As the days get shorter and the weather cools, we Rabbits are preparing busily for winter, canning the last of the garden produce, fixing wood stoves and cutting firewood. It's a good time to take a minute and reflect on everything that's happened in the hot months since our last newsletter, too!
Dancing Rabbit's membership has finally started to grow and we've got a great bunch of folks that will be here for the winter. Jeffrey Harris joined Dancing Rabbit (and Skyhouse Community, too) in August; read about his experiences on page 5. Jennifer Corbin has come to spend the winter and hopefully longer with us. Not only does she have valuable real-world business experience, but Jennifer is also Aaron's sister. Jacob Stevens (who you may remember from past March Hare articles about Chicago-based community Fiddler's Green) will be spending a large part of the winter with us as well. Matthew Roedder has also become a Dancing Rabbit member and will be inhabiting Ray's old trailer which he is currently fixing up to be a livable winter space. Matthew is a skilled carpenter so we were overjoyed to have him on board. Finally, we hope to see the arrival of RC M'Cloud and his partner Debra Laporta, who will be renting housing near Dancing Rabbit and exploring the possibilities of membership here. Yahoo!
In Skyhouse news, we've enjoyed integrating Jeffrey, Jacob, Jennifer, and Matthew into our lives. We're also planning a retreat for December to focus on each other and our community. This winter will be a time of transition for us as Aaron, Halle, and Jack begin to separate from Skyhouse, live in their own home (still under construction), and keep separate finances. We look forward to continued sharing with them, though, and in some ways this will be the first test of the Dancing Rabbit ecovillage model, since Dancing Rabbit will finally have members who aren't also part of Skyhouse.
Of course, we've had the usual slew of parties and special events. Although our October 3 Land Day party (celebrating our first anniversary of owning Dancing Rabbit land) brought us cool, wet weather, a good time was had by all. Many musicians brought instruments (including RC's full drum set) and we jammed and danced the night away. We're looking forward to another concert on October 28, when noted Bay Area folk trio Rebecca Riots comes to Dancing Rabbit as part of their 1998 US tour. It may be their only stop where they perform in someone's living room.
Some of the biggest excitement was our cabin-raising and subsequent plastering of our first home on Dancing Rabbit land. Read all about it on page 6 and look for more details and pictures in upcoming issues.
We've continued to host many visitors to Dancing Rabbit (over 150 in all this year). Recently we've given tours to classes from nearby Truman State University and the Kellogg Foundation Sustainable Communities focus group, with people from Missouri, Nebraska, and Michigan in attendance. We're taking a little break from visitors for the last six weeks of the year, just to give ourselves some time to relax with each other.
However, we are still eagerly looking for new energy, visitors, and members at Dancing Rabbit. If you'd like to visit, just write, email, or give us a call!
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