Community Living

Comment

Comment by Beth Andrews on May 10, 2012 at 11:16pm

Hey all,

I'm new to TW, as well as to the B'ham community.  I just started at WWU this quarter, and am currently living on Camano Island where I have super affordable rent in my mom's basement apartment with my two children.  This quarter I managed to schedule my classes for only two days a week, and am carpooling, resulting in a once a week drive, which is tolerable, but not ideal. I'm sure i'll be hard-pressed to maintain such a schedule for future quarters..and I have two years left before completing my BA.  My kids go to school on Camano, so I jet strait from class back home to get them, and I am too far away to really get involved in either community as I'd like to..

 

I am contemplating a move to Bellingham, and would seriously love it.  I, however, am a single mom, with two kids, full time student, and no job in the area...and all rent will be paid from taking out larger student loans, which is an unsettling prospect.

 

This looks like a good place to network with like-minded community members to get the word out, if anybody knows of any super affordable rental situations that could squeeze in a modest mamma and her two kids in some accordian style fashion..above garage, basement apt, Mother-in-law, duplex, condo, whatever.  I am down for work/gardening/painting style projects for rent trade...Just need a place to get my feet on the ground in a new town in as seemless a way as possible, with as little stress and anxiety to the two kiddos.  If anybody knows of anything that might fit the bill, or has any leads, please feel free to comment! Thanks alot for your time, and I hope to get to know some of you in the future! Looks to me good people!

Beth

Comment by Cindi Landreth on March 7, 2012 at 12:33pm

Hello People

I subscribe to Diana Leafe Christian's Ecovillage newsletter and found this decision making process embedded.  I thought some of you might be interested.  

Systemic Consensus —

Fast, Visual, and Hard to Argue With

In July, 2011, I attended the annual meeting of the ecovillage network of Austria, held at Gänserndorf Cohousing near Vienna. There I participated in a decision-making method called Systemic Consensus (Systemisches Konsensieren in German), developed by two professors at the University of Graz in Austria.

       In Systemic Consensus the group develops and discusses proposal just as in the regular consensus process. All group members discuss the proposal and modify it and improve it as they wish. When it comes time to make the decision, however, they don't use the three options of "support the proposal," "stand aside," or "block." Instead, each group member expresses his or her amount of resistance to the proposal through a point scale of 0 to 10. Apparently this method works very well and people like it! Read more.

http://www.DianaLeafeChristian.org

http://www.EcovillageNews.org

http://www.Earthaven.org 

Comment by Jamie Jedinak on August 27, 2011 at 11:46am

 

~ 1 Bedroom upstairs Apartment in older home for RENT in Columbia neighborhood ~ $650 includes utilities

 

~ SEEKING gardener for 1/2 acre of "A little country in the city" 

Permaculture skills A Plus!!  shared, rotational Lawn mowing required and plenty of bed space - It could be a couple's shared space for the right cozy couple. 

756-9919 for downstairs tenants ~ Jamie and Matt

224-2223 for Landowners ~ Larry and Sue

 

Available Sept 1st

Comment by Behrouz on August 24, 2011 at 6:37am

I wish there was more activity on this front.  After all there is more efficiency / less waste when people share in close proximity (as long as they share the same lifestyle of course).  I believe cooperative living and work is by necessity at the heart of our evolving economics.  It is hard to really share effectively when we are disconnected in space - unless we are talking about virtual space! lol.  And sharing (including a sharing economic system) is the key to our survival as a species.

 

The tasks at hand are immense.  Individually we cannot even come close to becoming realistically independent and self-reliant.  Think of the waste / energy inefficiency /pollution /environmental destruction / myriad of mental illnesses and personality disorders / conflicts , legal battles, and wars / crime and predation by anonymous entities on the vulnerable / etc. etc.  The money / commodity economy can fool you to believe that (of course as long as you are profitable for it e.g., have a middle-level or higher job position or pension or other source of income) you have a choice without realizing the true cost of this individualistic lifestyle.  Where is the security in that anyway, in this economy?  What happens when you lose your job, or get sick with no "insurance", or your "loved ones" leave you, or struck by some other disaster?  It tells me we don't have enough people yet who feel threatened and are in this out of necessity rather than choice.  Well by the time that necessity strikes some here it may be too late.  We are all vulnerable.  Make it easier.  Think of yourselves as the future unemployed and dispossessed.  Our consciousness needs to catch up with the disasterous reality of our time.  

