to wake up. By the end of the film, he fears that he might be dead."
it definitely gave me a lot to think about. anyway, classes start tomorrow at 9:15 (!!) so happy dreams to all!
Friday, February 23, 2007
hum de dum
so yesterday was pretty chill.
there was optional yoga at 8 am (which i obviously didn't attend).
(i slept until 10)
then lunch at 12:30 followed by all 18 of us working on group agreements. it was a long, drawn out process involving facilitators. for a while it seemed like every word we tried to have as an agreement like "open and direct communication" had to be clarified. BUT we had consensus on about half of our agreements and will finish the process today. Most of the group got together independently after dinner for a dance party, which was pretty amazing. We learned how to salsa the other day, so we were all busting pretty sweet moves. it was a lot of fun. i have pictures up now at www.webshots.com/user/findascot
we also got to meet 3 out of our 4 professors. they all introduced themselves and gave us some background information about who they ar and how they ended up here. they all seemed pretty down to earth. one of them is raising a family at findhorn and has 2 kids. she lives in a 'straw bale' house and invited us all over. i went for a long walk today down the beach to findhorn village. there wasn't much there! it consisted of 2 pubs, a small general store, and one relatively expensive cafe. this might turn out to be a LOOOONG three months! i had my first (and only) scottish beer last night; belhaven best. and it was good. since today is saturday we had the whole day free and i spent most of it watching a movie on the couch with 2 friends and eventually we all fell asleep until dinner time. not much has changed! anyway, i have some reading to get done before classes start on monday so i am going to do some of that! i love you all!
there was optional yoga at 8 am (which i obviously didn't attend).
(i slept until 10)
then lunch at 12:30 followed by all 18 of us working on group agreements. it was a long, drawn out process involving facilitators. for a while it seemed like every word we tried to have as an agreement like "open and direct communication" had to be clarified. BUT we had consensus on about half of our agreements and will finish the process today. Most of the group got together independently after dinner for a dance party, which was pretty amazing. We learned how to salsa the other day, so we were all busting pretty sweet moves. it was a lot of fun. i have pictures up now at www.webshots.com/user/findascot
we also got to meet 3 out of our 4 professors. they all introduced themselves and gave us some background information about who they ar and how they ended up here. they all seemed pretty down to earth. one of them is raising a family at findhorn and has 2 kids. she lives in a 'straw bale' house and invited us all over. i went for a long walk today down the beach to findhorn village. there wasn't much there! it consisted of 2 pubs, a small general store, and one relatively expensive cafe. this might turn out to be a LOOOONG three months! i had my first (and only) scottish beer last night; belhaven best. and it was good. since today is saturday we had the whole day free and i spent most of it watching a movie on the couch with 2 friends and eventually we all fell asleep until dinner time. not much has changed! anyway, i have some reading to get done before classes start on monday so i am going to do some of that! i love you all!
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
the future
dear everyone:
the following link will bring you to an article that is the future.
invest your money in it.
http://www.popsci.com/popsci/science/873aae7bf86c0110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html
cheers!
the following link will bring you to an article that is the future.
invest your money in it.
http://www.popsci.com/popsci/science/873aae7bf86c0110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html
cheers!
HELLO EVERYONE!
Hi everyone!
I'm sorry for the two day hiatus. we had to have the tech people here check our computers for viruses and just got them back late last night. yesterday we woke up bright and early (well, 8 am anyway) and we went on a field trip to the findhorn river. it reminded me a lot of the mayville gorge! it was very beautiful and there were pretty strong rapids along with places to cliff jump. two people in my group actually jumped, despite how cold the water was. later that day a new group member joined us, bringing the total up to 18 people. she transferred here from the eco-village program in india. we had a 'house meeting' with all 6 of us to discuss rules and house etiquette and also to share a little about ourselves so that the newcomer, caitlin would know us. this meeting lasted a long time, probably 2 hours and nobody noticed because we were all enjoying ourselves. everyone in my house gets along really well which is pretty awesome. this morning I WAS ARTISTIC! i went to the pottery bungalow and i made a mug! granted it took a few tries, but its drying now and i will glaze it later this week. i should probably mention that it wasn't made on a wheel as that would take true artistic talent, something of which aunt sue has been blessed with while i struggled to make a pinch pot! :) HOWEVER, i really enjoyed it and it was a good time. today we also helped out the maintenance department by demolishing caravans (trailers) that had been around for 40 years and were no longer environmentally friendly. i got to use power tools and a crowbar! it was pretty awesome. i PROMISE that by monday there will be pictures online!
i had a long conversation with a few people in my group about how i wanted to eventually live off the grid. the more that i thought about or discussed it the more impossible it became. first i would need money to buy enough land to build a house or yurt on and also land to grow enough food to support myself with. then i would need a lot of money to put in solar panels (or wind turbines), a composting toilet, properly insulate it, and generally make it energy efficient. and LASTLY, i would have to be living in an area where i would walk or bike to work (since as of now having a car and being off the grid is impossible) and have a job that would provide enough money for a lifestyle like that.
it was very discouraging.
however, i talked to my roommate charlotte and she helped me realize that 'quarantinig' myself from society is a very selfish thing to do. instead of just taking care of myself, i should be teaching people about what i believe and helping them to become more sustainable. and that made a lot of sense to me.
so once more, all is right with the world. anyway, i need to get ready for dinner as it is 5:36 here.
Jen, aunt sue, uncle cam, and brett; thank you so much for your comments, it's nice to know that people are thinking of me back home!
