Dehydration Station

          To be very honest, coming home from the dunes was hard. Not just because the place was so beautiful, but because life itself is very different. It's hard to adjust, hard to acknowledge the grief that the rest of the world is experiencing, hard to fit in. So yes, the weekend after the dunes felt like a low after an extreme high... but here I am, again ready to write about another amazing week behind me.

          This past week was plant week, and Tuesday's class was spent learning plant taxonomy, structures, and identification. We wandered throughout the land, geeking out on plants together and enjoying the gentle rain. Then, Wednesday's focus was on the harvest. The group drove to a nearby park/nature area called Tolt MacDonald Park and spent the day collecting wild edibles. My group's focus was on rose-hips, but as a whole we also gathered dandelions, chicory, apples, plaintain seeds, dock seeds, and blackberries, as well as a number of other things in smaller numbers. Although the actual harvest felt great, the highlight of the day for me--and for many others--was watching the salmon. The park is located along the Snoqualmie River, a major spawning site for many different varieties of salmon. Since arriving here, I have learned so much about the salmon and their importance here in the Pacific Northwest. I'd give you a low-down of the experience but my roommate Michelle has written a most beautiful entry specifically on them in her own blog. Check it out and remember she's a journalist so I'm no competition. :-) http://mosstrotter.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/a-great-gift-in-salmon-country/ .
          However, Thursday was my favorite class day yet. We took a trip to past-instructor Alexia's homestead for a day of permaculture and food processing. Her house is kind of like a dream-come-true for me. She has a beautiful garden, ducks and rabbits running around the yard, horses, a few yurts for extended community, a composting toilet, and SO MUCH FIBERWORKS. The rooms were scattered with looms, spinning wheels, bundles of wool, multicolored yarns and knitting needles. If you know anything about me you know that I LOVE working fiber, so I was pretty much in a state of awe the entire time I was there. :-) Alexia is going to teach me some more advanced knitting techniques in the future. Score!
          Anyways, enough ranting. We spent the day in groups, cleaning and preparing our harvest for eating and storing. For the morning lesson, we rotated between three stations (you will soon see why I was so pumped about this day): canning apple butter, dehydration of meats and berries, and creating dandelion and fruit vinegars and honey infusions. So, I can now check off a few of my new skills I wanted to acquire here. Wahoo! I was especially inspired by the dehydration station. One of our apprentices, Sam, had gotten really excited about dehydration around this time last year and had brought a number of his experiments in for us to try. These concoctions included dehydrated yogurt, applesauce, sliced veal heart, all kinds of different meats, fruits, kale, berries, fruit leather, and on and on.

 Let's just say I know EXACTLY what I want for my 21st birthday. No, not hard liquor and a night on the rocks--an Excaliber 3900. Hahaha, what a name, right? It's a 9-tray dehydrator with a 10 year warranty and a bunch or different settings for each unique type of food. There is even a hot-air blower that circulates the air evenly so that you don't have to move the shelves around throughout the process. Perfect for garden harvest storage, fruit storage for the winter, seed saving, paper making, hide glue drying, leaf-pressing, etc. So many of the things that I'm so excited to learn and to do. Sooo... if anyone was looking for a birthday idea, throw a few dollars at my parents to help them out on this one. Tehe. Plus, this present will give back someday when yee'all get some of my home-made dehydration experiments. No pressure though, sending me some good energy works too. :-)
          Anyways, the rest of Thursday's class was a sort of free-for-all, with a number of different projects going on throughout the house--hazelnut smashing, rose-hip syrup, cedar tea, lichen dyes, wool spinning, applesauce stirring, dandelion/chicory coffee, and more! Though I had processed most of these foods before, in one fashion or another, the overall experience for me was something much greater. The most beautiful thing about this day was that it felt so ancestrally right. We all just floated between activities and shared jokes and songs and laughter. You could be in the kitchen sharing stories and food with one group, and hear music and hearty laughter floating in from the porch, and look out the window to more of your friends dancing around the stovetop stirring the cauldron of mush.
          I don't think I have ever felt this at peace or laughed this often in my whole life. It's not just about the skills here... they are just a tool for connection. A connection to people and to place. Here, it is connection that I am learning to value above all else. I am so excited to extend these threads home with me in December and share these connections with you all. Let's continue weaving this basket, shall we?
P.s. I'll have pictures for this entry soon. :-)

The Oregon Dunes

My apologizes for being so late with the entry... There was so much that needed to soak in before I felt like I could put any words to anything that happened. So even though I know this won't come close to doing the experience justice, here it goes. 