 

Let's learn to share especially in our living spaces as an example of understanding our true insurance (each other), expression of our common interests and goals, cohesion, willingness to work more effectively to achieve our true realistic individual potential as a species on a global scale (rather than one individual superachieving at the cost of thousands or millions perishing - i.e., the current economic system paradigm).

Comment by Alan Seid on May 9, 2011 at 1:37pm

The info below was sent to me by Craig Ragland of Songaia Cohousing and the Northwest Intentional Communities Association (NICA). I post it here as an FYI.

cheers!
~Alan

-----------

There are two community seminars being offered next week on Friday,
May 13th and Sunday, May 15th. You'll find info on each after the
description...

Building Gift Community: We Need Each Other
---experiential seminar, enjoy a taste of gift culture---

Imagine “your” community:  Living in your own home, easy travel
distance apart, a tribe of men and women, safely intimate and
committed to each other. In these times of rapid change you’ve claimed
your place and this family of choice. Together you’ve created safety
nets of bonded connection, as you support each other’s action in the
world to literally reinvent the new Gift Culture.

Seminar Intention:
Vision a possibility of the community you want.
Explore the values, commitments and structures needed.
Consider membership, who decides, how and when.
Learn how men and women can be together in a safe way.
Experience the emerging Gift Culture.
We will reference our own community experience and new book: We Need
Each Other: Building Gift Community
with 52 chapters of powerful context and “How-To” specifics.
Visit our website: http://www.weneedeachother.net/

Bill Kauth:  Since 1984 Bill has co-founded the New Warrior Training
Adventure of the ManKind Project, Inner King and Warrior-Monk
Trainings. Author: Circle of Men published in 1992.  His new book We
Need Each Other is co-authored with his wife Zoe Alowan.  Zoe has been
deeply engaged in sacred art for decades. As painter, sculptor,
dancer, songstress, storyteller her work in women’s circles reclaims
beauty and wisdom.  She facilitates with humor, co-honoring the Divine
Feminine and Divine Masculine.

Gift Community seminar in Bellingham
Date:  Friday, May 13th - Time:  7:00 – 9:30
Place:  Bellingham Cohousing, 2614 Donavon Ave. (park on the street)
Cost:  We will invite a contribution

Gift Community seminar in Marysville
Date: Sunday, May 15 - Time: 12:30 - 3:30pm
Place: Evergreen Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 1607 Fourth St.,
Marysville WA.
Cost:  We will invite a contribution

Comment by Laura J Sellens on January 10, 2011 at 9:06pm

Hi all,

I'm wondering if we can have a meeting?

Comment by Rhys Faler on August 18, 2010 at 2:06pm

Sounds like a great event. I suggest the Community Living meeting be a quick one that lasts from 5:30p - 6:30p. I feel that we just need to check in and see where we are. The Outback event will be a sweet place to go after the meeting!

Comment by Heather K on August 18, 2010 at 2:01pm

I'll miss seeing you all! I'll be upstream for the Outback Farms Earth Folks Festival at the new Amplitheatre with Loveage playing that was posted on TW a while back - potluck at 4 and music & permi speakers to follow.
http://transitionwhatcom.ning.com/events/outback-amphlitheatre-earth
Hope you come on up after the meeting.

Comment by Laura J Sellens on August 18, 2010 at 9:47am

Thanks, see you then!

Comment by Rhys Faler on August 18, 2010 at 1:28am

I confirmed with Bellingham Cohousing that we will be able to meet in their common house for our Thursday, August 19th meeting at 5:30pm. Bicyclists have lots of parking options, but there are only 4 guest parking spaces in the community, so I recommend just parking along Donovan Avenue, there are many good and safe spots to use. For directions, please follow this link: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=&daddr...

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