I'm sorry for the two day hiatus. we had to have the tech people here check our computers for viruses and just got them back late last night. yesterday we woke up bright and early (well, 8 am anyway) and we went on a field trip to the findhorn river. it reminded me a lot of the mayville gorge! it was very beautiful and there were pretty strong rapids along with places to cliff jump. two people in my group actually jumped, despite how cold the water was. later that day a new group member joined us, bringing the total up to 18 people. she transferred here from the eco-village program in india. we had a 'house meeting' with all 6 of us to discuss rules and house etiquette and also to share a little about ourselves so that the newcomer, caitlin would know us. this meeting lasted a long time, probably 2 hours and nobody noticed because we were all enjoying ourselves. everyone in my house gets along really well which is pretty awesome. this morning I WAS ARTISTIC! i went to the pottery bungalow and i made a mug! granted it took a few tries, but its drying now and i will glaze it later this week. i should probably mention that it wasn't made on a wheel as that would take true artistic talent, something of which aunt sue has been blessed with while i struggled to make a pinch pot! :) HOWEVER, i really enjoyed it and it was a good time. today we also helped out the maintenance department by demolishing caravans (trailers) that had been around for 40 years and were no longer environmentally friendly. i got to use power tools and a crowbar! it was pretty awesome. i PROMISE that by monday there will be pictures online!
i had a long conversation with a few people in my group about how i wanted to eventually live off the grid. the more that i thought about or discussed it the more impossible it became. first i would need money to buy enough land to build a house or yurt on and also land to grow enough food to support myself with. then i would need a lot of money to put in solar panels (or wind turbines), a composting toilet, properly insulate it, and generally make it energy efficient. and LASTLY, i would have to be living in an area where i would walk or bike to work (since as of now having a car and being off the grid is impossible) and have a job that would provide enough money for a lifestyle like that.
it was very discouraging.
however, i talked to my roommate charlotte and she helped me realize that 'quarantinig' myself from society is a very selfish thing to do. instead of just taking care of myself, i should be teaching people about what i believe and helping them to become more sustainable. and that made a lot of sense to me.
so once more, all is right with the world. anyway, i need to get ready for dinner as it is 5:36 here.
Jen, aunt sue, uncle cam, and brett; thank you so much for your comments, it's nice to know that people are thinking of me back home!
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Second Day Post
So i am here. in scotland. it always felt so far away.
to make a long story short, this is where i am and what i'm doing: http://www.livingroutes.org/programs/p_findhorn.htm
i LOVE IT. i was a little unsure at first, there are so many creative people who really dig the meditation, art, and yoga aspect of spirituality but i'm not creative AT all. it's been really challenging so far to open myself up to a group and to constantly share my feelings and to be receptive to other people like that. but i've been holding my own. we started this morning with a series of sacred dances. it was a lot like contra dancing and was actually a lot of fun. it was a nice way to wake up. then we all checked in with the group, which means discussing how you're feeling. we picked cards that had different traits on them with pictures of anglels and meditated for a while about why we had chosen that specific card and shared it with the group. this is a whole new experience for me and kind of draining to be honest.
The food and life here are so interesting. I've been eating a vegan diet (by choice, the community as a whole is vegetarian) and it has actually been quite delicious. we had a polenta dish with corn and tomatoes in it, with beans and kale on the side for dinner tonight. there is tea with every meal and during every group session we always have tea breaks. everyone here is super nice and go around smiling and talking to us and are actually genuinely interested about who we are and what we do. the program hooks us up with with someone who lives in the community called our 'contact' and their purpose is to serve as a mentor. my lady's name is 'mov' and she is a very old lady with a cane who has dyed her hair fire engine red and has lived in Findhorn for 16 years. we're going to have a tea date later where i can see her house and then she's going to drive me downtown for an adventure. (as i have not yet been out of findhorn) she seems very cool.
i am not very good at blogging, use no puncuation, and don't know what to write. for that i apologize. but this sure beats sending out the same emails a hundred times. comment if you want to know specifics!
much love from scotland!
to make a long story short, this is where i am and what i'm doing: http://www.livingroutes.org/programs/p_findhorn.htm
i LOVE IT. i was a little unsure at first, there are so many creative people who really dig the meditation, art, and yoga aspect of spirituality but i'm not creative AT all. it's been really challenging so far to open myself up to a group and to constantly share my feelings and to be receptive to other people like that. but i've been holding my own. we started this morning with a series of sacred dances. it was a lot like contra dancing and was actually a lot of fun. it was a nice way to wake up. then we all checked in with the group, which means discussing how you're feeling. we picked cards that had different traits on them with pictures of anglels and meditated for a while about why we had chosen that specific card and shared it with the group. this is a whole new experience for me and kind of draining to be honest.
The food and life here are so interesting. I've been eating a vegan diet (by choice, the community as a whole is vegetarian) and it has actually been quite delicious. we had a polenta dish with corn and tomatoes in it, with beans and kale on the side for dinner tonight. there is tea with every meal and during every group session we always have tea breaks. everyone here is super nice and go around smiling and talking to us and are actually genuinely interested about who we are and what we do. the program hooks us up with with someone who lives in the community called our 'contact' and their purpose is to serve as a mentor. my lady's name is 'mov' and she is a very old lady with a cane who has dyed her hair fire engine red and has lived in Findhorn for 16 years. we're going to have a tea date later where i can see her house and then she's going to drive me downtown for an adventure. (as i have not yet been out of findhorn) she seems very cool.
i am not very good at blogging, use no puncuation, and don't know what to write. for that i apologize. but this sure beats sending out the same emails a hundred times. comment if you want to know specifics!
much love from scotland!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
