Hi team: at the end of yesterday’s meeting,
Jan invited me to put some notes together and so I’ve done so,
entirely from memory, so I know I’ll have left out things that
others may want to add in.
Present: Jan, Gay, Min, Anne, Sara,
Maria, Miriam, Donald, Sandy, Frances, Warren, Pauline, Sue T,
Alex and myself.
Thanks to Jan, Gaye and Min for creating a
lively and informative work shop yesterday afternoon, and also
to Sander for letting us in to the Centre.
For those of you who weren’t there, here’s
a few highlights as I recall them – and others, please add
your recollections.
We first formed into small groups and shared
the skills we’re willing to bring. Examples included
pruning roses and fruit trees; planting vegetable gardens;
shopping for families on a limited income; sewing large
curtains and supplying sewing machines ( it seems at least
five are available); bread making ( with and without bread
makers); ‘fixing things’ ( at least two of our group cite this
as a hobby); cleaning ( Sara had already decided as she is
close to the Guest accommodation, she was willing to ensure
this is clean and tidy for visitors- a most welcome offer!),
dishwashing and general kitchen clean up ( at least three
people cited this as something they find enjoyable), food
preparation/ chopping/ etc; food shopping; meal planning; a
capacity to listen and keep listening ( a heartening number of
people); a large and inexhaustible capacity for optimism in
the creativeness of groups ( at least two of us); Jan on being
a ‘night owl’ so highly likely to be up in the Common House
till 1am if anyone can’t sleep/ wants a chat; being willing
to demonstrate 7 minute fitness workouts; to teach dance; and
a willingness to follow directions. A great start!
As the saying goes ‘hungry people see
cake shops’ and I know my ears will have been finely
attuned to certain pieces of information, such as number of
nights we’d like to have meals available in the common house,
and less to others… so there’ll be more.
We then talked about what we were
looking for. Responses included always knowing there was
always someone who’d be willing to go to the movies;
opportunities to learn new skills such as languages, work
working, fitness ( especially if its possible to turn up in
pajamas); vegetable growing; plant cultivation; sharing /
rationalizing vehicles; meals provided at least a couple of
nights a week; informal socializing; child care; computer
technological advice; expanded kitchen skills; learning more
about the foods of different cultures; and creating
opportunities for celebration and community.
Reference was made to Jan’s vision for the
Family Fun Day in June 2018 when against the
general skepticism of many in the group, she created a highly
successful day that had close to 300 adults and children
through the site participating in a range of activities to fit
every age group, and all in three weeks! We were all surprised
both by how successful it was and how much fun we each had. It
gave us an idea of how we can pool together to create positive
events for our group and the wider community.
We finished the day after a couple of
‘straw polls’ about how many meals we’d like to see
provided in the common house each week. Across this
group, the mean number was two, with a possible
addition of a ‘pot luck Friday’.
Timing of meals varied between 6 –
8pm, with a mean of 7pm, taking into account the needs
of young children and also the habits of the two night owls,
who tend to eat at 10pm at present.
The suggested number of cooks and
assistants on each ‘cook team’ was four, with two more
experienced folk and two ‘choppers/ stirrers/ sorters.
We wound up at 5pm. Thanks again to all who
contributed to a lively afternoon!
Next month’s meeting will be focusing more
directly on Body Corp rules. We hope to welcome Anna and
Antony ( sp), who are taking over D1, Rachel’s Unit, at that
meeting.
Regards,
Marianne
Marianne Quinn
Level 3, 115 Stuart Street, Dunedin
P.O. Box 20, Dunedin 9054
ph +6434773115 or 0211612050