SUSTAINABILITY:THE GREAT DISCOVERY

There's that 'S' word again, SUSTAINABILITY but this time it's being used by younger folks, not middle aged/senior folks. We had a couple of guests Monday who wanted to come visit and talk to us about how we live off the land. They are on the Great Discovery, a road trip to visit people who are living a 'sustainable' lifestyle and learn all that they can.

I had received an email from one of the gals's Mom, someone from  my past life who actually helped me out with some transportation last year when I was in the Quad Cities for a funeral.  Her daughter was traveling the country learning more about being sustainable and she was in the La Crosse area. Small world. Of course, I replied, "just tell her to call." You see, we love sharing where we live because it is pretty special here in the End of the Rainbow Valley. The girls were camping with friends on the other side of the river (Minnesota) but would call for directions when they were packed up and ready to roll.  Even when you have GPS you can lose coverage out here in the Coulee.

Back row: Lucy and myself
Front row : Charlie and Cris

I would have recognized Lucy although the last time I saw her she was a very little girl and I welcomed the opportunity to see her and answer their questions. Although their arrival time would mean a later lunch, the mom in me had a strong suspicion they would be hungry. Hmmm, tomato time and almost an hour before they would be here made me think of an Israeli dish called Shakshuka. Big slices of Natureman's bread accompanying the chunky tomato stew with garden peppers and fresh eggs would make a great quick lunch.

Before we ate, we explained a little about our house the heating systems in our passive solar home, explaining the concrete floors, Ukranian stove, wood stove, heating with wood and tankless water heater, etc. 

Our last canning projects of stewed tomatoes and salsa still occupied our island counter and Cris was curious re: the pot filler over the stove. 

We ate lunch on the porch and spoke about why Natureman moved here and he in turn inquired as to they reasons for wanting to leave their city lives in Seattle. Lucy had worked on an organic farm/two and Cris was in IT support. They are heading to one of the oldest intentional community /collective Twin Oaks (1967) in West Virginia this weekend for a conference where they will be volunteering.  

The food disappeared and they didn't have much more time before an appointment about an hour away re: solar panels. Hay was needed for bedding for their bunny so they took a walk down with Natureman to our 1890 barn with their dog Charlie and to the overgrown vegetable garden. Hey it's August but still a bit embarrassing as the chickens haven't been released to free range quite yet and take care of those ginormous weeds. Whatever is still producing will be plenty for our needs.

Anyhow the visit was short and sweet and Lucy and Cris were off to their next adventure with hopes of learning more about living sustainably. All the best to all of you on your Great Discovery... we know whatever we all do to live a little bit lighter on this earth will leave it better for others.