         There have been few moments in my life thus far with the raw power to drop me too my knees in spiritual awe. Let me start by saying that coming face to face with the Oregon Dunes was one of these special moments.
        We left for the dunes around 7am and arrived at our little forested campground around 4:30pm to make camp. After setting up tents and starting dinner, the group walked in an anticipatory silence up the winding path to the entrance of the dunes. Hand over hand we sprint/crawled up the sandy mountain in front of us, until we were standing on top of its wind-sculpted ridge. Blood pumping, breath left somewhere behind, I took it all in. The wind was so strong, so powerful, it whipped little bits of sand like bullets across my shins. It whistled in my ears and pushed at me from all sides—and especially from somewhere within. From the top of that dune (which I will later refer to as Big Dune) you could see all the way to the roaring Pacific Ocean. The waves, capped white, were breaking way off the shoreline--huge, loud, crashing waves, showing off, bragging of their raw power. I think what really struck me was the vastness of the whole experience. Just miles and miles of rolling sand dunes and patches of forested areas with bits of grass tufting out here and there. The dunes are stunning. After I finally got control of my feet again, I wandered down the other side of Big Dune to where it met with the forest edge. In some ways, that side was even more amazing than at the top of Big Dune. Where the two ecosystem met, the forest was being swallowed by sand. Huge trees, some maybe 100 ft tall, were being pushed over and choked out by the encroaching sand. In some areas, just the tips of trees were poking out. At one point, I walked over and put my hand on a beautiful Douglas-fir tree (Pseudotsuga menzeseii) realizing that I was nearly 50 feet up with my feet still on the ground. It was pretty incredible being able to look across the tops of the trees, the canopy at my eye level. I cannot describe the experience as a whole, the emotions, the spirituality. As a group though, we didn’t need to. We had all spread out across Big Dune, everyone with their own way of celebrating… hoots and hollers, dancing, sprinting, sand-angels, rolling down the dunes, falling to knees… but most importantly, every single one of us, ALIVE.

So yeah. Wow. 

We later found out that even the instructors, who’ve been coming to that spot for almost 10 years, had never seen it so windy. But what an introduction, right? Perhaps needless to say, the rest of the week was phenomenal. We'd be woken up at 6:30am, eat breakfast, sit-spot, have a morning lesson, and be out on the dunes by 8 or 9am. Then we would spend the entirety of the day tracking. It was incredible. The trails we saw were so fresh, so detailed, and sometimes could be followed for miles. We practiced identification, gait patterns, ecology, awareness, ahhh so, so much got crammed into my head. Then after an action-packed day of tracking we would make dinner, play games, and then curl up around the fire for story-of-the-day. Sometimes it was acted out, sometimes we all got to share, but every time I left the circle feeling closer and more connected to place and to all the people I am sharing these experiences with. After some words from our elders, it was always time for music, more stories, and tons of laughter. I suppose I should also mention that the nights were as clear as could be—incredible, incredible stars beaming down on us from above.

In our three intense days with expert tracker Dave Moskowitz, we tracked a ton of grey and red foxes, a number of coyotes, many frogs, a few porcupines, raven, deer mice, elk, and a number of other small birds, rodents, and insects.

The last day of tracking was probably my favorite. I went with a group who was going to focus specifically on gaits, with out goal being to meet the ocean. After we traveled through a number of different ecosystems for what seemed like miles, we were there. I stood in front of the Pacific Ocean, water around my knees—alive. Then, with two of my girl friends here, I ran down the beach, away from the group, skipping down the beach, stripping off our clothes as we went. Yes, it’s true. I skinny-dipped in the Pacific Ocean… sun caressing my body and waves knocking me over with their freezinnggggg cold waters. Hahaha. Such good times: screaming, laughing, naked animal forms on the beach, singing, LIVING. :-D

After meeting up with the rest of the group and spending an amazing day tracking at the beach, we admittedly decided it was time to head back. As we headed up the grassy dune nearest the ocean edge, saying goodbye to her water, someone spotted... a w-h-a-l-e. Yes, I got to see a whale the first time to the Pacific. Water would shoot way up into the air and then a huge tail would follow a few seconds later. We watched in awe for several minutes as it made its way down the beach. What an awe-inspiring, touching, soul-wrenching gift for us all. 

