Buildings, buildings everywhere! Construction seems to account for about half of the goings-on at DR these days. The other half? Food processing. Jillian, the Cattail food co-op intern, has been leading canning crews like a mad-woman in order to try to keep up with the bountiful harvest coming out of Don's Long Branch gardens this fall. We're going to have plenty of apples, tomatoes, peppers, sauerkraut, and many other yummy foods to eat this winter.
Back to the buildings: there are currently four buildings under construction that are slated to house people this winter. The Skyhouse folks plan to have almost all of the six bedrooms in their house finished. Two of the bedrooms are already finished, and work is humming along on three more. New Skyhouse features include: a stairway to heaven (well, the second floor anyway), an enclosed battery room for the solar system batteries, a fully plastered exterior, and no tarps over the windows.
The Wright-Odoms have the frame, floor, and roof of their long-term-temporary cabin up. They'll live in this structure for a few years until they build a larger "permanent" house, and then use the current structure as a workshop/store/office/bakery/something-or-other. They're really excited about living in something a bit larger and more comfortable than the outdoor kitchen this winter.
Gare and Don are cranking away converting the large grain bin behind the machine shed into a two-story one-room-apartment complex. They've put straw bales up as walls inside the metal structure so as to insulate it, which leaves each floor as a single fifteen-foot-diameter circle. The downstairs apartment (Don's) is mostly finished except for trim around the door and windows, and the upstairs apartment is getting its first coat of plaster at the time of this writing. It's pretty cool to see this crazy little house being made out of a plain old grain bin.
Penn and Andra have gotten the walls up on their one-room straw bale cabin, and work has started on the roof. By the time you're reading this, the roof should be finished on their building.
It seems that every weekend has seen some special event. First, it was the Rutledge Fall Festival. DR people took a part in helping organize this day-long extravaganza, which temporarily triples the population of Rutledge, MO every September. Soon after, our friends and neighbors at Sandhill hosted their first annual Sorghum Festival, with food, music, tours, and demonstrations. Then, DR celebrated its fifth Land Day! Hard to believe, but it's been five years since we purchased our land on October 1, 1997. We had contemplative sharing of thoughts about our land, our past, and our future...and then a raucous open mic and bonfire!
Despite a slight rain and cool temperatures, many folks from near and far came to see us at our Open House in October. Tour guides took groups around the village to where presenters were waiting to explain a particular aspect of life at Dancing Rabbit. It's always a pleasure to have so many people come to take a look at DR.
With old intern Stephanie returning to reside at DR, and current residents Bob and Andra planning on staying for the winter, our population will be around 20 this winter--far higher than we've ever had in the past. It's exciting, and with all the building and food preserving going on, Rabbits should be well housed and fed during the cold months!
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newest vehicle: a 1998 diesal VW Jetta
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