Well, it's been years since I've written anything on this blog! I had thought it was defunct, to tell the truth. Anyone who's reading this probably thought so too! Keenan's recently rediscovered his blog, and it got me to thinking... hey! I've got a blog! Now if I can just come up with anything interesting to write about.

Well, I still milk cows. Lilith, the kicky kine, has gone to the great Pasture in the Sky, a few years ago. Sadly, she developed a bovine blood disease and had to be put down. I'd grown fond of her, after she settled down (OK, we both settled down), and I was sorry to see her go. Her daughters have given birth, and are happily carrying on the kicking. Sigh.

I've been off the Community Membership Team for 4 years or so. I stopped when I became a Planner, and then tried to get back on, and whoops! That's a long unpleasant story. Suffice it to say there was unpleasantness, and I am not on the Membership Team.

Happily, I have found the Best Job on the Commune. This is working in the community daycare/homeschool for the youngest Oakers. I work 9-12 M-F with 8 kids ages 2 to 8, and we have a blast. Drawing and working with Playdo, and running around outside, snack, reading books, and music are our main activities. I spend a lot of time with the kids outside of this more structured time as well. Yay! I never thought I would have a job I truly adored, but this is it. I really couldn't ask for better.

What else? Well, Keenan and I are still going strong. We're older and hopefully wiser, and spend a lot of time just going for walks with each other and talking. Keenan's finishing working on his big project, an addition with a kitchen and bathroom, and two meeting rooms. It's beautiful. The best part is that he used the construction of it to teach the teen boys framing!

Arlo's a full member, he's happily living in Harmony and has his own group of young folk who hang out and... do things that young folk do. And Rowan's finishing his homeschooling and getting ready to take the GED and enroll in the local community college.

Anything else? There's been all sorts of ups and downs in the past few years. The biggest things were both my mother and Keenan's mother passed away, a year apart from each other. We've settled back into a new normal, finally. Maybe that's why I can write a blog again! We had a big earthquake a few years ago. That was exciting, since we were practically at ground zero for that. And what else? More babies have been born, yay! (Some are now part of the daycare.)
Ok, well, hopefully I'll write some more!
Over and out,
Kristen

Kind of a kicky kine

Yup, that's Lilith. She smacked me good on two fingers on the right hand, when I was trying to get her off the inflation tubing. Whoops, she kicked, caught my hand, and the back of my hand caught a metal post. Swollen knuckles, and I feel lucky (albeit a bit stoopid). I yelled, and put the inflation back on her, and tried my best to figure out how to get milk out of a horse, I mean, cow. I made one dumb mistake after another, and ended by losing my temper, and telling her rather strongly what I thought of her, while I let her out of the barn.

That was yesterday morning, and I went back in yesterday evening with Debbie, one of the supermilkers of the universe, and she had similar problems, minus the dumb mistakes. And this morning, Rusty (one of the other supermilkers, and more) came down and showed me how to milk a horse, I mean cow. Holy spumoni. She's a two-person cow, it turns out.

She's wonderful, Lilith is. She's a big healthy Holstein, in her first milking. And hopefully she'll unlearn her fighting. Me, too. I hope to unlearn my fighting. Fortunately, Rusty and Debbie are good at teaching. I feel bad, because she'd been making progress, learning to settle in, and then I come in with been-away-at-camp brains, and boom, lose it. At least I knew I'd been doing something wrong -- I'd been tying the training rope incorrectly, and basically milking her sans rope.

Okeydokey artichokey, I'm sure Lilith will learn, and I hope she learns faster than I do!
much love,
Kelpie

Blueberries, conferences, buildings

Another hot day, but at least better than yesterday. And Zadek, Biddy and I went blueberrying then, so now I've got a tubful of yummmmmm. It's making us pretty happy. Big ol' cold bloobs. We had them for breakfast.

Biddy's a new member, and she can sing just about anything, and when she does, you want to listen. She's got an amazing voice. Wow, that's very exciting.

And what else? The Communities Conference is starting on Friday, so there'll be many many people at the conf site, and there'll be a whole bunch of women at the conf site... um... the weekend after, I think. For the Women's Gathering. I don't go to that Gathering much anymore. My family can't go, 'cause they're all boys, basically. Oh well. Then in October, there's a new gathering, of permaculture folks starting to build a strawbale shelter. I've been in strawbale shelters, but haven't watched them go up. It'll be interesting.