Lastly, the final night is also worthy of mentioning. With no real reason as to why, we had been told throughout the day to stock up on dry dune grass roots. Come the final night we had huge piles of the stuff that we instructed to break up into 5 piles, one for each clan and one for the instructors/apprentices. We then experienced one of the coolest night activities I've ever seen. Each group took their bundle off into the darkness to find a tall dune to gather on top of--my group got assigned Big Dune. Then, after a few minutes of soaking in the night sounds and the beautiful constellations, we lit them. We lit them one after the other, like the emergency communication system in Lord of the Rings (nerd). And as they lit, the silent dunes were also ignited, ignited with the sounds of happiness: singing, howling... celebration... thanksgiving. The roots burned so bright; and as I looked across the empty desert I could see glowing lights with dancing silhouettes all around them. We sat and we watched them. And again I'll say it: I felt SO ALIVE. 

And that my friends... that was the dunes. 

Geeking-out

DICLAIMER: This entry is super long and geeks out periodically. Will not take offense to skimming. :-)
          Wow, what a week! "School" is really like a dream-come-true. Tuesday was our first day of official class, and we kicked it off with friction fire. We all got an introduction to the spiritual side of fire and its greater importance and significance within our lives. I got a little nervous then, as I realized that we would be carving bowdrill kits for the day. Nervous because I've done it like 100 times, and I had really hoped that this school would push my skills. But, needless to say from my spazzy introduction, it turned out perfect. They straight up asked up how many coals we had gotten and had us split ourselves up into groups based on our levels of experience. The newbies used the provided wood (western red cedar) and p-chord, some people harvested their kits from the land and used p-chord for their bow string, some of us harvested the whole kit, including the cord, from the land, and some people tried the whole deal from the land without aid of a knife. It was so awesome to have all of these different levels of skill so that we all could teach and learn from one another.
          My kit was from black cottonwood--a tree limb snag up high with good southern sun expose. I used the branch for the baseboard and spindle. Then my handhold was semi-punky vine maple and my cord was the rootlets from western red cedar. The cordage was by far my favorite part and definitely the most successful. I used three small rootlets, stripped a little bit of the bark off, and then reverse wrapped them together. It was super sturdy and lasted a really long time. I used the bowing technique where the end of the bowstring nearest you is not attached and you're pinching it as you bow to adjust tension and such. The only problem with my cord was that little bits of the leftover bark started peeling up and becoming fibrous, which then started to tangle and weaken the cord, in turn making it harder to bow smoothly. Though I did not get a coal (I think my baseboard was too small and pithy) the whole ordeal ended up being a real success. Other cordages people tried were nettle, cattail, human hair, and blackberry. I think I may have impressed the pants off some of the people here too. Haha. The youngest girl from NY bringing up the rear... didn't see that coming, aye? I love feeling like I'm in my element. Okay I'm done geeking out on bowdrill. For those of you who that was practically Spanish, my apologies.
          We also spent some of the day going over basic animal taxonomy and track characteristics. Some of it was familiar, but most of it I was like... "Hmm... I definitely knew this at one time... I think I took a test on this once..." Apparently this is what I'm paying an arm and a leg for at University. >:-(
          On Wednesday we took a trip to Bob Heirman park to go tracking. It was a beautiful hike that passed through a bunch of different ecosystems: steep rocky ridges into long, dry praries into swampy wetlands into deep forests into gravel beaches into winding salmon-filled rivers. I actually rememebered my camera this time too, but of course, didn't realize it was out of batteries until I got there. Sorry. :-( So first, we made a fire on the beach and learned the basics on how to approach tracking and why tracking is important. Then we broke up in groups and rotated throughout "stations" where the instructors had found some cool tracks. In the stations we saw great blue heron tracks, beaver drags and tracks, coyote tracks, and some sort of lagomorph tracks (aka. bunny). It was exciting to be excited about tracking. It has always been something I wanted to want to learn, but never really had that draw until now.
Now's probably a good time to mention that Monday morning at 6am we're leaving for... drum-role... the Oregon dunes! An entire week of intense tracking and animal identification! Soooo pumped. And I promise I'm going to bring a charged camera and come back with plenty of pictures to share. I'm super-crazy pumped.
          Thursday was the busiest day I've had in a long time. I woke up at 5:45am so I could get to my sit-spot before dawn. I was there until after 7am, greeted by a beautiful chorus of morning bird songs. Then, appropriately, class that day was centered around bird language. We discussed the five basic bird calls: song, companion call, male/male aggression, and alarm. We also studied call, identification, behavior, etc. of the five most helpful birds for bird language in this area: the american robin, song sparrow, rufous-sided towhee, dark-eyed junco, and pacific wren. All these birds are common to the area, mostly ground dwelling, and have pretty distinguishable calls. The groups were then split and led in bird sits and song/visual identification walks. Unfortunately, we didn't see or hear much other than excited kids because we share the land with a number of different school camps on Thursdays, plus it started raining. Birding is one of those skills that I find so overwhelming. It's great feeling like I finally have a base to start building upon. I wake up every morning and play calls from The Top 5 and then play them again before I go to bed. Hopefully as I get those down, I can keep adding more locals from the area. After class, Michelle and I spent a few hours scrubbing down the inside of our yurt to conquer the mold before the winter wetness comes. Then immediately after, we grabbed some food and headed back up to Cedar Lodge for a showing of The Great Dance. If you ever want to get pumped about tracking, watch that movie. Actually watch it anyways... it's stellar. Theeeennnn there was a great jam sesh after the movie. And theeennnnn we had an amazing dinner with the help of friend and fellow student Canoe Trevor. He brought some fresh caught, self-canned halibut from a 100lb fish he caught in Alaska. MMMMmmmm soooo incredibly good.
          I woke up early again on Friday for my first day of work! All I have to say is, "Wow." I am so insanely happy with it. I fell into my role like I was back at home again. So much of the camp is similar to Primitive Pursuits, but more so of PP in it's early stages. My group of kids are ages 8-13 and though most of them are newbies, some have been coming to the programs for like 5 or 6 years. On one hand it's so awesome that they all have such a great base for learning, on the other hand it's freakin' terrifying. For example, we were sitting around the fire giving brief introductions and a bird silouette zipped over head. One of the 8-year-olds jumps up and points, "Look! What is that? Definitely a woodpecker... is that a piliated or a hairy? Hmm I think thats a piliated. Yeah definitely..." and then sits back down. Dude. He's 8. Hahaha I'm going to learn so much this year. Later that day I asked one of the 13-year-old girls her favorite insect and she replied, "Umm... though I have a general detest for all bugs, I'd probably say the black-nosed snout weevil." Oh boy. ANYWAYS, it was really refreshing to be in a place where the kids are treated like people and not things. These kids are given so much responsibility, respect, and love. I'm so happy to be a part of this organization.
          Okay well I need to go do some homework now to prepare for next week. I probably won't be able to write again until next weekend so until then... I wish you all the best. Love you all dearly!

