June 20, 2008

This summer has sure been busy! I've still been very good about purging my house of junk, I just haven't had the opportunity to write about it. My summer's been filled with out-of-town family and friends visiting, Wildland Fire Academy, a trip to the Great Sand Dunes, and putting together the Kids with Altitude publication with Families For Estes. 

Having visitors has given me an extra excuse to get purging done in preparation for their arrival. The quickly approaching garage sale deadline is also keeping me on my toes. 

This week I wanted to write about my largest inspiration for purging 75% of our material items.

A year and a half ago, my husband, Josh, and I were watching a television show called 30 Days. The premise is that they take a person and drop them into a lifestyle completely outside of their comfort zone for 30 days, and see what kind of changes they have in viewpoints and values when living in someone else's shoes. One episode, called "Off the Grid", followed two gas-guzzling, non-eco-friendly New York City urbanites as they lived off-the-grid in a self-sustained Eco-Village in rural Missouri for 30 days. (If you ever get the opportunity to rent the show, definitely do! It was very entertaining and educational.) 

The eco-village where this show took place was called Dancing Rabbit. I think some extreme aspects of eco-village communal living could turn people off - sharing everything, having a communal car, recycling everything, including, *ahem*, "humanure", eating a strictly vegan diet, having to work hard, laborious hours to maintain your own gardens to grow your own food, not buying things brand new, having to build your own house from cob (a straw and mud mixture), and having to live simply, with only the bare necessities.

Josh and I saw this eco-village and were not turned off at all. We were inspired. When the TV show ended, we turned and looked at each other, eyes wide, huge smiles on our faces, and said, "We have to go there!" Josh and I are always open to trying new things. When I die, I'd love to be able to say, "I tried it all." I really saw this as a different, unique, potentially life-changing experience that I just had to try.

I found Dancing Rabbit online at www.dancingrabbit.org, and applied for my family of five to go there for a week. Applying involved an application and a "getting-to-know-you" essay. Several months later, we learned that we were invited to go. We got the kids excited about our "vacation" to go live "naturally". (They pictured we'd be living in teepees, but they were excited, nonetheless.)

Dancing Rabbit is essentially an experiment. It's a group of people that are showing by example that it is possible to live a sustainable, self-sufficient life in modern times. What Dancing Rabbit is doing can seem very radical, so they remain transparent. They welcome the general public into their community and homes to show that what they're doing is doable, and not as "out there" as one might suspect. They focus on educational workshops and outreach programs to help others see that responsible, sustainable living is completely achievable. Dancing Rabbit now has about 40 members, plus some interns, but has plans and goals of growing to a town supporting a population of 500-1,000.

The village, itself, was made up of a Common House, which included a kitchen, computer lab, children's playroom, grand piano, living/meeting/dining room, bathrooms, showers, library and offices. Surrounding the Common House were individual houses (some made of cob or haybale, some done in shanty-style, and some made of reclaimed wood), an outdoor kitchen, a swimming pond, solar showers, an Ultimate Frisbee field, and numerous gardens belonging to the various food co-ops of the village.

Dancing Rabbit had about 35 residents, aged 10 months to mid-50s. Most of the people were college-educated. Everyone was unique, interesting, bright, outgoing, fun, and easy to get to know. At first glance, the people seemed like extreme examples of different parts of society. By the end of the week, I found I was able to relate to all of them in some way, and I found bits and pieces of my friends back home in all of them. They were just ordinary people, living in an extraordinary way, making lifestyle changes that most people aren't brave enough to make.

The people of Dancing Rabbit operate under full group consensus, which made them all superior communicators. I found that their ability to always speak their minds and work through problems in a non-confrontational manner was refreshing. There were many different politics, philosophies and religions in the group, but all were treated with respect. They love to think and talk, and Josh and I had some of our deepest and most meaningful conversations with the folks of Dancing Rabbit.

Dancing Rabbit runs off of solar and wind power, so they still have all of the modern luxuries we have. Most of them use computers. A few have televisions. They have weekly game nights, movie nights, and other fun get-togethers (such as a swing dancing night while we were there.) They have community celebrations and parties, and weekly meetings about the community. For work, some people have internet businesses, some are artists, some work exclusively for the eco-Village, and some are retired. A couple people I talked to are able to live off of $1,500 per year. The most lavish person in the village lives off of $15,000 per year. (Lavish would include paying other people to grow your vegetables, do your building, and do your chores, so that you don't have to.) Most people get by with $5,000 - $6,000 per year.

This is your introduction to the Dancing Rabbit Eco-Village. Next week I will tell you about my family's week with them, how it changed our lives, and how it inspired my House Purge project.

Kristen Owen is a longtime blogger and registered eBay Trading Assistant. More information, topics, and helpful tips about House Purge can be read by going to the projects Web site at www.housepurge.com .