Years ago, I helped stuff leaves into walls, to make a wonderful house bigger and better. That was really fun, and a lot of work. Took a lot of chicken wire fencing, and some two-by-fours. The structure's still up and looking good!!

Okey dokey artichokeys, looks like I'm off to the races. Hope my pony wins. So far, I'm feeling pretty lucky.
much love,
Kelpie

Sup

Ok, Mom, I'm writing, I'm writing. Look at me writing!!

Knowing now what it is to be a mother, I have more sympathy, of course. Empathy, even. Yup. AND I got an email from Rowan last night, that asked me "sup" and told me that he loved me. I'm not bragging or anything. It's true. And "sup," for those of you who don't know, is short for "what is up?"

I'm home from camp. I was gone for about a very long time (decades, at least), and am ticked pink to be back. I found a new ability to shine, which is the whole point of going to camp. My family's pretty happy to have me home again, also. And I went to the ZK dance floor last night and danced and danced, so I really feel home again.

What will next year's camp bring, I wonder? I'd like to bring Rowan, or Arlo, but neither can go until they're 18. Maybe 16 (if I pull some strings). I'd like to bring Keenan, but then who stays with Arlo and Rowan? At least I have Wild Child for Rowan to attend with me.
okey dokey artichokeys,
much love,
Kelpie

If it's not the heat,

It's the humidity. And right now I can see it on the inside of the windows as Ez makes noodles. I can see the tomato plants out the window, and they're looking good! No ripe ones, yet. That won't be for a while. Our blueberries aren't ripe yet, either. Looks like that will be in a couple of weeks. And none of the shiny little beetles that drive me bonkers -- that will be in early July, I think. Hopefully they won't eat too much.

I've caught four field mice in four days. Cute little buggers. In live traps! And each one is named, and then let go, far far away. Today's mouse, "Mothra," got little dark blue dots on its tail, thanks to Keenan, who believes that we're catching the same mouse each day. I know Bartimaus Catslayer, day 2 mouse, hasn't returned -- that one had a ripped up ear. Could be Bart's somewhere around, we may never know....

Okey dokey artichokey. How many more mice can I catch?

Hot and muggy

So, it's June, and I'd like to take some pictures, but I'm not sure how to get the pictures from my very nice new camera that my father sent me into the various forms needed for whatever thing I want to do with it. If that sentence didn't make much sense, it's because I was raised in the age of FILM. That's different than the age of DIGITAL, whatever that means. No, I have no anti-computer bias whatsoever. Why did you think that? No doubt if I understood all these doohickies and and whatnot, I'd be much better at sending pictures to my relatives, who are longing to see pictures of their grandchildren. Arrgh. Or their own children. Anyway.

It may be time for more coffee. I can put coffee in a mug, and I just need to decide if I want it hot or cold. But I may want a hot and muggy coffee, to go along with the day.

much love,
Kelpie

Green. old friend, Lawrence

Seems like summer's in full bloom now, and it's been great on the commune. Lots of flowers and green, and the steam table has been full of truly amazing freshness. The sugar snap peas are my favorite. They're green, so I think I'm getting nutrition, and they're sweet and crunchy, which is what I really want.

My ol' buddy Steve came to visit yesterday with his wife, and we walked around the farm for a few hours, catching up and touring. Our conversation made me miss Lawrence, but more miss the Lawrence of my misspent youth. I feel so lucky to have grown up in such a progressive town, and very grateful for the educational opportunities handed to me on a plate. Now when I go back, I see a lot of economic boom, which in some respects seems a bit empty to me -- I understand there's a second Wal-Mart now, and that's discouraging. But in many more ways, Lawrence is fundamentally solid in its values, with green growing things all around, and people working together to make it a peaceful place of learning and art. I miss that.

Don't get me wrong -- Twin Oaks is chockful of growing and art. Sometimes though, it's just a bit... hmm.... constricting. I'm laughing at myself, because I remember a time when I thought Lawrence too constricting. In the ways that really matter, Twin Oaks and Lawrence are more similar than different. For example, growing up, I thought every town had a coop grocery store -- it just makes sense. Now of course, I realize what a treasure the Merc is. People just need to have control over their food source, over what actually goes in their actual mouths. And unfortunately, in this day and age, most folks are limited in their choices. Don't get me started.

okey dokey artichokey,
much love,
Kelpie