Child of the Dandelion

          I'd like to start by saying HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my beloved father. Dad, thank you for always treating me with the utmost respect. I am proud everyday to say that I am your daughter, for you are an amazing man. You have taught me to love the outdoors, use tools, re-wire houses, respect animals (...nice kitty...), chop wood, speak wisely, and never let a boy show me up. And because of this, I will forever be a daddy's girl.

           Now, I'm sure you all are wondering what the heck I did last week. And man, I wish I could tell you. But truthfully, I am at a loss for words. The best word I have attributed to the week thus far is "intense." The week was so, so intense. In fact, I just spent the last twenty minutes or so trying to describe it here. I'm going to be honest, I couldn't.  Perhaps the easiest way to give you guys a glimpse at what I'm trying to say is simply to state: this is not just a school. This is a group of people who have similar life views and passions, and who are creating an intentional community around learning primitive and naturalist skills. Much of what the first week focused on was this aspect of community, and making space for us all to open up and speak our intensions of coming to this place. I can now truly say that this program appears to be everything I had hoped for, and much, MUCH more. I wish I could describe the amazing changes I've gone through in the past week, but everything I write or say in words just ends up sounding hokey. I've attested it to being something like trying to describe an emotion, or a color, or a taste. Nothing I can say here would do it any justice, and I have too much respect for the whole process to do that.

