Memphis Democrat
January 12, 2006

Hi everybody! Jenn here, writing my first correspondence column for Dancing Rabbit.

This week started off slow and gloomy, but eventually progressed to something much more comfortable and uplifting. The Winter Blues were really starting to swamp Dancing Rabbit at first. It was cold, cloudy, and generally unpleasant--the common cistern ran dry and needed to be filled with county water, and the string of nearly sunless days forced us to very strictly limit our consumption of electricty in our solar-powered Common House. It proved to be something of an adventure when we slipped into the red zone on Friday, though--we had a wonderful community dinner by candlelight.

The Johnsons also helped to alleviate the frustration many solar-powered Rabbits were feeling by hosting a "Wind Power Party", where they took full advantage of the constant stream of electricity their windmill was pumping. Fortuantely for everyone, the weather by the end of the week was clear, sunny, and very warm--everyone seems to be in a much better mood now that the weather is enabling us to do laundry, check our email, change into cooler clothes, and go for casual walks out on the land.

It would be easy to feel bored this time of year, but I've seen Rabbits coming up with all kinds of creative and interesting things to do to keep themselves occupied. Jennifer hosted two guests--former visitors from last September's visitor program--named Eli and Meredith, and it was enjoyable for all of us to have some extra company around the village. Games have also been a great way for us to connect with eachother and entertain ourselves: Tim, Andrew, Rowan, Ted, and I have been meeting with Chad from Red Earth Farms to play Dungeons and Dragons, a role playing fantasy game, and many Rabbits seem to be enjoying board games and (of course) Ultimate Frisbee.

Several people are also returning right now from winter trips. Amy and Juan came back from their trip at the beginning of the week, Nathan returned late Saturday night from his trip to Texas, and Ron, having finally completed his move from Illinois, has been busy unpacking.

On Saturday, Suzanne, Rowan, Cynder, Toren, Amy, and Tony, along with our friends Gigi and Stan from Sandhill, went to Kahoka to skate at Care Roller Rena and had a great time there. Everyone who went to the skate party very cheerfully recommends it to anyone in the area looking for a place to have a good time.

With the weather finally starting to perk up, I'm feeling great about the new year and looking forward to the weeks ahead in 2006. This upcoming week is full of Process Team workshops and we're starting to prepare for Retreat, scheduled for the end of this month and February. We've got a lot of excitement and growth ahead of us in the next few months and I can't wait to see what's in store for our community.

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