Count on the Moon, Value the Sun ... 'make hay when the sun shines'

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Everybody is talking about how cold or how wet it is here on the Island.  Sunday's Farmers' Market was a soggy time, but it did not stop the work from getting done, the jazz from being played, the potatoes and eggs from being cooked and served, or the fragrance free restroom from being cleaned and prepared.  The full moons of Kaulana Mahina have begun, and whether you are tuning to the fullness of the moon via a paper calendar or finding the energy of the water-nature within, this is a full-tide time.  Spring has budded and is pollinating new life.  The work in our lives is in process.  Pete is out re-flooring a friend's cottage.  The skills of a lifetime of fixing and building continue to be part of his daytime.  Things have changed during the years where we learned not all processes or products are equal, and many p&p will harm.  So, Pete works with that awareness but still, the old ways prevail.  He makes hay while the sun shines:  gets work by hustling it, uses our beloved but gas-guzzling old workhorse of a truck, and removes the not-so-good-for-anyone pressboard from our friend's cottage. 

Pete and I are older folk now, his pace and his output is less vigorous though to most who observe him it is a pace that outmatches most.  Still, today, Pete has a helper and that is good news.  We need help, and now on this Island Pete is getting it.  When he is off to work, the energy around the Quonset and Vardo quiets.  My work is different, but it is full.  Where I sit to write the stories and details of a life where 'malama i ka 'aina' is more than words ... and are words of rendered meaning, the work is in the thoughtfullness of a post.  I'm not always sure what story needs telling when I come to sit.  Today, I know that the Full Moon(s) shout to be told from both the Sun and the Moon's perspective.  Two things have inspired the story wanting to be told:

1. Sustainable Living is ... this post from my friend Leslie reminded me of the work we need to do while the Sun SHINES! 
2. The moon Mahina has no light of her own ... instead depends on the reflected light from Ka La the sun.  With the Full Moon energy a balance of list and do seems the message best heeded.  The 'Ole Moons past have fueled me in insite and inspiration ('go down-stream', look where you're going not where you've been).

Sustainable Living ... make hay while the sun shines

Leslie Richards from The Oko Box Blog begins her post TO DO LIST FOR THE LUCK CABIN

"Sustainable living is kind of a strange thing... you try to live in the moment, and enjoy seasons as they are but at the same time you have to always be preparing for the seasons ahead. If you take a break, you basically won't be prepared- which means way more headache if you are living mostly off grid. You can be half assed in the city about alot of things and still live quite comfortable, turning up the thermostat whenver you want a lil' more warmth........ a DIY eco- lifestyle takes a certain amount of vigilance."

We became Internet friends with Leslie R. during the early days of life on the road, slogging through the discoveries of living with MCS.  While Pete and I lived in the basement kitchenette in industrial Seattle, and pieced together a new version of life on the planet, I came to know this young woman with the quirky and funny DIY life.  She and we now live versions of sustainable living that confirms:  '[It] is kind of a strange thing."  Leslie's post is perfect Taurus-list-and-action work, and it inspired me to make my own TO DO LIST.

TO DO LIST FOR The Forest Folks in Tandem

1. Insulate the Quonset ... We used Recycled Denim Insulation wrapped conscientiously with Denny Foil and TuTuff Vapor Barrier in the Vardo.  It works!  The insulation is now made differently, using instead, "post-consumer" denim and fabric.  That means we need to check it out before using it.  "Post-consumer" might mean the scented products used to wash and dry these denims/fabric could leave not-so-good-for-us fragrance. 
2. Extend the Quonset ... Pete has begun the shopping for the tiles for the extra 4 feet, and the metal siding to extend the Quonset by 4 feet.  What we remove from the present Quonset will be used in other small building projects, later.
3. Build the Bathhouse/Laundry House ... Electricity and plumbing will be needed to make this dream of additional comfort a reality.  A newly-made friend is also an electrician:  he will help us and trade services.  Pete can do most of the plumbling.  We found an electric hot water tank and a sink for free.  The Bathhouse is laid out and the supplies list and availability is in the works.  Our dream of a furo is not quite there yet, but a shower is clearly envisioned!  We 'live in tandem' with our friends Eileen and MK.  Our plans include them at key times.  How we build and when we build includes keeping them aware, and in accord.  "In tandem" means together.
4. Re-wax and Milkpaint the Vardo ... The new tin of Homestead House Beeswax Finish we used to coat the milk paint on our vardo arrived from Toronto last week.  Once it warms up (the finish works best with 60 degree temps) I'll start re-finishing the back wall of the Vardo, then the rest of our tiny home.  Touch-ups on windows and the porch will need work before next winter, too.
5. Plant the Gardens ... We have three separate gardens in various stages of planting and preparation.  It's mid-May and not quite warm enough to plant without greenhouses.  We don't have green houses yet, so we wait on Ka La and count on Mahina for the timing. 
6. Build the orchard picnic table ... Pete found terrific reclaimed untreated fir 2x4's already old-painted and off-gassed boards for a summer picnic table.  OH HOW GRAND THAT WILL BE!  I love, love, love being at a table and we have been table-less for many years.  Pete's birthday is July 4th ... I'm aiming at a party in the orchard.  Can you see it?
7. Buy/sew/air-out new clothes(for summer and winter) and bedding(for winter) ... Any clothes or bedding we use needs special treatment, and time.  This morning I had this inspiration:  "Maybe, it's time for me to sew beautiful clothes for me, again."  There's a fabric shop close by, and maybe I'm ready to shop, buy and sew again.  Replacing clothes and bedding takes a real conscious process of taking steps.  We need to start taking 'em.
8. Start a savings account for an electric trike ... The inspiration for doing these workshops included being able to earn money, again.  And, earn money to replace driving with pedaling.  There's a bike shop just down the hill from our Quonset that sells the Torker Hybrid trike.  This is an electric trike.  I'm gonna need to work efficiently with downstream-vibes all the way to fill that savings account. 



My Electric Trike!



The deep feeling full-moon in Scorpio, moves quickly like an arrow in motion into Sagittarius for two days/nights, what TO DO LISTS can you make, and actions can you take to put meaning into 'malama'?