          Things I can say: we are going to be learning soooo much this year. They gave us brief overviews of many of the topics that we will be covering throughout the year, and golly-oh-gee I'm pumped. The whole program is centered around something known as the Medicine Wheel. Simplified, the Medicine Wheel is a way of organizing energies, using the cardinal directions. This organizational method can be applied to many different aspects of life, some that we covered were movement of the sun, the human life cycle, plant life cycles, duties of the community, inner energy tracking, and a few others as well. I might upload my medicine wheel that I drew out while taking notes to give you all a better idea of what I'm blabbering on about. Hearing it explained for the first time gave me chills, and by the end of the demo there was this air of excitement vibing throughout the group. It's one of those core ideas that we now can't stop relating things back to and discussing over again whenever the chance arises. 

           Our class, although very unified, is broken up into a number of smaller sectors. First, each of us has a nature name that we must study, embody, and learn from. Second, there are four clans that meet to form stronger bonds within a smaller group. Much of last week was spent participating in discussions, doing team-building exercises, and picking the minds of others within this clan. Third is societies. As previously mentioned, part of the Medicine Wheel describes energy types that need to be met in order to create a well functioning community. Within each clan there is a member for each of the directions on the medicine wheel, and the hold the space and energies of that direction. Each direction meets occasionally as well, in groups called societies. And finally, there are learning groups. These are the people who learn together during class and are assigned to one of the four core instructors. 

Although I could write for the next three hours about my experiences here thus far, I have to go do (get this) HOMEWORK. Haha. It's true, among all this crazy awesome fun, we are doing a ton of learning on plants and animals of the region, primitive skills, tracking, awareness, bird language, etc. etc. on and on. 

          I really just wanted to get this entry out and let ya'll know I'm here and alive and well. More than well... I'm feeling so good about being here. Even just tonight I found my place here at the Mosswood community... one which I will have to divulge soon. 

          Missing you all quite terribly. Thank you to those who sent letters and postcards, it means the world to me. Blessings to you all.

Man I really want to tell you guys every little detail! Ahhh. Soon, soon. I will close simply with:

I am Estelle, child of the Dandelion. I hold the position of Southeast within the Winter Wren clan. I am here.

Stereotypes :-)

Well... it's finally here. Yesterday was our first day of school--just an orientation day, but still quite a landmark for me. The group is 28 students, 4 core instructors, and 6 second-year assistant/interns. The group is definitely unique. Everyone gave a (really) brief introduction of themselves yesterday and there are so many interesting experiences and passions. It is definitely a new dynamic to be in such a large group where everyone has such similar interests and morals. The day was pretty simple: introductions, a few games, logistics, tour of the land, a new song, some forms, questions, etc. Next week, however, is going to be when the real fun begins. Starting Monday, we have an entire week where everyone will be camping on Linne Doran. The way I see it, it's initiation week. :-) They haven't really told us what it will be like exactly, but all we have to bring is some things to write with and on, camping gear and our wares, and a blindfold. Muahaha. It's funny because some people seem really confused and anticipatory about the whole situation, but I feel like this is just another day in the life. I think Primitive Pursuits has really trained me to be ready for anything and everything. Haha. For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, do not fear, this is absolutely nothing like college initiations. Anyways, I should tell you that there will be no posts next week; you could call or text but I definitely won't answer right away.

Going backwards in time again, Thursday was Alderleaf's first weekly potluck. I spent the day making my own hummus, which actually turned out pretty delicious. I made two different kinds and then swirled them together: spicy, black bean hummus with cumin, black pepper, and chile powder, and then salty/sweet chickpea hummus with garlic, sweet onions, and lemon juice (among other things). Wahoo, I have finally started to dive into the world of cooking! Kind of a funny place for the experimentation stage considering my cooking facilities include an electric-water-heater, a single-burner hot-plate, and a toaster-oven. But hell, I've got to start somewhere.
I digress... back to the potluck. There was a copious amount of delicious dishes and all I brought was a large mug. Needless to say I ended up embracing the creation of mash-up food combinations. I did slip up once and downed some mac&cheese without even thinking about my new dairitary restrictions. Since then I have turned down many-a-dish... yogurt, ice cream, pizza, OREOS. Yeah, trust me, I know. Again, back to the potluck. Michelle and I went; ate (lots of) food, chatted with the new Alderleaf students, danced to a little live music jam session, slacklined, and I reconnected with many of my Alderleafian friends. It was so, SO nice to see everyone again. I had no idea how quickly I had begun to care-for and miss that land and all her stewards.

