August 2, 2006: Highland Park & Ithaca
It was about noon by the time we had gotten our things together, thanked our hosts, and said farewell. We gassed up the car and headed northeast, leaving behind a 100-degree heat wave for the beautiful rolling hills of the Catskill Mountains. I wondered why they had been named the Catskills ("cat creek" in Dutch as it turns out) but even more why they had been named mountains; I figure that anything I could easily climb without the benefit of special clothing, equipment, or training doesn’t deserve the name.
We met our friends Deanna and Bill six years ago when she was a student at Bastyr University in Seattle and he was a schoolteacher. They were members of an attachment parenting group we also belonged to. About four years ago they moved to Ithaca, a quiet, charming college town, home to Cornell University, Bill’s alma mater, where Deanna started practicing as a naturopathic doctor. Bill helps run her burgeoning business and provides childcare for their two daughters, Sarah, 8, and Rachel, 5.
They live at EcoVillage, a bucolic 60-home intentional community (one based on a shared ideal) at the end of a gravel road in the countryside overlooking Ithaca and the Cayuga Valley. It’s composed of energy-efficient houses, some with solar panels on the roof; common buildings in which they regularly share meals; and a collection of small organic farms.
More EcoVillages are being built all over the world, including the Seattle area. It’s very satisfying to see how the community and the larger movement have both grown and prospered despite the occasional, inevitable disagreements among residents.
When we last visited, three years ago, Bill and Deanna lived in FRoG (the First Residents’ Group), but they built a new house in SoNG (the Second Neighborhood Group). Though their hemlock-sided home looks rustic from the outside, it’s spacious, comfortable, and well-designed inside.
One of Deanna's clients built a cute playhouse in the back garden in trade for her services.
We drove downtown with Bill and the girls to meet Deanna at her office and have dinner with them at the Lost Dog, just off the Ithaca Commons. We spoke of the stresses of starting a business and building a house, of whether or not they might have another child, and of the fascination kids have with computer games.
With Bill and the girls, the boys and I enjoyed a long, splashing evening in the pond, where we talked and played with their neighbors.
The pond is everyone's favorite meeting spot in the summer.
Debbie went with Deanna to pick some vegetables in their garden.
Before they went to bed, the girls showed the boys their pet rabbit.
Bill and Deanna were very generous to offer us a place to stay the night, since they are leaving this weekend for two weeks in Seattle with Deanna’s parents and in Portland at a naturopathic conference. When we return to Seattle, we hope to spend some time with them at Woodland Park Zoo or the Pacific Science Center.
We met our friends Deanna and Bill six years ago when she was a student at Bastyr University in Seattle and he was a schoolteacher. They were members of an attachment parenting group we also belonged to. About four years ago they moved to Ithaca, a quiet, charming college town, home to Cornell University, Bill’s alma mater, where Deanna started practicing as a naturopathic doctor. Bill helps run her burgeoning business and provides childcare for their two daughters, Sarah, 8, and Rachel, 5.
They live at EcoVillage, a bucolic 60-home intentional community (one based on a shared ideal) at the end of a gravel road in the countryside overlooking Ithaca and the Cayuga Valley. It’s composed of energy-efficient houses, some with solar panels on the roof; common buildings in which they regularly share meals; and a collection of small organic farms.More EcoVillages are being built all over the world, including the Seattle area. It’s very satisfying to see how the community and the larger movement have both grown and prospered despite the occasional, inevitable disagreements among residents.
When we last visited, three years ago, Bill and Deanna lived in FRoG (the First Residents’ Group), but they built a new house in SoNG (the Second Neighborhood Group). Though their hemlock-sided home looks rustic from the outside, it’s spacious, comfortable, and well-designed inside.
One of Deanna's clients built a cute playhouse in the back garden in trade for her services.
We drove downtown with Bill and the girls to meet Deanna at her office and have dinner with them at the Lost Dog, just off the Ithaca Commons. We spoke of the stresses of starting a business and building a house, of whether or not they might have another child, and of the fascination kids have with computer games.
With Bill and the girls, the boys and I enjoyed a long, splashing evening in the pond, where we talked and played with their neighbors.
The pond is everyone's favorite meeting spot in the summer.
Debbie went with Deanna to pick some vegetables in their garden.
Before they went to bed, the girls showed the boys their pet rabbit.
Bill and Deanna were very generous to offer us a place to stay the night, since they are leaving this weekend for two weeks in Seattle with Deanna’s parents and in Portland at a naturopathic conference. When we return to Seattle, we hope to spend some time with them at Woodland Park Zoo or the Pacific Science Center.
posted by Tom & Debbie at
9:17 AM
|
0 comments