I'm not sure exactly why, but I just don't feel as connected to this place as I immediately did to Alderleaf. I'm hoping it's just time. I'm trying not to make any judgements or comparisons of the two schools, but I'm having trouble getting out of my own head. Once this next week is over, I know I'll have a better idea of how I fit into the WAS community. Right now though, I just have this inkling to be back at Alderleaf that I can't seem to shake. I'm trying to just live in the moment and except that I'm here for a reason. Peace of mind and connection to place are things that I know cannot be rushed or forced. If you feel at all inclined, I suppose what I could use now are some words of encouragement and faith that I am doing the right thing.

Last week I finally started meeting some more of the Mosswood residents. We had some shared dinners, stories and songs by the fire, and even spent an evening the hot-tub. Yes, you read that correctly... HOT TUB. Tehe. I've also been taking some time to get my body back into yoga and on it's way to feeling healthy again. And--eeegad, to get personal--I've stopped shaving my legs. Haha I know, I know... get your tree-hugging, granola eating, hippy jokes out of the way now. And yes, Mom, you don't need to bother with an "I told you so." I just somehow got to the realization that I've never even seen what my legs naturally look like. I'm not saying I'm going to stop shaving forever, but come on, shouldn't I at least know how I was created to look without all the societal judgements? How many more tree-hugger stereotypes can I try out? Vegetarian? Vegan? Dreads? Dirty barefeet? Wait a second... this is starting to sound all too familiar. :-P

Okay well I suppose I'll close with something that I'm not sure why I didn't include in Tuesday's post. There's more that should be said about living in Beaver Creek yurt. First of all, there is a feeling to the air that you don't get anywhere else--its like being outside, but more still. Maybe its subtleties in the smells, or the way the air sits, or how the sound travels through it... I can't quite put my finger on what it is, but it has a quality that is calming to the soul. Also worthy of mentioning are the nights spend in the Beaver. Because we are situated right on the edge of Soup Hole Pond, the nights are littered with bard owl calls, night hawks, coyote songs, frogs, wild dog howls and so much more. Trains also travel by, somewhere off in the distance, their low whistles dancing around the mountain sides and across the still water. There really is nothing like it. The Beaver also has a skylight that extends towards the moonlit sky. Some nights it lets in blackness that sinks deep into the floorboards. Other nights we are lucky and it serves as a border to the hundreds of thousands of constellations that are scattered in blanket above.

You are all more than welcome to come visit her any time you'd like.

There's no place like home

It's true, I'm officially moved in to my yurt. It is beginning to feel more and more like home each day. The first day we moved in, I couldn't help but take ALL of my stuff out of their boxes and put them on shelves. I kept focusing on all the stupid little things that I knew would change anyways. Haha, Michelle and I decided it was backlash from living out of a one-person tent for the last month. Anyhow, it feels really good to have a "home" again. However, right now is an interesting transition for me--school doesn't start until Friday, Michelle has been gone since last Friday, and I don't really know anyone at Mosswood yet either. So, I guess you could say I'm flying solo for a bit. I have my other friends from Alderleaf, but their program started yesterday and since I don't have a car here, its a little hard to make plans. This will be good though, I have a few days to touch back in with myself, do some journaling, walk around my yurt naked, you know, the usual. :-)

I'm sure you all will be happy to know that I got that job I was talking about. I'll will be teaching a small group of home-schoolers AND I get to work underneath the founder and director of the whole school. Hawkeye seems to have amazing talent and vision so I think it will be a great opportunity for me to grow as a teacher. If you want to know more about it you can visit their website, quietheart.org. My bio and picture should be up in the staff section soon. They also run a summer camp that I'm going to look into for the summer (don't worry Primitive Pursuits, I'm not ditching... but you didn't REALLY expect me to never get a feel for some other places, did you?) :-) 

On that note, I'm excited to say that for my ticket back to WA from winter break in NY, I'm buying a one-way. It just hit me that I have no idea what I'll want to be doing at that point: traveling, working, exploring, etc. Hah. Wow. I've never before bought a one-way ticket anywhere. But, don't worry everyone, I will be coming back to NY to finish up my final year at ESF, no doubt about it. 

Oh, so something else exciting: I've stopped eating dairy. Not necessarily permanently, but I wanted to see how my body would feel without it. There was a point at Alderleaf when I realized I hadn't eaten dairy more than like three or four time for the entire month. Plus, I have been talking to a lot of people about how weird the concept of dairy is, and I figured now was a better time than ever to try out a dietary change. Think about it--we are the only species who drink milk past infancy, especially the milk intended for the babies of a different species. Our bodies were not adapt to even process lactose until very recently, in fact it is actually a mutation. Plus, it causes our bodies to react badly, forming excess mucus, bloating, etc. AND the reason more calcium in the bones is attributed to milk consumption is that alkaline calcium is stored in the bones and released to combat acidity in the body, which, might I add, is caused by the metabolism of dairy products. (Sorry for nerding out there.) But, on the opposite hand, I freakin' love milk, and cheese, and butter, and yogurt, and mmmm... Yeah. So we'll see. Everything is experimental. 

Okay well, I feel like there's a lot less to write about right now. I'm really just hanging out until the year gets moving. It has been really nice to get back in touch with many of you this week, and I hope that continues as the school year progresses. I've got orientation on Friday, and then our actually classes begin on Monday with a weeklong camp-out on Linne Doran. I'll keep you guys updated if anything exciting happens. 

Well, today is my last day here at Alderleaf. Tomorrow morning Michelle is picking me up and we are movin' in! Yes, yes, this is another bittersweet one for me. I have fallen in love with this land, the farm, and the people that reside here. But, this isn't really goodbye for me... I plan on stopping by once, maybe even twice a week--potlucks, farm days, frisbee tournaments, slack-lining, Settler's of Catan, etc.
I've been taking a break from the garden this week and putting my mind and energy into other things. Finally made my first West-coast bowdrill kit: western red cedar (Thuja plicata). I also had my first attempt at using cedar root as a natural bow cord. No coal yet, but perhaps I'm close... a few adjustments away I hope.
I've also sunk my hands back into brain-tanning. Wahoo! It's funny how much I miss it when I go long periods without working some skin. I gave Vita and Frog each a muskrat hide (Ondatra zibethicus) and am teaching them fur-on egg-tanning. I haven't used eggs much myself, so it's a good learning experience for me as well. My hands and mind have been so itching for projects lately... I didn't realize how absolutely obsessed I am with crafts until the last week or so. It's hard here because I'm lacking tools, materials, and personal space. Last night I lay in "bed" for 3 plus hours, skills to learn, ideas for crafts, projects to work, tools to buy, etc., etc., running/flying through my brain. I would periodically turn on my flashlight, jot down some notes, then lay back down, head still spinning. It was a really strange experience, but good. I feel like I finally released a lot of the mush that was beginning to traffic jam. In fact, here's some things I jotted down. If there's anything anyone knows how to do and would be interested in sharing/teaching their knowledge, let me know. Even good websites or classes... anything helps.
Skills I want to learn:
-Food storage--canning, dehydration, jerky, pickling, fermentation, etc.
-Saving seed--processing and storage
-Pottery--preparing the clay, primitive firing, glazes or coloration
-Knitting--more advanced stitches, patterns, etc.
-Natural dyes--especially for wool
-Natural soap making
-Butchering and filleting
-Woodworking/construction--specifically creating joints, pegs, etc. without use of metal
-Raising bees and harvesting honey/beeswax
-Tapping trees for syrup and sugar

Oh boy. Just thinking about it makes me sooooo excited. I know I'm going to be away from you all for a long while, but when I'm back you all best be ready to dive right in to all of this with me. :-) (AND MORE!)
What else... On Friday I'm meeting with the director of a children's nature camp for a possible job instructing one day a week. It would be really good to have at least some income while I'm here. Plus it's right up my alley. I've found it to be very fun finding similarities between skills and games even all the way across the country. So many of the same names, games, challenges, and crafts. Played foxtails in the field yesterday and I felt like I was right there out in front of Kiwanis.
While I'm thinking of it, for those of you interested in sending mail: letters, care packages, money, chocolate, etc... :-) my mailing address will be as follows:

Estelle Waterman

c/o Mosswood Hollow

20215 320th Ave. NE

Duvall, WA 98019

I've also been slowing the clock, passing time, being a kid. Frog and I have been taking adventures across the creek, time traveling it seems. We spend hours at a time crawling through bushes, searching the ground for animal hairs, trailing deer, studying mountain beaver sign (Aplodontia rufa), climbing trees, skipping rocks, balancing on fallen logs, sleeping in beds of moss, dancing with the river, you know... being alive.
It's a rainy one here today. I think only the third one since I've been here, actually. Haha. I know, I know... winter's coming. The.rain.is.coming. And I'm going now. Peace be with you all.